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The Fang Clan’s Dao Realm Earth Patriarch was a white-haired old man. He was tall and muscular, and as he hovered there in the starry sky, he emanated a powerful Essence aura that seemed capable of forcing all Heaven and Earth to acquiesce.

A gleam like that of lightning flickered in his eyes as he stared coldly out into the void. His piercing gaze tore through the starry sky all the way to the peak of the Ninth Mountain!

By this time, virtually all of the Dao Realm Patriarchs from the various sects and clans of the Ninth Mountain and Sea had emerged and were looking toward Planet East Victory. Each one was was very quiet, and did not speak. However, their eyes flickered, and their hearts were anything but calm.

The Ji Clan could be considered the Paragon of the Ninth Mountain and Sea!

In the past, certain sects had put on a show of contending with the Ji Clan, but in reality, everyone feared them. If ever there came a situation in which real fighting might occur, they would back down.

Throughout all the years, very few situations had ever arisen in which real conflict occurred. Now, however... such a situation had now arisen with the Fang Clan!

And all of it was due to a single person...

Meng Hao!

Matters that pertained to the Dao Realm were not visible to the whole of the Ninth Mountain and Sea. Only peak Ancient Realm cultivators could sense some of the pressure coming from up above. No one else had any idea.

Not even Meng Hao knew that by opening the Immortal meridians as he just had, he ended up rousing killing intent in the Ji Clan. Nor did he realize that the Fang Clan Patriarch had rushed to protect him in such a domineering fas.h.i.+on.

The starry sky was silent for a long moment, after which the Ji Clan responded to the Fang Clan Earth Patriarch with a cold snort.

The snort turned into intense ripples that exploded out of the Ninth Mountain. The face of the Fang Clan's Earth Patriarch flickered in response. Suddenly, a cold voice echoed out from the Nine Seas G.o.d World in the Ninth Sea.

The voice was extremely archaic, and immediately filled the entire Ninth Mountain and Sea. Of course, n.o.body could actually hear it except for the less than twenty Dao Realm Patriarchs from the sects and clans of the Ninth Mountain and Sea who had currently revealed themselves. However, the words caused their minds to spin.

“Fang Mu is a Conclave disciple of the Nine Seas G.o.d World.”

In the instant that the voice could be heard, the Ji Clan’s energy suddenly faltered.

Next, another cold voice rang out from one of the other Three Great Daoist Societies, the Sublime Flow Sword Grotto on Planet West Felicity. The voice almost seemed to be echoing out from ancient times as it spread out through the Ninth Mountain and Sea.

“Fang Mu was named the top candidate by the Three Great Daoist Societies!”

In response to the voice, the Ji Clan’s energy faltered again. Now, it seemed to be hesitating.

In the instant that the Ji Clan paused, yet another voice rang out from the Immortal Ancient Daoist Rite on the Ninth Mountain. The voice was calm, but was filled with decisiveness that could sever nails and chop iron. It was a voice that was even more domineering than the one from the Sublime Flow Sword Grotto!

“Fang Mu is connected by destiny to the Immortal Ancient Daoist Rite. Fighting between him and members of his generation is permitted, but Elder generations slaughtering him is NOT!”

When the Dao Realm Patriarchs from the sects and clans of the Ninth Mountain and Sea heard these voices, their minds trembled, and their eyes shone with a strange light.

“The Fang Clan by itself couldn’t possibly win in a fight against the Ji Clan, but they still can't be underestimated. The Ji Clan would surely suffer serious losses. However, if you add in the Three Great Daoist Societies....”

“The Ji Clan is definitely more than a match for any given sect or clan. However, if the Three Great Daoist Societies joined forces, they would easily be a match for the Ji Clan. Now that the Fang Clan has taken a stand, if the Ji Clan doesn’t resolve the situation deftly, it could result in a huge war in the Nine Mountains and Seas!”

“Most important of all is that the Three Great Daoist Societies’ reserves are far too profound.... The Lords of the Mountain and Sea may change, but the Daoist societies will exist for all eternity.”

The Patriarchs’ eyes glittered. However, some of them had secret connections to the Ji Clan, and these looked toward Planet East Victory with cold indifference.

The Ji Clan remained silent. Gradually, seemingly after having considered the situation, their energy dissipated and an ancient voice echoed out.

“Is this really worth it?”

Then, the Ji Clan’s energy disappeared completely.

The auras of the Three Great Daoist Societies also faded away from the starry sky.

The Ninth Mountain and Sea returned to normal. Few people knew about what had just happened. However, the Fang Clan’s Dao Realm Patriarch didn't return to his original position. Instead, he sat down cross-legged in the starry sky to stand as a Dharma Protector for Meng Hao.

As he looked at Meng Hao, who was not too far off, by the Door of Immortality, his mouth turned up into a slight smile, and his eyes gleamed with antic.i.p.ation.

“Alright, kid. It’s time for you to unleash all your potential. Show us what you have, and don’t be afraid. Cultivators like us need to live for glory!”

As if by some bizarre coincidence, more rumbling sounds could be heard as soon as the Fang Clan’s Dao Realm Patriarch looked over at Meng Hao.

Meng Hao's hair and clothes whipped in the wind, and scintillating Immortal light and Immortal qi swirled around him.

Meng Hao’s eyes glowed brightly as his 112th Immortal meridian was completed. Now that he understood the nature of Immortal meridians, he wanted to determine exactly how well he understood them.

