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Ye Junlin wasn’t feeling the threat from the Divine Court at all; in fact, he was itching for the strongest being in the starry sky to take a swing at him. That way, he could naturally leverage that for his own cultivation gains.

Thus, his words were utterly unrestrained and dripping with provocation.

To others, he seemed to be courting death, but only he knew this was a cheat code to rapid growth!

“By the way, I want to discuss something with you,” Ye Junlin said, remembering why he came.

“What is it?”

“I want the Holy Realm and the Kunlun Realm to merge into one, creating a more powerful world!”

Ye Junlin declared earnestly.

Liu Huangshu paused, almost doubting his ears. After confirming it wasn’t a mistake, he frowned and said, “That’s a risky idea. I find it hard to believe it can be achieved.”

Merging two worlds would require a reliable medium. Even with his skills in formations, it was no small feat, plus the process would be fraught with risk. One minor misstep could lead to catastrophic destruction.

Most importantly, there were countless beings across the two realms. With so many powers at play, merging them would inevitably spark conflicts and internal turmoil—a total lose-lose!

Ye Junlin replied, “I understand your concerns, but if we could perfectly merge the two worlds, the outcome would be far greater than just a sum of parts!”

You see, the potential of the Kunlun Realm vastly exceeded that of the Holy Realm. If they merged now, the speed of advancement would accelerate by at least a hundred times.

Moreover, in his view, having the Celestial Court around would ensure that the beings from both realms were constrained, making internal conflicts a non-issue. Everyone would unify their efforts!

This way, they could rise rapidly in the universe!

Liu Huangshu remained silent for a long time, managing a forced smile. “I admit you’re bold, but right now, shouldn’t we focus on dealing with the Nine Nether coalition?”

Let’s be real—if the Holy Realm gets wiped out, what’ll you use to merge the Kunlun Realm?

Ye Junlin pondered and said, “True, let’s put this matter on hold for now.”

It would be more prudent to deal with the Nine Nether coalition first; any mishap between merging the two worlds could lead to disaster.

After that, Ye Junlin left, leaving Liu Huangshu behind to sigh in his solitude.

In the hallway, he bumped into a robust man walking toward him.

Xiang Jiba looked downcast, his footsteps heavy, as if he’d just suffered a blow.

Ye Junlin asked, “Xiang, what’s wrong?”

Seeing the silver-haired youth, Xiang Jiba’s eyes flickered with guilt as he sighed,

“Ah, Ye, I’m really sorry.”

Ye Junlin frowned. “Why do you say that?”

“My Master recently broke through to the Saint Ancestor Realm and gained great prestige. I wanted to ask him to take you on as a disciple; that way, even if the Nine Nether side flexes their muscles, they’d have to think twice. But unexpectedly, the Master outright refused me and told me to leave the Holy Realm right away, so…”

Xiang Jiba bowed his head, feeling ashamed.

He overestimated Ye Junlin’s value in his Master’s eyes. From what his Master hinted, Ye Junlin was already on the Nine Nether’s hit list and had offended the head of the Divine Court, making him a double target. No one wanted to handle such a hot potato.

For that reason, Panlong Wusheng thought it better to let Ye Junlin fend for himself and urged him to leave the trouble zone for the Holy Martial Realm and report back. This time, he not only broke through to Saint but also achieved great merit, qualifying him to upgrade from a named disciple to an official one—his future looked bright!

So, Xiang Jiba felt powerless, with a mix of reluctance and guilt.

Ye Junlin relaxed his frown, smiled at him, and patted him on the shoulder,

“Xiang, I appreciate your concern, but I, Ye Junlin, don’t need anyone’s protection. If you wish to leave the Holy Realm, I can personally see you off. And if you ever want to visit, you’re always welcome!”

Ye Junlin held a lot of respect for this friend, and his words were sincere.

Xiang Jiba chuckled bitterly, “Well, if that’s the case, I’ll take my leave then…”

In his heart, he couldn’t help but add,

Is there even a future for the Holy Realm?

After all, with the young Holy Realm just getting on its feet, how could it withstand the threats from the Doom-level Destruction Orders?

But given the situation, he had to swallow those words.

“We’ll meet again if fate allows…”

With that, Xiang Jiba bid farewell to Ye Junlin and officially set off for the Holy Martial Realm.

Half a month later.

Ripples surged through the boundary of the Holy Realm.

Several holy ships swept in, carrying a mighty aura, with numerous figures on board, coming from all walks of life—men, women, and children—all gazing out with hopeful expressions.

“Is this the Holy Realm? It looks so full of vitality!”

“It’s a shame that soon, this world will be destroyed, shattered under the assault of the Nine Nether coalition!”

“We need to act quickly and move the Holy-level resources away before they get ruined!”

