Demon Slaying, Gaining 60 Years of Cultivation From the Start

The dean of Qingyun Academy handed the second piece of broken jade to Gu Chen.

At that moment, this supreme being's expression rarely became extremely solemn, and he said, "Regarding this piece of broken jade, even I do not know its exact origin. All I know is that before the shattering of Azure Cloud Sky, a predecessor had asserted that this jade was extraordinary and might contain astonishing secrets."

To be referred to as a predecessor by the dean of Qingyun Academy, one must undoubtedly possess immense strength and an extremely discerning eye.

Unfortunately, when Qingyun Academy obtained this piece of broken jade, the Ice Emperor had already led the powerful warriors of myriad realms to the battlefield to fend off enemies, so the lord of Azure Cloud Sky had never seen this jade.

Otherwise, he would certainly have been able to identify its true origin.

The dean of Qingyun Academy, Situ Yin, said, "This jade is a soul artifact hard to find in the upper realms, capable of helping cultivators calm their minds and concentrate, speeding up their cultivation, and even allowing them to enter an unfathomable state of enlightenment. It is extremely precious, even before the fall of Azure Cloud Sky, it was one of the most important artifacts."

Speaking of Azure Cloud Sky, the dean's voice also revealed a hint of lament. Clearly, that battle, even till now, is something this supreme being could not forget.

Gu Chen nodded, his emotions extremely stirred. He certainly knew what function the broken jade had, for now within his sea of consciousness, there already existed a piece of broken jade.

Originally, his reason for coming to Qingyun Academy was precisely for this second piece of broken jade he now held.

Now that his objective was accomplished, Gu Chen felt almost as if he were in a dream.

It was nothing else but because, the acquisition of this second piece of broken jade seemed too easy. He had thought that a great contribution would be needed to obtain it from Qingyun Academy.

Unexpectedly, today, the dean of Qingyun Academy just handed it over directly to him.

"Hopefully, one day, you will discover the true purpose of this piece of broken jade," the dean said.

Although the broken jade helped one comprehend the Dao, at the level of supreme beings, achieving sudden enlightenment was still extremely difficult.

"Thank you, Dean," Gu Chen said with a grave expression, bowing respectfully to the dean of Qingyun Academy.

According to the information he received from the Ice Emperor, there were four pieces of broken jade, and until now, it seemed no one had ever collected them all.

This was because they contained the most powerful legacy of all ages!

And this point was personally affirmed by the Ice Emperor, the supreme leader of myriad realms from the previous era.

It is said, the moment this legacy appeared, it was so defiant of the heavens that the firmament sensed it, sending down celestial punishment, breaking the legacy jade into four pieces.

As the endless years passed, countless great beings have yearned for this so-called strongest legacy of all ages, hoping to witness it, but ultimately, none were fated to do so.

The legacy jade was shattered, split into four, scattered across the realms, and to this day, no one has been able to collect all the pieces.

This so-called strongest legacy of all ages also never appeared in the world again.

And now, Gu Chen, a mere cultivator in the Huanxu Realm, already had acquired two pieces of broken jade, or in other words, he had already collected half!

Even Gu Chen had to spend some time calming his churning emotions.

The dean of Qingyun Academy seeing this, didn't think much of it, merely feeling that Gu Chen was a bit excited about obtaining the treasure.

After all, no one could imagine that Gu Chen also had another piece of broken jade.

Because, the conditions to obtain this first piece of broken jade were extremely stringent, and across the upper realms, it was hard to find someone capable of achieving this.

Just when Gu Chen had managed to calm his excited emotions, the dean of Qingyun Academy then announced an incredibly surprising piece of news.

"According to that sage from Azure Cloud Sky, this jade was divided into four parts, and only by collecting them all will one be able to understand what is truly contained within it. It is said that one piece of jade may appear soon in the upcoming grand battle of three thousand six hundred domains of Ten Thousand Tribes."

"What?!"

Upon hearing this news, Gu Chen was immediately shocked. He had not expected that just as he obtained the second piece of broken jade, he would hear news of the whereabouts of the third piece.

This caused his recently calmed emotions to once again become tense and excited.

The dean of Qingyun Academy looked at him and said, "Of course, it's only a possibility. That realm is profound and mysterious, containing multiple era inheritances. If there is the most likely place, it would indeed be there, and this era is extraordinary. An anomaly will also occur, and if you're lucky enough, you might truly obtain it."

"Thank you for informing me, Dean!" Gu Chen said gravely.

The dean of Qingyun Academy shook his head and said, "It's nothing, even if you do manage to get another piece, you are still far from truly collecting them all; don't celebrate too soon."

"Yes."

Gu Chen nodded, took a deep breath, and once again settled his turbulent emotions.

It can be said that this meeting with the dean of Qingyun Academy was truly a huge gain. Worthy of being a supreme being, he indeed possessed extraordinary knowledge, and also gave Gu Chen great hope.

"Perhaps, even the strongest legacy of all ages that even the Ice Emperor yearned for, one day, might truly be collected by me and reappear in my hands!" Gu Chen clenched his fists lightly.

"Actually, my intention in seeing you this time was to help you in your cultivation, but seeing your situation, it seems you also no longer need my help," the dean of Qingyun Academy glanced at Gu Chen, still somewhat shocked by the fact that a practitioner in the Huanxu Realm had grasped the supernatural abilities of tier three rank eight.

"With your talent, you do not need me to force your growth," the dean said with a light smile.

Gu Chen nodded. In terms of supernatural powers, he was never worried; even compared to those geniuses from the last era who had sealed themselves until now, he considered himself no weaker than anyone. Only his realm was his sole weakness.

At that moment, Gu Chen seemed to remember something and, seizing the opportunity, said gravely, "Dean, I have something to report."

