Golden Core is a Star, and You Call This Cultivation?

Qi Yuan glanced at Chen Kangbao with a face full of disdain.

If Chen Kangbao was his servant...

Look at other people's slaves—what they wear, what they carry.

And then look at him?

Comparison is infuriating.

"Well, at least I have my 'White Moonlight.'"

Qi Yuan looked at the distant corpse of the Blade Demon, his eyes glinting with a smug satisfaction.

With the Descent of the Divine and Xiao Jia's Together as One technique, his combat power had reached terrifying levels.

In some respects, it could even be said that he had surpassed the peak of Divine Descent.

While Divine Descent’s cultivation realm was higher, his mastery of divine power paled compared to Qi Yuan, who could now slay a Yang God imbued with the Great Supreme Truth.

"Level 150."

Slaying the Blade Demon, a Divine-tier Weapon Master, had elevated Qi Yuan’s cultivation to level 150.

In the context of this world, he was now a Divine-tier Weapon Master.

At this point, even without relying on the power of Divine Descent, he was a god!

Moreover, Qi Yuan had made a new discovery from the Blade Demon’s corpse.

"This is..."

Even from a distance, Qi Yuan’s keen eyes detected an unusual trait on the Blade Demon’s body.

[Blood imbued with the Dark Radiance. This blood, once contaminated, tarnishes divine artifacts, reducing their effectiveness to less than one-thousandth of their original power.]

This revelation set Qi Yuan deep in thought.

"Was the Blade Demon’s blood tampered with?"

A flood of possibilities surged through his mind as he studied the Blade Demon’s severed arm, further confirming his suspicions.

It seemed likely that, in order to counter Divine Descent in the past, someone had infused the Blade Demon’s blood with the Dark Radiance.

When Divine Descent faced the combined onslaught of the gods, he had managed to wound the Blade Demon.

From that point onward, the Blade Demon’s divine artifact had been tarnished, weakening Divine Descent’s power.

<hr>

“Hey, are you there?” Qi Yuan initiated contact with the Thorned Blood staff once again.

He took out the Divine Wood Token.

“First of all, stop calling me ‘hey.’ Second, just get to the point if you have something to say—don’t start with ‘are you there.’”

“Have you ever heard of the Dark Radiance?”

Since he was playing the role of Divine Descent, he had to uncover the truth behind his death.

“Never heard of it,” the other replied.

Qi Yuan felt a twinge of disappointment. It seemed he would have to clear the Rakshasa Kingdom instance to learn who else had been involved.

“Well, I could investigate it, but it’ll cost me something. I might be able to figure out what it is,” the Thorned Blood staff offered.

“If you help me find information about it, I’ll remember this favor. If you ever can’t make a living, come to the Underworld.”

“Heh...”

On the other side, the Thorned Blood staff member chuckled coldly.

He pushed open a window, gazing at the misty world outside as if admiring a scene.

“Posting a task: gather detailed information on the Dark Radiance. Reward: 1 point.”

As a seasoned Void Walker, he had the authority to issue tasks directly.

Void Paradise had deeply infiltrated this nascent universe.

Even items like the Blue Mountain Realm Chronicles were accessible to him.

Other information was relatively easy to uncover.

After a few moments, his eyes lit up.

“I’ve found the details on the Dark Radiance.”

“This entity originates from the Radiant Society. Its most notable characteristic is its ability to contaminate divine artifacts, diminishing their divine power...” R̃â𐌽ốВÊS

"Thanks."

Qi Yuan expressed his gratitude and began to mull over the implications.

"The Radiant Society again."

He had encountered members of the Radiant Society before—Fang Shisan and a corpse were his only direct interactions thus far.

But along his journey, the Radiant Society had frequently intersected with his path.

At the beginning of his life as a live-in son-in-law, Fang Shisan of the Radiant Society had plotted against him, even attempting to assassinate him.

