Nightking Zhenwu had announced that whoever could surpass Zhanlong Daynight and reach second place on the plaque would be able to follow him into the Neoverse when he inevitably became one of the Cosmic Five.
The Cosmic Five was a title given to the Neoverse’s younger generation’s top talents. Since ancient times, no one from the Innerverse or Outerverse had ever been able to obtain this title. Nightking Zhenwu obtaining such a title was a historic moment, and accompanying him during such a momentous occasion meant that that person would also leave their name down in the Daynight clan’s historical records. There were countless people fighting to obtain this glory.
The Daynight clan had three inheritance stones, and although one had been taken and lost by Nightking Zhenwu, the other two were still revolving around the stone plaque.
Zhuo Daynight and others were working their hardest to receive inheritances from the stones, and they gathered around the stone plaque as they all fought to win the position of honor of being second only to Nightking Zhenwu.
Directly below the stone plaque were quite a few figures that seemed to be completely petrified. They were actually Daynight clan elders, and they were the guardians of the clan’s ancestral grounds.
“Is Nightking Zhenwu still unwilling to return the stone of inheritance?” one of the figures asked, his voice causing the air to tremble as dust fell off of his body. It was impossible to say how long these people had been sitting still here.
Even when the Sixth Mainland had swept through the Innerverse and fought their way into the Daynight Flowzone, these ancient figures had not moved, as they would not leave these ancestral grounds even if they died. Fortunately, the Sixth Mainland had not discovered the Daynight clan’s ancestral grounds.
“After the Sixth Mainland’s invasion, the three inheritance stones were separated and taken away. Two of them have been returned, and Nightking Zhenwu is the only one who is still unwilling to return the stone in his possession. Do we need to urge him?” Another figure spoke up.
One of the figures among the elders had both of their eyes closed. “There’s no need. That kid represents the future and fortune of our Daynight clan. If he wants to keep one of the inheritance stones, then leave him be.”
“The Cosmic Five are the most exalted of their generation, and there’s even a possibility that they will be able to become Progenitors now that the sky has changed. Hopefully, he’ll become our Daynight clan’s first Progenitor.”
…
Close to the elders, Zhuo Daynight was sitting beneath the stone plaque, her brows furrowed tightly in concentration. She had been sitting in this place for a long time.
Seated rather close to her, Nightqueen Yanqing was in a similar position, as were many other members of the Daynight clan.
Just one sentence from Nightking Zhenwu had motivated everyone to try their best, and they were all competing for the same spot.
Nightking Zhenwu was sitting off in the distance with a smile on his face. His eyes lit up as he gazed upon the stone plaque. He liked it when others competed for his favor, as how else could they properly demonstrate how much they revered him? Reaching the position of second only to him was something that was unattainable for these people because that position was destined to belong to that woman. She was the only one who qualified to be second to him.
They were all members of the great Daynight clan, the elites of countless clan members spread throughout the Innerverse as well as the Outerverse. They were unafraid of anyone, but at this moment, they were all being manipulated by Nightking Zhenwu. He was the king of the Daynight clan and also the king of the Nightking clan.
***
This time, the corridor was still deathly silent, and just one step back would plunge one into endless darkness. There was clearly no light whatsoever, but the entire corridor could be seen quite clearly.
Lu Yin looked over to the side, and he saw that many names had been carved upon the stone slab, of which Nightking Zhenwu’s name could be seen at the very top.
Eleven years ago, Lu Yin had seen this very name in the same position. Back then, when he had first seen that name, it had been as if he had personally witnessed a scene of Nightking Zhenwu towering high in the heavens. He had possessed an outstanding appearance with a seemingly invincible and extremely arrogant bearing. At the current moment, the Nightking had become even more powerful than ever, but he could no longer awe Lu Yin like before.
The name currently second, behind Nightking Zhenwu, was actually Zhanlong Daynight’s, as the Daynight Restoration Technique was truly one of the miracles of the Daynight clan. Although it had not reached the level where it could intimidate an entire generation, it was still close to that level. Throughout history, only a miniscule number of people within the entire Daynight clan’s history had managed to cultivate this technique. Thus, Zhanlong Daynight was capable of easily crushing countless people, and that was how he had become ranked second, standing below only Nightking Zhenwu.
Lu Yin did not continue looking at the stone slab. Instead, he stepped forward and entered the corridor.
When Lu Yin had stepped into this corridor for the first time all those years ago, he had been beaten out after just one step. Back then, he had experienced and been forced to withstand an indescribably oppressive pressure. At that time, he had not known that that sense of pressure was actually his spiritual force being suppressed, but that made sense, as all of the Daynight clan’s battle techniques contained an element of spiritual force. Lu Yin’s previous spiritual force had been insufficient to even enter the corridor. Thus, he had only been able to take one step.
