The Legend of the Great Desolation: I Am the Fortress

Chapter 160 Palace Master
Wang Shu's hands were slender and fair.

It's very soft and feels comfortable to the touch.

"Wang Shu, be my Daoist partner." Lei Zhan's voice was very soft, but when he looked into Wang Shu's eyes, his gaze was incredibly firm.

"Huh?" Wang Shu was stunned.

For thousands of years, their cave dwellings on Fangcun Mountain have been close together, and their feelings for each other have been vague.

Although, she would sometimes dream of revealing her true feelings to Lei Zhan in the dead of night.

This idea became even stronger five hundred years ago, after Wangshu himself survived the heavenly tribulation.

However, she could sense Lei Zhan's apprehension; whether intentionally or unintentionally, he had been avoiding it.

But today...

When Wang Shu saw the rich emotions in Lei Zhan's eyes, her heart trembled.

"The path of cultivation is long and arduous, and I no longer wish to avoid it." Lei Zhan looked at Wang Shu, "Would you be willing to be my cultivation partner?"

"A Daoist partner?" Wang Shu looked over as well, a smile on her face. "I would be more than willing to become your Daoist partner."

But suddenly.

A sly glint appeared in her eyes. "But regarding your Daoist partner, do you want one... or two?"

"I agree, but I don't know if that withered grass fairy will agree..."

"Hmm?" Lei Zhan was taken aback, then smiled. "I'm glad you're willing. As for the withered grass, I'll talk to her about it."

Now that his mental strength has reached the fourth level of development, his Dao heart is truly remarkable. Once he has made up his mind, he will naturally not back down because of a few words of ridicule.

Moreover, during his inner demon tribulation, he saw through his own heart and understood what he truly desired.

"Huh?" Wang Shu was somewhat taken aback.

Should we talk to the withered grass again?

"'Junior Brother' really thinking of having two women on each side?" Wang Shu glared fiercely at Lei Zhan, then burst out laughing.

"Let me think about it first!"

As he spoke, he vanished from the spot.

"Junior brother, you..." The Silver Moon Celestial God and the others watched this rather dramatic scene with smiles on their faces:

"Other people usually only need one partner. But my junior brother thinks about having two women on each side, and he wants the blessing of having multiple wives."

"Tsk tsk tsk! Love and romance are such a hassle!" Sun Wukong scratched his head and laughed.

"However, everyone has witnessed Junior Sister's feelings for Junior Brother. It's probably just a joke," Jiang Jun added sarcastically. "Whether it will become a beautiful story in the end... depends on Junior Brother himself!"

……

Water Palace, Main Hall.

The yellow-haired bear and the red-snowy god were already waiting there.

Wow~~~
Lei Zhan's figure suddenly appeared in the main hall, dressed in a golden robe, and naturally exuding the fluctuations of a celestial being.

"Lord of the Manor." Both the Crimson Snow God and the Yellow-haired Bear looked at Lei Zhan, their expressions excited, and respectfully knelt on one knee: "Greetings, Lord of the Manor!"

"Get up. I don't follow that kneeling custom here." Lei Zhan laughed. "Besides, Hong Xue and I are both teacher and friend. She gave me a lot of guidance when I was young."

"Yes." The yellow-haired bear and the red-snowy god then stood up.

"Are you two the only ones under Master Sanshou Daoren now?" Lei Zhan asked curiously. In his memory, even in later generations, there were still seven celestial gods of Zhaixing Palace.

Even if the Nine-Toothed God has not yet passed the Heavenly Tribulation, there are still at least six others.

Now, only a little over 100 million years have passed since the ancient cataclysmic war ended. It is impossible for the once-renowned Star-Picking Palace to be reduced to just a few celestial gods and immortals, unlike in later generations.

"Currently, my Star-Picking Mansion lineage still has fifteen Celestial Gods and True Immortals."

The Crimson Snow God glanced at the Yellow-Haired Bear and slowly said, "However, apart from Yuan Guang, Snow Scorpion, Dove Serpent, Blazing Sun, Mysterious Moon, Nine Phoenixes, and Crying Serpent, the rest of them also intended to leave after learning of the God King's death..."

The few celestial beings and immortals that the Red Snow Celestial God mentioned who were still unwilling to leave were mostly those who were willing to stay even after countless years.

"Hmm? The rest all intend to leave?" Lei Zhan nodded.

