Early in the morning, sunlight filtered through a layer of pale white clouds onto the land. There was a very strange looking mountain in Yin Zhou of the Li dynasty, located in the southwest of Penglai Region.
It was called Turtle Back Mountain. How did it come by this name?
The reason being it resembled a turtle shell.
The resemblance was remarkable.
The mountain looked like a piece of smooth green black jade. There was no vegetation growing on it, and it was studded with all kinds of odd markings, which looked like the pattern on the shell of a turtle.
Turtle Back Mountain was about ten thousand feet long and nestled on top of a huge peak.
It was true that the mountain lay on a huge peak. The huge peak reached tens of thousands of feet above the sky and was the highest peak in the southwest of the Li dynasty. When viewed from a distance, Turtle Back Mountain with its high peak resembled a huge mushroom.
The peak was so high that only top experts were able to reach the mountain. If your cultivation level was not up to Level Seven and your Gang Qi was not condensed, it was impossible for you to climb that peak. This condition applied even if you were a Level Six master and purportedly had super strong physical strength.
Turtle Back Mountain was usually an inaccessible place, but today it was crowded with people. A group of people, who had reached Level Nine at least, gathered around but there was an empty space in the center.
This group of people was very particular about the seating arrangements.
Located at the north direction, there was a throne which faced south. The throne looked as if it had been made out of gold; It gleamed in the morning sun, and exuded a distinguished hue.
“Gosh, it seems to be a Highest Heaven Celestial Device at Upper Grade, which is not inferior to Silver Frost Castle. No wonder so many people are vying for the throne of Human Emperor. Even the chair alone is worth fighting for!” Zhou Bao was standing just west of the top of Turtle Back Mountain, and Yan Yuntian was sitting in front of him. This was where the Human Emperor-selecting Ceremony was held, at Turtle Back Mountain.
In addition to the throne, to the east were people from the five biggest sects and super sects from the Three Western Regions; while to the west were some small and middle schools, sects and well-known families from the Four Eastern Regions. These people were all here for the ceremony.
To the west where Zhou Bao was, was where the participants for the Human Emperor-selecting Ceremony were located.
These participants were all the emperors of the secular super-dynasty. They were all privileged, and all carried rare treasures, which were similar to the Heavenly Crown of Peace. These could enhance their owners’ birth destiny and fate. Thus, Turtle Back Mountain was now covered with purple qi, and a person with discerning eyesight like Zhou Bao, could see a towering solid purple glow hovering above the mountain from a distance. Several golden dragons with five claws loomed in the purple light, roaring and hissing. The Qi Power was at its peak at this moment.
Given that the emperors from all the dynasties were carrying different kinds of rare treasures, it was reasonable to see an enormous amount of purple qi gathering on the west. And on the eastern side, the atmosphere was like that of a boundless sea, deep and bottomless. It was because there, led by Yu Taixu, the lord of Divine Wind Palace, sat the power holders from Immortal Palace, Dragon Thunder Palace, Jade Pool, the Dark Sect and Snow Mountain Great Wheel Temple and spectators from Youxian Temple, the Fifth Manor and Palace of Eternal Life. To Zhou Bao’s amusement, the spectators from Youxian Temple were seated right behind the spectators from Snow Mountain Great Wheel Temple which was led by Child-endowing Buddha. Therefore, the atmosphere there was somewhat hostile and dissonant.
The spectators from Youxian Temple glared fixedly at Child-endowing Buddha’s bald head with murderous looks. However, Child-endowing Buddha seemed oblivious to them. There was a woman in white beside him and he was chatting and laughing with her.
As for Yu Taixu, the lord of Divine Wind Palace, the one whom Zhou Bao was most concerned about, after seeing him for the first time, Zhou Bao gave up any further thoughts of challenging him to a fight.
“This guy is so scary. Who knows the extent of his training? I’m afraid I can’t beat him even with my Furnace of Immortality, unless I launch a Supreme Fairy Weapon, but he would have his own fairy weapon. Humph, perhaps I can’t defeat him even with a Supreme Fairy Weapon. I think it’s only possible to fight with him when my Eight Nine Mysterious Skill has reached the Basic level and I have mastered the power of Primordial Demonic Ape Zhuyan.” Zhou Bao thought to himself.
Yu Taixu was a handsome, middle-aged man, who did not appear to be a practitioner because he seemed to have no Qi Power. His appearance was even more regal than the emperor and he always had a gentle smile on his face. Whoever he looked at instantly felt very warm and welcomed.
Whoever he nodded to would feel happy, as if he had been bestowed a great honor.