Later, Qi Yuan ventured to the Abyss of Ten Thousand Mountains and discovered countless corpses in a Strange Domain—Artifact Masters who had forged fragments of Divine Light Treasure under the direction of the Radiant Society.

The 300.000 Artifact Masters who ventured into that Strange Domain to refine the fragments were also led by the Radiant Society.

Now, it seemed even Divine Descent’s death was entangled with the Radiant Society.

The Radiant Society was like an incurable itch.

“Do you know about the Radiant Society?” Qi Yuan asked again, his curiosity piqued.

The Thorned Blood staff member’s gaze sharpened. “The Blue Mountain Realm Chronicles records that the Blue Mountain Realm is on the brink of destruction.

But this isn’t just the fate of the Blue Mountain Realm—it is the ultimate destiny of your entire universe.

Every world, every being, is doomed to annihilation.

Unless… they transcend.

But enough of that. Let’s talk about the Radiant Society.

Your world—or rather, your universe—is approaching its end.

The Radiant Society considers itself the savior of this world. They’ve been working tirelessly to... save it.”

“Righteous?” Qi Yuan was startled.

The so-called righteous faction had been hunting him down. Could he really be the villain?

But then he reflected that self-righteousness wasn’t true righteousness, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

“The Radiant Society isn’t particularly strong—they’re just troublesome. But behind them...” The Thorned Blood staff member’s face turned grave with reverence and fear.

A mighty being stood behind the Radiant Society, so powerful that just imagining them was enough to shake one’s soul and courage.

If he were to utter this being’s name with malice, the being could obliterate him with a single thought, even from across universes.

Only after consolidating his divine domain could he resist such an attack.

Even then, while a single thought might no longer suffice, a single finger would surely be enough.

"Who's behind them?" Qi Yuan realized how shallow his knowledge of the game’s lore was.

“The Radiant Dao Lord!” The Thorned Blood staff member typed the words with trembling hands.

Radiant Dao Lord!

A Dao Lord!

"Who is he? What realm is he at? Is he powerful?" Qi Yuan asked curiously.

Hearing this, the Thorned Blood staff member became even more certain that Qi Yuan was a native of this universe—after all, he didn’t even know about Dao Lords.

“Do you know that above Divine-tier Weapon Masters are true gods who condense divine domains?

And above true gods, whom you call Ancestor Gods, are what we in other universes call Yang Gods.

The Yang God realm has five layers, and the gap between each layer is greater than the heavens.

In our Zhou Universe, any Yang God can devour an entire realm.

Such transcendent beings—if they so much as yawn—your strongest being, Divine Descent, would perish.

And that’s just the First Layer of the Yang God realm.

As for the realms above that, they’re even stronger.

The founder of Void Paradise is the Zhou Universe’s strongest being: the Void Realm Master!”

The Thorned Blood staff member continued, no longer concealing his identity.

After so many days of interaction, it was obvious to anyone with even a modicum of intelligence that he wasn’t simply a member of Thorned Blood.

“What? You’re from another universe?” Ji Wuyun suddenly interjected, face full of shock.

The Thorned Blood staff member ignored the message and went on.

“The Void Realm Master is a peak expert of the Third Layer of the Yang God realm.

He is the strongest being in the Zhou Universe.

The Void Realm Master is capable of creating and destroying worlds at will, crafting realms like the Blue Mountain Realm, and even bringing forth life from nothing.

If he were to act, no one in your fledgling universe could possibly resist him.”

When the Void Realm Master was mentioned, the Thorned Blood staff member’s expression filled with pride and reverence.

After all, the Void Realm Master was an emperor revered by all Zhou Universe cultivators.

“Pretty strong,” Qi Yuan commented seriously.

At the very least, he couldn’t yet create a world or life. Modifications, sure, but outright creation? Not yet.

From the Void Paradise token he had acquired, Qi Yuan had already learned a lot.

The Third Layer of the Yang God realm was divided into three sub-stages: Rules, All Things, and Creation.

