Chapter Seventy-Six: Hell

The tranquil days always seem to pass swiftly; unknowingly, Qiankun had already spent ten years at Copper Gong Mountain. During these ten years, his relationship with Qinghuo had grown close, carrying the air of equals. Qiankun’s extraordinary talent compelled Qinghuo to interact with him on the same level. Qinghuo understood that, with Qiankun’s gifts, once he ascended as a High God, he would assuredly become a top-tier presence among them, no weaker than Qinghuo himself, with boundless future prospects.

Beside a crystal-clear pool beneath a waterfall at the beautiful Copper Gong Mountain, Qiankun, clad in yellow robes, sat cross-legged with his eyes closed, immersed in his comprehension of the laws of earth elements. Of the six profound mysteries of the earth element, he had already mastered five: the element of earth, the earth’s pulse, strength, earth-walking technique, and gravity space. He had reached the final bottleneck with the sixth, the mystery of life force. Silently, Qiankun had fused the first five mysteries together, and was now beginning to harmonize the mystery of life force with the others, embarking on the path of fusion.

In truth, Qiankun had not devoted himself too earnestly to comprehending these mysteries. Yet, during their fusion, bursts of inspiration struck him, leading to a natural, gradual enlightenment. This result surprised him, but also filled him with silent admiration—indeed, fusing mysteries was the true path to mastery!

Had this news been shared, countless gods would have been left speechless, envious, and inwardly cursing their own fates.

Suddenly, a ripple of the world’s laws descended—an invisible surge heralding the birth of an independent deity. The wave spread, attracting numerous divine senses to investigate Copper Gong Mountain.

“Hm?” Qiankun’s brows twitched as he opened his eyes, his expression turning slightly odd and speechless. “Damn, I haven’t perfectly fused the mystery of life force with the other five, and yet I’ve already gained insight to fully comprehend it. Now that I’ve mastered the mystery of life force, fusing it with the other mysteries will be a bit more difficult.”

If other divine-level experts heard these words, they’d surely be so frustrated as to cough up blood. They yearned for quick mastery of each law’s mysteries, but entry into those mysteries was difficult, and breaking through their bottlenecks even more so.

“Hmm? Qiankun’s earth god avatar is about to break through to High God? That’s fast,” Qinghuo remarked with a surprised smile in his mansion at Copper Gong Mountain.

In the depths of the Dark Forest, Beirut, lounging in a metallic castle’s courtyard reading a book, frowned and looked up. “He’s reached the High God realm so swiftly? How many mysteries has he fused? Isn’t he rushing things a bit? Even the greatest talents, if impatient in cultivation, will ultimately see their future achievements diminished.”

“Qiankun? He’s broken through the earth laws and become a High God?” In the palace of the O’Brien Empire, Adkins, sensing Qiankun’s breakthrough, could not help but look grim.

Adkins, wary of Qinghuo, no longer dared to trouble Qiankun, but he had foreseen that one day Qiankun would become a High God and cause him great trouble. He never imagined that day would arrive so soon.

“Hmph! Let’s see if you dare come for me,” Adkins snorted, his divine sense enveloping the entire O’Brien Empire, vigilant against the possibility of Qiankun’s arrival. But he waited long, and Qiankun did not come. Eventually, Adkins probed all of Yulan Continent with his divine sense, but found no trace of Qiankun.

After breaking through the earth laws and reaching the High God realm, Qiankun bid farewell to Qinghuo. He did not head to the O’Brien Empire, but first went to Dragonblood Castle to reunite with his true self, then visited Beirut in the Dark Forest to pay his respects and say goodbye, before proceeding directly to the edge of the Northern Sea, arriving at the Arctic Ice Fields.

“Qiankun?” At the summit of a towering iceberg on the Arctic Ice Fields, eleven complex hexagram-shaped magic teleportation arrays were arranged in sequence. From an ice house nearby, an elderly white-haired man, the guardian of the plane, Hodan, emerged and saw Qiankun’s figure flicker and descend from the sky. He was first surprised, then realized he could not sense Qiankun’s realm, and, startled, hurriedly bowed respectfully. “Lord Qiankun!”

Qiankun glanced at him and casually instructed, “I wish to travel to the Supreme Plane of Hell. Activate the teleportation array.”

Soon, the teleportation array to Hell was activated. As Qiankun’s figure vanished amid the dazzling light, Hodan finally exhaled in relief and wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. “My heavens! He’s cultivated for so little time and already become a High God. Fortunately, he doesn’t seem the type to hold grudges—otherwise, if he casually killed me, I wouldn’t even have time to call for Lord Sadista’s aid. That would be a truly unjust death.”

“Hmph, going to Hell? There are countless powerful beings there. So what if he’s become a High God? Perhaps one day he’ll encounter a formidable opponent and be slain,” Hodan thought, unable to suppress a cold sneer.

...

Hell, one of the four supreme planes! A crescent-shaped purple cold moon hung in the night sky, casting a hazy, bewitching purple glow over the endless ocean below.

Upon this boundless sea was an island. Dark waves crashed hysterically against the shore, the tides rising and falling endlessly.

At the island’s center stood an ancient castle, built entirely from deep blue crystal-like ores, radiating a dreamlike glow.

Inside, the expansive floor was paved with transparent, crystal-like stone, smooth enough to reflect one’s image.

On this open ground, two enormous magic arrays, each a hundred meters across, lay side by side. These arrays were far more complex than the teleportation arrays of the Arctic Ice Fields. Beside them stood two sturdy men, dressed in water-blue combat attire beneath black robes embroidered with dark gold trim.

On the open ground, one of the giant magic arrays emitted a hazy light. A figure appeared at its warped center. As the light faded, the figure became clear—it was Qiankun, clad in black robes.

“Hmm? A High God?” The robust man with scales on his forehead beside the array turned to Qiankun in surprise, and then hurriedly bowed in respect. “Greetings, Lord!”

Qiankun glanced at him and asked calmly, “Where in Hell am I?”

“Lord, you are on Blue Star Island in the Star Mist Sea,” the man replied, a bit startled but respectfully nonetheless.

“Do you have a map of Hell? Even a simple map will do, or just a map of the Star Mist Sea,” Qiankun continued.

The man smiled bitterly, helpless. “Lord, I am but a humble Mid God and rarely leave this place. How would I have a map?”

“I do have a map of the islands in the Star Mist Sea,” came a clear and melodious voice. A stunningly beautiful, mature woman with a golden scale on her forehead, clad in a pale gold brocade robe, approached with a smile.

Qiankun turned his gaze to her. She was a High God, likely a senior member of the Star Army stationed here to guard the teleportation array.

“Miss, might I have the map? I am willing to trade for it—a divine spark or an artifact, perhaps?” Qiankun offered.

“My name is Yuki! Hehe, no need to be so formal. Consider the map a gift,” the golden-robed beauty replied with a gentle laugh. “Handsome man in black, you haven’t told me your name yet!”

“My name is Qiankun,” he replied.

“Qiankun? Such an unusual name!” Yuki exclaimed in mild surprise. She stepped forward, smiling, and took Qiankun’s hand warmly. “Come, Qiankun, let’s first rest at my place. Sit, have some tea, and when you leave, I’ll give you the map of the Star Mist Sea.”