Whoosh…
The fierce wind howled, as endless yellow sand and giant rocks were swallowed into Leviathan’s mouth. It seemed as though there was an infinite space inside his body.
Several people clung desperately to John’s body, but it was to no avail. They were slowly being pulled towards Leviathan’s enormous open maw.
It’s over!
John felt hopeless. In front of Leviathan, there was no way out. He could only watch helplessly as he was gradually devoured.
Clang!
Suddenly, a sharp buzzing sound echoed through the air. In the distance, flames shot up into the sky, and scorching heatwaves swept across.
John vaguely saw that it was a massive Fire Phoenix with nine heads.
Whoosh!
A sky of flames descended in an instant, converging into a giant Fire Phoenix apparition that enveloped Leviathan.
“Not good!” Leviathan’s expression changed drastically, and he tried to dodge, but it was too late.
Boom!
The enormous Fire Phoenix charged directly into Leviathan’s mouth, followed by a thunderous roar.
The powerful suction force disappeared, and John and the others fell to the ground.
Leviathan’s colossal body trembled. He opened his mouth and released a burst of flame, which touched his body, immediately igniting into a raging fire that began to devour him.
“Roar…” he cried out in agony, writhing violently. The strange flames seemed to burn from within his own body.
“What terrifying flames!” Ice Talker’s face grew serious. She could sense the peculiar nature of these flames, which were far more powerful than ordinary fire. The power of laws could not even resist them, not even an Emperor-level warrior could withstand it.
Leviathan howled in pain and struggled desperately, and the group retreated further back.
Soon, he was completely still, his breath extinguished. The flames gradually died down, leaving him charred black. His enormous body, as massive as a mountain, had been completely carbonized.
The group couldn’t help but swallow, instinctively looking toward the sky.
At some point, a woman had appeared, floating in midair. She wore a long red dress, her fiery hair dancing in the wind, her body flawless and pure, like an immortal fairy.
Nine Phoenix Emperor!
John recognized her at once and quickly bowed, “Thank you, senior, for your timely rescue.”
The others also reacted, bowing respectfully.
Emperor-level warriors were lofty existences. Most people would never even have the chance to see one in their lifetime.
And, together with John, this was the second time they had encountered Nine Phoenix Emperor.
Everyone lowered their heads, not daring to overstep in the slightest.
Nine Phoenix Emperor glanced at John, her slender brows furrowing slightly, and she spoke in a calm tone, “John, you have never seen me before. This giant serpent was slain by you.”
“What?” John looked up at her, puzzled.
Nine Phoenix Emperor’s expression darkened slightly, her tone stern: “Do you understand?”
John was taken aback for a moment and quickly responded, “I killed Leviathan, senior, you’ve never been here!”
He had the feeling that Nine Phoenix Emperor was trying to frame him. It seemed like slaying an Emperor-level warrior was forbidden.
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However, he wasn’t afraid. If anyone tried to use this against him, he could always expose Nine Phoenix Emperor. It wouldn’t be a big deal.
Upon hearing this, Nine Phoenix Emperor nodded in satisfaction. It seemed she could sense his concerns. She continued, “Don’t worry. I’ve concealed the Heavenly Tribulation aura, so it will be hard for others to detect.”
“Thank you, my lady.” John bowed once more.
Nine Phoenix Emperor glanced over the vast desert and continued, “Did you kill Serpent King Medusa?”
“This…” John hesitated for a moment before nodding in acknowledgment. “Yes, Medusa has fallen.”
He was somewhat worried. The Seven Great Kings were all backed by Emperor-level forces.
He didn’t know how Nine Phoenix Emperor felt about Serpent King Medusa.
Nine Phoenix Emperor didn’t seem too surprised. With a casual wave of her hand, a token flew into his palm. She said slowly, “In a month and a half, come to Fire Phoenix City and attend the King’s Conference.”
With that, her figure flickered and she vanished without a trace.
Once Nine Phoenix Emperor left, the group finally sighed in relief.
“John, Nine Phoenix Emperor actually saved us,” Sword Demon said, still feeling like it was surreal.
John glanced at him and said slowly, “Remember, it was us who killed Leviathan. It has nothing to do with Nine Phoenix Emperor.”
“Right, right.” Sword Demon nodded repeatedly, a hint of caution in his eyes.
Cand-Dragon, on the other hand, wasn’t as respectful. He furrowed his brow and said, “Godslayer, I have a feeling this person wants us to take the fall.”
“True.” John didn’t care much. He was playing with the token in his hand, feeling its warmth and weight. It was made of an unknown material, with only two characters etched on it—”Phoenix Emperor.”
Sword Demon noticed the token in his hand and gasped. “This is Nine Phoenix Emperor’s token! Only the Seven Great Kings can possess one.”
He then recalled Nine Phoenix Emperor’s words and exclaimed in delight, “John, Nine Phoenix Emperor wants you to replace Medusa and become the new King!”
“Make me one of the Seven Great Kings?” John was skeptical and spoke up, “But my cultivation is only at eight stars.”
Nine stars marked the threshold for becoming a King, and all Seven Great Kings had reached that level. His cultivation level didn’t meet the standard.
Sword Demon didn’t share the same doubt, continuing, “But right now, you already have the strength to defeat an early-stage Nine Stars powerhouse.”
John nodded. Indeed, his power couldn’t just be measured by his cultivation level.
