Chapter 840: Chapter 564: Luring Red Lotus Out into the Sun (End of Month Monthly Ticket Request)
The Northern Guardian King strode atop the clouds.
Beside him, the projection of a dignified middle-aged man appeared—Eternal Immortal looked at the Northern Guardian King with a satisfied expression.
"Beiming, you’ve done well these years. Now that you’ve made Breakthrough Seven, you should press forward with unstoppable momentum toward the Eight Realms.
After decades of effort, the number of Seventh Realm members of Red Extreme Palace who travel the Three Thousand Worlds, slaying demons and saving the world, is nearly a hundred. The team size is nearly set.
Newly advanced Sevenths no longer need to enter the Three Thousand Worlds. Your task is to protect the Tianxia human civilization.
Once Chenzhou Breaks through Seven, he’ll lead an elite squad to Mystic Sky Realm, fighting guerrilla warfare to weaken the Divine Race’s power, thus feeding Tianxia. I can sense the Curtain’s Law is weakening substantially; one day, perhaps Sevenths, even Eighths from the Forbidden Zone will descend en masse to the Human World.
Though we’re reluctant to turn against cosmic kin, the decay in some Divine Race is in their bones—no cure for it. Before repelling outside threats, we must first pacify within. To battle the Forbidden Zone with all our might, we have to eliminate the Divine Alliance, unify the Three Thousand Worlds with absolute force, unite all extraordinary races with ruling worth, and join with human worlds led by the Fire Seed World, establishing a Pan-World Extraordinary Alliance.
The Tianxia human civilization is merely the starting point."
Lu Chenzhou and the others listened with serious expressions.
Until the Eternal Immortal’s projection faded away.
Now, the Northern Guardian King’s strength had undergone earth-shaking change. Though he reached Breakthrough Seven last, the pressure he gave Lu Chenzhou even surpassed that of Old Ghost and the others.
"Four Tribulation, Seventh Realm—truly extraordinary."
Yellow River Old Ghost gave a heartfelt sigh as well.
Li Xiuying said, "Rumor has it that when President Wan broke through Seven, a full six types of catastrophe descended. Priest, Emperor Shitian were about the same. Hui Kong, Four Symbols, Xuanwu, Yaochi Immortal and other senior Absolute Peaks also faced Four, Five Tribulations. Dao Pioneers in the End of Dharma era are far beyond us."
Emperor Hanu showed deep agreement.
"I was fortunate to witness Emperor Shitian’s tribulation: the Five Elements Tribulation and Heavenly Tribulation descended, lasting three days and nights."
Alcohol King sighed.
"We’ve truly benefited from the times. If President Wan had not led the way, at least a third of the top ten Heavenly Human Daoists would have perished in the world’s great tribulation."
Lu Chenzhou, however, was curious.
"Do you seniors know how many tribulations the Dragon King faced?"
Yellow River Old Ghost shook his head.
"Never witnessed it."
Chen Beiming said, enunciating each word:
"Ruishui River, Fire Sea, Meteor, Sword Mountain, Decayed Wood, Thunder, Gale, Cold Ice—Eight Tribulations together!"
Everyone gasped sharply.
Including Lu Chenzhou.
"The Tribulation for Breakthrough Seven in the outer world—theoretically the maximum is Eight Tribulations, right? Metal, Wood, Water, Earth, Fire; Wind, Thunder, Ice."
Chen Beiming nodded slightly.
"That’s right. Qi Refiners, Martial Artists, all extraordinary paths in the Three Thousand Worlds—for Breakthrough Seven, there are only eight possible tribulations, and this is the limit. The Four Emperors are the same. So, the Cangtian Dragon King’s talent is truly terrifying.
Even my master admitted—if the Dragon King had been born in his era, he might have pioneered the path for Breakthrough Nine, becoming the number one Great Power in Martial Arts!"
Lu Chenzhou felt a nameless shock in his heart.
Emperor Hanu sighed:
"The Dragon King is truly a monster. In the resource-poor End of Dharma era, without even using any Opening Treasure, he broke through Seven in a hundred years—this is unprecedented. Emperor Shitian always feels inferior whenever mentioning the Dragon King."
