Nie Li was still a little disoriented by the disturbance in time.
While sitting down at his bitter cultivation, time had flashed by in the blink of an eye. But twenty years was still a long time. Nie Li felt like heâd been pulled back to reality from a long dream.
Under ordinary circumstances, simply sitting and cultivating would make for extremely slow results â much slower than the usual methods. And if you were standing on the verge of a huge breakthrough, then cultivating that way would simply be an exercise in futility.
He wasnât far from the Heavenly Axis Realm. All he needed was an opportunity to make the breakthrough!
Nie Li consolidated his own cultivation while smiling to Xiao Yu. âI just entered a miraculous state! Thatâs how I raised my cultivation so quickly!â
âHave I disrupted you?â Xiao Yu said apologetically, since sheâd called out to Nie Li several times.
Nie Li waved his hand. âItâs fine!â
At the same time, the intent within the Void Illusionary Divine Palace was observing Nie Li.
âThis brat who possesses the Myriad Miles Rivers and Mountains Painting is like a robber! He emptied my palace of all its treasures! Not even the array was left in peace! I thought my own secrets hidden in the palace were already formidable. I never thought that this kid would harbor even more shocking secrets!â The intent murmured with a strange smile in its voice. âLetâs see what youâre going to do after youâve broken into my palace!â
The intent left with a flash.
Nie Li sensed something and glanced towards the palace. Now that he had his ninth Fate Star, his senses were much sharper than before.
Although he didnât know what that thing was, he was certain it wasnât a living creature. Otherwise, it wouldnât have wanted to snatch his body.
The intent of the Void Illusionary Divine Palace?
To think that there was something this interesting!
Nie Li understood that with his current abilities, heâd have a hard time unlocking the thousand square meter palace, so he didnât even bother to try. Either way, heâd be able to open it soon!
As long as the intent remained trapped within the Myriad Miles Rivers and Mountains Painting, Nie Li refused to believe it could escape him!
But even though Nie Li had formed his ninth Fate Star, it was still far from sufficient.
They should hide within the Myriad Miles Rivers and Mountains Painting for another week or so, to make sure that Hierarch Blacknether was gone. After that, theyâd be able to leave the painting.
Nie Li observed the insides of the painting as he flew around. He landed on one of the Deityâs Lakes. With a wave of his hand, the gathered all the spiritual stones in the lake.
Theyâd been collecting there for so long inside the painting. It was time to harvest.
Nie Li harvested roughly three hundred thousand spiritual stones and five hundred essences from the Deityâs Lake.
He stored them away and continued towards the second Deityâs Lake.
He didnât stop until heâd harvested all the spiritual stones and essences from his fifty or so Deityâs Lakes.
He roughly estimated his wealth to be twenty million spiritual stones and thirty thousand spiritual stone essences. It was definitely an astonishing amount of wealth. Nie Li guessed it was about half of the Divine Feathers Sectâs entire fortune!
He had to convert all these spiritual stones into strength!
Otherwise, itâd be a waste!
Nie Li thought for a bit, then his eyes lit up. How could he have forgotten about that?
Fifteen days later
The Gu Clan Patriarch and elders were gathered to discuss the matter about Gu Bei destroying othersâ Deityâs Lakes.
In the vast hall, Gu Tianlong sat in the first seat as the Gu Clanâs Patriarch. On either side of him were the elders. Meanwhile, Gu Bei, Gu Heng, and other descendents stood in the middle of the hall.
Gu Heng cupped his hands and pitched his argument that heâd been wronged. âI believe that cousin Gu Bei has gone too far in this matter. I beg the Patriarch and elders to uphold justice! We were born of the same roots, so why must he rush for such a kill?! If Younger Cousin Gu Bei succeeds the Patriarchâs position, Iâd hope that heâd treat his clansmen much more kindly!â
Gu Hengâs words fell onto the ears of the Gu Clanâs younger generation. They exchanged looks and whispered amongst themselves.
âI never thought that Elder Cousin Gu Heng would suffer such a huge setback!â
âI heard that Younger Cousin Gu Bei recently established his own force and that itâs been developing rapidly! But I never imagined that it could actually defeat Elder Cousin Gu Heng! Thatâs too hard to imagine!â
âElder cousin Gu Heng wasnât defeated. Gu Bei just used some method to destroy Elder Cousin Gu Hengâs Deityâs Lake!â
âDestroying peopleâsâ Deityâs Lakes? Thatâs just too cruel. After all, weâre of the same clan!â
Someone who was obviously on Gu Hengâs side said in a loud voice, âElder cousin Gu Heng has always been treating others with kindness. Gu Bei is going overboard. If Gu Bei succeeds the Patriarch, will there still be a living path for us, even though weâre of the same clan?â
After hearing all of that, Gu Bei frowned, then cupped his hands towards Gu Tianlong above him. âIn this vast world, everything is a competition. Elder Cousin Gu Heng gathered a force to destroy the Demon League. Am I not permitted to retaliate? Now, that Elder Cousin Gu Heng has lost, heâs run back crying, and has even gathered the elders in an attempt to impeach me. As for his motives, I believe those are clear with just a glimpse!â
Gu Heng glared at Gu Bei and said, âTrue, everything in the outside world is a competition. But Younger Cousin Gu Bei has been too cruel in destroying my Deityâs Lakes. How much hatred is in those actions? How many Deityâs Lakes does the Divine Feathers Sect own in total? By destroying the lakes, you have weakened the Divine Feathers Sect! Younger Cousin Gu Bei couldnât possibly be a spy, right?â
âBoth of you, silence!â Gu Tianlong ordered. âMembers of my Gu Clan should unite and fight against external force. Itâs enough that the two of you are trying to destroy each other. The two of you are even quarreling at this clan meeting. If people heard about this, my honor will have been thrown down by you both!â
Gu Tianlong emanated a chilling might that silenced both Gu Heng and Gu Bei. Neither dared to speak another word.
Gu Tianlong swept a glance at the surrounding elders. âElders, what do you think?â
The Third Elder Gu Yuntian coldly said, âGu Heng is my disciple, so I usually shouldnât speak in this sort of situation, lest others accuse me of taking sides. But I must say something today. The act of destroying a Deityâs Lake must be severely punished. If such acts were allowed to continue, then the number of Deityâs Lakes will decrease even further!â
Gu Tianlong looked at the other elders. âWhat are the othersâ opinions?â
Gu Ya was silent at first, before he spoke. âThe causes and effects of this matter are complex. We must carefully consider our decision as well!â
Another elder stood up. âWill the audience heard me out?â
It was the eighth elder, Gu Bai!
The Eighth Elder had always sided with Gu Heng, so, of course heâd do the same this time. It looked like Gu Heng had come well prepared; Gu Bei was definitely going to land in big trouble. True, Gu Bei was wrong to destroy someone elseâs Deityâs Lake. If this matter were pursued to the end, the punishment would definitely be extremely severe!