Chapter 44: Morning Sun Peak

Forging the hundred scriptures in a furnace means programming within a mortal physique to write the programming language of the Chaotic Physique.

This path is entirely viable, and later Ye Fan also transformed into a Chaotic Physique through this very method.

However, this similarly has a prerequisite that is extremely difficult to achieve. The so-called forging of the hundred scriptures in a furnace does not mean that just any random scripture will suffice.

At the very least, it must be an Emperor Scripture to meet the standard.

This single point alone makes it virtually impossible for anyone else to accomplish. Emperor Scriptures are rare; even the emperors and sovereigns of ancient and modern times at most mastered a few complete Emperor Scriptures, with the rest being merely fragmented texts.

From this, one can imagine how difficult it is to gather the sheer volume of scriptures required to evolve the Chaotic Physique.

The number of scriptures involved is so vast that ordinary people can scarcely conceive it. Even Ye Fan achieved this only near the end of his fourth lifetime, truly forging the hundred scriptures in a furnace to evolve the Chaotic Physique and live out his fifth lifetime.

Not only that, but there is yet another difficulty. Forging the hundred scriptures in a furnace does not mean one genuinely cultivates a hundred Emperor Scriptures; rather, it requires melting all the Emperor Scriptures into a single furnace, blending and innovating them to create a Chaotic Immortal Scripture, and using this to evolve the Chaotic Physique. This demands transcendent talent.

"The *Emperor Scripture* of the Emperor of Ascension, representative of the Ascension Physique; the *Western Emperor Scripture* of the Innate Dao Body; the *Taiyin True Scripture* of the Taiyin Physique; the *Taiyang True Scripture* of the Taiyang Physique..."

"Those Great Emperors possessed of special physiques have already pushed their physiques to the absolute limit. Their scriptures must contain the foundational profound meanings of these physiques. If I wish to forge the hundred scriptures in a furnace, I must acquire these scriptures."

Li Yao set down his long-term goal for the future. If he had merely entertained this thought before, acquiring the God-Trace Purple Gold had finally turned these notions into reality.

Looking at the small furnace measuring less than an inch in length, Li Yao was filled with boundless joy. Obtaining the God-Trace Purple Gold this time would be of immeasurable use to his future cultivation path.

After scrutinizing the small furnace for a long while, Li Yao finally put it away with satisfaction, then got up and left the artifact-refinement chamber.

For half a month, Li Yao's mind had been tightly strung, like a fully drawn bow. At this moment, he only wanted to return quickly and sleep soundly without a care in the world.

Unfortunately, things did not go as wished. Just as he stepped out of the artifact-refinement workshop, the figure of Zhang Chong appeared before him.

Li Yao was slightly startled and asked, "Is the Supreme Elder Zhang looking for this disciple?"

The fact that Zhang Chong appeared the moment he stepped out of the workshop meant he must have been guarding the place for a long time. Although he did not know the specific matter, Li Yao knew it had to be extremely important; otherwise, Zhang Chong would not have waited outside the workshop.

"Yang Tianfeng, the Supreme Elder of Zhaoyang Peak, brought a disciple half a month ago and openly declared he wants to challenge you," Zhang Chong said calmly.

Li Yao was slightly stunned, then sneered, "Is this a simple challenge, or is it because of the God-Trace Purple Gold?"

Half a month ago—meaning shortly after he cut out the God-Trace Purple Gold. It was entirely possible that the other party arrived the very moment he stepped into the refinement chamber.

Li Yao did not need to guess why the other party had failed to accost him for half a month; Zhang Chong must have stood in the way, preventing Yang Tianfeng from disturbing him.

"What's going on with Zhaoyang Peak? Are they also at odds with my Sunrise Divine Island?" Li Yao asked with some curiosity.

Within the Yaoguang Holy Land, apart from the Holy Master lineage and the Paramount Saint lineage, whose statuses far surpassed all others, the strengths of the other ten lineages were roughly comparable.

Zhaoyang Peak matched Sunrise Divine Island in strength and stood zero chance of obtaining this piece of God-Trace Purple Gold. Li Yao could not fathom why the other party was stepping forward, unless there was a preexisting grievance and they were simply here to disgust people.

"Zhaoyang Peak is very close to the Paramount Saint lineage," Zhang Chong said succinctly.

