The Modern Martial Immortal

”So you want to renegotiate the agreement that Golden Core cultivators must not interfere in the affairs of the Great Cangwu World?” Yaoguang turned his gaze toward Johan, a faint smile on his lips.

Johan, Janko, Lu Xi, Mi Le, and the other Golden Core cultivators all looked rather grim. Yet their expressions were filled with incomparable solemnity.

”Sure. Let’s sign a new one. We’ll return to the Great Cangwu World first, but...” Yaoguang paused. ”I’m only a Crimson Golden Core cultivator, though. If you want to restrict me, then shouldn’t other powerhouses at the Crimson Golden Core Realm also be restricted?”

”You may be a Crimson Golden Core, but—” Lu Xi started to say something.

However, Yaoguang seemed to recall something and added, ”My Golden Core is only an outer core. Strictly speaking, it doesn’t even count as a true Crimson Golden Core. So not only should other Crimson Golden Core cultivators be restricted, but the powers of star gods and divine beasts should also be restricted and included in this agreement. Otherwise, it will be hard for me not to suspect that you are deliberately targeting me alone.”

These words caused the hearts of the Golden Core cultivators of both great immortal sects to sink.

But after recalling the strength Yaoguang had displayed in the last battle, they knew that, no matter what, they had to bring him into this agreement. Otherwise, with someone like him—someone almost able to flip the board itself—the chess game that was the Great Cangwu World would soon become unplayable.

”Then let’s convene a Great Cangwu Meeting. Let all member factions attend and jointly discuss this new agreement,” Johan said with remarkable firmness.

”Sure,” Yaoguang answered calmly. ”But do it quickly. I plan to accelerate my cultivation next and complete the forging of my third-tier star god body as soon as possible.”

The moment he said this, Johan, Lu Xi, and the others started feeling even more apprehensive.

After discussing things briefly, the four factions soon went their separate ways.

Yaoguang and Li Hanqiu departed with their group. The Thousand-Beast Sect also left with its own group. Meanwhile, Mi Le, Janko, and the others traveled together with Lu Xi, Johan, and the rest.

Soon, they reunited with Feng Ao and Lin Deng. One of the two Dharma Form cultivators had been on full alert all along, while the other had created a small-scale Void Psychic World. Within it, more than a dozen Golden Core cultivators from the Infinite Star Palace and the Immortal Alliance had already gathered.

The moment they could communicate with them through psychic consciousness, they immediately began questioning them. ”What exactly happened!? How could the two of you joining forces possibly lose?!”

”Did I see it wrong? Were our perceptions obscured by the Nine Cauldrons Sect’s Dharma Form cultivator?! Or was Yaoguang really that strong, and able to defeat the two of you by himself?!”

”This makes no sense. We’re all Radiant Sun Golden Core cultivators! We have all taken the same unconventional path! So how could Yaoguang possibly have abilities like that? Did he truly obtain a complete inheritance from the North Sea Star and cultivate it successfully?”

One expert after another activated their psychic consciousness.

Though they had not been present on the battlefield, they had still used various methods to watch what had happened on Planet No. 6713. Disbelief could be perceived from any one of them.

The result of this battle completely overturned everything they had believed for decades.

It would not have been an exaggeration to say it had rewritten the history of the Great Cangwu World in recent years.

Faced with everyone’s repeated questions, Mi Le and Janko, though unwilling to dwell on the matter, had no choice but to face reality.

After exchanging a look, Mi Le spoke first. ”I am ninety percent certain that Yaoguang truly obtained the complete inheritance of the North Sea Star. Otherwise, there is no way to explain how he was able to cultivate all three paths at the same time and raise all three to this level!”

Janko followed with his own explanation. ”Yaoguang’s strength itself isn’t overwhelming, although it isn’t weak either. His physique can sustain repeated bursts of power, and his psychic thought allows him to precisely control his power. Thanks to that, he can barely contend against Radiant Sun Golden Core cultivators like us. But our Golden Cores are too unstable. Once a battle drags on, if the state of our Golden Cores deteriorates any further, there’s no way for us to secure victory, and we’re bound to be defeated and perhaps die. Yaoguang developed a secret art specifically to exploit this, directly targeting the stability of our Golden Cores... That’s how we were instantly driven into a passive position.”

These words made the Golden Core cultivators present exchange looks.

Mi Le also agreed with this assessment. ”Janko is right. Unless one of us completely disregards the condition of our Golden Core and goes all out from the very beginning, deciding to die together with Yaoguang... we cannot beat him! Even three people attacking together would make no real difference against him. He only needs to fight defensively and drag things out until our Golden Cores spiral out of control!”

”Going all out from the start... Can we kill him that way?” one of the Golden Core cultivators asked.

Mi Le fell silent for a moment. Only after a long pause did he answer, ”If he senses our intent to fight to the death and immediately turns to flee... I cannot guarantee it.”

The moment those words came out, everyone at the gathering froze.

What did Mi Le’s statement mean?! It meant that even if one of them truly decided to go all out and die together with Yaoguang, they couldn’t be sure they would be able to drag him down with them!

Yaoguang had the ability to kill them, yet—even if they exhausted themselves completely—they might still fail to kill him in return.

That changed the nature of things completely!

”How is that possible...”

”Damn it, just how exactly did Yaoguang cultivate!? How did the Nine Cauldrons Sect produce such a monster?!”

”This has nothing to do with how he cultivated. It’s only because he happened to obtain that inheritance from the North Sea Star before us!”

