At the moment of separation, Hong Yuan watched Ye Qingcheng leaving, a hint of coldness touching his lips. He thought to himself, "Your True Essence has suddenly become so turbulent and vigorous, and your life force is also incredibly abundant. It seems you, Ye Qingcheng, are preparing to ascend to Sainthood after the Hundred Arts Conference. Heh, enjoy the grand ’gift’ I’ve prepared for you."

If Ye Qingcheng could overcome the Great Emperor Mark, she could truly attain the Phoenix Position, becoming a Snow White Phoenix of the mortal world. Hong Yuan’s ’backup plan’ truly was a grand gift for her. But with such ability, how could she repeatedly face setbacks against Hong Yuan?

Hong Yuan couldn’t help but anticipate the moment Ye Qingcheng would be shattered by the Great Emperor Mark! By then, Great Saint Taibai’s expression will surely be quite a sight, heh heh heh...

「Half a month later.」

The Hundred Arts Conference, which had caused a great stir in the Southern Border of the Divine Continent, finally came to an end. Champions were decided for each category, and numerous Supreme Talents of far-reaching fame emerged.

Among them, Ye Qingcheng, as she wished, became the Leader of Alchemy, her unparalleled grace stunning the world.

And Hong Yuan also smoothly became the Leader of Artifact Refining, without any trouble.

In terms of strength, his current self could already match Saints. Furthermore, with a full activation of the Holy Artifact Sword of Qingping, he could defeat a sixth-rank Saint without question! Regarding Artifact Refining, he possessed Grandmaster Level skill in Refining Tao. Normally, only Saints possessed Grandmaster Level skill, and even then, only the more powerful ones. At the Hundred Arts Conference, Hong Yuan had already surpassed this standard.

Therefore, claiming the Leader position in Artifact Refining was effortless for him.

However, at this moment, Hong Yuan’s brows furrowed slightly as he cast a discreet glance at the Divine Appearance of the Stars in the sky.

The sky was half dark and half light, with countless starlights converging into starry Divine Appearances of varying sizes. This was a spectacle where the stars shone even in daylight, illuminating heaven and earth.

However, Hong Yuan could clearly sense that deep within the Divine Appearance of the Stars, two new, distinct Tao Marks had been added.

"Two kinds of Tao Marks, and they formed during the refining process. However, they don’t belong to the Refining Tao school..."

Suddenly, a flash of insight crossed Hong Yuan’s mind, and his expression grew faintly excited.

No one who refines pills, Instruments, or Spirit Talismans can claim a one hundred percent success rate. Thus, both success and failure exist.

If Hong Yuan was not mistaken, these two interwoven black and white Tao Marks should be the legendary Success Marks and Failure Marks!

Hong Yuan felt surprised, and then his brow arched in pleasant surprise.

"Hiss... Is this the vast foundation of the Human Race? I think I know why every Great Emperor of the Human Race can refine an Emperor Artifact..."

The night was as black as ink, deep and consuming, and all was silent.

Hong Yuan slowly walked out of his room and into the small courtyard. A cool breeze rustled past, fluttering Hong Yuan’s blue robe.

He looked up at the moon, but his mind was entirely focused on the dual Apertures inside his body, especially the one between his kidneys. This first Aperture, primarily for cultivating Wood Tao, was located between his kidneys. It was different from the second Aperture near his heart, which primarily cultivated Blood Tao.

Now, in the first Aperture, there was a thirty-six-leafed, blue lotus.

A sixth-rank Spirit Plant—Blue Primordial Treasure Lotus!

The Blue Primordial Treasure Lotus was azure in appearance, lush and brimming with life force, and emitted a refreshing fragrance. It was a Holy Plant of decent quality, with a slim chance of advancing to the Great Saint Realm. Moment by moment, it refined the True Essence within Hong Yuan’s body, making his True Essence purer and imbuing it with greater distinctiveness.

BUZZ...

A resonant hum arose. 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

It turned out Hong Yuan was using the "Life Plant Skill" obtained from Ye Qingcheng to refine the Blue Primordial Treasure Lotus.

Just as Hong Yuan completely refined the Blue Primordial Treasure Lotus, a startling change occurred in his first Aperture!

Above the Sea of True Essence, the azure sea surged, and ethereal mist permeated the air. A majestic and sacred phantom of an Azure Lotus emerged. Around it, worlds seemed to shatter and be reborn.

The Eternal Azure Lotus!

Under Hong Yuan’s astonished gaze, this phantom of the Eternal Azure Lotus overlapped with the Blue Primordial Treasure Lotus. In an instant, boundless divine light spilled over, and its aura gradually turned terrifying.

Seeing this scene, for some reason, Hong Yuan felt a strange sense of exasperation.

The potential of the Blue Primordial Treasure Lotus had dramatically increased. It now possessed a sliver of potential to become an existence of the Unconventional Tao Realms. However, this was too much of a coincidence! It was one thing for the Purple Gold Thorns to transform due to the Demon Clan’s Destiny, but why did this Blue Primordial Treasure Lotus also transform? Could it be that Ye Gufan has an extraordinary background...

