Chapter 442: An Astral Lord Descends (1)

In District One of the Origin Blood World, not far from Mansion One, stood an opulent mansion. This was the residence of Shui Heng, the second-ranked genius of the Origin Blood World.

Shui Heng was a formidable body refiner with a second-degree immortal root and mastery over powerful ether arts. However, his Dao comprehension aptitude was merely average, leaving him a hair's breadth behind Bai Li in overall power.

He cleared level twelve?

Shui Heng stood within a worldlet within his mansion. Spanning tens of thousands of li in radius, the worldlet served as his personal training ground for honing secret arts.

Shui Heng cut an impressive figure, his long blue hair cascading down his back, framing a face that seemed chiseled from marble. His physique, honed to perfection, radiated power. Yet, at this moment, his striking features were marred by a look of profound shock.

Where did this genius spring from? How could he be so strong?

Shui Heng knew all too well how difficult a task it was to clear level twelve. He had attempted it twice, tasting bitter defeat both times. Even now, the prospect of conquering it seemed like a distant dream.

He's challenging level thirteen? And he hasn't failed yet?

A strand of Shui Heng's consciousness sifted through the information from the Dark Star supervisor in the Bloodforge Immortal Voidrealm.

The fact that Wu Yuan hadn't yet failed spoke volumes – even if his power wasn't sufficient to overcome level thirteen, it was close.

I wonder how old this Wu Yuan is. Has he crossed a hundred years of age?

Shui Heng sighed.

If he hasn't, then with such talent, he is worthy of being a first-tier division Bloodforge Seed!

Who would've thought that our Redmoon division could produce such a monstrous prodigy?

Shui Heng felt he was dreaming.

Unlike Bai Li, Shui Heng had a significant background, hailing from a powerful family. The ancestor of his family was an Earth Immortal from the Bloodforge Devil Hall.

As the most favored junior of the family in the past ten thousand years, he had access to far more information and secrets than ordinary Golden Core cultivators.

He knew the intricate hierarchy of the Bloodforge Devil Hall - how their Redmoon Division, a second-tier division, answered to the first-tier Silvermist Division, a colossus rivaling the Silvermist Immortal Nation itself.

The Silvermist Immortal Nation consisted of about six thousand immortal continents. Meanwhile, the Silvermist Division of the Bloodforge Devil Hall held sway over more than five thousand second-tier divisions. The number of exceptional cultivators produced within their territory was beyond comprehension.

To qualify as a second-tier Bloodforge Seed, one had to clear level seven of the Golden Core Dark Star. The Redmoon Division alone boasted over eighty such prodigies. Thus, one could only imagine the number produced by the Silvermist division.

As for first-tier Bloodforge Seeds? To qualify, one must clear level fourteen of the Dark Star. According to Shui Heng's knowledge, only a handful existed within the entire Silvermist division. On average, a single first-tier Bloodforge Seed would emerge from hundreds of second-tier divisions.

Even if this Wu Yuan doesn't qualify as a first-tier Bloodforge Seed, is still among the top of the top-tier geniuses.

Shui Heng shook his head, a rueful smile playing on his lips.

Being in the same division as such a genius is truly unfortunate.

Unlike the shocked Bai Li, Shui Heng maintained a semblance of calm. After all, Bai Li had already surpassed him. Was there much difference between second and third place?

Moreover, he understood that there would always be someone stronger out there.

...

It wasn’t just Bai Li and Shui Heng. The entire District One of the Origin Blood World, including its eighty-plus Bloodforge Seeds, was in an uproar.

Conquering level seven of the Dark Star meant possessing Amethyst Cradle level power, qualifying one as a Bloodforge Seed.

Levels seven, eight and nine of the Dark Star represented a negligible difference in power, and more than ninety percent of the Bloodforge Seeds were stuck within these three levels.

"He's too strong!"

"Before this, I thought Bai Li's strength was insane enough, but this Wu Yuan beat her by a significant margin."

"It's horrifying!"

"You guys should know that Wu Yuan made it to level thirteen in one breath. Look, how long was the gap between the news of him clearing level seven and him clearing level twelve? What does this tell you?"

"He sailed through the first twelve levels, not even breaking a sweat."

"How heaven-defying!"

"I've checked the records. The leaderboard of the Origin Blood World changes every hundred years, the last genius to clear level twelve appeared six hundred years ago."

"The last genius to cross level thirteen did so two thousand years ago."

"The last time someone completed level fourteen? That would be six thousand years ago."

"We might stand a chance against Bai Li and Shui Heng, but against Wu Yuan? We would probably be obliterated in one move." This sobering realization silenced many.

The strength that Wu Yuan displayed had far surpassed their own, to the extent that they lost the courage to compete with him.

Fighting beyond one's cultivation phase was something only one in tens of thousands of Golden Core cultivators could achieve

One could say that these Bloodforge Seeds were extremely talented. But compared to Wu Yuan, they were nothing more than trash!

...

While the emergence of a new Bloodforge Seed always drew attention, clearing level twelve was the stuff of legends. However, to the true upper echelons of the Bloodforge Devil Hall's Redmoon division, even such feats usually warranted little more than passing interest. In their long lives, they had seen countless talents at this level.

But today was different.

Above the Bloodforge Immortal Voidrealm's Redmoon City, within a special space, stood an imposing temple.

With the temple were two rows of eighteen massive metal seats, flanking a blood-colored throne at the far end.

One by one, figures materialized on the seats, their auras pulsing with unimaginable power. Their eyes, reflecting the weight of countless millennia, fixed upon a giant light screen that had materialized in the center of the temple.

