As his voice fell, he pushed with both arms, as if moving a force of ten thousand acres.

Boom—

Heaven and earth roared, as if thunder had exploded.

The mountains and forests shook, as if an earth dragon was surging.

With a thunderous roar, a giant wave moved in response, like mountains collapsing and seas overturning, carrying the sweeping Power of Heaven and Earth, crashing down toward the grey-clad elder ahead.

Before the wave fell, the strong wind had already swept through the world.

The grey-clad elder was terrified; the shadow of the wave, towering a hundred feet high, was not an illusion but a Martial Arts force condensed from vast True Yuan and the endless moisture in the air!

And... the taste of Divine Power!

Locked by the Qi, he felt like a lone boat in the midst of a raging sea, the space around him solidified, rendering him unable to move.

"You’re at the Unity Realm, how can you be at the Unity Realm..." The horrified shrieks were not fully uttered before the giant wave crashed down.

Boom!!!

The mountains and forests shook, heaven and earth roared.

The Protective Gang Qi that the elder mustered with all his might shattered like paper in an instant upon touching the wave crest.

He felt that every drop of water in this wave was as heavy as ten thousand acres.

Billions of drops of water merged into the wave, crashing down heavily, a force completely beyond his resistance.

The next moment.

The aftermath spread in a ring, turning ancient trees and mountain rocks into the finest dust it passed.

Leaving only a pit several zhang deep and stretching hundreds of zhang wide.

At the bottom of the pit, nothing remained, and the grey-clad elder left not a trace.

Jiang Ning slowly withdrew his palm, the abundant aura around him instantly calmed, and the suffocating pressure in the mountains dissipated.

He stood quietly at the edge of the palm imprint, his gaze sweeping across the emptiness before him, his eyes calm.

The grey-clad elder’s strength in his eyes could not measure a First-Grade Martial Artist.

But after a brief exchange, he knew that his strength might be stronger than he imagined.

In a battle between Martial Artists, at the same level, you can determine victory or defeat, but it’s hard to determine life or death.

Because on the path of Martial Arts, you temper your skin, flesh, and bones, strengthen your physical body, along with powerful Life Force.

Especially after becoming a Blood Exchange Master, the Life Force is so strong that severed limbs can regenerate.

If the heart is shattered, it will also regenerate.

Reaching this level, martial artists are practically unkillable.

Unless there is a huge disparity in power, it is impossible to determine life or death.

But that grey-clad elder in the First Grade Mixed Element Realm was turned to dust by one of his palms.

He knew right then his strength was far beyond that of the elder from the Prince Mansion.

Their strengths were not on the same level at all.

And this was far from his full strength.

Precisely because of this, he couldn’t be bothered to be deceitful with the elder from the Prince Mansion; might as well end it simply.

"What plots, schemes, conspiracies—if your strength is enough, they’ll all be broken with one punch!" he murmured, looking at the massive pit ahead.

Then, a trace of confidence flashed in his eyes.

To this day, even though he doesn’t know what level his strength has reached, after this battle, he’s gained more confidence.

The next moment, his body moved, instantly speeding in the direction of Yang Lake at ten times the speed he had just used.

Ordinary strong people would choose to travel by flying high in the sky, like Shen Wenyan used to do.

Because flying high allows for a direct path without obstacles.

But Jiang Ning still moved on the ground.

Before him, whether it was high mountains or ancient forests, none could hinder him in the slightest as he sped through them.

...

Less than two hours later.

Above Yang Lake.

Jiang Ning once again arrived here.

At this moment, the lake was no longer full of surging waves, and there were no sails stopped on the lake.

After the entrance to the Grotto Heaven above Yang Lake closed, those boats that had once stopped had long since left.

Now the lake surface only had tens of thousands of golden scales rising with the ripples.

"Whether I can form the Yin Yang Dao Embryo depends on this place!" Jiang Ning spoke to himself while looking at the lake ahead.

Then, he walked on water towards the center of the lake.

