Inside Three Purity Palace, Yuanshi’s newly refined spiritual artifact, the brothers sat on prayer mats in the grand hall. Next to them was an empty prayer mat. Laozi opened his eyes and looked at Yuanshi. "Second Brother, calm down your heart. Third Sister will be fine. If anything had happened to her, we would have felt it."
Yuanshi opened his eyes. "I'm not worried about her. I'm simply pondering on the complexity of the myriad laws."
Laozi closed his eyes as if to say, “Whatever you say.”
Time passed, but every once in a while, Yuanshi would open his eyes and stare out of Three Purity Palace. One day, Yuanshi suddenly stood up and flew out of the palace.
Laozi opened his eyes and frowned a bit but then smiled. He rose as well and left Three Purity Palace.
"Third Sister, you're finally back," Yuanshi said as he saw Tongtian return.
Tongtian looked at the new addition to Kunlun Mountain and smiled. "It seemed that you guys weren't idle while I was gone."
"The secrets can no longer be divined. You almost got caught in the tribulation. What do you have to say for yourself?" Yuanshi asked with a stern expression.
Tongtian rolled her eyes. "Who are you? My father?"
"Hurry and show me my room, I have to sort out my gains and refine my Qingping Sword," Tongtian said as she flew into Three Purity Palace.
Yuanshi gave Laozi an almost pleading look, but Laozi ignored him and went back into the palace too. If he didn't have to maintain his image, Yuanshi would have stomped the floor like a petulant child.
After she was shown to her room, Tongtian locked herself in. First, she recovered her lost essence. Once she was in her peak condition, she took out the Qiankun Cauldron and began to refine the restrictions.
The Qiankun Cauldron had forty-two restrictions on it, and it took a hundred thousand years to refine thirty-seven restrictions. Unlike the Qingping Sword, the Qiankun Cauldron did not have an innate connection with her. Not to mention she didn't practice the Law of Qiankun.
With the preliminary preparation done, Tongtiang took out the Qingping Sword and the Chaos Clock shard. She placed both of them into the Qiankun Cauldron and began to refine them.
Under her control, the Chaos Clock shard melted into a gray liquid. The gray liquid coated the Qingping Sword and, after a while, submerged into the sword. Next, a line appeared at the center of the sword.
The newly reborn Qingping Sword flew out of the Qiankun Cauldron and into Tongtian's hand. During the refinement process, the restrictions had reset, forcing Tongtian to refine it again, but she wasn’t upset. The number of restrictions on the Qingping Sword had increased, and she could sense a timeless aura on it, which meant that it had successfully upgraded into a top-grade cardinal spiritual artifact.
However, when she saw the exact number of restrictions on the Qingping Sword, a strange expression appeared on her face. "Forty-four restrictions? That doesn't sound ominous. Not at all."
Tongtian shook her head to clear those needless thoughts and took the time to restore all the essence she had used. Then, she calculated the total time it took for her to merge the Qingping Sword and Chaos Clock shard.
"Three hundred thousand years?!" Tongtian nearly shouted. She covered her face with her hand. "Time really is the most worthless thing in the Great Desolation."
She pinched her nose and worked on refining the Qingping Sword. She still needed to finish refining the Twelfth-Ranked White Lotus of Purification.
Another ten thousand years later, Tongtian finally opened her eyes again. She finally finished refining the Qingping Sword, although she only refined thirty-seven restrictions and the Twelfth-Ranked White Lotus of Purification.
Tongtian blinked when she realized she had reached the Advanced Great Firmament Realm. "Huh, not bad. But I really need to go out now."
When she left her chambers, she saw Laozi and Yuanshi in the grand hall on their prayer mats. Tongtian joined them.
"Third Sister, you were cultivating for over three hundred thousand years. Just what did you gain?" Yuanshi asked.
Laozi didn't say anything, but he waited for her answer too.
"Oh, nothing much," Tongtian said. She floated in the air, and a white lotus appeared beneath her. "Just a Twelfth-Ranked White Lotus of Purification. It's not as good as the Twelfth-Ranked Green Lotus of Good Fortune, though."
