Library of Heaven's Path Chapter 2262 - Finale 1
The Midnight Flower and Desolate Iron resided in dangerous spots that even Ao Feng's might couldn't breach. Nobody except Zhang Xuan and his direct disciples should have managed to access those zones and seize the treasures.
Therefore, he had figured it was their handiwork from the start, but obviously, that assumption proved false.
Could there be some hidden force in the Flooding Sea secretly gathering all the treasures there?
“Someone else?” Zheng Yang furrowed his brows briefly before nodding along. “Come to think of it, you're right—that makes sense. In several spots we checked, the treasures were already taken by another. We figured it was the Conferred God King of the Nine Skies, but that doesn't hold up...”
“That individual snatched all those treasures smoothly without leaving any real clues behind. It shows they're at least as powerful as you all...” Zhang Xuan felt growing confusion over the matter.
From Ao Feng's accounts so far, he and his eleven direct disciples ranked as the top powers in the Flooding Sea. So, where had this mysterious powerhouse emerged from?
“I heard Demon Monarch Qiankun took on another successor besides me, even crafting a body for him,” Lu Chong noted abruptly.
“Crafted a body for him?”
Lu Chong's words jogged Zhang Xuan's memory of hearing about it too.
“Correct. That successor reached the Firmament before us, emerging via the Netherworld Pool. With his mighty soul cultivation, he could have easily located and claimed those treasures ahead of everyone,” Lu Chong explained.
In the Flooding Sea, beyond a guide's expertise, soul strength proved vital. Greater soul cultivation heightened sensitivity to treasures' presence.
This edge allowed quicker discovery and claiming of hidden treasures across the region.
“Arriving in the Firmament ahead of us means he's no local. Then... who is it?” Zhang Xuan pondered deeply.
…
Beyond the Flooding Sea...
“Even if those folks are Zhang Xuan's direct disciples, I've got my secret weapon! He'll grab plenty of treasures from the Flooding Sea!” Demon Monarch Qiankun grinned triumphantly while eyeing his Communication Jade Token.
Though their senses couldn't pierce the Flooding Sea, special artifacts let them get updates from inside.
Moments ago, Demon Monarch Qiankun got word from his planted secret agent in the Flooding Sea. The report showed the agent had claimed numerous treasures for their Sky of Drifting Specter.
Scanning the list, Demon Monarch Qiankun nearly burst into booming laughter toward the heavens.
Should his secret agent extract all those goods, his cultivation would surge forward. Unlikely to top God Monarch Lingxi, but he'd surely climb above the other eight God Monarchs.
Noting Demon Monarch Qiankun's smug demeanor, Cloud Dragon Monarch snorted coldly. “Just how powerful is your secret agent?”
“Not quite Lu Chong's level, so matching Zhao Ya and the rest would be tough. But his soul stands out as incredibly potent, perfect for stealth missions and hunting treasures,” Demon Monarch Qiankun boasted assuredly.
“A strong soul on your secret agent changes nothing! If the Conferred God King of the Nine Skies catches him, you'll get zilch!” Fairy Linglong doused Demon Monarch Qiankun's glee with icy words.
Frustrated that their own plans fed their foe, they couldn't stand this old schemer reveling before them. Naturally, they'd spoil his mood to balance the scales!
“Only if the Conferred God King of the Nine Skies locates him first. I told him plainly to avoid crowded areas and hide his aura as best he could,” Demon Monarch Qiankun declared proudly. “Looks like my scheme paid off perfectly!”
Witnessing Demon Monarch Qiankun's thorough preparations, the others could only shake their heads in resignation.
True to his sly fox reputation, his cunning shone through.
Clearly, Demon Monarch Qiankun stood to gain the most here.
Weng!
As they lamented this, a powerful surge rippled from the Flooding Sea. They faintly sensed outward spiritual energy rushing back inside.
“What's that?” Cloud Dragon Monarch questioned with a scowl.
“Looks like a legendary treasure has emerged. It's drawing in the Flooding Sea's spiritual energy, pulling back what leaked into the Firmament,” Fairy Linglong explained, fixing her gaze on the dark sea ahead, straining to glimpse the chaos within.
