"The heavens… what kind of pill could do that?"
Gasps rippled through the crowd. "Could it be an immortal elixir? Impossible—true immortal pills are far too powerful. Even Longevity experts can barely endure a fraction of their energy. Ordinary disciples should explode instantly."
Yet the evidence stood right before their eyes—three women had stepped directly into the Divine Ability realm.
Even Ruyi Zi's expression flickered between disbelief and gloom.
He wasn't speechless for lack of arguments—he simply couldn't reconcile what he was seeing.
Even as an ancient powerhouse in the Longevity realm, he couldn't safely elevate someone to Divine Ability without tremendous risk. The recipient would almost certainly die—mind shattered, body bursting apart.
Rootless advancement was suicide.
But Fang Han had done it effortlessly.
Tianxing Elder cut him off coldly.
"Ruyi Zi, enough. If you wish to contest anything, we'll bring it before the Sect Master—not ruin the Mountain River Ranking tournament."
A beam of white light shot from his mouth, wrapped Fang Han, and whisked him across the sky, piercing directly into the depths of the Yuhua Heavenly Palace.
Ruyi Zi followed with a sneer, vanishing like a shadow.
Deep within the celestial palace, Fang Han once again stood before Feng Baiyu.
The space was hazy and boundless, filled with pure elemental energy drifting like white mist. The floor itself was fog—depth unfathomable, reality blurred into illusion. Fang Han wasn't surprised; the core of Yuhua Heavenly Palace contained countless fragmented pocket-dimensions, some larger than mortal kingdoms.
In truth, this palace itself was an absolute-grade Dao Artifact—rivaling the legendary Heavenly Emperor Mirror. But activating it required immense power. Were danger to strike, every Elder inside would have to pour their strength into thousands of overlapping arrays, pushing the palace to suppress all enemies.
And if even that failed, the palace could rip open the void and flee the world entirely.
This was the true foundation of Yuhua Sect.
The outer cities and mountain peaks were merely the first defensive ring, powered by and protecting the palace.
Tianxing Elder bowed slightly, then spoke without waiting for Ruyi Zi:
"Senior Brother Sect Master, thanks to Fang Han, we uncovered the gods' infiltrators hidden in our sect. Outside, I slew five God Kings and captured one alive. Please judge this matter."
He flicked his sleeve.
A figure rolled onto the ground—the captured Illusory God King.
"What? The gods?" Ruyi Zi stiffened. Accusing three disciples of colluding with the demonic path was one thing—but bringing in the divine race? With both a live captive and undeniable proof? There was no room left to twist the narrative.
Feng Baiyu's expression hardened instantly.
With a motion of his hand, invisible force hoisted the God King by the throat.
"Speak. How many of your kind have entered the Profound Yellow World? Where are they hiding? Even a minor God King should understand my methods. I am Feng Baiyu, Sect Master of Yuhua. Even your divine emperors know my name."
The creature coughed violently, its true monstrous form revealing bone-plated armor and curling antennae. Then it let out a wicked laugh.
"Feng Baiyu? You won't remain proud for long. Our people—eight hundred billion strong—will soon descend on this world. We will conquer it… then use it as a staging ground to invade deeper, richer realms of the cosmos!"
"Eight… hundred… billion?!"
Fang Han nearly leapt up.
Eight hundred billion divine soldiers—and their weakest were Divine Ability cultivators. Such a swarm would blot out the sky. Even the Celestial Ten Sects and the Seven Demon Lines would be annihilated instantly.
Think of the God Kings. The God Emperors. The unfathomable giants hiding behind this horde…
Feng Baiyu laughed, but it was a laugh forged of steel.
"Let them come! It has been ages since I fought to my heart's content. Every ten thousand years, a great divine calamity descends—this is our best chance to temper ourselves. Now tell me—where is your race's base in this world? Overseas?"
"Hah! Dream on. You dream too freely, human."
The God King sneered. "Treat me as you wish. When our great ones arrive, your fate will mirror mine. Cause and effect—inescapable."
"You don't need to speak."
Feng Baiyu's smile turned cold. "I have a thousand methods to rip your thoughts apart. Unlike the heavenly demons, your kind has no secret dissolution art."
Boom!
