My Golden Core is a Star, do you call this cultivating?

Chapter 216: Let Me Show You Something Good

Night had fallen, and a blood-red glow hung high in the sky, making the world seem eerily sinister and terrifying.

Shenlei Venerable handed his form to Qi Yuan, his expression complicated. “Are you planning to visualize more divine techniques for these ancient gods?”

Qi Yuan took the form and nodded. “Yes.”

“There might be a problem with that.”

“Oh?” Qi Yuan was surprised. “What problem?”

“There originally wouldn’t be any problem, but since you showed up... it’s become an issue. Because... you’re too good at visualizing!” Shenlei Venerable sighed, exasperated. “The Visualization Realm is actually dependent on the Heaven Pillar. After the pillar broke, the world changed. Not only can the Purple Mansion no longer ascend to True God, but even the Visualization Realm is now restricted. Before, there were so few myth-level visualizations that no one noticed this limit.”

Shenlei Venerable’s point was that Qi Yuan was overloading the system. For instance, if the Visualization Realm could support the visualization of a hundred divine techniques, the people of Fanxin Realm might only create fifty, so no one noticed the limit. But Qi Yuan alone had visualized fifty, and he wasn’t stopping. So now the limit was becoming apparent.

“Currently, the Visualization Realm can probably only support five more myth-level divine techniques,” Shenlei Venerable continued. “You should save some for the Myth Plan... for them.”

Shenlei Venerable was aware of the Myth Plan. He neither supported nor opposed it, but now, the chosen ones in the plan had only visualized two myth-level techniques.

“There’s such a restriction?” Qi Yuan wasn’t too concerned. This restriction was similar to how the Purple Mansion couldn’t ascend to True God. He could simply use the Lost Starlight Rod to take the Venerables and his followers back to the past. On a previous trip to the past, Qi Yuan had experimented with visualizing and found that he could still enter the Visualization Realm. This meant he could take all his villagers and ancient gods back to the past to visualize and ascend to True God. The past, before the Heaven Pillar broke, likely wouldn’t have these restrictions.

Shenlei Venerable looked at Qi Yuan with a complicated expression. “So... even if you’ve seen True Gods from beyond the Fanxin Realm, no matter how many or how powerful they are, they can’t save the Fanxin Realm. I don’t need a grand gift or a powerful divine technique.”

Shenlei Venerable’s voice was filled with a sense of melancholy and endless uncertainty. To him, Qi Yuan’s very existence in the Fanxin Realm was a mistake. A prodigy of Qi Yuan’s caliber could have reached unimaginable heights in another world, but here, he was trapped in the Fanxin Realm with no hope.

“You’re underestimating me, old man Shenlei,” Qi Yuan said confidently. “This game is full of restrictions, designed to keep players from winning too easily. But I know how to break the rules. These limitations can’t stop me. Just watch—I’ll go full throttle and steamroll the Fanxin Realm!”

The limitations Shenlei Venerable mentioned didn’t worry Qi Yuan. The only drawback was that the Lost Starlight Rod had only two uses left, so he had to plan carefully. He couldn’t just visualize whenever he wanted.

Shenlei Venerable’s beard bristled. “You get a little praise, and suddenly you think you’re invincible? Steamroll the Fanxin Realm? Forget the Yang God in the Heaven Pillar—how do you plan to deal with the myth-level evil gods? I just got word that the vanguard under the Evil God General of Qingheng Continent is gathering at Sunset Slope. The evil gods’ forces are stronger than we thought—thirty-four Venerables and over a thousand ordinary evil gods. This time, their goal isn’t just us; they plan to sweep through the entire Qingheng Continent and wipe out every ancient god.”

As Shenlei Venerable spoke, his worry deepened. They had initially expected ten Venerables at most, but there were thirty-four. The Evil God General was determined to purge the entire Qingheng Continent.

“Sunset Slope, what a poetic name,” Qi Yuan said, his eyes lighting up with excitement. “Thirty-four Venerables and over a thousand evil gods—what a feast!”

It was like the heavens had answered his prayers. He had been worrying about how to gather enough evil god energy to return to the past, and now so many had gathered.

Shenlei Venerable stared at Qi Yuan. “Have you lost your mind?”

This many evil gods could sweep through the entire Qingheng Continent, crushing all resistance. Even if the ancient gods from the southern lands came to help, they would be too late. The evil gods wouldn’t let them in.

“You should just go to bed,” Shenlei Venerable suggested, seeing no point in discussing the impending threat. To him, it felt like talking to a brick wall. Then he remembered something and asked, “Aren’t you supposed to be asleep by now? Why are you still awake?”

Ever since arriving in Qing Shui Village, Shenlei Venerable had noticed how odd Qi Yuan was. Not only was his behavior strange, but he also slept at night, hanging from a tree, which was downright eerie.

