"Hmm, Thunder Punishment Celestial Venerable, being able to serve as a Celestial Venerable for two epochs is already quite displeasing!"
Cao Ya thought to himself, "Northwest Thunder Punishment City, due to its special circumstances of controlling calamities, is destined to always have a Celestial Venerable in charge to deter villains!"
However, this Thunder Punishment Celestial Venerable can only reign for two cycles. The next time Celestial Venerable Mountain descends and a new Celestial Venerable is chosen, the Thunder Punishment Celestial Venerable will perish and be reincarnated endlessly, perhaps as a pig or a dog!
In Thunder Punishment City, a peerless genius will rise on his own, without relying on any initiation, and purely through his own efforts, comprehend the laws of space and time, and attain the Dao of Heavenly Venerable!
And this Zhou Qing is the eternal Celestial Venerable of Thunder Punishment City for all time to come!
"Using connections happens everywhere, even in the realm of gods," Cao Ya sighed.
If one receives a reward based on their abilities, or if they are extremely hardworking and admirable, thus earning a reward from the heavens, there is no problem at all.
But Zhou Xian relied on connections!
Among the group of candidates, Zhou Xian's abilities, if not the worst, are definitely not among the top few!
If it weren't for Lei Fa City's selfish motives, Zhou Xian would have absolutely no chance of meeting the Heavenly Venerable!
But who can blame him when Lei Fa Tian Zun is his grandfather!
The third generation of gods are just that unreasonable!
But Qin Yu's situation is different from others! No matter how many generations of gods or celestial venerables you are, in the end, you will all be surpassed!
Initially, Qin Yu obtained the "Stellar Transformation" technique by chance, but later, when the technique reached its limit, Qin Yu wanted to create a new realm on his own.
In this process, all he could rely on was himself.
The ability to connect to the primordial chaos and create a new universe is also a testament to Qin Yu's talent!
Even if someone else were to cultivate the Stellar Transformation technique, they would never reach this level!
Cao Ya shook his head. Among the three Heavenly Venerables, there was also the Thunder Punishment Heavenly Venerable, whom he greatly feared.
The Celestial Venerable of Floating Feathers and the Celestial Venerable of Freedom are both very particular, but the Celestial Venerable of Thunder Punishment is reckless and willful!
Cao Ya then continued climbing the Heavenly Staircase, unaffected by the scene.
Everyone who saw it was full of admiration.
Their Daoist convictions seem to be inferior to Cao Ya's.
After half a day, Qin Yu and Duanmu Yu regained their composure and continued their efforts.
Quinn Hou and Shen Tu Fan also stepped onto the Heavenly Staircase, intending to emulate the three.
The others watched coldly from below, without making a move.
"The highest record in the history of the God Realm is only ninety-five levels. In one hundred and twenty trillion years, there has not even been a single person who reached ninety-six levels, let alone the top."
"I once asked the God King, and he replied that without becoming the God King, it is virtually impossible to reach the ninety-ninth floor!"
"Isn't the Celestial Venerable just playing around? The God-King has ascended, so he won't summon you, but the Celestial Gods can't do anything about it..."
After discussing it, everyone had lost interest in vying for the first spot.
It was obvious that, due to the existence of the Thunder Punishment Celestial Venerable, it was already Zhou Xian's for the taking!
They gazed into the distance, discussing how far the five people on different levels would ultimately go!
Is there anyone who can break the record?!
Time passed, and Zhou Xian had long since obtained the spiritual treasure and left the Thunder Punishment Hall.
However, contrary to everyone's expectations, Zhou Xian did not rush back to Snowdrift City in the Arctic.
According to Zhou Xian, he wanted to explore the three thousand islands and try his luck.
In reality, Cao Ya knew that this time, not only were Thunder Punishment Celestial Venerable and Carefree Celestial Venerable in their respective side halls, but even Floating Feather Celestial Venerable had appeared.
The Thunder God will surely inform Zhou Xian of this information, urging him to give it a try.