The Dragon King was simply too strong—so much so that even other powerhouses did not feel shame in being less than him. In fact, people felt a trace of pride when compared to him.
"If only the Dragon King could make Breakthrough Eight! I believe, if he teamed up with President, the so-called World Venerables of the Divine Race would be nothing to fear. Let the dragon and immortal guard together!"
"Hard—The Dragon King’s only spent one Jiazi since Breakthrough Seven. Even with unparalleled talent, reaching Eight isn’t quite realistic."
On site, the discussion devolved into a Dragon King fan gathering.
Chen Beiming looked at Lu Chenzhou.
"Chenzhou, you don’t need to worry about anything next. Just muster all your energy, Open the Acupoint, and break the Dragon King’s record!"
"Alright!"
After that, the group started to discuss Bai Feng’s matter.
Lu Chenzhou said:
"Heavenly Immortal Dew, there’s no need for concern. One of my Spiritual Embodiments obtained some in Kun Gu Realm. Also, there’s another Ancient Cultivation Cave Mansion in Kun Gu Realm—I’m watching that as well."
Chen Beiming smiled, "Good, you can give the Heavenly Immortal Dew directly to Daoist Bai. The Council won’t shortchange you."
"Still has to be young friend Lu—dependable!"
Yellow River Old Ghost’s eyes widened round.
Lu Chenzhou said, "I have a feeling—when I enter closed-door cultivation and face the tribulation, Red Lotus, Ghost Empress, Shadow Stream Dominator—they’ll certainly try to disrupt me. We need to be prepared."
Alcohol King laughed:
"They dare come? All the better—we won’t have to go hunt them in the sun. Just team up and kill ’em on the spot."
Chen Beiming shook his head, "The five of us together can defeat the Red Lotus Demon Venerable, but killing him is hard."
Lu Chenzhou said, "I think so too. To ensure absolute safety, I suggest we use the Eight Eight Trigrams FormationProfound Heaven Demon Suppression Array. With it, we should be able to strangle him in one go."
Li Xiuying hesitated: "An Eight Trigrams Array needs eight Seventh Realm to join hands. Each activation consumes a lot of High Grade Primordial Stones—is it really necessary to make such a big move?"
But Chen Beiming pondered:
"I think it’s worth a try. The Red Lotus Demon Venerable is a huge danger. If he hides in the sun, before we reach Breakthrough Eight, we really can’t do a thing to him. If he comes to harass Base City, we might not be able to keep him either. With Red Lotus’s Destruction Law—once the four-city defense net breaks, in a single breath, he could kill billions."
"The benefit of Base City expansion is concentrated defense, but there’s also a flaw: if broken, the enemy can unleash large-scale Divine Skills and the result is unimaginable."
Lu Chenzhou said, "Exactly. We can’t treat Red Lotus as a normal Seventh Realm. To this day across the Three Thousand Worlds, there’s never been an instance of killing a Nine-Pattern Demon Clan member, right?"
The group shook their heads—no one had heard of such a thing.
Lu Chenzhou continued:
"So caution is needed. I plan to use myself as bait—to draw Red Lotus out during my tribulation. If he doesn’t come, we just lose some High Grade Primordial Stones."
He was pretty sure Red Lotus would come.
Because Red Lotus saw him as a destined nemesis; from him, Lu Chenzhou could sense an intense Battle Intent.
Red Lotus was thirsting for a fight with him.
Lu Chenzhou had no intention of playing fair with the Demon Race—if it could be a gang beatdown with arrays, why risk himself?
"Makes sense."
The more Yellow River Old Ghost looked at Lu Chenzhou, the more he liked him.
Everything young friend says is right!
"I agree as well."
"No problem here, either. Only, we’re still short three Seventh Realm combatants. Shall we use Daoist Soldiers as substitutes? They’re Seventh Rank, but can’t compare to true Seventh Realm."
Li Xiuying said.
Chen Beiming said, "We’re probably just missing one. Star Hammer King and Thunder King are actually ours. Hunting Red Lotus can be their test to join."
"In that case, only one left."
"How about Barhu Lie?"
