Chapter 857 - 129: True Monarch Yama: Younger Brother Zhou, Long Time No See!_2

Chapter 857: Chapter 129: True Monarch Yama: Younger Brother Zhou, Long Time No See!_2

The young man was stunned and couldn’t help but open his mouth wide.

This Elder Ji, being a descendant of the Imperial Family, was usually arrogant and would not even display a pleasant demeanor for a Middle-Stage Nascent Soul Cultivator.

The initial scene confirmed this point,

but just now, for some reason, his demeanor suddenly changed and he seemed extremely enthusiastic.

Perhaps this Pavilion Master Zhou has some remarkable background?

Zhou Xun was also surprised.

"Do you know Zhou Mou?"

"The day Pavilion Master Zhou attended the Spirit Seizing Conference and captured the Profound Bone King alive, Ji Mou vividly remembers the grace; never thought I’d encounter you here today."

"Indeed it is fate. I didn’t recognize you just now, almost offending Daoist Zhou. It’s truly a fault of mine. I ask Pavilion Master Zhou to forgive me!"

As he spoke, he cupped his hands again.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Xun waved his hand.

"Since Daoist Ji is responsible for verifying identities and distributing tokens, it would be best to be diligent in these tasks. As for the offense, Zhou Mou isn’t that petty!"

Zhou Xun calmly said.

"Absolutely, absolutely, what Daoist Zhou said is correct. The old man has taken it to heart!" The elder responded with a smile.

Then he waved his hand, took out three Spirit Rings, engraved something on them, and placed them in front of Zhou Xun, and said,

"These three rings are exclusive Spirit Rings for Nascent Soul Cultivators. Once refined, you can freely traverse within our camp!"

"Thank you!" Zhou Xun nodded slightly.

"By the way, these three Jade Scrolls contain some intelligence meant to help new Daoist friends quickly understand the situation here and integrate into this place!"

Said the elder as he took out three Jade Scrolls and handed them over with a smile:

"It’s a shame that my duty binds me here; otherwise, I’d personally introduce the Pavilion Master around!"

"Zhou Mou appreciates the thought. Since there’s nothing more, we’ll take our leave!" Zhou Xun casually replied.

Following this, under the young man’s guidance, he completed the Cave Mansion entry procedure, thus concluding all matters.

...

In the evening, the three gathered in Zhou Xun’s Cave Mansion.

Given its location in the West Desert Cultivation Realm, with the Ghost Realm portal not far away, even the Cave Mansion of Nascent Soul True Monarchs is extremely humble,

merely over ten yards in size.

Fortunately, the Spiritual Qi here reaches a Tier Four Low-Grade level.

"Big Brother, what shall we do next?" Wang Erniu asked.

"Let’s first review this introduction Jade Scroll!"

Zhou Xun waved his hand, took out the introduction Jade Scroll, and then delved his Divine Sense into it, beginning to read carefully.

Firstly, the Jade Scroll introduces the origins of the Ghost Realm portal and the Ghost Race,

saying that the Ghost Realm is a neighboring realm to the Human Realm, entirely dominated by the Ghost Race.

The enmity between the two realms dates back many ages, tracing back as far as a hundred thousand years ago,

It is said that every ten thousand years, the two realms engage in a conflict,

It is surmised by some powerful cultivators that the Human and Ghost Realms are neighboring realms that, affected by the tides of spatial turbulence, approach or even directly contact each other every ten thousand years or so.

This explains the periodic conflicts between the races; yet, it remains unknown why this occurrence has been hastened this time.

Moreover, this Ghost Realm portal acts as a connection anchor left by Ghost Race powerful cultivators to the Human Realm.

There are a total of five such portals,

just that currently only the ones in the West Desert have been penetrated by the Ghost Race, allowing their invasion and occupation of an entire region.

Luckily, Human Realm cultivators responded promptly, and the Ghost Realm portal has not been entirely unsealed, only allowing Tier Four Ghost Kings to pass through,

Thus, under the combined power of several Divinity Transformation cultivators from the Human Realm, they were suppressed back.

However, Divinity Transformation cultivators cannot unleash unlimited power. They are too strong, and the thin Primordial Qi of the Human Realm only barely supports their survival.

After each move, it takes an uncertain amount of time to restore their Spiritual Power within themselves, and excessive consumption might even affect their foundations and lifespan.

Therefore, seeing the Ghost Race retreat, they left the area.

But once they left, the Ghost Race returned again,

Thus initiating a total mobilization of the entire Human Realm, armies of cultivators were sent out from everywhere to battle the Ghost Race.

