“The Human Emperor,” Shi Haoli said. The person in question was none other than the Human Emperor of the Shi Kingdom.

"Stone Emperor, it's been many years. Your cultivation has improved quite a bit." Cao Ya laughed heartily. He and Stone Emperor had known each other for many years.

"I cannot compare to you; you are already a god." The Stone Emperor waved his hand and sighed softly.

Even in the upper realms of the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, a being in the realm of gods would be considered a powerful figure, right? In this lower realm, needless to say, they are basically invincible.

Shi Huang sighed. Many years ago, Cao Ya's cultivation was inferior to his, but now he has far surpassed him.

Having learned of the whereabouts of the Mountain Treasure, the Stone Emperor paused his departure. Although he was about to leave, there was no need for him to be in such a hurry; he had to get his hands on the Mountain Treasure and learn the ancient secret techniques within it.

"Stop reminiscing, let's go, or someone else will get there first..." Furball urged.

“The Sage Honghu is no weakling; ordinary people can’t snatch anything from him,” Cao Ya said with a smile.

The three people and the monkey left the Stone Kingdom, traveled through a magic array, and finally arrived at the Flood Domain. They concealed their cultivation aura and quietly made their way there.

The Flood Domain is one of the Eight Domains, and the number of powerful individuals within it is no less than that of the Desolate Domain.

Although Cao Ya is an invincible god in the lower realm, he is not the kind of battle maniac or bloodthirsty maniac. Why drag unnecessary battles into the conflict if they can be avoided?

Lakes stretch out in large areas, their waters a vast expanse of blue.

This is a group of lakes, where various waterfowl spread their wings and schools of fish swim in the lakes.

One of the large lakes, with towering rocky mountains and an aura of spiritual energy, sits in the center of the lake.

An old Taoist priest, with white hair and emaciated, sat cross-legged on a futon, chanting scriptures, the sound echoing around him. His vitality was not particularly strong, but neither was it declining; he had not yet reached the point of physical and mental exhaustion in his later years.

His eyes occasionally opened and closed, runes flashed, and divine light appeared.

No one expected that this was actually a powerful figure who was about to touch the realm of true godhood, with divine fire surging and extending his lifespan.

He is the Sage of the Swan, a master of birds who has lived for a very long time, and the master of the Devouring Sky Sparrow.

Rumors circulated that he had long since died, killed by his own disciple, and that in his later years he was swallowed whole by the Sky-Devouring Sparrow, meeting a tragic end.

No one expected that he was still alive and was studying some kind of ancient divine scripture, but unfortunately, his progress was slow and he did not achieve a breakthrough.

Otherwise, he should be a true god.

The Divine Fire Realm is merely a false god; the divine fire may be extinguished.

"You've arrived." Sage Honghu opened his eyes and looked beyond the lake.

Whoosh!

Three streaks of light rushed over and finally landed, revealing the figures of Cao Ya, Shi Huang, and Shi Hao. Mao Qiu jumped off Shi Hao's body and circled around the Sage Honghu, quite surprised.

"You actually became a god?!"

"Just lucky." Sage Honghu sighed, as if there was a secret behind this breakthrough.

He looked at Cao Ya, cupped his hands in greeting, and said with considerable surprise:

"I had long heard of Fellow Daoist Cao's name, but now that I have met him, I realize that the rumors were not exaggerated, but rather weakened many of your strength."

Rumors say that Cao Ya is a god who has become a god, a god of the lower realm, but he is only at the Divine Fire Realm, just like him. However, upon seeing him, Sage Honghu immediately knew that Cao Ya was definitely not at the Divine Fire Realm, but had even surpassed the True God Realm, and should be at the Heavenly God Realm.

"Fellow Daoist, your cultivation level is so high that even in the Upper Realm, there aren't many like you," the Sage Honghu exclaimed in amazement.

"Fellow Daoist is mistaken. In the Upper Realm, the Heavenly Gods are passable, but to say they are strong... that's a joke." Cao Ya waved his hand and said, "Among the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, the One of Escape reigns supreme, and the Supreme One dominates. Only the Immortal Dao figures are missing."

The group of people were stunned for a moment, then their hearts trembled slightly, and their faces showed a look of horror.