All these Golden Core cultivators felt the tremendous pressure from Yaoguang’s existence. It was a pressure so great that it felt like it would break the original balance of the Great Cangwu World.

”We should jointly demand that he reveal the North Sea Star’s cultivation arts! These arts should benefit all cultivators, not belong to him alone!” one of the Golden Core cultivators from the Immortal Alliance said.

”Exactly. The reason he obtained the cultivation arts of North Sea Star must be because some senior passed them down ahead of time, yet he monopolized them for himself. That kind of conduct is truly shameless!” a Golden Core cultivator from the Infinite Star Palace added.

Johan, Lu Xi, Janko, Mi Le, and the others frowned at these remarks.

Janko, who had just lost all his spirit treasures and was already in a foul mood, could not help but shoot back, ”And if he refuses to hand over those cultivation arts? Who among us is going to force him to surrender them? You?”

That single sentence completely choked off the two Golden Core cultivators from the Infinite Star Palace and the Immortal Alliance.

What a joke. Mi Le had already said that even if they attacked with everything they had from the very start, prepared for mutual destruction, they might still not be able to kill him. Under those circumstances, whoever went first would be the first to die.

And that was not even the most terrifying part. The most terrifying part was that if they failed to kill Yaoguang the first time, all he had to do was hide and wait until these Golden Core cultivators were alone before striking in secret...

Every Golden Core cultivator would be constantly fearing for their life, unable to know peace day or night. After all, Yaoguang was also a peak Dharma Form cultivator. If he decided to conceal himself and strike from the shadows, it would be far too easy.

”He must be brought into the agreement. The treaty forbidding interference in the Great Cangwu World must be renegotiated and signed by everyone!” Johan once again emphasized how seriously Yaoguang affected the situation of the Great Cangwu World.

This time, no one voiced any objection.

”Right. If he doesn’t follow the rules, the destruction he could bring to the Great Cangwu World would be far too great.”

”He said that Crimson Golden Core cultivators, star gods, and divine beasts must also be included. Then we’ll do as he said.”

”Yaoguang cannot be treated like an ordinary Radiant Sun Golden Core cultivator... No matter how seriously we take him, it won’t be enough.”

One Golden Core cultivator after another agreed.

They quickly reached a consensus to persuade the factions that possessed Crimson Golden Core cultivators, star gods, and divine beasts, ensuring they first secured the moral high ground.

As long as they were standing on the righteous and legitimate side, even if they could not deal with Yaoguang, he would not dare act recklessly.

After all, in another twenty years at most, the powerhouses that had gone to the North Sea Star would return. That would be the moment everything would be settled.

***

In contrast to the heavy mood among the Golden Core cultivators of the Immortal Alliance and Infinite Star Palace, Li Hanqiu’s face was full of smiles.

”Yaoguang, you’ve truly exceeded my expectations. I thought your limit would be holding off two Radiant Sun Golden Core cultivators, but not only did you defeat them, but you also did it with such ease... Impressive! Truly impressive!” As Li Hanqiu laughed, it felt like a great weight had been lifted off him. He had never been so relaxed in his life.

”The Golden Core path in the Great Cangwu World has been pushed too far to the extreme. I know that the situation back then forced it... The Great Cangwu World might otherwise have faced defeat and destruction. But those constraints have made our Golden Core cultivators too passive when facing orthodox cultivators. I simply targeted that weakness to intimidate the two of them and prevent them from acting rashly,” Yaoguang said.

”A win is a win!” Li Hanqiu laughed. ”After this battle, our Nine Cauldrons Sect has a completely new reputation. From now on, nobody will dare rely on the number of Golden Core cultivators, star gods, and divine beasts they have to bully us. Of course, they will definitely try to put some restrictions on you. After all, you’ve already surpassed those Golden Core cultivators by half a level. They are very wary of you.”

Yaoguang nodded. ”These Golden Core cultivators all have the ability to destroy the Great Cangwu World. Once things reach the point of a full-scale war, there will be no winners. So it is necessary to keep the intensity of conflict within certain limits. And once Radiant Sun Golden Core cultivators, Crimson Golden Core cultivators, star gods, and divine beasts are no longer allowed to interfere in the Great Cangwu World, I believe that with the strength of our Nine Cauldrons Sect, defeating all competitors and unifying the Great Cangwu World within the next twenty years is something that we’ll easily manage.”

”Exactly.” Li Hanqiu smiled broadly. ”We do not fear conventional forces. And we do not fear Golden Core cultivators, star gods, or divine beasts either.”

He looked at Yaoguang. ”The Primordial Creation Art cultivates essence, qi, and psyche together. Over the years, both my physique and primordial psyche have grown. Now that I’ve refined the Gathering-Separation Ring you created, the stability of my Golden Core has improved significantly. Give me another year or two to fully stabilize it, and holding off three or even five Golden Core cultivators won’t be too difficult for me.”

”Oh? That would be great.” Yaoguang replied.

If Li Hanqiu could also restrain up to five Golden Core cultivators, then the Nine Cauldrons Sect would truly stand at the peak of the Great Cangwu World in terms of high-level combat strength.

Suddenly, Li Hanqiu seemed to receive some news, a hint of surprise flashing across his face. He turned to Yaoguang. ”Ye Lisha of the Thousand-Beast Sect, along with several Golden Core cultivators, wishes to speak with us.”

Hearing this, Yaoguang quickly guessed what they wanted to discuss. He smiled faintly. ”Then let’s talk. With only a little more than a decade left, it’s time for the situation in the Great Cangwu World to become clear.”