The Hidden Background and the Dragon's Eye

Fuhai was a figure of renown throughout the Three Realms. He was a demon who had cultivated to become an Empyrean God; those who wished to be polite addressed him as ‘God’ or ‘Great Sage’. In truth, however, the Fuhai God was unruly, overbearing, and vicious. In private, most simply called him a Demon King.

The slovenly, fat youth was indeed startled. The ferocious aura emanating from the Fuhai God was the most terrifying thing in the entire main hall of the Heavenly Tribute Palace, enough to make even the Celestial Immortals present tremble with fear. How could he, a mere Wanxiang Adept, not be daunted?

“I… I am.” The slovenly youth stood up.

“Oh?” Fuhai turned his head, nodded in satisfaction, and revealed a trace of a smile. “You really are slovenly enough.”

As he spoke, he walked over, grabbed the slovenly youth by the arm, and directly dragged him towards the seat next to the Grand Xia Emperor, where a new table had already been placed, laden with Immortal wine and Immortal fruits.

The slovenly youth’s heart was filled with unease, but the Fuhai God before him was far too powerful. With his arm held tight, he couldn't resist at all.

‘What in the world is going on? Why would this ferocious man in the deep green flood dragon armor come looking for me the moment he entered the Heavenly Tribute Palace? Someone like him, to whom even the Grand Xia Emperor acts with such courtesy… I don’t know anyone so formidable!’ The slovenly youth’s heart was in chaos, but he could only take things one step at a time.

At the same time, he noticed that the nearly one thousand Celestial Immortals were all looking at him… with envy! They were even greeting him with smiles.

‘I’m just a loser who was eliminated. Why are these Immortal Patriarchs being so polite to me? And… are they envious of me?’ Countless thoughts surged through the slovenly youth’s mind.

“Little junior apprentice-brother, come, sit.”

Fuhai sat down first, then pulled the slovenly youth to sit beside him.

“Junior… apprentice-brother?” The slovenly youth was stunned.

“Fuhai, it seems your little junior apprentice-brother has no idea what’s going on.” The Xia Emperor laughed.

Fuhai turned to look at the bewildered slovenly youth and said extremely directly, “Little junior apprentice-brother, our master ordered me to come to the ‘Grand Xia World,’ one of the Three Thousand Major Worlds, to fetch you!”

“Senior, are you sure you have the right person?” The slovenly youth asked, his heart filled with anxiety.

He didn’t know this person before him at all.

“Little slovenly one.” Lu Dongbin chuckled. “The man before you is Fuhai God, a disciple of the Dark North Emperor! Fuhai God is not merely an Empyrean God; he has also cultivated his Ki Refining to the Pure Yang True Immortal level. He is a figure of great renown in the Three Realms. Not long ago, he even smashed up the Heavenly Court once.”

“Empyrean God? Pure Yang True Immortal? Smashed the Heavenly Court?” The slovenly youth looked at the fierce, aggressive man before him, utterly astonished.

“Hahaha…” Fuhai laughed heartily, patting the slovenly youth on the shoulder. “Little junior apprentice-brother, I have come on our master’s orders to fetch you. Master said you participated in this Immortal Fortunes Assembly. He even said you were a disciple of the Black-White College, named Zhang Qi, the Slovenly Daoist. Among all the Black-White College disciples at this assembly, there can’t be a second Zhang Qi, the Slovenly Daoist, can there?”

The slovenly youth nodded.

The Black-White College had only sent three disciples to this assembly. Of course, he was the only one called the Slovenly Daoist.

“Little slovenly one.” The Xia Emperor also laughed. “Stop doubting. The divine ability you used earlier was called the ‘Dark North Grand Divine Ability,’ correct?”

“Yes.” The slovenly youth nodded.

“The Dark North Grand Divine Ability was created by the Dark North Emperor. Without his permission, you never could have learned it.” The Xia Emperor smiled. “You might not have realized it, but the Dark North Emperor had already taken you as his disciple long ago. The Dark North Emperor is a major power of the Three Realms, a Daofather-level existence, just like my own master. When we saw you use that divine ability during the assembly, we had already guessed that you were the Dark North Emperor’s disciple.”

