Renewal slowly raised his head toward the heavens.
His breathing gradually steadied, and a faint smile appeared on his face. For several moments, he remained silent, his eyes unnaturally calm.
"My descendant…"
His smile deepened.
"Future Overlord possesses the Dragon Physique. Among all physiques, his is undoubtedly one of the strongest. Very few can compare with him."
Renewal's eyes narrowed.
"All he needs now is a Sovereign Path Immortal. Once he obtains one, killing a Peak Artist at Stage Two shouldn't be difficult."
He paused.
"Even if he returns to the Peak Artist realm, his foundation is already terrifyingly strong. What he truly lacks is mastery over his Dragon Path."
A quiet laugh escaped him.
"Ahaha… But the other immortals I sent into the mountain haven't returned for several days."
His expression grew serious.
"What happened to them?"
Renewal's smile faded.
"Hmm…"
His fingers tapped lightly against his arm.
"This is troublesome. Extremely troublesome."
A trace of irritation entered his voice.
"Yet it seems they still haven't realized the danger they're in."
His eyes narrowed.
"There is another prophecy."
The words lingered in the air.
"If that tremor occurs while I'm still within the mountain, the consequences will be disastrous."
According to Seer Immortal's prophecy, a mysterious mountain within Region Continent would eventually trigger a tremendous tremor.
That tremor would bring destruction upon Region Continent.
More importantly, it would create a path through which people could awaken their ranks.
Renewal's smile returned.
"When that happens, I'll bring Future Overlord with me."
His eyes gleamed with anticipation.
"We'll obtain the Sovereign Path… along with all the artifacts hidden within it."
His voice carried a hint of amusement.
"It shouldn't be difficult."
Renewal slowly rose to his feet.
Below him, the immortals suddenly froze.
Their remaining lifespans began flowing from their bodies, condensing into Soul Spirit Cores. Their bodies weakened, and one after another, they collapsed.
Their limbs went numb.
Their breathing faded.
Then silence descended.
Renewal knelt down without a trace of pity.
THUD!
He summoned [Blood Sucker].
The weapon appeared in his grasp. He raised it slowly before bringing the blade down.
SLASH!
Blood spilled.
Only one truth mattered to him.
He needed blood to survive.
...
Far from Renewal's location, an endless sea stretched beyond the horizon. Yet across Region Continent, the world seemed to be moving beneath the shadow of even greater events.
Wave after wave rose into the heavens before crashing against one another. Some collapsed beneath their own weight, while others were dragged back into the depths.
Yet something was wrong.
There was no marine life.
Not a single creature moved beneath the surface. The entire sea seemed to have been abandoned by life itself.
Instead, enormous ships dominated the ocean.
Each vessel carried countless people upon its decks. Stretching for kilometres, they resembled floating cities more than ordinary ships.
They moved alongside the waves. The sea crashed against their hulls, yet they continued forward without slowing.
Suddenly—
The ships rose from the surface.
A tremendous amount of Soul Energy erupted from their rear sections.
BAAAM!
The vessels accelerated, shooting across the sea like enormous beasts breaking through the waves.
One ship.
Then another.
Then another.
Soon, twenty-four additional ships had joined the formation.
The massive fleet rose into the sky.
Twenty-five enormous ships moved together in perfect formation, with countless cultivators standing upon each deck.
Every cultivator wore a beautiful white tunic with wide sleeves. A flower was embroidered upon each chest, though the flowers differed from one another.
The number of petals represented the status of the force to which the cultivator belonged.
The lowest-ranked force remained at the rear of the formation. It possessed the greatest number of cultivators, most of whom had reached only Sage Artist Stage One.
Even so, its ships were enormous.
The ships belonging to Forces Nine, Eight, Seven, Six, Five, and Four were similarly constructed. Each possessed impressive vessels and carried sufficient resources, food, and supplies.
At the front of every force stood its captain, with the captain's right-hand man behind him.
These individuals managed their respective forces, ensuring that their members trained diligently, fulfilled their duties, obeyed orders, and maintained discipline. They were also among the strongest cultivators within their forces.
The weight of an entire force rested upon their shoulders.
Forces Three and Two were different.
Their positions were far more important. Their leaders were directly connected to the First Force, serving as its right- and left-hand men.
Among them stood Wei Ton, captain of the Second Force.
Beside him stood his right-hand man, Mo Qing.
Mo Qing gazed coldly into the distance.
Wei Ton glanced at him, and the two exchanged a brief nod.
Behind them stood the members of the Second Force. Their white uniforms were immaculate, and the flowers embroidered upon their chests possessed more petals than those of the lower-ranked forces.
The fleet continued forward, but Wei Ton's attention had already shifted beyond the forces surrounding him.
Suddenly, his gaze moved to the side.
His expression darkened.
The Third Force had arrived.
Its captain deliberately moved his ship ahead of the Second Force before turning toward Wei Ton.
He winked, raised his hand, and waved mockingly.
His expression seemed to say:
You see me?
I deserve to be in the Second Force.
Unlike you, fraud!
"Ahahaha!"
His laughter carried across the distance.
"People might start thinking your reputation was nothing more than a lie!"
He raised his arms dramatically.
"Ahhh… Look at me! I am such a destructive existence, yet everyone is looking up at me!"
