I gain ten years' worth of cultivation every day, and even geniuses will only see my doorstep!

Qin Yuan was shocked.

The old man in gray looked at him, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes.

"Since you obtained the fragment of the War God's Token and passed the test of the War God's Temple, it means you are recognized by the War God. But recognition does not mean you can bear the responsibility for that secret."

He paused.

"I ask you, why do you want to collect all the War God Tokens?"

Qin Yuan remained silent for a moment.

"To become stronger."

"And then what?"

"Protect those you want to protect, and do what you want to do."

The old man in gray stared at him for a long time.

Then he laughed again.

"Good," he said. "This answer is much more pleasing to the eye than those hypocrites who claim to save the world."

He stood up, walked to the wall, and took down the landscape painting.

Behind the painting was a recessed wall, inside which sat a jade box about the size of a palm.

The old man in gray picked up the jade box and handed it to Qin Yuan.

"Open it and take a look."

Qin Yuan took it and opened the box.

Inside the jade box lay a jet-black token.

It was exactly the same as his own.

It's just more complete.

War God Token Fragment - Second one.

Qin Yuan looked up at the old man in gray.

"Senior, what is this...?"

"It's yours," the gray-robed elder said calmly. "It's useless to me. I brought it out of the Temple of War years ago and studied it for eight hundred years, but I haven't figured it out at all. Rather than letting it gather dust, I'd rather give it to someone destined to have it."

Qin Yuan remained silent.

Eight hundred years.

This old man has lived for at least eight hundred years.

No, not only that.

Those who can enter the Temple of the God of War and bring out the God of War Token alive are at least ancient monsters over a thousand years old.

"Who exactly is this senior?"

The old man in gray did not answer.

He simply looked at Qin Yuan, his gaze calm and serene.

"Who I am is not important. What is important is that the road ahead for you will be very difficult."

"The Netherworld Cult has its eye on you."

Qin Yuan's eyes narrowed slightly.

The gray-robed elder continued, "The Li Wanhun you killed in Qingzhou was the illegitimate son of an elder from the Southern Branch of the Netherworld Sect. That elder already knows your identity and is sending people to investigate you."

"In Fengling City, that brat from the Heavenly Sword Sect won't let this go either. The people behind him are more troublesome than you think."

"Plus the War God Token fragment you possess—from today onward, wherever you go, you'll be watched."

He looked at Qin Yuan.

Are you scared?

Qin Yuan shook his head.

A hint of admiration flashed in the old man's eyes.

"Alright. Then let me give you one more piece of advice."

He paused, then spoke slowly and deliberately.

"The game in Nanzhou is bigger than you imagine. The three major sects, the thirteen superior sects, and countless merchant guilds and independent cultivators are all pawns. The real player is hiding in the shadows."

"Once you're in the game, don't expect to get out unscathed."

"Either become a chess player."

"Either become a pawn, or..."

Qin Yuan remained silent for a long time.

Then he stood up and clasped his hands in a salute.

"I will remember your words today, senior."

The old man in gray waved his hand.

"Go ahead. Bai girl will escort you out of the city."

He turned around, turned his back to Qin Yuan again, and looked at the landscape painting on the wall with his hands behind his back.

Qin Yuan put away the two fragments of the War God Token and left the bamboo hut.

The woman in white was waiting in the courtyard.

"please."

Qin Yuan followed her out of the courtyard.

Behind me, the door of the bamboo hut closed silently.

Moonlight as water.

Qin Yuan stood outside the courtyard gate, gazing at the unremarkable little courtyard, remaining motionless for a long time.

The woman in white stood quietly to the side, not urging him on.

After a long silence, Qin Yuan spoke.

"Who exactly is your master?"

The woman in white remained silent for a moment, then spoke softly.

"A person waiting to die."

Qin Yuan was taken aback.

The woman in white said no more and turned to walk out of the alley.

"Let's go, I'll see you out of the city."

Qin Yuan watched her retreating figure, then turned back to look at the small courtyard once more.

The faint fragrance of the old plum tree wafted from the courtyard.

He took a deep breath, turned around, and followed the woman in white.

Three days later, outside Fengling City, in a desolate mountain a thousand miles away.

Qin Yuan sat cross-legged in a secluded cave, with two jet-black tokens floating in front of him.

The two fragments of the War God's Token were now glowing faintly.

There was a strange resonance between them.

Qin Yuan closed his eyes and sensed that his consciousness seemed to be drawn into a strange space.

It was an endless void.

In the void, countless fragments floated—mountains, rivers, palaces, battlefields, broken magical artifacts, and the corpses of fallen powerful beings.

All the fragments are slowly rotating, revolving around a center.

That center is a door.

A bronze door so huge it defies description.

The door is engraved with countless patterns—there are human powerhouses fighting against otherworldly demons, there are the collapse of countless worlds, there is the war god Xing holding a giant sword standing in the nine heavens, and there are countless cultivators kneeling on the ground...

Above the door are three large characters.

The Nine Heavens Palace.

Qin Yuan was terrified.

Just then, an aged voice rang out in the void.

"The holder of the second token, you've finally arrived."

Qin Yuan suddenly opened his eyes.

Before them remained the stone walls of the cave, with two War God Tokens floating silently, their light already dimmed.

But that voice still echoed in my ears.

"The first celestial palace awaits your opening."

"Collect all three tokens to gain entry to the first level of the Heavenly Palace."

"You will know everything then."

The sound dissipated.

Qin Yuan remained silent for a long time.

Then he put away the two War God Tokens, stood up, and looked at the sky outside the cave.

Three.

He already has two.

Where is the third one?

He remembered the old man in gray's words.

"The game in Nanzhou is bigger than you imagine."

"Once you're in the game, don't expect to get out unscathed."

A sharp glint flashed in Qin Yuan's eyes.

Then let's get involved.

He stepped out of the cave.

Ahead lay endless barren mountains, and further away, the hinterland of the Southern Continent could be faintly seen.

There, he could find the answers he needed.

There is also everything he must face.

On the seventh day after leaving Fengling City, Qin Yuan stepped into a completely different world.

The sky was a somber gray-brown, with sunlight piercing through the clouds to reveal only a pale halo. The earth was cracked like a dried-up riverbed, with occasional wisps of dark red mist seeping from the fissures, carrying a faint, fishy sweetness. The distant mountain ranges were distorted, like a tattered painting that had been violently crumpled.

Ancient battlefield ruins.

Or rather, it is a "land of wounds" left over from an ancient war.

Qin Yuan slowed his pace, extended his divine sense, and vigilantly perceived everything around him.

According to the map he bought from the Wind Spirit Merchant Guild, this area is called the "Blood Bone Wasteland," one of the most notorious dangerous places in the Southern Continent. Ten thousand years ago, a world-shaking battle erupted here, resulting in the deaths of countless powerful individuals. Even today, the depths of the wasteland remain fraught with countless strange and perilous places, and even those at the peak of the Void Refinement stage dare not venture too far.

But this place is also a treasure trove.

Countless explorers have flocked to these ruins, attempting to unearth ancient treasures. Some have become rich overnight, while others have been lost forever.

Qin Yuan's destination was an ancient ruin deep in the wilderness—supposedly, clues related to the War God's Decree had appeared there.

He continued on his way.