289: The high level of Tianwu Continent

"I remember."

Xiao Shi nodded.

Previously, Xiang Zizhen had urged him to increase his strength as quickly as possible so that he could participate in this operation.

From this, Xiao Shi realized that this operation was not simple.

"I originally wanted to wait until your strength had improved before telling you about this operation, but now the situation has changed..."

"It is necessary to tell you about this operation now."

"I think you already know."

"In Star Luo Province, besides the few of us members of the Four Symbols Divine Martial Sect, there is another group of members who unfortunately fell into the hands of the Star Luo Lord and have been secretly imprisoned by him."

Xiang Zizhen said in a heavy voice.

Xiao Shi nodded slightly.

He had already learned of this before coming to Star Luo Province.

Although the Four Symbols Divine Martial Sect had been destroyed many years ago, its Altar had never been found from beginning to end.

To find the Four Symbols Divine Martial Sect Altar, one must break through the Four Symbols Profound Secrets of the Four Symbols Divine Martial Sect.

But the Profound Secrets of the Four Symbols Divine Martial Sect can only be broken by those of the Four Symbols Divine Martial Sect lineage.

Therefore... many people who know this secret are, intentionally or unintentionally, searching for the few remaining branches of the Four Symbols Divine Martial Sect.

As an insider, the Star Luo Lord has been searching for these remaining branch members.

Currently, the Star Luo Lord has a group of Four Symbols Divine Martial Sect members imprisoned.

"The operation I am talking about is... to rescue these imprisoned members of the Four Symbols Divine Martial Sect!"

"I already know where they are being held."

"Now, as soon as the time is right, we will immediately carry out the rescue!"

Xiang Zizhen said with a serious expression.

Xiao Shi's heart was shaken.

Although he realized that the operation Xiang Zizhen mentioned was not simple, he didn't expect it to be the rescue of these imprisoned members of the Four Symbols Divine Martial Sect!

In Xiao Shi's view, the difficulty of this was almost impossible.

Given the importance the Star Luo Lord placed on these Four Symbols Divine Martial Sect members,

even if they knew where they were imprisoned,

it was unrealistic to go and rescue them.

At that time, the first person they would likely face would be the Star Luo Lord!

The Star Luo Lord was the "heaven" of the Star Luo Territory!

No matter what, he was not someone they could contend with.

From Xiao Shi's expression, Xiang Zizhen had already guessed his thoughts.

"Don't worry, this operation is not a suicide mission."

"I have enough confidence."

"The others also know about this operation, and they will all participate when the time comes."

"However, the time is not yet right, so it is inconvenient for me to disclose some important information for now."

"Telling you now is partly to let you prepare for it as early as possible, and partly to give you enough time to arrange for the people of the Crimson Tiger Lineage on your side."

"You must know that once this operation begins, regardless of success or failure, it will be difficult for us to continue living in Star Luo Province."

"And in our plan, one of the reasons we want to rescue these members is that we don't want to stay in Star Luo Province anymore; we are preparing to go home."

Xiang Zizhen said earnestly.

"Go home?"

Xiao Shi expressed his doubt.

"Yes, go home!"

Xiang Zizhen said solemnly.

"Our Four Symbols Divine Martial Sect has always been the state-protecting divine sect of the Great Wu Dynasty. Although the Great Wu Dynasty has collapsed... its Qi has not yet run out, and it still occupies a corner of the Tianwu Continent. As part of the Great Wu Dynasty, we will naturally return to the location of the Imperial Dynasty as long as there is an opportunity."

"That is our home!"

Xiao Shi understood in his heart.

"In other words, we not only have to rescue these members but also withdraw from Star Luo Province..."

As he learned more information,

Xiao Shi also realized that this rescue operation was not simple.

Although he didn't know where the current Great Wu Dynasty was located or how far it was from Star Luo Province,

he knew that such a long-distance crossing was not an easy task in itself.

It was definitely not something that just a few members of the Four Symbols Divine Martial Sect could accomplish.

"It seems that higher-level existences will be involved in this matter."

Xiao Shi thought of Xiang Zizhen's Revered Master.

With the participation of such high-level existences... there was indeed hope!

"What is the current situation of the Great Wu Dynasty...?"

Taking this opportunity,

Xiao Shi began to inquire about information related to the Great Wu Dynasty from Xiang Zizhen.

The Great Wu Dynasty is currently a taboo in all major territories.

Information and topics related to the Great Wu Dynasty have been blocked.

