Sage Monarch

The young man in the fiery-red robe looked down at the crystallized primal-chaos in his palm and could just barely make out the image of a primal-chaos elder-snake inside.

'This is definitely from imperial snakecharms!' he thought. 'Why are they here in the Regal Event Heaven? Are they connected to me by destiny? Considering I already have a thousand of them, I definitely need to get more. When I do, who knows what incredible transformations they'll produce. All I do know is that after getting fifteen hundred, I'll be able to sense the presence of other talismans. Based on the aura of this primal-chaos paleo-energy, this is a collection of eight hundred. If I can get them, I'll have more of the talismans than anyone in all of history! I'll be the most powerful person in the Regal Event Heaven, able to crush all nine major sects under my heel and unite this immortal world under my leadership. Afterward, I can start devouring other immortal worlds and eventually become the new King Heaven-Devourer.'

He literally trembled with excitement, but then collected himself, causing a cold expression to overtake his face. 'As a fire dragon, I'm closely connected to primal-chaos elder-snakes. If I can actually change my substructure to that of an elder-snake, my cultivation base would reach a much higher level of enlightenment. And if I can get all three thousand of the talismans, I might have a chance to reach the Deathless Throne. This is my chance to become part of the legion of gods, and I have to seize that chance! So, where did the owner of these snakecharms go?'

He exhaled, and a thousand imperial snakecharms flew out and began spinning in front of him.

The wailing of ghosts and weeping of gods echoed out, and the sun and moon went dark as an enormous snake appeared. As the snake swirled through the air, it provided fleeting, flickering images that August Patriarch Fire Dragon examined closely.

Three days and nights passed before he was finally able to piece some of the clues together. 'So, someone has come to this immortal world to devour its essence. During the process, he sensed the elder-snake aura I possess and realized that he's no match for me. Thus, he fled. From what I can tell, he's only a Demolisher! Perfect! Considering he's only a measly Demolisher, what do I possibly have to worry about?'

August Patriarch Fire Dragon had been worried that he would be dealing with someone like himself, a Godmyth patriarch with imperial snakecharms. A fight with someone like that would have been a deadly affair, but now that he knew he was dealing with a Demolisher, he could rest at ease.

Chasing and killing someone like that would be a simple task.

Nor was he worried that the entire thing was a trap. The aura of the imperial snakecharms told him everything he needed to know about who held them. Besides, even if it was a trap, the fact that he was dealing with a Demolisher meant that it wouldn't be dangerous.

'You can wear out iron shoes in a fruitless search, then find what you're looking for without even trying! Heaven is helping me, and now my future prospects are boundless!' With that, August Patriarch Fire Dragon vanished into the depths of the Regal Event Heaven as he began his pursuit.

'He took the bait!' Yang Qi thought, a very serious expression on his face. He was out in the depths of the void, in the middle of a spell formation, surrounded by streaming magical symbols, dazzling sagelight, and a host of angels.

It had been three days since he left the Regal Event Heaven and came to this place, where he used the Strength of the Hell-Crushing Godmammoth and the faith of the lower world to create this spell formation, which was filled with the glory of the halls of heaven.

Now he was simply waiting quietly for August Patriarch Fire Dragon to arrive.

August Patriarch Fire Dragon was a Godmyth, and Yang Qi knew that if he didn't end him quickly, it would be a catastrophe. If things went south, escape would likely not be an option.

There was also the possibility that he would be able to kill August Patriarch Fire Dragon, but would have to pay a very high price to do so.

He had sent Hu Latu away; not only would he be of no help in the fight to come, it was also possible that he would be killed by the fallout.

'This is going to be a battle of life or death. But if I can get those one thousand talismans, it will be worth it. They're my ticket to getting the full collection of three thousand.'

He had a feeling that the rest of King Heaven-Devourer's talismans were in the Myriad Worlds Monarch Chart. But since he had no way to sense them, it was an almost impossible task to track them down. With half of the collection, boosted by the power of King Immortal-Slayer's legacy medallions, he could send out a call in the Myriad Worlds Monarch Chart and simply summon the remaining snakecharms to him.

Of course, any snakecharms which were already in the possession of others couldn't be summoned.

At a certain point, he concealed the presence of the spell formation, making it seem like he was simply floating all alone in the void.