The slovenly youth recalled his past fortune.

‘So… it was the Dark North Emperor.’ The slovenly youth was dazed.

So…

He had never needed to fight tooth and nail to become Daofather Crimsonbright’s disciple. He had already been the Dark North Emperor’s disciple all along.

Still, this Immortal Fortunes Assembly had been a great help to him. His comprehension of the Dao, especially his ‘Stacked Waves Secret Art,’ had reached an extremely profound level.

“Little junior apprentice-brother, since you’ve learned the Dark North Grand Divine Ability, there’s no mistake. Without Master’s permission, you never could have learned it.” Fuhai understood this very well. To be chosen as a disciple by the master while still only a Wanxiang Adept, perhaps even earlier… it was clear that this slovenly youth was very favored by their master. It would be wise to get on good terms with him.

He himself got into a lot of trouble. In the future, when his little junior apprentice-brother grew strong, he might be able to lend a hand.

A good man needs three helpers. The more powerful allies one had by one’s side, the more confident one felt in the Three Realms!

“Disciple greets you, Senior Apprentice-Brother.” The slovenly youth immediately performed the proper rites.

“Haha, no need for such formality!” Fuhai was immensely delighted. “Last time I smashed up the Heavenly Court, Master confined me to my quarters. It’s rare I get to come out. I ran into Donghua and Old Man Beidi along the way, so I had a few drinks… In a little while, we’ll go back to see Master.”

“I will follow Senior Apprentice-Brother’s arrangements in all things.” The slovenly youth was naturally very compliant.

Fuhai patted the slovenly youth on the shoulder. “Junior apprentice-brother, you have a good temperament.”

“Donghua, this Grand Xia World is just hosting an Immortal Fortunes Assembly. Why have a whole group of you shown up?” Fuhai swept his gaze across the hall and asked. He found it strange. Pure Yang True Immortals were already considered powerful beings in the Three Realms. For nine of them to gather together was an exceedingly rare sight.

“This Immortal Fortunes Assembly is special. Daofather Crimsonbright will be choosing a disciple from among the top three.” Lu Dongbin laughed. “Counting this little slovenly one, this assembly has produced two Daofather disciples already.”

“What? Daofather Crimsonbright is taking a disciple?” Fuhai looked at the Xia Emperor. “Who did he choose? Let me have a look.”

“The top three of this assembly are Ji Ning, Blackstone, and Muchuan…” the Xia Emperor said. “As for which one my master will choose, my second true body is currently on its way to Master’s cave estate… We will have to wait a while longer for the result.”

Fuhai nodded quickly, his eyes shining with anticipation.

Daofather Crimsonbright taking a disciple? That was a rare event indeed. After being confined for so many years, he was bored out of his mind.

“Come, let’s drink while we wait. Xiamang, your clan is an ancient imperial bloodline… Make sure you prepare plenty of good wine.” Fuhai immediately began gulping down his drink. The corner of the Xia Emperor’s eye twitched. The other Immortals drank with grace, but this ‘Great Sage’ Fuhai was originally a Flood Dragon. Drinking an entire river dry was nothing to him, and his consumption of Immortal wine was just as ferocious.

The Grand Xia imperial treasury was located on the sixth level of the Heavenly Tribute Palace.

“Here lie the abridged manuals of all the Daoscriptures in the Grand Xia imperial collection.” King Qi said, pointing at the countless books and scrolls that stretched as far as the eye could see. “You may each choose one divine ability or one secret art. Only one!”

Ji Ning, Blackstone, and Muchuan all nodded.

Although their hearts were preoccupied with the matter of Daofather Crimsonbright choosing a disciple, they set it aside for the moment. The three of them began to peruse the Daoscriptures.

Soon, they arrived before a massive, eye-catching black jade table.

On this massive black jade table were placed the abridged manuals of divine abilities! On another white jade table were the abridged manuals of precious secret arts.

‘Uprooting Mountains and Inverting Seas’ ‘Heaven and Earth Arrow’ ‘Ten Thousand Venoms Stinger’ ‘Illusory Phantom’

Ji Ning and the other two picked up one divine ability manual after another, flipping through them. Each of these manuals had certain conditions listed within. One had to meet specific requirements before they could cultivate the technique… These conditions were all set for the members of the Grand Xia imperial clan. Ji Ning and the other two, however, were free to choose.