“Aren’t you curious why I’m so confident, even in the face of the evil god alliance?” Qi Yuan asked, suddenly serious.

Shenlei Venerable was silent for a moment, surprised to see Qi Yuan so solemn. “A bit curious, yes.”

“I’ve got a secret to tell you, but you can’t tell anyone else,” Qi Yuan whispered conspiratorially.

Shenlei Venerable felt his heart race. The Origin Venerable clearly had many secrets, and not small ones. Otherwise, how could anyone visualize eight myth-level divine techniques with no known origin? And now, this secret was about to be revealed to him?

He couldn’t help but feel a little nervous. “I swear, I won’t tell a soul.”

He watched Qi Yuan expectantly, his curiosity piqued.

“Actually, I’ve cultivated a very powerful Golden Core,” Qi Yuan said calmly, though he was bursting with pride inside. Finally, he had the chance to show off his Stellar Golden Core again.

“Huh?” Shenlei Venerable was puzzled.

A powerful Golden Core? What nonsense! A Golden Core, no matter how powerful, was still just a Golden Core. To him, a True God, a Golden Core was nothing more than a trifle. No matter how powerful it was, what did it matter?

“My Golden Core is a star. Look up—see that star? That’s my Golden Core!” Qi Yuan pointed to the star in the sky, outwardly composed but inwardly smug.

Shenlei Venerable couldn’t hold back. “Are you messing with me?”

“Old man, you’re short-sighted,” Qi Yuan sighed. “They say that once people reach middle age, they can’t accept new things.”

Qi Yuan had once read that people have a kind of nostalgic attachment. What they encounter in their youth becomes legendary in their minds, and as they age, they resist new things.

“This is what you call something new? Even if it’s new, there’s no way a Golden Core could be a star!” Shenlei Venerable was almost ready to curse Qi Yuan out. Was he being toyed with?

“You don’t believe me?”

“Who in their right mind would believe that?”

“Well, I’m about to form another Golden Core. Keep your eyes wide open, and soon you’ll see another small sun in the sky.”

Qi Yuan’s Solar True Fire continued to burn, devouring a second star. It would likely succeed today. That’s why Qi Yuan hadn’t gone to sleep—he was waiting to witness the birth of his second Golden Core.

“You’re full of it. If I’d been half as good at lying when I was young, I’d have had no trouble finding a wife,” Shenlei Venerable said dismissively, staring at the star Qi Yuan had pointed to. “If that’s really your Golden Core, I’ll eat every pile of dung in the Fanxin Realm!”

But just as he finished speaking, a flash of light streaked across the night sky.

It wasn’t particularly bright, lasting only a moment before vanishing. Compared to the spectacle in the Canglan Realm, it was almost insignificant, mainly because the Fanxin Realm was so far away. But next to the small sun Shenlei Venerable had been staring at, another large sun suddenly appeared.

Shenlei’s eyes widened in shock. He stared blankly at the new sun, his body trembling. “You... you were serious?”

“Feels great!” Qi Yuan was elated. He had finally formed his second Golden Core. “See that? My second Golden Core—didn’t lie, did I?”

Shenlei Venerable’s mind was in turmoil. He finally managed to squeeze out a few words: “You’re ruthless. You’ll accomplish great things. To make me eat dung, you actually formed a star Golden Core!”

“Don’t try to trick me into eating and drinking,” Qi Yuan said casually.

Shenlei Venerable stared at Qi Yuan, his gaze vacant, his thoughts racing. “Save the Fanxin Realm!”

He almost wanted to kneel and cling to Qi Yuan’s leg.

“Don’t worry. I’m going to clear this game soon. I’ve been racking my brain, but I’ve come up with a detailed plan. This year, I’ll beat this game for sure!”

…

In the Ancient God Alliance, the atmosphere was tense.

The Wan Mountain Venerable’s expression was particularly grim. “The Origin Venerable is truly detestable. Not only did he stir up trouble, but he also wiped out the new god camps!”

“He’s too bold. Now that the new gods’ army is mobilizing to sweep through Qingheng Continent, where are we supposed to go?” The Venerable Wenyang’s voice was filled with regret and uncertainty about the future.

“That Origin Venerable is nothing but trouble! His reckless actions have sparked a war. I’m not worried about our safety, but about the billions of innocent people in Qingheng Continent. They did nothing to deserve this. And now... they’ll face the new gods’ cleansing, their lives destroyed!”

Many of the ancient gods present began to condemn Qi Yuan, as if he were guilty of the gravest sins.

Only a few of the native ancient gods found this hard to swallow. But this was understandable. The Ancient God Alliance had been formed with the help of many foreign ancient gods who had fled here. In the past, when Feihuang City was in crisis, members of the Ancient God Alliance had tried to persuade the Ancient God Yuan and Qi Yuan of Qing Shui Village to join them.

