Swallowed Star 2: Origin Continent: Volume 7: Chapter 19(291): [The Early God Emperor Stage – Dao of Life and Death]

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Swallowed Star 2: Origin Continent
Volume 7: [Nine Rivers Holy Realm]
Chapter (291): [The Early God Emperor Stage – Dao of Life and Death]
(19th of Volume 7)
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The nights in Yulan City remained vibrant, showing no signs of decline in prosperity.

From a distance, Luo Feng watched the golden-armored figure soar into the sky, clearly sensing the unhidden hostility emanating from him.

To Qiu Yike, the man clad in golden armor, Luo Feng's future seemed riddled with obstacles.

"Their Guifang members set an ambush outside the city, yet after their failed attempt, they now expect me- their victim- to compensate them? Guifang's audacity is beyond reason," Luo Feng murmured, shaking his head slightly.

"And Elder Tianhe? I'd like to see what he's capable of doing to me!"

With a light chuckle, Luo Feng turned away and continued toward the next merchant, appearing unaffected by the earlier threat.

Meanwhile, in Di Qing's cave, Luo Feng's clone promptly summoned his companions.

"What's going on?" Di Ming, who had been in seclusion for cultivation, had even curbed his usual enthusiasm for hunting. However, he had not blocked messages from Luo Feng and Di Qing.

"Brother Luo Feng, what happened?" Di Fu, currently working at the Nine Ring Realm Tower in the city, specialized in the Dao of Space and had left a clone behind in his cave dwelling to receive messages at all times.

Sitting to the side, Di Qing had already formed a guess. "Is it about the Guifang?"

"Yes," Luo Feng nodded solemnly as he glanced at his three companions.

"Just now, the deputy master of Guifang, Elder Tianhe, sent someone to demand that I compensate them with 50 million Hunyuan Crystals. If I paid, they would consider the robbery and counterattack incident settled. I refused outright."

"Counterattack against robbery?"

"You were ambushed outside the city?" Di Ming and Di Fu finally grasped the seriousness of the situation- two of their strongest allies had faced a dangerous attack beyond the city's protection.

Di Qing elaborated, "On our way back from a hunt, Brother Luo Feng and I were ambushed by a team from Guifang. There were five mid-stage God Emperor level cultivators- five of them joined forces to kill Luo Feng and me. However, in the battle, Luo Feng managed to kill one of them, Ku Mo. Witnessing this, the remaining four became wary and chose to retreat.

"Two against five... and you even managed to kill a mid-level God Emperor?" Di Ming and Di Fu were left utterly stunned.

Di Fu is still striving to reach the level of Ultimate God King, while Di Ming had only just stepped into the early stages of the God Emperor realm through his Hunyuan bloodline.

They both understood the power scale: a mid-stage Enlightened God Emperor was equivalent to a late-stage God Emperor practitioner of the Hunyuan bloodline- just one step away from the Semi-Hunyuan level. The fact that Luo Feng had turned the battle in his favor was simply unbelievable.

"Guifang is trying to intimidate me," Luo Feng said, his gaze steady as he looked at Di Ming and Di Fu. His voice was firm, "I'm not afraid of them, but you two must be extra cautious."

Di Qing nodded in agreement, adding, "Guifang's retaliation is inevitable. Inside the city, the rules restrain them, so they won't dare to openly attack me or Luo Feng for now. But you two are more vulnerable- if they resort to underhanded tactics, it could put you in serious danger."

"I don't plan on going out for a while," Di Ming said.

"I have multiple clones." Di Fu added with a smile. "The ones that venture out don't carry much wealth, so they shouldn't be attracted."

Hearing this, Luo Feng and Di Qing nodded slightly, feeling somewhat reassured.

"Yulan City enforces strict laws. While some elders may be ruthless in secret dealings, the city itself is layered with protective formations, preventing anyone from openly breaking the rules," Di Qing analyzed, looking at Luo Feng.

"If they want to use underhanded tactics, they'll have to act in secret. But such tricks won't work against us."

Luo Feng wholeheartedly agreed. With his Undying Blood Sea Body, even if Elder Tianhe attacked him publicly, he would likely have to exert his full strength just to destroy a single Undying Blood Sea clone. Within the city, their safety was relatively assured.

