# Chapter 194: The Approaching Ranking Battle
Mystic Heaven Supreme Treasure, ranked number one!
A mortal wielding it can slay gods and destroy the heavens!
Every word describing this Ancestral Heaven-Slaying Sword sent a profound shock through one's soul. It was like a mythical sword from legend—powerful, yet so ethereal that it shouldn't even exist.
As another Mystic Heaven Supreme Treasure, Yun Che knew all too well the power of the Heavenly Poison Pearl. With a single Heavenly Poison Pearl in his possession, he—whose strength was only mid-tier back then—had rampaged across the Cang Yun Continent for seven whole years, slaughtering countless powerful beings far stronger than himself. And the core ability of the Heavenly Poison Pearl wasn't even destruction, yet it was already that terrifying. The Ancestral Heaven-Slaying Sword, ranked number one, must be unimaginably powerful.
The claim that a mortal could slay gods and destroy the heavens was obviously somewhat exaggerated, but it was enough to demonstrate its extreme power.
"Why do you want me to find this sword?" Yun Che asked, still shaken.
"Because..." The Primordial Azure Dragon's voice suddenly turned sorrowful. "Inside the Ancestral Heaven-Slaying Sword is sealed my daughter! Both her body and soul are imprisoned within that sword!"
Yun Che: "Your... daughter?"
Mo Li: "...!!"
"After the gods were destroyed, the Ancestral Heaven-Slaying Sword never appeared again. I yearned for it to be found, yet I also feared it being found. Because if it is never found, my daughter will remain sealed inside that sword forever, enduring eternal darkness and loneliness. But if that sword is found... if the one who obtains it harbors even a trace of greed or malice, after he unseals it, my daughter will become that person's cauldron... After all, my daughter possesses the complete Dragon God bloodline!"
"Then you want me to find that sword so that..."
The Primordial Azure Dragon said in a heavy voice, "I trust in your character. You are someone who can be trusted. If that sword falls into your hands, I believe my daughter can be saved."
Yun Che laughed self-deprecatingly and said, "Primordial Azure Dragon, I'm not refusing your request, but... you think too highly of me. I've never even heard of the place you mentioned, let alone know where it is. And as you said, that place is the highest plane of existence in this world. The people there all carry various true god powers, passed down through countless generations. I'm just a small True Xuan Realm profound practitioner. That place, that level, is far too distant for me. Whether I can even leave the Cang Feng Empire in this lifetime is unknown. There's simply no way I could reach the place you speak of."
"I understand," the Primordial Azure Dragon said slowly. "The difficulty of this request far exceeds climbing to the heavens. I have no right to demand that you must accomplish it. I simply hope that if one day you truly set foot in the Realm of the Gods, you might attempt to seek out the Ancestral Heaven-Slaying Sword. If you never leave this continent in your lifetime, then you can forever forget my words."
The reason the Primordial Azure Dragon made this astonishing request to Yun Che was most importantly because of Mo Li's existence. Without Mo Li, Yun Che truly would have had no connection whatsoever to that world, and might never have known of its existence in his lifetime. But Mo Li's life was now attached to him, and the divine power he possessed all came from Mo Li. Whether he would one day set foot in that world was no longer a question with only a negative answer.
Since the Primordial Azure Dragon had said this much, Yun Che had nothing else to say. He nodded seriously and replied, "Alright. I've remembered everything you've said. If one day I truly reach that place, I will definitely try to find the sword you spoke of... And if I do find it, I will do my utmost to find a way to break the seal, so your daughter can see the light of day again."
"...Your voice is sincere and genuine, and your soul didn't tremble even once. I was right about you. Thank you for this promise." The Primordial Azure Dragon said with relief. "Our Dragon God Clan never owes anyone. I won't let you make this promise for nothing... This remnant soul of mine exists by depending on the Dragon God's Blood. Opening the trial secret realm and offering the Dragon God's Blood has greatly depleted me. This remnant soul can last at most another three years. And this is my final soul. The remnant souls I left elsewhere have all dissipated after completing their inheritances. I originally wanted to leave all my final things to you, but unfortunately, your current strength level is too low. Even with the divine power of the Evil God and the Desolate God protecting you, you simply cannot bear it."
"I will wait for you for three years. If you reach the Earth Xuan Realm within three years, then come back to this place to find me. I will bestow upon you my final 'Dragon God's Marrow' and 'Dragon God's Soul'!"
"But I can only wait for you for three years. After three years, aside from my concerns, everything I have will vanish like smoke and disperse like clouds."
Dragon God's Marrow, Dragon God's Soul... No matter what they were, anything bearing the name "Dragon God"—even a single hair that fell from the Dragon God's body—would be an extremely powerful item. Such a temptation was something Yun Che naturally couldn't resist: "Alright! I will definitely reach the Earth Xuan Realm within three years... no, at most two years! When that time comes, I will come find you immediately."
"Heh heh, good... good."
The Primordial Azure Dragon agreed gladly, and then his azure blue eyes slowly faded from above.
The darkness around Yun Che quickly dissipated, and a dim light appeared. Yun Che looked around and found himself back in the center of the Death Wasteland, inside that dark cave.
