Refining the Mountains and Rivers

After personally refining a jade embryo egg, Qin Yu could be said to be the one who understood its form of being and inherent energy the most in all of existence.

In their original state, jade embryo eggs were formed from the fragments of undying wills that came from countless powerhouses that had ever perished. It tore through the shackles of rules to condense, and was an existence beyond the world.

Their defensive capabilities were strong beyond imagination. And once threatened, they could escape into the void between worlds. It was almost impossible for them to be destroyed by an external strength.

Intuition told Qin Yu…that this fragment in front of him was initially part of a certain jade embryo egg that had been fused with by someone else. And after that person had been killed this fragment had been broken off and almost destroyed.

With just this thought, a cold chill swept over his body and fear drilled out from the depths of his heart. It was like an invisible hand had caught his throat, making it difficult to breathe.

Although Qin Yu remained hard-working and diligent just like he was before, only he knew how the confidence and ambition buried deep in his heart had been activated after he refined the jade embryo egg.

After experiencing the power and might of the jade embryo egg, he also began to firmly believe that he would one day be able to climb to the peak of cultivation.

But now, this confidence had been dowsed by a bucketful of cold water and most of it had been directly extinguished. It turned out that even if one had a heaven-defying good fortune and managed to peer into the essence of the Great Dao, almost having a paved path to the highest heavens, one could still be destroyed halfway.

This broken jade embryo egg fragment in front of him was the best evidence of that.

As Qin Yu's heart was fluctuating with waves, the recently arrived God Mark Holy Stone also seemed to sense a similar aura from his body.

Hum -

Only Qin Yu could hear its silent roars. Then, some images appeared in Qin Yu's mind.

In the vast void, billions of stars shined. A giant that seemed to support the heavens and earth reared back its head and roared.

This was a true giant, so large that even the stars in front of it seemed like ants.

As it roared, a terrifying aura spread outwards. A star that approached the giant fiercely shook and collapsed into pieces.

At this time, five great hands spanned across the void. They fell onto the giant's head and four limbs. It wildly struggled but couldn't free itself.

An even greater strength gushed out like a tsunami, destroying every star in sight. It caused this part of the galaxy to be directly erased.

After fighting for a long time, the giant howled in unwillingness. Then, its massive body was torn into shreds by the five hands.

Blood splashed down like falling seas, instantly soaking the heavens red. This part of the world turned even darker, like the opening maw of a great beast.

Each holding a part of the giant's body, the five hands tore away and vanished into the boundless stars. Only the smell of blood continued to diffuse outwards, as well as some bodily fragments that tumbled out in all directions.

As the scene came to an end, Qin Yu's eyes flew open. His face turned pale white and his robes were drenched in a cold sweat.

He believed that the images which popped up in his mind were something that happened in this world in ancient times.

Someone similar to him, who had fused with a jade embryo egg and had grown strong enough to shatter stars with a roar, had been slain by the joint effort of five mysterious existences. With their body divided into five pieces, their soul had likely been split apart, without any chance of living left.

So, the pieces of fragmented flesh and blood had condensed into this jade embryo egg fragment in front of him.

Horror drowned out his mind. At this time, all he could think about was that he needed to treat the existence of the jade embryo egg like the little blue lamp. He needed to bury it forever in his heart and not tell anyone of it!

Suddenly, warmth flowed up his palm. Lei Xiaoyu had taken hold of his hand and was looking up at him with a nervous expression, "Big Brother Qin, are you alright?"

Perhaps because of the warmth from her hand or the worry in her voice, Qin Yu suddenly calmed down and freed himself from the fear that gripped him.

He took a deep breath and said, "I'm fine." He paused and continued to say, "Xiaoyu, I have to go forward. If you follow me, I fear you will be targeted."

Lei Xiaoyu quickly said, "Big Brother Qin, I'm fine. This place is safe and I won't have any problems here alone."

Qin Yu nodded, not saying anything else. With a deep breath he moved ahead.

Before the God Mark Holy Stone arrived, the cultivators that had the qualifications to come this far had already completed the determining of their positions.

At this moment, the suddenly moving Qin Yu caused everyone's excitement to stagnate.

What was he doing?

Soon, countless eyes that stared at him widened with disbelief.

They watched on blankly as Qin Yu continued forward. He passed Miss Silent Kite and even passed by the side of the Li Family's Sword Maniac. Yet, he never stopped.

"Humph!" A young man that stood beside Silent Kite and Li Hongyi suddenly revealed a gloomy expression.

He had heard of Qin Yu's name but didn't actually witness the two fights inside and outside the Heavenly Center.

Or at the very least, even if he had seen it himself, Xiao Qi wouldn't have believed he was any weaker than Qin Yu!

In the end, the reason was because he had sufficient confidence in himself. Whether it was a God boundary powerhouse of the Heavenly Center or the Li Family's Sword Maniac, none of them could make him feel suppressed.

Xiao Qi wasn't being overly arrogant. Rather, it was because many years ago, he had been recognized by the imperial capital as the greatest powerhouse amongst the younger generation.

