At this point of emotion, even this Immortal King who had endured myriad ages of reincarnation could not help but have a slight choke in his voice.
Behind him, the True Dragon King, the Immortal Monk King, and the others also rose as one and bowed solemnly to Lu Xuan.
This bow represented the gratitude of all the surviving beings of the entire Primordial Ancient Realm!
Lu Xuan accepted the salute calmly before giving a slight supporting gesture.
“Fellow Daoists, your words are too serious. The Immortal Domain and the ancient realm are as dependent on one another as lips and teeth. The darkness of the Foreign Realm is the common enemy of you and me alike. What I have done was merely within my duty; how could I dare accept such a grand salute?”
His manner was gentle, without any arrogance or presumption of merit, causing the people of the ancient realm to feel even greater goodwill toward him.
“Fellow Daoist’s righteousness is lofty. We shall remember it in our hearts.”
The Six Paths of Reincarnation Immortal King straightened and signaled to his attendants.
A True Immortal of the ancient realm presented a jade treasure box that appeared plain and unadorned.
“The ancient realm has just suffered a great calamity. Everything awaits rebuilding, and resources are scarce. We have nothing with which to repay you. This is but a small token of our realm’s sincerity, a modest expression of gratitude. We hope Fellow Daoist will not refuse.”
The treasure box opened, and in an instant, precious light shot into the heavens, Dao resonance spreading everywhere!
Inside the box lay three items:
A section of remnant wood that faintly exuded endless vitality and the aura of reincarnation—the core branch of the Reincarnation Immortal King’s true body!
This object contained the origin of reincarnation. It was a priceless treasure, possessing wondrous effects for comprehending life, death, and reincarnation. For the Six Paths of Reincarnation Immortal King to take out such an item came at an enormous cost.
A fist-sized dragon pearl flowing with nine-colored rosy light—one of the True Dragon King’s natal dragon pearls!
It contained the purest origin of the True Dragon race and vast blood vitality, a supreme treasure for tempering the body and replenishing life essence.
A string of prayer beads formed from one hundred and eight śarīra relics—the Immortal Monk King had condensed it from the Buddhist bones of his own golden body and the merit of his entire life!
It possessed supreme wondrous uses: calming the mind, concentrating the spirit, warding off evil, suppressing demons, and amplifying Buddhist Dharma.
None of these three gifts was anything less than an origin object intimately connected to the three Immortal Kings themselves. They were incomparably precious, and could be called the weightiest gifts of thanks the ancient realm could offer. Their sincerity was evident!
Even Lu Xuan, upon seeing these three gifts, had a trace of emotion flash through his eyes.
He understood that these were not merely gifts, but a bond of goodwill forged by the Primordial Ancient Realm.
He did not hypocritically refuse. Solemnly, he accepted the treasure box. “Such generous gifts from the three Fellow Daoists—Lu accepts them with shame. This favor, the Golden Crow Clan will remember.”
Seeing Lu Xuan accept the gifts, the people of the ancient realm all let out a breath of relief, smiles appearing on their faces.
This karmic bond had finally been smoothly established.
Afterward, the atmosphere between the two sides became even more harmonious. They tasted tea and discussed the Dao, exchanging cultivation insights and their views regarding the Foreign Realm and the Realm Sea.
Lu Xuan’s unique understanding of the Great Dao, especially his comprehension of chaos and the sun, benefited the Six Paths of Reincarnation Immortal King and the others greatly, leaving them full of admiration.
At the time of parting, Lu Xuan also returned gifts—three clusters of pure Solar Gold Essence containing his own solar origin and a trace of chaotic intent, which would be greatly beneficial in repairing the Dao injuries of the three.
The ancient realm’s delegation departed in full satisfaction, carrying the Golden Crow Clan’s friendship and return gifts with them.
This visit across realms not only completely dissolved the slight estrangement caused by certain forces of the Immortal Domain having looked on coldly before, it also greatly deepened the connection between the Immortal Domain and the Primordial Ancient Realm.
After seeing off the ancient realm’s delegation, Lu Xuan looked at the section of reincarnation remnant wood, the nine-colored dragon pearl, and the śarīra prayer beads, his gaze deep.
