The Sky-Eater Pig was an unrivaled bloodline, and although the fatty had only absorbed a small bit of that bloodline and could not display its true might, it was still enough to greatly improve his strength. That bamboo-thin man was from the Martial Progenitor Realm, and he had no bloodline. Thus, his battle techniques were actually consumed by Huang San. Eventually, he activated the martial imprint on his forehead and used it to complement his imprint and boost his power.

Lu Yin, meanwhile, confronted a gloomy-looking man who seemed determined to obtain a victory through blitzkrieg tactics. The man activated his imprint along with his battle technique as soon as possible, and he also seemed to draw on an additional strange strength that came from his brand. This was not Lu Yin’s first time encountering such a thing, as the woman who had attacked him in the plaza outside First Divine Gate had used the same technique, and it had nearly doubled her strength at that time.

But even after the gloomy man went all-out, he was still instantly routed by Lu Yin. This person was merely an Explorer, and within the same realm, Lu Yin was absolutely confident that he was in the top tier even if he was up against the Sixth Mainland’s elites.

His tyrannical physical strength easily overpowered the man’s battle technique and blasted him away, sending the man crashing into the ground.

Mr. Bai and Miss Qing’s battles also ended fairly quickly, and the three youths soon turned to watch the final battle between the fatty and the bamboo-looking man.

The bamboo man started to panic, as he had not thought that his companions would be defeated so quickly. When the fatty’s Sky-Eater Pig’s silhouette first appeared, the bamboo man had actually believed that this fellow was the strongest out of the four opponents, but he never would have thought that this person was actually the weakest. The other three were actually freakishly strong, and the discrepancy between the groups caused the bamboo man to give up and quickly retreat from the stone pillar.

The fatty didn’t have the guts to chase his opponent down, and he just panted heavily as he stood still with clenched firsts. “Fat Bro actually won!”

Won? Lu Yin glanced over at the heavy-set youth, as Huang San had not won the match. It would be more accurate to say that it had been a draw.

If the fatty was the same as when he had first met Lu Yin, then he would have been easily defeated. It could only be said that his strength had undergone a qualitative improvement in that time and that the four attackers had also not been too strong. Each of them had been much weaker than the elegant-looking man who Lu Yin had killed in the past.

“Their luck’s pretty good,” Miss Qing said.

“It’s a decent bloodline but rather thin. What a pity.” A faint, fifth voice was heard, and the four youths glanced over at Shang Rong.

The fatty stared blankly at Shang Rong and pointed at himself. “Are you talking about me?”

Shang Rong’s eyes narrowed, which alarmed Huang San, and he rushed to bow to the Realmling. “Thank you for the compliment! Thank you, Realmling, for your compliment! I don’t deserve the honor.”

Shang Rong slowly turned away and continued to observe the palm lines.

Miss Qing facepalmed. “How embarrassing.”

Mr. Bai smiled. “Fat Bro does not conceal his emotions. Haha!”

The fatty’s face flushed deep red, and he mumbled, “That’s the Realmling, Shang Rong! He’s a little terrifying.”

Lu Yin sat down and silently studied the palm print.

***

While Lu Yin and the others were studying the palm print, far away in another part of the Daosource Sect, on the path leading to Third Azure Gate, Wendy Yushan had unsheathed her sword and was slashing out horizontally with it. Her attack destroyed the monster-like storm that was attacking her, and her sword subsequently returned to its sheath. She looked up towards the higher regions of the mountain and wondered if she was about to reach the end of this path.

She was in no hurry to rush to Third Azure Gate as she was rather curious about this Daosource Sect. She had met other people along her way, and she had made a choice similar to Lu Yin when he had first entered these ruins: she did not speak to anyone so that it would be more difficult for them to realize that she was not from the Sixth Mainland.

In the sky above her, lightning descended, but Wendy Yushan easily evaded it as she passed through Third Azure Gate. As long as she entered the light pillar, she would be able to make it to the Budding Terrace.

At this moment, a figure appeared from the light pillar, making a frantic dash towards Third Azure Gate. Upon seeing Wendy Yushan ahead of him, he shouted, “Scram!”