Zhou Xian kept it a secret, not wanting to tell anyone and create more competitors for himself!
But Cao Ya sneered. He knew that the actions of Thunder Punishment Heavenly Venerable and Zhou Xian were definitely beneath their notice, and that they would not bestow any spiritual treasures upon them!
Several months later, Cao Ya had reached the 90th floor and stepped onto the 95th floor!
Upon reaching this step, Cao Ya clearly felt the oppressive and expansive nature of the space changing drastically. No matter how he resisted, he felt as if he were being tossed about by wind and rain, and that he might fall at any moment.
Qin Yu, Duanmu Yu, and Kui Yinhou all reached the ninetyth level—Shen Tu Fan, on the eightieth level, could no longer withstand it.
"Pfft!" Queen Hou also had a problem, unable to resist, he spat out a mouthful of blood and fell to the ground.
Shen Tu Fan helped Kui Yin Hou up, and after a short rest, he was fine.
"Keep it up." Queen Hou was broad-minded and not annoyed at all. He even cheered for Qin Yu and Duanmu Yu.
"Brother Quinn, you're quite impressive, reaching the ninetieth floor."
Everyone laughed and expressed their admiration.
Shen Tu Fan fell on the 80th floor. They asked themselves if they could compare to this prince of the Western Flaming Mountain. They were likely to fall around the same time.
The number of steps Quinn climbed most likely exceeded their limits!
"Sigh, we're still far from it. We haven't even broken the record yet," Queen sighed.
He was, after all, an upper-level celestial being who had lived for countless years. Sixty quadrillion years ago, he was the palace master of the Arctic Snowdrift City. He made great contributions in the war of the gods and was valued by the Arctic Holy Emperor!
Despite so many years of cultivation, I am still far from being a supreme deity in the divine realm!
In particular, Qin Yu, Duanmu Yu, and Cao Ya have all gone much further than him!
Queen, of course, offered his congratulations to the three who reached the top, but his own lagging behind also made him feel frustrated.
Shen Tu Fan looked up and whispered, "Brother Cao Ya is really strong. He hasn't shown any signs of falling even on the ninety-fifth floor."
Quinn and the others were also gazing into the distance, all filled with emotion.
"As expected of someone at the upper-level divine realm, they have defied the existence of a lower-level celestial being!"
"Perhaps Cao Ya has a chance to break the record... Hiss!!"
As everyone spoke, they couldn't help but gasp.
To their astonishment, Cao Ya swayed but managed to take a step and climb to the ninety-sixth floor!
"A new record! The strongest god! Maybe he really can reach the top!"
Everyone held their breath.
Even Qin Yu and Duanmu Yu were drawn to it.
“Brother Cao Ya, you’re so amazing, we can’t fall behind!” Duanmu Yu said softly.
"Yes." Qin Yu nodded emphatically, looking at Cao Ya's back with great admiration.
Only through firsthand experience can one truly understand the immense pressure Cao Ya faced!
"Perhaps the Celestial Venerables will be moved by our efforts and summon us even if we don't reach the summit," Duanmu Yu suddenly smiled.
He felt that he was nearing his limit, with virtually no hope of reaching the 95th floor, let alone catching up with Cao Ya or even reaching the top!
"It's possible." Qin Yu smiled, offering only this consolation.
However, upon reaching the ninety-second floor, Duanmu Yu's body began to tremble violently. The spatial laws he manipulated were ultimately not perfect enough to withstand the attack.
"Ugh." He spat out blood and crashed to the ground with a loud thud!
"If we don't count Cao Ya, then Qin Yu, you're the only candidate left. Good luck!"
Duanmu Yu did not complain or blame others; instead, she wished Qin Yu well.
Qin Yu felt a warmth in his heart, but sensing the threat, he immediately straightened up, pursed his lips, and struggled to cope.
"Buzz..." On the steps, the compression of space was everywhere, and it would extend from time to time, stretching for hundreds of millions of miles. This kind of attack, which was no different from that of a supreme god, made Qin Yu extremely tired!