"It's time for you to leave. Remember my words: when you reach the Earth Xuan Realm, you must return to find me. This is not for your sake, but to gain one more sliver of hope for my daughter."
"Don't worry, with such a great benefit, I won't forget," Yun Che replied.
"Then what's next? Are you planning to return to the place you mentioned earlier?"
Yun Che looked toward the cave's exit, feeling the power now surging within his body. He clenched his fists and said solemnly, "What I need to do right now is walk out of the center of this Death Wasteland alive!"
The center of the Death Wasteland was the territory of Heavenly Xuan beasts, and further out was the territory of Earth Xuan beasts. When he arrived, he had Chu Yuechan's protection, but now he was alone. For Yun Che at his current level, these two vast areas were undoubtedly terrifying death zones, where every step was fraught with danger.
Walking out of the Death Wasteland was a challenge for him that was almost as difficult as the Dragon God trial. But this "challenge" didn't frighten Yun Che at all. His profound power had surged across six levels in seven days, and he desperately needed a lot of combat to stabilize his soaring strength.
"I wish you all the best."
Yun Che smiled and nodded, bidding farewell to the Primordial Azure Dragon. Then he took a deep breath and charged toward the cave's exit, stepping into the thoroughly perilous Death Wasteland...
---
Time flew by, and before anyone knew it, the date of the Cang Feng Ranking Battle was drawing closer.
The Cang Feng Ranking Battle, once held every ten years, had now been compressed to every three years. Although the frequency was somewhat frequent, the major sects' emphasis on it had not diminished in the slightest.
The results of the Cang Feng Ranking Battle determined a sect's standing. The most authoritative way to prove one's strength was to achieve a good ranking in the Cang Feng Ranking Battle. If an originally obscure sect suddenly emerged and broke into the top hundred, that sect would inevitably become famous overnight, and countless disciples would come to its gates seeking admission.
For the sects at the peak, their rankings were incredibly important, as it determined their position and prestige for the next three years.
But rankings were only part of the reason the major sects valued the Cang Feng Ranking Battle. Other reasons included: First, the top ten disciples in the ranking battle would receive extremely generous rewards, especially the top three, whose rewards came from the Tian Wei Sword Domain—one of the Four Sacred Grounds—treasures that couldn't be bought even with ten thousand gold, and that even the top sects of the Cang Feng Empire couldn't produce. Second, the top ten sects in the ranking battle would qualify to explore the "Heavenly Pool Secret Realm," which opened once every three years.
And this "Heavenly Pool Secret Realm" was the thing all sects valued most.
The only reason the Cang Feng Ranking Battle had been compressed to every three years was that the opening time of the "Heavenly Pool Secret Realm" had shortened from once every ten years to every five years, and then to every three years.
To this day, no one knew where the "Heavenly Pool Secret Realm" came from. There were only rumors that it was an independent space opened up long ago by super-strong practitioners at least at the Lord Xuan Realm, which had somehow come to the Cang Feng Empire. But what its true origin was didn't matter. What was undeniable was that the Heavenly Pool Secret Realm was filled with countless treasures. Every time sect disciples entered it, they would return with abundant gains. Moreover, although the "Heavenly Pool Secret Realm" had been opened many times, no one had ever reached its edge. Everyone believed that the greatest treasure hidden within this secret realm had yet to be found.
As the start date of the Cang Feng Ranking Battle drew nearer, the major sects were all busily preparing.
The Cangfeng Mystic Palace was no exception, though for certain reasons, this year's preparations seemed particularly rushed. With only three days left until the ranking battle, many sects had already set out on the journey to Tian Jian Villa. Yet the Cangfeng Mystic Palace was still conducting the final selection of participating disciples.
At Cang Yue's wish, the inner palace selection, which should have been held a month ago, was delayed by more than half a month.
It wasn't until evening today that the selection of participating disciples was finally completed. Qin Wushang hurriedly went in person to Lan Yue Palace, where Cang Yue resided, and informed her of the selection results.
"Princess, the results of the inner palace selection are in. As expected, they are exactly the top three of the Inner Palace Heavenly Xuan List."
Cang Yue calmly took the list that Qin Wushang handed over, but Qin Wushang could feel the sorrow beneath her calm... and a kind of near-heartbroken indifference. He sighed deeply. He could only sigh. That Yun Che not only had astonishing profound talent but also seemed to have some kind of magic power, actually making Cang Yue, who had even resolutely rejected Fen Juecheng, fall for him, to the point where she was willing to be heartbroken to death over him.
"Fang Feilong, Spirit Xuan Realm Level 2; Feng Bufan, Spirit Xuan Realm Level 3; Fen Juechen, Spirit Xuan Realm Level 5..." Cang Yue recited the names on the list softly, absentmindedly. "So it's exactly the top three of the Inner Palace Heavenly Xuan List. If I remember correctly, when I returned to the palace eight months ago, Fang Feilong and Feng Bufan had already turned twenty. Won't their ages exceed the limit?"
"Rest assured, Princess. Fang Feilong and Feng Bufan still have about a month before they turn twenty-one, so they are still within the twenty-year age limit. I even specifically used a mysterious stone to test their bone ages, and both showed twenty years old," Qin Wushang said respectfully.
...