Chapter 994: Consecutive Breakthroughs

In the Divine Emperor's hidden realm, Blue Lantern set up a formation. Before long, an enormous hand emerged from the depths of the sky. The Heaven's Hand was no weaker than that present in the vajra hidden realm.

Xiao Nanfeng sat cross-legged in meditation. He opened his mouth and inhaled sharply. With a loud boom, the massive Heaven's Hand and its accompanying dark clouds were sucked into his body.

The Divine Emperor's eyes flickered with light. She gaped in astonishment. Nevertheless, she placed her hand on Xiao Nanfeng's back to help suppress the violent energy of the Heaven's Hand.

Xiao Nanfeng began breaking down the Heaven's Hand swiftly.

Surging energy coursed through his body. Part of it enhanced his Jade Emperor's Frame, part of it his Sky of Ten Suns, and another part his Imposing Avatar of Rulai. The incredible power contained within the Heaven's Hand drove his cultivation onward.

Xiao Nanfeng sat in meditation for half a day. As he fully absorbed the power of the Hand, a resonant peal could be heard from his body, like the tolling of a bell. A firestorm burst forth from him, sweeping outward in all directions.

"The fourth stage of the Boundless Immortal realm," the Divine Emperor murmured.

Xiao Nanfeng opened his eyes and nodded. "I'm finished. It's your turn now. I'll guard you while you absorb the energy here."

The Divine Emperor nodded and began to devour the shadowy energy all around them. This energy was once the Divine Emperor's own power, and had been suppressed by the Heaven's Hand. It was easy for her to reclaim it all now.

"Your Majesty, allow me to take my leave," Blue Lantern said, collecting his formation tools and his bronze compass.

Xiao Nanfeng nodded.

He sent Blue Lantern out of the Divine Emperor's hidden realm, then remained to guard the Divine Emperor himself.

It took just half a day for the Divine Emperor to absorb all her former strength. The pervasive black fog in her hidden realm vanished as she opened her eyes.

"I've absorbed all of my past strength. I need to go into secluded cultivation to refine it. You're free to leave now," she said, her gaze fixed on Xiao Nanfeng.

Xiao Nanfeng smiled. "I just got here. Why would I leave so quickly? I want to spend more time with you."

He wasn't foolish. He could tell that the Divine Emperor was jealous, and leaving now would only make matters worse. It would take ages to soothe her later.

"I don't need your company," she said, pouting. Yet a glimmer of anticipation flickered in her eyes.

"Let me stay. I have so much to tell you," Xiao Nanfeng said, walking up to her and scooping her into his arms.

The Divine Empress blushed deeply. "If you want to talk, then talk. Stop moving your hands."

"Fine, I won't move. Just one kiss," Xiao Nanfeng said, leaning in to kiss her.

"You—! Mmm—"

The Divine Empress wanted to protest, but her words were cut off. Her face turned as red as a rose, and she melted into Xiao Nanfeng's embrace, responding to his passion.

A day later, the two emerged from the Divine Emperor's hidden realm. The Divine Empress tidied her tousled hair, her face glowing crimson. She shot Xiao Nanfeng a coquettish glare. "You're such a liar."

Xiao Nanfeng laughed heartily, wrapped an arm around her, and flew back to Shenfeng's imperial palace with her, hidden in a cloud of fog.

"I'll take the captured Immortal Emperors with me. You focus on refining your newfound strength. If anything happens, send someone to inform me immediately," Xiao Nanfeng said.

The Divine Empress nodded and produced a piece of black jade. "This is my eidolon. You can use it. If Yu Banruo comes to find you again, you can activate it, and I'll sense everything happening around the eidolon."

"Got it," Xiao Nanfeng said, accepting the black jade.

After escorting the Divine Emperor to her seclusion chamber and assigning guards to protect her, Xiao Nanfeng quietly left Shenfeng's capital.

The looming crisis had been postponed, but it wasn't over yet. He exhaled deeply and made his way toward Danan's capital.

Outside Danan's capital, Xiao Nanfeng met up with Yan Zhenhuo once more.

Yan Zhenhuo tossed him a bound and sealed man in imperial robes. "This is the Immortal Emperor of Daliang. If not for Ye Dafu and the others, he would have escaped."

"How are your injuries?" Xiao Nanfeng asked.

"It's just a minor wound—I was careless. Since I cultivate the Imposing Avatar of Rulai, I'll recover in no time," Yan Zhenhuo replied with a smile.

"Good!" Xiao Nanfeng patted him on the shoulder.

"Your Majesty, now that we've captured the nine Immortal Emperors, are we going to deploy troops against their divine empires?"

Xiao Nanfeng shook his head. "Not yet. I'm worried the strongest cultivators of those empires might retaliate recklessly if pushed too far. I don't want them to massacre civilians in revenge. Capturing their emperors serves as leverage to keep them in check for now."

"As expected, you've thought everything through, Your Majesty," Yan Zhenhuo nodded.