"The Insect Nest, Ten Thousand Shadows Pavilion, and the Guifang- these forces are known for their ruthless methods. Their retaliation usually happens outside the city," Di Qing continued. "We're not entirely confident in dealing with them yet, so for now, let's avoid hunting trips and prevent ourselves from falling into their traps."

"Agreed. Let's take a break and prepare ourselves." Luo Feng nodded in approval.

Di Qing had just broken through to the mid-stage God Emperor realm, and he knew it would take a long period of accumulation before reaching the next level. Now that they had provoked the Guifang, taking unnecessary risks wasn't an option.

Luo Feng had gained an abundance of treasures from this hunt. Now, he wanted to carefully refine and absorb them to enhance his own strength.

However, Guifang's retaliation came much sooner than expected. Just two days later, Di Fu lost his job at the Nine Rings Realm Tower.

Even worse, he mysteriously disappeared without a trace on his way back to his cave dwelling, leaving no clues as to how the attack had been carried out.

"The Guifang really has no bottom line. They actually targeted you?" Luo Feng and Di Qing, though mentally prepared, couldn't suppress their fury when the attack actually happened.

Organizations like Guifang operated without regard for reputation, resorting to any means necessary.

"It was just a minor job- not worth worrying about," Di Fu forced a smile.

"Guifang probably sent word to someone mid-ranked person at the Nine Rings Realm Tower, and just like that, I was dismissed."

After all, his position there was at the very bottom- just a low-level worker with no real influence.

"They used cause and effect means to sneak attack on you." Di Qing analyzed.

"Fortunately, the entire Nine Rivers Holy Realm heavily suppresses causal powers, and the formation in my cave provided additional protection, preventing the attack from harming your clone inside."

"If my clone inside the cave had also perished, I'd have to travel all the way from the Origin Continent just to return," Di Fu joked, shaking his head.

"Never thought a nobody like me from Yulan City would be fortunate enough to attract the attention of the Guifang."

"It's my fault for dragging you into this," Luo Feng said, his voice filled with guilt.

"Di Fu, you lost your job because of me. I owe you a favor, and before long, I'll make it up to you with an even better opportunity."

"Haha, then I guess I've struck gold," Di Fu replied with a smile.

"Besides, this gives me the perfect chance to go into seclusion and fully digest my gains from the Nine Ring Realm Tower."

Luo Feng, however, saw through Di Fu's forced indifference. He knew that, deep down, Di Fu truly valued his job at the Nine Rings Realm Tower. It had been a hard-earned position, and the four of them had even celebrated his achievement when he first secured it.

Now that he had lost it, how could he not feel disheartened?

"Guifang... Elder Tianhe...!" Luo Feng's eyes turned icy cold, his hatred deepening.

Not long after, an official airship passed over Yulan City. Using invincible and formless technique, Luo Feng altered his appearance and aura, quietly blending into the crowd before discreetly boarding the airship.

Through the Chaotic Source Source Space, he successfully returned to the Origin Continent via the lake at the foot of the Holy Mountain.

Origin Continent, HuYang City, City Lord's Mansion.

"Finally, I'm back."

Standing atop the towering City Lord's Mansion, Luo Feng gazed at the colossal, furry hand that upheld the Huyang City, his heart filled with complex emotions. This massive hand was none other than his own innate treasure, the "Palm Realm."

"The value of the 'Palm Realm' is on par with the 'Immortal Heart,'" Luo Feng mused, "but fully unlocking its power is far more difficult."

The Immortal Heart was a treasure Luo Feng had carefully chosen from the Infinite Space Treasury, one that perfectly aligned with his dao. It revolved around the dual principles of life and destruction, allowing him to wield it with complete mastery and ease.

In contrast, the Palm Realm had a far more intricate origin. According to the YanFeng Ancestor's assessment, it was once the claw of a high-level Hunyuan lifeform. Over time, it underwent a long gestation within a world-class Hunyuan lifeform from the Dream Domain, ultimately transforming into this innate treasure.

Like the blood-colored scales of the Star Tower, this treasure was deeply rooted in life energy.

