Chapter Seventy-Nine: Cause and Effect

With the sound, Master Jade descended before him: “Excellent, excellent—Ninefold Inch Fist, the second perfection of the Profound Dao Art. At this speed, in a million years, you rank among the top five!”

“The top five?” Jiang Fan’s heart leapt fiercely, but he maintained a calm expression and asked, “Who are the others?”

“Just the top five!” Master Jade settled onto the boat, sitting cross-legged. “Two of them failed to comprehend the realm and thus could not cultivate the Golden Radiance Method to its third level. When their time was up, they returned to their origins, back to the world. The other two did attain the realm, but spent too long and in the end, could not perfect the third layer of the Golden Radiance Method.”

“This...!” Jiang Fan was stunned.

“You are different!” Master Jade’s face was filled with gratification. “You have already stepped into the third layer of the Golden Radiance Method. With plenty of time left before the year is up, you can reach perfection. In other words, in a million years, you are the only one to have completed the task and are about to become the master's registered disciple!”

“A registered disciple once in a million years; if I were to become a true inheritor, wouldn’t that be even harder?” Jiang Fan showed no joy, instead grinning wryly.

“Of course!” Master Jade naturally lifted his chin, an innate pride shining from his bones, impossible to conceal. “The master once had a disciple—truly a prodigy, gazing down upon the heavens, surveying the three thousand worlds, unrivaled!”

“Who was it?” Jiang Fan’s eyes flashed with shock, unable to restrain his curiosity.

“You’re not yet qualified to know!”

“Ahem, since the master here already had a disciple, why leave behind this legacy?”

“Ah! Before the master suffered disaster, that disciple went missing—most likely lost as well. To prevent the legacy from being severed, this Jade Spring Pavilion was left behind. Though the master knew it would be nearly impossible to find a disciple as brilliant as before, the inheritor should at least carry his name. Of course, for you humans and in this barren little world, this trial is almost impossible to complete. Sadly, the master decreed—no non-human disciples!”

Jiang Fan’s lips twitched in confusion. “Our Great Hong World is barren? And there are three thousand worlds outside?”

“If you don’t step out, knowing is useless; once you do, you’ll understand.” Master Jade did not explain further. Suddenly, he said, “Would you like to know the cause of the calamity in Hundred Rivers County?”

“You know?” Jiang Fan’s eyes widened.

His heart, already pounding, began to race even more intensely.

“Of course!” Master Jade waved his hand, and a scene appeared before him: a subterranean space, pitch-black, with a solitary altar etched with ancient, intricate inscriptions.

“What’s this?” Jiang Fan asked.

“This is a vessel evolved from the Jade Spring Pavilion, located beneath Hundred Rivers County!” Master Jade explained. “Over a million years, the Jade Spring Pavilion has drifted through the Great Hong World, leaving countless legends. Manifesting this altar was to attract a fated genius to step upon it, accept the trial, and become a disciple. But alas, a small world is a small world—how could one with such destiny appear? Still, the altar spawned endless tales. Once, a minor demon discovered the altar, but could neither comprehend nor move it. Later, he conspired with an evil spirit, but achieved nothing, and thus turned to blood sacrifice, hoping to unlock the altar’s secret. He then colluded with a human Primordial Spirit powerhouse, leading to the disaster of Hundred Rivers County!”

“So that’s how it happened!” Jiang Fan was dazed, then enraged. “Since you knew, why didn’t you stop it?”

“Why should I?” Master Jade asked, puzzled.

“But that was hundreds of thousands of lives!”

“In your eyes, does anyone care about the life and death of ants? You wouldn’t. To me, these masses are little better than ants—their deaths mean nothing.”

“You...!” Jiang Fan was furious, then fell into despair. “You are a lofty immortal spirit, of course you do not care for the mortal multitude!”

As he spoke, he breathed deeply several times, exhaling slowly, and after a while, regained his composure.

“Your temperament barely passes,” Master Jade said.