Hong Yuan narrowed his eyes, staring at the Azure Lotus phantom. A flash of insight streaked through his mind, and gradually, a speculation formed in his heart.

"This phantom of the Azure Lotus, why does it bear such resemblance to the divine appearance of the Azure Lotus Heaven Lord? Could it be that Ye Gufan is also an Eternal Azure Lotus Reincarnation?!"

Hong Yuan was shocked.

When his Power Tao Incarnation underwent its tribulation to ascend to Sainthood, he had fought not only against the Great Emperor Mark of the Heavenly Horned Ant Emperor but also against the Great Emperor Mark of the Azure Lotus Heaven Lord.

Previously, Hong Yuan had not given much thought to Ye Gufan’s identity because the Azure Lotus Heaven Lord’s original name was Flower Tao God. But now, due to the anomaly of the Blue Primordial Treasure Lotus, he pondered deeply and immediately noticed something amiss.

CRACK! CRACK! SHATTER!

The fifth dream act shattered.

Hong Yuan’s consciousness fell into a brief slumber.

[Sword Tao +1,000]

[Wood Tao +1,000]

[Dream Tao +1,000]

[...]

[School: Sword Tao (Grandmaster 3%) → Sword Tao (Grandmaster 9%)]

[School: Dream Tao (Grandmaster 93%) → Dream Tao (Grandmaster 1%)]

[Wood Tao: Wood Tao (Grandmaster 2%) → Wood Tao (Grandmaster 23%)]

[...]

Hong Yuan’s proficiency panel instantly refreshed, becoming incredibly lavish. The rewards of the fifth dream act were indeed substantial.

「The sixth act of the dream.」

In the courtyard, Hong Yuan’s consciousness gradually awakened. When he saw that the surroundings were still the familiar small courtyard, he let out a sigh of relief.

"Let’s check out the quality of this body first."

Hong Yuan slightly closed his eyes, sensing his own body.

Suddenly, his eyebrows shot up.

Saint!

A Wood Tao Saint!

"Gufan, tomorrow you will go to Ice Phoenix Valley to observe Ye Qingcheng’s tribulation and ascension to sainthood," Ye Xiner said. She had walked out of the house and was gently wiping away Hong Yuan’s sweat with a towel as she told him about the plans for the next day. "Pay close attention and try to learn from it. This will help you prepare for your own tribulation and ascension to sainthood."

Hong Yuan opened his eyes, a contemplative glint flashed in his eyes.

"According to Ye Xiner, she isn’t aware that this body of mine has already achieved Sainthood in Wood Tao. If Ye Xiner doesn’t know, then Ye Qingcheng and the others are even more in the dark. Things are getting more interesting!"

Hong Yuan calmly took Ye Xiner’s delicate, fair hand. While he extracted information from Ye Xiner, he also observed the Sword of Qingping and the Blue Primordial Treasure Lotus within his body.

「The next day.」

Ice Phoenix Valley.

This was an Icy Pole World, blanketed in dazzling white snow. Towering snow-capped peaks rose one after another, with vast glaciers stretching out below them. From a distance, this ice valley looked like a phoenix with spread wings.

It had to be said that for Ice Tao Cultivators, ascending to Sainthood in this place indeed yielded twice the results with half the effort.

WHOOSH!

A Green Brilliance Sword Rainbow swept across the sky, stopping atop a certain snow peak. The sword rainbow dissipated, and an elegant young man dressed in a blue robe appeared—it was Hong Yuan.

"There are quite a lot of people here. Is this to gather as much popularity as possible?" Hong Yuan glanced at the many large and small snow peaks around him.

He could clearly see that all the renowned Heavenly Talents of the Ye Family had arrived, and even a good number of Saints had come.

Logically speaking, undergoing one’s Saint Achievement Immortal Transcending Tribulation should be kept as secret as possible, as having more people know would likely lead to accidents and failure. But with the protection of Great Saint Taibai, Ye Qingcheng had no such concerns. It was all about maximizing benefits.

Before long, it was noon.

And at that moment, on the most central snow peak within Ice Phoenix Valley, Ye Qingcheng began her Saint Achievement Immortal Transcending Tribulation.

Snowflakes fluttered, and robes billowed in the wind.

"Parasol Tree Phoenix, Ice Rise, Snow Surge!"

Ye Qingcheng’s fingers danced like butterflies flitting among flowers, forming various technique seals.

In an instant, the wind rose and clouds surged, and the world was plunged into darkness. Ice rain began to fall from the sky, and lightning and firelight coursed through the dark clouds.

All manner of strange phenomena appeared!

"Finally starting, huh? Heh." His gaze mocking, Hong Yuan crossed his arms.

He stood at a distance, watching Ye Qingcheng undergo her tribulation. As long as no blood splashed onto him, everything else was fine.