On the other side.

A fishing boat floated atop the lake, shimmering with golden scales.

On the boat, an old man and a young child.

The old man squinted, idly arranging a fishing net, while the five or six-year-old child suddenly tugged at his shirt, pointing towards the center of the lake.

"Grandpa, look quickly!" The child’s voice was clear, filled with a child’s unique wonder: "There’s a shadow walking on the lake!"

"A shadow?" The old man followed the finger of his grandson, and indeed saw a faint silhouette far away where the water met the sky.

The person was not riding a boat, nor was he making waves in the water, but seemed to casually walk on the water surface filled with fragmented sunset gold.

The sunlight shone down, and the silhouette was sometimes clear, sometimes blurred, at one point almost blending into the sparkling waves, leaving only a faint outline, the next moment solidifying several zhang away, continuing forward.

"Oh?" The old man rubbed his somewhat cloudy eyes, looked intently, and grew more puzzled: "Is he... walking on water? How does he appear farther and closer at times, like... like he’s walking on light?" 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

"Is he an Immortal, Grandpa?" The child’s eyes widened, full of longing: "Mom said in stories, Immortals walk like this, taking a step crossing a mountain!"

The old man didn’t immediately answer. Having lived over sixty years, fishing on Yang Lake all his life, he’d seen martial artists with high skills walking swiftly on water, creating splashes.

He had also seen from a distance those great figures who could fly through the sky, passing through with astonishing momentum.

Last year, he had witnessed the spectacular view over Yang Lake.

But the way this person walked was completely different.

There were no whistling winds from breaking through the air, no violent lake waves, not even a trail of rippling footsteps.

The steps were unhurried, as if the vast lake below was just a small stone path in his backyard.

More astonishing was how his figure seemed to fuse with the surrounding environment, with sunlight, vapor, and a clear sky.

"Not an Immortal..." The old man shook his head slowly, deep eyes flickering with wisdom and reverence from years of experience: "But certainly not an ordinary person, a remarkable figure."

"Grandpa, I want to be such a remarkable figure too! Become an iconic figure like a god!!!" the child’s voice was firm.

"Good! Good! Good!!" The old man beamed with joy, repeatedly affirming, seeming gratified.

In their conversation, that figure vanished from their view.

At this moment.

Jiang Ning had reached the depths of the lake’s center.

He stopped, looking up at the sky, the calm gleam in his eyes reflecting layers of space.

"I see it!!" His eyes narrowed as he spotted above Yang Lake, a crack hidden in the void.

It was a golden crack, within which endless light and heat cascaded.

At this moment, he suddenly realized why the temperature over Yang Lake was always a few degrees higher than elsewhere.

Why the water of Yang Lake was eternally warm.

Because the Grotto Heaven time over Yang Lake constantly influenced this lake region.

The unique environment created special geography and ecology.

Yang Lake’s waters were rich with spirit fish.

As thoughts flowed, his body ascended.

Heading towards the golden crack.

The higher he rose, the closer he got, the larger the golden crack appeared in his sight, the temperature in the air rising.

As the golden crack enlarged before his eyes, he saw within it two golden suns.

Beyond these two golden suns, other suns cast endless light and heat.

The next moment.

His silhouette vanished over Yang Lake, stepping into a deeper space.

The golden crack in space expanded before him.

Standing before the crack filled with gold, he leaped.

Suddenly.

Heaven and earth inverted, space transformed.

The surrounding scene changed.

He steadied himself.

Above him were ten golden suns, below him a vast, endless sea.

"I’ve really made it in!" he grinned, silently overjoyed in his heart.

Gaining entry to the Yang Lake Grotto Heaven meant he was halfway successful.

At that moment.

An invisible ripple spread from the void above, the overwhelming will of the Grotto Heaven descended.

The will settled on Jiang Ning, lingering for only two breaths.

"So it’s a true heir of the Upper Sect!" An invisible wave echoed in Jiang Ning’s mind.