The four walls of Skykun Palace were recorded with words and images of all sorts of inheritances. Their sheer number overwhelmed Jiang Chen. It was actually quite difficult to find one cultivation method from these dense walls of information. Even if the cultivation method was correctly identified, two or three months would probably have passed since then. However, the challenger was only given half a year's time to prepare before the first challenge began. Therefore, the challenger was actually quite pressed for time.
Of course, should the challenger fail to pass the challenge, they would be given a second chance. This rule applied at every stage. However, all cultivators were naturally competitive. No one was willing to use this second chance if at all possible. After all, what if the inheritance was somehow altered because they used the second chance? Therefore, Jiang Chen had no plans to use the second chance. He only wanted to use the chance to leave.
Although the Veluriyam Pagoda and the outside world shared the same flow of time, a cultivator could cultivate ten to twenty times faster in the Veluriyam Pagoda. He had entered the Veluriyam Pagoda for a very long time, and he was rather concerned about the situation outside. This concern was only enhanced by his promise to the Coiling Dragon clan lord. Several years had passed by already, so the Five Elements Augmentation Art was likely going to fail very soon. Perhaps the clan lord was caught up in anxiety at this very moment. Jiang Chen didn't want to become a person who breaks his promises. He planned to head out after he completed this first challenge at Skykun Palace.
"This isn't it."
"This isn't it either…"
"This doesn't match up."
"Hmm, this one's too stiff as well." Jiang Chen activated his eye arts of God's Eye and the Evil Golden Eye in full and swiftly looked everywhere in Skykun Palace. The mental component of this cultivation method had been broken up, so he had to connect them together segment by segment.
That was why he searched around for clues very carefully. If even one segment was connected incorrectly, the entire art wouldn't be able to function. Thankfully, Jiang Chen possessed the memories of his previous life. His martial dao foundation was probably far superior to even the master of Skykun Palace, Honored Master P'eng himself. He didn't expose too much of his foundations. Obviously, it would be bad if he performed too well.
At the very least, he needed to limit his skills to a level that was appropriate to his age. Even if he were to 'overperform', he should still make sure that it didn't defy common sense too much. Otherwise, a busybody like Honored Master P'eng was would be sure to ask questions until he got to the bottom of the whole thing. There were many things that Jiang Chen found no reason to conceal, but the secret of his previous life was one thing he couldn't reveal to anyone.
He made steady progress as he searched around for the complete cultivation method. He'd finally gathered all the mental arts and physical arts about a month later. After he looked over his work several times and was sure that he had completed the cultivation method, he finally relaxed and started cultivating.
Although Honored Master P'eng was trapped, Skykun Palace was his domain. His consciousness was spread throughout this whole place, so he was able to grasp everything that was going on. He was very surprised to see that Jiang Chen was able to gather all the physical arts and mental arts of the cultivation method in just a month's time. He exclaimed in silent admiration.
"I guess the human race hasn't lost their ability to pass on their bloodline, even though they have largely faltered since the ancient war. There are still geniuses in every generation. This little guy seems to be a lot more talented and perceptive than the previous two geniuses who came in here." Honored Master P'eng had incredible insight, so it was only natural that he could distinguish who was superior and who was inferior. Plus, Jiang Chen had obviously outperformed the previous two geniuses.
"He's only at the ninth level sage realm, but he actually managed to find the answer from this random cluster of inheritances in just a month's time. This kid sure makes you expect great things from him." At the same time, he couldn't help but guess. "Could this kid be the successor that the old bastard was searching so hard for?"
Honored Master P'eng allowed his first impression to rule his judgment. He had an extremely good impression of Jiang Chen, so he couldn't help but want to raise Jiang Chen to greater heights when he saw how outstanding his performance was. Factually speaking, he also thought that Jiang Chen's talents had absolutely exceeded the previous two cultivators. Fortune-wise, the sheer amount of opportunities Jiang Chen had run into despite being only twenty years old or so was also proof that he was absolutely a genius of great destiny. If he truly possessed all the necessary qualities, then...
"He might actually be able to become the new master of the Veluriyam Pagoda." Honored Master P'eng couldn't help the strange excitement he was feeling. After being trapped for more than a hundred thousand years, no one wanted freedom more than he.
However, this freedom wouldn't be obtained easily. First, someone must show up as the heir. Moreover, they needed to serve their new master for ten thousand years after they had regained their freedom. This was also a rule that couldn't be changed. Every single protector of the Six Palaces of Heritage was a proud fellow. If their new master's character and temperament disgusted them, they would probably not enjoy serving their new master. However, Honored Master P'eng found that this little fellow named Jiang Chen was very much to his taste in every aspect. That was why he was looking forward to his success.
"My freedom is all in your hands, little fellow!" Honored Master P'eng didn't deny that the previous two geniuses who showed up were also true geniuses. However, his impression of them was far inferior to his impression of Jiang Chen. It was because he saw a unique quality in Jiang Chen. Moreover Jiang Chen was very honest, and he had spoken about his experiences without attempting to hide anything at all. Even rarer was the fact that Jiang Chen wasn't afraid to talk back. He didn't yield unconditionally just because the master was the protector of Skykun Palace. Honored Master P'eng didn't mind a bit of arrogance at all.
