After thinking for a while, Xiao Chen handed the spatial ring over to Ao Jiao to get her help with organizing it.
He followed that with the spatial rings of the two elite Sun Palace disciples and the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion’s Young Master.
As there were many things in the spatial rings, tidying them up would take a long time. Ao Jiao’s help would, naturally, make things easier for him.
Xiao Chen still had many things to do. He needed to merge the Solar True Flame with the Purple Thunder True Fire as well as practice the Thousand Frost Battle Snow.
He also needed to stabilize his newly transformed Heavenly Sage Laws and make the final preparations to break into quasi-Emperor. When the time was right, he could immediately start constructing the bridge.
Completing everything would require at least two months of closed-door cultivation.
Quasi-Emperor was a bridge, one crossing a chasm to reach the other side. A heavenly bridge that would lead to knocking on the Emperor’s Door.
A huge chasm was an extremely apt description. After stepping across it, there would be a world’s difference. One would undergo a rebirth, climbing to the heavens with one step and reaching the top-level existence of the pyramid in this world.
Many powerful cultivators existed in this world, but many could not walk to the rim of this chasm and see the Emperor’s Door on the other side for themselves.
Martial Disciple, Martial Master, Martial Grand Master, Martial Saint, Martial King, Martial Monarch, and Martial Sage. Xiao Chen had experienced many setbacks along the way, spending twelve years.
Now, he finally reached a level that countless people would not be able to achieve in their lifetime, arriving before this huge chasm.
Others would not understand how much danger Xiao Chen had been through and the bitterness he had experienced.
Probably, no one would be able to imagine that he could not cultivate properly until the age of sixteen, slower than regular cultivators by several years and at least ten years behind those outstanding talents.
However, by relying on tenacious willpower, he had endured unimaginable loneliness and solitude before finally overtaking others and charging ahead of the Kunlun Realm’s outstanding talents.
Xiao Chen was among the first of his generation to stand before this huge chasm.
It was as Xiao Chen always believed: a person’s talent only decides how fast they go; determination and tenacity determine how far they go.
Xiao Chen sat cross-legged on a desolate island in the calm sea. As long as he quietened himself, he could enter a wondrous state.
He saw a scene that lay between reality and illusion like a natural stronghold with a manmade divide. In the distance, at the end of his vision, was a fog.
Far away, indistinct golden doors peeked through the fog, looking very blurry.
That was the Emperor’s Door. When Xiao Chen finished building the bridge, the Emperor’s Door would appear in reality, and a path to the heavens would descend. Gorgeous heavenly flowers would fall, welcoming his approach.
With a thought, this mysterious phenomenon in his mind disappeared. Then, he sank his consciousness down to where his dantian was. The ten thousand dragon-shaped Heavenly Sage Laws gave off a bright light, looking crystalline and translucent.
These Heavenly Sage Laws were already extremely pure. Xiao Chen had exhausted the potential of Martial Sage in collecting them all. There was no more room for further improvement.
Even if he took out the Holy Spirit Vein—or even a King Spirit Vein—he would not be able to absorb them.
Only when he turned his Heavenly Sage Laws into the higher-leveled Heavenly Laws, becoming one with the world and returning to nature, could he improve further.
For three days, Xiao Chen familiarized himself with the strength he obtained after his Heavenly Sage Laws’ transformation. More importantly, he also used the time to verify whether he really had exhausted all his potential for this cultivation realm.
This was extremely important. If Xiao Chen had not reached the bottom yet, he needed to find out. Otherwise, if there was any more potential that he could use and he started to convert his Heavenly Sage Laws into Heavenly Laws, he would make a great loss. By then, when everyone advanced to quasi-Emperor, he would be much weaker than the other outstanding talents.
For example, before Xiao Chen’s Heavenly Sage Laws transformed, they numbered only five thousand. He could not increase them any further.
If he had chosen to convert his Heavenly Sage Laws then, he would have lost out on half his potential Heavenly Laws. When he became a quasi-Emperor, it would be too late for regrets.
