"What a magnificent world!"
Warren Moran, Dao Heir Lucas Lin, and the others looked around in awe. High-Emperor Heaven was truly spectacular: gigantic sacrificial altars sent out beams of black light that reached the heavens, and two suns hung in the sky. They were all full of praise, completely unaware that those black beams were the result of the arrival of the demon ancestors of Youdu.
"I heard the sun here used to be unbearable to look at, so I never dared come before."
Dao Heir Lucas Lin chuckled, "Now that the Imperial Preceptor has reforged the sun, it's finally safe to set foot here."
They arrived outside the City of Departure, where soldiers came to inspect them. Hearing they were divine arts users from the Everpeace Empire, the soldiers hurriedly said, "There have been many demons about lately, so we've had to tighten security. Apologies for the inconvenience."
Warren Moran glanced around and saw armies drilling outside the city. Battle flags waved overhead, and divine arts users dashed through massive formations, each one highly skilled and powerful. He couldn't help but itch to join in.
"Moran, restrain yourself for now."
Sage Nicholas Tranquil said, "High-Emperor Heaven's inheritance is complete and a cut above Everpeace. Although you learned some techniques from Fengdu, you're still not quite on par with High-Emperor Heaven's divine arts users. If you want to spar, find someone a realm below you."
Warren Moran was rather unconvinced and shook his head, "Uncle, aside from Cult Master Quinn, there's no one in Everpeace at my level who can beat me!"
Dao Heir Lucas Lin raised his eyebrows and coughed lightly.
Warren Moran looked at him and said calmly, "Dao Heir Lin, do you have an objection?"
Dao Heir Lucas Lin smiled, "If we've never fought, how can you say no one can beat you?"
Moran's eyes gleamed. "That's true. Though we're both heads of the Heaven Alliance, we've never actually competed. After all, you're Dao Gate's Dao Heir, your status is high, and I'm just an apprentice from Little Jade Capital. But your high status means you rarely fight—I wonder if you can still fight at all."
Dao Heir Lucas Lin replied leisurely, "You've fought many people, but always those weaker than you. Sometimes, a match with a strong opponent is worth more than a hundred matches with mediocrities. What do you think, Senior Brother Moran?"
The tension between them rose, and just as they were about to fight, a thunderous roar erupted. Everyone turned to look and saw two female generals clashing in the battle formation: Lynn Ling, Princess Ling Yuxiu of Everpeace, and Saintess Serena Yunxiang of the Cult of the Heavenly Saint.
The two women belonged to different sides in the training formation, and the moment they met, they began to fight fiercely. Lynn Ling stomped her foot, sending earth flying, and countless bolts of lightning appeared in the sky. The lightning formed a massive vortex, with azure dragon-shaped lightning swirling within.
Boom—
The two women collided, lightning crackling everywhere. Lynn Ling swung her hammer, and countless lightning dragons descended from the sky. Her divine arts exploded with power so great that even Warren Moran and Dao Heir Lucas Lin couldn't help but flinch.
Lynn Ling's path fused battle skills with Dao-arts, hiding Daoist divine arts within her martial moves. She tempered her body with lightning, and her mana was immensely robust. Every strike she unleashed was terrifyingly powerful.
Her opponent, Serena Yunxiang, hid her divine arts within her sword techniques. Serena inherited the mysterious and unpredictable strengths of the Cult of the Heavenly Saint's arts. Though her cultivation was weaker than Lynn Ling's, by combining various Cult techniques, her power was formidable.
"The Cult Master is so biased, passing the Ancestral Dragon Supreme-Mystic Art to you! Lynn, even if you kill me, I'm still the real Cult Master's wife!"
"Serena, you're the Cult Master's wife? I'm the one who had the wedding ceremony! If we're ranking, you're only second! I've been childhood sweethearts with the cowherd since forever, and we've already exchanged tokens of affection—this big hammer was his gift to me!"
"Pfft! Who gives a hammer as a token of affection? The Cult Master and I are truly betrothed—he gave me his Young Protector Sword!"
"Pfft! You extorted that Young Protector Sword, and you sold it!"
[...]
Dao Heir Lucas Lin and Warren Moran stared wide-eyed. The two girls unleashed all sorts of divine arts and Dao spells in the formation, their power truly fearsome. But the fight had gotten heated—the formation shifted and rotated, yet the two kept dueling each other, ignoring the changes.
Suddenly, a long-braided girl rushed between them, separating the two. "Sisters, this is just a drill, not a real fight!"
"Sabrina, are you getting involved too?"
The three girls fought with earth-shattering force. Lucas Lin and Warren Moran were shocked, exchanging heavy glances. They didn't know Sabrina, but were very familiar with Lynn Ling and Serena Yunxiang—both were members of the Heaven Alliance. Though talented, the girls' strength was a bit below the boys'.
Lynn Ling and Serena Yunxiang entered High-Emperor Heaven ahead of them, just over a month ago. In that short time, the girls' cultivation and strength had soared, putting pressure on the boys.
"Just over a month apart, and we might not be able to beat them anymore. Why should we fight for victory now?"
Dao Heir Lucas Lin gave a wry smile. "For now, we'd better be honest students and learn High-Emperor Heaven's cultivation methods."
Warren Moran nodded. "The fact that Princess Lynn Ling and Saintess Serena Yunxiang improved so much in such a short time shows that Everpeace's cultivation system is lacking. If we fix those shortcomings, we'll have a breakthrough too!"