Some time later, an immense force weighed down on the area and a raging sea of flames appeared. The fire expanded and grew, turning into a kingdom of flames. Not the type from the five phases, but rather dragonfire. There were also fire dragons swirling here and there, making the entire place seem like a world of fire dragons.

August Patriarch Fire Dragon approached through the void, and when he saw Yang Qi's vital energy fluctuations, his eyes widened with surprise, but then he smiled.

"You seem very confident in yourself, boy."

Having confirmed that his target was a Demolisher, and that there were no Godmyths lurking in ambush, he felt even more confident than before.

"I am. You're August Patriarch Fire Dragon, right? I heard that you have a thousand imperial snakecharms. By chance, I also happen to have a few. I was hoping you would be willing to part with yours and give them to me." He smiled coyly. "Oh, before I forget, I should tell you that I'm a child of Brahma from the Brahman Society, and I'm on a mission to get those snakecharms. Without them, I'll fail my mission."

With this one simple statement, he accomplished a lot. For example, if he succeeded in taking the talismans, but didn't kill August Patriarch Fire Dragon, the Brahman Immortal World would gain a powerful enemy.

"Oh? So you're from the Brahman Society?" August Patriarch Fire Dragon's face flickered with killing intent. "You people really are dead set on subjugating us, aren't you? How did you find out about my imperial snakecharms? Actually, it doesn't matter. Considering you have some, not only are you going to fail in your mission, you're going to get yourself killed. You have one option here. Give me your talismans and beg me for your life. You've got a lot of guts to face me on your own, with your Demolishing cultivation base. There aren't a lot of people like you in the immortal worlds. How about you join me as an apprentice? I'll treat you well, what do you say?"

"If you want to negotiate, you'll have to talk to the leaders of the Brahman Society. I'm just following orders." Yang Qi was doing his best to make sure that August Patriarch Fire Dragon hated the Brahman Society with a passion. For all Yang Qi knew, it might be possible to get the entire Mādhyamika School involved. If war broke out between them and the Brahman Society, it could lead Yang Qi into a situation in which the sandpiper and the clam fought, and the fisherman benefited.

"I'm going to destroy the Brahman Society eventually anyway. And since you refuse to back down, I'm going to kill you too!"

August Patriarch Fire Dragon could sense the aura of the imperial snakecharms on Yang Qi, and it caused him to itch with anticipation.

With a wave of his sleeve, he sent a raging wind out to slam into Yang Qi, accompanied by a roaring fire dragon.

In response, Yang Qi didn't even move. Bright, fiery godlight rose up behind him, flowing forth and overwhelming the fire dragon, which subsequently disappeared without a trace. Then the light spread to fill the kingdom of fire, filling it with incomparable brightness.

"Godlight? Eighty-one cycles of reincarnation? That's the Cardinal Grand Brahma Punishes the Fire God Energy Art!" There was no way that August Patriarch Fire Dragon could ever have guessed that his own energy art would be so easily dispelled. "You actually cultivated that art to the level of eighty-one cycles of reincarnation?"

"That's exactly right!" Yang Qi said. "Why else do you think I would be confident enough to try to rob you?"

August Patriarch Fire Dragon burst out laughing. "Are you kidding me? You think that qualifies you to beat me? I'm a Godmyth! You can't just ignore the disparity in our levels. Perhaps if you had cultivated all of the five phases energy arts to the perfect level of eighty-one cycles, you would have a chance. But that's impossible. The only way that could happen would be if the god Brahma was resurrected and did it himself."

"Is that so? Wow, you really are ignorant." All of a sudden, five streams of godlight appeared behind Yang Qi, which shot toward August Patriarch Fire Dragon, pulsing with godliness as they destroyed everything in their path.

"What? You really have all five cultivated to perfection? How is that even possible?" At first, a look of terror appeared on August Patriarch Fire Dragon's face, but it was quickly replaced with glee. "A genius. You're a top genius! Boy, did I get lucky today. There's no way I'll let someone like you become my apprentice. No, you have a special constitution, so I'll just kill you, assimilate you, and take that constitution for my own! My cultivation is going to rise to new heights! I'll definitely reach the Deathless Throne now. Heaven is helping me! Heaven is on my side! Heaven-Dragon Paragon Seal!"

WHIZZZ!

He thrust out his palm and an enormous sealing mark of true energy shot out, which slammed into the five streams of godlight and crushed them.

"Those five phases godly-class energy arts are incredible, but sadly your cultivation level is just too low!"