Most of the foreign ancient gods had joined for similar reasons—self-preservation. So, it was no surprise that they lacked backbone.

The ancient gods argued for over an hour, but no consensus was reached. The meeting ended in discord.

The Wan Mountain Venerable walked alongside the Venerable Wenyang.

Venerable Wenyang looked worried. “Wan Mountain, is your contact reliable?”

Wan Mountain Venerable thumped his chest. “I’ve been in contact with the Ancient God Fengtian for fifty years. He’s always been loyal to the new gods. This time, he sent me a message—if we head to Sunset Slope, we can join the new gods! But since we’re latecomers, we’ll need to prove our loyalty by serving them.”

“I’d be more worried if they didn’t give us something to do,” Venerable Wenyang replied, relieved. “I’ve already contacted dozens of comrades. Today, we’ll head to Sunset Slope to welcome the new god army!”

“Sigh, for the sake of the Fanxin Realm’s survival, we’ll have to bear the shame of being called traitors,” Wan Mountain Venerable said, his voice filled with melancholy, as if he had no other choice.

“That vile Origin Venerable! He’s nothing but trouble, acting so arrogantly just because he found some Taiyin Thunder Orbs. He forced us to leave here and become lackeys for the new gods. Sigh,” Venerable Wenyang lamented.

Leaving the Ancient God Alliance, where they could do as they pleased, to become subservient to the new gods was a bitter pill to swallow.

“If we weren’t unsure how many Taiyin Thunder Orbs he has left, I would have killed them all before going to Sunset Slope and presented their heads to the new gods!” Wan Mountain Venerable growled.

“By the way, did you notice that a new star appeared in the sky last night? It was strange.”

“Maybe another True God broke through to the level above True God.”

“Too bad the Fanxin Realm remains sealed off.”

…

Sunset Slope, located in the heart of Qingheng Continent.

Once, an evil god camp had been stationed here. In the past two days, evil gods had been gathering here. Now, the small Sunset Slope was filled with over a thousand evil gods.

At the forefront stood the Three Flames Venerable. Clad in red armor that covered his entire body, leaving only his piercing eyes visible, he stood atop a high platform, surrounded by over thirty Venerables.

In just two days, countless Venerables and Respectables had arrived, and the evil god army was fully assembled.

At this moment, with over a thousand Respectables gathered, even without a word spoken, anyone could feel the immense pressure and the impending storm.

The Ancient God Fengtian, clad in light armor, stepped forward, his face lit with joy. “Three Flames Venerable, Wan Mountain Venerable of the Ancient God Alliance has brought ninety-seven ancient gods to pledge their loyalty. They await your command!”

Though Fengtian Venerable’s expression was serious, he was inwardly delighted. The battle hadn’t even begun, and nearly a hundred ancient gods had already sworn loyalty. The credit for this would be immense.

Three Flames Venerable’s eyes gleamed with satisfaction. “Excellent, very well done.”

Fengtian Venerable quickly added, “It’s all thanks to your overwhelming reputation, Three Flames Venerable. These ancient gods didn’t dare oppose you!”

Three Flames Venerable’s laughter grew louder.

Nearby, Wan Mountain Venerable, Venerable Wenyang, and a group of True Gods from the Ancient God Alliance kept their heads bowed, their expressions respectful.

“We’re willing to serve as vanguard, paving the way for Three Flames Venerable!” Wan Mountain Venerable pledged his loyalty.

Venerable Wenyang added, “I’ve heard that Three Flames Venerable has a flame divine bird as a mount. I’m skilled in caring for birds and would be honored to serve as your birdkeeper!”

The other ancient gods scrambled to flatter him, looking ridiculous.

The new god Venerables around them burst into laughter, watching them like they were clowns.

Wan Mountain Venerable saw their mockery but dared not resent the new gods. Instead, his hatred for Qi Yuan grew even deeper. To him, all of this was Qi Yuan’s fault.

“Haha, the backbone of the Fanxin Realm was broken in the War of Hongtang long ago! Now, it’s all just a bunch of jumping clowns. If they stay out of trouble, we’ll leave them be. But dare to attack a military camp? The Origin Venerable is the toughest bone in the Fanxin Realm. Such a person is admirable, worth a hundred of you.”

Three Flames Venerable looked at the ancient gods of the alliance, his tone dripping with scorn.

“Too bad he offended the General. Only death will satisfy that crime!”

Three Flames Venerable’s eyes flashed with murderous intent.

Meanwhile, over a thousand miles away, Qi Yuan lay in a tree, with the Thunder God Venerable standing nearby. Several ancient gods stood around them, looking worried.

Qi Yuan lazily asked, “Are they all gathered yet?”