Fencing the Spoils

The Universe Masters from various cosmic factions were still toiling on the Original Stars, diligently searching for traces of the Blood Cloud Palace Master. But then, a piece of news suddenly spread—the Northern Territory Alliance's Star River Master had clashed with the Blood Cloud Palace Master. They fought head-on, and the Blood Cloud Palace Master sustained only minor injuries under the Star River Master's full assault, his aura barely changing. Afterwards, the Star River Master voluntarily disengaged and left. “Impossible!” “Did the Star River Master truly go all out? Even if I could withstand a full-power attack from the Star River Master, I'd still be severely wounded. Yet the Blood Cloud Palace Master's aura barely changed?” “How can he be so powerful?” “Was the Blood Cloud Palace Master hiding inside the Blood Cloud Palace, using it to block the attack? What, no? He directly faced and blocked the Star River Master's ultimate move in a head-on confrontation?” The Universe Masters searching on the Original Stars were utterly shocked. They couldn't believe what they heard, digging for details and clarifying everything. The more they inquired and understood the circumstances of that battle, the more despair they felt. Heavens, the Star River Master had used his most proficient supreme treasure and his most heaven-defying ultimate technique. And the Blood Cloud Palace Master had withstood it head-on, with injuries so negligible they could be ignored? Powerless! A sense of powerlessness surged through the hearts of almost every Universe Master. Even beings like Beacon Fire God Master, who felt comparable to the Star River Master, wouldn't dare claim they could surpass him. “Let's go.” “Let's head back.” “Just like that?” “What else can we do? If the Star River Master couldn't deal with him, then no Universe Master can deal with the 'Blood Cloud Palace Master.' Even a Universe Overlord is only slightly stronger than the Star River Master. In the Original Universe, a Universe Overlord's power is greatly restricted... If the Star River Master couldn't even wound the Blood Cloud Palace Master significantly, what could a Universe Overlord do? Severely wound the Blood Cloud Palace Master?” “Let's go.” ... One by one, the Universe Masters gave up. After all, they felt a profound sense of futility in this pursuit. “I never imagined the Blood Cloud Palace Master would become so strong.” “Back then, the Blood Cloud Palace Master was formidable, but not to this absurd extent. When beings like the Star River Master pursued him, the Blood Cloud Palace Master would flee at the mere sight, never daring to resist.” “With his strength increased, killing him is even harder.” Some Universe Masters began to actively withdraw. Such is the universe. Strength dictates destiny! No matter how crazy, reckless, or evil one might be, if they can reach the level of a Universe Overlord, then no major faction dares to provoke them; instead, they curry favor! Take 'Sitting Mountain Guest' or 'Void True Demon God,' for example—these solitary Universe Overlords have eccentric temperaments, killing whoever they please, yet no faction dares to call for their demise, not even a whisper. Why? Forget becoming a Universe Overlord; just reaching the Star River Master's level is enough to receive fervent invitations and offerings from major factions. Clearly— The Blood Cloud Palace Master, having sustained almost no injury under the Star River Master's strongest ultimate technique, was already close to that level. “Don't provoke that madman in the future.” “Don't provoke him. You can't kill him, he's excellent at escaping, and he has no ties or burdens. Unless you expend an infinite cost to suppress and seal him, imprisoning him forever, but no faction is willing to pay that price. After all, the Blood Cloud Palace Master is just an individual; he doesn't threaten the survival of major factions.” One battle determined his status. The Blood Cloud Palace Master transformed from someone major cosmic factions wanted to eliminate into someone they couldn't be bothered with and didn't want to provoke. It wasn't that major factions didn't want to recruit him, but historically... recruiting the Blood Cloud Palace Master often led to attacks and slaughter from him. He was a madman! ... Luo Feng had originally planned to spend a few more days circling the Original Star, but unexpectedly, the Universe Masters began to leave one by one. The intensity of the search clearly diminished, and naturally, Luo Feng quietly slipped away from an Original Star and headed back to the outside world... Inside Luo Feng's God Kingdom. “Boom! Boom! Boom!~~~” Even without wind, the sea surged with three-foot waves, and the boundless Abyssal Sea, hundreds of billions of kilometers wide, churned with astonishingly massive waves, roaring like thunder, surging and turbulent. Above the boundless Abyssal Sea, at the very center of the God Kingdom, within the majestic divine palace. Luo Feng stood before the divine palace, gazing down at his boundless God Kingdom. “I'm back.” “It's over.” Luo Feng smiled, feeling an unprecedented sense of ease. Recalling the series of events from this 'fame-making battle,' it was primarily triggered by Void True Demon God's attempt to kill him. He had gone to kill 'Tianhua Venerable,' but unexpectedly, the Venerable was hiding inside a flying palace-type supreme treasure. This sparked an even greater commotion, leading to him killing over 800 Universe Venerables, battling Universe Masters, and using his Miniature Universe technique to annihilate over 6,000 Universe Venerables in one move, truly spreading his name throughout the universe and deterring all sides. The brief appearance of the Blood Cloud Palace Master caused a huge stir, completely diverting attention. “The objective has been achieved.” “I'm on par with Banff Master, and I've unleashed my strongest secret technique. I'm absolutely a Universe Master! And an extremely troublesome one at that,” Luo Feng mused. His only weakness was... his inability to control a spatial-temporal domain. This might still draw suspicion from some powerful beings. However— What if they suspected? Being able to