Lord of the Rending Stars

In the Venerable Area, Venerable Jiuyu led Qingyang and Bingfeng to a secluded side hall.

The interior of the hall was simply furnished, with only three prayer cushions and a jade table. On the jade table were three pots of "Beacon Fire Brew" and several plates of spiritual fruit.

The Venerable Nine Universes spoke up, "Alright, there are no outsiders here, let's have a chat, the three of us brothers."

The three took their seats, and Venerable Jiuyu personally poured wine for Qingyang and Bingfeng. The amber-colored wine was poured into the jade cups, and the aroma of fruit filled the air.

Qingyang picked up the wine glass and took a sip. As the wine went down his throat, a warm sensation spread throughout his body. He nodded slightly, "Good wine."

"Of course," Venerable Jiuyu said with a smile, "I got this from my senior brother; he himself is reluctant to drink it."

Bingfeng took a sip without expression and said calmly, "Senior Brother Jiuyu, you called us here for more than just drinking, didn't you?"

The Nine Universe Venerable's smile faded slightly as he looked at Qingyang, his tone becoming more serious, "Qingyang, I heard you went to the Meteorite Abyss recently?"

Qingyang paused slightly in his hand holding the wine glass, then nodded without hiding anything, saying, "I went to confirm whether the clues about that Time-Space Flowing Gold Mine were a trap aimed at me."

Nine Universe Venerable and Ice Peak exchanged a glance, both seeing solemnity in each other's eyes.

"What was the result?" Bingfeng asked, his voice still cold, but with a hint of concern in his eyes.

Qingyang was silent for a moment, then put down his wine glass: "We were ambushed. The ambush was carried out by 'Kanai,' a high-ranking cosmic venerable of the God-Slaying Clan."

The hall fell silent. The wine cup in the hand of Venerable Jiuyu stopped in mid-air, and the chill around Bingfeng surged, even covering the wine pot on the jade table with a thin layer of frost.

"A high-level cosmic venerable?" Venerable Nine Universes' voice was deep, filled with suppressed anger. "The alien races have really gone to great lengths to deal with you."

Qingyang smiled faintly, "The human body was annihilated, it was just an avatar, it doesn't matter."

The Nine Universe Venerable remained silent for a moment, then slowly nodded. "Your ability to create clones is indeed your greatest trump card. But the fact that the God Slayer Clan can so accurately track your movements... there's more to it than that..."

"I know," Qingyang interrupted him, his voice calm, "someone is sending them messages from within the human race."

A cold glint flashed in Bingfeng's eyes: "Any suspects?"

Qingyang did not answer directly, but simply said, "Of course there is, and it can be confirmed that this spy is in the Virtual Universe Company, but there is no need to alert him."

The Venerable Nine Universes took a deep breath, downed the wine in his cup in one gulp, and then slammed the cup down on the jade table. "Don't worry, I'll investigate this for you. I've been with the Virtual Universe Company for a long time, and I know the internal personnel relationships better than you do."

Bingfeng nodded. "I've cultivated in the Holy City for many years and know quite a few people. I'll notify you immediately if I have any leads."

Looking at his two sworn brothers, Qingyang felt a surge of warmth in his heart. He didn't say thank you, but simply raised his wine glass and clinked it with theirs.

"Let's not talk about that anymore," Qingyang put down his wine cup and looked at Venerable Jiuyu. "Brother Jiuyu, you haven't told us the details of your breakthrough to the Universe Venerable realm yet. How exactly did you comprehend the laws of space during your battles with the Fireworm Clan in the outer realms?"

A hint of reminiscence flashed in Venerable Jiuyu's eyes as he slowly spoke, "That was in the third battlefield of the outer domain, a shattered star field where the human race and the fireworm race meet. There was no shortcut to comprehending the laws there, only endless slaughter."

His voice was calm, yet it seemed to transport the two of them to a starry sky filled with smoke and war.

"The Fireworm Clan?" Qingyang said softly.

"Yes, the Fireworm Clan," a hint of seriousness flashed in Venerable Nine Universes' eyes. "Qingyang, how much do you know about the Fireworm Clan?"

Qingyang shook his head. "I know very little. I've only seen some records in the data from the virtual universe. In the data, they are creatures with gray or dark red bodies, hundreds of hooves and claws, hard shells that reflect a cold light on each segment of their bodies, wrinkled faces, and only one eye."

"In terms of appearance, Qingyang, your description is basically correct," Venerable Jiuyu raised his hand, and strands of divine power outlined the shape of the Fireworm Clan in the air.

"Furthermore, you may not know much about the Firefly Clan. Besides their amazing defense, their individual combat strength is also considerable. Even the weakest Immortal Firefly that appeared on the Third Battlefield had the combat strength of a low-level Marquis, and there were even invincible King-level beings in that star field. On that occasion, my squad encountered an elite Firefly Clan squad, consisting of three invincible King-level Fireflies leading hundreds of Immortal Fireflies."

Venerable Jiuyu picked up his wine cup, took another sip, and continued, "That battle lasted for three whole days, which allowed my secret techniques to reach a higher level, and also gave me a deeper understanding of the fusion of the three great mysteries of the laws of space."