“An age of chaos is coming. One more friend means one more portion of strength. The Primordial Ancient Realm… its foundations still remain. Its future is worth anticipating.”
With a wave of his hand, he put away the three treasures. Perhaps they were not of the greatest use to him personally, but for certain elders in the clan who walked corresponding paths.
Or perhaps, in certain situations he might encounter in the future, they could play a key role.
After this matter, the Golden Crow Clan’s reputation and connections throughout the myriad heavens and realms rose to another level.
And Lu Xuan’s gaze had once again turned toward the Chaos Bell within his body.
The Foreign Realm, that ancient land, was now permeated by an atmosphere even more stifling than dark matter.
In the deepest part of the ultimate hall—the Dark Divine Temple—several figures emanating heaven-overturning auras sat around a mass of eternally burning dark source fire.
The atmosphere was so heavy it seemed almost tangible.
The Scarlet King and Wushang, who had once confronted Lu Xuan on the main battlefield, were impressively among them.
But both their auras were somewhat unstable. Clearly, forcibly shaking off the Immortal Domain’s pursuit and stabilizing the routed army had consumed no small amount of their strength. Their faces were so gloomy they seemed capable of dripping water.
What drew even more attention, however, was Kundi, who sat opposite them.
This one, among the most ancient of giants, was currently in an extremely terrible state.
The chaotic mist that had originally shrouded his entire body had thinned considerably, revealing beneath it a face covered in ancient wrinkles, yet utterly bloodless.
His chest heaved violently, his aura like a candle flame in the wind, not much better than the Six Paths of Reincarnation Immortal King. The Kunwood Staff that had accompanied him through endless years was even more broken and ruined, leaving only half a charred remnant tightly gripped in his hand, as though he were clutching his final shred of dignity.
The price of burning more than half his origin to execute the blood escape had far surpassed imagination.
Aside from the three of them, there were two other vague yet powerful figures in the hall.
One had the phantom of a blood-colored long river flowing around him; he was the Blood Fiend King, who governed slaughter.
The other was hidden within shadows filled with the wailing of countless vengeful souls; he was the Soul Lord, who controlled curses and souls.
As for the Pu Demon King, his injuries were too severe, forcing him into seclusion.
These two had not taken action in this great battle, but had instead remained behind in the Foreign Realm.
They were there to guard against threats from the Burial Grounds. Although for several epochs, those ancient existences of the Burial Grounds had made no move at all.
It was still better to remain cautious!
These five were the five mightiest giants currently on the surface of the Foreign Realm, jointly wielding the authority and deciding the direction of the Foreign Realm.
Now, all major affairs were discussed and decided together by the five giants.
“We failed.”
The Scarlet King’s voice was the first to break the dead silence.
It carried rage that was difficult to suppress. “On the Immortal Domain’s main battlefield, the Blade King was defeated and fled, his life or death unknown. The great army was routed, and seven Immortal Kings were lost!”
Wushang continued, his voice like metal scraping, even colder.
“As for the Primordial Ancient Realm, the Pu Demon King and Fellow Daoist Kundi were grievously injured. Five Immortal Kings were lost. The great army… not one in ten survived.”
Although they had already received the battle reports, when these two pieces of news were confirmed once more, the long river phantom around the Blood Fiend King churned violently, while even more miserable wails came from the shadows where the Soul Lord dwelled.
“The Pu Demon King was severely injured?” The Blood Fiend King’s voice carried a hoarseness of disbelief. Although his path differed from that of the Pu Demon King, both were giants of conquest. Hearing that even the Pu Demon King, who could devour everything, had been heavily wounded, he still could not help speaking.
“Cough, cough…”
Kundi coughed violently, dark golden blood spilling from the corner of his mouth, his voice filled with hatred.
“Wuzhong… the Ancestral Sacrificial Spirit… and that Golden Crow brat who suddenly appeared! If not for him passing on information, the Ancestral Sacrificial Spirit would never have arrived so promptly! This old man… cough, cough… would not have been forced to burn his origin!”
He attributed the cause of their defeat largely to Lu Xuan’s transmission of information, and that was indeed the most crucial turning point.