Sovereign of the Three Realms

Jiang Chen rarely ever used the magnetic golden mountain. He hadn’t even used it once in Myriad Domain and once during the Veluriyam Pagoda gathering, but the audience was mostly citizens of the capital. Others who recognize it were dead by now. 

The four wandering cultivators were active within the confines of Great Scarlet Mid Region, located tens of thousands of miles away from Veluriyam Capital. The fact that they knew nothing about the magnetic golden mountain was no surprise. 

The cultivation world was simply too big. Jiang Chen wasn’t reknowned throughout the world yet and hadn’t had much of a chance to shine. His arsenal was relatively unknown. His abilities would only be recognized when he transcended to great emperor realm and became the biggest topic in the entire human domain. Maybe then, others would instantly recognize his treasures and techniques.

For now though, he didn’t need worry about such things. The magnetic golden mountain was capable of multiple forms. All he needed to do was switch it up a little and no one would be able to recognize it. 

“Granny Goldneedle, feel free to throw everything you have at me. Like I said before, count it as my loss if you make me move.” Jiang Chen remained as nonchalant as ever before, but the granny had completely changed her attitude. 

She was extremely furious, but not a complete idiot. Even though her golden needles were powerful and ever-changing, it was obvious that her enemy was in possession of a treasure that directly countered them. No matter what variation she tried, her needles were not going to be very effective against him. It was so pointless that she might as well be throwing sticks instead!

This infuriated Granny Goldfinger even more. Her cultivation was completely based on her needles. She’d faced a number of difficult foes over the years, but she’d never lost to someone in such an embarrassing manner before. It completely crushed her will to fight! Without her needles, she was basically worthless. 

Sir Miao burst into an eccentric cackle when he saw this. “Granny, your gold needles are a lot more situational than I’d imagined. Old Brother Clearcloud and Silversand, what do you make of this?” 

Silversand Cavalier frowned. “Sir Miao, you’ve going overboard. We may not see things eye to eye, but we’re on the same side in the end. Granny Goldneedle’s loss reflects badly on all of us.” 

Old Man Clearcloud nodded in agreement. “That brat is a freak! For the sake of fairness, we should join forces! We can cover for each other that way.”

Sir Miao shrugged. “All four of us? Against a nameless scrub like him? I refuse to stoop so low. You three can join hands against him if you want to. I’ll be backup.”

Jiang Chen smiled blandly. “Why waste your breath? All of you have gone beyond your bottom line and stomped on your own faces when you became the Veranda master’s lackey. You should join forces. It saves me the trouble of taking you on one by one.” 

“Such impudence!” Old Man Clearcloud flew into a rage after being ridiculed by Jiang Chen. “Brat, by the looks of your abilities, I can tell that you’re not from an ordinary background. Don’t think you can put airs because you’re from a great sect!”

“Hahaha! Put on airs?” Jiang Chen suddenly crowed with laughter. “My respect is only given to those that are worthy. You’re strong, yet you serve a master that’s clearly unworthy of your loyalty. How do you expect me to show you respect?”  

“The Veranda master pays us for our labor. It’s only right that we serve him well!” Old Man Clearcloud said bluntly. 

“Only right?” Jiang Chen replied in a mocking tone. “Even though the Veranda master has betrayed humanity and devoted himself to the demon race?”  

“What?” Old Man Clearcloud was taken aback. He didn’t understand.

The Silversand Cavalier was stunned as well. “Demon race? Young man, clearly you lie!”

Granny Goldneedle stared at Jiang Chen solemnly. She didn’t understand why the latter had spoken those words either.

The large smirk on Sir Miao’s face suddenly flitted between uncertainty and uneasiness.

Like an all-seeing clairvoyant, Jiang Chen threw a piercing glare at the last. “Sir Miao, I heard that you’ve become quite famous among the wanderers in recent years. So it seems you’re quite pleased with the fame you’ve received in exchange for your devotion to the demons!” 

A bloodthirsty expression instantly flashed onto Sir Miao’s face. “Brat, how dare you resort to slander? Are you trying to escape by turning us against each other?”  

Jiang Chen laughed heartily. “Even that formation with the bloody light couldn’t hold me back! What can a demon runt like you possibly do to me?”

A glint appeared in Sir Miao’s eyes. An odd expression slowly emerged as he glared at Jiang Chen.

“Old Brother Clearcloud, Old Brother Silversand, Granny Goldneedle! That cunning brat is trying to turn us against each other! This cannot do! We must join forces and eliminate him before we’re influenced any further!” Sir Miao suddenly shrieked at the top of his lungs.

Granny Goldneedle roared for a fight, but Old Man Clearcloud kept silent. The Silversand Cavelier shifted his gaze between Sir Miao and Jiang Chen. A grave expression began to surface on his face as well.

“You claim that the master of the Veranda has devoted himself to the demons, but do you have proof?” The Silversand Cavelier asked. 

