「Inside the Profound Celestial Ancient Hall」

"This is the inside of the Profound Celestial Ancient Hall?"

Ning Jiang and his companions appeared in a beautiful courtyard, filled with the singing of birds and the fragrance of flowers.

After killing the members of the Evil Spirit Sect, he had brought his companions here.

Of course, everyone else was still outside the main hall, unqualified to enter.

At that moment, everyone was curiously sizing up their surroundings. The Spiritual Qi here was abundant, and Spiritual Springs gurgled. Towering ginkgo trees rose from the ground.

Unknown, ancient flowers were in full bloom, beautiful and pure, with a delightful fragrance.

"Ning Jiang, could it be that the Profound Celestial Ancient Hall really has two hidden trials? From the looks of it, you passed them?"

Liu Bingxue couldn’t help but ask. The fact that Ning Jiang could bring them into the Profound Celestial Ancient Hall was completely unprecedented.

"That’s right." Ning Jiang nodded. There was no reason to deny it.

Hearing his understated tone, the others were utterly shocked.

Heaven only knew how difficult those hidden trials were. After all, they had only ever been rumors, never confirmed by anyone.

Ning Jiang was the first person to do so in a thousand years!

"By the way, there’s something I need to ask you," Ning Jiang said.

"What is it?"

"Have you ever heard the name Golden Cicada?"

After all, Ning Jiang was not from Qing Province and didn’t know much about its affairs. Liu Bingxue and Li Kuangba, on the other hand, might know something.

"Golden Cicada... you mean *the* Golden Cicada?!"

Liu Bingxue’s eyes flew wide as she stared at Ning Jiang in utter astonishment.

It wasn’t just her; the others were just as shocked, as if they had heard something unbelievable.

"Oh? So you’ve all heard of him."

Ning Jiang’s eyes narrowed slightly. Judging from their reactions, Golden Cicada had to be extremely famous; otherwise, they wouldn’t have responded so intensely.

"’Heard of him’ is an understatement! He’s a legendary figure in our Six Eastern Provinces. In fact, his name is famous far beyond the Six Provinces."

Liu Bingxue took a deep breath, a look of admiration on her face. "He was originally just a golden cicada, born on an Enlightenment Tree—utterly insignificant. But he later achieved sudden enlightenment. With his peerless talent, he became a Celestial Martial Realm King in just one hundred years, and..."

She paused for a moment before continuing slowly, "And his rise was meteoric, all the way to Celestial King Level combat power! He is the last Celestial King the Great Thousand Realms has seen in a thousand years!"

Celestial King!

Upon hearing those two words, a strange light finally appeared in Ning Jiang’s eyes.

Celestial Martial Realm Kings were ranked by a total of Nine-Stars Combat Power.

One and Two Stars denoted a Junior Level King; Three or Four Stars, a Middle Level King; Five or Six Stars, a High Level King; and Seven and Eight Stars, a Top Level King.

Top Level Kings were already one in a million and exceedingly rare.

A single Junior Level King was capable of founding a Super Sect and ruling an entire province. A Top Level King could go even further, establishing an everlasting Dynasty and becoming its founding emperor.

And above Top Level Kings were the Celestial Kings!

Once a King’s combat power reached Nine-Stars, they were considered to have Celestial King Battle Power.

However, Nine-Stars was a limit that exceedingly few could reach. For instance, a hundred thousand years ago, during Ning Jiang’s era—a great golden age teeming with geniuses—there were still only a dozen or so individuals who reached the Celestial King Level.

It was no exaggeration to say that not even a Venerable, pouring all their effort and resources into the task, could train someone to become a Celestial King Level expert.

One could only reach the Celestial King Level on their own. It required great enlightenment, great luck, great wisdom, great courage, and great resolve. Lacking even one of these meant it was impossible.

For Golden Cicada to have reached Nine-Stars Celestial King Battle Power, he was truly worthy of being called a peerlessly talented hero of his generation.

"A thousand years ago, there were only four Celestial King Level experts in the Great Thousand Realms. Then, Senior Golden Cicada appeared. In just a hundred years, he stood among the other four, becoming the fifth Celestial King. That’s why Senior Golden Cicada’s fame isn’t limited to the Six Eastern Provinces; his name is known throughout the entire Great Thousand Realms."

"Unfortunately, for some unknown reason, Senior Golden Cicada later entered the Ancient Forbidden Area and vanished. In the thousand years since, not a single new Celestial King has emerged."

As Liu Bingxue said this, her tone became regretful.

Such a peerless genius, a Celestial King of his generation, had mysteriously vanished in the Ancient Forbidden Area. No one knew whether he was dead or alive.

The others also looked somber. On one hand, they admired a peerless figure like Golden Cicada; on the other, he hailed from the Six Eastern Provinces, making him a representative figure who held special significance for them.

"Sigh... I heard that when Senior Golden Cicada was alive, he couldn’t bear to see sorrow and suffering in the world. He was a man of great compassion. Countless people benefited from his kindness."

"If I could, I’d love to meet Senior Golden Cicada just once. I could die without any regrets then."

Everyone clearly held deep respect and admiration for Golden Cicada.

Ning Jiang remained silent. Listening to them, he couldn’t help but sigh internally, though his sigh was for the Great Thousand Realms itself.

’Without a doubt, the Great Thousand Realms has declined.’

’To think that the current era only has four Celestial King Level experts. In my previous life, there were more than a dozen.’

"Oh, right. I’ve heard that a King’s combat power doesn’t stop at Nine-Stars. There’s supposedly a tenth star. But those who can achieve Ten-Stars Combat Power have been incredibly rare throughout history. Once someone reaches Ten-Stars, they’re a step beyond a Celestial King and can be called a living myth."

"That’s right, I’ve heard that rumor too. They say that because no one could ever reach Ten-Stars, the classification system was gradually simplified to just Nine-Stars. Even whether Ten-Stars Combat Power truly exists is a subject of great debate."

"I read in an ancient text that Ten-Stars Combat Power was apparently related to a Legendary Venerable from a hundred thousand years ago. It was that Legendary Venerable who divided a King’s combat power into ten stars, because he himself was a mythic figure who shattered the limit and stepped into the realm of Ten-Stars."

As they spoke, a sense of longing was evident in their voices.

’Ten-Stars Combat Power... to be called a "living myth" and surpass even a Celestial King... what kind of breathtaking talent would it take to reach such a supreme realm?’

’Nine is the peak, the absolute limit. To reach Ten-Stars means to shatter that limit, to transcend all shackles. Just the thought of it reveals how impossibly difficult it must be.’

Listening to their conversation, Ning Jiang said nothing.

But he knew. ’The rumors aren’t false. Kings really do have a Ten-Stars Combat Power.’

’Because I’m the one who created the Ten-Stars classification...’

’The only thing that surprises me is that even after being gone for a hundred thousand years, there are still rumors about me floating around. I didn’t expect that.’

The group continued to stroll and talk.

A short while later, they stopped before a medicinal field.

In the medicinal field, beautiful and delicate flowers were in full bloom. Waves of Primordial Spirit fluctuations emanated from them.

"Could these be Divine Spirit Flowers?"

Instantly, astonished expressions appeared on the faces of Liu Bingxue and the others. They stared at the flowers, not even daring to blink.

The flowers were bizarrely beautiful. Their petals were pure white, like snow lotuses from a glacial peak. But in the center of each blossom sat a tiny, cross-legged figure.