Wei Ton didn't respond.
He turned away, clasping his hands behind his back as he gave a cold snort.
He had no interest in entertaining an attention seeker.
The Third Force's provocation meant nothing to him. Compared to the destination ahead, such childish competition was insignificant.
His mind held only one objective.
The First Force.
His eyes shifted toward the enormous construction ship belonging to the First Force.
That was where he truly wanted to go.
Joining the First Force was extraordinarily difficult. It wasn't simply a matter of strength. There were requirements to meet, accomplishments to achieve, sacrifices to make, and principles to understand before one could be accepted.
Wei Ton didn't care if Wei Long's force surpassed his own.
That was irrelevant.
What mattered was reaching the First Force.
If only I were strong enough…
His fists tightened.
If only I belonged among the Ten Geniuses…
The thought drew his attention toward the distance, toward the figures whose names stood above his own. As the fleet advanced through the sky, Wei Ton began measuring the distance between himself and those unreachable heights.
He slowly raised his head.
"I am twenty-seven years old."
His voice was quiet.
"Yet I'm already one of the youngest people to reach this rank."
For ordinary cultivators, reaching Peak Artist could take decades.
"Ninety-nine percent of cultivators in the mortal world who eventually reach Peak Artist don't achieve it until their fifties."
"Most possess powerful backgrounds."
"A strong cultivator family."
"A powerful tribe."
"A prestigious clan."
"Or a great sect."
Wei Ton's expression grew complicated.
"And yet I'm among the one percent who reached this realm at such a young age."
His eyes hardened.
"Especially after reaching Rank Three."
He should have been proud.
By ordinary standards, he was a monster.
But Wei Ton wasn't satisfied.
The Ten Geniuses stood above him.
"I was born into a powerful family."
"I've already surpassed my ancestors."
"But the Ten Geniuses…"
Wei Ton clenched his fists.
"They belong to an entirely different world."
The Ten Geniuses were between sixteen and nineteen years old. Despite their youth, they had awakened their cultivation through their own power and possessed Heavenly Cores.
A Heavenly Core wasn't merely a measure of talent. It represented the stability and potential of one's Soul Energy.
Almost everyone possessed ordinary Soul Energy, but it carried inherent dangers. The higher one attempted to climb, the greater those dangers became.
If Wei Ton attempted to advance toward Peak Artist Stage Four, the method required could cost him a fatal injury—or even his life.
The Ten Geniuses were different.
They cultivated with an ease ordinary cultivators could only dream of, encountering far fewer obstacles. They possessed the potential to become the future pillars of their respective continents.
Magman was the perfect example.
Many regarded him as a fraud, and he had failed to kill Future Overlord despite Future Overlord not even being considered a true genius at the time. Yet Magman had still risen into the ranks of the Ten Geniuses.
He possessed an artifact capable of reviving him after several days. With it, he could even kill immortals.
Yet fate had placed him against Future Overlord.
That alone changed everything.
Why were some immortals stronger than Magman during the early stages?
The answer was simple.
They possessed stronger backgrounds, more artifacts, and greater resources.
Magman had none of those advantages.
Among the Ten Geniuses, he perhaps received the least support. No powerful sect had taken him under its wing. He belonged to the Nine Inheritance Tribe, which was already dealing with numerous problems.
Magman simply hadn't received the same preparation as the others.
If he had been taught within a powerful sect like the other Ten Geniuses, two weeks of proper instruction might have been enough to prepare him to confront other immortals.
Perhaps he could even have fought Future Overlord one-on-one.
Future Overlord possessed roughly five hundred years of experience, yet Magman might still have found a way to kill him.
That was the terrifying part.
Magman had received the fewest resources among the Ten Geniuses.
With the same resources as the others, he might have become one of the strongest among them.
But the other geniuses were extraordinary as well.
They belonged to another class entirely.
Among them, Tiensei Jin and Future Overlord were perhaps the strongest.
Mu Guiying couldn't truly be said to surpass them.
But he was their equal.
Mu Guiying was the second rising star of Empire Continent. Another rising star belonged to one of the strongest sects.
That person was Mu Guiying's distant cousin.
Immortal Continent possessed at least two newly emerging rising stars.
Wei Ton couldn't help but sigh.
I wish I could become like them.
Yet even that desire did not mark the limit of his ambition.
The Ten Geniuses weren't the highest point.
They were merely rising stars.
Above them existed an even greater world.
The World of the Peak.
A world inhabited by powerful, extraordinary, and seemingly unbeatable cultivators—people who had once been called rising stars themselves.
The First Force.
And those beneath its Supreme Elder.
Some of these figures were known as Sovereign Leaders, each commanding armies numbering in the thousands. Others were said to serve as the Supreme Elder's left- or right-hand men.
That was where Wei Ton wanted to stand.
Not among ordinary cultivators.
Not merely among the Ten Geniuses.
He wanted to reach the World of the Peak.
The fleet continued toward the First Force's ship, and the distance between them slowly narrowed.
Suddenly, Wei Ton lifted his head.
A smile appeared on his face, and his eyes burned with determination.
He whispered:
"Master Bo Zing…"
"This disciple will one day not only enter your class."
His smile widened.
"I will become the reason you break through to Peak Artist Stage Five."