Chapter 188.1: The Smug Great Venerable Thunder

Thunder further explained, "I once met an exceptional prodigy who is only a single step away from the True God realm. Sadly, his talent surpassed even that of the No-Food Goddess. No matter how many supreme treasures he received, he still could not break through to the True God realm."

At this point, Thunder's eyes filled with boundless sorrow. Even a true dragon would be unable to reach the True God realm if it went against this rule.

Nevertheless, the sadness on his face came quickly and left just as fast. "Brat, let's hope that your talent isn't too outrageous. Otherwise, it'd be rather amusing if you get stunted."

Qi Yuan became dumbfounded. "So, if my talent exceeds that of the No-Food Goddess, her supreme treasures become useless?"

Thunder nodded vigorously and grinned. "

Mhm

. But you need not worry. Although your talent is impressive, it's nowhere near hers. In this whole world, only a few actually surpass her. On the path of cultivation, talent isn't everything."

Still, Qi Yuan sighed, suspecting the opposite. "I’m doomed. What if I really am stronger than her? Did the No-Food Goddess have Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment? What about a Star Golden Core?"

Thunder felt as though he had been choked. "Can you stop bragging? Even the Destiny Child isn't this shameless!"

Qi Yuan, however, seemed deeply dejected. "Apparently, having extraordinary talent is also a kind of sin. In the past, when people said the rich have their own troubles, I scoffed at them. Now, I finally understand their suffering. It's like craving for ten steamed buns, yet having a stomach so small that they can only eat one at a time."

Beside him, Qi Qi smiled faintly. "Godfather, let’s go look for more treasures. You’ll definitely be able to step into the True God realm."

Feeling dispirited, Qi Yuan uttered, "My earlier thinking was too idealistic. I once thought of visualizing all the powerful immortals of the Heavenly Court. But it seems that many of them are even stronger than the No-Food Goddess. Even if I visualize them, they still wouldn’t be able to break through to the True God realm."

Does that mean I could only visualize small fry?

Qi Yuan pondered.

Thunder seemed puzzled. "Wasn’t it the Huaxia Dragon Group? How did it become the Heavenly Court again?"

Qi Yuan explained, "They were originally from the Heavenly Court, but later joined the Huaxia Dragon Group. In the end, they even followed the Crooked-Mouthed Dragon King."

Thunder no longer wanted to continue the conversation. "Qiyuann Sovereign, stop bragging. Is your Heavenly Court really so full of talented people?"

Qi Yuan nodded. "Yes, the Four Heavenly Kings are merely small fry. Meanwhile, figures like Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King Li, Ne Zha, the True Martial Emperor, Zhenyuan Immortal, or the Tathagata Buddha can easily decimate everything!"

Thunder grew skeptical. "Are those people really that powerful?"

"Extremely powerful!"

"I’ve never even heard of any of them. Are you just making this up?"

Since they truly existed in his memories, Qi Yuan felt he wasn’t fabricating anything at all. "How can I possibly make up divine gods?"

𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Thunder wore an expression of utter disbelief. "I’ll just wait and see when you manage to visualize them."

Hearing this, Qi Yuan’s worry deepened. "Besides relying on treasures, is there any other way to break through to the True God realm?"

Thunder replied slowly, "Well, maybe it'll be a different story if the broken Heavenly Pillar is restored..."

Qi Yuan’s eyes lit up. "Let's do just that!"

Thunder teased him. "I heard an evil god above the True God realm dwells within the broken pillar. Qiyuann Sovereign, I have great faith in you. Reconnect the Heavenly Pillar. Once you succeed, you’ll be the great benefactor of our Mortal Heart World, and I'll call you Master!"

Hearing this, Qi Yuan immediately abandoned the idea. "Yang Spirit?”

He had once heard from Qi Jianjun that a Yang Spirit could even swallow a star if they went all out.

Meanwhile, his core was in another universe. Even if he summoned it, it'd be a projection at best. How was he supposed to stand up against a Yang Spirit with that? Qi Yuan had to face his sheer powerlessness.