But now, the spiritual force suppression that welcomed Lu Yin into the corridor felt like nothing more than a spring breeze, and it could not pressure him in the slightest. Lu Yin quickly stepped into the corridor, taking rapid steps into its depths.
In the Daynight clan’s ancestral grounds, at the very bottom of the stone plaque, Lu Yin’s image made a quiet appearance. Nobody noticed it, as everyone was staring at the top of the stone plaque.
At the top, the names of Nightqueen Yanqing, Zhuo Daynight, and several other Nightking clan powerhouses were having an intense competition. They were all charging towards the top of the plaque.
In terms of talent, Zhuo Daynight could not compete with Nightqueen Yanqing. When Zhuo Daynight had first met Lu Yin, she had to rely on her phantom sword technique to unleash a domain. Back then, Nightqueen Yanqing had already been the student leader of Astral-3, and she had also comprehended the Nightking’s Body as well as battle force. In short, she could have easily crushed Zhuo Daynight.
In some sense, Zhuo Daynight only had value because she had comprehended Night’s End, Daybreak.
Nightking Zhenwu wanted this girl to surpass everyone else during this competition which was determined by inheritances, but this was truly too difficult a task.
However, after Zhuo Daynight comprehended Night’s End, Daybreak, it seemed as though the technique had unleashed her full potential talent, and this change allowed her to make rapid progress here. Otherwise, she would have been completely unqualified to compete against someone like Nightqueen Yanqing.
Plop.
A Daynight clan member suddenly collapsed and spat out a mouthful of blood. After this happened, the nearby clan members calmly stepped up and took the person away.
An inheritance could not be obtained by just sitting in place and meditating. Rather, it required one to fight for it themselves, or in other words, passing a test of strength. Many people would attempt to seize inheritances that they could not pass, so it was normal for people to be severely injured or even killed during this process.
This was how the competitions within the Daynight clan were carried out, and it was similar to how many other large families in the universe conducted theirs as well. Nobody would place an inheritance out for anyone to take, as there had to be some competition to earn them.
Nightqueen Yanqing’s image had already almost reached the top of the stone plaque by now. After many years of war, everyone had improved vastly, and at the moment, this was reflected in their rate of comprehension. Everyone was constantly improving, and the higher their talent was, the more obvious their advancement.
Nightqueen Yanqing opened her eyes and looked at the top of the stone plaque, just to confirm that no one else had surpassed Zhanlong Daynight. Her eyes grew cold as she looked around at Zhuo Daynight and the others. The Nightqueen then gave a cold snort before she continued to seek enlightenment on the inheritances.
Zhuo Daynight’s face was pale. She had just entered the top twenty, and although she was also at the top of the stone plaque, she was still a considerable distance below Zhanlong Daynight. She would not be able to replace him within a short period of time. As she thought about this, a trickle of fresh blood dripped down from the corner of her mouth. She had long since reached her breaking point, but she was forcing herself to persist. She did it for her family, for that person who had shown her mercy, and worst of all—to qualify to become that person’s wife.
Quite a few people within the Daynight clan were getting anxious, and they urged Zhanlong Daynight to return so that he could prevent his status from being seized by another person.
There was actually a member of the Daynight clan who was able to shame the Nightking Clan by relying on his status on the stone plaque. Such a status showed Zhanlong Daynight’s raw potential, and quite a few of the experts in the Daynight clan’s older generation highly valued Zhanlong Daynight. If he was replaced, then he would be in deep trouble, as there were many people in the Nightking clan who wanted him to be put to death.
Off in the distance, Nightking Zhenwu silently stood up as Starsibyl appeared beside him. She looked over at the towering stone plaque. “The Daynight clan is truly worthy of having such an ancient inheritance, as there is nobody in the Innerverse who can compete with such a background.”
Nightking Zhenwu showed a faint smile. “The Sword Sect is still the true number one power in the Innerverse.”
Starsibyl smiled. “When you become one of the Cosmic Five, they won’t be any longer.”
Nightking Zhenwu’s lips curled up. That was true—as long as he became one of the Cosmic Five and obtained a Progenitor’s inheritance, there would be no worries about the Daynight clan’s future, as they would instantly become the strongest. No, he would go on to lead the Daynight clan into the Neoverse until they rivaled those colossal powers like the Cosmic Sect and the Mavis family.
***
There were vivid, lifelike murals on both sides of the corridor, and there were even howls that echoed from ancient ages that could be occasionally heard.
