The Politics of Power and a Secret Art

The gaze of Daoist Three Purities, whose eyes had always remained half-lidded as if lost in thought, suddenly sharpened. His stare, like a piercing sword, fell upon the Heavenly Thundergod. "Thundergod, this matter does not concern only you. It concerns the countless living beings of our side. How can we be careless in passing on a divine ability? If we make a single wrong step and the Seamless Gate gets their hands on it, we might lose this entire calamity. That would be an eternal damnation from which there is no return!"

"I know that. But do you think I am a traitor?" the Heavenly Thundergod refused to yield.

Daoist Three Purities said calmly, "I know you are very eager to learn this, and you believe you have a high chance of succeeding."

"Of course!" the Heavenly Thundergod retorted. "Ji Ning was able to master it. I am the unrivaled master of lightning and thunder in the Three Realms. How could I fail?" He swept his gaze over Ji Ning, who was standing beside Bodhi. His look was one of haughty condescension, followed by brimming self-confidence. "I am most familiar with the Nine-Horned Lightning Serpent. I only need a slight hint from this technique to perhaps master it directly."

"Arrogant enough."

A deep, majestic voice rang out.

The Heavenly Thundergod immediately turned his head to look. He found that the speaker was Suiren, clad in beast hides. Suiren's beard and hair were like writhing dragons and snakes, and his gaze alone caused the Heavenly Thundergod's heart to quiver. This most ancient and powerful being of the human race… had once forced even the Primordial Fiendgod 'Zhurong' to bow his head in admission of inferiority. In those days, Suiren had fought across the eight directions to protect humanity, and the Heavenly Thundergod had been thoroughly beaten by him back then.

"Most of the great powers present here have a clear understanding of the overall situation and know what is important." Suiren glanced at the Heavenly Thundergod, then swept his gaze across the assembly. "However, I believe you are all quite curious about this divine teleportation technique. So, I will let you take a look."

"No!"

"Human Sovereign, you cannot!"

"Absolutely not!"

Many of the great powers immediately called out in alarm.

"If there truly is a spy among us, it will be disastrous," the Carefree Daoist said urgently.

The Heavenly Thundergod, however, had a gleam in his eyes. If he could truly obtain this technique, it would be magnificent.

"No need to worry," Suiren said. "I will only release a small portion of the content of this divine teleportation technique's cultivation method. This small part merely describes one of the many difficulties in cultivating this technique. I believe that after seeing this small portion… you will all understand just how incredibly difficult it is to cultivate this teleportation technique."

As he finished speaking, flames began to condense in the surrounding void. Each flame formed a character, and in an instant, a dense, sky-covering text appeared across ten thousand li of space, recording a fragment of the method.

All the great powers present immediately looked at it.

"Ning?" Ji Ning, who was standing off to the side, also looked. "It really is the Lightning-Serpent Teleportation…"

"No. There are modifications."

Ji Ning finished reading it quickly. He continued to stand silently by the side, obediently not saying a word, but he was secretly astounded.

The content Suiren had made public was the part of the Lightning-Serpent Teleportation about taming the Nine-Horned Lightning Serpent. The original method recorded that one of the three—Chaos Nectar, Thunder-Alloy Godcrystal, or Stasiswarp Fruit—must be used to guarantee success! However, the method Suiren had released added another condition beyond these three:

——Use Heartforce to communicate with the Nine-Horned Lightning Serpent, and then tame it.

"You have all seen it," Suiren's majestic voice echoed through the void. "This is the final part of cultivating the Lightning-Serpent Teleportation method: 'Taming the Nine-Horned Lightning Serpent.' It can be accomplished with Chaos Nectar. It can be accomplished with a Thunder-Alloy Godcrystal. It can be accomplished with a Stasiswarp Fruit. But do you possess any of these? Does the entire Three Realms contain any of these three precious treasures?"

A dead silence fell.

Everyone was wracking their brains.

These great powers had obtained various techniques from the chaos foreigners they had slain. They had also heard of Chaos Nectar, Thunder-Alloy Godcrystals, and Stasiswarp Fruits. These three rare items were extremely precious even in the endless Chaos. The Three Realms did not have a single one!

"Without these three treasures, only the foolish and clumsy method remains," Suiren said. "Use Heartforce to communicate and tame the serpent. The Nine-Horned Lightning Serpent possesses spiritual nature; otherwise, taming it would be impossible. Taming it with Heartforce is exceptionally difficult. The hope is minuscule… We have all tried, but our attempts at taming it with Heartforce have all failed."

"In terms of Heartforce, I consider myself quite insightful, but I too was unable to tame it," Daoist Three Purities said with a shake of his head.

The assembled powers were all tongue-tied.

They five, plus Bodhi, made six in total. All had failed?

One must know that Daoist Three Purities and the others had almost all reached the fourth stage of Heartforce. Daoist Three Purities, in particular, was on par with Old Man Yuan himself in the application of Heartforce.

"On the contrary, little friend Ji Ning is extraordinarily talented in the application of Heartforce," Suiren said, looking at Ji Ning with an admiring tone. "In his mere decades of cultivation, he was able to comprehend the Heartforce Divine Sword method on his own. Later, during the Realm War, he comprehended the Heartforce Divine Soul method. And now, he has even successfully cultivated this 'Lightning-Serpent Teleportation.' I am truly impressed."