One of the purposes for which Xiao Shi decided to come to Star Luo Province to find these members of the Four Symbols Divine Martial Sect was to obtain information about the Great Wu Dynasty from them.

Xiang Zizhen clearly knew a lot in this regard.

Regarding this,

Xiang Zizhen did not hide anything and told Xiao Shi directly the information he knew.

"Since the collapse of the Great Wu Dynasty's imperial power, the entire Tianwu Continent has been in a state of fragmented rule by various factions."

"As far as I know."

"Currently, there are a total of thirty-three territories in the Tianwu Continent, and the Star Luo Territory is one of them."

"And besides these thirty-three territories, there are also Three Great Domains."

"These Three Great Domains, whether in terms of area and territory or overall strength, are far stronger than the thirty-three territories."

"To some extent, these Three Great Domains are like three independent kingdoms!"

"Those in charge of these Three Great Domains are the Three Heavenly Kings of the former Great Wu Dynasty!"

"Many years ago, these Three Heavenly Kings had already reached a Realm above the Saint Realm."

"No one knows what level these Three Heavenly Kings are at now... all we know is that these Three Heavenly Kings are the existences standing at the very Peak of the Tianwu Continent today!"

"In fact, if our Four Symbols Divine Martial Sect had not been destroyed back then, there would be a fourth great Domain today."

"After all, our Four Symbols Divine Martial Sect's Sect Leader was a figure who could stand on equal footing with the Three Heavenly Kings."

Xiang Zizhen sighed.

"As for the Great Wu Dynasty..."

"In the current era, it's a bit awkward."

"The Great Wu Dynasty is still located in the former Imperial Domain, but the power of the entire Great Wu Dynasty is less than a tenth of what it was, in a state where it can barely protect itself."

"Since the Martial God fell, many people of the Great Wu Dynasty have successively established themselves in the Tianwu Continent, no longer obeying the Imperial Descendants of the Martial God, including the Three Heavenly Kings."

"Only our Four Symbols Divine Martial Sect and the Imperial Guard are willing to continue supporting the Imperial Descendants of the Martial God."

"And take the restoration of the Great Wu Dynasty as our responsibility."

Xiao Shi understood in his heart.

He finally had a preliminary understanding of the situation in the entire Tianwu Continent.

From the current situation,

the most powerful in the entire Tianwu Continent are none other than the Three Great Domains!

The Great Wu Dynasty can only settle in a corner and barely protect itself.

"Although our Great Wu Dynasty is far inferior to what it was in the past, the Qi of the entire Imperial Dynasty has not dissipated. As long as the Qi remains, even the Three Heavenly Kings dare not rebel."

Xiang Zizhen said.

"What is Qi?"

Xiao Shi asked.

He could feel it.

The Imperial Dynasty Qi here was different from the imperial destiny he had previously understood.

"Qi is... very mysterious. I don't know much about it now. All I know is that the biggest reliance of the Great Wu Dynasty today is its Qi!"

"Whether it's the various lords or the Three Heavenly Kings, they are all very wary of the Great Wu Dynasty's Qi."

"This is also why, after the collapse of the Great Wu Dynasty's imperial power, no new Imperial Dynasty has appeared."

"Although these feudal lords dare to occupy a territory and establish themselves, not one of them dares to rebel and proclaim themselves emperor. Today's Tianwu Continent still has only one Imperial Dynasty!"

Xiang Zizhen said with emotion.

Xiao Shi nodded.

Looking at it this way,

Qi is the reason why the Great Wu Dynasty still exists after the collapse of its imperial power.

However, more information about Qi,

even at Xiang Zizhen's level, was inaccessible.

Perhaps this is the deepest secret of the Great Wu Dynasty.

"Is our next step to go to the Imperial Domain where the Great Wu Dynasty is located?"

Xiao Shi asked.

"Correct."

Xiang Zizhen nodded.

"This is a good thing for us."

"After all, the Imperial Domain is the base of our Four Symbols Divine Martial Sect. Only there can we access the deeper powers and mysteries of the Four Symbols Divine Martial Sect, and only there can we become Saints."

"If we stay in Star Luo Province or other territories, it is impossible to become a Saint."

Xiao Shi's heart stirred at this.

"Why is that?"

"Because each territory can only accommodate one Saint at most!"

"The Saint Realm is the Peak of the Middle Three Realms. To some extent, this Realm is actually the end of the Martial Dao."

"For the vast majority of people, becoming a Saint is the ultimate pursuit of their lives."

"After all, the Upper Three Realms of the Martial Dao only belong to legends..."