Thunder remarked casually, "It's

just

a Yang Spirit. Just send your Huaxia Dragon Group, or was it the Heavenly Court? Someone like the Tathagata Buddha can probably win."

Qi Yuan pondered seriously. "You make a fair point. I could visualize him and let my followers use the visualization art. The only problem is, they won't be able to ascend to True God realm. How are they supposed to fix the pillar if they can't even use the Tathagata Buddha's great power?"

The God Visualization Art simply accelerated his people’s cultivation by drawing on the power of the gods they visualized. It did not mean they would become those gods themselves.

Seeing Qi Yuan genuinely thinking this through, Thunder felt utterly speechless. "Give you an inch and you ask for a mile."

Just then, Qi Qi chimed in. "Great Venerable Thunder, why don’t you give Godfather some supreme treasures? Let’s figure out how many he really needs to break through."

Thunder spread his hands. "I’m an old bachelor. I have no treasures."

Qi Yuan sighed earnestly. "Just looking at your face, it's obvious you're not destined to strike it rich."

Thunder glared at him. "Don’t insult me with words I can’t understand!"

Qi Yuan replied solemnly, "I didn’t insult you, I only said you’re an old deng. Old deng means virtuous and highly respected. I’m praising you for your wisdom."

Thunder eyed him suspiciously.

Qi Yuan asked humbly, "Thunder God Old Deng, since you’re so knowledgeable, could you tell me whether there’s any other way to break through to the True God realm?"

"There's no way, unless you reconnect the Heavenly Pillar," Thunder replied firmly. Then, as if remembering something, he added, "Brat, you’ve led me astray with your nonsense. How could your talent possibly surpass that of the No-Food Goddess? Just find more supreme treasures and you’ll probably be fine. Why overthink it?"

Qi Yuan sighed. "Well, how could a sparrow ever understand the ambition of a soaring swan?"

The discussion ended there, while Qi Yuan was left pondering.

He realized that if this issue went unresolved, future visualizations would be capped at no higher than the level of the Four Heavenly Kings. Meanwhile, what he lacked most was a True God. Besides, it wasn't as if his followers didn't need supreme treasures to ascend.

***

Half a day later, Qi Qi and Little Xue walked along the ridges between the village fields. Suddenly, the crazy old woman appeared again.

Startled, Qi Qi said warily, "I don’t know you, and I refuse to leave my godfather to go with you."

The old woman extended her withered, wood-like hand. "An invitation. For you."

A gilded invitation landed in Qi Qi’s hand.

The old woman glanced at her, her eyes turning cloudy once more. "Go, there are good things. You can also—"

She vanished without ever finishing her words.

Qi Qi stood there in a daze. She opened the invitation and read its contents, "Hundred Flowers Gathering? What’s this, an invitation for godfather?"

Whenever Qi Qi encountered something she didn't understand, she sought out Thunder for clarification. In fact, the villagers were the same. Whenever they lost their chickens, they went to him for help. Nowadays, he was like a living immortal in Clearwater Village. In short, Thunder had become extremely popular among the village’s elderly women.

A while later, Qi Qi found Thunder reclining on a lounge chair. "Great Venerable Thunder, take a look at this invitation. What’s going on? Could it be dangerous?"

Thunder took it, surprise flashing across his face. "Strange. That brat Qi Yuan shouldn’t be qualified to attend the Hundred Flowers Gathering."

Qi Qi then recounted her encounter with the old woman.

Thunder immediately understood. "Then it's only natural. You carry Phoenix essence blood. The Phoenix Clan is closely connected to the Northern Sea Aquatic Clan."

Just then, Qi Yuan walked out of the temple. "What's Phoenix essence blood?"

Thunder exclaimed, "Phoenix essence blood!"

This man is truly absurd! How had he even managed to change his goddaughter’s race?

Qi Yuan uttered, "I’ve heard of that thing."

Thunder interest was piqued. "

Oh

?”

He hoped to use this opportunity to probe more about Qiyuann Sovereign’s true identity in ancient times.

Qi Yuan replied earnestly, "I remember reading a book that recorded the boundless benefits of consuming Phoenix essence blood. One female cultivator’s cup size even went from C to B."

That book really did record it going from C to B.