Gu Zheng pondered.

Breaking through to the King’s Body was several times more difficult than reaching the Heroic Body or Super Body.

This was because the King’s Body wasn’t just a transformation and sublimation of the physical body, Spirit, and Divine Wondrous powers.

One also had to give birth to a Domain!

The Domain was the true mark of a King’s Body.

Without a Domain, one was a Half-King at best.

Gu Zheng thought about his point-adding ability. Once he accumulated 200,000 Demon Points, he could break through.

However, that breakthrough would probably only involve refining the Divine Seed and opening his Sea of Consciousness.

Whether he could give birth to a complete and perfect Domain still depended on his own comprehension and aptitude.

If his aptitude was poor and his comprehension was lacking, he would end up a Half-King.

However, where one’s own power fell short, external forces could compensate.

And the Void Divine Stone was one of the best external aids!

’A treasure that can help one form a Domain... No wonder a group of four—Zhong Zhenghong, Yong Xingdian, and Fu Jinlong—teamed up to besiege Xiao Xing,’ Gu Zheng mused.

This was about the King’s Body, after all.

Xiao Xing alone couldn’t have suppressed them.

Similarly, Gu Zheng felt his own heart stir with desire.

He could have ignored a treasure like the Void Divine Stone if he’d never known about it. But now that he had encountered it, he had to take the risk, no matter what.

With this in mind, Gu Zheng took out a Concealing Breath Leaf, activated it on himself, and completely suppressed all traces of his aura and presence.

Then, he took out an Invisibility Cloak and wrapped it around his entire body.

WHOOSH~

He rode the fierce winds and drifted down toward the ground.

Skimming just above the yellow sands of the surface, he began searching for the ruins that Xiao Xing, Fu Jinlong, and the others had discovered earlier.

From their conversation, he knew the Void Divine Stone was still in the ruins. And it had fallen into some kind of Spirit Pool?

Gu Zheng searched in two directions, sticking close to the ground and covering an area of several square miles.

When he turned to the east, he successfully found the ruins of an ancient city, buried beneath the yellow sand.

Much of the entrance had collapsed, revealing a structure of hard rock, from which a breeze was blowing.

WHOOSH... WHOOSH...

Wind and sand drifted out.

Gu Zheng followed the wind into the ruins.

First came the entrance, then a long passageway. After passing through the corridor, a magnificent and spectacular ancient city appeared before him. It covered a vast area and was filled with numerous buildings.

Ancient, vast, holy, and majestic.

This was a large, ancient city, comparable in size to the Four Directions Prefecture City.

Although it was now covered in windblown sand, that did nothing to diminish its grandeur.

The dome above the city seemed to be transparent. Light from outside penetrated the yellow sand and scattered clearly within, allowing Gu Zheng to see without needing to activate his Dark Vision.

SWOOSH~

With a flicker of his body, he took to the air and soared forward.

He passed over the closed city gates and entered the silent, ancient city.

Gu Zheng’s eyes scanned everywhere, searching for the location of the "Spirit Pool."

As he searched, he remained vigilant, guarding against a surprise attack from an Ancient Demon.

The abilities of Ancient Demons had undergone many strange mutations over the long passage of time.

It was possible one might be able to see through his current state of concealment and Invisibility.

Fortunately, it seemed there were no Ancient Demons in this city, or perhaps they had already been killed by Xiao Xing, Fu Jinlong, and the others.

Gu Zheng used Wind Manipulation to fly through the city, and after searching more than half of the area, not a single Ancient Demon had jumped out at him.

Then, just a little north of the city center, he saw the "Spirit Pool."

The so-called "Spirit Pool" was not a pond, nor was it a large pit full of liquid. It was a wall.

A pale blue "wall," three meters long, three meters high, and over a meter wide, that was semi-transparent and rippled like flowing water. Wisps of silvery-white light drifted within it!

The reason Gu Zheng was certain was because he saw a crystal about the size of his fist. It was platinum-gold in color and shaped like an irregular rhombus.

The first moment he saw this crystal, Gu Zheng’s heart skipped a beat.

His intuition told him this was the treasure he was looking for.

The Void Divine Stone!

Spirit Capturing!

Gu Zheng stood before the "wall" and tried to perform an Absorption.

BUZZ... BUZZ...

The pale blue "wall" trembled twice and released an invisible force, blocking Gu Zheng’s Absorption.

’Spirit Capturing doesn’t work?’

Gu Zheng pondered for a moment, then took out a Battle Blade he’d claimed as loot and thrust it at the "wall."

CLANG~

A clear, ringing sound echoed out.

The pale blue "wall" was like a real wall of steel, blocking the Battle Blade’s thrust.

Even when Gu Zheng applied more force, infusing it with his Divine Wondrous power, he couldn’t pierce it in the slightest.

He switched to a sword, but it too failed to penetrate.

’So weapons—or rather, metal in general—don’t work?’ Gu Zheng wondered.

With a flick of his wrist, a pair of gloves appeared in his hand.

These gloves were also loot, and they were not made of metal.

But when he touched the "wall," he was blocked again.

They didn’t work either!

’Does that mean... I have to use my bare hands? My flesh and blood?’

Gu Zheng’s eyes flickered. Gritting his teeth, he took off the gloves, extended his left hand, and touched the "wall."

This time, his hand successfully entered the "Spirit Pool"!

It really did require a body of flesh and blood to enter.

However, Gu Zheng was immediately assaulted by an excruciating, heart-piercing pain.

He watched as his left hand—his fingers, palm, and arm—began to rapidly dissolve. First the outer skin, then the flesh and blood beneath.

During this process, agonizing pain assaulted his mind.

Fortunately, Gu Zheng was no ordinary person. He endured the excruciating pain of his flesh melting away without crying out, not even letting out a muffled groan.

He continued to push his hand deeper inside, grabbed the Void Divine Stone, and then violently yanked it out.

WHOOSH!

HUMMM—!

The moment the Void Divine Stone left the "Spirit Pool" and was exposed to the air, it vibrated the surrounding space, sending out ripples through the void.

SWISH!

Gu Zheng quickly stored it in his Storage Leaf.

Looking down at his arm, he saw that only the bone remained.

All the flesh, fascia, and skin had completely dissolved.

Gu Zheng exhaled sharply.

He took out the "Holy Wood Essence Flame." The flame pulsed gently as he applied it to the bone.

TSS... TSS... TSS...

The heart-piercing pain returned.

On the bare bone, flesh and blood began to rapidly regenerate at a visible rate, growing back anew.

In less than thirty seconds, his entire arm was restored to its original state. In fact, it was even fairer and more tender than before, the skin like that of a newborn baby.