Swallowed Star 2: Land of Origin

Within the territory of Thunder Ancient Country, there was an ancient tree nurtured by heaven and earth, known as the Frost Fruit Tree. Every 196 Eras, the tree would bear fruit, producing Frost Fruits that were a kind of auxiliary resource for cultivating the Primordial Bloodline.

"The Frost Fruit Tree is about to mature, and the warriors from the Flame Wind Ancient Country's Primal Chaos Realm could come to snatch it at any moment." The guardian responsible for the Frost Fruit Tree was also a mighty warrior at the Pinnacle of Primal Chaos Realm.

He had ceased his cultivation in recent days, fully controlling the Formation with all his heart and mind, always vigilant against incoming enemies.

Every 196 Eras, during the time when the fruit is maturing, powerful warriors would be stationed as guardians.

"With my strength, combined with the Formation set up by the Godly King, even if a Transcendence of Primal Chaos Realm were to take action, I could hold them off for a while. Moreover, those Transcendents of the Primal Chaos Realm wouldn't covet these fruits," the gray-robed elder thought.

Each harvest yielded only eight fruits, worth a mere eight thousand Merit Points. Generally, Transcendents of the Primal Chaos Realm couldn't break the Formation in a short time, and Thunder Ancient Country would send reinforcements.

"It's close."

"The Frost Fruit Tree should mature tonight," the gray-robed elder continued to watch. As time slowly passed, suddenly—

The ancient tree, which looked like it was carved from ice, suddenly radiated a dazzling, icy white light, and then all of the cold white light merged into the eight fruits.

Just at that moment—

Whoosh!

The Black River World arrived, completely sealing off the area where the Frost Fruit Tree stood.

"This is bad," the gray-robed elder exclaimed in alarm, as he instantly picked the freshly ripened fruits.

The vast, black waters swept in, infiltrating and breaching the Formation laid by the Godly King right before the frightful force. It wasn't able to stop the river's invasion.

The gray-robed elder looked around in all directions, wanting to escape in the form of a gray fog, but he couldn't penetrate the Black River World.

"A world seal, the Black River Domain, is this Great Saint Luo He?" The gray-robed elder's heart trembled.

The black water reached in front of the gray-robed elder and coalesced into a figure, the spitting image of Luo Feng.

"Great Saint Luo He," the gray-robed elder immediately greeted with respect, not daring to show the slightest disrespect.

"Give me the fruits," Luo Feng said, looking at him.

"Yes."

The gray-robed elder very obediently handed over the eight fruits to Luo Feng without any resistance.

He was concerned that if he resisted, Luo Feng might kill him! Then the Weapon Secret Treasures he carried would be stolen. That would be far more valuable than the eight fruits.

"Phew." After securing the eight fruits, the black river water and the vast expanse of the Black River World vanished without a trace in an instant.

The gray-robed elder then breathed a sigh of relief: "This Great Saint Luo He is quite merciful, he didn't lay a finger on me."

Since Luo Feng had decided on a mass harvest of the treasures of heaven and earth, he hadn't thought about slaughtering guardians on a large scale! Firstly, with his current strength, being among the strongest in the First Realm of Godly King, killing these much weaker beings felt like bullying. Secondly, killing too many guardians would have too great of a karmic impact.

These guardians from the Primal Chaos Realm... had their own backgrounds and factions in Thunder Ancient Country. Making too many enemies, killing too many of the lesser ones, might provoke some of the older ones.

Most importantly, Luo Feng disliked those who kill indiscriminately.

His intention in harvesting the treasures of heaven and earth on such a large scale was to force Thunder Ancient Country into negotiations, to earn an opportunity to enter a treasure land.

He had no choice, he wasn't from the Imperial Clan of the two Ancient Countries! And not willing to cooperate with an Alien Race, he could only resort to this method.

...

In Thunder Ancient Country, at the holy land 'Mt. Leiting'.

A Godly King wearing a deep purple robe sat there, dealing with a multitude of trivial matters, as vast amounts of information about the huge Ancient Country flowed in one after another.

"Oh? Luo He, the number one Transcendence of Primal Chaos Realm, took the eight Frost Fruits? This is the first time he's contended for the treasures of heaven and earth at the border, right?" The Godly King, smiling and looking quite serene, said, "I guess the Frost Fruit must be of some use to him."

He didn't seem to care at all.

It was quite common for warriors of the Primal Chaos Realm to vie for the border territories, and this was only Luo Feng's first act.