Wendy Yushan frowned and was about to draw her blade when another figure appeared from the light pillar, accompanied by a metallic voice. The instant she heard the voice, Wendy Yushan’s sword started trembling uncontrollably. Then, it unsheathed itself, and under her amazed eyes, the blade tore through the void and streaked forward like a black river, leaving a horizontal spatial fissure behind.

The man trying to escape to Third Azure Gate slowly knelt down and died.

Wendy Yushan’s blade spun through the air before ultimately returning to its sheath with a ringing sound.

Wendy Yushan turned to look towards the light pillar in amazement. This was the first time that her own sword had been manipulated by someone else.

A sturdy man emerged from the light pillar, and she saw that he had short hair and wore cotton clothes. He had a very casual appearance, but his arms were exceptionally thick, and there were veins bulging out all over them. Just one look at this man made it clear to any observer that he was quite strong.

The man was not very handsome, but he had a unique demeanor. In particular, his eyes stood out, which expressed a certain dignity and looked as if they could pierce one’s heart.

Wendy Yushan and the man exchanged glances.

The man’s eyes swept across Wendy’s body, and a trace of amazement flashed through his eyes. “My apologies for using your sword.”

Wendy Yushan coldly replied, “Your name.”

The man’s brows rose up. “War Martial Realm: the Toolcasting family’s Toolwielder.”

“I’m asking for your name,” Wendy Yushan replied coldly.

The man’s lips curled up. “It looks like you’re someone with an average background since you’ve never heard of the Toolcasting family before. The people of my Toolcasting family have no names—only titles, and I am this generation’s Toolwielder.”

Wendy Yushan’s gaze remained cold. “Since it’s called the Toolcasting family, then you should be fully aware of how important a weapon is to its owner. You used my sword to kill another, which is the same as you showing your contempt for me.”

The man clasped his hands behind his back. “I could let this matter slide if someone else was speaking to me in that tone, but since it’s you, I can’t do that. I’ve taken an interest in you. Come with me, and I’ll make it up to you.”

Wendy Yushan’s gaze flashed with a certain coldness. “There’s no need for that. I’ll look for you in the future.”

The man laughed madly. “You’ll look for me! You should first at least be aware of the disparity in our strength! Follow me, and I’ll help you expand your horizons. Right, I forgot to tell you—I’m also the War Martial Realm’s Realmling.”

Wendy Yushan’s pupils shrank, as a Realmling should be the title of the strongest youth from a given realm, though that was just based on Lu Yin’s guesses from his previous experience in the Daosource Sect. Regardless, this person was definitely strong since he was a Realmling.

“I’m headed to the Scripture Pavilion, and I’m formally inviting you to join me so that I can show you the disparity in our strength. Do you dare to come with me or not?” the man arrogantly asked.

Wendy Yushan’s answer remained cold. “Lead the way.”

***

The Daosource Sect was huge, and it included mountains, plains, rivers, and even oceans. At the foot of a certain mountain, there was a gathering of a dozen cultivators from the Sixth Mainland.

“Legend has it that back when the Fifth Mainland’s Daosource Sect still belonged to them, only the Progenitors could cleave the mountains and split the oceans, and back during their peak, there were Nine Mountains and Eight Seas. This is one of those mountains, and there’s an inheritance from one of the Fifth Mainland’s Progenitors here. Everyone, let’s search together! We’ll definitely find some harvest,” someone suggested.

“Those are just rumors, and even our Sixth Mainland has never had more than four Progenitors at its peak. How could the Fifth Mainland have had nine Progenitors? This mountain is probably empty, so let’s just search somewhere else,” someone replied.

“That’s right. Progenitors cleaving mountains and splitting oceans are just stories made up by the Fifth Mainland’s people to console themselves. This mountain is so massive, and who knows how long it would take to climb to the peak. It’s too time-consuming, and we might not even make it halfway up this thing by the time our futons dim.”

“Yeah, let’s go to Heaven's Pit. If our luck is good, we might even be able to comprehend a secret technique there!”

“Nah, let’s head to the Nine Cauldrons. Each one of them has its own battle technique. Someone’s also comprehended a technique there, so we might be able to get something.”

“Why don’t we just stay in the Scripture Pavillion? We may be able to understand something.”

