"Indeed."

"Indeed."

Lu Qingfeng looked at his eldest disciple with a bright smile on his face.

Originally, he thought it was exceptional that his eighth disciple, Xuan Yu, had achieved the Fourth Realm of Earth Immortal in just over ten thousand years.

But his eldest disciple was even more impressive.

His Dao ability and mana had already reached the peak of Earth Immortal, just one step away from ascending to the Heavenly Immortal Realm.

Xuan Yu was no match for him.

Truly astonishing.

Deservedly, he was the only disciple among many in the Barbarian God Realm who could inherit Lu Qingfeng's mantle and cultivate the Twelve Heavenly Demon God Skill!

"Xuan Ning and Xuan Yu have made such progress partly because of their high talents and strenuous cultivation efforts. On the other hand, it's probably also related to the environment of the Barbarian God Realm."

Now a Golden Immortal, Lu Qingfeng's perspective had greatly broadened.

He also noticed the nuances of the Barbarian God Realm.

Originally dominated by the Barbaric God System, the ascension of Immortal Dao flourished after Lu Qingfeng's arrival. After his death, Guangyuan Immortal Sect led the surge of Immortal Dao within the Barbarian God Realm, diluting the Barbarian God's fate and nearly monopolizing the fortune of Immortal Dao.

Thus,

as the top echelon and Immortal Dao leader of the Guangyuan Immortal Sect in the Barbarian God Realm, disciples like Xuan Ningzi naturally cultivated with Divine Speed.

"Excellent!"

"My Tianpeng Water Mansion just needs people. Once I give my lectures three times to completion in this Barbarian God Realm, I might be able to add a few Heavenly Immortal disciples. Managing Tianhe in the future will be much easier!"

Lu Qingfeng was delighted by his disciples' achievements and also overjoyed to have filled the void in the Tianpeng Water Mansion.

His face beamed with joy.

He then looked towards the man in white robes.

Incidentally, that man had been observing Lu Qingfeng for a while and after seeing him recognize Xuan Ningzi as his disciple, he said to Xuan Yu, "So it's the 'Array Ancestor' Xuan Yu from the Heavenly Realm, renowned as the foremost in arrays; no wonder even the Fire God 'Ogarwen,' though strong among those with weak divine power, barely managed to flee and almost perished with a shattered divine grid."

The Bright God King was genuinely surprised.

Weak divine power was nothing to him.

But to shatter someone's divine grid was also no easy feat. It was Xuan Yu alone, with his skill in arrays that could ensnare spirits, strong physical prowess excelling in close combat, and formidable Divine Skills like 'Cloud Summit Step' and 'Daluo Cave Temple'—one enabling pursuit and the other providing insight.

He managed to see through the Sun Daoist's Three Suns Immortal Technique escape skills.

That's how he inflicted heavy damage.

Other True Gods or even Divine Kings might win battles, but achieving what Xuan Yu did was extremely challenging.

"Xuan Yu."

"Immortal Dao."

The Bright God King was on alert in his heart.

Within the Heavenly Realm,

though there hadn't been major conflicts between the Immortal Gods, with the rise of forces led by the Guangyuan Immortal Sect, the emergence of numerous Immortal and Earth Immortals has intensified frictions with the Barbarian Gods.

Seeing this trend,

a cataclysmic war between Immortal Dao and Barbarian Gods was inevitable.

As the main god of the Bright God System, the Bright God King saw this clearly.

Yet the six major Barbarian God systems and other major and minor god systems and gods are quite disunited, competing amongst themselves. Millennia of deep-seated enmities meant it was hard to band them together.

Each divine system.

None wished to clash with the now thriving Immortal Dao, needlessly depleting their own strength.

Some shortsighted Barbarian Gods even hoped for the prosperity of Immortal Dao, so everyone would practice it, leaving fewer competitors on the Barbarian Path.

How much easier that would be.

In a precarious position,

Immortal Dao managed to survive and grow robust.

By now, it had become too entrenched to eradicate, even if one or two divine systems exhausted all their resources.

It was already an established force.

"It is time to be vigilant!"

