TL: Etude

Years passed as Ye Tian spent his time hunting forbidden insects and cultivating. His cultivation realm grew increasingly profound, while his physical strength, Forbidden Dao Force, and soul power became ever stronger.

In the blink of an eye, 300 years had gone by.

During these 300 years, a significant number of Dao Ancestors had fallen, but just as many had risen. Even among the newly risen, there were six Invincible Dao Ancestors. Among them was the Wind King.

The Wind King, having long accumulated strength, broke through his limits in the Profound Void Archaic Realm by sacrificing numerous forbidden insect corpses. He ascended to become an Invincible Dao Ancestor, with his power instantly surpassing his former self.

Moreover, many new Dao Ancestors emerged, maintaining a stable number of Dao Ancestors across the major bases, ensuring their forces remained balanced.

The only frustration for the Dao Ancestors was the rapid proliferation of the Forbidden Insect Race. Despite having slaughtered nearly ten million of these creatures—almost equivalent to their original numbers—the Forbidden Insect Race’s population had replenished itself, once again exceeding ten million. It was as if they could never be completely exterminated.

Luckily, while the number of commander-level forbidden insects had returned to over fifty, the number of lord-level forbidden insects had not increased.

For the major bases, this balance brought both pressure and opportunity.

In just 300 years, the progress achieved by the Dao Ancestors surpassed what had taken them over 300,000 years before. For those seeking greater strength, the Dark Forbidden Domain was indeed an excellent place to temper themselves.

Furthermore, the Profound Void Archaic Realm had grown immensely due to the sacrifices of countless forbidden insects. Even though portions of the Origin Power were rewarded to several Dao Ancestors, the realm itself had strengthened severalfold compared to its past.

It was widely acknowledged that an Archaic Realm required immense time to grow. Yet, within just a few millennia, it had multiplied its strength several times over—an utterly terrifying growth rate.

At this pace, it seemed inevitable that the Profound Void Archaic Realm would ascend to the Ultimate Ancient Realm in the near future.

…

On this day, Ye Tian received news that filled him with joy.

“Xingchen has broken through to the level of a Pinnacle Dao Ancestor!” Ye Tian murmured to himself.

He knew his son’s cultivation well and was aware that Ye Xingchen had chosen to break through only after reaching the limits of his current abilities, finally ascending to become a Pinnacle Dao Ancestor.

Although Ye Xingchen had not comprehended a Forbidden Dao Technique, he had mastered a Pinnacle Dao Technique, which was still an extraordinary accomplishment.

Ye Tian did not push his son too hard; after all, Ye Xingchen lacked a Forbidden Talent. To comprehend a Forbidden Dao Technique at the Seventh Heaven Dao Ancestor realm was almost impossible! Even so, Ye Xingchen’s breakthrough elevated him far above ordinary Pinnacle Dao Ancestors, making him comparable to a Pinnacle Dao Ancestor like the Fire King. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

After his breakthrough, Ye Xingchen quickly became one of the Ten Kings of Blackwind Mountain, inheriting the title of Earth King.

As for Xiao Yue, Ye Yu, and Ye Xingyue, they had all reached the peak of the Seventh Heaven Dao Ancestor realm and were exceptionally powerful in combat.

Ye Tian himself had made significant progress. His Forbidden Dao Force, physical strength, and soul power had grown substantially stronger than when he had first become a Pinnacle Dao Ancestor. This improvement was a result of his cultivation through numerous forbidden wondrous objects and treasures from Blackwind Mountain.

Based on Ye Tian’s estimation, if he were to face a Pinnacle Dao Ancestor like the Fire King, he could severely injure his opponent with a single move and defeat them within a few strikes. Even when matched against a weaker Invincible Dao Ancestor, he could hold his own. Although he might not win, his opponent would also be unable to kill him.

What made Ye Tian the happiest was the development of the Human Race. For example, his Nine Limits Legion had made tremendous progress within the Forbidden Void Realm, where time flowed a thousand times faster. This meant a thousand times more cultivation time compared to others.