Over these years, almost a hundred God boundary cultivators had been defeated beneath his hand. And none of them had been weak.

Many people guessed that Xiao Qi had opened at least six paths to the God boundary. This was the reason he possessed such great strength, even though he hadn't stepped into the God boundary yet.

The reason he suppressed himself and refused to break through the World's Dragon Gate and step into the God boundary was because of his great ambitions. He wanted to wait for the God Mark Holy Stone to arrive and then open one more path to the God boundary. With this, his chances of becoming an Origin God would be that much higher!

That's right, many years ago, Xiao Qi had locked onto the Origin God realm as his goal. To him, the God boundary was merely a transitory phase.

And today was a very important time for Xiao Qi.

He didn't mind standing side by side with Li Hongyi and Silent Kite. Because as long as he stood at the front, he could obtain the greatest blessing from the holy stone.

But now, it was clear that Qin Yu wanted to surpass them and become the one at the front of the pack.

Xiao Qi couldn't accept this, nor would he accept this. He would not allow a problem to occur in the turning point he had been awaiting for the last several hundred years.

Li Hongyi had admitted defeat. While it had been Elder Tang Yi who had done it for her, this meant that she withdrew voluntarily. So, there was no reason for her to stop Qin Yu.

Silent Kite was known to have a calm demeanor and she rarely came into conflict with others. In addition to Li Hongyi's acquiescence, it made sense if she didn't do anything.

But him?

Xiao Qi swept his eyes around. Ding Hao had no expression. He stared at the bright and clean stones beneath his feet, as if he wanted to see his face in them.

As his enemy of many years, while he was temporarily in the lead, he knew more than others that Ding Hao's indulgent attitude and lifestyle he displayed were only because it was required of his cultivation method. He was absolutely his strongest rival.

This was true whether it was now or the future!

This Ding Hao was incomparably proud, and yet he tacitly agreed to let Qin Yu move ahead…this was the key point that Xiao Qi was concerned with.

Of the imperial capital's four great families, the Xiao Family commanded the Heavenly Punishment Division. As the recognized heir of the Xiao Family, Xiao Qi had the qualifications and authority to investigate whoever he wanted to.

So Xiao Qi knew that Ding Hao had already met with Qin Yu. In fact, both sides had an unknown meeting of some kind.

The reason was simple. No one was an idiot. They all saw the look in Lei Xiaoyu's eyes when she watched Qin Yu.

Xiao Qi drew in a deep breath and lightly glanced around. "You all might be willing to give in, but I must fight. After all, the one at the very front is the one who will receive the most attention from the holy stone."

As he spoke, he stepped forward.

The altar outside the Heavenly Center was where the God Mark Holy Stone would descend. Through the countless years that the God Mark Holy Stone had arrived, a thousand feet beyond the altar was the shortest recognized distance.

If one drew any closer, it was because they were too greedy or because they were disrespectful of the holy stone.

But today, whether it was Qin Yu in front or Xiao Qi just a bit behind, they soon stepped within a thousand feet.

Moreover, they hadn't yet stopped. Countless cultivators stared with wide eyes, their gazes shaking but also shining with awe.

Although they themselves had never approached the God Mark Holy Stone before, previous instances were clearly passed down in the records. Any cultivator who approached within a thousand feet would be suppressed by the God Mark Holy Stone.

This suppression was something that not even a God boundary cultivator could easily withstand…and the further one went the stronger it became. It increased at an astonishing rate.

Simply put, with every step one took, the pressure one suffered would almost double!

But now, whether it was Qin Yu or Xiao Qi, their steps were calm and steady, without any wavering.

Just how strong were these two people?

They already knew of Xiao Qi's strength. So, even more eyes gathered on Qin Yu's body.

According to what they knew from rumors, no matter how powerful he was, they could only verify his strength from the battle where he slayed a Heavenly Center God boundary cultivator. As for his battle with Li Hongyi, while people knew he was unfathomable, they had no idea how to measure it.

But today they would finally understand Qin Yu's 'true strength'!

Even facing Xiao Qi, the number one powerhouse of the Chu Empire's younger generation, he still wasn't falling behind!

No…he had taken the lead!

While Xiao Qi hadn't stopped, his speed had clearly fallen. His face was pale and beads of sweat appeared.

There was still 400 more feet until he reached the altar.

To come this far was already an unprecedented result since the God Mark Holy Stone started arriving. It was enough to prove how strong he was.

But what a pity, such a dazzling result was like a tiny star next to the bright moon in the skies. Although it was bright, it was destined to be completely covered and ignored.

Because Qin Yu was stronger than he was. Qin Yu continued to move forward, as calm and unaffected as he was at the start.

At this time, countless people groaned inwardly. Where did this monster come from?

350 feet away from the altar, Xiao Qi's legs shook and he stopped. His shock and rage-filled eyes went blank for a moment before transforming into unwillingness.

He had reached his limit, but Qin Yu was still going forward. Although he was only a few steps behind, in Xiao Qi's mind this was an unsurpassable moat.

A moat he might never be able to overcome for the rest of his life!