“Proof?” Jiang Chen smiled coldly. “You’ll know what I’m talking about once you see the demon altar and its formation, but I’m afraid you won’t have long to live after as you’d be a blood sacrifice then.”   

“Altar? Blood sacrifice?” The Silversand Cavelier shifted his gaze towards Old Man Clearcloud. “Old brother, what do you think?”

Old Man Clearcloud shook his head. “I’m not good at making judgements. Silversand, you’ve always been the clear-headed one. What do you think?”  

The Silversand Cavelier furrowed his brows. “I’m on the fence. The Veranda master’s actions are indeed a little out of the ordinary.”

“Listen, I don’t have the time to listen to your discussion. I don’t care whether you believe me or not. By the time you’re done prattling, the blood sacrifice would be completed and a demon lord will be summoned into this world. No one here will be left alive then.” Jiang Chen unleashed the Kunpeng Meteoric Escape in the middle of his sentence and broke through their encirclement. He was so quick that they didn’t even have the time to react.  

“Please hold!” The Silversand Cavelier immediately yelled.

Jiang Chen suddenly stopped and launched a lightning quick Supernova Point at Sir Miao. The latter reacted very quickly and engaged the powerful finger strike with his fan.   

“Don’t believe his lies!” Sir Miao yelled in exasperation. He swung his fan and launched a frighteningly powerful hurricane at Jiang Chen. 

The latter snorted coldly and unleashed the Kunpeng Meteoric Escape again. Whoosh! He instantly vanished into thin air. The crowd stood with their mouths agape as Jiang Chen vanished before their very eyes.

Sir Miao’s ears twitched. He immediately swung his fan around defensively after that.

Bang bang bang! Explosive sounds reverberated through the air. Multiple runes suddenly appeared in front of Sir Miao and exploded in spectacular fashion. He had been hit by a sneak attack! If it wasn’t for his superior defenses, he would’ve died to the strange attack!

Jiang Chen’s attack potential had increased exponentially ever since he cultivated the Kungpeng Meteoric Escape and gained a drastic advantage in speed. He’d gained many more viable ways to fight his enemies.

Sir Miao was struggling. Granny Goldneedle frowned at the Silversand Cavelier and Old Man Clearcloud. “Are we going to just stand aside and watch?”

Old Man Clearcloud asked blandly. “Who do you think we should help then?”

“But we were all hired by the Veranda master!” Granny Goldneedle answered in a depressed manner. There was nothing she could do against Jiang Chen. She bore a subconscious hatred for the young man because her anger hadn't subsided yet. The fact that he’d taken her needles didn’t help matters either.

The Silversand Cavelier shook his head. “I find this matter incredibly bizarre. Sir Miao’s background has always been a mystery. It’s against logic for a wandering cultivator to rise that quickly. Even the geniuses from influential sects can’t achieve such a meteoric rise in such a short time.” 

“What are you saying?” Granny Goldneedle couldn’t help but ask.

“It’s unwise to take this matter lightly. Especially when the demon race is involved.” The Silversand Cavelier didn’t have a clear stance on this matter, but he no longer had a reason to be at odds with Jiang Chen. 

“You believe that brat’s lie? The demon race is just imaginary! Why would they suddenly appear in Great Scarlet Mid Region?” Granny Goldneedle remained unconvinced.

“Nobody has seen a demon in the human domain yet, but rumors of their reappearance have been spreading all over the lands. Many groups of cultivators have gone missing in the desolate wildlands in the past few years. Apparently, they are never seen or heard from ever again when they wander into the restricted lands,” the Silversand Cavelier murmured lowly.

“Those are mere rumors, not solid facts!” Granny Goldneedle remained adamant.

“But those rumors can possibly be true! Years ago, the restrictions in the restricted lands was weakened for a short period of time and gaps appeared every now and then. After that, a powerful expert appeared out of nowhere and set a powerful formation to reseal and barricade the restricted area from other cultivators. It's impossible to know how many entered the area and how many demons have escaped before that.” The Silversand Cavelier spoke solemnly.

Old Man Clearcloud suddenly asked. “Silversand, what do you think we should do then?”

“We should head inside the formation and get a better bearing on the situation. That young man is determined to enter. If he's lied to us, it’s easier to defeat him inside. If this matter is really related to the demons, I cannot sit idle and do nothing.”

Old Man Clearcloud nodded and glanced at Granny Goldneedle. “Goldneedle. Silversand has made a good point. The fate of the human race is at stake here. We cannot afford to be negligent.”

Granny Goldneedle was extremely dissatisfied. “If you want to go, go by yourselves then! This is absurd! Demons can’t possibly be real! Even if they are, why should I care? As long as it doesn't affect me, who really cares if they are demon or human? When I was at my most desperate, not a single human offered me a hand! Why should I care about the fate of the human race? What a joke!”