Lan Xiaobu didn’t hesitate, unleashing his saintly domain with full force. Though he was only a first-revolution saint, his domain carried an immense weight, as if it had gathered all the destiny of this corner of the heavens.
Boom! The clash of their domains sent the spatial rules crackling with sharp, snapping sounds.
From a distance, Kun Wei felt as though he’d plunged into a terrifying abyss of darkness. Even a brief brush with his divine sense left him dizzy and disoriented. What kind of domain was this? So horrifying? And yet Lan Xiaobu stood unscathed under it, even counterattacking—this strength…
In that instant, Kun Wei understood. Even at his peak, Lan Xiaobu’s power far exceeded his own. This black-clad woman had sent the Mad Saint and Tree Saint scurrying away—her strength was at least on par with, if not greater than, those island masters.
Both the Mad Saint and Tree Saint could crush him at his peak. By that logic, Lan Xiaobu could clearly do the same.
The woman’s expression shifted. She’d only used sixty percent of her power, intending to utterly overwhelm Lan Xiaobu, to show him what a seventh-revolution saint was capable of—and to make him realize that without her earlier intervention, the island’s two masters would’ve already killed him.
Yet her domain’s strike couldn’t even shake Lan Xiaobu’s. Even if his strength matched hers, he shouldn’t have countered her domain so easily on the first try—hers was infused with the Rules of Darkness.
Not just in the Longevity Realm, but across the vast cosmos, those who cultivated the Rules of Darkness and achieved sainthood were as rare as phoenix feathers—practically nonexistent. Those who understood the Rules of Darkness were equally scarce. Yet this young man effortlessly withstood her saintly domain’s suppression. Such strength was anything but ordinary.
Even knowing she’d only used sixty percent, combined with the fusion of dark rules, blocking it was no small feat. She recalled someone she might never surpass—and now, this man gave her that same feeling again.
“Not bad. You’re worthy of negotiating business with me slowly. In that case, I’ll wait at my shop. I hope you keep your word.” The woman took a deep breath, gave Lan Xiaobu a long look, then turned and left.
She knew that even if she stayed, she could at best defeat him—crushing him outright was unlikely.
Lan Xiaobu remained calm. He wasn’t sure how much power the woman had used in her domain, but he’d only deployed half his strength. He’d meant to show her he was still relatively weak but not someone she could trample. Unexpectedly, his fifty percent not only blocked her domain with ease but even gained a slight edge.
Still, he suspected she hadn’t gone all out either.
“Lord Lan.” Kun Wei’s voice trembled with deference and fear.
Lan Xiaobu set aside thoughts of the woman and looked at Kun Wei, saying coolly, “You’ve got some tricks. I stripped you of your Curse Dao, and you managed to sever it cleanly yourself. Heh. Too bad—I swore to kill Fang Zhifan, and today, even if the Mad Saint and Tree Saint show up, I’ll still take you down.”
Kun Wei knew better than anyone that Lan Xiaobu’s words were solid gold. The Mad Saint and Tree Saint *had* come—and hadn’t dared act—scared off by that black-clad woman.
He quickly cast dozens of shielding restrictions before saying, “Lord Lan, I’m not Fang Zhifan. I seized his body—I’m Kun Wei. For my past pursuit and bounty on you, I’m willing to accept any punishment. I swear here and now never to target the Great Desolate Divine Realm. I’m even willing to merge the Longevity Realm into it, making it a domain of your realm…”
Though this was Saint Island, it still fell within the Longevity Realm’s domain. As the Lord of the Longevity Dao Court, Kun Wei’s words triggered a resonance with the Heavenly Dao’s principles.
A rumbling thunder echoed dully in the void, confirming that Kun Wei was indeed a legitimate Dao Lord.
Lan Xiaobu glanced at the reverberating Heavenly Dao principles in surprise. Logically, Kun Wei, as the Longevity Realm’s Dao Lord, making a statement so detrimental to his realm should’ve provoked a fivefold thunderstrike.
Yet only a harmonious rumble responded, suggesting the Longevity Realm’s Heavenly Dao no longer opposed him as it once had with lightning—it even seemed to faintly approve of Kun Wei’s words.
Kun Wei continued, “As you’ve seen, Lord, as the Longevity Realm’s Dao Lord, I’ve declared its merger into the Great Desolate Divine Realm, and it’s met only with thunderous harmony. This shows how much Fang Zhifan’s actions went against the Heavenly Dao—he nearly drove the Longevity Realm to ruin. The realm’s Heavenly Dao recognizes this now and no longer resists merging with your realm.”
Lan Xiaobu nodded. “True, you are Kun Wei. You’re craftier than Fang Zhifan, managing to seize his body. Unfortunately, that’s not a reason for me to spare you.”