"He’s at the critical juncture of using Blood Refining Technique to refine his Unparalleled Divine Weapon—has been in closed-door cultivation for years."
The group’s gaze swept over the top ten Heavenly Human Daoists.
"How about Daoist Cui Shan?"
"Still in closed-door cultivation to Breakthrough Seven."
"And Golden Ruins Primordial Monarch?"
"Same."
Suddenly, Lu Chenzhou looked at Heart’s Mediator.
"I know the answer."
He still had an agreement with Heart’s Mediator.
...
Soon after.
South Sea Giant City.
An ancient-looking monastery stood at its center. Young men and women from across the world, of all skin colors, wore yoga robes, feet suspended in air, eyes closed in meditation.
Aishwarya, veiled and barefoot, sat cross-legged.
She opened her eyes and looked at the newcomer.
"You’ve come to fulfill the agreement?"
"Yes."
"You should come back after Breakthrough Seven, right?"
"Ma’am, I need you to Breakthrough Seven before me. You’ve been accumulating at Peak Heavenly Human Realm for decades; I sense your accumulation now is enough for Breakthrough Sixth to Seventh."
"I have only seventy percent certainty."
Aishwarya sighed slightly.
This was still with the difficulty lowered after Eternal Immortal made Breakthrough Eight.
"What if I simulate it for you with World Dao?"
Lu Chenzhou asked.
"Your cultivation is only at Six Realms—using just Entering Dao-level World Dao, the effect isn’t that great..."
Aishwarya’s eyes stayed calm.
"Forgot to mention, Ma’am: I advanced my World Dao to Fifth Rank some time ago." Lu Chenzhou smiled.
"..."
Aishwarya’s eyes shook.
Silence.
Wordless.
After ten breaths, she couldn’t help saying, "It’s finally here. With Fifth Rank World Dao demonstration—your simulation of Illusion Realm Dao gives me an eighty percent chance for tribulation success."
Eighty percent—very high.
In the Great Wilderness, even thirty percent was enough to make countless Sixth Realm cultivators bet their lives for an ascent to heaven within reach!
Who could resist?
"Let’s begin."
Aishwarya brought Lu Chenzhou to a secret room. Her usually calm heart fluctuated, chest heaving, short of breath. After two hundred years of cultivation, she had finally awaited this day.
Lu Chenzhou asked:
"Ma’am, have you heard of the Great Dream Dao?"
Aishwarya’s eyes flickered.
"I have. Why?"
Great Dream Dao—the Upper Dao for all illusion-related paths.
"How about I use Great Dream Dao to demonstrate for you?"
Lu Chenzhou gave a faint smile.
Aishwarya’s eyes shook greatly.
"You have comprehended Great Dream Dao?"
As a heart cultivator, she knew its implications full well.
Great Dream, Causality, Nirvana, Formless—
the four Supreme Principles of Heart Cultivation.
Few except those with peerless talent could comprehend them.
Ninety percent of heart cultivators take the path of illusion, dreams, or Five Elements Yin Yang.
In reality,
there are also variants of the four Supreme Principles of heart cultivation: Nightmare, Destiny, Silent Annihilation, Heart Demon.
Their levels are equally high. But some are extremely hard to cultivate, others are prone to qi deviation. Heart Cultivation looks like mere meditation, but in truth, it holds great terrors—one tribulation, and one’s body and soul perish together.
"I have a little understanding of Great Dream Dao."
Lu Chenzhou’s words brought Aishwarya’s mind back.
Aishwarya composed herself, removed her veil, revealing a divinely beautiful and pale face.
She spoke solemnly:
"If you can help me advance from Illusion Realm Dao to Great Dream Dao, Aishwarya is willing to be your follower."
Aishwarya knew
such chances would not come again.
Lu Chenzhou gave a helpless laugh.
"Ma’am is too polite. There’s a saying in Da Xia: ’A drop of kindness repaid by a gushing spring.’ In fact, I also have some understanding of the Causality Dao—my accomplishment in it even surpasses Great Dream?"
Aishwarya was stunned.
She smiled wryly soon after:
"Causality is too hard. I can’t comprehend it. My Illusion Dao is almost at Fifth Rank—advancing to Great Dream remains possible."