After a long silence, a bull-headed, human-bodied god from the Northern Heavens finally spoke in a deep, rumbling voice: "Is the Everpeace Overlord Body truly a god? That old fox from Wenti Pavilion never said the Overlord Body had already reached god-realm! If you are a god, then we should bring out god-realm powerhouses to challenge you!"
Quinn Shepherd let his aura erupt, opening his Divine Treasuries for all to see, then shook his head and said, "I've only just unlocked the Seventh Divine Treasury."
An invisible pressure, like storm clouds crushing a city, enveloped Goldenridge Academy. In that instant, everyone felt as though they could barely breathe.
It was as if a god was wantonly unleashing their power—so intense that even people tens of thousands of miles away would sense the terrifying pressure!
Thankfully, Quinn Shepherd didn't go overboard. After releasing his aura for a moment, he quickly drew it back in.
The village chief and the villagers had always taught him to keep a low profile. Unless there was a special reason, Quinn Shepherd would never reveal his full strength right away.
"Showing just forty percent of my cultivation this time should still count as being low-key," Quinn Shepherd thought to himself, a hint of mischief in his eyes.
Quinn Shepherd smiled slyly as he glanced around, thinking to himself, "I still have two tricks up my sleeve—I didn't reveal the willow leaf at my brow, nor did I show my demon-path Divine Treasury."
The gods and demons of the Northern Heavens all frowned, watching the phantom images of Divine Treasuries flicker behind Quinn Shepherd; several of them couldn't help but twitch at the corners of their eyes.
Quinn Shepherd was simply too powerful—so strong he seemed neither human nor like any ordinary cultivator!
This wasn't the strength of divine arts or technique—it was pure, overwhelming magical power.
Quinn Shepherd's magical power rivaled the gods who stood before the South Heaven Gate—maybe even surpassed them!
With power like that, some wondered if Quinn Shepherd could walk straight into the South Heaven Gate, withstand its crushing force, and become a true god on the spot!
Of course, the stronger one's cultivation, the greater the pressure at the South Heaven Gate—so others suspected Quinn Shepherd might be crushed to dust if he tried to enter.
Even more terrifying, Quinn Shepherd's Divine Treasuries were utterly unique—fused into a seamless whole, with no barriers between them at all!
His Seventh Divine Treasury was even more baffling. Was it the towering world tree of the Six Directions continent, or the Celestial River pouring out from the Heaven Palace?
"What kind of monster is this?" someone blurted out, unable to contain themselves.
Several gods and demons exchanged glances, all thinking the same thing: "Is this the Overlord Body?"
Even though the Northern Heavens had sent only their most elite young experts, facing such a terrifying opponent, they stood no chance at all!
But State Duke Wei understood Quinn Shepherd well. When Quinn arrived at Goldenridge Academy and lifted the Golden River with a single display of magical power, he'd already shown just how extraordinary his strength was.
From State Duke Wei's perspective, Quinn Shepherd wasn't just trying to build up his Overlord Body reputation—he wanted to scare off the weaker challengers, avoiding fights with those who lacked real skill.
Though Quinn Shepherd was always friendly, he was proud at heart—if an opponent's cultivation was too low, he had no interest in fighting them.
But judging by the scene, Cult Master Quinn wasn't just scaring off a few challengers—he was about to frighten away every young expert from the Northern Heavens.
State Duke Wei glanced around, thinking, "The young experts from the Northern Heavens are strong, but not outrageously so. Even if they all attacked together, Cult Master Quinn could wipe them out in an instant."
"Hahaha! The Everpeace Overlord Body truly lives up to its reputation!"
Suddenly, the bull-headed god burst out laughing, his voice ringing out: "Quinn Shepherd's strength is truly extraordinary! We've witnessed it ourselves, and you're qualified to contend with our Northern Heavens. We're not here to challenge Quinn Shepherd, but to deliver a war letter."
At these words, the other gods and demons of the Northern Heavens looked puzzled, unsure what he meant.
They'd come thinking Everpeace was an easy target—to bully the Overlord Body and seize Everpeace for themselves.