Jiang Fan forced a smile. “You wouldn’t show me this just to say so much, would you?”

“Of course not!” Master Jade smiled. “You are destined to become a registered disciple, so I must let you know why your homeland suffered calamity. Soon, several little ones of Primordial Spirit rank will come to investigate. Shall I let them see the altar?”

“It can be hidden?”

“A trivial matter!”

“Good, hide it! If not, and more people discover it, Hundred Rivers County will truly have no peace.”

“You see things clearly!” Master Jade nodded, waved his hand, and the altar vanished without a trace. “The altar is but an outward manifestation; in truth, it is the legacy’s cave mansion.”

A moment later, two figures appeared in the underground cavern.

One was a white-haired, red-robed man, appearing quite young but with a particularly cold expression. The other had two protrusions on his forehead, a burly figure clad in dark golden armor, his aura wild, like a beast from primordial times.

“Only two? Who are they?” Qin Ming asked.

“Not just two!” Master Jade replied. “The white-haired, red-robed man is Elder Ji Changkong from the Imperial Patrol of your human dynasty—a remarkable figure in this tiny place, with prospects to break through to the Earth Immortal realm. The other bears a faint dragon bloodline, from the East Sea Dragon Palace, named Ao Pokong—also an extraordinary character!”

“Dynasty? Dragon Palace?” Jiang Fan drew a cold breath.

Master Jade said nothing.

In the scene, Ji Changkong raised an eyebrow: “Ao Pokong, where is the legendary altar? You should know, the Dragon Palace already embarrassed the dynasty once. If this is a false lead, you know the consequences!”

Ao Pokong narrowed his eyes, reached out, and with a burst of light, somehow brought forth a person and threw him to the ground: “Eight Legs, didn’t you say the altar was here? You even swore it. Tell me, where is it?”

“It was right here, I could never forget!” Eight-legged Demon God looked around in terror. “Your Highness, I wouldn’t dare deceive the Dragon Palace!”

“Whether you lied or not no longer matters; coming here has sealed your fate.” Ao Pokong said, and brought his palm down on Eight-legged Demon God’s head.

“No...!”

Eight-legged Demon God screamed, tried to retaliate, but it was useless.

A moment later, Ao Pokong extracted a shadowy figure from Eight-legged Demon God, addressing the coldly watching Ji Changkong: “True or false, a soul search will reveal all!”

“Who?” Ji Changkong suddenly shouted, a halberd appearing in his hand as he cleaved through the air, unleashing waves of immortal light that sealed the underground space. Thunder erupted, shattering everything.

A shadow was obliterated.

“Ha! No wonder you’re the killing god of the Patrol; without preparation, I’d have suffered greatly!” A hoarse voice rang out. Far off, Ao Pokong suddenly struck, his spear piercing the void.

“Ah... Well done, Ao Pokong. I’ll remember this grudge!” The voice faded, and the aura vanished completely. The shadow extracted from Eight-legged Demon God had dissipated.

“Gone?” Ji Changkong said coldly. “Did you think I didn’t know where you came from? The emperor gave you a chance, and you refused. Fine, prepare to be annihilated!”

No reply.

“Confirmed?” Ao Pokong asked.

“Besides that sect’s bizarre method, who else could escape from us, even by surprise?” Ji Changkong said. “Either way, you should go to the imperial capital and confess to the emperor!”

“Of course!” Ao Pokong’s lips twitched. With a palm, he crushed Eight-legged Demon God’s corpse to powder and nodded.

“Very well!” Ji Changkong said, raising his head with icy intent. “Demon Lord of the Blood Fiend Abyss, since you’ve come, don’t even think of leaving!”

With that, he transformed into a stream of light and rushed out.

“A Demon Lord from the Blood Fiend Abyss—truly bold!” Ao Pokong scanned the underground space and sighed deeply. “The most mysterious altar, rumored since ancient times, has disappeared again! What is it, really? All the sects pursue it madly, yet none can explain it! Enough! If fate does not permit, there’s no point in obsessing!”