Desolate Era (Book 36 - Book 40)

This was because one would have to first find a Chaos Primordial before one could use the verdant azuresoul to take control over it. One had to remember that even for Autarchs finding a Chaos Primordial was an incredibly difficult task, much less for someone like Hegemon Brightshore who had always resided within the Flamedragon Realmverse.

In other words… even if he knew all of the treasures Ning possessed, he still wouldn’t be so shameless as to pilfer from Ning. And of course, he had no idea that Ning had treasures like the verdant azuresoul.

“T-then…” Ning’s eyes suddenly lit up. He immediately said, “Darknorth has something to ask of you.”

“Oh?” Hegemon Brightshore looked at Ning.

“I need some precious materials.” Ning waved his hand, causing a large number of characters to immediately appear in the air next to him. The text narrated the many materials Ning needed to reach the third level of the [Sword Dao Body] technique. His previous body had been destroyed, after all. Although he had rebuilt his true body, his restored body was just his ‘ordinary’ body.

His protective divine ability? His nine novessence arts? They were all gone. He didn’t care about the nine novessence arts, as they were already getting to be a bit too weak… but the protective divine ability was still of use.

Previously, when Ning had battled against Archon Silksnow, the reason why he hadn’t died when he was getting blasted back prior to his [Heartsword] breakthrough was precisely because his protective divine ability was quite powerful! But of course, if he wanted to train to the fourth level, where his body would be comparable to a top-grade Eternal treasure, the amount of treasures he would have to expend would cause even a Hegemon some pain. Ning suspected that not even his omnigeddon bloodfruit tree would be enough.

“I remember you buying these things last time?” Hegemon Brightshore chuckled.

“I have to re-train this divine ability,” Ning said helplessly. “If I use my remaining fruits to trade for them, it should be enough, yes?”

“It is enough.” Hegemon Brightshore smiled. He was starting to like the kid more and more. He really did want to acquire those fruits, but he absolutely was not going to take advantage of Ning, a mere Daolord. The materials which Ning had requested were in fact of equal value to these fruits! However, if Ning wished to trade his fruits, he would’ve been able to trade with either the Dao Alliance or the Ancient cultivators for them… and he probably would’ve gotten a better deal. These fruits were rarer and more important to Eternal Emperors, after all.

“I’ll accept these fruits and will immediately assemble the materials. I’ll arrange for them to be sent to Vastheaven Palace within one month.” Hegemon Brightshore accepted the jade green gourd. “Also… you should keep the fact that you at Vastheaven Palace a tight secret. Do not let Archon Silksnow find out.”

“Understood,” Ning said immediately. He still was not a match for Archon Silksnow just yet.

“If he really does attack, you can immediately ask me for assistance. I’ll tear straight through spacetime and immediately arrive at Vastheaven Palace,” Hegemon Brightshore said. “Last time, I was a bit slow because I didn’t know where you were, exactly; I had to rely on your servant’s clone guiding the way for me. I’ll be much faster next time, because I can descend directly upon Vastheaven Palace. However, I’ll only intervene on your behalf once. Any other dangers you encounter, you’ll have to resolve yourself.”

“Understood.” Ning nodded. To Hegemons and Archons, Daolords really didn’t matter that much. Even though some Daolords were incredibly talented, once their lifespans ended they would almost all perish.

Hegemon Brightshore, for example, still viewed Archon Silksnow as a peer despite being far more powerful than him! But when he viewed Daolords, he viewed them as being kids. No matter how much of a fuss they kicked up, they would still just be kids. There had never been a Daolord who was qualified to treat with Hegemons and Archons as equals.

Whoosh. Hegemon Brightshore tore a hole in spacetime, then stepped into it and departed.





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Book 36, Chapter 2 - Farewells


“W-was that Hegemon Brightshore?” Only now did Su Youji dare to speak.

“Yes.” Ji Ning nodded.

“Master, just now, you said Archon Silksnow…” Su Youji had overheard quite a bit and now knew much of the story.

Ning immediately instructed, “You cannot make this information public, nor can you reveal the fact that I came back to life thanks to a Dao-seal! Once Archon Silksnow finds out… given his temperament, there’s no way he’ll let this matter rest. Although Hegemon Brightshore promised to help out, for him to assist me once is already giving me great face. In the end, I’ll have to rely on my own skills to deal with Archon Silksnow.”

“But we’re talking about Archon Silksnow! T-this…” Su Youji was extremely worried. No matter how powerful her master was, he was still just a Daolord. How was he supposed to fight against one of the eight awesome lords of the Sacred Cities, Archon Silksnow?

“That’s not for you to worry about,” Ning instructed. He then waved his hand, causing a silver-robed man to appear next to him. It was the Ninedust Sectlord.

“Darknorth.” When Ninedust saw Ning, he immediately revealed a look of delight. “You are unharmed? Thank goodness. I was worried about something happening to you.”

“Haha, you were worried about something happening to me and you being unable to escape, right?” Ning teased.

“You jackass, I really was worried about you,” Ninedust said, feigning anger.

Ning chuckled, then let out a sigh: “Your worries weren’t unfounded. I really did end up being killed by Archon Silksnow.”

“What? You died?!” Ninedust was shocked.

“I once acquired a special treasure which can allow a Daolord to be brought back to life.” Ning didn’t hide what actually happened as he pointed to the surrounding area. “Look, we’re already in Vastheaven Palace! As for you? It was technically Hegemon Brightshore who intervened and rescued you.”

Ninedust started to understand. Moments later, he let out a chuckle. “Hegemon Brightshore? He’s always been filled with enmity towards us Ancient cultivators; there’s no way he would’ve gone out of his way to save me. I imagine he intervened because of you. When it comes down to it, the person I owe a debt to is still you.” Clearly, the long-running feud between the Brightshore Kingdom and the Ancient cultivators made it so that Ninedust didn’t feel any goodwill towards Hegemon Brightshore.

“Oh, right. There’s something I want to make clear to you,” Ninedust said, his face suddenly turning solemn.

“What is it?” Ning asked.

Ninedust glanced at the nearby Su Youji. Suddenly, he used his Immortal energy to form a barrier that completely blocked them off from the outside world.

Ninedust had mixed emotions on his face when he said, “Darknorth, we’ve experience life and death on numerous occasions together. At the beginning, we were on par in terms of power… and even later on, you were only slightly more powerful than me. Slowly, though, you’ve become more and more powerful. When we were in the Autarch’s estate-world within the Aeonian Kingdom, I could do nothing but watch when you fought against the flame beasts and the sea dragons. Later on, I could only watch when you battled against Archon Silksnow. More and more, I can sense how great the gap between us has become.”

Ning was stunned.

“Slowly, without me even realizing it, you have completely surpassed me in power. Even if we were to keep adventuring together, it really wouldn’t work out. A good test for me would be far too easy for you, while an adventure suitable for you would be absolutely lethal to me.” Ninedust sighed. “If this continues… it won’t be good for either of us.”