As Ao Jiao helped Xiao Chen organize the items in the various spatial rings, she received a shock when she saw his Heavenly Sage Laws. Back then, the Thunder Emperor’s Heavenly Sage Laws had transformed as well. However, the Thunder Emperor reached his limit at seven thousand.
Now, when Xiao Chen reached the same step, he actually had three thousand Heavenly Sage Laws more than the Thunder Emperor.
Ao Jiao guessed that even in the most glorious era of the Martial Epoch, the Ancient Era, such a level would still allow Xiao Chen to surpass most of the ancient Sages.
Furthermore, he attained a peak Rank 4 Sage Body. He could cultivate Laws for his physical body as well. It was hard to imagine how far he could go.
How far did one have to go before reaching the legendary Martial God? Sovereign Martial Emperor? Prime Martial Emperor? Or perhaps there were even higher levels?
Seeing that Xiao Chen had no intention of opening his eyes startled Ao Jiao. Could he be intending to start advancing to quasi-Emperor now?
However, after she thought about it, this was normal.
Xiao Chen’s cultivation fell for three months before he recovered it. After he recovered, he advanced further. With the confluence of the right conditions at the right time, he would not have any risk of his cultivation being unstable or lacking a firm foundation.
Since time immemorial, there had never been any stories of a great grandmaster-level Martial Emperor purposely injuring themselves severely just as they tried to cross the threshold of quasi-Emperor, resulting in their cultivation falling and having to cultivate bitterly once again.
Their cultivation was something that they obtained with much effort and bitterness. No one dared to take such a risk.
Due to the Sea Monarch Crown and a coincidental fortuitous encounter, Xiao Chen managed to reach this step. Now, he knew that he became stronger after getting broken and reestablishing himself. The benefits that this brought him gave him the courage to charge into quasi-Emperor at this moment.
Otherwise, even if he were beaten to death, he would not injure himself on purpose and have his cultivation to fall back to Martial Monarch.
He thought back to the start of his predicament on the Purple Cloud Warship and how several Martial Monarchs had held blades to his neck. He had nearly died at the hands of such minor characters.
If word spread of the Azure Dragon King falling for such a reason, it would have become a joke; he would have been the butt of mockery for at least a thousand years.
The days went by one by one. At some point in time, an increasing number of motes of electric light fell on Xiao Chen’s body and formed a large electric cocoon around him.
Ao Jiao did not find this strange. Many years ago, the Thunder Emperor had undergone this step as well.
Joy together with a hint of worry appeared on Ao Jiao’s face. Normally, there would not be any danger when one converted their Heavenly Sage Laws into Heavenly Laws.
However, there were cases of people being overly hasty and ending up in a state of Berserking Qi Deviation.
“You…don’t ever be in too much of a rush due to the pressure of reestablishing the Dragon’s Gate.”
Ao Jiao felt very frustrated as she watched Xiao Chen attempt to charge into quasi-Emperor, even more anxious than when the Thunder Emperor had.
The Thunder Emperor had been alone with nothing to worry about. However, along the way, Xiao Chen had taken up the identity of the Azure Emperor’s descendant, carrying the burden of reestablishing the Dragon’s Gate on his shoulders.
The pressures these two faced were completely different.
“Pa!”
After finishing sorting the various treasures with much effort, Ao Jiao sent out a palm strike and messed up everything again, scattering them everywhere.
As she looked at the electric cocoon, her eyes slowly filled with worry, becoming increasingly afraid.
If Xiao Chen knew, he would definitely be caught between laughter and tears.
After a long time, some semblance of calm returned to Ao Jiao’s eyes. She turned around and started tidying up the scattered treasures once again, blowing off the dust on them and sorting them out.
There was not a single thing out of place; everything was neat and tidy. No more expressions of frustration appeared on her face, as she buried her worry deep in her heart.
——
In the Eastern Sea, in a secret room of a palace in one of the territories of the Eastern Sea Divine Dragon Palace, part of the Sea Monarch’s old guards, Leng Shaofan looked at the news he just received, the expression on his face turning uncertain.