Ji Ning could feel the warmth and fondness in Human Sovereign Suiren's gaze. Being praised like this in front of so many great powers made Ji Ning feel somewhat ashamed, knowing it was actually due to Chaos Nectar that he had succeeded.

What he did not know…

Was that Suiren, as the most ancient great power of the human race, treated exceptionally brilliant juniors of his race as if they were his own descendants, naturally protective and loving. After all, Nuwa had only created so many people back then, and through generations of propagation, it was possible that Ji Ning even carried Suiren's bloodline.

Furthermore, among the very top powers, it was ultimately Suiren who had to cultivate the 'Lightning-Serpent Teleportation.' Suiren had always felt he owed Ji Ning for that.

...

"This method has several difficulties in its cultivation. What I have described now is only one of them." Suiren looked at the Heavenly Thundergod. "Thundergod, do you still believe you can master it? I recall, your Heartforce is only at the second stage, correct?"

The Heavenly Thundergod remained silent.

His heart was unwilling!

But he also understood that since even Daoist Three Purities and the others could not tame it with their Heartforce, his own chances were practically non-existent.

"So, Thundergod," Bodhi said coldly from the side, "don't assume that because Ji Ning can master it, you certainly can as well. For such a supreme teleportation technique, strength, talent, and opportunity are all absolutely indispensable!"

"A mere little Empyrean God and True Immortal is being compared to me?" the Heavenly Thundergod shouted, somewhat enraged and humiliated.

"Houyi was also merely an Empyrean God and True Immortal back in his day," Bodhi said calmly.

"You…"

The Heavenly Thundergod was furious.

"If you maintain this temper, I am afraid your Heartforce will have even greater difficulty breaking through," Bodhi said, then could not be bothered to say more.

Figures like the Heavenly Thundergod were born from the primordial chaos and were True Gods from birth! But there is gain and loss. They had never truly walked the path from weakness to strength step by step. Their spiritual tempering was insufficient. Therefore, these True Gods and Elder Gods born from chaos were all quite mediocre in Heartforce. Even Daoist Three Purities and Buddha Tathagata, who had once staked everything on reincarnation, had only reached the fourth stage of Heartforce. Those who had merely sent an incarnation to reincarnate were even weaker.

The Heavenly Thundergod was a textbook example.

Born powerful, exceptionally proud, and because his strength allowed him to naturally control the life and death of others, it fostered a violent and cruel disposition.

He looked down upon the weak from the very depths of his heart.

They were merely insignificant ants and crawling insects! He was a True God born from chaos. What were those weak little things?

"Let us go. As for how to pass on this method, we will discuss and find a way. We absolutely must not let the Seamless Gate gain any advantage," Daoist Three Purities declared.

"Let's go."

Immediately, the various incarnations quickly dissipated and departed. Immortal Yuqiu also tore through the void and left. The Heavenly Thundergod cast a glance at Ji Ning before finally departing as well. It was clear that the Heavenly Thundergod's anger had been transferred to Ji Ning. He had suffered a great loss of face in front of so many great powers, and the source of it all was this Ji Ning.

A mere little Empyrean God and True Immortal!

"Disciple, no need to mind that Thundergod," Bodhi said to Ji Ning with a smile. "He was born a True God; that was just luck. With a Dao-heart like his… he has already reached his limit now. He will not advance a single step further."

"How could your disciple be angry?" Ji Ning quickly said.

"Good." Bodhi nodded. "Go."

...

Within the World Prison, the vast endless sky was densely covered with countless divine runes. This profound grand formation was extracting the essence from the chaos, condensing it into Chaos Nectar.

Although Ji Ning had been negotiating with the Godking and had encountered the True Gods and Daofathers, his two other avatars assigned here continued their 'sweeping operations.'

Where did the 'Lightning-Serpent Teleportation' come from? It came from the World Prison!

Ji Ning understood this clearly.

This was an opportunity.

He had to seize it!

"I, the mighty 'Sky-Evading True God,' have dominated for several Chaos Cycles. I have slain a hundred weak little True Immortals like you. Never did I imagine that today I would die at the hands of an ant like you. What a joke. A complete joke!" A ragged True God, chained and with tattered clothes, roared towards the sky.

Boom!

The entire area exploded violently, the array restrictions quaking.

Outside the array restrictions, White-Robed Ji Ning, who had been maintaining the 'Eight Fire Calamity World,' felt the three flying swords within his body rapidly grow stronger by absorbing the violent energy and resentment. He had sent the Northsea Swords away, so he could not waste this resentment. Naturally, he had acquired three more swords to nurture, also naming them the Northsea Swords. Now he had a total of six Northsea Swords. "I was lucky this time. The True God I encountered had very little divine power left. It only took a few years to finish him. Pity, being imprisoned here, he was of high status and had too much pride."

Whoosh.

He quickly checked the treasures left behind by the Sky-Evading True God, then flew away.

Just half an hour later.

