Chapter 354: To Resist Foreign Aggression, One Must First Stabilize the Interior, Martial Combat Mountain! Seeing the Stone Buddha Again!

Chapter 354: Secure the Interior Before Resisting the Exterior, Mount Wudou! The Stone Buddha Returns! The Vanguard!

Thirty thousand years of time is but a fleeting moment in the vast river of the cosmos.

The tempest ignited by Qin Feng’s "demise" did not subside with the passage of time.

On the contrary, like the finest vintage nectar, time only served to ferment its legend into a fragrance more profound and enduring.

Limitless Divine Marquis, Limitless Divine King.

This name had evolved from a mere title into a spiritual totem, an immortal symbol living on in myth.

Across the human territories, countless newborns grew up listening to his tales, and innumerable warriors regarded him as the lifelong goal of their pursuit.

His final battle, imprinted by the Heavenly Mystery Sect using divine consciousness, was replicated into billions of copies and circulated widely among the human race; every viewing served to ignite the blood and battle intent in the hearts of countless souls.

With his own strength, he had injected a shot of adrenaline into the entire human race during its darkest era.

Yet, at the center of this storm that swept the universe, in the deepest reaches of the cosmic city named after him, everything remained as silent as the singularity at the dawn of creation.

Within a divine pool constructed entirely of pure cosmic origin energy, the liquefied essence shimmered with a brilliant chaotic hue, viscous as mercury.

Countless rare treasures, fragments of divine metal, and crystallized laws—items that would drive even King-level powerhouses to slaughter one another—floated like dust, forming a miniature "universe" of unfathomable energy density.

At the heart of the pool, a wisp of pure black soul fire burned in silence.

It possessed no earth-shattering aura, yet it was so profound it seemed to swallow all light; it was the essence of Qin Feng’s true spirit, tempered through ten thousand calamities and never worn away.

For thirty thousand years, this wisp of soul fire had acted like a greedy primordial beast, whale-swallowing the terrifying resources within the pool, enough to reshape an entire galaxy.

Finally, on the last day of the thirty-thousandth year.

Hum—

A faint tremor, as if originating from the very source of the Great Dao of the universe, resonated.

The wisp of pure black soul fire suddenly erupted with brilliant light!

All the resources, all the energy, all the fragments of law within the pool seemed to be pulled by an invisible black hole, transforming into a torrential flood of energy that surged madly into the flames!

With the soul as the core, the laws as the skeleton, divine energy as the blood, and the origin as the flesh.

A perfect body was being born from the void at a speed visible to the naked eye!

First came the bones. Every inch of bone shimmered with the color of chaotic divine gold, naturally branded with dense, profound Dao patterns—the most intuitive manifestation of the [Limitless Law].

Even as the skeleton took shape, a terrifying aura capable of crushing the ancient heavens permeated the air, causing the laws of the entire cosmic city to submit and tremble.

Then came the meridians. Billions of meridians intertwined like a cosmic web, each flashing with brilliant golden light, with majestic energy surging within like roaring, thunderous celestial rivers!

Blood, organs, skin...

When the final inch of skin was formed, a young man, perfect beyond any flaw, hovered silently above the now-clear divine pool.

His black hair draped over his shoulders, his eyes closed, every line of his physique seemed the most exquisite creation of the cosmic Dao, embodying the ultimate in strength and beauty.

Unlike before, he was now wreathed in a faint, eternal golden radiance.

The light was not blinding, yet it projected a supreme quality of being indestructible, impervious to all methods, and unyielding to all paths.

This was the ultimate peak of the [Limitless Body] pushed to the King-level—the Limitless Golden Body!

Or rather, the unique physique of Qin Feng, the Limitless Divine King!

"Hoo..."

Qin Feng slowly opened his eyes.

What kind of eyes were they?

In the pure black pupils, devoid of any impurity, reflected the terrifying spectacle of cosmic birth, death, and the cycle of all paths.

The mere opening and closing of his gaze caused ripples to spread through the surrounding space.

He looked down at his hands and clenched them gently.

Crack!

Space shattered like a mirror, and violent spatial turbulence surged forth, only to be instantly smoothed and assimilated upon touching the golden light on his skin.

"Thirty thousand years..."

He whispered to himself, his voice carrying a hint of long-lost reflection.

The resources consumed in this reshaping of his body were astronomical, far exceeding his initial estimates.

But the results were gratifying.

