The Blood Debt is Due

Ji Ning brought out a set of Pure Yang Dharma-treasures, the 'Vast Nine Orbs,' which he had carefully chosen from the Treasure Hall. It was arguably the most valuable Pure Yang treasure he could currently select. Back then, Daofist Threelives had left some powerful Pure Yang treasures in the Treasure Hall, and naturally, they were not poor items; at the very least, they were high-grade Pure Yang.

However, there were simply too few Pure Yang treasures. Even the collection of Daofist Threelives was not extensive. After Ji Ning had passed the ninth floor of the War God Hall and went to choose, he could only pick from eighteen Pure Yang treasures.

And so...

He chose the most expensive one, the Vast Nine Orbs. This set of treasures consisted of nine orbs that were high-grade Pure Yang, with a single core orb that was a top-grade Pure Yang treasure. Furthermore, this set of treasures was an extremely rare 'World-type' treasure. It could be used to smash enemies directly, like a small world crashing down, or it could unleash layers of world-pressuring force to trap an enemy, making them feel as if they were stuck in a quagmire. This was far superior to the 'Ancient River' of the Thousandbull Swords. This kind of 'World-type' Pure Yang treasure was already rare and precious. Just this single set of Pure Yang treasures was estimated to be worth four or five normal top-grade Pure Yang treasures.

"The Fuxi Staff Formation, the strange items on the beast skin, and the arrows are all trivial matters," the Celestial Fox said helplessly. "If you wanted twenty top-grade Pure Yang elixirs, my master could also gather them for you. But this bowstring... what you're asking for is too high. Such a bowstring is not easy to find."

"Of the treasures I'm asking for, the Pure Yang elixirs could probably be gathered by any True Immortal or Empyrean God who just asks a few friends. The most important thing is this bowstring. If not for the bowstring, I wouldn't be willing to exchange this set of Pure Yang treasures," Ji Ning said. "The Xia Emperor is from the ancient imperial clan. An ordinary True Immortal or Empyrean God might not be able to produce this bowstring, but I believe the Xia Emperor can."

Having stayed at Mount Innerheart, Ji Ning was well aware of the power of the ancient imperial clan.

In the ancient Pangu World...

At that time, there were no 'three thousand major worlds' or 'countless minor worlds.' There was only one ancient Pangu World! During that era, the 'Ancient Imperial Clan' ruled the entire human race! There were many Daofather-level grandmasters within it. Although the ancient Pangu World had shattered and the ancient imperial clan had lost its former prestige, the Xia Emperor was merely a member of that ancient imperial clan. The Xiamang clan was merely a branch of it. Even so... the Xia Emperor's foundation was still not something an ordinary True Immortal or Empyrean God could compare to.

...

In a dark space.

A black-robed emperor was sitting cross-legged. He opened his eyes. "The Vast Nine Orbs? They've actually fallen into the hands of this Ji Ning. How can a little fellow who hasn't even crossed his Heavenly Tribulation produce a set of Pure Yang treasures? And such a rare set at that? Strange. Truly strange..."

Such a bizarre occurrence could be explained with a simple word—luck!

With such immense luck, one could defy the heavens!

"The great calamity is approaching. A Pure Yang treasure like the Vast Nine Orbs will attract the covetous eyes of many True Immortals and Empyrean Gods," the black-robed emperor mused to himself. "The bowstring... it seems I'll have to go see my uncle."

The Xia Emperor had long ago separated from the main ancient imperial clan, establishing his own branch, the Xiamang clan.

Thus, he rarely went to see other members of the ancient imperial clan.

...

"My master has spoken," the Celestial Fox said, looking at Ji Ning.

Ji Ning immediately listened carefully.

"He can agree to everything else, but this one bowstring will take a moment," the Celestial Fox explained. "My master is trying to figure out how to find one. You know, the bowstring you're asking for is one of the top bowstrings in all the Three Realms."

Ji Ning nodded gently. "I'm not in a hurry."

In normal times, it would be hard to say whether a set of Vast Nine Orbs could be exchanged for all these treasures, but with the great calamity approaching, the Vast Nine Orbs could be used immediately. A bowstring, however, needed to be paired with a truly superior bow body. Which of the top archers in the Three Realms didn't already have their own commonly used bows? So, at this time, Ji Ning believed the Xia Emperor would help.

"As a member of the ancient imperial clan, a disciple of Daofather Crimsonbright, and according to legend, a sworn brother of Daofather Yinglong... finding this kind of bowstring is difficult. But the Xia Emperor should be able to do it," Ji Ning waited.

The Celestial Fox also temporarily took their leave.

Time passed.

After just two hours, at dusk, the Celestial Fox arrived once more.

"Seeing Senior Celestial Fox here, I guessed that the bowstring had been found," Ji Ning said with a smile.

"My master spent quite some effort but finally found this bowstring for you," the Celestial Fox said, also smiling. They directly tossed a golden gourd to Ji Ning. "All the treasures you asked for are inside this gourd. Take a careful look." Within the Grand Xia capital, they weren't worried about Ji Ning taking the treasures and running.

Not to mention Ji Ning, even True Immortals and Empyrean Gods of the Seamless Gate or the Ten Thousand Demon Cave wouldn't dare to provoke the Xia Emperor within the Grand Xia capital.

"Quite a generous gift. This gourd alone is a top-grade Immortal-ranked treasure, containing a small spatial pocket," Ji Ning said with a laugh.

"Consider it a gift," the Celestial Fox said casually.

Ji Ning took the golden gourd and carefully investigated it. Inside the golden gourd floated dense clusters of potent elixirs. Each elixir possessed shocking, pure, and refined Yuan power; they were all Pure Yang-grade elixirs. There were also large quantities of strange items floating about, which Uncle White would use for formations. There was also a set of Fuxi Staves, also prepared for Uncle White. The more superior the Fuxi Staff formation, the greater its power.