If he was going to rise to prominence, he might as well leave everyone completely and utterly shocked.

“I really want to know... exactly how many meridians I can open!

“My 113th meridian will be based on Hexing magic! The Eighth Demon Sealing Hex, Bodily Cultivation Hexing... that is my 113th meridian!” Meng Hao’s right hand flashed in an incantation gesture, then waved through the air. Intense rumbling sounds could be heard, and although n.o.body else could see it, the Eighth Demon Sealing Hex transformed into a magical symbol inside of him. Immortal qi poured into him, and began to solidify....

Another Immortal meridian rapidly formed, which then absorbed shocking amounts of Immortal qi until it was fully formed!

Meng Hao’s aura grew stronger, and at the same time, a 113th Immortal dragon appeared outside the Door of Immortality. Its roaring echoed out in all directions, shaking the Ninth Mountain and Sea.

This Immortal dragon shone with bizarre light, and if you looked at it for too long, you felt your cultivation base becoming rigid, and your body growing stiff.

All of the cultivators who saw it were filled with shock.

Before anyone could even begin to comment, though, more rumbling could be heard from Meng Hao as... he opened another Immortal meridian!

The Seventh Demon Sealing Hex, Karmic Hexing, began to send the aura of Karma out into his body. Not a bit emerged outside of him. Immortal qi was sucked in, and after the time it takes an incense stick to burn, the meridian was completely formed!

114 meridians!

Another Immortal dragon appeared, fierce and emanating a power of Karma that shook Heaven and Earth. The aura of the Ji Clan seemed to be on the verge of erupting again, but in the end, it didn’t.

“OPEN AGAIN!” Meng Hao’s eyes shone with determination as he used the Demon Sealing Hexing Magic to form Immortal meridians. His aura grew stronger as he then moved on to the Sixth Demon Sealing Hex, Life Death Hexing!

Rumbling emanated out from his body as all of the cultivators from the Ninth Mountain and Sea looked on with wide eyes and open jaws.

Soon, the Sixth Hex completed its meridian inside of Meng Hao, and a 115th Immortal dragon appeared outside of the Door of Immortality!

“115 meridians! J-just... just how many meridians is this Fang Hao going to open!?”

“A Chosen like this is completely unheard-of....”

“How come he can open so many meridians? The most that other people were able to open is 98! There has to be some reason! It’s impossible for someone to have prepared so well and be so talented that they could reach such an inhuman level!” The Ninth Mountain and Sea was completely shaken, and countless cultivators were in an uproar. They had been shocked as it was when Meng Hao had opened 100 meridians, but now that he had reached 115, their shock had actually turned into suspicion.

They really didn't understand how Meng Hao could possibly have outdistanced everyone else by so much!

Amidst their excitement, the members of the Fang Clan on Planet East Victory had also begun to conjecture, and all sorts of theories sprang up, but only the direct bloodline had no doubts at all and seemed to be filled with nothing but pure excitement.

Fang Wei looked up into the sky and clenched his fists tightly.

“Is it because he reached true Immortality on his own, and corroborated his own Dao...?” he murmured to himself. After taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes again and decided to watch no further.

“It doesn’t matter how many meridians you open.... I have Nirvana Fruits, so I can still kill you!”

It wasn’t just Fang Wei who was thinking along these lines. The other true Immortal Chosen of the Ninth Mountain and Sea also picked up on clues that led them to similar conclusions. In their hearts, they felt nothing but bitterness.

“So it turns out that corroborating the Dao on one’s own has this kind of effect....”

“But to corroborate the Dao on one’s own is monumentally difficult. Meng Hao must have come across some indescribable good fortune, which is why he was able to succeed.”

“Cultivation is a matter of defying the Heavens, so who cares if he opens 115 meridians! We all have secret augmentary magics that will enable us to fight him!”

Even as discussions raged in the Ninth Mountain and Sea, Meng Hao looked up. His cultivation base surged with the power of Immortal Ascension.

Immortal power filled him with a sense of incredible might, to a degree that it was impossible to even compare to what he was like before opening the Door of Immortality.

“I can still get stronger,” he thought. “115 Immortal meridians... is not my limit!” He gritted his teeth; his eyes were shot with blood, and seemed to be filled with insanity.

“Fifth Demon Sealing Hex, Inside Outside Hex!” He lifted his right hand, within which appeared a finger-nail sized rift. He quickly clenched his hand into a fist, after which rumbling sounds filled him, along with numerous tiny, illusory rifts.

Boundless Immortal qi was sucked into him, causing him to tremble, and his face to go pale. His body seemed to be filled with rifts; after all, he could barely force the usage of the Fifth Hex. This Hex... was a Daoist magic designed to be used at the peak of the Ancient Realm.

“OPEN UP!” he roared. Rumbling and cracking sounds filled him as majestic Immortal qi continuously flowed into him. Eventually, enough time pa.s.sed for two incense sticks to burn. Meng Hao endured the intense pain the entire time, after which he coughed up a mouthful of blood and then began to chuckle.

As his laughter rang out, a 116th Immortal meridian solidified!

He had forced it to open and solidify!

The Immortal meridian was unstable, but even still, it was there. Meng Hao’s aura soared up, and... yet another Immortal dragon appeared outside of the Door of Immortality.

This dragon... was both illusory and real. It was occasionally blurry, and occasionally clear. As it soared about, the void around it seemed to both collapse and bulge, causing all observers to gasp.