They read for a long time…

They also looked at the secret arts. In the end, Ji Ning, Muchuan, and Blackstone all chose the same divine ability without hesitation: ‘Zhulong’s Eye’!

“Are you sure you’ve chosen Zhulong’s Eye?” King Qi asked.

“Yes.” Ji Ning, Muchuan, and Blackstone all nodded in unison.

“Fine.” King Qi revealed a smile. “Then come with me.”

He was quite pleased that all three had chosen Zhulong’s Eye. This divine ability was fairly widespread among the more powerful experts of the Three Realms.

Still, this ‘Zhulong’s Eye’ was indeed the strongest divine ability in the Grand Xia imperial treasury! Although it was only the first half, it was still a technique worthy of being ranked in the top one hundred among all divine abilities in the Three Realms.

“Rumble…” The stone door opened.

King Qi led Ji Ning into the stone chamber. Within the room, bamboo scrolls were floating in the air, each one radiating a hazy glow, with restrictive seals attached to their surfaces.

“This is the bamboo scroll for Zhulong’s Eye.” King Qi pointed at one of the scrolls. “The restrictive seal on this one has been removed. The rest still have their seals and cannot be touched.”

“You only need to touch the bamboo scroll with your hand, and the vast amount of information contained within will be transmitted directly into your soul.” King Qi said, “Fortunately, this is only the first half of Zhulong’s Eye, so the inheritance won’t take too long. For each person, it will take at most the time it takes to finish a cup of tea.”

Ji Ning understood this well.

Divine abilities grew more complex the higher the level. The part meant for Empyrean Gods to cultivate was probably over a thousand times more complex than the part meant for the Void level. And the part meant for True Gods was another thousand times more complex than the Empyrean God part.

That was why it had taken Ji Ning several months just to accept the complete inheritance of the ‘Starseizing Hand.’

“Ji Ning, you first.” King Qi said.

Ji Ning nodded, reached out his hand, and placed it on the floating bamboo scroll.

The moment he touched it!

“Boom!” A vast torrent of information instantly flooded into his soul. Although the transmission was not as efficient as when he had accepted the ‘Starseizing Hand’ inheritance, his soul was now far more powerful, and the rate of absorption was also much faster. In a brief moment, the entire first half of the ‘Zhulong’s Eye’ had been transmitted into Ji Ning’s soul.

“So that’s how it is.” Ji Ning was secretly delighted.

The Zhulong’s Eye…

Was a divine ability created by the great power of the Three Realms, ‘Zhulong.’ This technique had a very great reputation! Legends often contained phrases like ‘Zhulong’s Eye’ and ‘Houyi Shoots the Suns.’ Now, having seen the true method of cultivation and its might, Ji Ning was inwardly amazed.

This Zhulong’s Eye, to put it simply, involved collecting the Nine Heavens Aurora into the eyes, and then cultivating them to produce a ‘Lifebound Candle Light.’

“Although it’s only the first half, it can be practiced up to the Fiendgod Body Refining Void level. That’s enough. After all, the next step is to transcend the tribulation and become an Empyrean God. Once I become an Empyrean God, I’ll be on the same level as the Xia Emperor. I can definitely find the second half of the Zhulong’s Eye myself.” Ji Ning was extremely excited.

Aside from the Starseizing Hand, he finally had another true grand divine ability.

Ji Ning, Muchuan, and Blackstone were all immersed in comprehending the contents of Zhulong’s Eye, each feeling great joy in their hearts. This was a technique on par with the ‘Dark North Grand Divine Ability.’ If it weren’t for Zhulong having already perished, they would never have had the chance to learn it.

“Alright.” King Qi suddenly called out.

Ji Ning, Muchuan, and Blackstone all lifted their heads to look at him.

“His Imperial Majesty has just sent me a message,” King Qi said. “Daofather Crimsonbright has chosen his disciple. The three of you must immediately follow me to the main hall to meet His Majesty.”