"Speak," the dean of Qingyun Academy nodded.

Gu Chen, with a solemn expression, declared, "Dean, it is highly likely that the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty, a massive force in the Gray Domain, has secretly allied with the Holy Sect!"

"Oh?"

Upon hearing this, the dean of Qingyun Academy furrowed his brows slightly. The matter of the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty was no simple affair, or more accurately, nothing involving supreme beings ever was.

Gu Chen continued, "It's not because I have grievances with the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty that I say this, but rather because I saw it with my own eyes!"

Thereupon, Gu Chen recounted his past experiences in the secret realms of the Gray Domain and his confrontations with the Holy Sect to the dean of Qingyun Academy.

Regarding the fact that he came from the lower realms and was a descendant of Emperor Yu, Gu Chen hesitated for a moment but chose not to reveal everything just yet.

After all, both Emperor Yu and the Nine Cauldrons involved matters far too significant, and without real self-protection abilities, Gu Chen was not ready to disclose this to anyone else.

As for whether Chu Yueling of Taoxu Road would reveal anything, Gu Chen was confident in her.

Clearly, the saintess had not informed the dean of Qingyun Academy about his true heritage.

"So, the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty has already fallen to the Holy Sect?" At this moment, the dean of Qingyun Academy looked serious, obviously, he was unaware of this news.

Seizing the opportunity, Gu Chen inquired, "If I may ask, Dean, how many supreme beings exist within the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty?"

The dean of Qingyun Academy gave Gu Chen a look and said, "One."

"Is it their ancient ancestor who founded the nation?" Gu Chen pressed on.

"No,"

The dean of Qingyun Academy shook his head and said, "The ancestor of the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty has been missing for many years, and only recently, there were rumors that he was still alive. However, the specifics are unknown to anyone outside the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty."

At that moment, Gu Chen's eyes narrowed, and he tentatively asked, "I once heard that the ancient ancestor of the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty had ties with the leader of the Human Clan from the ancient times—Emperor Yu, and it even related to the truth behind his demise. Do you know if this is true or not?"

"Hmm?"

The dean appeared slightly surprised upon Gu Chen bringing this up, but he did not hide anything and said, "It is likely false because, if all goes as suspected, the real perpetrator behind the death of Emperor Yu is the Holy Sect…"

At this point, the dean paused, his expression turning alarmed as he suddenly looked at Gu Chen and frowned, saying, "Are you suggesting that the ancestor of the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty sided with the Holy Sect, and so the rumors spread that it was he who killed Emperor Yu?"

"I am merely speculating," Gu Chen shook his head.

The dean of Qingyun Academy fell into thought for a moment, finding Gu Chen's speculation had quite a bit of merit.

Rumors about supreme beings usually didn't arise out of nothing. The death of Emperor Yu remains a mystery to this day, with the truth unknown and various possibilities speculated about.

Regardless of what others may say, the supreme beings know there is a high probability that the Holy Sect was behind Emperor Yu's death. As for the rumors around the world, even involving the ancient ancestor of the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty, there is only one reason the supreme beings would not believe them.

That is, Emperor Yu's strength was simply too formidable!

Indeed, why did Emperor Yu become the leader of the Human Clan during the ancient times? Not only for his achievements but naturally, his strength was a crucial factor!

One could say that during Emperor Yu's reign, his very presence nearly subdued the entire upper realm, and he was just half a step away from becoming what one might call the supreme among the heavens!

Yet, it was this half step that hindered Emperor Yu's progress. Afterwards, in an effort to stabilize his dominion, he created the Nine Cauldrons.

Unfortunately, not long after the completion of the Nine Cauldrons, Emperor Yu perished, and the entire upper realm was in turmoil.

"Emperor Yu was indeed a great figure, one with a significant chance of becoming the 'Ice Emperor' of this era,"

Even the dean of Qingyun Academy was overwhelmed with emotion when mentioning Emperor Yu, for during that period, even the Holy Sect did not dare to act rashly.

Sadly, not long after Emperor Yu's death, the Holy Sect instigated a catastrophe in the upper realm, resulting in countless deaths.

"The Nine Cauldrons of Emperor Yu are also treasures hard to find in the upper realm, even ranking at the very top in the previous era. But following Emperor Yu's demise, they too vanished completely, and such a being, in the end, left behind no heirs," the dean of Qingyun Academy sighed.

Thereupon, he glanced at Gu Chen and warned, "Except for myself, do not discuss this matter with anyone else, understand?"

"I understand," Gu Chen nodded.

After all, the matter involved far too many aspects, and the span of time was incredibly long. From the ancient era to the present, it spanned over millions of years, and too many details had been buried in the sands of time.

The role of the ancient ancestor of the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty at the time of Emperor Yu's death, and the means by which the Holy Sect acted, were unknown even to the dean of Qingyun Academy.

Even the so-called immortal-level masters of Dao might not know the truth.

Even now, the matter is shrouded in silence among all parties.

It would be best for Gu Chen, a junior, to stay far away from these issues to avoid attracting deadly trouble, in which case even the personal intervention of the dean of Qingyun Academy would not guarantee his safety.

The upper realm was vast, and there was no shortage of secluded old monsters; no one, not even the immortal-level masters of Dao, nor the ancient ancestors of the top ten tribes, could claim to be invincible throughout the world.

"As for the matters of the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty, I will investigate them. As for you, focus on preparing for the Ten Thousand Tribes war in the coming period, and after some time, I will take you to a place," said the dean of Qingyun Academy before his figure completely vanished.

Clearly, the news from Gu Chen had somewhat shaken this supreme being, compelling him to investigate further.