But the bull-headed god kept his composure, radiating righteous energy: "Earlier, seeing the strength of Everpeace's cultivators, we worried the Overlord Body was overrated. Now, after witnessing your abilities, we recognize you're worthy to accept our Northern Heavens' war letter!"
The other gods and demons suddenly understood: their young cultivators were no match for this fierce opponent, so calling it a war letter was a way to save face.
The bull-headed god grew solemn, speaking in a deep voice: "The Northern Heavens are now united under Lord Darksun. Since Quinn Overlord Body has such strength, we invite you to come to the Northern Heavens—we await your arrival!"
The other gods and demons nodded in agreement. "We await your arrival!"
State Duke Wei asked curiously, "And where is your war letter?"
The bull-headed god's expression didn't change. "Everpeace is a tiny nation—why bother with a formal war letter? A verbal message is enough."
State Duke Wei sneered.
The bull-headed god, unfazed, continued in a deep voice: "The war letter has been delivered. We will return to the Northern Heavens now. Quinn Overlord Body, please come soon. Let's go—"
He turned to lead the Northern Heavens' cultivators away.
"Hold on." Quinn Shepherd's voice called out from behind them.
The bull-headed god's back muscles stiffened; he spun around quickly, wary of a sneak attack from Quinn Shepherd.
Quinn Shepherd smiled gently. "The seniors of the Northern Heavens may not care for courtesy and sent no war letter, but Everpeace cannot be so rude. I must send a formal reply. Once you return, let the heroes of the Northern Heavens take a look."
The bull-headed god relaxed and smiled. "Quinn Overlord Body, please go ahead!"
Zheng—
From Quinn Shepherd's Glutton Dragon Pouch, the Worryless Sword flew out. Quinn formed a sword finger and thrust forward; the Worryless Sword pierced the air with a crisp hiss.
He stepped forward, his sword finger shifting and flicking in rapid succession. The Worryless Sword traced out the image of a young man carrying a long sword on his back, brimming with confidence.
In no time, Quinn Shepherd finished the back-sword portrait with the Worryless Sword.
He was imitating the Sword God back-sword portrait drawn by the blind master, but the figure in the image was not the village chief as a youth—it was Quinn Shepherd himself.
"This is my war letter."
Quinn Shepherd grasped the Worryless Sword, flicked his wrist, and sliced the back-sword image out of the air. With a gentle press, the portrait shrank down to half a foot in length.
State Duke Wei had someone bring a greeting booklet. Quinn Shepherd tucked the back-sword portrait inside and said, "After you return, select your strongest young experts and open my war letter. And don't let anyone with weak cultivation look at it. When I sense the portrait inside has been destroyed, I'll personally visit the Northern Heavens, one by one."
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He hesitated for a moment, then spoke earnestly: "For the sake of your lives, do not open this war letter lightly. Only the strongest cultivators from each realm should view it—and absolutely no outsiders. The contents are extremely dangerous! Remember this! Please, take it and go."
The bull-headed god's face grew grave as he accepted the greeting booklet. "Let's go!" he barked.
One by one, the gods and demons led the Northern Heavens cultivators away at high speed.
Once they'd left Goldenridge Academy far behind, a cultivator asked, "Teacher, is this war letter really so powerful? Can we open it and take a look?"
The bull-headed god shook his head. "It can't be opened carelessly. The back-sword portrait inside contains his divine ability—once opened, it will trigger his power."
Another god or demon chuckled, "Isn't that a bit much? It's just a back-sword portrait. Even if it hides a divine ability, if it triggers every time it's opened, wouldn't the war letter be destroyed immediately? I think, as long as we don't use our vital qi, it won't activate. It's fine to take a look."
The other gods and demons laughed in agreement. "Know your enemy and you’ll win every battle!"
The bull-headed god hesitated, then took out the war letter. "It's fine to look, but make sure there's no vital qi fluctuation, so his divine ability isn't triggered. I still need this greeting booklet to meet Lord Darksun. None among our realms have such a terrifying expert—only under Lord Darksun do we have someone who might match him."