"The bowstring... the arrows..." Ji Ning looked with immense satisfaction.

A black bowstring was suspended within the golden gourd, and next to it were several hundred fiery red arrows. Of course, these arrows were only high-grade Immortal-ranked.

Inside the aquatic manor.

"Haha, another bowstring has arrived." The nearby black-robed youth was extremely excited. "Master, you really are something. You haven't even become a Celestial Immortal, and yet you were able to acquire such a fine bowstring. Although it's just a bowstring, it's even rarer and more precious than a normal top-grade Pure Yang spirit-treasure."

Ji Ning smiled, but he personally began to attach the bowstring to the bow body.

When it was fully connected...

"Rumble..."

The great black bow directly floated in midair. Layers of black, watery light began to emerge on the bow's body. Although the bow's body shone with black, watery light, when it reached the bowstring, it transformed into fiery light.

"Hahaha... With this bowstring, it's almost comparable to how it was in ancient times," the black-robed youth said excitedly.

Ji Ning nodded with a smile.

The Rahu Bow was a high-grade innate spirit-treasure. Logically speaking, a normal high-grade innate spirit-treasure shouldn't be easy to damage. But its bowstring had broken. This was because the bow's body and the bowstring were fundamentally different. The bowstring was relatively more fragile. Even for True Gods, it was possible to pull a divine bowstring until it snapped. If your power increased greatly and you pulled too hard, snap, the string would break! Once it broke, you just switched to a better one. This was also why, even after the bowstring had snapped, the Rahu Bow could still draw upon the power of Heaven and Earth to attack Ji Ning.

"Now that I have my divine bow, I have arrows, and my Starseizing Hand has reached the fourth cycle. Although my 'Houyi Archery' is only at the entry-level, I can still release an extremely powerful burst of force," Ji Ning thought with anticipation.

His archery was only at the entry-level, but that was compared to the 'Houyi Archery.' In the Three Realms, Ji Ning could already be considered a master archer, as he was able to use 'Heartforce.'

Heartforce was mysterious and unpredictable!

It was different from all other forms of power, even difficult to touch, but 'Heartforce' was incredibly powerful. Within the Three Realms, the ability to use 'Heartforce' was a threshold for becoming a divine archer. Ji Ning had clearly crossed that threshold, and he also understood the profound techniques of divine power movement within the Houyi Archery.

Paired with a high-grade innate spirit-treasure divine bow! Paired with the power of the Starseizing Hand!

"When I cultivate the Houyi Archery to a profound level, I'll be able to easily kill enemies from a million li away," Ji Ning thought with anticipation.

...

Immediately after, Ji Ning entered the secret chamber of the aquatic manor to cultivate the Eight-Nine Arcane Art. His previous battle with the Bloodsnow Fiendgod had made Ji Ning realize that, while he seemed impervious to blades and spears, if he encountered a True Immortal or Empyrean God, they could probably crush him easily. Thus, it was best to improve as quickly as possible. After all, with the great calamity of the Three Realms approaching, having a few more methods of survival was never a bad thing.

Since he was about to have a true showdown with the Shao Yan clan, how could he not have some life-preserving techniques?

"Gulp." Ji Ning ate the elixirs like candy beans, constantly refining them.

To cultivate the Eight-Nine Arcane Art to the third cycle, one needed one hundred high-grade Immortal-ranked elixirs.

To cultivate it to the sixth cycle required roughly a thousand times that, a full one hundred thousand high-grade Immortal-ranked elixirs! That was equivalent to about one hundred top-grade Pure Yang elixirs. If exchanged for treasures, a single set of Vast Nine Orbs was not enough. This time, Ji Ning had only managed to acquire Pure Yang elixirs equivalent to about twenty top-grade Pure Yang elixirs in terms of Yuan power.

"Rumble, rumble..."

Ji Ning's body rumbled constantly. His bones sounded like great mountains colliding, his muscles felt like two continents crashing together. His divine body was continuously tempered and strengthened.

The fourth cycle of the Eight-Nine Arcane Art! Completed!

The fifth cycle of the Eight-Nine Arcane Art! Completed!

"Whew." Ji Ning stopped.

"Using half of the elixirs, I've cultivated the Eight-Nine Arcane Art to the fifth cycle. As for the remaining elixirs... I'll keep them. In a life-and-death battle, Yuan power is consumed too quickly. These elixirs can easily replenish it. Now, my divine body is comparable to a high-grade Immortal-ranked treasure," Ji Ning felt the terrifying power contained in every single gesture of his body.

His divine body itself was now a Dharma treasure!

Even his movements were swifter.

...

Ji Ning left Heavenly Treasures Mountain. Although only two days had passed since he entered, Ji Ning's strength had already undergone a shocking improvement. The fourth cycle of the Starseizing Hand, the fifth cycle of the Eight-Nine Arcane Art, a perfectly intact Rahu Bow... and even Formation Master Uncle White's strength had greatly increased.

"Yan King Manor."

Ji Ning arrived outside the Yan King Manor. Since he was about to make a move against the Shao Yan clan, how could Ji Ning forget about his cousin, Yuchi Xiyue, who hated the Shao Yan clan the most and would do anything for vengeance?

Without even needing to announce himself, Ji Ning entered the manor and soon met Yuchi Xiyue.

"Cousin." Ji Ning and Yuchi Xiyue were alone in a pavilion. With a thought, he completely sealed off the area around them.

"What's wrong?" Yuchi Xiyue asked, seeing his serious manner.

"The Shao Yan clan... it's time to repay their blood debt," Ji Ning said in a low voice.

Yuchi Xiyue was shocked, and she abruptly stood up.