"For us, the Saint Realm is at least a visible Realm that we can hope to reach."

"And one of the keys to becoming a Saint lies in the need to refine a Domain."

"The entire Star Luo Territory... is actually the Domain refined by the Star Luo Lord!"

"The reason why the Star Luo Lord is an invincible existence in the Star Luo Territory is because he is within his own Domain!"

"A Saint's combat power within their own Domain will be countless times stronger than their combat power elsewhere!"

"Therefore..."

"In each territory, it is impossible for a second Saint to appear!"

"Even for those Martial Artists who already have the ability to impact the Saint Realm, to step into the Saint Realm, they must have a Domain that can be refined."

"In someone else's Domain, it is definitely impossible to become a Saint!"

Xiao Shi suddenly understood.

No wonder there has always been only one Saint in the entire Star Luo Province!

He originally thought it was because the Saint Realm was too difficult.

He didn't expect it was because becoming a Saint required refining a Domain first.

This destined that each territory would have at most one Saint.

"Then doesn't the current Tianwu Continent have only thirty-three Saints?"

Xiao Shi asked in confusion.

"Of course not."

Xiang Zizhen shook his head.

"I just said that once we return to the Imperial Domain, there will be hope of becoming a Saint."

"In the current Tianwu Continent, there are only four places that can give birth to Saints."

"Those are our Great Wu Dynasty's Imperial Domain and... the Three Great Domains governed by the Three Heavenly Kings!"

"Except for these four places, it is impossible for Saints to be born anywhere else."

Xiao Shi nodded.

But he soon had a question.

"If that's the case..."

"Then wouldn't the Martial Demon Realm Experts in each territory all be thinking about going to the Imperial Domain and the Three Great Domains?"

Xiang Zizhen shook his head and said,

"That won't happen."

"Take the forces in Star Luo Province, for example. Whether it's the second-tier Three Swords Alliance and Prayer God Temple, or the third-tier Thousand Weapons Mountain, etc., they all have Peak Martial Demon Realms in their forces, but these Peak Martial Demon Realms are all willing to stay in Star Luo Province."

"On the one hand, it's because they may not necessarily have the ability to impact the Saint Realm. Besides refining a Domain, there are other difficulties in the Saint Realm. Not every Peak Martial Demon Realm has the ability to impact the Saint Realm."

"On the other hand, there are agreements between the various lords. They treat the Peak Martial Demon Realms in their respective territories equally. These Peak Martial Demon Realms are like guests in each territory and are absolutely free. Even if they want to go to other territories, they will not be restricted or blocked."

"And neither the Three Great Domains nor the Imperial Domain is a place you can come and go as you please. Once you step into one of these Domains, you must become part of that force, and a brand of that force will be left in your Soul, making it impossible to rebel for life."

"Given the current situation of the Great Wu Dynasty, even if the Imperial Domain can produce Saints, not many people are willing to come."

"And for many Martial Demon Realm Experts, they are quite unwilling to entrust their lives to others."

"They would rather stay in the various territories; at least in these territories, they are free and safe."

"Of course."

"For those who want to impact the Saint Realm, they will choose to go to the Three Great Domains."

Xiao Shi nodded.

The Martial Demon Realm is actually already a very high Realm in the Tianwu Continent.

At this Realm, many people no longer have the desire to continue pushing upward.

Even if they don't impact the Saint Realm, they can live very comfortably in the various territories.

Why bother entrusting one's life to others just to impact the Saint Realm?

"It seems that only by reaching the Peak of the Martial Demon Realm can one truly have freedom in the entire Tianwu Continent..."

Through a conversation with Xiang Zizhen,

Xiao Shi could be said to have had his first contact with the high levels of the Tianwu Continent.

He had gained quite a bit of understanding about Saints.

Although both the Three Great Domains and the Imperial Domain can give birth to Saints,

but the number of Saints in the entire Tianwu Continent today is still less than a hundred.

And existences above the Saint Realm

are even rarer.

From what Xiang Zizhen currently knows, there are only five living existences above the Saint Realm in total... Xiao Shi took a deep breath.

He realized that after he went to the Imperial Domain, he might come into contact with another level of this world.

For this, he needed to be even more careful and cautious.

The higher the level he came into contact with, the greater the crisis would be.

After all, those high-level experts were existences that could make him turn into ashes with just a breath!

"It seems that before the operation, I have to go back to Tian Dou Province..."

Xiao Shi thought to himself.

He naturally couldn't leave the Red Tiger Sect here.

He definitely had to take the Red Tiger Sect with him.