'It's not as good as the Twelfth-Ranked Green Lotus of Good Fortune, but it's better than my Three-Treasure Jade Scepter and Laozi's Void Refining Horsetail Whisk!' Yuanshi thought. He couldn't help but stare at Tongtian's white lotus in envy. If he already regretted not joining Tongtian, what she took out next practically made his eyes red.
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"Oh, and just this Qiankun Cauldron," Tongtian said as she held said cauldron in hand. "It's only a top-grade cardinal spiritual artifact. Not only can it refine pills and artifacts, but it can also make cardinal spiritual artifacts. Unfortunately, I don't have the skill to do so. It's such a waste in my hand, but who told me to be its owner? Hahaha."
Hearing Tongtian's smug laughter, Yuanshi hated that he couldn't grab the Qiankun Cauldron in her hand. His intestine turned green with regret. Why did he insist on returning to Kunlun Mountain? He should have followed her. Even Laozi stared at the Qiankun Cauldron with a heated gaze.
After having her fun, Tongtian tossed the Qiankun Cauldron to Yuanshi. Yuanshi just stared blankly at her.
"I've already used it," Tongtian said as she showed her Qingping Sword. "I'm not skilled in refining, so it's better in Second Brother or Eldest Brother's possession. Since Eldest Brother already has a top-grade artifact, I figured you should have it."
Yuanshi pushed the Qiankun Cauldron back into Tongtian's hand. "I can't accept this. Third Sister, you got this by yourself. You should keep it."
Tongtian pushed the artifact back. "It will only end up collecting dust in my hands. It's better for you to hold it. If you really can't accept, help me refine a few artifacts then."
Yuanshi stared at the Qiankun Cauldron. Among the three, only he didn't have a top-grade cardinal spiritual artifact. Plus, it was a cauldron which held great allure for him. "Alright, Second Brother will make whatever you want."
Tongtian smiled, it was a beautiful smile that Yuanshi reflected back. At least until Tongtian opened her mouth again. "I want one hundred twenty-nine thousand six hundred swords. They don't have to be cardinal or innate spiritual artifacts, but they have to be spiritual artifacts at the very least."
Yuanshi's face cramped up. He wanted to reject it, but seeing Tongtian's smiling face, he could only swallow this bitter pill.
"Second Brother, lend me the Qiankun Cauldron for a bit too," Laozi said.
"Scram!" Yuanshi yelled.
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In the deepest depths of the East Sea, where the light didn’t reach, existed a magnificent palace built atop a coral reef that released rainbow light. The reef possessed unrivaled beauty, but the palace possessed greater beauty: walls of crystal, shingles crafted from red gems, pillars of precious metal, and much, much more. This was the Crystal Dragon Palace, an acquired spiritual artifact crafted by the Dragon Clan using an exorbitant amount of materials.
Within a grand but dim room lay Dragon Ancestor. His coiled body nearly filled the entire room.
“Enter,” Dragon Ancestor said, and his voice reverberated through the shut doors and out into the halls. Moments later, the grand doors opened to reveal another dragon flying in.
The new dragon possessed dull silver scales and had the head of an old man with two gray horns growing out. He might seem decrepit, but his two eyes resembled twin suns and gave him an ancient yet noble aura.
“Zhuyin greets the Ancestor,” the silver dragon said with a lowered head.
“No need for such courtesy,” Dragon Ancestor said. “Among the Dragon Clan, not even my sons are as close as you to reaching the same realm as me.”
“I may be the closest, but the others are catching up. Despite the urgency I feel, I still cannot break through the last hurdle even with Ancestor’s guidance.”
“Cultivation cannot be rushed. Although I say that, it’d be best if you can break through as soon as possible. As long as you reach the same realm as me, the Dragon Clan’s victory will all but be assured, even if the Phoenix and Qilin Clans ally against us.”
“I’ll do my best.”
Dragon Ancestor shook his head. He understood words were meaningless. If all it took to break the limits of the Great Firmament Realm were empty words, the three clans would have over three existences that surpassed Golden Immortals of the Great Firmament. “Enough. Speak, why have you interrupted my cultivation?”