The projection detailed Wu Yuan's progress through the Golden Core Dark Star, accompanied by a stream of intelligence:

Age fifty, seventh-stage Spiritual Body phase, second-degree immortal root...appears to comprehend the Celestial Body Dao, reaching the fifth-level Domain stage...

Lifebound spirit beast excels in speed and appears to have practiced an advanced ether art specializing in speed bursts. Possibly a third-degree immortal root...

It was clear that some of this information had been gathered before Wu Yuan began challenging the Dark Star, while the rest was deduced during his battles.

In no time, over thirty shadowy figures had appeared on the thirty-six enormous chairs.

"What a monstrous prodigy!"

"Where did he spring from? Wu Tian, where did you find him?"

"Fifty years old and his strength has already reached this level? How heaven-defying!"

"A Bloodforge Seed? His potential is immense. Among the first-tier Bloodforge Seeds, he's probably at the top." The super powerhouses couldn't mask their shock.

"If he keeps up his training for another hundred years, he might even clear level seventeen."

"He's too young."

"Despite his young age, his current strength is formidable."

A young man in black robes lounged on one of the chairs, a self-satisfied smirk playing on his lips. "This Wu Yuan is under my command," he announced, pride evident in his voice. It was High Immortal Wu Tian.

Evidently, the shadowy figures inside this temple were High Immortals from the Redmoon division of the Bloodforge Devil Hall, responsible for nurturing disciples at the Golden Core phase.

All thirty-six High Immortals were present. They had seen countless geniuses in their lives, even ones on the level of Bai Li and Shui Heng. But someone as heaven-defying as Wu Yuan?

"I have lived for over three hundred thousand years and managed the Origin Blood World for over a hundred thousand years. This is the first time I've seen such a prodigy," a muscular High Immortal stated, his voice thick with amazement.

"His showdown with the guardian of level thirteen has reached its climax."

"A victor will soon be decided. Will he be able to defeat him?"

"Once he clears level thirteen, level fourteen will be next."

"Passing level fourteen means meeting the standard of a first-tier Bloodforge Seed." The thirty-odd High Immortals from the temple were all transfixed by the battle projection.

Clearing level twelve meant Wu Yuan's strength was within the top few thousand of the Silvermist Division.

If he could get through level thirteen, it meant Wu Yuan had the potential to rank among the top thousand of the Silvermist Division.

The difference was significant.

...

Inside the Golden Core Dark Star, on level thirteen, the battle had reached a fever pitch.

"Kill! Kill! Kill!" The black-robed guardian's roars echoed through the space, sounding like millions of voices howling in fury.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Over a thousand flying swords filled the sky, forming a river of gleaming metal. They coalesced into nine massive rocs, their bodies wreathed in flames that resembled phoenix feathers. These fiery constructs streaked across space with deafening cries, relentlessly assaulting Wu Yuan.

The nine flaming rocs, each formed by assembling a Hundred Swords Array, subtly interwove their power to form a complete Thousand Swords Array.

It was clear that the guardian was an incredibly powerful Amethyst Cradle sword cultivator, his Dao comprehension and mana capacity formidable even among those at the Amethyst Cradle phase.

Boom!

The nine massive fire rocs, their bodies reaching temperatures that distorted the very air around them, surged towards Wu Yuan in a tsunami of flames.

Ssss~

The scorching waves caused Wu Yuan's earthy-yellow qi streams to crumble layer by layer, unable to stem the relentless tide.

Huff!

Four arms swung through the air, Wu Yuan's palms as ominous as looming storm clouds. His palm techniques clashed against the fiery phoenixes, each strike sending tremors through their flaming bodies and causing the flames to scatter unsteadily.

Yet in just an instant, the phoenixes would recover to their peak power, their nine forms intertwining in an endless dance of destruction.

The True Intent stage of the Phoenix Dao, combined with the mana of the Amethyst Cradle phase to form a Thousand Swords Domain. How terrifying.

Wu Yuan gritted his teeth, pushing his body to its limits.

He had already engaged in over a hundred exchanges with this guardian, yet still struggled to close the distance.

In terms of Dao comprehension, Wu Yuan was far superior - he estimated that the guardian had just grasped the True Intent stage.

However, the gap in their foundation was substantial. The guardian was at the fifth-stage Amethyst Cradle phase (sixth-degree immortal root), while Wu Yuan was merely at the seventh-stage Spiritual Body phase. In terms of overall strength, the guardian even surpassed Daoist Jing Shan from the Summerpeak World.

Wu Yuan's ability to hold on till now was entirely due to the explosive power of his basic ether arts: Eldritch Form and Four-Armed Form, and the defenses of the True Celestial Body, a grand ether art. However, he couldn't maintain such a stalemate indefinitely.

With the True Celestial Body, I can hold on for a while, but once my ether is exhausted, my strength will diminish greatly.

Wu Yuan understood this clearly.

Qi refiners, once out of mana, were like lambs waiting for slaughter. But it took a considerable length of time to deplete one's mana completely.

Body refiners, with their formidable physical prowess, could unleash terrifying combat power, but their ether consumption was extremely rapid. Once drained, they could no longer maintain their peak strength.

Each one had its own merits.

Wu Yuan had conquered the first twelve levels so quickly without much rest because he hadn't consumed any ether. But now, faced with this formidable opponent, he knew he had to take a risk.

Since my body refiner self has joined the Bloodforge Devil Hall, I must showcase my power. The higher the level I clear, the better, for my homeland, and for myself.

A touch of madness kindled in Wu Yuan's eyes.