…

A thousand meters away from the group of a dozen people, there was a single man walking along slowly. Each step he took left a black footprint on the ground due to his extreme temperature. It didn’t take long for the man to notice the dozen of cultivators preparing to leave, and his lips curled upwards. “The war has begun.”

Before long, the area was engulfed in flames as the man leisurely continued on his way, slowly walking away. He left nothing but ashes behind. Where once a dozen cultivators stood, there was now only one on his last breath. As he stared at the man’s departing future, he asked, “Who are you?”

The man paused, but he did not turn around. He only softly answered, “Ten Arbiters, Undying Bird.”

The flames then surged and engulfed the entire area.

Within the Daosource Sect, there was a tall mountain that was only intermittently visible, and all around it lay a vast ocean. There was a reef that ran along its shore, and a woman was sitting upon it with a wine gourd in hand that she took an occasional gulp from.

Her clothing was quite revealing, but she was not attempting to be seductive. Based on her demeanor as she drank her wine, it more seemed that this woman was very unrestrained.

Two men approached her from behind, and they checked her out from top to bottom with surprised faces. “It’s rare to come across such a bold lady nowadays. Could we have the opportunity to share a glass with you?”

The girl set her wine gourd down and wiped her mouth with her sleeve. She belched drunkenly as she turned around towards the two men, upon which they saw that her eyes were glazed over.

The two men were surprised by the woman’s appearance, as she had a ravishing countenance that did not reflect her rambunctious behavior. She had the casualness of a man but the charming face of a tipsy lady. The juxtaposition of two opposing images produced an allure that the two men could not resist. They swallowed their saliva. “Miss, are you alright?”

She stood up, swayed drunkenly, and nearly tumbled to the ground. The two youths hurried forward to support her, but the moment they made contact with her, their bodies shrivelled up. After less than a second, the aura of the two men had already vanished, and they were reduced to two dry corpses, though they maintained their previous posture.

The woman walked away while swaying drunkenly. As she passed by the two men, a breeze blew past and caused their desiccated bodies to dissipate into dust that floated towards the ocean.

“The Daosource Sect’s ocean is beautiful. Wait for me—perhaps this will be my burial ground. We’ll meet again soon,” the lady spoke indistinctly, although it was impossible to tell if she was uttering words in her drunkenness or was sleep talking. After muttering those words, she fell to the ground with a thump. She laid on the reef and started sleeping, snoring loudly.

There was an area in the Daosource Sect that was known as the land of the buried bow. It had not been created by the Daosource Sect, as it was actually a place that originated from the ancient war. The corpse of one of the Sixth Mainland’s Progenitors and with his weapon, which was a bow, had been buried in this place. This weapon had given this place its name: the land of the buried bow.

At this moment, three cultivators from the Sixth Mainland were carefully exploring this black land after accidentally charging into the region.

“It was so difficult to find this wretched place, and we wouldn’t have found it if not for our amazing luck,” someone commented.

Another person grew excited. “This place is the fabled land of the buried bow! Countless experts have searched for this place, but all to no avail. But now, we’ve finally obtained the opportunity to explore this place, and we’ll definitely get the Progenitor’s inheritance! We’ll take away the sacred bow, step onto the battlefield, massacre the evil remnants of the Fifth Mainland, and finally get revenge for our ancestor!”

“That’s right! The land of the buried bow starts here, and this is where my achievements will begin as well. We can’t betray the hopes of our ancestors!” the last person spoke excitedly.

After the last person finished speaking, the space around the group fluctuated. The three people looked over with fervent eyes and moved forward at an unprecedented speed, as each one of them hoped to obtain the Progenitor’s inheritance.

However, before their eyes, a yellow futon appeared with a man sitting on top of it. His long, black-and-white hair streamed out behind him, and there was a lock of grey hair in the middle of his head as well.

“Who are you? How are you able to appear in the land of the buried bow with your futon?” One of the three youths shouted. They all kept a vigilant eye on the man on the futon.

The man’s eyes opened, revealing an indescribable pair of eyes that were filled with a boundless arrogance and coldness. His eyes seemed to look at everything as though they were all mere maggots.