...

Although the border line between the two Ancient Countries was very long, and there were many places nurturing treasures of heaven and earth, there would only be about a hundred opportunities for intervention every Era.

After each intervention, Luo Feng would have to patiently wait for the next.

On his way to his third attempt to claim the treasures of heaven and earth, Luo Feng received some news.

"Marquis Liu Yin is dead?" Luo Feng stopped midair, surprised by the news.

"The core members of the Marquis Liu Yin's family have disappeared. According to information from the Flame Wind Pavilion, they have likely split into many branches and gone into hiding. As for Marquis Liu Yin... his karmic existence has completely vanished. He must have chosen reincarnation," the message said.

This kind of affair, where the family matters are carefully arranged beforehand, and then, only after everything is properly managed, the person dies. It could almost be confirmed that it was a voluntary reincarnation.

"Why has he reincarnated now? I had planned to find him after my Spiritual Will reached the Ultimate Realm of God King," Luo Feng pondered.

His killing intent toward Marquis Liu Yin was multifaceted: one was the death of his friend Shang Tianyan, and the second was that Marquis Liu Yin himself liked to cause disasters, slaughter was something Marquis Liu Yin enjoyed doing, and his children also relished in mass killings.

Luo Feng had not acted yet merely because he wasn't sure he could kill the opponent completely.

But who would have thought that the opponent would take the step to reincarnate first.

Luo Feng didn't think about it anymore and continued on his journey to compete for the third time for the treasures of heaven and earth.

******

Mt. Leiting.

The Godly King in the deep purple robe looked serious now.

When Luo He first contended for the treasures of heaven and earth of Thunder Ancient Country, he just smiled.

The second and third times, he found it somewhat surprising.

By the seventh and eighth times, he felt something was amiss.

"Fifteen times now! Recently, every Exquisite Marvel of Heaven and Earth conceived by the borderlands has been snatched by this Luo He, not missing a single one," this Godly King said solemnly. Fifteen times added up to roughly a hundred thousand Merit Points.

Thunder Ancient Country did not care for this amount of value.

Yet, Luo He's actions had put him on alert.

"I must report to the Monarch," declared the Godly King, as he stood up and went to report to the Monarch in person.

...

A short while later.

Inside a towering and expansive hall, a figure bathed in thunder sat high upon the throne.

"Monarch."

Nine Godly Kings all bowed respectfully.

"Sit," said the figure enshrouded in thunder, his golden pupils exuding a terrifying pressure, overlooking those below. He was the ruling Monarch 'Monarch Lei Xiao' of the current Thunder Ancient Country, where the nine Monarchs were mainly divided into two major factions.

The first practiced the Primordial Bloodline of the Thunderbolt, which was also the path of the Thunderbolt Ancestor. This path was the most mature, yet it wasn't something every descendant excelled at. After all, in the supreme rules of the Land of Origin, there was no Origin Dao of Thunderbolt. So while this path was mature, it was also extremely difficult.

Even within Thunder Ancient Country, there were only three Monarchs who cultivated the Primordial Bloodline of the Thunderbolt. Their Secret Techniques were more complete, they had more suitable Secret Treasures, and they were even more lucid.

The other six Monarchs cultivated other types of Primordial Bloodlines, forming another faction.

If one were to count, there were also three 'semi-uncontrolled' Monarch-level powerhouses that could be considered a faction. After all, when they were lucid, they possessed genuine Monarch-level strength.

"You should all be aware of the situation," Monarch Lei Xiao said, looking at his subordinates, "Speak up, how should we resolve this?"

"The border between the two great Ancient Countries is so long that for fifteen consecutive times, every Exquisite Marvel that has matured has been seized by this Luo He," said a towering figure below, his eyes blood-red, speaking coldly, "Five or six times might be coincidental, but fifteen times in a row... that's definitely no coincidence! He's doing it deliberately.

If we let him continue, then in one hundred or a thousand Eras, will all of our Exquisite Marvels of Heaven and Earth go to him? In my opinion, we should just wipe out all his Avatars, not giving him the chance to reincarnate!"

"Only then can we deter all parties. Let Flame Wind Ancient Country know that border disputes should be fairly contested, such wanton seizing, we, Thunder Ancient Country, will not tolerate," the towering figure declared coldly.

"Yes, kill him before he has the chance to reincarnate," another Godly King, covered in fur, also roared.

Monarch Lei Xiao looked down below.