“There’s still over a month left. We should find the Mountains of Immortals first.” He wasn’t too concerned about becoming one of the Kings. Instead, his gaze shifted to Leviathan’s charred body, and a sense of regret filled his heart.
This guy had already passed the Heavenly Tribulation and become an Emperor-level powerhouse. He also possessed a terrifying talent—Devour, capable of swallowing heaven and earth.
If he were slain, John could certainly plunder a large amount of attributes, and possibly even acquire that powerful talent.
The problem was, his own strength was too weak. Even if Leviathan didn’t resist, he wasn’t sure he would be able to kill him.
A Ten-Star Emperor-level warrior represented a qualitative leap compared to a Nine-Star King.
Spoorate and Tracy, full of curiosity, approached Leviathan’s corpse and began searching for the key to the Mountains of Immortals.
Rustle…
As soon as the two touched Leviathan’s body, it instantly shattered, turning to ash.
Both women were startled. Nine Phoenix Emperor’s flames were far too strange.
Leviathan’s scales, flesh, and even bones had all turned to dust.
However, a few items remained, glowing faintly.
Three drops of golden blood, a gray, palm-sized orb, and a translucent jade stone.
Cand-Dragon and Avis stared intently at the three drops of golden blood, unable to stop themselves from swallowing.
John, too, was curious. Those three drops of golden blood had a powerful allure to him.
He reached out, and all the items flew into his hands. He inspected them one by one.
[Divine Dragon Essence: Contains the power of the divine dragon bloodline. Dragonkin warriors can refine it.]
It was divine dragon bloodline!
John quickly realized that, since he had a Beast Clan clone inside him with the divine dragon bloodline, it was natural that this would attract him.
“Master.” Avis moved closer, rubbing his hands together with a wide grin, his eyes fixed on the golden blood in John’s palm.
“You big lizard, get out of here. This thing is useless to you.” Cand-Dragon cursed, but still looked at John with anticipation.
John rolled his eyes. He knew exactly what the two wanted. With a wave of his hand, two drops of divine dragon blood flew out. “One for each of you.”
The divine dragon essence contained the power of the divine dragon bloodline. It could only be refined once.
The remaining drop, he would keep for himself.
“Thank you, Master.”
“Thank you, my lord.”
Avis and Cand-Dragon were overjoyed, repeatedly thanking him as they immediately entered John’s World-in-Hand and began their closed-door cultivation to refine the blood.
John didn’t stop them. He pocketed the final drop of essence. It was meant for him, but he wasn’t in a rush to refine it.
He turned his attention to the other two items.
[Dragon Orb: The source of Leviathan’s power. Contains a separate world. Can be refined.]
A dragon orb?
John was puzzled. This item seemed similar to The Overseer’s World-in-Hand, but it didn’t disappear after Leviathan’s death.
Furthermore, he could refine it directly and merge it with his World-in-Hand.
His mind stirred, and his spiritual energy entered the dragon orb.
Inside was a vast and boundless world, even larger than his World-in-Hand.
“This is definitely a treasure!” John exclaimed in delight. He had a strong feeling that if he refined this dragon orb, his cultivation as The Overseer would undergo another significant improvement.
He looked at the final item—the key to the Mountains of Immortals, the key to entering the Mountains of Immortals.
“Let’s go, into World-in-Hand,” he reminded the others. With a thought, he entered his World-in-Hand.
He would need to ask Gaka how to use this key.
“Kid, how’s it going? Did you kill Leviathan?” Gaka immediately asked upon sensing their arrival.
He was well aware of how terrifying an Emperor-level powerhouse could be. He had been worried about Leviathan’s condition after passing through the Heavenly Tribulation, and thus concerned for the safety of the group.
Now that he saw them return, he finally let out a sigh of relief.
John nodded and briefly recounted what had happened outside.
Gaka’s expression grew serious, and he said, “I underestimated this guy’s strength. But if Nine Phoenix Emperor owes you a favor, that’s still a pretty good outcome.”
“Nine Phoenix Emperor’s favor?” John asked, confused.
Gaka frowned. “What? You don’t want to take advantage of an Emperor’s favor?”
John frowned slightly, realizing Gaka was right—an Emperor’s favor was indeed incredibly valuable.
Gaka continued, “She gave you that token to repay a favor, but you shouldn’t let her have things her way.”
John was puzzled. “You mean, I shouldn’t participate in the King’s Conference?”
“No,” Gaka clarified. “Of course, you need to attend. But you shouldn’t let Nine Phoenix Emperor be the one to propose it. You should recommend yourself directly as a King. Make the other Kings keep their mouths shut.”
John couldn’t help but smile bitterly. Only someone like Gaka would dare to scheme against Nine Phoenix Emperor like this.
But there was still one problem. He asked, “But senior, while my strength is comparable to Nine Stars, I still can’t make the other Nine-Star Kings recognize me, right?”
Gaka was confident. “Haven’t you still not refined the Mountains of Immortals yet? I have a feeling that if you refine the Mountains of Immortals, it will merge completely with your World-in-Hand.”
“Really?” John’s eyes lit up. The Heavenly King had merged his World-in-Hand completely, and even though his cultivation was only at Nine Stars, his position was no weaker than an Emperor’s.
If he could also merge the World-in-Hand with the Mountains of Immortals, becoming one of the Seven Great Kings would be a piece of cake.
“Of course,” Gaka said with certainty, then explained how to activate the key and enter the Mountains of Immortals.
John memorized the instructions, then left his World-in-Hand and activated the key.