The Bright God King looked at Xuan Yu, then Xuan Ning, and thought of the heavily injured Fire God 'Ogarwen' and how long his recovery might take, missing a great general from his ranks, his heart panged with a mix of regret and anger, but resolved quietly.

Xuan Yu ignored the compliments from the Bright God King and turned to Lu Qingfeng saying, "Teacher, this is the Bright God King, named 'Clementine'."

"Bright God King."

"Clementine."

Lu Qingfeng nodded slightly.

The Bright God King appeared at first glance like a beacon of Holy Light, radiating sacred brilliance. Upon closer scrutiny, one could discern the mysteries of 'healing,' 'intimidation,' and 'purification.'

His energy was comparable to that of a Heavenly Immortal.

Not to be underestimated.

With understanding, Lu Qingfeng said to the Bright God King, "Today is a joyous day of reunion with my disciples. We shall reminisce on another day."

Back then,

three thousand six hundred Barbarian Gods manifested, causing his destruction, including this Bright God King.

Lu Qingfeng was not about to let that go easily.

However, he was newly arrived and unfamiliar with the situation in the Barbarian God Realm. Plus, desiring to learn about his other disciples, he was reluctant to speak more with the Bright God King.

Nevertheless,

Lu Qingfeng wanted to leave,

but the Bright God King was hesitant, "Your Excellency appears unfamiliar; may I ask for your name?"

To his knowledge,

Xuan Ningzi and Xuan Yu Zi came from the Guangyuan Immortal Sect, disciples of the then strongest being in the Material Realm and first figure of the Immortal Dao, 'Guang Yuanzi'.

But Guang Yuanzi was too unconventional in the Material Realm, infringing on the interests of various gods, and even affecting their foundations within the Material Realm.

Tracked by the God of Destiny.

At the moment of Ascension, the gods revealed themselves – some aimed to capture him, others to kill him. Unexpectedly, Guang Yuanzi was so terrified that he self-destructed and died, only to be reborn under mysterious circumstances and once again cause a bloodbath in the Material Realm.

In a fury, he uprooted the foundations of all the gods.

The gods were enraged.

When they sought to punish this mortal madman, Guang Yuanzi had already vanished without a trace.

Until now.

It has been 125,000 years.

This time around, upon meeting Xuan Ning and Xuan Yu who respectfully addressed him as 'Teacher', the Bright God King guessed Lu Qingfeng's identity and was not willing to let him go easily, wanting to probe his depths.

"Hmm?"

Lu Qingfeng turned to leave, saw the Bright God King blocking him, shook his head, and said to Xuan Ningzi, "Having just defeated the Sun Daoist, and seeing the achievements of Xuan Yu over the years. Since this person is blocking the way, it's a good opportunity to let your teacher see the abilities of his greatest disciple, right?"

"Exactly what I was hoping for, Teacher!"

Xuan Ningzi's face was bright with youthful vigor.

He responded with a shout.

Stepping forward.

Roar!

With one step, a Demon God leaped out above his head.

Roar! Roar! Roar!

Continuing twelve steps, he confronted the Bright God King directly, where twelve Venerable Dutian Demon Gods arranged themselves, each holding a Du Tian Netherworld King Flag, already in formation.

Xuan Ningzi practiced the Twelve Heavenly Demon God Skill.

He is at the peak of Earth Immortality.

His combat power is extremely strong.

The twelve Venerable Dutian Demon Gods, each comparable to an Immortal True God with great divine power. With all twelve Demon Gods wielding the Du Tian Netherworld King Flags in the Dutian Formation, their combat power rivaled that of the Eternal God King!

Confronting the Bright God King.

All other methods proving ineffective, Xuan Ningzi, not wanting to embarrass himself in front of his teacher and not daring to hold back, used his full force as soon as he acted. Not seeking victory, but only a splendid fight, to not disappoint his teacher.

"Good."

"Let me see what progress the foremost among Immortal Dao has made over these years!"

The Bright God King laughed loudly.

With a flip of a page in his hand, the Bright Realm blossomed with purifying power, acting as a bane for demons and abyssal beings, causing even abyssal gods to fear.

However, the Dutian Demon Gods, being a convergence of all demonic divinities, were truly the demons among demons. Among the dozens of disciples under Lu Qingfeng, each possessed a resolute will.