That’s why during the decisive battle between Humans and Demons at Central Continent, Master Yun Ku and Golden Jade Demon Monarch jointly intervened.

Soldiers face soldiers, generals face generals,

Since Ghost Race Divinity Transformation cannot come through, Human Realm Divinity Transformation cannot afford to waste Spiritual Power on minor henchmen,

If Spiritual Power is overly consumed and not timely restored,

Should Ghost Race Divinity Transformation seize the opportunity to enter with ease, it would be disaster for the Human Realm.

Then, the Human Realm’s armies of cultivators and the Ghost Race armies faced off in multiple battles with mixed results,

Entering now a strategic stalemate stage—no major battles, but constant minor skirmishes,

Using the region a million miles around Ghost Realm portal as the battlefield,

Countless Human Realm cultivators venture here to hunt Ghost Race beings to weaken their power and gain battle experience,

For everyone shares one consensus:

Once the Ghost Race Divinity Transformation can pass through, the real decisive battle between the realms begins,

So far, both sides have been steadily accumulating strength.

The Human Realm, to boost morale, united top-tier factions such as the Great Jin Dynasty, Prajna Temple, Luoyang Immortal Palace, Flood Dragon Imperial Palace, etc.,

to offer a massive treasure vault of rare resources for exchange by battle merits.

As long as you have battle merits, there’s no treasure you cannot claim.

Upon seeing this, Zhou Xun’s eyes brightened.

"So, it seems the Ghost Race front line is also a place of opportunity!"

"Perhaps I shouldn’t limit my focus to the ’Nine-Curves Illusion Spirit Ginseng’; currently, my Spiritual Root has not enhanced to one hundred points, I could seize this chance for sufficient High-Tier Spiritual Medicine!"

"Erniu, your Killing and Slaughter Sword Intent might shine here!" Zhou Xun couldn’t help but say to Wang Erniu beside him.

"Big Brother, you jest. In terms of strength, you and Daoist Brother Tianci are stronger than me!" Wang Erniu shook his head.

"Oh, never thought Alliance Leader Yu is so renowned here!" At that moment, True Monarch Tianci’s voice sounded.

"Ranked first in the Battle Merits list, single-handedly suppressing five peers Ghost Kings, the foremost under Divinity Transformation!" Then Wang Erniu’s voice also sounded.

Zhou Xun continued to check.

It turned out that to inspire Human Race morale, they even established three Battle Merits lists: Heaven, Earth, and Man, corresponding to Nascent Soul, Core Formation, and Foundation Establishment Cultivators.

Each list selects nine hundred and ninety-nine people, ranking them based on battle merits,

And True Monarch Yama was indeed at the top of the Heaven List.

"Daoist Brother Yama arrived here, truly like a dragon entering the sea, earning fame worldwide; I wonder if I could have such fortune in the future!"

Zhou Xun sighed and continued as a genuine cultivator.

"Indeed!" True Monarch Tianci echoed.

"Since so, why not go out and see what heroes are on the Heaven List?" Wang Erniu said expectantly.

"Good, let’s go now!" Zhou Xun nodded in response.

He too was curious about who else was on the Heaven List, whether he’d recognize other familiar names.

The three of them left the Cave Mansion and headed toward the Central Plaza where the battle merits list was located.

Along the way, they saw many cultivators coming and going, some returning from the battlefield with faint traces of combat, others preparing to head to the front, eyes filled with determination and resolve.

Before long, they arrived at the Central Plaza,

The plaza was exceedingly spacious, spanning over a thousand yards,

In the center stood three towering stone monuments, each a hundred yards high, representing the three Battle Merits lists,

Zhou Xun and company fixed their gaze on the Heaven List, where True Monarch Yama’s name gleamed brightly, his battle achievements astounding,

Below him, second was a cultivator named "True Monarch Flaming Sun" from Luoyang Immortal Palace.

The third was ’Master Wuxin’,

The fourth...

All the way down, at the eleventh rank, they finally saw another familiar name "Golden Flood Dragon Demon Emperor",

Unexpectedly, there was indeed a time when Demons and Humans united.

Zhou Xun and the others were observing when a commotion stirred nearby, with many people gathering, faintly hearing words like ’True Monarch Yama’,

The three of them immediately looked towards the commotion,

Seeing a tall figure in a black cloak, majestic like a celestial general descending from the heavens, slowly walking towards them,

"Younger Brother Zhou, it’s been a while!"