On a vast plain, chains extending from the void were binding a True Immortal dressed in magnificent golden robes.

"How strange. Most beings imprisoned here conserve their magic power, but this True Immortal has been maintaining his dharma treasure," White-Robed Ji Ning said, flying through the air.

"Is that… True Immortal Qifeng?" Ji Ning recognized his appearance from the many soul-searches he had performed. He had a good understanding of the Ninefang Chaosworld. This True Immortal had maintained his appearance and had not withered away to skin and bones, making him quite easy to recognize.

Ji Ning quickly flew over and landed.

"Warden?" The True Immortal in the magnificent golden robes looked at Ji Ning; suddenly, he frowned. "You…"

"The Ninefang Chaosworld has already been destroyed," Ji Ning said with a smile. "This World Prison has fallen into my hands. I cannot guard a treasure mountain and not enter it. So, you have two choices. One is to let me perform a soul-search, hand over your treasures, and live. The other is death. Before this, I have already encountered four True Gods and True Immortals. These are their treasures."

Whoosh.

A number of innate spirit-treasures appeared floating before Ji Ning. Their energy fluctuations were astonishing.

"Jinhou? Tianbi..." The originally calm True Immortal Qifeng's expression changed instantly. Those imprisoned here were all major figures of the Ninefang Chaosworld. The True Immortals Ji Ning had encountered so far were of the highest tier. He had not even come across second-tier ones. True Immortal Qifeng naturally knew how formidable the other four were.

"Ha…" True Immortal Qifeng laughed, looking at Ji Ning. "As a prisoner, what choice do I have? I wonder if you will release me in the future?"

"If I have the strength to do so, I will naturally release you," Ji Ning said.

True Immortal Qifeng nodded and closed his eyes.

Ji Ning was pleasantly surprised. This was the fifth True God or True Immortal he had encountered. The previous four had all taken a lot of time to deal with. But this one had submitted. He immediately reached out his hand. His palm swelled to hundreds of li in size and rested on the top of True Immortal Qifeng's head, beginning the soul-search.

Time passed, second by second.

"Hm?" Ji Ning suddenly paused.

"The Icefire Golden Core Refining Art?"

In the memories of True Immortal Qifeng, within one of the memory bubbles, unguarded by any life oath, a technique called the Icefire Golden Core Refining Art was discovered by Ji Ning. His divine soul naturally recorded it swiftly.

...

Ji Ning's hand, which had expanded to hundreds of li, quickly retracted and returned to normal. Ji Ning stood there, stunned.

"Icefire refinement."

"Nine-Yang Magma. Iceheart Marrow." Ji Ning muttered to himself.

"Was it fate?"

Ji Ning had just been looked down upon by the Heavenly Thundergod. Ji Ning had not been particularly angry at the time. His Heartforce had reached the fourth stage, and he was well aware that he was merely an Empyrean God and True Immortal. Although he now possessed a formidable teleportation technique, he was still far inferior to a top-tier Daofather like the Heavenly Thundergod. The other could easily kill him.

He could not blame others; he could only blame his own weakness.

To prove himself, he needed to cultivate to a level where he could stand as an equal. But he had never imagined that only a brief moment after the gathering of True Gods and Daofathers, in the World Prison, he would obtain a method to elevate his Golden Core.

"Methods to elevate the Golden Core all require external materials, rare chaos treasures." Ji Ning sighed softly. "I thought that even if I obtained this technique, actually elevating my Golden Core would be extremely difficult. I would need to search for chaos treasures. I might not even find them."

"However…"

"This 'Icefire Golden Core Refining Art' requires two chaos treasures: 'Nine-Yang Magma' and 'Iceheart Marrow.' Although difficult, I have a real chance."

Nine-Yang Magma…

Ji Ning had heard of it long ago. It existed within the Three Realms! After all, the Three Realms was born from the collision of two chaosworlds. There were many great powers who frequently traveled through the chaos, accumulating many such chaos treasures. The current treasury of the Human Imperial Clan held 'Nine-Yang Magma.' The Nuwa Alliance could exchange other treasures for it!

This 'Nine-Yang Magma,' a treasure found only in the chaos, could be easily obtained. It was not considered particularly precious in the Three Realms. So far, it had only been found useful in refining dharma treasures. No other use had been discovered yet.

Iceheart Marrow was not present in the Three Realms. However——

"The Iceheart Marrow is in the Underwater Moon Abyss!"

The Underwater Moon Abyss contained 'Iceheart Spirit Leaves,' which grew on the 'Iceheart Marrow.'

"That Seamless Gate Godking forced me to go to the Underwater Moon Abyss. Now, this technique to elevate my Golden Core also urgently requires Iceheart Marrow. It is perfect for me to go there," Ji Ning said. He suddenly felt that fate was wonderfully mysterious.

"Regardless, I must obtain the Iceheart Marrow! As long as I have these two chaos treasures, the Nine-Yang Magma and the Iceheart Marrow, and use the 'Icefire Golden Core Refining Art,' I will become a second-tier True Immortal, half a foot into the threshold of a Daofather." Ji Ning felt that, in this great calamity, he was beginning to gain the power to struggle.