Chapter 742: Master, It's Truly Not Enough (3)

After a long moment, Chang Hong asked, "Senior Brother, don't you have even the slightest misgivings?"

"None at all," Jiang Huan smiled. "I know what you mean. Little Junior Brother has extraordinary talent. When he first became Master's disciple, it wasn't yet apparent. Only now is he truly beginning to blossom... But having great talent doesn't necessarily mean one will go far.

Or rather, no matter how far he goes, it won't affect us.

Whether he becomes an Astral Monarch, a Sovereign, or even one of the legendary supreme beings, I would only be happy for Little Junior Brother," Jiang Huan looked at Chang Hong. "On our cultivation journeys, what's important is not comparing ourselves to others, but to continually surpass our own limits.

If we're talking about talent, that Zhuo Haiyue is even more outrageous than Little Junior Brother and Ming Jian. According to Master, she might reach the Sovereign phase in just tens of thousands of years. But so what?

As long as we keep progressing, after billions of years, we too will have the chance to become Sovereigns," Jiang Huan shook his head. "Junior Brother, you're getting caught up in appearances.

It’s clear that Master used this battle today with Little Junior Brother to wake you up," Jiang Huan said. "Think it over carefully. I'll be going now.

If you have time, feel free to come visit me." Jiang Huan strode away with purposeful steps.

Chang Hong was now alone.

Caught up in appearances?

Chang Hong pondered silently. This wasn't the first time Jiang Huan had warned him of this.

Today was the first time it struck him with such clarity.

...

“Wu Yuan, do you understand all the main things to note about the Second Origin Eldritch Field?” Astral Monarch Hou Qu asked.

Wu Yuan nodded. "I understand."

"You can cultivate as per usual in the Origin Eldritch Field. If there's anything inconvenient for you to handle personally, or if there’s a matter you find inappropriate to seek the Sovereign’s assistance for, you can always come to me," Astral Monarch Hou Qu said with a hearty laugh.

"And I'm not just boasting when I say that there are few matters I can't handle in the entire eldritch world below the Sovereign level."

Wu Yuan smiled.

Previously, while Astral Monarch Hou Qu had been friendly towards Wu Yuan, his attitude hadn't been this warm. Now, he treated Wu Yuan like a close friend, clearly a result of the strength Wu Yuan had demonstrated.

Before, his respect stemmed from Wu Yuan’s status as a Sovereign's disciple. Now, it was Wu Yuan’s own power and talent that earned his admiration.

Not every disciple of a Sovereign could become an Astral Monarch, and even among Astral Monarchs, the vast majority were inferior to Astral Monarch Hou Qu, who was an Astral Monarch of Space.

But now, Wu Yuan already revealed the potential to reach the Sovereign phase. As long as he didn't perish before maturity, he would become a peak Astral Monarch in the future at least. Naturally, the treatment he would receive was different.

Relying on others was like leaning on a mountain. If it collapsed, one had nothing left. True strength came from oneself.

"Astral Monarch, there is indeed one matter I need your help with." Wu Yuan said after hearing his words.

"Oh? Speak," Astral Monarch Hou Qu said.

"I have a good friend named Fang Xia who is trapped in the Thousand Serpent Forbidden Valley on the Shan Lin Immortal Continent... I've invited three Archimmortals in a row, but they’ve all been turned away," Wu Yuan shook his head. "I was originally planning to seek help from some of my senior brothers, but I'm not close to any of them.

So, forgive me for being thick-skinned, but would you be able to make a trip there?" Wu Yuan requested with a smile.

Apart from the three who had not yet ascended to Archimmortality, there was also a large group of Astral Monarchs among Sovereign Kua Chi's disciples.

Wu Yuan's previous plan was to ask one of his senior brothers for help. However, he didn't have a close relationship with any of them. It was far better to ask Astral Monarch Hou Qu.

"A small matter. The Shan Lin Immortal Continent?" Astral Monarch Hou Qu's eyes narrowed slightly as he said, "That's the immortal continent occupied by those two youngsters, Shan Yue and Bai Lin, right? I'll go right away. The trip should take less than half a day.

Wait for me on your void continent in the Origin Eldritch Field. I'll definitely give you an answer."

"Alright," Wu Yuan nodded.

Astral Lord Shan Yue and Astral Lord Bai Lin, one at the eighth-stage Archdeity phase and the other at the ninth-stage Archimmortal phase, were referred to as youngsters. Only someone at Astral Monarch Hou Qu's level could call them that.

Normally, asking an Astral Monarch to take action or make an appearance would cost at least ten million divine crystals. For some dangerous tasks, the price could easily reach billions or even tens of billions of divine crystals.

But both parties tacitly avoided mentioning this.

...

Wu Yuan walked alone through the corridor of the battle space, heading out.

Old Fang? I hope you're still alive.

He thought to himself. Having Astral Monarch Hou Qu intervene was far better than going himself.

