Sage Monarch

Yang Qi was not in a very good mood at all.

Based on his mother's description, his birth father was as rapacious as a wolf and as savage as a cur, the type of person who would manipulate people for his own purposes, and then get rid of them as soon as they outlived their usefulness. He was a banished immortal who had viewed human beings as bugs to be toyed with at will.

Thanks to Yang Qi's understanding of the primeval infernal deities, he was aware of what the Profound Infernal Matriarch Body was. It was far beyond the Nascent Divinity Starlight Body or Seven Apertures Sprite Body, and if it was cultivated to completion, made immortal ascension an almost foregone conclusion.

Unfortunately, the essence of that physique had been stolen from his mother.

At that time, he had been in her belly, and had nearly died because of the situation. In other words, his birth father had nearly killed him.

Somehow, his mother had managed to escape with her life.

The fact that this was the story of his past had him very much out of sorts. However, he wanted to get to the bottom of the situation as much as his mother. Soon, he would go to the Titan Emperor Collegium, report in, and become a student there.

It was located in another heaven and earth, in the very middle of the starry sky, and was the educational establishment that oversaw the Yore-Wilds, Brute-Wilds, Waste-Wilds, and Proto-Wilds Continents.

However, there was much to do beforehand.

Months passed.

He had many discussions with his mother, who helped him to progress rapidly in his cultivation. She was a Demi-Immortal with plenty of experience, and knew much about the secrets of the past. She had secret magics, immortal skills, and countless energy arts. It was common to experience problems when practicing cultivation, but with her help, he unlocked many secrets of the Demi-Immortal level, and gained a much better understanding of cultivation in general.

He also learned that the Demi-Immortal level was divided into nine orders. They were: Lesser Demi-Immortal, Greater Demi-Immortal, Profound Demi-Immortal, Potent Demi-Immortal, Tyrant Demi-Immortal, Prime Demi-Immortal, Revered Demi-Immortal, Universal Demi-Immortal, and Paragon Demi-Immortal.

As would be expected, each level was far more powerful than the previous, and incredibly difficult to reach.

In the past, both the August Patriarch and the Holy Mother had been Tyrant Demi-Immortals. But the Holy Mother had recently become a Prime Demi-Immortal, much to the consternation of the August Patriarch. Now, he didn't dare to get into open conflict with her. If he did, it could result in the Mammothfolk as a whole being crippled or wiped out.

One day, the Holy Mother said, "Qi'er, I think I've told you everything I can. Your physique type surpasses my old Profound Infernal Matriarch Body significantly. Going forward, you'll have to rely on yourself alone when it comes to your cultivation. When you get to the Titan Emperor Collegium, pursue your studies, but at the same time, see if you can find out information about your father and his whereabouts. Your life is probably going to get even more complicated once you're there. The immortal world want the Four Wilds to be united again, and the Hanging Mountain is part of that. Unfortunately, in the grand scheme of things, we aren't very powerful. When the unification occurs, it will involve heaven-shaking, earth-toppling changes. In fact, I might even lose my position and end up serving someone else. The stronger you get in the Titan Emperor Collegium, the better we'll be equipped to deal with those things."

"I understand, Mother. Dangerous situations always rise up in the universe. The Hanging Mountain might seem powerful now, but things can always change. Perhaps the immortal world will send people down, or perhaps the Four Wilds will go to war with each other. Maybe another planetary system will invade and wipe everyone out. The only way to protect oneself and one's people is to get stronger.

"Yan Wubing said he got word that Chancellor Demi-Immortal disguised himself and entered the Titan Emperor Collegium to study. He's a deadly person, and he definitely has it out for my clan and the Sage Monarch Society. I need to find him and kill him, otherwise, he's going to cause problems."

Yang Qi was fully convinced of what he should do next. He had found his mother, and next he would find his birth father. And along the way, he would get stronger and stronger, and make sure to keep his friends and family safe. The Titan Emperor Collegium was the strongest organization in this starry sky, and if he rose to power there, then he would eventually be able to go to the immortal world.

"Qi'er, don't worry about the Rich-Lush Continent. I'll watch over it for you. No one will invade it as long as I'm on guard."

"I know. Besides, the continent is connected to my flesh and blood now. If something happened there, I would know, and would return immediately. Remember, Mother, I combined the Rich-Lush Continent with the Western Continent to create a new land, the Sage Monarch Continent. Eventually, it's going to become a planet, which is how I plan to reach the Demi-Immortal level."

The Holy Mother let out a long sigh. "Ai. Qi'er, in some ways it's a pity that you received a legacy from the mythological legion of gods. Your cultivation works different from normal, and I have no way to help you."

"It's fine, Mother. I understand that I have to rely on myself to advance my cultivation. There's no need for you to worry about it. I'll eventually earn myself a high rank in the Titan Emperor Collegium, and make sure that you end up as the ultimate ruler of the Hanging Mountain. I'll track down my birth father, and make sure that the grudge between the two of you is resolved once and for all. You know, as far as I'm concerned, I'll only ever have one father, and that's Yang Zhan. Hopefully you can take the time to go see him."