The Sixth Heaven of the Immortal Realm, which houses Great Supreme Truth realm beings, had combat power equivalent to a weak Rules stage.

The Thorned Blood staff member was by now accustomed to Qi Yuan’s reactions.

“The Void Realm Master’s level is something we can only look up to in reverence.

But the Radiant Dao Lord... This being is at the Fifth Layer of the Yang God realm, two entire levels above the Void Realm Master. He is a Dao Lord!”

He paused for dramatic effect, then continued with awe.

“The so-called ‘Dao Lord’ is a master of a Dao, representing uniqueness, eternity, and immutability.

Once someone becomes a Dao Lord, they achieve true transcendence. They are the One. Even if the universe perishes, their body and spirit remain intact. They can freely traverse the river of time, moving between the past and the future.”

Because his family’s ancestor was a Yang God and also a Void Walker, the staff member was privy to many secrets.

To Yang Gods, much of this wasn’t considered hidden knowledge.

“A Dao Lord is a master of a Dao.

This world has countless cultivation paths—martial arts, witchcraft, poison spirituality, demonic cultivation, and so on.

If one takes any of these paths to the ultimate peak, they become a Dao Lord.

At the moment of ascension, that Dao comes under their absolute control. The universe in which they exist also becomes their territory.

From that moment forward, all subsequent cultivators following that Dao are essentially crafting a foundation for the Dao Lord’s strength.

Moreover, they can never surpass the Dao Lord.

On every Dao, there can only ever be one Dao Lord.

And within a single universe, only one Dao Lord can exist at a time!”

<hr>

The Thorned Blood staff member laid out all the details for Qi Yuan.

Of course, his knowledge wasn’t entirely accurate—he was of relatively low status, so he couldn’t be privy to the ultimate truths. But most of what he said was reliable.

“That’s genuinely strong,” Qi Yuan said with a nod.

Back in the Moon God Palace, he had learned that the Fifth Layer of the Yang God realm could gather and control all timelines.

Now he understood even more: beyond merely controlling time, a Dao Lord could wield absolute dominion over their Dao.

For example, if an Immortal cultivator ascended to the Fifth Layer of the Yang God realm, they would become the sole Dao Lord of Immortal cultivation—the Immortal Dao Lord.

This meant there would never be a second Fifth Layer Yang God in Immortal cultivation.

Every Immortal cultivator in existence would live and die by their will.

They would become both the origin and the endpoint of the Immortal Dao.

At this moment, Qi Yuan suddenly recalled how the future of the Immortal Realm had been severed.

Could it be that a cultivator had glimpsed this potential future and used their power to cut off the Immortal Realm’s destiny?

The Immortal Realm was vast, likely as expansive as the universe itself.

For someone to sever its future with a single blow, they would have to be at least at the peak of the Creation stage.

<hr>

“Offending the Radiant Society is one thing, but don’t provoke the Radiant Dao Lord.

Then again… you probably won’t even get the chance to offend the Radiant Dao Lord,” the Thorned Blood staff member added with a smug grin.

His tone suggested he thought Qi Yuan was like a country bumpkin, marveling at the vastness of the heavens.

But soon, he felt a twinge of disappointment.

For those who hadn’t stepped into the Yang God realm, the Radiant Dao Lord was like the moon in the sky—visible but utterly untouchable.

Even for those who had entered the Yang God realm, the Dao Lord was like the heavens themselves—unreachable and insurmountable.

“I have a question. If the Third Layer of the Yang God realm corresponds to Realm Masters, and the Fifth Layer corresponds to Dao Lords, what about the Fourth Layer?” Qi Yuan asked out of curiosity.

The Radiant Dao Lord was indeed strong, far beyond the Taihuang Palace Sovereign. But so what?

As long as it had a health bar, Qi Yuan could grind it down bit by bit!

“That...” The Thorned Blood staff member was momentarily stunned, not expecting such a question.

“The Fourth Layer of the Yang God realm is a taboo. Even in the Zhou Universe, very few people know what kind of existence occupies that level.