Lu Yin gave the pictures a serious look, but he did not understand what they were depicting. These images might be battle techniques, ancient battles, or even something directly related to the Daynight clan.
There were many changes along the corridor, but Lu Yin continued to slowly walk into the depths. Suddenly, a long spear shot through the void and stabbed at him, making a whooshing sound as it thrust at his forehead.
Lu Yin tipped his head to the side as the spear whistled past him and vanished. At that moment, Lu Yin’s mind received some information regarding the spear; it was the Daynight Spear, and it was clearly a spear technique of the Daynight clan.
He shook his head, as he was not interested in the Daynight Spear. Thus, he continued to walk forward.
Before long, a figure flashed through the void in front of him, moving at an extraordinary speed. His eyes trembled, as this was the White Flash Technique, a movement technique of the Daynight clan that Lulu Mavis had received in the past.
Lu Yin had learned a similar technique, Flash, which meant that his speed was limited only by his physical strength. For Lu Yin, this surpassed all other speed techniques, as there was no upper limit to his physical strength.
He continued to walk forward.
As he continued along, Lu Yin also saw the Daynight Rod, Daynight Palm, and Night Flash techniques. These were all battle techniques that Qingyu had used in the past. Lu Yin also saw the Moonrise Finger, which he had seen Hui Daynight use before. He also saw the White Phantom Sword, which was the battle technique that Zhuo Daynight had used when he first met her. The further he proceeded, the more powerful the battle techniques that he encountered.
At this same time, within the Daynight clan’s ancestral grounds, Lu Yin’s image continuously rose up from the bottom of the stone plaque. By now, he was approaching the middle of the plaque.
If not because everyone was currently focused on the ongoing competition between those at the very top of the stone plaque, Lu Yin’s image would have been discovered long ago. However, even now, nobody had noticed the appearance of Lu Yin’s image.
Eventually, Lu Yin passed through about half of the corridor. At that point, the spiritual force suppressing him was almost dense enough to take on tangible form, and it whistled by him with enough strength to suppress the average Hunter. Still, such force was useless against him.
At this time, a tremendous bellow roared out in front of him, and it sounded as if the heavens had become enraged and was unleashing its wrath, causing the void to tremble. This blast of sound startled Lu Yin and nearly caused him to jump.
This was the Nightking Howl, which was the battle technique that Nightking Yuanjing had once used.
But Lu Yin was not interested in this Nightking Howl either, and he continued moving forward.
The deeper he walked, the greater the pressure that he had to endure. However, this pressure was not able to do much to Lu Yin.
He drew closer and closer to the end of the corridor, and when he saw the true end, Lu Yin became certain that only a few people were able to walk this far.
Suddenly, the surface of his entire body felt tight and felt strangely oppressed. Was this the Nightking’s Body?
There were very few people in the Daynight clan who could use the Nightking’s Body, and Nightqueen Yanqing was one of them. Another had been the now-dead Nightking Changfeng. Nightking Gu had also comprehended the Nightking’s Body.
It might seem like there were many who knew this technique, but there were countless people within the Daynight clan, and only these few within the younger generation had learned it. Anyone who had managed to comprehend the Nightking’s Body would immediately step into the top tier of elites.
Nightqueen Yanqing had once used the Nightking’s Body to compensate for the difference in battle force between her and Lu Yin, and the technique had allowed her to have an impressive fight with Lu Yin.
The Nightking’s Body was very useful, but Lu Yin was not very interested in this either. His physical body was already so tough that it could even suppress the Nightking’s Body.
***
Right when Lu Yin was given the opportunity to receive the Nightking’s Body, in the Daynight clan’s ancestral grounds, someone under the stone plaque had finally noticed his image on the plaque.
The first to discover him were actually the ancient guardians.
“This kid is climbing quite fast. He was only at the very bottom before, but he seems to be climbing straight to the top. He’s surpassed many others already.”
“Strange, why doesn’t this kid have black and white hair?”
With that question, the figure seated between the two who were speaking opened his eyes and glanced at the top of the stone plaque. Suddenly, his expression changed. “Some outsider is accepting our inheritance! Immediately summon Nightking Zhenwu.”
By now, it was not only the ancient guardians who had noticed Lu Yin’s appearance, but quite a few Daynight clan members around the stone plaque had also seen Lu Yin’s image. He had attracted a sizable amount of attention because he was truly climbing up too fast.
“Guys, look! That guy doesn’t look like he’s from our Daynight clan,” someone cried out.
Quite a few looked at where the person was pointing.
“Strange, that kid looks really familiar. Where’ve we seen him before?”
“You think so too? I seem to remember seeing him somewhere else as well.”
“Me too. I’ve definitely seen him somewhere before.”
…
