190: The wind is rising and the clouds are surging, the undercurrent is surging

In the following days, people continuously achieved Breakthroughs.

And everyone who had a Breakthrough chose to leave immediately.

In just one month, over seventy people successfully had a Breakthrough, which was almost exactly as the Primordial Spirit had predicted.

In the next few days, no one else had a Breakthrough.

The people watching the excitement in the city waited for another ten-plus days, but seeing no further activity,

most chose to leave, and Wu'an City returned to its former tranquility.

Days passed one after another like this, with one person having a Breakthrough every ten to fifteen days during this period.

Until a year later, the last person successfully had a Breakthrough, and this Grand Ceremony of Deification was considered to have reached Perfection.

With all those who participated in the Grand Ceremony of Deification successfully having a Breakthrough, the number of God Emperors in the Divine Realm had reached over a hundred.

No matter what Realm people reach, they cannot change the greed etched into their genes. They weren't greedy before because their abilities hadn't reached that point.

Now, as fellow God Emperors, the forces that were originally vassals of the four regions chose to become independent and began to frantically annex forces that did not have God Emperors.

Initially, these people still considered the Spirit of the God Realm and did not dare to go too far; most resorted to coercion and enticement.

But then, the Spirit of the God Realm issued an announcement:

"Heaven and earth's myriad things, the capable shall possess them."

This sentence was undoubtedly like dropping a bomb into already murky waters, instantly making the entire surface turbulent.

Those ambitious God Emperors no longer had any scruples, and for a time, family ruin, clan annihilation, and sect massacres were daily occurrences.

Those forces without the protection of a God Emperor chose to join the camps of forces that did have God Emperors.

In just a few short years, all the forces in the Divine Realm were completely divided among the over one hundred God Emperors.

Subsequently, battles also broke out among the various God Emperor forces.

Until later, two God Emperors personally took action, fighting in a chaotic, earth-shattering manner, as if they would not rest until one of them died.

At this moment, the Spirit of the God Realm reappeared and issued its will:

"God Emperors must not attack each other."

Although the God Emperors were full of complaints about this will, none dared to defy the will of the Spirit of the God Realm.

Thus, the various Divine Power forces began to Cultivate their disciples, and those in the God King Realm suddenly became key targets for Cultivation.

Another ten years passed, and under the frantic Cultivation of the major forces, various young God Kings rose to prominence.

And the most striking was actually a Loose Cultivator; she obtained resources from an unknown source, allowing her to stand out among the newly advanced Divine Lord powerhouses.

This person was Xiao Yaozi (Carefree Child), who had supported the Zhang family that day, and she had now become the renowned Divine Lord Xiao Yaozi.

It is said that any Divine Lord who had fought her could not last more than three moves against her.

This achievement made her the foremost person below the God Emperor and also made her a target for various forces to vie for.

"Divine Lord Xiao Yaozi, my master said that if you join my Sunset Sect, you can become our Vice Sect Master, a position of extraordinary status."

"What's a Vice Sect Master worth? Divine Lord Xiao Yaozi, if you join my Heavenly Blade Sect, all our sect's resources are yours to choose from."

"Divine Lord, don't listen to her; what resources does her Heavenly Dao Sect have? If you join my Jade Maiden Sect, the sect's Prodigies and Saintesses are yours to choose from."

Divine Lord Xiao Yaozi experienced such enticements countless times every day; even though she repeatedly refused, it was useless.

Just as she was growing increasingly annoyed, someone arrived and solved this problem for her.

Tap, tap, tap, a rhythmic knocking sound echoed.

"This Divine Lord said she's not seeing anyone; get out."

Tap, tap, tap.

The knocking continued unabated.

Xiao Yaozi was truly enraged this time. She suppressed her anger, got up to open the door, and wanted to see who was so oblivious to death.

"Creak."

After the door opened, Xiao Yaozi, who was already on the verge of fury, was stunned.

"It's you?"

The person laughed heartily, "What, not going to invite me in for a seat?"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Yaozi gave an awkward smile and said, "Please."

After the person entered the room, he briefly surveyed the furnishings inside and couldn't help but say, "So many years have passed, and you still prefer such a simple life."

Clearly, the person and Xiao Yaozi were quite familiar with each other.

Xiao Yaozi walked to the table, poured a cup of tea, and with one hand, offered the teacup to the person.

The person reached out without hesitation, preparing to take the teacup, but at that moment, Xiao Yaozi pulled the cup back.

She looked at the person with sharp eyes and said, word by word, "Are you him?"

The person laughed heartily for a while, as if he had heard some huge joke.

Xiao Yaozi did not speak; she just quietly watched the person laugh.

Suddenly, the person stopped laughing. He looked at Xiao Yaozi with a serious expression and solemnly said, "I am me; I have never changed."

Xiao Yaozi looked into the person's eyes and said, "I believe you. No matter how much a person changes, their eyes cannot change."

With that, she fiercely embraced the person, her arms vigorously patting his back.

"Zhang Daoling, you bastard, I thought I would never see you again."

Upon hearing Xiao Yaozi's slightly sappy words, Zhang Daoling pushed Xiao Yaozi away.

"Don't give me that; I'm not interested in men."

Xiao Yaozi, pushed away by Zhang Daoling, instead burst into laughter.

"Haha, if you like, it's not impossible for me to become a woman."

With that, both of them laughed heartily.

It was as if the two had returned to the days thousands of years ago, discussing the Dao together.

After the laughter, Xiao Yaozi suddenly asked, "Was it you who secretly provided me with Cultivation resources and Cultivation Techniques these past ten years?"

Zhang Daoling said ambiguously, "Yes, and no."

Xiao Yaozi said speechlessly, "Yes is yes, no is no. Where does 'yes and no' come from?"

Zhang Daoling chuckled again, then said seriously, "I know you're anxious, but don't be anxious yet. This involves a huge secret, and before that, I need to confirm one thing."

"What thing?"

"Will you unconditionally trust me and help me at all times?"

Xiao Yaozi frowned, not knowing why Zhang Daoling would ask such a question.

Despite this, she still nodded and said, "My life is yours; as long as you need me, I can do anything."

Although Zhang Daoling had anticipated Xiao Yaozi's answer, he still felt deeply comforted.

So, he carefully took out a wooden box from his 懷 and handed it to Xiao Yaozi.

Xiao Yaozi took it without hesitation.

The wooden box was ordinary, with no unusual features on its surface.

Xiao Yaozi played with it for a moment, and just as she was about to open it, Zhang Daoling suddenly reached out and pressed his hand on top of the wooden box.

"Don't open it yet. Before that, brother, I still need to remind you that once it's opened, it's a path of no return," Zhang Daoling said with a solemn expression.

Xiao Yaozi scoffed, then opened the wooden box without hesitation.

The seemingly unremarkable wooden box, the moment it was opened, emitted several dazzling, colorful rays of light.

When she saw what was inside the wooden box, even though Xiao Yaozi was mentally prepared, she still gasped in surprise.

"Origin Divine Crystal?"