Additionally, Ye Tian had been consistently offering forbidden wondrous objects he no longer used over the years, and sometimes even bestowed forbidden insect corpses for the members of the Nine Limits Legion to sacrifice.

As a result, all of the tens of thousands of members of the Nine Limits Legion had reached levels above True Ancestor. Among them, there were already ten Invincible True Ancestors, over ten thousand Pinnacle True Ancestors, and nearly all others were Elite True Ancestors.

At the Dao Ancestor level, the Nine Limits Legion had also developed several hundred members, most of whom were powerhouses above the Third Heaven Dao Ancestor level. The strongest had even cultivated to the Fifth Heaven Dao Ancestor stage.

This was the current state of the Nine Limits Legion! The Human Race had even more Dao Ancestors now—thousands of them. Their numbers far surpassed those of most Middle Three Heavens forces and even exceeded some Seventh Heaven forces.

However, Ye Tian had not invested much in the other Dao Ancestors of the Human Race, so their progress was slower. Most of them remained at the Second Heaven Dao Ancestor or Third Heaven Dao Ancestor level.

One day.

While hunting forbidden insects in the Dark Forbidden Domain, Ye Tian suddenly received a message.

“The Profound Void Archaic Realm has birthed a medium-sized Forbidden Void Realm!!!”

Upon hearing this news, Ye Tian immediately returned to the Blackwind Mountain Base.

…

Blackwind Mountain Base.

Ye Tian, Ye Xingchen, the Fire King, the Ice King, the Time King, and the Wood King were all seated. The Wind King, now the Invincible Dao Ancestor Dao Ancestor Profound Wind, was also present, alongside other Invincible Dao Ancestors such as Dao Ancestor Flowing Fire. They gathered for this meeting.

The meeting was presided over by Half-Step Domain Ancestors Dao Ancestor Eternal Perpetuity and Dao Ancestor Divine Ruins.

During the meeting, Dao Ancestor Eternal Perpetuity spoke first: “I believe you’ve all heard the news. It’s true—a medium-sized Forbidden Void Realm has emerged in the Profound Void Archaic Realm. The value of a medium-sized Forbidden Void Realm far surpasses that of a small-sized one.

Once a force obtains a medium-sized Forbidden Void Realm, Pinnacle Dao Ancestors, Invincible Dao Ancestors, and even Half-Step Domain Ancestors can enter for cultivation. Although it doesn’t offer accelerated time flow, the cultivation environment inside is unparalleled. Furthermore, once a medium-sized Forbidden Void Realm is under control, it’s nearly indestructible, making the controlling force virtually unassailable. For this reason, all major forces will compete for it.”

Dao Ancestor Divine Ruins added, “Because of the forbidden insect situation, we Half-Step Domain Ancestors will not participate in the competition for the Forbidden Void Realm. If we do, it would create an opening for the Forbidden Insect Race to attack major bases, or worse, invade the Dao Mountain Domain.

“Additionally, Invincible Dao Ancestors are needed to counter the commander-level forbidden insects, so they too cannot leave their posts. I urge you Invincible Dao Ancestors not to break the rules. We Half-Step Domain Ancestors have agreed that if any Invincible Dao Ancestor forcibly enters the Forbidden Void Realm, we will band together to eliminate them! To put it simply, only Pinnacle Dao Ancestors are allowed to compete. Whichever force has the strength to claim the Forbidden Void Realm will gain it!”

The Invincible Dao Ancestors, hearing that they were barred from competing, felt disheartened. Even if they couldn’t seize the Forbidden Void Realm itself, they could have fought for numerous forbidden wondrous objects or even Forbidden Supreme Treasures.

To them, Forbidden Supreme Treasures were extraordinarily valuable.

However, since the Half-Step Domain Ancestors had spoken so decisively, the Invincible Dao Ancestors dared not defy them and reluctantly agreed.