[TL Note: The Eastern Sea Divine Dragon Palace was a sect of the Sky Dome Realm. Perhaps that is actually a branch of this.]
The Sea Monarch’s daughter, Princess Qin, lay in a deep, quiet sleep among flowers at Leng Shaofan’s side.
Three punches to explode a newly advanced quasi-Emperor. One saber strike to send a Small Perfection quasi-Emperor flying, and then, a trump card to kill eight quasi-Emperors with one chop.
Leng Shaofan did not feel surprised at Xiao Chen’s sudden increase in strength. He merely calculated and plotted with a calm heart.
He carefully read every word on the note once again. Two crucial scenes appeared in his mind: Xiao Chen swallowing ten Peak Spirit Veins, and his strength suddenly rising explosively; and him using the Azure Dragon Medallion to kill eight quasi-Emperors.
The first part meant that after an explosive rise in strength, Xiao Chen needed some time to cultivate quietly to stabilize his cultivation. Hence, he would definitely still be in the Cloud Sea Domain; he would not have gone too far away.
The latter part meant that Xiao Chen already used the protective talisman provided by the Thunder Sovereign.
[TL Note: This sentence is likely to be speaking of Leng Shaofan’s assumptions.]
These two conclusions added together meant that this was the best time to kill him since Xiao Chen was quietly cultivating now without a protective talisman! If this period passed and Xiao Chen stabilized his cultivation, killing him would be even harder.
Barring some exceptions, most of Leng Shaofan’s guesses were very close to the truth.
After a while, Leng Shaofan ordered his subordinates, “Send a message to the Southern Sea Divine Dragon Palace. Tell them that they only need to have three quasi-Emperors search the desolate islands within two hundred and fifty kilometers of where the treasure mountain appeared, and they will be able to find Xiao Chen cultivating while hiding.
“After they kill the target, I do not need the Sea Monarch Crown or the other treasures on Xiao Chen. However, they need to hand over the Sea Monarch Headscarf to me. If they want something in exchange for it, they can just ask.”
There were many conflicts between the four Sea Kings. All of them wanted to be the head and rule all the Sea Monarch’s old guards.
As the Eastern Sea King’s descendant, Leng Shaofan held great authority in the Eastern Sea Divine Dragon Palace. However, he did not have any means to command the Divine Dragon Palace of the Southern Sea.
Even so, all Leng Shaofan needed to do was tell them this news. The Sea Monarch Crown on Xiao Chen would automatically spur the Southern Sea Divine Dragon Palace into doing what he wanted.
——
Motes of electric light fell like rain on the desolate island, never stopping for a moment.
From the initial bright, vibrant purple, the electric cocoon’s color settled into a deep purple.
Ao Jiao had finished tidying up the various treasures in the spatial rings long ago. As she rested her chin on her hands, her gaze never left the electric cocoon.
“It’s been two months. Xiao Chen has had sufficient accumulations for some time already, and all the conditions are right. Normally speaking, the conversion of Heavenly Sage Laws should have reached completion by now,” Ao Jiao muttered to herself softly. However, she also relaxed. Two months was enough to show that there was no rush, frustration, or panic in Xiao Chen’s heart.
He only sought speed in stability. As long as there were no surprises, he was almost certain to advance to quasi-Emperor.
If there are no other surprises, Xiao Chen will be able to come out of this cocoon soon.
Just as Ao Jiao thought this, she suddenly frowned. Using her palms, she pushed against the ground and stood up. Then, she looked into the distance.
Three strong auras in front were currently headed towards this place at a rapid clip. The strength of each of the figures was no weaker than any one of the eight City Lords.
Three Small Perfection quasi-Emperor experts working together charged over.
“They really know how to pick their timing, choosing this moment to strike!”
Ao Jiao’s face turned frosty, and killing Qi brewed in her eyes. With a wave of her hand, the Lunar Shadow Saber stuck in the ground beside Xiao Chen silently flew to her.