…...
On the outskirts of the Veluriyam Pagoda, the powers beneath the seven great emperors' command were still absorbed in the reality that was young lord Zhen's successful breakthrough of the ninth Veluriyam Obelisk. The entire Veluriyam Capital had sunk into wild merriment too. This wasn't a grand event, but it might as well be one. In fact, it was a grand event that couldn't be enjoyed even once in ten thousand years. Young lord Zhen's successful domination of the ninth Veluriyam Obelisk was an achievement that surpassed all other geniuses to date. Right now, not only did young lord Zhen's glory overwhelm his peers, but it also overwhelmed even the seven great emperors' and the thousands of years of history of Veluriyam Capital.
Some were happy and others troubled.
At a secluded place in Veluriyam Capital, several holy kings of the Eternal Celestial Capital had gathered together. Saint Holy King Mu, Saint Holy King Ke, Holy King Bei, and Mie Chenzi, the challenger who'd forfeited against Jiang Chen, were all present. When they heard that young lord Zhen had successfully conquered all nine Veluriyam Obelisks, these Eternal Celestial Capital cultivators all wore grave expressions on their faces.
"Everyone, I must say that the Eternal Celestial Capital may be facing a great trouble in the near future." There was no point in hiding anything, so Saint Holy King Mu spoke frankly.
"Yeah. I never thought that that kid would be this talented. He hid himself extremely deeply." Saint Holy King Ke also sighed.
But Holy King Bei asked timidly, "Saint Holy Kings, are you two absolutely sure that that young lord Zhen is Jiang Chen of Regal Pill Palace?"
Frankly speaking, this was where they felt the most defeated. Despite all their scheming, they weren't able to confirm if young lord Zhen was Jiang Chen even to this day. Although they had made some deductions and felt that young lord Zhen was Jiang Chen, upon closer inspection they felt that the lord, particularly in the arena, didn't feel like the legendary Jiang Chen.
"What do you think, Mie Chenzi?" Saint Holy King Ke asked.
When Mie Chenzi was challenging the Ranking of Young Lords, he had surprised everyone by surrendering and leaving in a hurry. Although he had managed to escape with his life, he'd also become a joke in Veluriyam Capital. With that being said, no one knew who Mie Chenzi really was.
"I believe that we may have over thought things. If young lord Zhen truly is Jiang Chen, then he has no reason to conceal his identity right now." Mie Chenzi continued, "I agree with the general opinion outside. This young lord Zhen is probably a pawn that Emperor Peafowl has raised in secret."
Holy King Bei also nodded. "I believe that this line of deduction is more logical too. If we were Emperor Peafowl, we wouldn't have left a genius successor at the secular world to waste his life, would we? That animal Jiang Chen was born in a tiny place called the Eastern Kingdom. He also wasted time in other tiny places like the Skylaurel Kingdom and Precious Tree Sect. No matter how you look at it, he just doesn't seem like a pawn that Emperor Peafowl was secretly raising."
Saint Holy King Ke sighed softly. "That is the logical deduction, yes. But if that is the case then why can't I help but feel worried about young lord Zhen's success?"
Saint Holy King Mu also agreed. "I too can't help but feel that this young long Zhen may become a threat to the Eternal Celestial Capital in the future."
Mie Chenzi and Holy King Bei exchanged a glance with each other. Their status was inferior to the two saint holy kings, so it wasn't in their place to raise an objection. However, they definitely thought that the two saint holy kings were overreacting.
A while later, Saint Holy King Ke sighed. "Forget it, it's too late to talk about this anyway. Whether or not young lord Zhen is Jiang Chen, we must be prepared for this possibility. In case he really is Jiang Chen, the Eternal Celestial Capital will be met with a crisis in the future. Who knows, if he becomes the true master of Sacred Peafowl Mountain tens or hundreds of years later, he may start a war against us."
Everyone's expression changed when they thought of Veluriyam Capital starting a war against the Eternal Celestial Capital. Mie Chenzi couldn't help but say, "It can't be that easy, can it? Even if he is Jiang Chen, and even if he takes control of Sacred Peafowl Mountain, it still doesn't mean that he controls the entire Veluriyam Capital. I heard that not everyone in Veluriyam Pagoda shares the same opinion. For the longest time, Emperor Shura was seen to be the most likely cultivator to succeed Emperor Peafowl, and then this young lord Zhen suddenly appeared out of nowhere. I doubt that Emperor Shura's faction would be willing to obey his commands."
This analysis did make a lot of sense. Saint Holy King Mu also nodded. "In that case, what we need to do now is to make an ally out of Emperor Shura and support him. As long as Veluriyam Capital falls into Emperor Shura's hands, the Eternal Celestial Capital will be able to rest without worries. If it's only Sacred Peafowl Mountain that we have to face, then what is there to be afraid of?"
Veluriyam Capital was strong because they had seven great emperors. Moreover, the only reason the Sacred Peafowl Mountain was almost on par with the Eternal Celestial Capital's strength was because they had a heaven-defying expert like Emperor Peafowl. Otherwise, if the emperor were to be excluded from the equation, his faction was far inferior to the Eternal Celestial Capital in terms of overall strength.