Yet, among those who practiced the Twelve Heavenly Demon God Skill, aside from 'Zheng Chi' who fell to the Demon Dao but struggled out in the Five Directions Realm, there was only Xuan Ningzi.

This showed the domineering nature of the technique.

Now, during this confrontation.

Facing the Holy Light from the Bright God King's hands, although somewhat restrained, its impact was minimal. The twelve demon gods formed a great array, and Xuan Ningzi wearing the 'Taiyin Calamity Crossing Robe' extended his hand, gathering the twelve staffs of the Du Tian Netherworld King Flags into a seven-foot-long spear.

Charging into the formation.

He attacked the Bright God King.

Lights scattered wildly, dim glows flickering. One was the Bright God King, ruler of the Bright God System, the other the foremost in Immortal Dao, leader among the Immortal Dao of the Barbarian God Realm.

The battle between the two was truly earth-shattering.

Lu Qingfeng watched as the Bright God King employed his techniques, turning his head to ask Xuan Yu, "What is the difference between a True God and God King?"

He was curious about the Barbarian God cultivation system.

Unable to discern it at the moment.

Yet, Xuan Yu and others had practiced Immortal Dao in the Barbarian God Realm and dealt with the Barbarian Gods for ten thousand years, certainly more knowledgeable than him.

Xuan Yu explained to his teacher, "A demigod ignites the Divine Fire, consolidates the Divine Grid, and becomes an Immortal True God. Immortal True Gods have degrees of divine power: 'weak', 'lesser', 'intermediate', 'high', and 'great'.

With each profound mystery understood, ten strands of divinity are condensed, allowing for ascension.

To become a God King, one must comprehend at least six mysteries of the same principle. As mysteries interfere with one another, the more comprehended, the more difficult it becomes.

This Bright God King has comprehended all six mysteries from the Bright Principle: 'Bright Element', 'Healing', 'Intimidation', 'Purification', 'Phantom Avatar', and 'Light Speed', becoming the sole Bright God King.

It has been hundreds of thousands of years.

The cultivation at the God King realm is said to involve the fusion of different mysteries. If one can completely fuse the six great mysteries, one may ascend to be the ruler, ruling over the Barbarian God Realm. As of now, no Barbarian God has reached this realm."

True God.

God King.

These are two levels, but both follow a singular path, with the ultimate goal being to fully command a series of principles, becoming a ruler of that series.

And the authority of the cosmos is limited.

Every additional True God, God King that appears blocks the path for others, making cultivation increasingly difficult.

The Barbarian God Realm has three to four thousand Barbarian Gods.

Initially, it was as easy as bamboo shoots after rain, easily ascended.

But later, as the number of Barbarian Gods grew, understanding mysteries to ignite the Divine Fire and ascend to True Godhood became increasingly difficult. Fortunately, there was the plane battlefield where these Barbarian Gods fought, often leading to the fall of old gods, making room for new gods to ascend.

This was also one of the reasons why many Barbarian Gods were taking a wait-and-see approach as Immortal Dao rose.

"In the Barbarian God Realm."

"There are currently six Great God Kings of earth, light, dark, thunder, death, and life, with death and life ranked among the four highest principles, and these two God Kings are the strongest among the six Great God Kings."

"However, at the same time, wanting to practice these six series, ignite the Divine Fire, and consolidate the Divine Grid to achieve True God is also the most difficult. Therefore, in the present Barbarian God Realm, those in the five series of fire, water, wind, destruction, and fate have the most transcendent beings, the highest number of new True Gods, and the most likely to see the emergence of a seventh God King."

Xuan Yu's Dao ability was extremely high.

Even True Gods with great divine power were not necessarily his match; his status in the Immortal Dao of the Barbarian God Realm was esteemed, with transcendent beings, demigods, and True Gods even in the Guangyuan Immortal Sect.

Thus, he understood the situation in the Barbarian God Realm extremely thoroughly.

Seeing his teacher inquire, he began to speak endlessly.

…

PS: Last day of double monthly tickets, Demon Monk seeking monthly votes, much appreciated!