Kun Wei bore no trace of the Curse Dao’s charm, and his dao aura was familiar to Lan Xiaobu from their past battles.
Trying to keep his tone steady, Kun Wei said, “Lord Lan, though I’ve had minor conflicts with you, there’s no deep enmity. The moment I regained my freedom, I sent word back to release your friend Zhao Gongming. Otherwise, with the Longevity Dao Court’s array reinforced by Heavenly Dao principles, a second-revolution saint couldn’t have breached it.
“Beyond that, my existence only benefits the Longevity Realm’s integration into the Great Desolate Divine Realm—no harm. I once sought to control a realm and become its Dao Lord. But since you appeared, I know I can’t compare. I’m willing to step back from that contest. The wars between the Longevity Realm’s saintly courts and sects have scattered its destiny. If this continues, the realm might cease to exist.”
Lan Xiaobu knew most of Kun Wei’s words were for survival, but they likely held truth. After he’d become a first-revolution saint, Kun Wei challenging his Great Desolate Divine Realm for the Dao Lord title would be suicide. Surrendering now preserved a sacred ground for Kun Wei, maintaining Taihan Saint Mountain’s status without risking annihilation.
Seeing Lan Xiaobu deep in thought, Kun Wei produced a jade box and offered it. “Fang Zhifan planned to use this Curse Dao Seed to reforge the Great Curse Technique, but I interrupted him with my seizure. The seed is here. I swear never to covet the Great Curse Technique or any related primordial divine arts.”
A Curse Dao Seed? Lan Xiaobu took the box, his divine sense sweeping inside. Indeed, it was a primordial Curse Dao Seed—an invaluable treasure.
Seeing Kun Wei offer such a prize and swear an oath, Lan Xiaobu nodded. “Fine, I’ll let you off today. Go back and announce the dissolution of the Longevity Dao Court. From now on, this place belongs solely to the Great Desolate Divine Realm.”
“Yes.” Kun Wei agreed, not even returning to his cave before rushing toward Saint Island’s exit.
He’d gambled right. Lan Xiaobu wielded many primordial divine arts—Great Severance, Great Curse, perhaps even Great Destruction—but rarely used them. His relentless pursuit of Fang Zhifan, master of the Great Curse Technique, showed his disgust for those who exploited such arts for karmic gain. By swearing off them, Kun Wei gained Lan Xiaobu’s trust without losing anything—he couldn’t cultivate them anyway.
Pocketing the Curse Dao Seed, Lan Xiaobu felt satisfied. Fang Zhifan had to die, but he couldn’t kill Kun Wei now.
Killing Kun Wei would feel good, but merging the Longevity Realm into the Great Desolate Divine Realm would become far harder. As the Great Desolate Divine Realm’s Dao Lord, slaying the Longevity Realm’s Dao Lord—even if its Heavenly Dao saw the merger as beneficial—would complicate things.
If the Longevity Realm could merge directly into the Great Desolate Divine Realm, that’d be ideal. Otherwise, many would die.
He’d seen the Mad Saint and Tree Saint. One-on-one, he feared neither. Even if they teamed up, he wasn’t overly worried.
To be safe, he needed to negotiate with the black-clad woman. She wanted chaotic divine spirit veins; he wanted the Heart of the Universe. They could each get what they needed.
…
“Big Brother, that black-clad woman’s too arrogant!” In the central island master cave of Golden Saint Dao City, the wild-haired Mad Saint Fei Lian’s face flushed with rage. If Tree Saint Xun hadn’t held him back, he’d have attacked her already.
Tree Saint Xun’s expression was grave. “Fei Lian, do you realize what realm she’s in?”
Hearing Xun’s tone, Fei Lian recalled how his aura had no effect on her—how she’d easily turned it back on him.
“She’s at least as strong as you, Big Brother,” he said, calming down as his mind cleared.
Xun sneered. “Not just equal to me—I’m certain that even together, we’re no match for her. I told you before there were two powerhouses here. She’s one of them.”
“No way, right?” Fei Lian frowned.
Xun said coldly, “Not ‘no way’—it’s a fact. Don’t you know what we are? You’re just a Fei Lian divine beast, and I’m an ancient tree. We reached this level not because we’re more talented, but because our master was too strong. The scraps he tossed us were treasures human cultivators fought over. That’s how we ascended.”
“So what?” Fei Lian grumbled defiantly.
Xun snorted. “So what? Why do you think we’re hiding here? With our strength, where in the Longevity Realm couldn’t we go?”
“For the Heart of the Universe, obviously,” Fei Lian muttered.
Xun sighed. “Exactly—for the Heart of the Universe. And because, though we’re strong, we’re leagues behind in scheming. Every saint here clawed their way out of corpse piles. You think they’re as simple-minded as you? You can’t keep acting like you did in front of our master.”