He carefully opened the war letter. As expected, Quinn Shepherd's divine ability didn't activate, and he breathed a sigh of relief. "You can come and see."
The crowd gathered around to peer at the back-sword portrait inside the war letter.
Using the Worryless Sword as his brush, Quinn Shepherd painted in the air, imprinting his sword technique into the very space.
To achieve this, one needed the power of a True God—only True Gods could imprint their divine abilities into space, leaving a lasting mark.
As the crowd examined the back-sword portrait, Quinn Shepherd in the image seemed almost lifelike—three-dimensional and vivid.
"This Everpeace Overlord Body is truly multitalented! If he took to the streets selling paintings, he'd be a master!" the crowd laughed.
The bull-headed god barked, "I let you look not to admire his artistry, but to study his sword technique—see how deep his skills run! Maybe we can find a way to counter his divine ability from this painting."
The crowd sobered and began scrutinizing the portrait closely.
Suddenly, a demigod cried out as his aura surged. A series of booms sounded as his divine repositories opened; blocking with both hands, he shouted, "He's attacking me with his sword!"
The bull-headed god's face changed dramatically, rushing to block him from letting his vital qi disturb the war letter. But suddenly, the demigod's brow split open—a sword-shaped wound appeared as his primordial spirit was slain by an invisible force, his soul scattering and dying on the spot!
Shocked, the bull-headed god stepped forward to inspect the body. The demigod's brow bore a sword-shaped wound, but the force had come from within, not from outside.
"What kind of divine ability is this?"
Just as he had this thought, several more demigod cultivators panicked, unleashing their spirit weapons in all directions, shouting, "He's attacking me!"
Before the words were finished, these demigods' bodies erupted with hissing sounds as countless jets of blood shot out. Their bodies convulsed, their primordial spirits were annihilated, and they fell to the ground!
"Don't look at the war letter!"
The bull-headed god snapped out of it, hastily closed the war letter, and put it away.
But it was already too late.
Those who had come to Everpeace to challenge the Overlord Body were now lost in madness, unleashing divine abilities and spirit weapons in all directions, as if desperately battling invisible foes!
The other gods and demons rushed to restrain them, but even as the demigods were subdued, their bodies were riddled with wounds and their primordial spirits severed—one after another, they perished!
The bull-headed god and his companions felt a chill in their hearts, staring blankly at the carnage—corpses littered the ground at their feet.
"This is sorcery!"
One of the gods and demons cried out in anguish, "This is damned sorcery!"
The other gods and demons turned pale. Quinn Shepherd had never laid a hand on these challengers—he had simply displayed a bit of his power outside Goldenridge Academy, intimidating the divine cultivators from every realm.
Yet, even without striking, Quinn Shepherd's war letter had claimed their lives!
"Why? What kind of divine ability is this?" a god or demon asked with a trembling voice.
"Sword technique,"
The bull-headed god rasped, "A Dao-entered sword technique! When you see it, his sword technique is imprinted in your mind. It's sorcery—attacking the spirit and will. Once your spirit collapses, it hijacks your power and unleashes sword technique from within you. Their wills couldn't withstand the sword intent hidden in the portrait, so they died. We, as True Gods, are immune to the sword intent in the back-sword portrait."
The gods and demons shuddered.
The bull-headed god barked, "Come! We must see Lord Darksun!"
The group hurried after him. A deity couldn't help but ask, "How could his sword portrait contain such terrifying sword intent? Is there really such a powerful will in this world?"
"It's not will—it's undying divine sense."
Within the Black Sun Palace, darkness spilled from the legendary hall, shrouding the land for thousands of miles. Yet inside, the palace was brilliantly lit. Lord Darksun sat atop his throne, a black sun halo behind his head, carefully examining Quinn Shepherd's war letter. He mused, "This undying divine sense comes from the Crimson Dawn era—it's the technique of the first false emperor, Crimson Emperor. It's no wonder you don't recognize it. Crimson Emperor's technique isn't found even in the Celestial Court. The back-sword portrait isn't sorcery at all—it's upright and magnificent, grand and imposing."