This new Limitless Divine King body, in terms of strength, resilience, and affinity for the laws, was more than a grade above the one he had detonated!

He was now confident that, with physical strength alone, he could withstand ordinary Emperor-level secret treasures!

"I am many times stronger now than I was thirty thousand years ago."

Qin Feng accurately assessed his own strength. "I might be able to contend with an ordinary newly-ascended Emperor, but against top-tier Emperors like the Golden Emperor, who have been famous for ages, I still have no chance of victory."

The gap remained, but his pursuit would never cease.

With a thought, a black robe automatically draped over him.

Qin Feng stepped forward, and his figure appeared in another, more expansive secret chamber.

This chamber was a massive mechanical workshop.

In the center lay a mechanical body forged from the finest divine metals and alloys—it was his former avatar, "The Vanguard."

However, this Vanguard was no longer the Domain Lord-level entity of the past, but a true King-level machine-race body!

During the thirty thousand years of reshaping his own body, Qin Feng had split his focus, using massive resources to upgrade his most important avatar.

He had poured the most refined spoils from the hundred thousand Kings he had slain—the rarest and most durable metals—into the forging of the Vanguard’s body without reservation.

The Vanguard’s current physical strength was on par with some newly-ascended Kings who specialized in physical combat.

"The strength of the machine race has never been limited to the main body alone."

Qin Feng’s gaze rested on the Vanguard, his eyes flashing with contemplation.

"Its true terror lies in its near-infinite creativity and growth potential. With enough resources, a machine-race King could build a mechanical legion capable of threatening an Emperor."

This was what he truly valued in the Vanguard.

The Limitless Divine King, nothing less!

Whether it was his true physical body or the potential of his avatar, he had already outpaced all his peers and even his predecessors.

Having completed the assessment of his strength and the planning for his future, Qin Feng fell into deep thought.

"Now that my human body is reshaped and my strength is greater than ever, I can sit in this Qin Feng Cosmic City to deter the petty-minded and ensure that my territory of over seven hundred cosmic nations remains stable."

He knew well that although he had "died," the fame he left behind was enough to intimidate the vast majority.

But time is the best antidote, and there would always be those blinded by greed who would jump out to test his bottom line.

Especially since, within his territory, there still existed malignant tumors like the "Ten Thousand Races Sect."

"As for the Vanguard, it must head to the outside world for true tempering."

His gaze turned profound.

"On one hand, it is to scout for information regarding the 'Primordial Wonders.' Such treasures of the cosmos are rare and elusive; not a single lead can be overlooked."

"On the other hand..."

In his mind, the figure as immovable as a weathered stone emerged, "The coordinates for the cosmic wonder—[Dou]—that the Stone Buddha promised me, it is time to seek them out as well."

[Dou], though its function remains unknown, is a cosmic wonder, far more precious than any primordial treasure. Should he obtain it, his combat prowess would see a monumental surge.

"If I could refine a cosmic wonder like [Dou] into my protective formation, or perhaps even my offensive arrays, my overall strength might ascend to an entirely new tier."

Qin Feng’s thoughts raced, calculating every conceivable possibility.

"It is a pity, however, that cosmic wonders are, in the end, creations of the universe’s own will; their essence is too profound, too difficult to refine."

He shook his head slightly, sensing the complexity, "Even with my 'Pure Black' quality spiritual power, I cannot parse it in a short time, let alone fully refine it and integrate it into my own [Ultimate Law]."

That was a far more distant and grander objective.

"No matter, one must eat a meal bite by bite, and walk a path step by step."

Qin Feng ceased his ruminations.

He finally settled on his plan.

His human flesh would remain stationed within the Cosmic City, maintaining the facade of his "demise" while secretly cultivating and accumulating strength, simultaneously monitoring the entire territory to prevent any chaos-traitors from stirring up trouble.

His mechanical avatar, acting as the vanguard, would disguise itself as an ordinary cosmic wanderer, venturing into the vast expanse of the universe to seek destiny and hone his being.

Dual paths in parallel—this was the most secure and efficient strategy.

...

Yet, in an unseen corner, ripples were quietly forming.

Within the vast ocean of super-data streams where the AI core "Tian-Shu" of Qin Feng’s Cosmic City resided, an anomalous data point that had persisted for three thousand seven hundred years was automatically escalated by the system to the highest alert level.