According to ancient texts, even most Third Layer Yang Gods know nothing about the Fourth Layer.

Only peak-level powerhouses like the Void Realm Master or Fifth Layer beings like the Radiant Dao Lord have any real knowledge of it.”

“The Fourth Layer is that mysterious?” Qi Yuan’s curiosity grew.

It was strange that the Fifth Layer was so well-known, yet the Fourth Layer remained an enigma.

“Some great beings have said that the Fourth Layer of the Yang God realm is unspeakable, indescribable, and imperceptible. To even attempt to describe it invites great disaster.”

“Thank you, guide.” Qi Yuan said sincerely.

Not only had he learned more about the game’s lore, but he now had a clearer picture of the cultivation hierarchy.

<hr>

Qi Yuan’s thoughts swirled.

“If there was a Dao Lord for the Immortal Dao, wouldn’t a mere yawn from them be enough to kill me?”

“No, wait. Am I even cultivating the Immortal Dao?”

“Hmm, maybe I’m cultivating Schrödinger’s Dao!”

If there’s a Dao Lord, I’m cultivating pseudo-Immortal techniques.

If there isn’t a Dao Lord, I’m cultivating the true Immortal Dao and aiming to become the Dao Lord myself!

“What am I doing, a mere Purple Mansion cultivator, a Divine-tier Weapon Master, thinking about such things?”

“For now, let’s focus on slaughtering this little Rosha Kingdom who fancies himself as my ‘White Moonlight’!”

Hearing about the Dao Lord only made Qi Yuan more convinced that the Divine-tier Weapon Masters of the Rosha Kingdom were insignificant pests.

Even Divine Descent’s revival would probably seem laughable in the eyes of a Dao Lord.

None of it would matter!

Yet Qi Yuan remained steadfast.

As an actor, one must maintain professional ethics.

<hr>

Royal Capital.

In the great hall, Prince Zhenyuan stood like a mountain, unmoving. But his expression was tense.

“The Blade Demon is dead. Killed with a single strike!”

The news left him both terrified and relieved.

Thank goodness he hadn’t been curious enough to investigate Divine Descent’s alleged revival in Linhai City.

Otherwise, he would already be dead.

Four people were gathered in the hall, all of them Divine-tier Weapon Masters. None looked at ease.

“The Blade Demon was killed with one blow. It seems... He has returned,” an old man said in a hoarse voice.

His face was pale—paler than most corpses after ten days.

“He’s revived, and… nearly at full strength!” another Divine-tier Weapon Master said gravely.

He was beginning to feel an urge to flee.

But he knew that leaving now would mean certain death. Staying with the others at least provided the illusion of safety.

“Even if we join forces, we might not be his match,” Prince Zhenyuan said anxiously. “He was shattered into pieces—how could he have revived?”

His fear was genuine.

After all, if Divine Descent had been slightly more ruthless in the past, Zhenyuan would have been dead long ago.

Looking back, he marveled at his own audacity for staying in Dingbo Prefecture as long as he had.

“This isn’t the time to debate how he revived. We need to figure out... how to stop him!

If we can’t kill him, we’re all doomed.

The everlasting legacy we’ve built will be destroyed by his hands!” the pale-faced old man said bitterly.

Just then, a commanding voice echoed from behind a beaded curtain.

“A hundred years ago, I missed the chance to face him. It remains one of my greatest regrets.

This time, I shall personally slay him!”

The Divine-tier Weapon Masters exchanged uneasy glances.

The emperor... planned to take action personally?

<hr>

Where did he get this confidence?

These people knew the emperor better than anyone. A century ago, he hadn’t even dared to spectate Divine Descent’s battle, fearing he might be caught in the crossfire.

Even now, though his strength had grown—people even said he was nearly as strong as Divine Descent in his prime—his timid and paranoid nature was well-known.

How could he dare challenge Divine Descent now?

After all, this was Divine Descent!

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