Volume One: The Misty Cloud Immortal Palace Arc, Chapter Eighty-Eight: The Supreme and Peerless Sovereign

The excited and anxious wait was finally broken when Zhou Hao appeared. Hua Huo was both overjoyed and puzzled—overjoyed to see him safe, and puzzled by the unfamiliar immortal maiden who had carried him out in her arms.

“You are…?”

“You are…?”

Su Qing and Hua Huo spoke at the same time. Clearly, neither knew the other’s identity, yet because both knew Zhou Hao, they were naturally curious about each other as well. That curiosity was not entirely admiring; there was a trace of jealousy in it too.

“I’m Zhou Hao’s friend. You can call me Hua Huo. Thank you for saving Zhou Hao!” Hua Huo said with a friendly smile.

“Hello, I’m Zhou Hao’s senior sister, Su Qing. Thank you for caring about him.” Su Qing’s beauty shone radiantly, her immortal face elegant beyond compare. Yet even she was slightly taken aback by the little maiden before her: this girl was far too lovely, far too adorable.

The two women exchanged meaningful looks, but the most urgent matter now was Zhou Hao’s condition. Though he had successfully survived the tribulation, he had also been wounded by the final burst of lightning. He still lay unconscious, unaware of anything around him.

The two of them then carried Zhou Hao to a green, graceful peak on the Heart-shaped Isle. The yellow gourd followed closely behind, and even the once-bright presence of the carefree spirit upon its mouth seemed somewhat dimmer now.

“So the senior was the master of the Immortal Cave. Please forgive my discourtesy. I beg you, senior, to save Zhou Hao!” After hearing the spirit’s self-introduction from the yellow gourd, Su Qing pleaded earnestly.

“Yes, yes! Gourd Uncle, you’re a master of the immortal path, right? You should be able to wake Zhou Hao with just a small effort, shouldn’t you? Please, please!” Hua Huo blinked her big eyes and pleaded in an innocent, winsome manner.

“Gourd Uncle?” The spirit was momentarily stunned, then could only laugh and shake his head.

“As for Zhou Hao, you need not worry. He will be fine. He will awaken very soon. The Great Golden Immortal tribulation has already been successfully passed. His potential is limitless, and most importantly, for one so young to have attained the Golden Immortal realm, he is a rare genius whose future achievements will be immeasurable!”

As he looked at Zhou Hao lying unconscious, the spirit spoke with evident relief.

Now that the yellow gourd had found a new master, and that new master had actually drawn down the Five Thunder Orthodox Tribulation and survived it, the spirit was utterly reassured. For him, nothing mattered more than finding the right successor.

Hearing this, the two women were greatly relieved. Yet their eyes remained fixed on Zhou Hao all the same, each with thoughts that were difficult to read.

And sure enough, after a while Zhou Hao truly opened his eyes. The golden double pupils had already faded, replaced by those ordinary dark-black irises.

“Exhale!”

The moment he awoke, Zhou Hao sat cross-legged and began to regulate his breathing. At once, a wondrous scene unfolded.

Across the Heart-shaped Isle, countless streams of vital energy converged into visible rivers of brilliance, pouring into every pore of Zhou Hao’s body. His charred flesh instantly regained its fair luster, and a wave of power beyond that of a lower immortal spread outward.

“He is replenishing the power he lost. A tribulation consumes immortal force to begin with, and the essence of heaven and earth is now his best nourishment. This is what it means to feed on cloud and vital breath,” the spirit explained.

As the essence entered his body, Zhou Hao’s injuries rapidly healed. At the same time, a tremendous transformation was taking place within him. His flesh was cleansing bone and marrow on its own, changing blood and sinew!

Boom, boom!

Zhou Hao’s body now seemed like a divine furnace brought to a boil. Essence became the kindling, burning within the furnace, while his organs and limbs were the materials being tempered. He had to stabilize this newly attained Golden Immortal realm and use the baptism of heaven and earth to raise himself to his peak condition.

At this moment, Zhou Hao focused inward, mind and spirit united. With both hands forming seals, he entered deep cultivation. The moment his unfathomable hand seals were formed, golden light flashed over his entire body, and one golden rune after another surfaced upon his skin.

In the end, Zhou Hao shouted, “Golden Body, condense!”

Golden light clung to his entire body without dispersing. Slowly, his flesh transformed into a pale golden form, looking exactly like a Golden-Body Arhat.

“Not enough yet. Spirit and body have not fully merged!” Zhou Hao muttered.

Then he pressed his palms together, and his brow erupted with radiance. There, a brilliant mass of golden light hovered and drifted—this was the sign of the soul’s light manifesting outward.

Dong, dong, dong, dong!

As if a great drum of heaven and earth had been struck, deep booming sounds came from within Zhou Hao’s body. But in truth, it was the beating of his heart, filled with vigorous life.

At that moment, the radiance of his soul resonated with the beating of his heart. Light, projected from his brow, spread through every part of his body, illuminating all within. The pulse of his heart reached every corner of his being, and that rhythmic throb seemed to reveal the mysteries of life itself. As the two resonated together, light and sound composed the most harmonious of arts. Zhou Hao’s whole body blazed brilliantly, and his pale golden form deepened into a richer, more intense gold.

That fleshly body seemed like a great sun descending upon the world, or like a golden divine furnace suppressing heaven and earth. It became the sole existence beneath the heavens. A vast, mighty force exploded fully from within and out. Centered on Zhou Hao’s body, a ring of golden shockwave spread outward. In an instant, the void thundered, plants were shattered to pieces, rocks broke apart, and even the clouds in the sky were blasted away.

A Golden Immortal Zhou Hao, with his golden body newly revealed!