“Legendary treasure? Wonder what kind,” God Monarch Zhuoyang said, eyes gleaming eagerly, though he soon smiled bitterly and shook his head.
Even with a legendary treasure surfacing, it'd never fall to them.
Undoubtedly, the Conferred God King of the Nine Skies and his disciples would take it.
“Finding out's simple. My secret agent can scout it. Might even have him snag it too.” Demon Monarch Qiankun laughed merrily.
Fate rewards the ready! Time for the other God Monarchs to learn that lesson!
Outsmarting all the God Monarchs hadn't been simple, leaving him thrilled with the result. He swiftly messaged his secret agent, receiving a quick reply.
“He's been hiding carefully to dodge other cultivators in the Flooding Sea, but now he's rushing to check that legendary treasure's true nature...” Demon Monarch Qiankun chuckled.
He paused expectantly before tapping his Communication Jade Token again. Instantly, his eyes blazed with excitement unseen in tens of thousands of years.
“It's the Primordial Golden Lotus of the Nine Skies!”
“Primordial Golden Lotus of the Nine Skies?”
The God Monarchs' eyes bulged in shock.
While many Conferred God Kings might not know it, as God Monarchs, they grasped its immense power.
Nature forged it to impose cosmic laws, rivaling God Monarchs in might.
“Whoever claims the Primordial Golden Lotus of the Nine Skies can instantly boost their cultivation to match God Monarch Lingxi...” Silent-until-now Acheron God Monarch blurted in fervor.
Older than them all, the Primordial Golden Lotus of the Nine Skies was!
Absorbing it would propel cultivation skyward, shattering their bottlenecks with ease.
“Exactly...”
All nodded fervently.
Envy twisted their faces green, yet they knew Zhang Xuan's presence doomed their Conferred God Kings' chances.
“I'll make my secret agent seize it at any cost,” Demon Monarch Qiankun muttered, eyes flashing sharply.
He couldn't let the Primordial Golden Lotus of the Nine Skies slip away!
With a finger swipe, he issued commands via the Communication Jade Token.
No matter what, I've still got a chance. My secret agent's cultivation lags Zhang Xuan and crew, but his stealth and treasure-snatching skills are elite. Once he grabs the lotus, I'll whisk him back to the Firmament, Demon Monarch Qiankun thought, heart pounding wildly.
Slim odds, but not zero. Success would mark a massive win.
His secret agent, meticulously prepared, couldn't betray like Lu Chong.
Hu!
As Demon Monarch Qiankun paced fretfully awaiting word, his Communication Jade Token vibrated anew. He checked the message at once, eyes widening in utter disbelief.
Excitement drained from his face into sheer despair, nearly killing the old man from shock.
The other God Monarchs queried, “What happened?”
“My secret agent reports that...” Face crumpling like he'd weep, Demon Monarch Qiankun wailed, “... Zhang Xuan is his Young Master, so he's handed over every treasure he's collected!”
“...” Other God Monarchs.
Just now bragging smugly, Demon Monarch Qiankun now suffered worse than them in a flash.
Demon Monarch Qiankun couldn't stomach it, and the others gawked wildly at each other.
Swallowing that their nurtured cultivators were Zhang Xuan's disciples was tough, but at least Zhao Ya and others had warned them ahead.
Resigned acceptance followed.
Yet even Demon Monarch Qiankun's covert secret agent was Zhang Xuan's servant. Utter madness.
Did Zhang Xuan embed spies everywhere around them?
“What madness is this?” Demon Monarch Qiankun seemed on the verge of breakdown.
From the Netherworld Pool, he'd poured effort into raising that fragmented soul into a mighty Conferred God King. How'd he become Zhang Xuan's servant?
He'd deemed himself cleverest, but the youth always stayed ahead!
Suddenly, Demon Monarch Qiankun felt his long life wasted.
“Serves you right...” Fairy Linglong murmured with a soft chuckle.
Keep boasting, why don't you? Karma strikes back...
…
Gazing at the middle-aged man kneeling and calling him ‘Young Master’, Zhang Xuan stood dumbfounded. “Wei Changfeng?”
Trembling, red-eyed Wei Ruyan approached, sobbing, “Father...”
None other than his Master Teacher Continent servant, Wei Changfeng—who stole treasures to cure his daughter's frailty!