"If we were in the lower realms, let alone the mortal realm, even in the higher realms of immortals, demons, and monsters, the vast universe and starry sky at this moment, any slight spatial fluctuation would be enough to shatter hundreds of star systems and turn them into dust!"
Qin Yu was amazed by the Heavenly Venerable's terrifying power. Such immense strength was confined within the short staircase, completely unaffected by the outside world.
"Boom!" At this moment, Qin Yu had already used the power of the new universe.
In terms of mastery of spatial laws alone, he may not be stronger than Shen Tu Fan, but he is definitely inferior to Duanmu Yu and Kui Yin Hou!
After creating the "Qiankun" realm of the "Stellar Transformation" technique, a new universe was born, forming its own world.
This is Qin Yu's true source of confidence!
After all, those who can reach the Upper God Realm are not weaklings. Shen Tu Fan, Kui Yin Hou, and Duanmu Yu are all first-rate Gods with exceptional talent!
Their years of cultivation far exceed Qin Yu's! If there were enough time, with Qin Yu's comprehension, the probability of him gradually surpassing these three in strength would be extremely high, but where would he find so much time?
The God-King's "time acceleration" has its limits, generally tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of times. Those who can reach more than a million times are the strongest beings in the second stage of the God-King. Almost none of the eight Holy Emperors have reached this level!
Therefore, the "Stellar Transformation" divine skill, created by Lei Wei, perfected by Qin Yu, and constantly innovated upon, is the trump card!
Even so, Qin Yu cannot ignore the influence of the God Realm's timeline!
Otherwise, once the new universe is fully completed, Qin Yu is confident that he will not lose to the Celestial Venerable!
In fact, Qin Yu was being conservative. On that day, he would surpass the Heavenly Venerable and reach the realm of the Primordial Chaos Controller!
Of course, the new universe is still very rudimentary, and various laws are lacking.
Qin Yu's power is currently not even comparable to that of a God King; he is only at the Heavenly God Realm!
Ninety-two floors, already so dangerous. Even after knocking down Duanmu Yu, Qin Yu wasn't confident he could actually reach the top!
But it concerns the quota for marriage, especially with the help of the Thunder Punishment Heavenly Venerable. Zhou Xian has already obtained the spiritual treasure bestowed by the Heavenly Venerable, and Qin Yu is determined to climb higher with all his might!
"Ah!" Qin Yu groaned, his body aching terribly, sweat pouring down his face, yet he gritted his teeth and persevered.
Below, the crowd watched, puzzled. Qin Yu, a master craftsman and the lord of the Lanxuan Palace of the Eastern Extreme Golden Mountain, held a position of great prestige. Why was he risking his life like this? Could it be that he had truly fallen in love with Princess Jiang Li?
They all yearn for the opportunity to become the God-King, but to gamble their lives for it... well, forget it!
They had probably never even met Jiang Li before, so there was no romantic feeling between them.
I came purely for Meteor Tears!
If we succeed, that would be the best outcome, but if we fail, although we will be disappointed, it is not unacceptable.
Those who can enter the final stage of the marriage contest are all top-tier celestial beings!
The absence of Meteor Tears and this shortcut does not mean the complete loss of hope for becoming a God-King.
It's just unknown how many trillions of years it will take to be awakened, to have a sudden enlightenment, and to transcend the gods!
"Snap." Above, Cao Ya sighed inwardly. At present, his understanding of the laws of space had reached its limit at the ninety-sixth level.
So, there are still three stages away from achieving mastery?
Cao Ya sighed. This was only because he had so many references and inspirations. Otherwise, given his circumstances, it would have taken him several more epochs to cultivate to the level of a high-ranking celestial god!
"Buzz." Cao Ya began to use some of his physical strength. Although his body wasn't bad, it certainly wouldn't be of much help now.
Other systems, such as the [Primordial Era] and [Sacred Ruins], feature immortal physical bodies and unparalleled strength!
Finally, Cao Ya made it to the ninety-seventh floor with great difficulty!