As for the few who wanted to leave, Lei Zhan didn't care at all.

After all, he was not his master, the Daoist Sanshou, who had fought and fought in ancient times and established a great reputation. Moreover, he himself was a powerful true god.

Since those gods were willing to leave, it was a good ending.

"Since they are willing to leave, let them go!" Lei Zhan said calmly. "However, let Yuan Guang Tianshen and the others who are willing to stay come out and meet us."

"Yes." The Red Snow God nodded, then turned to the Yellow-haired Bear, "Bear, let Yuan Guang and the others come out."

The yellow-haired bear nodded and waved his hand, and seven or eight figures exuding powerful auras appeared out of thin air around him.

They all appeared out of thin air, each with excitement in their eyes. All seven of them looked at Lei Zhan with excitement and anticipation.

He then respectfully knelt on one knee: "Greetings, Lord of the Manor!"

"Get up, all of you." Lei Zhan smiled. "I only became the master of this Zhaixing Mansion because I inherited the teachings of my master, Daoist Sanshou."

"As for the years of cultivation, each of you has been cultivating for much longer than me. As for cultivation level, I am just like you, merely a Celestial God or True Immortal."

"The Lord of the Palace is indeed the Lord of the Palace." Yuan Guang Heavenly God said with a smile, "We all heard it from Hong Xue. The Lord of the Palace already possessed the strength of a True Immortal God when he was still in the Void Returning stage. Now, his second primordial spirit is undergoing the Heavenly God Tribulation, which has attracted unprecedented innate heavenly lightning..."

"Indeed. Fan Yu and the others are all short-sighted. Little do they know that the tribulation the Lord of the Palace is undergoing is an innate tribulation even more terrifying than the Pure Yang Golden Light Tribulation. Becoming a True God Dao Ancestor is only a matter of time!" Snow Scorpion Celestial God also laughed. Snow Scorpion Celestial God and Red Snow Celestial God were both generals commanding armies under the Three Longevity Daoist. Facing those Celestial Gods and True Immortals who harbored resentment, she was also extremely dissatisfied.

But before the God-King departed, he left a message: 'If any celestial being or immortal wishes to leave, they should not be stopped.'

Even the Snow Scorpion God, as one of the leaders, was unwilling to disobey the orders left by the God King.

"Fan Yu and the others? Let them go if they want," Lei Zhan said with a smile.
"Today is a joyous day. Apart from Hongxue, this is the first time I have met any of you."

“Big Bear.” Lei Zhan turned to look at the blond-haired Big Bear. “Please introduce these seven to me.”

"Okay." The big yellow bear nodded and introduced them one by one.

Yuan Guang, Jiu She, Xue Xie... Lei Zhan was familiar with all of their names, having met them all before.

Lei Zhan took an extra look at the Nine Phoenixes and the Crying Serpent, which he had never heard of before.

Like the Nine-Heavenly Gods, the Nine-Phoenix and the Crying Serpent are both true divine beasts born when the ancient Pangu world was created, and their strength is extraordinary.

"Master."

Red Snow Goddess looked at Lei Zhan, "It seems that they are all very convinced of the Lord's authority. Last time we met, I was worried that the Lord wouldn't be able to convince them."

"But in the blink of an eye, a thousand years have passed. The Lord of the Palace has reached the third level in his understanding of the power of origin, and he has also survived the tribulation of karmic fire. His mental strength is also at the third level. At the same time, he has become a disciple of both the Bodhi Patriarch and the Buddha Tathagata..."

Each and every single one of these feats would be astonishing even to an ordinary cultivator. Yet Lei Zhan accomplished them all.

Having already reached the Void Returning stage, he possesses the strength of a Celestial God or True Immortal. Now that he has passed the strongest Celestial God Tribulation, breaking through to True God is only a matter of time.

Unless, they've all gone mad.

Otherwise, how could they not be convinced?
"Indeed. Under the leadership of the Palace Master, my Star-Picking Palace lineage will be able to regain the prestige it once had when the God King was alive," said the Nine Phoenix God with a smile.

“God King…” Red Snow God’s eyes suddenly became distant, and everyone else fell silent.

They were all the most loyal to Daoist Sanshou; otherwise, even after hundreds of millions of years had passed and a thousand years had gone by after the news of Daoist Sanshou's death was brought, they would still be willing to stay.