"The Fireworms' attack methods are very simple. They rely too much on their racial talents, but those talents are indeed troublesome. They can gnaw at spatial structures, rendering teleportation and spatial blockade ineffective. In that environment, I could only fight in the most primitive way, using my sword and my will to hone my secret techniques."

A glimmer of understanding flashed in the eyes of the Nine Universe Venerable. "During my life-or-death battle with the three-headed, invincible fire worm, my ultimate immortal technique was perfected to its limit. Fortunately, I had exchanged for a top-tier treasure armor in advance, which allowed me to unleash my sword techniques without restraint and without having to focus on defense. Later, my ultimate immortal technique transformed into the peak technique of a Universe Venerable."

"As the battle progressed, the racial talent 'Spatial Devouring' of the three invincible fire worms could no longer affect me. I used the ultimate technique of the Cosmic Venerable, combined with burning divine power, to annihilate 50% of the fire worm's divine body with a single sword strike. I then killed the fire worm with another sword strike. The other two fire worms fled with serious injuries when they saw that things were not going well."

The Nine Universe Venerable put down his wine cup, looked at Qingyang and Bingfeng, and said, "Since that battle, I have comprehended the laws of space. After returning to the Holy City and entering seclusion for several decades, I naturally broke through to the Universe Venerable realm."

The hall remained quiet for a long time.

Bingfeng spoke first, his voice still cold, but with a rare fluctuation: "So, your breakthrough was an epiphany on the edge of life and death."

"That's right," Venerable Jiuyu nodded. "The path of cultivation cannot be achieved through secluded and arduous training alone. One must gain enlightenment through battle and find clarity amidst life and death. Of course, everyone's breakthrough opportunity is different, and my path may not be suitable for you. But one thing is common to all: one must not back down."

Qingyang seemed lost in thought. His cultivation path had always been relatively smooth. He possessed the combat power of a King at the Realm Lord stage, and after breaking through to Immortality, he was even approaching the level of ordinary Universe Venerables. But precisely because it had been too smooth, he lacked the experience of being repeatedly tempered on the edge of life and death like the Nine Universe Venerables.

Although Qingyang escaped danger during the Meteor Abyss incident, it was because he had the ability to create clones; in essence, he did not truly face a life-or-death crisis.

"It seems I should also make a trip to the outer battlefield. The Fireworms are tough and thick-skinned, which is perfect for honing my secret techniques," Qingyang said softly.

A glint of fighting spirit flashed in Bingfeng's eyes: "Let's go together."

The Nine Universe Venerable laughed heartily: "Good! Once you break through to the Venerable realm, the three of us brothers will join forces again to explore more mysterious cosmic realms with even greater opportunities."

The three clinked glasses, and the rich aroma of the brewed wine filled the side hall.

After several rounds of drinks, Venerable Jiuyu suddenly lowered his voice: "Qingyang, now that you've achieved success in weapon crafting, have you considered crafting a supreme treasure for yourself?"

Qingyang shook his head, "It's too early to refine a supreme treasure. At most, I can refine top-tier heavy treasures. A supreme treasure requires at least the level of a Universe Venerable in terms of understanding of laws and mastery of secret runes, but..."

He paused, a glint of light flashing in his eyes: "Perhaps I can give it a try once I break through to the Universe Venerable realm."

Nine Universe Venerable and Ice Peak exchanged a glance, both seeing the expectation in each other's eyes.

The banquet lasted for a full day and night, until the night sky over the holy city began to lighten, at which point the guests gradually dispersed.

Qingyang and Bingfeng walked out of the Nine Universes Palace side by side. Neither of them was in a hurry to leave. Instead, they stood in the square in front of the palace, looking at the core area of ​​the majestic Chaos Stele in the distance.

"Are you really not going to pursue the matter of the Meteor Abyss?" Bingfeng suddenly asked.

Qingyang remained silent for a moment, then said calmly, "It's not that we won't investigate, it's just that the time isn't right yet. That spy might have an unexpected purpose."

Bingfeng nodded and didn't ask any further questions. He simply took out an ice-blue jade slip from his robes and handed it to Qingyang, saying, "This is the information I've collected over the years about the God-Slaying Clan. It might be useful to you."

Qingyang took the jade slip and scanned it with his consciousness. He discovered that it contained detailed records of the Slaughtering God Clan's troop deployments, the distribution of their strongest members, and detailed information on several core elders on the outer battlefield. The value of this intelligence far exceeded what could be measured by treasure points.

"Thank you," Qingyang said solemnly as he put away the jade slip.

Bingfeng rarely showed a smile: "Between you and me, there's no need for thanks."

The two exchanged a smile, then transformed into two streaks of light and disappeared into the horizon of the holy city.

Qingyang returned to the Jiazi Nine Peaks Workshop, sat cross-legged in front of the Zhuochen Cauldron, and reviewed what he had seen and heard at the banquet that day, especially the breakthrough experience shared by Venerable Jiuyu, as well as the idle chatter of those who had been crowned Kings and Immortals in the Immortal Zone.

"Jiuyu is right. The path of cultivation cannot be too smooth. The trials between life and death are something that no amount of secluded arduous cultivation can replace."