“Answering Ancestor, many pure-blooded dragons have gone missing near the land and the South.”
Golden light reflected off of Dragon Ancestor’s serpentine form as he adjusted his position. After the Fiend Tribulation, the three overlords split the Great Desolation into three territories. The Dragon Clan claimed the seas, lakes, and rivers, the Phoenix Clan claimed the South and skies, while the Qilin Clan claimed most of the land and forests.
“Have you questioned the Pheonix Clan?” Dragon Ancestor asked.
“We have, but…”
“What is it? Don’t hesitate and speak,” Dragon Ancestor said.
Still, Zhuyin stayed silent for a moment longer. After preparing himself, Zhuyin opened his mouth, “Before we could question the Phoenix Clan, they sent a message questioning why we killed members of their clan.”
For a moment, silence reigned in the grand hall. A sudden pressured emerged. That pressured crushed Zhuyin and forced him onto the ground. “Dragon Ancestor, please quell your anger!”
As if blinded by something, Dragon Ancestor roared. “Do those birds forget their place? Had it not been for us, they would have perished in the Fiend Tribulation. We haven’t even questioned them, and they dare to question us?!”
When Dragon Ancestor turned his slitted eyes onto him, his body became paralyzed from the sheer difference in power. “Send a delegate to the Pheonix Clan. Tell them that if they don’t give a satisfactory answer, the Dragon Clan will destroy them!”
“I beseech Ancestor to reconsider!” Zhuyin cried out.
The pressure remained, but the furious words of the Dragon Emperor halted. “Speak, why should I?”
“This situation isn’t simple. I find it strange that the Pheonix Clan questioned us about their missing members just as we lost some of ours. There must be a hidden force inciting conflict between us,” Zhuyin said.
“None of the clans under us would dare to revolt,” Dragon Ancestor said with absolute confidence.
His words weren’t without basis. Dragons had a lustful nature, and because of this, they interbred with many species. Over the years, the Dragon Clan’s bloodline had merged with many other members of the Hundred Clans. If a beast could awaken the dormant bloodline, they transform into a dragon and gain many of the benefits.
Not everyone succeeded, not even the Dragon Ancestor’s sons. Dragon Ancestor had numerous children that inherited his golden scales, but he also sired nine blights. Each of the nine possessed draconic attributes but mixed with other beasts, like a turtle or tiger. The nine became taboo existences among the Dragon Clan.
Still, many wished to awaken their dormant bloodlines.
“Enough, dispatch an envoy. As I said before, if they cannot give us a satisfactory answer or punish the perpetrator, then the Dragon Clan will destroy them. Go and execute my will.”
Zhuyin knew he could not alter Dragon Ancestor’s mind. He left and personally selected ten dragons at the Great Firmament Realm. Not only that, but he decided to lead the delegation to avoid any accidents from occurring. After setting a time and location with the Pheonix Clan, Zhuyin set out.
It took a few years to arrive at the designated location, a patch of beach connecting the southern region and the South Sea. To Zhuyin’s surprise, the Phoenix Clan had sent a mild elder that he recognized. As the talks continued, both sides agreed that a third force had likely interfered to incite conflict between the Dragon and Pheonix Clans. After a long discussion, both sides vowed to cooperate and flush out the secret mastermind.
With his goal partially accomplished, Zhuyin felt lighter. That feeling did not last long when he returned to the Dragon Clan. The Phoenix Clan’s delegate never made it back—at least not fully. The only survivor of the delegation pointed his claws at Zhuyin and the Dragon Clan’s delegation as the culprits.
Zhuyin knew it was over at this point. Even if it was a lie and the Dragon Clan denied it, the Pheonix Clan would not believe it. As he suspected, the Pheonix Clan declared war on the Dragon Clan, and Dragon Ancestor only added fuel to the fire. He swore to exterminate the Phoenix Clan for their impudence.
Now it didn’t matter the truth of the matter. As the war between the Dragon Clan and Phoenix Clan heated up, the Qilin Clan joined, claiming that the Dragon Clan had killed members of their clan.
Once more, all three clans battle in the Great Desolation, only this time against each other and not united against a common foe.