"Understood." Li Yao suddenly realized the truth. After all this fuss, they were merely pawns.

"Has the Holy Master lineage made no move?"

Zhang Chong shook his head. "The Holy Master lineage rarely takes direct action. Most of the time, they mediate from the middle, handle matters fairly, and rarely interfere in the affairs between various factions."

Li Yao asked curiously, "What realm is that disciple in?"

"The Other Shore realm," Zhang Chong replied.

"Not in the same realm as me. Is that fair?" Li Yao was somewhat surprised. He had originally assumed it would be a battle between peers.

"The other party's reasoning is that the weak do not deserve immortal metal. Of course, they will offer compensation."

"Who cares about their compensation? I can completely refuse. I was the one who cut out the immortal metal; surely rules must be followed?"

Zhang Chong fell silent, then said leisurely, "You can refuse, but next time, it will be the Paramount Saint lineage coming."

"Ha," Li Yao laughed sarcastically. "It seems that whoever has the biggest fist doesn't need to follow rules."

"Then let's fight. Isn't it just a matter of showing fists? Coincidentally, my fists are also very hard. Anyone daring to stretch out claws toward me will simply have them smashed to pieces."

Li Yao's aura shifted abruptly, resembling a demonic god. A cold, lightning-like glare flashed in his eyes, as if he intended to shatter all the haze blocking his path.

This humiliation—akin to someone squatting down to defecate on his head—completely crossed his bottom line. If he truly endured this, he would never know a moment of peace again.

"Get some rest and recover your energy. Yun Shang is holding them off." Zhang Chong was not surprised by Li Yao's reaction at all, as if he had anticipated it long ago.

To Zhang Chong's suggestion, Li Yao shook his head directly. "No need. Right now, I am undoubtedly at my strongest."

His physical state might not be at its peak, but his battle intent had reached its absolute zenith. Although his body was weary, his combat power was instead even more formidable, with divine power surging as if he longed to tear the heaven and earth apart.

"Very well." Zhang Chong did not object; he could feel Li Yao's astonishing battle intent.

Zhang Chong had no worries whatsoever regarding Li Yao's combat power. He had witnessed firsthand how Li Yao crushed Han Lin, and he knew very well that Li Yao's battle prowess was formidable enough to dominate even within the Other Shore realm.

Now, with the aid of the artifact forged from God-Trace Purple Gold, his combat strength would undoubtedly reach an even higher level.

It was precisely with this consideration that Zhang Chong had not rejected Yang Tianfeng, because he believed that with Li Yao's strength, defeating the disciple brought by Yang Tianfeng would be entirely unproblematic.

"Yun Shang, lead them to the martial arts arena." Zhang Chong's lips parted slightly, his divine power condensing into a thread that carried his voice dozens of miles away.

...

Meanwhile, in a courtyard pavilion at the back of the Yaoguang Workshop, Yang Tianfeng looked at the unperturbed Yun Shang opposite him, feeling a surge of stifled frustration in his chest.

"Tell me, how long do you intend to stall? Don't tell me you're expecting that brat Li Yao to make a sudden, massive breakthrough in strength within a short time and enter the Other Shore realm?" Yang Tianfeng's voice carried a hint of anger.

Anyone left hanging like this for half a month would be in a foul mood.

Across the table, Yun Shang tapped his fingers rhythmically on the tabletop. Looking at Yang Tianfeng's angry expression, he chuckled softly, "It's not entirely impossible. Senior Brother Yang should know something about that kid; given his cultivation speed, there really might be a chance he breaks through to the Other Shore realm in a short time."

Yun Shang smiled genially. His handsome face, paired with an appearance that looked around thirty, radiated maturity and stability. Smiling as he was now, he looked precisely like a modest and courteous gentleman.

Yet at this moment, looking at Yun Shang, Yang Tianfeng felt utterly helpless. "Yun Shang, this is a matter between Zhaoyang Peak and Sunrise Island. Are you certain you want to meddle in this?"

"I..." Before the words were finished, Yun Shang suddenly paused, his habitual smile fading away. "I merely wanted to invite Senior Brother Yang to reminisce about old times. Since you have no desire to do so, then so be it... They are at the martial arts arena. Let us go over."