"Is the Upper Realm really that terrifying?" Shi Hao asked, moved.

In his mind, the things that have been praised in the lower realm since ancient times are mostly divine fire, and a few are true gods or heavenly gods. Although the upper realm is strong, those who become gods should be presentable. The best among the gods—the heavenly gods—should be powerful figures in their own right.

According to some casual observers, gods seem to be quite common in the upper realms.

Those are gods!

"Hey, this is still the weakest era in history. If it were the Immortal Era..." Cao Ya chuckled. The Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, which didn't even have True Immortals, were indeed the weakest in history.

In the ancient era of immortals, there were not only true immortals, but also many legendary immortal kings who were said to have awe-inspiring power over all the heavens.

However, even the weakest of the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths completely overwhelmed the Eight Regions of the Lower Realm.

"That kind of vast world is where we cultivators should exist," the Stone Emperor said leisurely, his expression filled with longing.

“Yes, the longevity substances in the upper realm should be more abundant than those in the lower realm.” Saint Honghu nodded.

Often, the reason why many venerable ones fail to become gods is simply because they lack a few hundred years of lifespan, their blood and energy decline prematurely, and they miss the opportunity to become gods.

If one were in the upper realm, there would be no such worry.

But the upper realm is not something one can simply ascend to at will.

For the powerful figures standing at the pinnacle of the Eight Domains, the truth that the Eight Domains are a cage is something they all understand to some extent.

Since it's a cage, how could the upper realm easily allow the creatures imprisoned in the lower realm to leave?

The Stone Emperor and the Sage Honghu sighed with emotion, but Shi Hao and Maoqiu were unmoved, as they still had plenty of lifespan to squander and had no understanding of this.

Cao Ya also had some feelings; with so many versions of herself, it was always a bit touching.

Although they came for Shanbao, the two sides got along quite well after meeting, without any tension.

“I know why you’ve come,” said the Sage Honghu. He had discovered the Stone Kingdom’s spies, but he was not the Devouring Sparrow and did not wish to commit further bloodshed.

Besides, he is at the Divine Fire Realm; how could he possibly be afraid of an ordinary person?

If other deities come here, he will be delighted and discuss the way of the true god and the heavenly god together.

However, what came was actually a celestial being, which was beyond his expectations.

"Old man, you're really slippery. Everyone said you were eaten by your disciple, but even though your disciple is dead, you're still alive and kicking, and you even broke through to the Divine Fire Realm and got his mountain treasure." Maoqiu grinned.

“Zhu Yan, you’re joking.” Sage Honghu smiled bitterly and recounted the past, saying, “Actually, I should have withered away and passed away in the passage of time, but when I was nearing the end of my life, a spiritual body sat in meditation, and my disciple mistook it for me and swallowed it in one gulp.”

"Our sect is in trouble," said the Stone Emperor.

The Sage Honghu sighed, his voice filled with sorrow and chilling dismay. That was his disciple whom he had carefully taught, yet she had dared to plot against him in his old age when his health was failing. Fortunately, he had been alert and sensed something was wrong, so he sacrificed himself in her spirit form.

At that time, his vitality was depleted, and he was no longer able to defeat the Sky-Devouring Sparrow.

"Because of this incident, I was spurred on. A stubborn belief remained in my heart, and I actually managed to endure it. Later, I became a god, extended my lifespan, and escaped the situation of being exhausted and dying," said the Sage Honghu.

He was always a powerful figure with an unwavering Dao heart, and that persistent belief became the opportunity for the revival of the Sage Honghu.

"After I became a god, during the period of consolidating my realm, I heard the news that my disciple had been killed by Fellow Daoist Cao. I must thank you for cleaning up my sect." Saint Honghu clasped his hands in thanks.

“That mountain treasure originally belonged to Zhu Yan. Now that you have all come together, it will be returned to you.”

The Sage Honghu pointed to the stone table.

On the stone table there was a cube-shaped bone, as white as jade, with a crystalline luster.

It was Shanbao from back then!

Cao Ya, Shi Huang, Shi Hao, and Mao Qiu looked at the crystal-clear mountain treasure on the stone table with burning desire in their eyes.