She thought for a moment, then said, "Very well. I'll go to the Rich-Lu- er, no, the Sage Monarch Continent to pay a visit. And I'll help him reach the Great Sage level too. Don't worry about any of that, Qi'er."

"Many thanks, Mother. I have a whole group of sworn brothers and sisters there who are top talents, and very loyal. Considering how closely they've stuck to me, they're worthy of help as well."

The Holy Mother nodded. "I'm aware that you took several sworn siblings, and that they stood with you against the Crown Prince. I'll send some people to guide them. By the time you come back from the Titan Emperor Collegium, they should all be Great Sages."

She wasn't exaggerating. Back in the Rich-Lush Continent, Great Sages had been veritable mythological beings. But in the Hanging Mountain they were just nobility. And the Holy Mother was a terrifying Prime Demi-Immortal. For her to help a group of people become Great Sages might not be a simple task, but it definitely wasn't an impossibility. And it was only natural for her to provide such help to people who were important to her. Furthermore, forgetting the God Legion Seal, she was far, far more powerful than Yang Qi. The God Legion Seal was something that even immortals would be terrified of, and therefore, it wasn't appropriate to count it as part of Yang Qi's actual level of power or fighting ability.

"Thanks for that, Mother. I feel a lot better now. I think the time has come for me to head to the Titan Emperor Collegium." He rose to his feet. "Farewell."

"Hold on a moment. There are plenty of people out there plotting to harm you. I think it would be best for me to personally escort you to the Titan Emperor Collegium. You attracted a lot of attention by winning the training competition, and on top of all that, you have the legacy of King Immortal-Slayer. By the way, Qi'er, do you have the actual medallion on you? It's a powerful item that will surely bring you no end of trouble. The successors of King Immortal-Slayer always die violent deaths. In fact, from the days of the ancient Yore-Wilds until now, no one has ever collected all of the medallion fragments. Whenever someone begins to collect them, they rise up in a blaze of glory, only to flame out and perish in the end."

"I don't actually have the legacy medallion," Yang Qi explained. "After I killed the Crown Prince, I was taking inventory of his belongings, and it flew away before I could get it. Based on my understanding, if someone who holds the medallion gets killed, it will instinctively go looking for another master. Besides, Mother, I don't really need some legacy from King Immortal-Slayer."

"True. According to the stories, King Immortal-Slayer conquered three thousand chiliocosm worlds, but because he blasphemed against the glory of the legion of gods, they killed him. Considering you have the God Legion Seal, you'll eventually surpass whatever level King Immortal-Slayer reached. Very well, why don't we head to the Titan Emperor Collegium now?"

"Mother, there's no need for you to put yourself out. I know that a lot of people out there want to kill me, but frankly, I'm not worried about it. People who get stronger without actually putting in the work of fighting always end up as trash. Besides, now that you know about the God Legion Seal, you know that anyone who really tries to kill me will end up dead. In fact, I'm actually curious to see who will dare to try to make a move on me."

"Ai. You're really growing up, Qi'er. Well, if you're sure about that, then I won't escort you. Go ahead. When you have time, send word back to the Hanging Mountain to let me know how you're doing."

"I will, Mother. Farewell." Yang Qi blurred into a string of after-images that disappeared into the void. Now that he was a Great Sage, the speeds he was capable of with his Angel Wings were astounding. In fact, he hadn't even used them in his fight with Mammoth Manyvoids, and had still won.

After Yang Qi left, Yan Wubing appeared and bowed deeply to the Holy Mother. "Holy Mother, the young master is really making a name for himself. I suspect that in the future, he will wield unimaginable power."

"Ai, you're right. That's the only reason I can rest at ease."

"Is something bothering you, Holy Mother? The young master has the God Legion Seal, which is like something from ancient myths. Even in the era of the Yore-Wilds, there were elder-immortals who had never even seen one. With that seal, I think the young master should be safe from any opponent. Could it be that you're worried about why he ended up acquiring such immense good fortune?"

"You have no idea how powerful that seal really is. There's definitely a reason it ended up on my son. War and fighting can sometimes be avoided in the mortal Hanging Mountain. But not in the immortal worlds. When the immortals in heaven fight, it is always deadly, and fatalities are common. Right now, it's impossible to say which member of the legion of gods is behind all of this. In any case, to the gods, our Hanging Mountain is like nothing. If the Hanging Mountain gets dragged into the affairs of such higher beings, it could end up being ground into dust. In fact, the Four Wilds and the Titan Emperor Heaven could meet the same fate. That God Legion Seal proves that my son is connected to some mighty entity from the legion of gods. Most likely, that individual is watching him even now. In fact, maybe the immortal planes are involved too. And they'll take action eventually. Keep on the lookout, Wubing. Before long, the immortal world is definitely going to send down a decree."

With that, the Holy Mother began to think, and mixed emotions played out on her face.

1. Quick note that the "universal" in Universal Demi-Immortal doesn't contain the normal characters for "universe". However, because of the play on words explanation that goes along with it, I think "universal" is the best choice. The two characters which make up this level are a real-life Daoist/qigong term that refers to a complete and never-ending cycle of internal energy. It has its own unique definition in the context of the novel, which will be explained later.