Shrouding the Heavens: The Ultimate Daoist Venerable

Chapter 286 Parting
The two Great Sages hidden in the void couldn't help but sigh upon seeing this, after all, even they had not entered the forbidden domain, while this junior prodigy who was a whole realm lower than them had done so.

"It's actually a forbidden realm. Ning Fei's defeat is no surprise. To enter this realm so early, is he destined to be the one to prove his Dao in this lifetime?"

"Not necessarily. If Ning Fei can maintain his composure and continue to improve, then he may still have a chance to turn things around. Not every ancient master from the previous era was invincible."

"Although I also hope that Ning Fei can do it, I'm afraid it will be very difficult. Huang Tian has almost no weaknesses or shortcomings, and it will be too difficult to catch up with him. I wonder if those two have any hope of defeating Huang Tian."

"We'll see in a few decades. Now that this matter is settled, let's go."

With that, the two Great Sages vanished into the void.

Huang Tian keenly sensed the disappearance of the two auras and promptly put away the two secret artifacts he had hidden. Although these two Great Saints had always thought highly of him and had even helped him several times, Huang Tian remained wary. After all, he was a true phoenix from the Immortal Realm, and if he were discovered, countless people would want to dissect and study him, so he had to be cautious.

Now that they've left, Huang Tian can naturally lower his guard and turn his attention back to the defeated Ning Fei.

After being defeated by Huang Tian with the Undying Immortal Phoenix Seal, Ning Fei inevitably experienced a surge of negative emotions, even causing his Forgetfulness Heavenly Art to become unstable. After all, this was his first defeat in a battle against someone of the same realm. Losing one's invincible spirit is undoubtedly a fatal blow to someone aspiring to attain the Dao.

Although Ning Fei knew this person was terrifyingly strong after seeing that scene through the "Former Word Secret," and now that Huang Tian had revealed his forbidden domain, he naturally couldn't fight against him. But some things are still hard to accept even with mental preparation.

After exiting the special state of the Forgetfulness Heavenly Skill, Ning Fei took a deep breath and began to mentally prepare himself. He couldn't admit defeat, he couldn't give up. Soon, he rallied and stabilized his mindset.

He could remain calm for three reasons: first, he had to stay focused on Huang Tian to protect Huang Nu, and he had a reason to win this bet; second, his Forgetfulness Heavenly Art and Tribulation Heavenly Art had not yet reached their peak and still had room for improvement; and third, he was confident that he could enter this forbidden domain.

Although he was behind at this moment, he still had much room for improvement. Therefore, Huang Tian's victory was only temporary and did not mean that he would always surpass him in the future. After all, this was not the final moment. Those of them, still in the Saint King realm, were far from the final outcome. Even if Huang Tian was in the lead, he still had a chance to turn the tables.

Seeing Ning Fei's fighting spirit rekindled, Huang Tian said, "Ning Fei, it seems your Dao heart is also resilient enough. You are indeed someone I value. I will wait for you to step into the forbidden realm and challenge me again."

Having regained his fighting spirit, Ning Fei had vaguely grasped the mysteries of the forbidden domain from the battle just now. Given time, he too could step into this domain and catch up with Huang Tian. At that time, he might not necessarily lose.

Ning Fei stood up, put away his long spear, and said, "I'm willing to accept my loss. Now, what do you want me to do?"

Huang Tian laughed and said, "Don't worry, I won't do anything to put you in a difficult position. This time, why don't you have a drink with us?"

Ning Fei silently followed behind Huang Tian. This man was his greatest rival, and the one he desperately wanted to surpass. In the time leading up to the ultimate ancient path, he would try his best to win the bet through his own abilities. If he couldn't win, he could only hope that Huang Nu would be successful.

Time passed, and decades went by in the blink of an eye. Ning Fei would challenge others almost every so often, and he never took advantage of their vulnerability. This, to some extent, rendered Huang Tian's plan to train himself to be ready to fight at any time a failure.

During this period, Ning Fei also created the Great Annihilation Spear, capable of annihilating everything, and stepped into the forbidden realm. Of course, even after reaching this realm, he still hadn't bridged the gap between himself and Huang Tian. In total, Ning Fei challenged Huang Tian hundreds of times, but most of the time he failed, only gaining the upper hand in a few cases through divine restrictions.

But almost every time he activated the Divine Restriction to suppress Huang Tian, ​​Huang Tian would also trigger the Divine Restriction during the battle, thus turning defeat into victory. This terrifying suppressive power made Ning Fei somewhat numb.

Every time Ning Fei felt he was too weak, Huang Tian would ask him to challenge a group of other geniuses by himself. After overwhelmingly defeating most of the geniuses on the ancient starry road, Ning Fei would realize once again that it wasn't that he was weak, but that Huang Tian was simply too strong.

It could be said that Huang Tian was using this method to establish his authority and subtly try to subdue Ning Fei. However, Ning Fei only became more determined in the process, not only failing to develop any respect for him but also challenging him even more frequently.

Even Huang Tian himself had to admit that, aside from that woman, there was truly no other way to win over Ning Fei. Seeing this, Huang Tian stopped pressuring and instead focused on developing a relationship with him as a comrade and friend, hoping to build a deep and lasting bond. After all, Ning Fei was a man of deep feelings.

Inspired by Ning Fei's perseverance in the face of repeated defeats, the Seven Gods overcame their psychological barriers and frequently challenged Ning Fei and Huang Tian. They even spontaneously traveled to other ancient star paths or various star regions they passed through to challenge others and verify their strength.

Over the decades, the names of these nine men resounded throughout the starry sky, earning them a formidable reputation.

Among the nine, Huang Tian was the first to reach the peak of the Saint King realm, nearing the Great Saint level. Ning Fei came a little later, but only a few years behind. The Seven Divine Generals also reached this level during this period.

If Huang Tian hadn't slowed down his cultivation to proceed steadily, he would probably have already been a Great Saint for many years. After all, Ye Yishui and Little Immortal Phoenix of later generations became Quasi-Emperors at just over two hundred years old, while Huang Tian is already one hundred and eighty years old, and it's estimated that he'll be two hundred years old when he becomes a Great Saint.

This was naturally the result of Huang Tian's deliberate suppression. After all, although Ning Fei was powerful and was making rapid progress in the process, even narrowing the gap with Huang Tian, ​​he could only fight against Huang Tian in his normal state at most.

If Huang Tian were to reveal her true phoenix form and genuinely utilize her immortal bloodline, even Ning Fei would be unable to force her to fight to the death. Of course, Ning Fei still has room for improvement, but this cannot be achieved overnight; he needs time to accumulate experience.

There's nothing that can be done about it. After all, unlike Chuan Ying who has the guidance of his master, Yuanshi Tianzun, he can only learn by himself. Naturally, he can't compare to Huang Tian, ​​who has the best bloodline, the best talent, and the best inheritance.

In short, Huang Tian could only try every possible way to hone himself, pushing each realm to its limit, which naturally slowed down his speed. As a result, the others did not fall too far behind.

Decades have passed, and now they have finally reached the final ancient road.

Ning Fei had already sensed the aura before the ultimate ancient road, and knew that his plan was complete.

He sighed softly and said to Huang Tian, ​​"Now is the time for us to part ways."

(End of this chapter)