The battle formation shifted, and more armies charged into the fray. Lucas Lin saw that among the training troops were many Everpeace scholars—Weyong, Quinn Yu, Shen Wanyun, Yue Qinghong, and others—whose strength had also soared, greatly increasing the pressure on the boys.
"Victor Bloom entered High-Emperor Heaven days before us. That guy's clever—he's probably already learned its cultivation secrets and will breeze through the God-Binding Tower trial."
They walked into the city and saw many Heavenly Saint Academy classrooms lining the streets. Students were inside, listening to High-Emperor Heaven gods or Divine Bridge experts teaching cultivation methods.
"Cult Master Quinn really knows how to network!"
Lucas Lin was stunned. He looked at the old Daoists beside him and said, "Our Dao Gate is too closed off. We have to learn High-Emperor Heaven's cultivation methods, or we'll be suppressed by the Heavenly Saint Cult. Cult Master Quinn's approach is good—if it's useful, let's learn it."
Master Danyang and the others all agreed.
They passed a palace and heard the sound of Buddhist chanting shaking the air. Looking inside, they saw nearly all the senior monks from Great Thunderclap Temple gathered, sitting in the hall. Grandpa Mark sat in the center, surrounded by high monks chanting, with layers of Buddha Heavens manifesting above their heads.
The twenty Buddha Heavens grew more and more real. In each layer, the figures of Buddhas, gods, and bodhisattvas flickered, as if they were about to step from illusion into reality.
"Master, what are they doing?" Warren Moran asked Sage Nicholas Tranquil.
"They're opening the Buddha Realm."
Sage Nicholas Tranquil explained, "According to the records of Little Jade Capital, Buddhism has its own world, called the Buddha Heavens. In the Kaihuang era, the Buddhas ascended to the Buddha Heavens, leaving behind Great Thunderclap Temple. After the Kaihuang era ended, the path to the Buddha Realm was cut off—the heavens became false, sealed away, so no one could reach the Buddha Realm. But in High-Emperor Heaven, the world barrier is much weaker. Grandpa Mark must be trying to open the Buddha Heavens here and connect with the ancient Buddhas."
Dragon Yu said, "Is Grandpa Mark trying to find the next stage of the Grand Buddha Mahayana Scripture?"
Sage Nicholas Tranquil nodded. "Most likely. The Grand Buddha Mahayana Scripture only goes up to the twentieth heaven—the start of the Buddha Realm. There are no scriptures for the later heavens. Grandpa Mark has grand ambitions; he's seeking the path to the higher Buddha Heavens."
Dao Heir Lucas Lin was full of envy and asked Master Danyang, "Uncle, does our Dao Gate have a Dao Realm?"
Master Danyang shook his head. "I've never heard of such a thing."
Lucas Lin's head throbbed. He sighed, "If our ancestors don't strive, their descendants can only suffer! Dao Lords have always been too indifferent to fame and fortune. If we don't work harder, Great Thunderclap Temple will surpass us! How can we stay a sacred Daoist land if we keep wasting time?"
Master Danyang whispered, "Dao Lord, although our Dao Gate doesn't have a Dao Realm like the Buddha Heavens, we do have enlightened deities hidden throughout the heavens and earth. High-Emperor Heaven is one of the great heavens, so there should be Dao Gate experts here. If we find them, we can complete our Dao Gate cultivation system, perfect the Dao Sword Fourteen Chapters, and inherit the full Innate Arcane Canon."
Dao Heir Lucas Lin was instantly energized, but then his face fell. "There's no way there are Dao Gate people here, or the numerology here wouldn't be so poor."
Just then, a High-Emperor Heaven deity approached, dressed in Daoist robes and holding a horsetail whisk, exuding immortal aura. He greeted, "Are you Dao Gate disciples?"
Lucas Lin and the Daoists were overjoyed. Lucas Lin hurriedly returned the greeting, his voice trembling. "I am Lucas Lin, the Dao Gate leader. Senior, are you one of our Dao Gate experts?"
The High-Emperor Heaven deity was delighted. "You're Dao Gate disciples! I'm Daoist Chaz. I used to be a guardian beast at Kunlun, but during the disaster I followed Daoist Azure Sky and attained the Dao. After Azure Sky died in battle, I stayed here in High-Emperor Heaven."
The Daoists stared, at a loss. So there were Dao Gate experts in High-Emperor Heaven, but it was a guardian beast who attained the Dao—not someone likely to know the Innate Arcane Canon or Dao Sword!
After all, every Dao Gate secret art is founded on numerology, and the numerology here is so poor that it's impossible for any advanced techniques to have survived!
Daoist Chaz probably attained the Dao using other cultivation methods.
The Daoists were disappointed. Lucas Lin forced a smile. "Senior Chaz, you've worked hard all these years. Could you help us settle down here? These friends from Little Jade Capital Sect also need a place to stay."
Daoist Chaz smiled. "That's easy. Cult Master Quinn and the Everpeace Imperial Preceptor instructed me to treat all Everpeace guests with respect. You know Cult Master Quinn, right? He's a remarkable man—famous and highly esteemed in High-Emperor Heaven. I hear he's also the Holy Cult Master, a true saint and renowned Overlord Body. Many people come here just to join the Holy Cult."
Lucas Lin looked odd, secretly thinking, "Isn't that the Demon Cult?"
Daoist Chaz said, "The Holy Cult traces its lineage to the Heavenly Master, a prestigious name. Our Dao Gate mustn't fall behind. By the way, Azure Sky left some things with me before he died—I've kept them safe all this time."