His hand tightened; the God King burst apart, scattering into countless clouds of essence and fractured thoughts. But none escaped—every strand was captured in the Sect Master's palm.
A crystalline core—its internal storage space—flew into his hand. He tossed it casually to Fang Han.
A God King's possessions meant nothing to someone of Feng Baiyu's level.
Fang Han hid his regret.
If he weren't being watched, he could have refined the God King into another Divine Ability Fruit. But under Ruyi Zi's eyes, he let the energy dissipate harmlessly.
Feng Baiyu continued to sift through the memories, expression darkening, then sharpening with sudden insight.
"Good… very good."
He crushed the last thought-fragments. "Fang Han, you have done exceptionally well. If not for your timely capture, our sect might have been doomed in the coming calamity. But now—this is our chance to rise. I will discuss your reward with the Supreme Elders."
Ruyi Zi's face went stiff.
He had no grounds to object.
Feng Baiyu turned to Fang Han again.
"Continue winning over the Star-Born Child. Our Yuhua Sect will temporarily ally with the Stellar Gate. Take this token—I want you to personally deliver my message to their Sect Master. Tell him we wish to coordinate for the Ten Sects Immortal Assembly in three years. Use this opportunity to explore their sect."
A spell-sealed letter materialized in his hand and drifted to Fang Han.
Sending it via flying message would be trivial; this was clearly an excuse to grant Fang Han new opportunities.
"Master—shall I depart now?"
"Not yet. After spring."
Feng Baiyu snorted. "In three months, Elders from the Three Great Sword Sects will demand Nascent Soul Pills. Should I refine three million for them? No—you'll stay and train. When you go to the Stellar Gate, do not embarrass Yuhua."
"Yes, Sect Master."
As Fang Han prepared to leave, Ruyi Zi suddenly stepped forward.
"You killed two of Taiyi Sect's Golden Core prodigies to obtain the Five Elements Realm access talisman. Taiyi Sect demands justice, and Yuhua Sect has been cleaning up after you. Shouldn't you offer that talisman to the sect?"
Fang Han froze.
The access talisman was a lifesaving treasure—able to teleport him into the Five Elements Realm instantly to escape any foe.
Feng Baiyu waved a hand dismissively.
"Let him keep it. That talisman was given to him by the Ancient Demon Lord—taking it would provoke suspicion. Worse, the Demon Lord could use it to spy on us… or plant a demonic fetus in our sect."
At the words demonic fetus, Ruyi Zi paled and fell silent.
"Senior Brother Sect Master," he said stiffly, "if the divine race is already plotting against us, we must prepare a response."
"Not urgent."
Feng Baiyu was calm—too calm. "The calamity is decades away. We have time. And before it arrives, we must do something monumental."
He raised his chin proudly.
"We must seize the Taiyuan Immortal Mansion."
"What?! Sect Master, that is no small matter!"
Even Tianxing Elder shuddered.
"We have the advantage," Feng Baiyu continued. "Fang Han has already encountered great fortunes inside the Immortal Mansion. When the time comes, he can assist from within."
He turned to Fang Han.
"You must remember this. You must cultivate to Golden Core—or better, Fire and Wind Tribulation, or even the World-Manifestation Stage. Restore the Yellow Springs Diagram. Only then can you enter the Immortal Mansion again. At that time, I will lend you the Heavenly Emperor Mirror. Inside Taiyuan lies endless treasures—Dao artifacts, spirit pills, perhaps even immortal tools. Only by obtaining it can our sect survive the coming calamity. Without it, all is dust."
Fang Han inhaled sharply.
The ambition was staggering—but not impossible.
"Master, your vision is vast. I will obey. One day, I will obtain the Yellow Springs Treasury as well. When that happens, Yuhua Sect will dominate the world."
Feng Baiyu's eyes glinted.
"If you help us obtain the Taiyuan Immortal Mansion, I will pass the position of Sect Master to you. But only if you reach the Longevity realm and defeat Hua Tiandu. If Tiandu defeats you… then everything ends."
Fang Han nodded.
"Understood."
As he stepped out, Feng Baiyu's voice echoed in his mind:
"When the Three Sword Sects arrive, tell them this—
'Taihuang Heaven itself attempted to kill you… but was blocked by the Ancient Demon Lord of the Five Elements Realm.'
Let them think carefully about that."