“Found it, I’ve finally found it,” murmured Lu Yun. Utilizing the power of the Dragonsearch Invocation, he peered intently at the stars shifting in and out of sight above. “The great tombs that we saw in the fourth realm are located in the Hongmeng cosmos.”
“I want to go to the fourth realm too,” huffed the little fox.
“I’ll take you when there’s a chance to.” He took a deep look at her. There seemed to be secrets with her as well.
Hongjun certainly hadn’t grabbed a random fox from the mountain to gift a creation seed to. Additionally, the secret art that she’d taught his past and future selves to become a dao fruit was no ordinary piece of knowledge. Even now, he had yet to wrap his mind around all of its profound mysteries.
When the little fox had opened the passage to the past and future, she’d done so with casual ease. Though she’d said that she accomplished that with the last dregs of spacetime power lingering in the seed, creation seeds didn’t actually possess the power to travel through time.
Lu Yun even suspected that the passage that Fuxi and the others had taken from the historical great wilderness to the future world of immortals was the little fox’s handiwork.
Though he had his clear suspicions, he didn’t want to lay them out in the open. She would tell him when she was willing to, and perhaps she’d even be the source of some surprises when they entered the fourth realm.
From all the signs available to him, it would seem that the little fox herself didn’t know who she was either.
……
“Then… of that cosmos and this world that we’re on, which is the real third realm?” the little fox asked again.
“I don’t know.” Lu Yun shook his head. There were some matters he shouldn’t speak of, nor did he dare to. There were too many heavyweights in the Hongmeng and they were too strong. Every one of his words could potentially elicit changes in the realm’s orders and raise attention from these experts.
Lu Yun had emphasized study of Hongmeng taboos during the past three years. There were some that even titled kings didn’t dare run afoul of. Aside from the Enforcer Alliance, there were also many unknown existences who helped keep the Hongmeng’s laws and orders intact.
The Hongmeng was too great, and he was just the tiniest ant within it. It was forbidden that ants peek at the heavens.
“But what I do know is that we’re in big trouble,” Lu Yun took a deep breath. “This Meteorite King is most probably no kind soul. Perhaps… he’s a mutated result of something from the destroyed tomb.”
The little fox couldn’t help a horrified shudder.
“Maybe he really is gravely injured and hovering on the brink of death. But he’ll never die in this uncanny Meteorite Peak.” Lu Yun carefully ceased operating the Dragonsearch Invocation. He didn’t dare use it too much in the Hongmeng.
The heavenly, earthly, and human tribulations targeted at the Dragonquake Scripture had come from the third realm. Though Lu Yun had only found bits and pieces of the method mentioned in his research over the past three years, he could clearly feel that the entire realm was set against the Dragonquake Scripture.
Thus, deploying the three methods of Dragonsearch, Dragonshift, and Dragonspike were already the limits of his capabilities.
“This is a destroyed tomb, so the Meteorite King could very well be one of its ghosts…” The little fox ran over to Lu Yun’s side and thought for a moment. “If we’re not even afraid of whole and complete tombs, why would we be afraid of a broken one?”
“Don’t forget, that’s a king we’re facing!” Lu Yun huffed back.
“So what? Kings have to die too!” the little fox rebutted strongly.
“Dusksnow Morningstar of Starspace City greets the Meteorite King!” rang out a clear shout from the center of the mountain. It reverberated in the air, traveling around the range as echo upon echo.
“Dusksnow Morningstar of Starspace City greets the Meteorite King!”
“Dusksnow Morningstar of Starspace City greets the Meteorite King!”
……
The greeting sent waves of commotion through the mountain.
Dusksnow Morningstar was the stunning genius of Starspace City, the one who’d fought the venerated enforcer of the Enforcer Alliance to a standstill after three moves. When the assembled powerhouses in Meteorite Peak heard his shout, they jerked in collective shock.
No one had thought that Dusksnow Morningstar would truly come. He wanted to challenge the Meteorite King and use him as a whetstone, becoming a king himself that way!
“Come on, let’s go take a look!” Lu Yun hastily took down the formation preparations he was fussing over. If Morningstar was here to challenge the king, then none of this setup mattered. Once there was a victor between the two, a bloodbath would soon follow. They joined the crowd of people streaming to the center of Meteorite Peak.
Being a ring-shaped mountain, Meteorite Peak was covered by lush forests both inside and out. It was a haven for arcane beasts. Of all locales in Starspace Region, they could be found here in their greatest numbers.
But currently, the countless beasts rushed madly to the center of the mountain, wanting to protect their king.
A young man dressed in long black robes and a longbow on his back stood in the middle of a vast clearing. He waited quietly, two rays of piercing light shooting out of his eyes set in a face of handsome features.
“Dusksnow Morningstar of Starspace City greets the Meteorite King.” He bowed to an elder in front of him.
The man looked extremely old and all of his skin and flesh seemed glued to his bones—he was almost devoid of blood. However, he still released an incredibly frightening presence and regarded all living beings loftily. All life was ants beneath his feet!
The Meteorite King!
All of the experts in the Hongmeng only knew that he was an arcane beast king, but no one knew what his true form was.
A film of death qi clouded his eyes; he was not long for this world.
“Dusksnow Morningstar, I’ve heard of your name.” The Meteorite King coughed and rasped out, “Have you made up your mind to use me as your whetstone?”
“This junior would never dare entertain the thought if the Meteorite King was in your prime.” Morningstar nodded. “If this junior becomes a king today through your strength, I will ensure that you receive the proper burial rites afterward and prevent others from desecrating your body.”
The heavyweights nearby shifted uneasily when they heard the boy’s promise.
“…very well then, I hope you keep your word.” The Meteorite King inclined his head when he heard this. As a high and mighty king, he would rather self detonate than allow his body or crystal core be abused after his death.
“Hold!” Wreathed in a layer of shadows, a cultivator dressed in a black robe interrupted the tentative agreement from being set in stone. He walked forward, hooded eyes stared fixedly at the king.
The little fox jumped in shock. She and Lu Yun had been hidden in her formation of illusions, but Lu Yun had suddenly charged out of it!
“If the Meteorite King may, please tell us how you were injured!” Lu Yun intoned gravely.
The Meteorite King and Dusksnow Morningstar both snapped their gazes to Lu Yun, while Miao Qimiao and the others hidden elsewhere groaned with dread.
As beneficial as a fight may be, they didn’t want the genius and king to clash against each other just yet. After Morningstar’s promise, the king would certainly acquiesce to the youth’s wishes with all of his strength. If the two spontaneously engaged in pitched battle, everyone here would be vaporized in the aftershock.
“Have you seen something?” the Meteorite King asked Lu Yun.
“I have.” Lu Yun nodded. “You’re not injured. You are so weak and not long for the land of the living because you are only half here! Where has the other half of you gone?”
Eaten by the thing in the tomb…?
