Chapter 105: The Unexpected Victor

In truth, Ao Bei’s cultivation and experience far surpassed Qing Xu’s, and even his magical treasures were significantly superior—mainly because Qing Xu had not fully refined his own. Under such circumstances, no matter how one looked at their duel, Qing Xu was bound to lose. Yet this time, luck had favored Qing Xu to an extraordinary degree.

The power of the Dragon-Binding Rope was truly terrifying. Had it not been for the earlier assault of the inner demon, and the merging of the Divine King’s primordial spirit power with his divine body, Qing Xu would likely have faced a grim fate. Although the Dragon-Binding Rope had little effect on deities, in the hands of a mid-stage Great Dao Golden Immortal like Ao Bei, it could easily restrain any deity who had not yet reached that level—there was absolutely no chance of escape.

A lower-tier divine body could not withstand the Dragon-Binding Rope at all. Once bound, even the Divine King’s primordial spirit would be endangered.

One-tenth of the Divine King’s primordial spirit energy fused into Qing Xu’s lower-tier divine body, causing his primordial spirit cultivation to plummet. It was as if he had suddenly fallen from the early Divine King stage to just half a step into that realm. Yet this also brought some benefit: his divine body instantly reached the half-step Divine King level. Though there was still a gap from his primordial spirit, their essence was the same.

The difference between a half-step Divine King and a full Divine King lay only in the amount of divine power reservoir; their divine power level was the same. It was precisely for this reason that Ao Bei’s Dragon-Binding Rope had almost no effect. Otherwise, whether divine body or primordial spirit, as long as either was below the Great Dao Golden Immortal level, Qing Xu would have been entirely at Ao Bei’s mercy.

“This time, the Northern Sea Dragon King has truly lost both his wife and his soldiers! Such a huge blunder—if he ever found out the whole truth, he’d surely die of rage!” What had seemed a sure victory was turned on its head by Ao Bei himself. Fortunately, he remained unaware; otherwise, vomiting blood would be inevitable.

Ao Bei had meticulously planned and arranged everything, considering many possibilities before making his move, even reserving several trump cards. But alas, man proposes, heaven disposes—bad luck rendered all his schemes futile.

One wrong move, and the entire game was lost.

Not only did he fail to seize the Ocean-Stabilizing Pearl from Qing Xu, but he also lost his own Dragon Pearl, suffered a severe drop in cultivation, and the loss of the Dragon-Binding Rope was no trivial matter. If any of the ten elders discerned this, Ao Bei would be doomed beyond redemption.

It wasn’t that Ao Bei was unwilling to fight desperately to kill Qing Xu; it was that after losing the Dragon Pearl, a true dragon’s power within 81 days was less than one percent of normal. Even after those 81 days passed, it would only recover halfway. Under such conditions, it was impossible for him to contend with Qing Xu. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be trying to kill his enemy but would be inviting his own death. That was why he even abandoned the Dragon-Binding Rope.

“This is purely a stroke of luck. I fear the Northern Sea Dragon King won’t let this go easily, but it seems my own life-and-death ordeal has passed. The inner demon’s assault? Sudden encounter with a powerful foe? Both were perilous situations, yet their convergence not only saved me but also brought great rewards. I had long coveted the Immortal-Binding Rope of the Fearful Sun; now at last, I have obtained it.” Qing Xu felt as if honey was being poured on his heart—it was simply exhilarating. As for the loss of part of his Divine King primordial spirit energy, he cared not in the least; it was not wasted, after all, since his divine body had absorbed it fully, effectively a matter of robbing Peter to pay Paul.

This was also a difference between deities and immortal cultivators, as well as Qing Xu’s forging with Taiyi Mysterious Gold and the infusion of Pure Yellow Cleansing Water into his body. Otherwise, when a normal cultivator’s primordial spirit energy merges with the body, it would surely be unable to withstand the shock and explode. There was no way for a lower-tier divine body to leap so suddenly to half-step Divine King level; even reaching mid-level would result in “excess energy being rejected.”

“That White Dragon Daoist’s calculations are not bad, but the Ren-Gui Radiance Silk was useless after all—it seems rather superfluous.” Originally, Qing Xu thought he would need to use the Ren-Gui Radiance Silk to turn danger into safety. But now, it seemed otherwise. Still, he was grateful to the White Dragon Daoist; without the silk, he could never have crossed Beiju Luzhou to reach the Northern Sea.

“Huh? Something feels off. Without the Ren-Gui Radiance Silk, I couldn’t have crossed Beiju Luzhou or attracted the dragon clan’s attention. This danger would never have befallen me. So by that reckoning, I don’t know if the White Dragon Daoist helped or harmed me.” Qing Xu indulged in some wild speculation but did not suspect the White Dragon Daoist of malice. After all, their strength was vastly different; the Daoist could easily have killed him outright—and there was no reason to lose a spirit treasure.

“Enough of this. In any case, I truly have benefited from misfortune. I owe the White Dragon Daoist one favor. Best to hurry to the Northern Abyss.” Qing Xu understood that Ao Bei’s great loss was a bitter pill he could not swallow, and revenge was only a matter of time. He immediately merged the Ren-Gui Radiance Silk into the Northern Sea’s waters and set out toward the Northern Abyss.

Qing Xu’s intuition was sound, but he was unaware of the severity of the problem. The Dragon-Binding Rope was extremely important to Ao Bei, and the secret chamber behind the Northern Sea Dragon King’s palace was accessible not only to the Dragon King himself but also to the ten elders. Although they seldom risked entering and expending energy, one could never rule out the possibility. If any of the elders entered and uncovered the truth, Ao Bei would be utterly finished. Thus, he was desperate, heartbroken, fearful, and filled with hatred—a maelstrom of emotions that made life unbearable.

