26: The second fellow villager

In the chaotic Void Realm, in a region of absolute silence, a misty cosmic entity slowly awakened from the darkness.

"Phew."

Li Jinian exhaled a breath of Chaos Qi and then inspected the state of his own heavenly dao origin.

Grandmist Origin, the Heaven and Earth Core.

"The Heavenly Dao of a world that has already condensed is indeed powerful."

"Even just a lingering trace of heavenly dao origin has increased my power significantly."

The heavenly dao origin, which was originally only the size of a palm, had rapidly expanded to the size of a washbasin, and compared to its previous state, the heavenly dao origin was now much thicker.

Although there was still a significant gap before evolving into a Small World, he could already generate heavenly dao origin on his own.

With this ability, Li Jinian could wait until the day the heavenly dao origin was sufficient.

Of course, it would only take a mere hundred thousand years.

Well, it wasn't impossible to wait; one must have patience.

"To hell with a hundred thousand years."

Li Jinian slapped a non-existent table in the Void Realm. Currently, his Fellow Countryman Qin Dong had not yet fully grown, and the power he provided at this stage was truly too little.

Now, a mere few hundred or few thousand Spirit Stones were no longer worth Li Jinian's attention; his only goal now was to wait for him to grow up.

After some careful consideration, Li Jinian chose a free-range mode; at the same time, it was time to find the next Fellow Countryman.

"Fellow Countryman, where are you?"

Li Jinian opened his eyes. Within the chaotic emptiness, an ancient and profound bronze eye opened in the Void Realm.

The obscure Heavenly Dao Divine Might scanned the surrounding Domains, and the will of the Heavenly Dao advanced toward more and deeper planes.

Silence... silence... silence... In the darkness of the Void Realm, time did not flow.

After an unknown amount of time, that familiar-yet-unfamiliar aura fluctuation suddenly appeared again. Even if it was just a trace, it was like a pebble thrown into water, instantly perceived by Li Jinian.

The Eye of the Heavenly Dao locked onto the target, crossed billions of Void Realms, and finally descended upon that world.

The moment Li Jinian's Incarnation arrived, an equally peerless and terrifying pressure swept over.

It was as if the malice of the entire world was targeting him.

"Courting death!"

Li Jinian was furious. He was the Heavenly Dao; even the weakest Heavenly Dao could not be insulted.

With a wave of his hand, the ultimate Heavenly Dao majesty was added to the Incarnation's palm, with layers of Dao rhythms flowing like a magnificent painting.

The next moment, Li Jinian raised his palm slightly. A terrifying sword-path aura that could slash the heavens and shatter the earth, a supreme Sword Intent that crushed all life, gathered within it like a brilliant star.

The Void Realm shattered layer by layer, the earth cracked, and heaven and earth wailed, as if mourning the appearance of this Sword Intent.

This was the strongest Cultivation Technique recorded in Li Jinian's Origin information, a technique created by a Sword Emperor.

Therefore, this move possessed the might of a Great Emperor.

And the opponent was clearly not simple either.

Buzz! Splash!

Above that world, another bronze eye opened; this was an eyeball filled with blood-red baleful energy.

Within the eyeball, there were streaks of bloody vortices, seemingly devouring all living beings.

It also seemed to carry a terrifying pressure that could end the world, incomparably bloodthirsty and brutal.

The two bronze eyes collided; the opponent was actually also a Heavenly Dao!

This was a battle of Heavenly Daos!

Li Jinian's palm slid down, and the ultimate Heavenly Dao Divine Might was like a violent torrent, surging and powerful, making gods retreat. Under this move, mountains collapsed, the earth split, and space shattered.

"Heaven-Slaying Sword!"

Buzz!

Within the Scarlet Pearl Demon Realm, countless terrifying existences hidden in the darkness opened their eyes simultaneously at this moment, like stars in the night sky, brilliant and dazzling.

Thump, thump, thump.

Countless towering and terrifying figures, like demon gods, streaked across. They walked out from various ancestral lands, imperial tombs, and even heavenly chasms and forbidden lands, all flying toward the outer boundary without hesitation.

Their hearts were filled with extreme shock because just now, they had actually heard the cry for help from the Heavenly Dao of the Scarlet Pearl Demon Realm.

Something was actually attacking the Heavenly Dao of their realm!

Boom!!!

The two Eyes of the Heavenly Dao collided outside the realm boundary, like an explosion that destroyed the world. Terrifying pressure agitated the Void Realm, and the realm barriers were shattered like fragile glass.

The collision of power, Chaos, and emptiness was like a Big Bang.

The boundary wall of the Scarlet Pearl Demon Realm was shattered by this collision force. Both bronze eyes suffered damage, swaying as if they were about to be destroyed.

However, for some reason, the red eye was more severely injured than Li Jinian's and was now slowly dissipating.

Strange, why is the Heavenly Dao of this world so weak?

"Hmph."

Looking at the retreating blood-colored Eye of the Heavenly Dao, Li Jinian thought no more, gave a cold snort, and then disappeared from the spot.

He understood that the opponent was only temporarily retreating and would likely make a comeback soon after this collision.

Finding the Fellow Countryman was the priority.

Li Jinian sensed the location and quickly rushed toward where the Fellow Countryman was.

This world was a terrifying purgatory world called the Scarlet Pearl Demon Realm. It was filled with fearsome pitch-black demons, countless in number, like a plague of locusts.

Besides Cultivating using demonized Spiritual Qi, these demons also Cultivated by devouring their own kind or even other races.

For this reason, the Scarlet Pearl Demon Realm deliberately raised a group of other races as food, among which the Human Race existed.

As for the living environment of those humans, one couldn't say it was just ominous; at the very least, it was a living hell.

"Too tragic."

Li Jinian commented and continued toward his destination.

