The Yongzhou Cauldron was already in Lu Yuan's possession, which meant there were only eight cauldrons for him to take out there.

Each of the Nine Cauldrons was extremely important, as each one was a divine treasure capable of protecting the nation. The Providence they contained could be channeled into the Celestial Emperor's Ancient Token and the Investiture Edict.

Those whose names were written on the Investiture Edict would reap more benefits the more Providence Lu Yuan accumulated. Even individuals with relatively weak talents would receive massive boosts in strength.

In essence, the Celestial Court's foundation was deeply tied to the cauldrons. Time was short, after all, so this was the only viable method.

As the ritual continued, the streams of light grew brighter, and the phantom of a cauldron above it gradually solidified. A strange, indescribable power manifested alongside it.

The Golden-Winged Great Peng and the Nine-tailed Fox King turned their gazes toward it. Both had their true names inscribed on the Investiture Edict, so they were naturally sensitive to this power.

At last, the cauldron materialized. It had three legs and two handles; its entire body had a bluish-black hue, and it emanated an ancient aura.

Even though it looked as if it had experienced an eternity, it remained enduring all the way to the present day.

The Nine Tripod Cauldrons were forged by Yu the Great. Setting aside their extraordinary abilities, they were very important for the people of Huaxia.

"Three legs, two handles, and it looks bluish-black. This is... the Qingzhou Cauldron." Lu Yuan confirmed its identity. The power and aura it emanated were essentially no different from the Yongzhou Cauldron's.

The Nine Cauldrons were parts of a single whole, after all. He surveyed the surroundings, and after confirming that nothing unusual had occurred, he collected the Qingzhou Cauldron without any hesitation.

"Congratulations, Master. Another cauldron secured!" the Golden-Winged Great Peng exclaimed in excitement as it descended.

"There's nothing to celebrate." Lu Yuan shook his head and said, "The Nine Tripod Cauldrons represent Huaxia and are a huge responsibility to bear."

The moment he decided to collect the Nine Cauldrons and establish the Celestial Court, he knew that he had to face the huge responsibility that came with it, like protecting the people.

He could have simply walked away, but his nature would never allow that to happen. Moreover, they were living through a great age, and he had to make use of every opportunity that came his way.

"Let's go. Time to head back," Lu Yuan said. The Qingzhou Cauldron was in hand, and he needed to return to fuse with it. He had to strengthen the Celestial Emperor's Ancient Token and the Investiture Edict as soon as possible.

As for the platform before him, he hadn't discovered anything special about it, but he didn't want to leave it exposed either. Hence, he decided to bury the area again.

Once more, he moved a portion of the surrounding mountains to cover the place.

With that done, Lu Yuan departed with the Golden-Winged Great Peng and the Nine-tailed Fox King. At the same time, he instructed them to relay a message to the Peacock King and the other beast kings—if they encountered any beings from outer space, they had to retreat and avoid confrontation at all costs.

Even if there was a cauldron nearby, they still had to leave. The beast kings had all become his subordinates, and he didn't want any of them to be in danger. As for the Nine Cauldrons, obtaining them wouldn't be difficult once he knew their whereabouts.

***

The students of Mount Tai Trials Academy were going through their daily lives as usual. With access to a greater variety of breathing techniques and visualization methods, along with an abundance of resources, they could finally tackle their path of evolution in a more systematic way.

Each individual could choose which breathing technique and visualization method to practice based on their own talent.

The Trials Academy served as the Celestial Court's reserve pipeline. It was the Celestial Court's foundation for the future. As a major power, the Celestial Court had everything in place. They simply needed more time to grow. They were doing everything with ease as long as they had no invaders to deal with.

All in all, it could be said that the Celestial Court had finally taken shape.

Lu Yuan sat cross-legged in his training chamber, and wisps of energy drifted around him. The Qingzhou Cauldron rested before him. He let his blood drip onto it.

Swoosh!

A dazzling light erupted, and a special energy seeped out of it, swirling around Lu Yuan. It was a bizarre, pure, and flawless energy. It seemed to embody all things in the world—it was the Providence of the world. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

The process was identical to when he had refined the Yongzhou Cauldron. Sure enough, the Qingzhou Cauldron vanished and appeared on the back side of the Investiture Edict. Streams of Providence flowed from within it and fused with the Celestial Emperor's Ancient Token.

Lu Yuan noticed that the names of the Golden-Winged Great Peng, the Peacock King, and all thirty-six Celestial Generals glimmered with light as if they had been blessed by Providence once again.

Despite that, Lu Yuan experienced no changes whatsoever. Lu Yuan couldn't help but feel helpless. He couldn't figure out the reason behind the absence of benefits. In the end, all he could do was take it one step at a time.

He turned his attention to the Investiture Edict and the Celestial Emperor's Ancient Token. The refinement had just ended, and he wanted to see whether there were any changes to them.

Unfortunately, there was none, so he decided to go into seclusion once again and wait for news. The Peacock King and the other beast kings were still out in the field. They hadn't returned yet, and Lu Yuan could only hope for good news.

Time passed, bit by bit, and Lu Yuan kept a close eye on the outside world as he focused on his evolution.

The appearance of the Spirit Clan members led by their Ranker meant the beings from the Outer Cosmos were busy making their moves. They were definitely trying to think of ways to open a passageway to Earth.

However, Lu Yuan heard nothing but silence. Everything was unnervingly quiet. Of course, Lu Yuan knew better. More invaders had most likely descended on Earth through ways unknown to him, and they simply chose to hide themselves.

There was nothing he could do about it. The world was simply too vast for him to monitor every corner of it.

On the other hand, the Celestial Court was growing stronger. When the Qingzhou Cauldron was refined, everyone whose name appeared on the Investiture Edict received tangible benefits, and their rate of evolution skyrocketed.

The sight told Lu Yuan that he could keep making use of the Investiture Edict to expand the Celestial Court as long as he had enough Providence.

In other words, the Celestial Court would surely become even stronger. He just needed more time.

Eventually, Sages would be able to descend at full strength once the Separation of Heaven and Earth was sufficiently weakened. This spelled bad news, but Lu Yuan knew he couldn't deal with them all by himself. Lu Yuan knew his priorities, too.

As for his own evolution, he had temporarily hit a ceiling. Breaking through into the Lesser Sage Realm through seclusion alone was impossible. He needed a catalyst—an opportunity.

For now, he shifted his focus to the Celestial Court. He'd occasionally appear to personally guide others in their evolution.

Several more days passed before the Peacock King finally sent word. They had detected the aura of another cauldron. It was inside a mountain range as well, but it wasn't as famous as the last one.

The moment Lu Yuan received the news, he made his move. He headed straight for the suspected location, and just as described, it was an unremarkable mountain range. It looked ordinary, lacking the grandeur of the Hengduan Mountains or Mount Kunlun.

Of course, Lu Yuan couldn't care less about such details. He simply located the cauldron with his own abilities and claimed it for himself. This one had four legs, two handles, and it had taken on a purple, reddish-brown hue. Naturally, its aura was identical to the other two.

Lu Yuan sized it up and determined that this was the most mysterious of the Nine Cauldrons—the Yuzhou Cauldron.