“Enough!” Zhou Hao, now sheathed in a body of gold, was very satisfied with his present state. He then restrained this new power.

“Good, good, good! Truly worthy of being my successor. To reach the Golden Immortal realm before the age of one hundred is an astonishing feat, even across the entire Immortal Realm,” praised the spirit.

“If not for the senior’s guidance in my cultivation, I’m afraid I would not have reached this height even in five hundred years. For this, I thank you, senior!” With his robe fluttering, Zhou Hao rose to his feet and turned to the spirit with clasped fists in gratitude. He was a man who repaid kindness. The spirit could be counted as half his master; without those earlier instructions, he could never have broken into the Golden Immortal realm so quickly.

“Zhou Hao, congratulations!” A smile like spring snow and clear sunlight appeared on Su Qing’s jade-white, lovely face. Her voice was ethereal and pure as heavenly music, soothing as a spring breeze.

“Su Qing, thank you. You saved me again this time. I’ve lost track of how many times you’ve saved me already.” Zhou Hao turned to look at his beautiful senior sister, awkwardly rubbing his nose.

All along, this peerlessly beautiful senior sister seemed to have been protecting him. Whether he was weak or gradually growing stronger, Su Qing had always been there, accompanying him through everything. At times Zhou Hao truly felt he owed her far too much.

“Zhou Hao, you didn’t disappoint this young lady. Who would have thought you’d become a true Golden Immortal so quickly!” Hua Huo stepped close and patted his shoulder as if the two were old brothers.

“Of course. Who do you think I am? I’m the Great Zhou victor... Ahem, I mean, I’m Zhou Hao! In the future I’m destined to leave my name in the annals of the Immortal Realm and become the strongest of all! Hahaha!” Zhou Hao nearly slipped, then hurriedly corrected himself.

Crack!

At that moment, a crimson bolt of lightning suddenly emerged from the void and struck straight at Zhou Hao. He and the two women were all shocked, but it came too suddenly to evade. In the next instant, Zhou Hao was sent coughing foam from his mouth, his hair exploding upward. Though not life-threatening, it was still a small injury.

“The Immortal Realm is not like the mortal world. Here, the Dao reigns in the dark. What you just said touched a taboo, which is why you were struck by lightning,” the spirit explained.

“What? That’s ridiculous! I just said I was destined to leave my name in the annals of the Immortal Realm. Why should that get me struck by lightning? Can’t I even boast a little…” Zhou Hao grumbled in frustration.

“It wasn’t that line,” the spirit said, wagging a forefinger.

“Not that line? Then which one? Was it the ‘hahaha’? Or ‘becoming the strongest’?” Zhou Hao asked reflexively.

The next moment, tragedy struck again. The same crimson lightning reappeared, and he was blasted more than ten li away.

“Why? Why are those five words—‘becoming the strongest’—taboo?” Zhou Hao asked, both indignant and baffled.

“I’m not entirely sure, but I can roughly guess what’s going on,” the spirit said, narrowing his eyes as thoughts flashed through his mind.

“What is it?” Zhou Hao and Hua Huo asked at the same time, while Su Qing wore an expression of eager curiosity.

“You know, who is the strongest person in the Immortal Realm?” the spirit asked, still not getting to the point directly as always.

“The lords of the Nine Immortal Realms?” Zhou Hao blurted out.

“I don’t know!” Hua Huo answered honestly, shaking her head.

The spirit shook his head without speaking. In his eyes there appeared a deep, almost yearning reverence—but only reverence, nothing more, no trace of overreaching.

“Senior, stop being so mysterious and tell us already!” Zhou Hao was rendered speechless by the old spirit’s manner. Earlier he had already been verbose and circuitous, so Zhou Hao quickly urged him to get to the point.

“Supreme Sovereign!” said the spirit, word by word. His tone was steady and respectful, as though those two words carried the weight of countless mountains.

“The Supreme Sovereign that of ‘Supreme Sovereign is beyond all’?” Zhou Hao asked.

“Exactly. That honorific is recited to commemorate the Supreme Sovereign, and the Supreme Sovereign is the strongest being in the Immortal Realm. He is an absolute taboo. What you just said was tantamount to declaring war upon him. That is grave disrespect, so Heaven must send down thunder to punish you!” said the spirit.

The spirit’s words caused Zhou Hao’s expression to turn solemn. The blood flowing through his meridians seemed to surge with force in that instant, becoming seething, burning passion! He sneered. “A taboo? Then I will break the taboo and prove the Great Dao! One day I will certainly become the strongest, and even the Supreme Sovereign will be unable to stop me...”

Before he could finish, hundreds upon thousands of crimson thunderbolts erupted together from the void like raging serpents. Even though Zhou Hao had been on guard, lightning was faster than thought. He was instantly struck black as charcoal.

But such lightning would not kill him; it was only a warning.

“Young man, confidence is good, but too much confidence becomes arrogance,” the spirit said, laughing at Zhou Hao’s stubbornness.

“Gourd Grandfather, I don’t agree with you,” Hua Huo said with a grin. “If the Supreme Sovereign is the strongest and has become an absolute taboo, that means someone really can reach the highest level. If so, then later generations should be able to reach that height too. As the saying goes, the waves behind the Yangtze River drive those before them onward. Maybe Zhou Hao can become that wave!”

The spirit merely smiled without comment, his meaning plain: Zhou Hao becoming the strongest was undoubtedly a joke, because no one had ever done it. Even among the peerless sovereigns and prodigies of the Nine Immortal Realms in ages past, none had come anywhere close to that final step, let alone Zhou Hao today.

“I believe in Zhou Hao too, because he is the most extraordinary person I’ve ever met,” said Su Qing with a calm smile as she watched Zhou Hao fly back from more than ten li away.