Soon, he arrived at a place surrounded by towering black walls. Beyond the walls was a region with gentle Spiritual Qi and a natural, friendly atmosphere.

The demons of the Scarlet Pearl Demon Realm had actually created a place for these raised races to Cultivate and survive.

But it made sense; this way, the raised races inside would surely become plump and sturdy, and when the time came, they would be juicy morsels.

The breeding ground was also quite large, with a territory spanning one-tenth of the continent. There were at least twenty races inside, including the Human Race.

The Pitch-Black Wall isolated an unknown number of hundreds of millions of miles. In front of a huge gate of isolation...

Two twenty-meter-tall demon gods of the Scarlet Pearl Demon Realm sat on thrones on either side of the gate, motionless like two tall stone statues.

But no demon dared to disrespect them because they were genuine old fossils of the Scarlet Pearl Demon Realm. Legend had it that they had sat there for three thousand years and were terrifying existences guarding the breeding ground.

People of the Scarlet Pearl Demon Realm walking out of the Abyss Gate all bowed before they could enter to hunt the other races. Before long, they each returned fully loaded.

Li Jinian tested it; this black wall was actually connected to the Heavenly Dao of this Human Realm. If he broke through or climbed over, he would definitely be noticed by the Heavenly Dao of this realm.

To be safe, Li Jinian hid himself on one of the Crimson Pearl Demons entering and exiting and successfully passed through the Abyss Gate.

Entering the Abyss Gate, the originally dense Spiritual Qi instantly became several times thinner, and the air was also mixed with a turbid aura:

Crimson Pearl Devilish Qi.

Absorbing this aura for a short time would not have much of an effect and might even promote Cultivation.

However, after long-term absorption, it would firmly attach to the Meridians, greatly affecting the efficiency of the Cultivator's True Qi circulation.

Simply put, the more one absorbed, the greater the impact on combat power and Cultivation speed.

Li Jinian collected this aura into his Origin information, and even so, he couldn't help but feel a sense of lament.

Inside the world of the black wall, within the Human Race territory.

Jiangbei City. This was a medium-sized city located in a relatively remote part of the Human Race territory.

As the weakest Human Race among the twenty races in the black wall world, martial arts were promoted for all here, and Cultivators and factions were everywhere.

In this world, Cultivation levels were divided into: Body Refining Realm, Qi Refining Realm, Divine Soul Realm, Core Formation Realm, Heavenly Human Realm, Sky-Sovereign Realm... etc.

The ruler of Jiangbei City, City Lord Luo Songyun, was a Great Cultivator at the Late Stage of the Divine Soul Realm.

He was the number one Cultivator in Jiangbei City, skilled with a long spear, and his combat power was unparalleled. He had suppressed many invading demons and foreign races and held great prestige in the city.

This powerful City Lord had a total of four children.

The first son, Luo He, inherited his father's powerful Cultivation talent. He had followed his father in long battles against demons and foreign races and was mighty and powerful.

The second daughter, Luo Xinrou, was pure and moving in appearance and skilled in music. Legend had it that her musical skills were divine and could enhance the Cultivation of those who listened.

The third daughter, Luo Jiangli, was highly regarded by a certain expert during her childhood and had been taken away to Cultivate for twenty years. She had not yet returned, but Luo Songyun was not worried about this at all.

The fourth son, Luo Batian, died young... "Waaa, waaa."

Inside the City Lord's Mansion, white cloth hung everywhere, soul-guiding banners fluttered, and paper money flew about. A red-headed, four-sided gold-lacquered coffin was placed in the main hall, and inside lay a youth who looked as if he had just fallen asleep.

"My son, my son."

Luo Songyun and his wife wept bitterly, and beside them, Luo He, dressed in armor, and Luo Xinrou, in a plain gauze dress, also shed tears.

"Father, Mother."

A woman wearing a gilded Daoist robe and a jade crown descended on a sword and walked into the Luo Mansion. Seeing the red-headed, four-sided object before her, she immediately began to cry.

"Fourth Brother, my poor Fourth Brother."

Hearing the bad news about the Family, Luo Jiangli, who had been away from home for nearly twenty years, also returned as soon as possible, but she hadn't expected to be a step too late after all.

The five members of the Luo Family wept together, with those in deep sorrow fainting several times.

After regaining their composure slightly, their mood was finally no longer at a breaking point, and they managed to force a bitter smile.

Luo Jiangli's gaze turned toward the courtyard, where there was a slender figure.

She was very beautiful, with a face that could topple cities. Even wearing plain white mourning clothes did not affect her exquisite temperament in the slightest.

In her pair of azure glazed eyes, which remained fixed on the gold-lacquered coffin, there was a look of determination and reminiscence.

Leaning against a pear blossom tree, there wasn't much sorrow on her face, but rather a kind of persistence that Luo Jiangli had never seen before.

"Father, Mother, who is this Little Sister?"

Luo Songyun followed Luo Jiangli's gaze.

"Li'er, let me introduce you. This is... sigh."

"This is Tian'er's fiancée, Mu Liyao."

"She and Tian'er grew up together and have a very deep bond. I'm afraid Tian'er's death is a huge blow to this child as well."

Luo Songyun's expression was bleak. In his memory, this pair of children were very close, the kind that were inseparable.

And he also knew that Mu Liyao was not as strong as she appeared on the surface; it was all a facade.

This was a good girl; it was just a pity for this relationship.

"Childhood sweethearts..."

Luo Jiangli murmured to herself. She thought highly of this strong Little Sister and had already decided in her heart to take her into her own power after this matter, which could be considered the last thing she could do for Little Tian.

At this thought, Luo Jiangli's eyes also gained a touch of softness.

In mid-air, Li Jinian's expression froze.

"Holy crap, I'm late???"