Chapter 86: The Grand Feast of Immortal Peaches (Part Two)

The waters of the Black Tortoise, the Black Tortoise Palace, the Black Tortoise Water Cave.

Since the divine race destroyed the Xuanming Black Serpent clan and officially descended upon the Northern Wilderness, Xuan Tianwu had remained stationed in the Black Tortoise Water Cave, unmoved by the storms and hidden currents of the outside world.

For Xuan Tianwu, affairs of the Northern Wilderness were already being handled by the divine race; he needed only to govern the Black Tortoise clan well and had no desire to meddle further in external matters.

On the contrary, if the Black Tortoise clan were to interfere too much in the affairs of the Northern Wilderness, how would the divine race view their actions once their rule was established? Better to do nothing than act without certainty; let everything unfold as it will.

Xuan Tianwu even considered taking this opportunity to retreat once more into cultivation, hoping to break through to the next minor realm.

After all, the World of the Great Desolation was a mythic realm where ultimate power belonged to oneself. As long as one’s individual strength was great enough, one could dominate the entire world.

Beneath the Enlightenment Tree, shimmering with the light of wisdom, Xuan Tianwu sat cross-legged upon a stone throne, listening to the sound of waterfalls cascading from all sides, feeling the ripples of the spiritual lake beneath him, his heart drifting away from the clamor of the mortal world into peace and serenity.

Yet, good fortune often comes with its own complications. In this chaotic primordial desolation, even quiet cultivation is not easily achieved.

Just as Xuan Tianwu was immersed in the mysteries of the laws of heaven and earth, he sensed Xuan Tianji’s presence outside the Black Tortoise Water Cave.

As the Grand Elder of the Black Tortoise clan, Xuan Tianji’s authority was second only to Xuan Tianwu. If there was nothing that required Tianwu’s personal attention, Tianji would never dare disturb his secluded cultivation.

It must be noted that any true expert detests being disturbed during cultivation. While someone at Xuan Tianwu’s level would not err in practice due to the interruptions of the weak, being forcibly pulled out of one’s comprehension of the laws of heaven and earth could still ignite nameless fury in one’s heart.

For those with lesser cultivation—true gods, lord gods, or god kings—an interruption could easily lead to mistakes. The path of cultivation admits no error; a misstep could mean injury at best, or death at worst.

Thus, those with a fiery temperament would often directly annihilate any being who dared to disturb their practice.

Fortunately, Xuan Tianwu was not a bloodthirsty expert, or else Xuan Tianji would not escape death.

Nonetheless, Xuan Tianwu decided to give Xuan Tianji a small lesson. Otherwise, if anyone could disturb his cultivation at will, would he ever be able to practice in peace?

Because Xuan Tianwu had laid prohibitions around the Black Tortoise Water Cave, any who entered without permission would be destroyed by the restrictions, save for Xuan Tianwu himself.

Even though Xuan Tianji had important matters to report, he could only wait outside the Water Cave for Xuan Tianwu’s summons.

With Xuan Tianwu’s abilities, he could not fail to notice Xuan Tianji’s arrival.

If Xuan Tianwu wished to see him, he would summon him; if not, Xuan Tianji could only wait.

This time, Xuan Tianwu decided to teach him a minor lesson and left him standing outside for an entire day.

After a day—

Bang.

With hope in his eyes, Xuan Tianji watched the stone gate of the Black Tortoise Water Cave slowly open on its own.

Xuan Tianji transformed into a streak of black light, instantly entering the Xuanming Water Cave.

Once inside, the stone gate closed again, sealing them within.

“What brings you before me?” Xuan Tianwu asked, gazing at Xuan Tianji, who, despite waiting an entire day, remained calm and unperturbed. Satisfied in his heart, he kept his expression cold and dignified.

“Your Excellency, the chieftains of the Sky Jade Elephant clan, the Sky Devourer Hound clan, and the Sky Swift Leopard clan await your summons in the Black Tortoise Palace,” Xuan Tianji replied respectfully, calmly revealing the important news that had kept him waiting for a day.

“Oh? What brings them here?” Xuan Tianwu pondered, unable to guess their purpose, and asked aloud.

“Your Excellency, the three god chieftains have come to discuss matters concerning the divine race,” Xuan Tianji answered, his voice steady.

“The divine race?” Xuan Tianwu’s eyes began to gleam with silver light as he asked in confusion, “Were they not told to submit to the divine race? What more do they want?”

A hint of shock appeared on Xuan Tianji’s calm face, and he answered with gravity, “Your Excellency, the divine race has made a new move—they are creating a Sky City!”

“Sky City?” Xuan Tianwu’s face showed uncertainty and surprise, but he grasped the key point immediately. “Creating?”

“Yes! The divine race is creating a Sky City!” Xuan Tianji repeated, his expression solemn.

Upon hearing this, Xuan Tianwu’s black eyes instantly turned silver, betraying his inner turmoil.

Creation! What a wondrous and profound word.

Those who can create must stand at the pinnacle of the Great Desolation.

For example, in later ages, Nuwa created humanity and ascended to sainthood by virtue of her boundless creative merit.

The Sky City created by the divine race, though perhaps not as grand as Nuwa’s creation of humanity, was nonetheless an even greater challenge.

In the later Great Desolation, the will of heaven and earth faded, spiritual energy diminished, and whether creating life or anything else, the difficulty was not so great.

For instance, after Nuwa created humanity, the Lord of the Underworld directly created the Ashura clan.

However, in the primordial Great Desolation, the will of heaven and earth was incomparably powerful, nearly omnipotent, and spiritual energy so vast it suppressed the strength of living beings.

If a peerless expert attempted to create life or some enormous object, he would first face the judgment of heaven’s will.

Even if one evaded that judgment, the overwhelming spiritual energy could exhaust even a peerless god to death.

The divine race, as the chosen of heaven, might be exempt from heaven’s judgment while creating their Sky City.

But the Sky City they would create would not be a mere ten-thousand-mile fortress; it would at least rival the Black Tortoise City, which spanned tens of millions of miles.

To create such a vast city would be enough to exhaust and kill five god chieftains of Xuan Tianwu’s caliber.

In the Northern Wilderness, among the nine clans, the Black Tortoise reigns supreme.

Xuan Tianwu, as the master of the Black Tortoise clan, possessed cultivation at least above the level of a high god chieftain.

Could the divine race truly have five or more peerless god chieftains equal to Xuan Tianwu?

If so, the nine clans of the Northern Wilderness would have no choice but to submit to the divine race’s rule!

For resistance could only mean death!

No wonder the Sky Jade Elephant chieftain, the Sky Devourer Hound chieftain, and the Sky Swift Leopard chieftain had rushed to seek counsel from their elder brother, Xuan Tianwu of the Black Tortoise clan, as if their tails were on fire.

After all, the nine clans of the Northern Wilderness—especially the Black Tortoise clan and its three vassals, the Sky Jade Elephant, Sky Devourer Hound, and Sky Swift Leopard—were only feigning allegiance to the divine race!

The Black Tortoise clan had always been the elder brother; how could it sincerely submit to a divine race possessing only thirteen god chieftains?

Now, with the divine race playing the card of creating the Sky City, they had utterly stunned the Black Tortoise and its three vassals.

Boom!

Xuan Tianwu gathered up Xuan Tianji and vanished in an instant, heading straight for the Black Tortoise Palace to confer with the three god chieftains on how to respond!