However, beyond life, it also carried the profound laws of world creation, destruction, space, matter, and the infinite. This made it incredibly powerful- but also vastly more challenging to control compared to the Immortal Heart.

With a deep breath, Luo Feng took a single step--

--And in an instant, he was back inside the Star Tower.

Within one of the Star Tower's many training chambers, countless low-level Hunyuan life materials were stored.

At that moment, Luo Feng waved his hand, and one by one, materials radiating even more formidable auras descended before him.

"For late-stage God Emperor low-level Hunyuan lifeforms, I've gathered a total of 800 materials, each averaging 38,000 Hunyuan Crystals. The Jiuhe Holy Realm is well-suited for refining lifeforms at this level, and I've managed to collect around 70% of the available resources."

"As for Perfection God Emperor low-level Hunyuan lifeforms, I have 80 materials, with an average price of 390,000 Hunyuan Crystals per unit."

"Additionally, I purchased three 'Ultra-Limit' low-grade Hunyuan life materials, which cost me a total of 10.2 million Hunyuan Crystals."

Nearly all of Luo Feng's wealth had been poured into acquiring these essential materials.

Low-level Hunyuan lifeforms are divided into numerous races, and within the same race, there are vast differences in strength.

Some remained at the early God Emperor stage, while others advanced to the Perfection God Emperor stage- just like cultivators, where exceptional individuals could far surpass their peers.

Among Perfection God Emperor low-level Hunyuan lifeforms, a rare few are exceptional beings whose power vastly exceeded others at their level.

In the Jiuhe Holy Realm, such lifeforms are classified as "Ultra-Limit Level."

Even in a one-on-one battle, not even the three Palace Masters of Yulan City would be their match.

These so-called Ultra-Limit low-level Hunyuan lifeform corpse materials from the Nine Rivers Holy Realm are typically transported from the Dark Holy Realm. Due to the relentless and intense battles within the Dark Holy Realm, obtaining corpses of this caliber is significantly easier.

Even the scraps of ultra-grade corpse materials are worth at least several million Hunyuan Crystals each.

"Each of these low-level Hunyuan life materials contains profound mysteries of 'Life and Death,'" Luo Feng remarked with excitement.

"This time, my harvest is far greater than ever before. I've also obtained several rare treasures to aid my cultivation."

"This time, I must break through the Dao of Life and Death!"

At that moment, the Eye of Life and Death on Luo Feng's forehead slowly opened, allowing him to meticulously analyze the newly acquired materials, fully immersing himself in his cultivation.

For God Emperors, training often requires hundreds or even thousands of epochs in seclusion. This time, Di Qing also decided to enter long-term seclusion, and Luo Feng was prepared for an extended period of cultivation as well.

However, the sheer volume of low-level Hunyuan life materials that Luo Feng had gathered was staggering. Many of them formed systematic sets, allowing him to study the same race across different stages- early, mid, late, and perfection God Emperor levels. Through this comparative approach, Luo Feng's insights far surpassed anything he had gained before.

He meticulously analyzed and documented his findings, but even after nearly two hundred centuries, he had only processed seventy percent of his research. Yet, through this gradual accumulation of knowledge, the Dao of Life and Death naturally reached a point of completion, triggering a qualitative transformation in his understanding.

"Hmm?"

Seated cross-legged inside the Star Tower, Luo Feng was- as always- contemplating, studying, analyzing, and integrating his knowledge.

Unknowingly, he had completely merged the 'Early God Emperor stage of the Dao of Life and Death' within his mind.

For a brief moment, Luo Feng was stunned, then an overwhelming sense of joy surged through him.

The ecstasy of enlightenment is what truly captivates cultivators. Many God Emperors, after reaching invincible status in their home worlds and experiencing all worldly pleasures, still risk their lives to explore realms like the Nine Rivers Holy Realm.

Their pursuit isn't mere survival- it's the relentless chase for higher realms of understanding, the desire to witness broader horizons of existence.

"From the time I arrived in Yulan City until now, nearly nine hundred epochs have passed! Finally, the Dao of Life and Death has advanced from the Ultimate Realm of the God King to the early stage of the God Emperor."

Luo Feng smiled, murmuring to himself, savoring the long-awaited breakthrough.

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END OF CHAPTER

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