Because there were so many cultivating the Primordial Bloodline, most Godly Kings of Thunder Ancient Country were somewhat mad. Why did their Thunderbolt lineage have a higher status? Strength was one aspect, but another was the ability to remain more lucid.

"I also agree that we should kill him outright, but how?" a beautifully dressed female figure asked leisurely, "This Luo He cultivates the three Origin Great Daos of Life, Destruction, and Matter, with innumerable Avatars! And some of his Avatars reside in Chu Capital. Please tell me...

How do we go to Chu Capital and kill an existence considered of immense strength in the First Realm of Godly King with countless Avatars?"

"That's Chu Capital! Chu Capital was personally forged by Primogenitor Yan Feng, guarded by Emperor Chu! Due to the permeation of causality, its power will greatly diminish, how to kill?" the beautifully dressed female figure looked at the other Godly Kings.

The other Godly Kings fell silent.

"Of course we can't do it, but the Monarchs can," the burly figure finally spoke.

"You mean to ask a Monarch to take action? For such a trivial matter, to send a Monarch to slaughter his way into Chu Capital of the Flame Wind Ancient Country?" The woman in the splendid robe shook her head, "First, if a Monarch takes action, it would be a case of the strong bullying the weak, and the whole Land of Origin would laugh at us."

"Second, in a place like Chu Capital, given the countless life-saving abilities of this Luo He's avatar, as well as the protection of Emperor Chu... Even if a Monarch could kill, Luo He would be able to reincarnate given just a little time. After reincarnation, Luo He will definitely hide himself. Once he becomes a Godly King, his strength will be much greater than now.

I fear it won't be inferior to me," the woman in the splendid robe said.

"Thirdly, don't forget the temperament of Emperor Chu! If our Monarch really bullies the weak by slaughtering his way into Chu Capital to kill his disciple, what would Emperor Chu do?" The woman in the splendid robe swept her gaze over those present.

The Godly Kings fell silent.

Indeed.

If Thunder Ancient Country first bullies the weak and acts tyrannically, Emperor Chu will certainly not endure it! Once Emperor Chu takes action, the other Emperors behind him, although they fight amongst themselves, will absolutely unite against outsiders.

"Most importantly, the border of the two great Ancient Countries is left for the Primal Chaos Realm beings to fight over. This is decided by the two Ancestors," said the woman in the splendid robe, "It's also to temper the Primal Chaos Realm of both countries! Let them fight and kill each other, and the strong get the resources.

Luo He is also of the Primal Chaos Realm; his struggle for the treasures of heaven and earth is completely within the rules. Now just because he is strong, you want to take action? Doesn't that make our Thunder Ancient Country seem petty?"

"To break the rules set by the Ancestor for such a small issue, what does that amount to?" the woman in the splendid robe said as she swept her gaze over her companions.

"What do you propose we do then? He's incessantly claiming the treasures of heaven and earth," the burly Godly King with blood-red eyes stared at her.

"Just talk to this Luo He — a small matter that can be resolved with a single negotiation," the woman in the splendid robe said, her smile sweeping over the group of Godly Kings.

A bunch of fools.

Indeed, she looked down on these companions. Without cultivating the Primordial Bloodline, she was already at the invincible level of the First Realm of a Godly King! She existed as an overlord of the Land of Origin.

She was ambitious, not relying on external forces to go farther. In the future, with the help of the Primordial Bloodline, she could become even stronger! She even hoped to become a new Monarch.

"I support Godly King Jiayin."

"Yes, we cannot break the rules of the Ancestor," chimed in three of the Godly Kings in rapid succession.

Monarch Lei Xiao nodded in satisfaction.

'Godly King Jiayin,' under his command, was the one he valued the most, having become a Godly King in the First Realm without relying on external forces to become invincible. In Thunder Ancient Country, strength spelled status. Godly King Jiayin was strong enough and absolutely level-headed! She handled matters very properly.

Most of the other Overlord-level existences were too insane and unrestrained.

"Jiayin, this matter is entrusted to you," said Monarch Lei Xiao.

"Yes, Monarch," the woman in the splendid robe responded.

Monarch Lei Xiao then stood up and had already vanished and departed. The woman in the splendid robe disappeared into thin air as well.

"Humph," the burly Godly King with bloodshot eyes was full of anger as he swept his gaze over where the woman in the splendid robe had vanished, "Cultivating the Origin Dao of the Infinite, always knowing to hide and hide."

He disliked Godly King Jiayin very much, he had even attempted to attack her, but he could never touch her.