"Of course, though we can't act openly, I've already instructed Mr. Wen to send envoys to begin operations in the nine empires behind the scenes. We'll proceed systematically. If you're interested, you can assist Mr. Wen. He desperately needs strategists to share his workload."

"I'll immediately arrange for the former strategists of Dayan to work under Mr. Wen's command," Yan Zhenhuo said.

"Good! That'll be a great help." Xiao Nanfeng nodded.

Cloaked in mist, the two cultivators and their entourage flew into Danan's capital.

After arranging for Yan Zhenhuo and the others to rest, Xiao Nanfeng headed to the imperial palace. Upon hearing from the palace maidens that Madam Rouge was waiting for him, he went to the peach blossom grove alone.

"You're back?" Madam Rouge greeted him with a smile.

"Yes, and I brought something for you. On the way back, I passed by Guihua and got you some of their famous osmanthus pastries. They're delicious. You should try them," Xiao Nanfeng said, producing a box of food.

Madam Rouge naturally knew where Xiao Nanfeng had been these past few days, even though he had been discreet and used the capture of two Immortal Emperors as cover. Jealousy burned within her.

But when she saw the osmanthus pastries, her resentment melted away. In their shared dream, osmanthus pastries had been one of her favorite treats, second only to peach blossom pastries. And the best ones came from the Immortal city of Guihua in the eastern continent.

Xiao Nanfeng could hardly have stopped by on a whim—he had gone out of his way to detour to Guihua before meeting with her.

Her heart softened, and a touch of affection glimmered in her gaze as she looked at Xiao Nanfeng.

"Set a time. I want to meet them," Madam Rouge said.

She naturally knew of Liu Miaoyin and the Divine Emperor. After all, they had all been cursed effigies who had latched onto Xiao Nanfeng together. They were rather deeply aware of one another, though they hadn't yet spoken publicly.

Xiao Nanfeng blinked. In the end, he supposed there was no avoiding this dreaded confrontation.

"Very well," Xiao Nanfeng replied, nodding.

Only then did Madam Rouge smile. She was pleased because Xiao Nanfeng didn't deny where he had been these past few days. Although she was still upset, his honesty made her happy.

"Here, have a taste," Xiao Nanfeng said, offering her a piece of osmanthus pastry.

Madam Rouge took a bite and smiled.

"Has your cultivation advanced again?" Madam Rouge suddenly asked.

"It has. I just devoured another Heaven's Hand," Xiao Nanfeng replied.

Madam Rouge's expression shifted as she guessed what had happened, but she didn't press him. Instead, she asked curiously, "Can devouring a Heaven's Hand guarantee a breakthrough for you?"

"For the moment, yes."

"You're a fourth-stage Boundless Immortal now, aren't you? You must be close to unlocking your Heartgate."

"There's a little way to go. I've heard that one needs to reach the fifth stage of the Boundless Immortal realm to open one's Heartgate. Do you have any deeper insight about all this?"

"The Heartgate is a unique place within your heart. Most can only open the Heartgate after reaching the fifth stage of the Boundless Immortal realm, though some have access to it earlier. However, those who do usually end up suffering setbacks in their cultivation at a later stage.

"Oh?" Xiao Nanfeng replied curiously.

"Do you only advance by one stage of cultivation each time you devour a Heaven's Hand?" Madam Rouge asked.

Xiao Nanfeng nodded. "Yes, but that's been the case even before I became a Boundless Immortal. For some reason, no matter how much energy I absorb, I only advance by one stage. There's often leftover energy, but it seems to disappear mysteriously. I rarely experience multiple breakthroughs at once."

"That makes sense. The excess energy doesn't vanish—it's being consumed by your world of the heart for expansion."

"Oh?" Xiao Nanfeng replied curiously.

"Even without opening your Heartgate, you can cultivate your world of the heart. The energy you've absorbed is being deposited there. I suspect that your inner world will be extraordinary when you eventually open your Heartgate."

Xiao Nanfeng pondered this revelation. He had long been curious about where all that excess energy went, and he now had an answer.

"Let's go. Since you're just a step away, I'll help you reach your goal. My hidden realm also possesses a Heaven's Hand. I'll help you reach the fifth stage of the Boundless Immortal realm and open your Heartgate," Madam Rouge said eagerly.

She had guessed that the Heaven's Hand Xiao Nanfeng had just absorbed came from the Divine Emperor. Though she hadn't pressed the issue, her jealousy was evident. She wanted to prove that she wasn't inferior to the Divine Emperor.

Xiao Nanfeng smiled wryly as he realized what she was thinking. "Very well."

"There's no time to waste. Let's go!" Madam Rouge said, dragging Xiao Nanfeng along.

𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

"Hold on. I need to call Blue Lantern to help me set up a formation for devouring the Heaven's Hand," Xiao Nanfeng replied.

"Hurry!" Madam Rouge urged.

Xiao Nanfeng nodded.

Before long, Blue Lantern rushed over from Yongding, bewildered. Were there that many Heaven's Hands out in the wild? His Majesty really had his hands full...