“His cultivation may have reached the limit of the Lord of Heaven, and he comes within an inch of entering the fabled Realm of Human Immortal. Umm, only by having such formidable skills can he become the lord of Divine Wind Palace, overpowering all influences within Divine Wind Palace and suppressing the other four biggest sects. Hehe, this time, the other four biggest sects did not send any of their chiefs in. Maybe it’s because they do not want to see Yu Taixu and lose their confidence!” Zhou Bao thought about it for a moment and then understood why Child-endowing Buddha and Elder Qing were the representatives of the four biggest sects. Child-endowing Buddha was now a leading player at Bigwheel Temple, and Elder Qing had a very high status in the Immortal Palace. However, these two people were not the actual power holders from their sects, and so too with the Jade Pool and Dragon Thunder Palace.
“Even a man at the Lord of Heaven Realm is not aware of his strength, let alone me. He is just sitting there squinting and no one dares to move!” Zhou Bao looked at Yu Taixu with horror in his heart, and turned his eyes to another man, Senior Grand Tutor Hong, who was on the west side, like him.
He, the power holder of the Hong Family which was the second powerful family in the Divine Wind Palace, was a totally different person from Yu Taixu. Zhou Bao could not make out what Yu Taixu was like at all, but he saw through Senior Grand Tutor Hong from the first glance. It was as if Senior Grand Tutor Hong had no secrets. His cultivation was Level Nine, but his cultivation methods was of first-class quality. He might be the best of Level Nine experts, but Zhou Bao firmly believed that he did not have the strength to challenge bypassing ranks. However, Senior Grand Tutor Hong had killed people at the Lord of Heaven Realm in a confrontation before. What did that mean? What was going on?
Zhou Bao couldn’t understand this, but he didn’t think much about it. Since Senior Grand Tutor Hong was the enemy of Yu Taixu, it was up to Yu Taixu to deal with him. He didn’t need to worry too much. What he most wanted to know now was who Yu Taixu’s favorite Candidate for Human Emperor was.
Zhou Bao couldn’t understand this, but he didn’t think too much about it. Since Senior Grand Tutor Hong was Yu Taixu’s enemy, it was up to Yu Taixu to deal with him. That was not his concern. What he was eager to know now was who Yu Taixu’s favorite Candidate for Human Emperor was.
There were 13 emperors who were eligible to participate in the Human Emperor-selecting Ceremony. One of the most prominent was Emperor Yang of the Li dynasty. It was not because he was tall, but because everyone knew that he was the one who had the support of the Hong Family and he was also Senior Grand Tutor Hong’s puppet.
After seeing Emperor Yang, Zhou Bao understood what Yu Nancheng meant. The Emperor Yang looked about 50 years old, and was not a cultivator. He did not have any trace of Internal Qi. He was a bit plump and had a slight paunch. Obviously, he was accustomed to living high on the hog and must have consumed many panaceas. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be so well preserved for his age. After all it was hard for a man in his 70s, who had never practiced Internal Qi at all, to look like he was still in his 50s.
Zhou Bao took one look at him and looked away. No matter how intelligent he was, it was useless. In such a place, without Senior Grand Tutor Hong, he would be killed easily. Zhou Bao might as well turn his attention to others.
Ashoka of the Peacock Dynasty was another strong enemy of Yan Yuntian. Zhou Bao’s first impression of him was that he was very young, at least 20 years younger than Yan Yuntian and around his own age. He was full of energy. What he practiced was the Way of the Emperor and he had reached the peak of Level Nine. His Qi Power and dignity showed in his every gesture. An imperial jade seal hung at his waist, which was a Pure Yang Celestial Device that could suppress fate just like Yan Yuntian’s Heavenly Crown of Peace, and it complemented his turquoise imperial robe. Beside him was a scrawny monk.
The monk was very thin, swarthy, and stood no more than 1.5 meters tall. At first glance, he looked like a skeleton.
Zhou Bao did not dare to look down on this skeletal old monk, for his strength had reached the Venerable Realm.
With fairy weapons, Zhou Bao would certainly ignore the Venerable during ordinary times, but now, under such circumstances, Zhou Bao did not dare to take his fairy weapons out. He remembered clearly that in the Dragon-taming Ruins, he launched his Furnace of Immortality to escape from Yu Taixu’s Void-catching Technique. Now, he was in Yu Taixu’s territory, so he would be in great trouble if he showed the Furnace of Immortality.
His new warship was a Supreme Fairy Weapon and would be able to suppress everyone here if he showed it. But then what would happen to him? Zhou Bao could imagine that he would be in constant trouble from now on. At that time, maybe even the Immortal Palace would covet it.
As a result, none of his two fairy weapons could be used. Then what if he were to fight the Venerable using pure strength only?
That would work. With his current strength, he was sure he could defeat at least ten of the Venerables. In that case, however, he could not conceal the spirit of the Primordial Demonic Ape Zhuyan and people would find out that he had condensed the Real Body of the Primordial Demonic Ape. It would also be a hassle.
Now it seemed that Zhou Bao could only use Pure Yang Celestial Devices. He had a lot of Pure Yang Celestial Devices, but the only thing that was really effective was the Flipping Sky Seal, the Gold Bracelet and the Yin and Yang Heavenly Sword.