If he still couldn't rescue Fang Xia, or if it was confirmed that he had truly died, then Wu Yuan couldn't think of a better solution for now.

Soon, he arrived at the exit of the Eldritch Battle Platform.

"Wu Yuan, you won?"

"This..."

"You fought against Earth Eldritch Chang Hong and actually won?" High Eldritch Ju Hai and a group of High Immortals and High Eldritches saw Wu Yuan emerge and all gathered around, each of them utterly shocked.

Although they hadn't witnessed the battle's outcome, they had received a notification from the Cang Feng Eldritch Voidrealm, informing them that Wu Yuan had become a member of the Second Origin Eldritch Field.

Naturally, this astounded them.

"I didn't win," Wu Yuan smiled wryly and shook his head. "How could I possibly win? The assessment only required me to last ten moves against Earth Eldritch Chang Hong."

"Oh?"

"I see," High Eldritch Ju Hai and the others nodded in understanding, their shock lessening somewhat.

But, they couldn't help but take a second look at Wu Yuan. So, Wu Yuan had lasted ten moves against Chang Hong?

Being able to last ten moves meant their strengths were relatively close, but how long had Wu Yuan been cultivating? Just over 700 years!

In terms of talent, Wu Yuan might even surpass Chang Hong.

This group of High Eldritches and High Immortals all had the same thought.

...

In no time, news of this battle spread quickly throughout the Five Origin Eldritch Fields. Chang Hong's reputation was significant after all.

"Wu Yuan, isn't he the guy who won heaven-tier titles in both the Fifth and Fourth Origin Eldritch Fields over 600 years ago?"

"We haven't seen him for a few hundred years."

"And he lasted ten moves against Chang Hong?"

"What a monster!"

"Impressive. He should be strong enough to rank in the earth-tier of the Second Origin Eldritch Field. How many years has he been cultivating for?" There was a burst of exclamations.

Just this small nugget of information was enough to catch the attention of countless members of the Origin Eldritch Fields, and Wu Yuan's fame rapidly soared.

...

Little Junior Brother actually took the initiative to say he lost?

Chang Hong quickly received this news as well, not quite believing it at first.

Then he shook his head with a bitter smile.

I lost! Thoroughly lost.

He gently closed his eyes, no longer dwelling on it.

At this moment, his heart became completely tranquil.

...

Little Junior Brother, with such patience and a mind unburdened by fame or status, it’s no wonder your cultivation progresses so swiftly.

Jiang Huan couldn't help but smile upon hearing the news.

...

The Voltari Temple and Cang Feng Eldritch World had been at war for countless ages, and both sides paid close attention to the growth of the enemy’s younger generation.

The Voltari Temple was particularly focused on gathering intelligence on the First and Second Origin Eldritch Fields, expending vast resources in this endeavor.

Naturally, once the publicized news of Wu Yuan's battle with Chang Hong spread throughout the Origin Eldritch Field, it was swiftly uncovered by the Voltari Temple's intelligence network.

"Wu Yuan has already become an Earth Eldritch after cultivating for over 700 years."

"According to previous intelligence, he already had immense talent. To hold out for so long against Chang Hong, who has cultivated for over 7000 years – could his talent surpass even Chang Hong's?"

"Impressive indeed."

"Keep him under close observation." A flood of intelligence reports converged in a world carved out within the depths of outer space in the Cang Feng Eldritch World.

The reports soon made their way to several Astral Lords responsible for intelligence gathering.

"Jiang Huan has always been number one on the assassination sequence, that remains unchanged. Now, raise Wu Yuan to number two on the assassination list, and lower the rankings of everyone else accordingly," commanded the leader of the entire world, the sole Astral Monarch.

"Spare no effort in uncovering every detail about him. Wu Yuan's past, what he's been doing these 600-plus years, where he's been. The situation in his homeland, who he's connected to, who he's keeping an eye on - investigate it all thoroughly.

At the same time, mobilize some of our Archimmortal pawns within the eldritch world. Pass this information to them. When necessary, even if we must sacrifice an Astral Lord-level pawn, we must kill him," the Astral Monarch ordered.

"Understood!" The numerous Archimmortals and Archdeities within the world felt a chill run through them.

They could all feel their leader's determination. Ordinary Archimmortal-level pawns could be sacrificed if need be, after all, ordinary Archimmortals lived 100 million years at most.

But Astral Lords were different. Theoretically, they could exist eternally. Over the long years, the secrets they could access were numerous, and the impact they could have was immense.

It could be said that each Astral Lord-level agent planted within the eldritch world was extremely precious, worth as much as a hundred normal Astral Lords.

From this, one could imagine how seriously their leader regarded Wu Yuan. It should be noted that even Chang Hong was ranked ninth as he was still only an Earth Eldritch

If Wu Yuan were a High Eldritch like Jiang Huan, he would almost certainly be ranked first on the assassination list.