unleash 'Golden Light' and 'Miniature Universe' had already demonstrated Luo Feng's absolute combat power at the Universe Master level. From the strategic perspective of major cosmic factions, Luo Feng was clearly a Universe Master-level combatant, and he possessed several clones, making him extremely difficult to deal with. “But the Star River Master is truly powerful,” Luo Feng sighed inwardly. “Even with my Jie Jia, if I hadn't had the Star Tower's shuttle to block... I'm afraid one move could have destroyed 50% of my divine body.” The Star Tower's shuttle blocked first. Then the impact, further weakened by the Jie Jia, still caused a 0.2% loss to his divine body. If it had just been the Blood Shadow Blade blocking... a 50% loss to his divine body would have been normal. He might have been annihilated in one or two moves! Unless he was fully armed! “Compared to the peak Universe Masters, my divine body is a bit weaker. And my offensive weapon is too weak,” Luo Feng frowned. “When fighting Universe Masters, the Blood Shadow Blade alone seems insufficient.” Sunken Fire Master, even with a clone, used a set of top-tier supreme treasure twin hammers, which had stacking power. Moreover, Sunken Fire Master's status and strength in the universe weren't particularly outstanding. Take Blaze Emperor, for instance, who uses the 'Yan God Halberd'—that's a top-grade among peak supreme treasures! It's on the same level as Luo Feng's 'Jie Jia.' Chaos City Lord... has three clones. The strongest naturally battles in the Universe Ocean, and even the one in the Original Universe wears a Thousand Treasures Robe and wields a supreme treasure staff. The Thousand Treasures Robe is merely a 'domain-type supreme treasure,' on the same level as the Star River Master's domain-type supreme treasure... As for combat supreme treasures, although Luo Feng hadn't seen his teacher act, he estimated they were quite similar. “My combat weapon is a bit lacking.” “Hmm.” “Didn't teacher say that if I killed ten top-tier Universe Overlords, or one Universe Master, he would forge a peak supreme treasure for me?” Luo Feng mused. “For example, forging a top-grade peak supreme treasure, like the 'Yan God Halberd'—that would be enough.” He didn't necessarily need a peak domain-type supreme treasure. After all, some top-grade peak supreme treasures in the offensive category were also extremely valuable. Luo Feng flipped his hand, producing a green stone token. “Teacher.” Luo Feng's consciousness entered the green stone token to transmit a message. This token was an ordinary communication supreme treasure refined by Sitting Mountain Guest. This also made Luo Feng admire Sitting Mountain Guest—supreme treasures like the 'Blood Cloud Pearl' for disguise, this green stone token for communication, and the Jie Jia and Star Tower, which had extremely strict requirements for their masters. In short, Sitting Mountain Guest's creations were vastly different from the supreme treasures naturally born in the universe. “Haha, my disciple, I already know everything you did on the Original Star. However, why did you clash head-on with the Star River Master? This confrontation scared off the major factions, didn't it? Now it will be difficult to get them to collectively hunt you down again.” A message quickly arrived. Luo Feng was speechless. So that's why... No wonder his teacher, when encountering powerful beings like the Star River Master back then, would immediately flee and never engage in battle. With his teacher's power as a Universe Overlord, even a clone could fully withstand the Star River Master. “I didn't think of that, and I couldn't escape at the time either,” Luo Feng said. “True, your escape abilities aren't sufficient.” In terms of escape methods, the Blood Cloud Palace Master of yesteryear was Sitting Mountain Guest in disguise, so his escape capabilities were naturally extremely strong. “What do you need me for?” Sitting Mountain Guest pressed. “Teacher, I directly killed a clone of Sunken Fire Master. Shouldn't that count as killing a Universe Master?” Luo Feng asked. “My disciple, you're thinking too optimistically,” Sitting Mountain Guest replied. Luo Feng was speechless. It seemed there was no such good fortune. “Of course not,” Sitting Mountain Guest said. “But killing a clone of a Universe Master and killing a true Universe Master should be equally difficult,” Luo Feng argued. “Of course not,” Sitting Mountain Guest countered. “The Blood Cloud Palace Master is infamous. If he didn't have a clone, he wouldn't dare engage you alone without absolute confidence! But those with the ability to use clones, even if slightly weaker, dare to take risks. Tell me... if Sunken Fire Master didn't have a clone, would he dare to fight you alone?” Luo Feng was speechless. Right. Many of the Universe Masters who pursued him later acted in groups of two or three, and those who acted alone had some reliance. “No one is a fool. Killing a Universe Master isn't as easy as you think. Having a clone is why they occasionally take risks, giving you opportunities,” Sitting Mountain Guest chuckled. “Wanting your teacher to forge a peak supreme treasure for you for free... it's not that simple.” Luo Feng pouted. Helpless. “Teacher, I killed that Sunken Fire Master's clone and obtained some supreme treasures. But I have nowhere to exchange them. If I offer them to the faction... wouldn't that expose my identity?” Luo Feng was also concerned about this. The treasures acquired by the Blood Cloud Palace Master were ill-gotten gains, and many famous supreme treasures could be quickly identified. So, fencing the spoils was very troublesome. “You're right.” “Then hand them over to me. Come to me to exchange for supreme treasures,” Sitting Mountain Guest said. “Here are the cosmic coordinates of my abode... just come directly.” A string of coordinates was transmitted. Luo Feng immediately felt anticipation... Sitting Mountain Guest had been his teacher for so long, and he had never been to his master's lair. “Yes, disciple will arrive as quickly as possible.” Luo Feng didn't hesitate. He quickly organized the supreme treasures, then left his God Kingdom and set off for Sitting Mountain Guest's lair.