He'd perished to a saint beast fetching a herb, leaving Wei Ruyan mourning deeply. Who'd guess he'd revive and show up here?
“How did you...” Zhang Xuan gaped at Wei Changfeng in shock.
“No clue myself. Right after dying, a mighty pull yanked my soul away. Next I knew, I awoke in the Firmament's Netherworld Pool!”
Words failed to capture Wei Changfeng's joy at seeing his daughter and Zhang Xuan. Learning return to the Master Teacher Continent was impossible had crushed him long ago, dooming eternal separation.
After hugging Wei Ruyan fiercely in thrill, he detailed events. “Demon Monarch Qiankun claims I have a special constitution—the reason Ruyan got the Innate Poison Body.”
“Special constitution?” Zhang Xuan creased his brow.
On the Master Teacher Continent, his Library of Heaven’s Path scan showed Wei Changfeng utterly ordinary.
Could the Library of Heaven’s Path err?
“Did Demon Monarch Qiankun specify the constitution type?” Zhang Xuan inquired.
“Yes, the Innate Embryonic Soul. It preserves my soul's core foundation even if it scatters. That's why I kept my sense of self post-resurrection from the Netherworld Pool,” Wei Changfeng answered.
“Innate Embryonic Soul?” Zhang Xuan's frown intensified.
Unheard-of to him, yet a fearsome trait. Even the Deathless Monarch lost himself upon revival.
That explained Wei Ruyan's genius.
As for the Library of Heaven’s Path missing it, perhaps its weakness then, or the trait dormant until death activated it.
Either way, Wei Changfeng's survival brought immense relief.
Zhang Xuan saw Wei Ruyan's lingering torment over her father's sacrificial death—a barrier of gratitude, love, guilt, and bitterness she couldn't cross.
This reunion might free her at last.
“Young Master, here are the Flooding Sea treasures I've collected,” Wei Changfeng offered a storage ring to Zhang Xuan.
Peering inside, Zhang Xuan quickly noted the Midnight Flower and Desolate Iron, sighing in relief.
So, Wei Changfeng had been their resource rival all along.
“Guard me closely. I'm entering seclusion now to break through to the God Monarch realm!”
With preparations complete, as Zhang Xuan prepared to cultivate for breakthrough, the ground quaked violently. A terrifying aura rapidly consumed everything nearby.
Startled, Zhang Xuan whipped around to see a colossal dimension rift splitting the sky.
Spiritual energy leaked to the Firmament poured back into the rift, destabilizing the Flooding Sea with the surge.
Collapse loomed for the whole area.
Conferred God King Liu Yan and others quivered in terror, faces ashen. “What's occurring?”
“Teacher...” Zhao Ya and crew anxiously eyed Zhang Xuan.
“Someone has plucked the three stalks of Monarch Spirit Grass...” Zhang Xuan's eyes narrowed icily.
He'd spotted three Monarch Spirit Grass stalks stabilizing a volatile dimension rift earlier. Their removal caused its sudden expansion.
The rift ballooned vastly, soon blanketing the sky. Their prior Condensed Earth Essence battleground split apart, countless zones vanishing into the rift.
The Lake of Comets' barrier shredded under spatial storms from the rift.
The Flooding Sea teetered on utter ruin.
“Teacher, what now?” Zhao Ya pressed urgently.
Soon, the rift would engulf the Firmament too.
“We must seal the dimension rift or stabilize it somehow,” Zhang Xuan stated gravely.
Though not truly in the Firmament, the Flooding Sea connected to it. Its destruction would ravage the Firmament, claiming countless lives.
Knowing this, Zhang Xuan had left the Monarch Spirit Grass untouched.
But now...
Zhang Xuan eyed the radiant Primordial Golden Lotus of the Nine Skies—his clone still needed time to merge the powers fully.
No escape in sight, he clenched his jaw and bellowed, “Follow me!”
He soared toward the dimension rift.
Zhao Ya and the rest trailed without pause.
“Hahaha...” Booming laughter rang from the void. “Weren't you chasing me to kill earlier? Now let's see who slays whom!”
Zhang Xuan looked up to spot the Epitome Monarch Pill he'd pursued before in the Lake of Com