"Boom!!" In the vast space, it was as if countless supreme experts from the upper realms were ruthlessly attacking him. The void shifted, his head was compressed, and his body was stretched, causing him great discomfort!
Cao Ya used his spatial perception to fight back, but he was already at a disadvantage. He could only barely keep up by surging his physical strength.
"Without other means, there is no hope of reaching the ninety-eighth or ninety-ninth floor." Cao Ya looked up; only two floors remained, yet they seemed like an insurmountable chasm.
However, Cao Ya closed his eyes and focused his mind on sensing how to utilize space in this test set up by the Celestial Venerable.
For a moment, he was immersed in a deep state of enlightenment, and no matter how much the void pounded against him, he would not fall!
Before this, the spells on those many steps were not enough to greatly impress Cao Ya.
After all, he already had a realm of ninety-six, but it was clear that above the ninety-seventh level was a completely different realm!
Meanwhile, Qin Yu, relying on the power of the new universe, climbed step by step to the ninety-seventh floor!
However, Qin Yu's defense still went wrong, and he was blasted off the steps!
“Brother Qin…” Duanmu Yu, Kui Yinhou, Shen Tu Fan and others stepped forward to help him up, their expressions full of admiration.
Such abilities are comparable to Cao Ya's, making them arguably the strongest gods throughout history!
"Hehe, Qin Yu, you still want to try? Do you really think spatial perception is so easy to improve?"
At this time, Zhou Xian also visited several islands, but did not encounter Piaoyu Tianzun. He then returned to the foot of the floating island, Shanhai Palace, to check on Qin Yu's progress and make a sarcastic remark.
Zhou Xian glanced at Cao Ya, who was still on the ninety-seventh floor and seemed to be comprehending the Dao, his eyes filled with jealousy!
He knew very well that he was able to meet the Thunder God because of his family ties.
Although no one said it outwardly, everyone felt a sense of disdain in their hearts.
In contrast, Cao Ya and Qin Yu, who broke the previous record, are the ones they truly respect!
"Hoo." Qin Yu ignored it, took a breath, and the power of the Heavenly God surged, repairing his injuries. He rushed to the ninety-seventh floor again and continued to comprehend the distorted space.
In the short term, the new universe will not change much, so the only thing he can rely on is a major improvement in the spatial laws of the God Realm!
The only thing that Qin Yu was fortunate about was that, unlike Duanmu Yu and Kui Yinhou, he was far from reaching the pinnacle of the Heavenly God realm, so the difficulty of advancing the laws of space was relatively lower.
But Qin Yu was repeatedly knocked down by the Heavenly Stairs, only to be attacked again and again, seemingly oblivious to the pain!
Everyone was deeply shocked to witness such a scene.
"Qin Yu..." Everyone sighed, feeling ashamed of their own lack of perseverance.
There are many, but they haven't even had the thought of trying.
Of course, with each of Qin Yu's failures, they no longer believed that Qin Yu could succeed, and they no longer paid as much attention as they had at the beginning.
But Qin Yu gradually found his footing, combining the laws of the divine realm with the power of the new universe, and suddenly stepped onto the ninety-eighth floor. He gritted his teeth and persevered, managing to reach the ninety-ninth floor!
Although he was immediately blasted away, he could already be considered to have reached the top!
"Buzz." The Meteor Tear within his body emitted a green glow, repairing his divine body. Qin Yu stood up, extremely nervous.
Will a celestial being come to summon me?
"Qin Yu, have you given up? Can't keep up the act anymore?"
Zhou Xian, who was chatting and laughing with Yao Lin, noticed the commotion, turned around, and put on a mocking expression.
However, Hao Jun, a disciple of the Free and Unfettered Celestial Venerable, suddenly appeared before the Free and Unfettered Palace, his voice booming:
"Qin Yu, ascend to the ninety-ninth step of the Heavenly Staircase. The Celestial Venerable of Freedom has sent a message: you may enter the Palace of Freedom for an audience!"
Zhou Xian was immediately dumbfounded.
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