Of course, this cannot be ruled out that the team's own reasons also play a role.

However, their loyalty to the God King Sanshou Daoren and to the Zhaixing Mansion is beyond question.

……

Empty space.

Lei Zhan and the eight gods stood in mid-air, looking down at the world below.

"This is the great world hidden deep within the Star-Picking Palace. It is also the foundation of my Star-Picking Palace lineage, the Star-Picking Great World." The Crimson Snow God pointed to the vast world below and said softly.

"The Star-Picking World." Lei Zhan also looked down, where five towering, cloud-piercing peaks were connected together, resembling a giant palm.

Lei Zhan had an idea.

boom!
Instantly, an invisible mental force surged and expanded wildly, and the mental force that had already reached the fourth level quickly enveloped the entire Star-Picking Great World.

"Hmm? Those gods and immortals haven't left yet?" Lei Zhan wondered. He swept his invisible mental energy over them, but it didn't attract their attention at all.

"However, the Star-Picking Great World currently has more than 5,000 Celestial Immortals, more than 2 million Earth Immortals and Loose Immortals, and more than 100,000 Void Returning Gods and Demons... It's not bad."

Lei Zhan was satisfied. The ancient war of destruction had only lasted for hundreds of millions of years. Although the Star-Picking Great World was spared from war and was able to recuperate, the fact that so many immortals and demons remained was far beyond his expectations.

It should be noted that in the entire Great Xia world, the number of Celestial Immortals currently existing is no more than this.

This is still the reason why cultivators in the Great Xia world can travel and adventure in the Three Realms, making it easier for them to break through to higher realms.

"Hmm? Lord of the Palace... how do you know so much?" Red Snow God, Snow Scorpion God, and the others were all stunned for a moment, but then they understood what was going on.

"The Lord of the Palace was able to silently probe the entire Great World without our knowledge. It must not be his mind. It must be... mental power." Yuan Guang, the Heavenly God, looked at Lei Zhan with admiration. "The Lord of the Palace's talent for mental power is truly terrifying. He can easily cover an entire Great World for exploration..."

"Mental power capable of covering the entire Star-Picking Great World..." Snow Scorpion God and the others were all astonished. Even they had to rely on their mental power to fully explore the entire Star-Picking Great World.

The strength of one's consciousness is determined by the strength of one's soul. They have all cultivated for countless years, possessing extremely strong souls, and naturally, they can use their consciousness to explore the entire Great World of Star Picking.

Heart Power...

One by one, they began to mutter to themselves, "The mental power that can cover an entire great world... that must be a renowned archer from ancient times! At least their mental power must be at the peak of the third level! Perhaps..."

Although they were all strong, their talent for mental power was quite average. Their understanding of the opponent's strength was merely guesswork. They also possessed some basic knowledge of mental power.

But none of them dared to speculate further. After all, that possibility was simply too astonishing. To reach the fourth level of mental power in just over a thousand years... Apart from the great god Hou Yi back then, no one in the entire Three Realms had ever heard of such a thing.

The Red Snow Goddess smiled and continued:
"If the Lord of the Manor's Heavenly Tribulation is this terrifying, then the Tribulation of the Heart Demon is even more so. To be able to overcome that level of Tribulation of the Heart Demon... one's Dao Heart is extraordinary, and one's mental strength is naturally also extremely remarkable."

The Snow Scorpion God also wore a smile, "Many of the Celestial Immortals in the Star-Picking Great World have broken through in the past hundred million years. But these hundred thousand-plus gods and demons have all lived since ancient times, and as for those who have broken through to become Celestial Gods... not a single one of them has done so."

"Hmm." Lei Zhan nodded and smiled. "It's alright. Once my Star-Picking Palace lineage re-emerges from the Three Realms, those gods and demons will be able to receive better training and tempering, making their breakthroughs easier."

Lei Zhan understood the meaning of the Snow Scorpion God.

Although the gods and demons are far stronger than cultivators of the same level who cultivate Qi, their talents are generally not high, and their comprehension of the Dao is pitifully weak.

However, the Star-Picking World has always been closed off, so these gods, demons, and even cultivators cannot get tempered, making it even more difficult for them to break through.

To break through to the Void Returning level is at least comparable to a million-year-old Loose Immortal.

There will be no excessive expectations for the team's development.

……

(End of this chapter)