There was, however, one advantage: Ao Bei could only swallow this bitter loss in silence, unable to spread the news. Otherwise, the ten elders might learn of it immediately. Though that would allow for revenge, Ao Bei would lose the Ocean-Stabilizing Pearl and endanger himself. Thus, Qing Xu need not fear retaliation from the entire Northern Sea Dragon Clan—though he himself was still unaware of this.

Approaching the edge of the Northern Abyss and merging into the seawater, Qing Xu soon entered the Northern Abyss. At first glance, all around was crystal clear—a realm of mysterious ice. Through the ice layers, one could clearly see turbulent waters below, with the occasional flash of aquatic beings and dazzling coral and strange underwater plants.

“The mysterious ice is the clearest of all. The deeper one goes into the Northern Abyss, the older the ice becomes, almost perfectly smooth and invisible. Even beneath thousands of feet of ice, one can still see clearly. At first glance, a person standing on the ice seems to be suspended in midair. Without careful observation, nearby ice mountains appear as if they were not there at all. The Northern Abyss truly is a unique landscape of the primordial age, unlike anywhere else.” Qing Xu was filled with awe and felt his journey well worth it.

Not only was the scenery unique, but rare herbs also grew atop the ice—though sparsely, often just one or two plants after traveling thousands of miles. Most were exclusive to this land, such as the Ice Soul Flower, Nine Yin Cold Grass, and Heavenly Abyss Fruit. These were treasures for refining spirit pills and immortality elixirs. Following a principle of no waste, Qing Xu swept through like a locust, leaving nothing behind.

Unconsciously, Qing Xu had reached the central Northern Abyss, not far from the depths known as the Sea of the Kunpeng. Suddenly, his surroundings shifted as if entering another realm: no more mysterious ice, the chill dissipated, and all he saw was an endless expanse of pale, desolate white, the sky high and boundless, the land monotonously colorless.

“An array space?” he thought with sudden alarm.

“I am the Daoist Xuanhuang. I know not which fellow cultivator jokes with me. Please show yourself,” he called out solemnly in all directions. To have arranged an array to conceal oneself from him meant either tremendous mastery of arrays or profound cultivation—both not to be taken lightly.

“Young one, hand over the ancestral dragon relic, the Dragon-Binding Rope, and the three spirit treasures on your person. Perhaps the old ancestor will spare your life if in a good mood.” A rough, wild voice echoed hollowly, as if coming from anywhere and everywhere.

“A mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind. This person must have seen everything before but remained silent, secretly setting an array ahead of me. Judging by the array’s power, their cultivation is probably not much higher—likely also at the Great Dao Golden Immortal level.” Being trapped in an array had two drawbacks: one, no void shifting; two, the enemy’s power increased greatly by the array’s momentum.

“Hmph! Young one? With your cowardly hiding, you dare call yourself old ancestor? Ridiculous! I, from the dawn of Heaven and Earth, have attained the Dao, having seen the Taiji, the two modes, and four phases suspended. Still, I do not claim the title of old ancestor. How much Dao cultivation do you have? What skill? Do you not fear wasting your lifespan with such nonsense?” The boasting was grandiose. Generally, Great Dao Golden Immortal wanderers attained their path either at the beginning of creation or during the mid-ancient era, so this was not entirely unfounded.

“Young one, ignorant, I am the Ice Ancestor, famed since the chaos of primordial times. Free to come and go under Pangu’s axe, even Hongjun calls me friend. The saints of the heavens attained the Dao after me. Calling you ‘young one’ is already giving you face; otherwise, you wouldn’t be worthy to speak with this old ancestor!” Qing Xu’s tone grew bold, but the self-proclaimed Ice Ancestor was even more arrogant—bordering on madness.

“Listening to your tone of Ice Ancestor, you sound like an ancient demonic god. Yet during the ancient cataclysmic war, demonic gods were nearly all destroyed. Even if any remain, they must be like Luo Fan—cultivation reaching through heaven and earth. Remember, Luo Fan is only the son of the demon ancestor Luo Hou, hardly a true demonic god. This fellow must rely on arrays to face me; how mighty can he be?” Qing Xu thought disdainfully but retorted, “Friend, you sure hide well! Why so timid as to not reveal yourself? Even facing a mere Great Dao Golden Immortal, you must employ arrays? I suppose it’s not freedom under Pangu’s axe, but that Pangu the Great disdains killing small fry, sparing his divine axe from contamination!”

“Nonsense! The old ancestor fought Pangu dozens of times in the ancient era. To oppose Luo Hou, Hongjun once invited me. You young one have never seen this old ancestor. Even in ancient times, I was a nobody. As for hiding? Hmph! Not afraid to tell you plainly: I was severely wounded by Luo Hou’s immortal-slaying sword aura and am currently bound to the Ice Soul of the Northern Abyss, unable to take form. Otherwise, killing you would be a mere flick of my finger. But since you entered my Ice Ancestor array, your form and spirit will soon perish. This array is innate; not even a Great Dao Golden Immortal, let alone a quasi-Saint, can escape its calamity.” Hearing Qing Xu’s taunts, the Ice Ancestor flew into a rage, roaring furiously.

“What Ice Array? Mere empty fame! How come I feel not even a trace of coldness?” Qing Xu mocked scornfully but inwardly was startled. He had not expected the Ice Ancestor to be a true ancient demonic god, one who had escaped death under Pangu’s axe and Luo Hou’s immortal-slaying aura, yet now bound to the Northern Abyss Ice Soul, unable to manifest. Otherwise, he would be a great power of the primordial world. It was probably this Ice Ancestor’s panic that led him to such desperate concealment. If he were to take form, the Northern Abyss would surely melt away—how could the Heavenly Dao permit that?