…

Soon, plenty of outland cultivators flew out of the holy ships, their eyes shining with greed, grabbing valuable items like a bunch of bandits.

Whether it was digging up the Holy Trees, draining the Holy Springs, or mining Holy Crystals, it was all about plundering whatever useful resources they could find.

Some even set their sights on the Holy Realm’s cultivators, entering the slave trade business.

You should know, in the eyes of these outland thieves, resources included living people!

In a flash.

The Holy Realm was in deep distress, cries of misery everywhere.

“Don’t you fear the Divine Court seeking vengeance for your actions?”

In the Han Manor, the injured Han Qiujian coughed up blood, collapsed to the ground, and furiously glared at the intruders.

By now, he was the Wind Thunder Sword Emperor, previously defeated by Ye Junlin with just two fingers, but thanks to the resources of the Holy Realm, his cultivation had improved. Recently, he triggered the Half-Saint Tribulation, becoming a Half-Saint.

In the Holy Realm, being a Half-Saint meant he was definitely a major player; after all, there were currently only a handful of Saints around.

However, a gang of outland cultivators invaded the Han Manor, disregarding his warnings and seizing the Holy Trees and veins. Outnumbered, he was quickly injured and had to watch helplessly.

“Divine Court? They can’t even protect themselves right now; how can they have the luxury to worry about your lives? Besides, we haven’t attacked the Divine Court, so we’re really doing them a favor!”

One burly black-robed man sneered.

Han Qiujian fumed, “You robbers won’t escape the wrath of the Divine Court’s master!”

“Ha! The Divine Court’s master is nothing to us. If we don’t bother him, why would he dare to come after us?” The black-robed man laughed mockingly.

Among them were even Celestial Saints, each with substantial backgrounds—simply not bothering the Divine Court was already generous. Did they think this so-called master would dare mess with them?

How ridiculous!

“Dad, maybe you should say less…” His son, Han Xing, trembled, fearing for his father’s safety.

Once a spoiled second-generation rich kid, Han Xing had undergone a stern transformation under his father’s guidance, now standing out as a rising star among the younger generation.

But he hadn’t anticipated such a drastic change in the world. The father he once regarded as invincible was easily overpowered by this group of outsiders. He could only hope they would leave soon and not bring further harm to his family…

But when Han Qiujian heard their words, his anger boiled over, “You outland scum dare disrespect the Divine Court’s master? I’ll slay you right here!”

Ye Junlin was the most revered powerhouse in his life, the ultimate goal he pursued. Seeing others treat him with disdain was the last straw for Han Qiujian, and he decided to take action to defend the honor of the one he respected most.

“Kill!”

With a sword, the winds roared, and even the heavens were shaken.

“You…” The black-robed man was also a Half-Saint, but he didn’t expect Han Qiujian to attack so suddenly, and was caught off guard as the sword approached him.

Thwack!

The sword pierced his chest instantly, and the Wind Thunder power erupted.

“Ugh!” The black-robed man groaned in pain, his pupils fading as he fell to the ground, nearly charred, with a gaping hole in his chest, blood gushing out.

The commotion drew the attention of his partners.

Seeing the locals had the audacity to kill one of their own, they all exploded with rage and surrounded Han Qiujian, weapons drawn.

Han Qiujian had already cast aside thoughts of life or death, sneering, “If you want to kill me, go ahead and try!”

With that, he turned and flew off, relocating the battlefield from the Han Manor.

“Trying to escape? Chase him!”

Fueled by the hatred from earlier, the outland cultivators disregarded the Han Manor, swiftly giving chase to Han Qiujian.

After all, if they didn’t demonstrate a “kill the chicken to scare the monkey” tactic, other locals might get ideas about rebelling.

They had to kill Han Qiujian to set an example!

“Dad~!!”

Han Xing’s heart wrenched, overwhelmed with grief.

He realized that his father might never return!

“Young master, we should retreat quickly; otherwise, if they come back, the Han family will face total destruction…” A clan elder choked, red-eyed.

“I must report this to the Divine Court and seek justice from the Heavenly Emperor!” Han Xing gritted his teeth, resolute.

Afterward.

Seizing the moment, the Han family made a hasty exit from their territory to avoid retaliation from the outland cultivators.

Soon, news of Han Qiujian spread; it was said he killed over ten Half-Saint level cultivators, ultimately unable to hold his ground and was killed, his body mutilated and displayed on a pole for all to see, creating huge waves locally…

Many cultivators, upon hearing this, were filled with righteous anger yet felt utterly impotent, as the gap in individual strength was just too vast.

Among the outland cultivators, even one was a Half-Saint; most of the Holy Realm cultivators remained at the Immortal level—how could they possibly withstand this?

At the same time, Han Qiujian’s tragedy was not an isolated incident, continuing to unfold across the five major Holy Regions.

 

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