"Alert. Targets: Sirius Cosmic Kingdom, Red Fox Cosmic Kingdom, Golden Roc Cosmic Kingdom... a total of thirty-seven vassal cosmic kingdoms."

"Anomaly: Tax remittance."

"Status: Unpaid in full for three thousand seven hundred consecutive years; completely ceased for the last five hundred. Confirmed violation of the highest ordinances of the 'Qin Feng Territory Vassal Act'."

"Recommendation: Initiate the 'Final Collection' protocol."

This cold data report was transmitted directly to the quiet chamber deep within the City Lord’s mansion.

Qin Feng’s true self, having just completed a new cycle of stabilizing his laws, opened his eyes. His gaze was calm and ripple-free, as if he had long foreseen this day.

"Sirius, Red Fox, Golden Roc... all kingdoms governed by the Demon race."

He whispered to himself, his fingertips tracing through the void to pull up the detailed files of these cosmic kingdoms.

Without exception, behind every one of these nations lay the shadow of a Demon-race Emperor-level power.

Thirty thousand years—for those long-lived Demon lords, it was enough time for the fear of the past to fade, replaced by the germination of new ambitions.

The "Fierce God" who could once decide the fate of a kingdom with a single word was dead, and the Human race was now too preoccupied to care; this seemed the perfect moment for them to shed their shackles and regain their "freedom."

"They believe that what I left behind is merely an empty shell."

A subtle arc curled at the corner of Qin Feng’s mouth—an expression devoid of anger, holding only the indifference of one looking down upon ants testing the majesty of the heavens.

He had not the slightest interest in personally handling such "domestic affairs."

An intangible soul-command traversed layers of space, descending directly into a massive hangar deep beneath the Cosmic City, a place resembling a temple of gods.

In the center of the hangar stood a colossal mechanical demon, forged entirely from dark gold and crimson alloys, its form ferocious and filled with the aesthetics of violence.

It had slumbered for thirty thousand years, its chassis coated in a thin layer of cosmic dust.

As Qin Feng’s command arrived, the core furnace in the demon’s chest ignited instantly, emitting a dull, thunderous roar!

*Hum—*

Its massive electronic single eye flared to life, firing a beam of crimson light capable of burning through stars.

The dust covering its surface was vaporized in an instant by the terrifying heat.

God-Forbidden class mechanical creation, codename: "Thunderbolt."

"As you command, my master."

The cold, synthesized mechanical voice echoed through the hangar.

"Mission objective: Thirty-seven rebellious cosmic kingdoms."

"Mission directive: Recover all overdue taxes, and... execute all current rulers."

"Execute."

*Rumble!*

The massive hangar dome slid open to both sides, revealing the deep universe beyond.

Twelve enormous metal wings on Thunderbolt’s back snapped open, the edges of each wing shimmering with the sharp light of cutting laws.

The next second, it transformed into a streak of crimson-gold light that pierced the heavens, vanishing instantly into the end of the star sea.

...

Sirius Cosmic Kingdom, capital planet.

Inside the opulent palace, the current ruler, a Silver Moon Sirius whose cultivation had reached the peak Domain Lord level, was feasting with several trusted ministers.

"Hahaha, gentlemen, before long, our Sirius clan will no longer need to pay any tribute to that dead city!"

The Silver Moon Wolf Lord raised a goblet filled with star-marrow, his spirits soaring.

"The Lord is wise!"

A Fox-race minister fawned, "That Qin Feng has long since perished, his very ashes scattered by the Golden Emperor.

The empty city he left behind now merely clings to life by borrowing the name of the Human race."

"Well said!"

The Silver Moon Wolf Lord drained his cup, his eyes flashing with greed and wild ambition, "I have already contacted peers from thirty or forty other kingdoms like Red Fox and Golden Roc; we stand together! The law cannot punish the masses; I do not believe a city without a master would dare to wage war against so many cosmic kingdoms at once!"

"Report—!"

Just then, a guard came tumbling in, his face twisted in indescribable terror, unable to even speak clearly.

"L-Lord... in the... in the sky..."

"Panicking like this, what a disgrace!"

The Silver Moon Wolf Lord frowned, about to reprimand him.

Suddenly, the entire palace, and indeed the entire capital planet, plunged into darkness!

Everyone instinctively looked up.

They saw that the azure sky had been shrouded by an unimaginably massive shadow.

It was a mechanical demon beyond their comprehension, hovering silently in the planet’s synchronous orbit, its dark-gold body reflecting the light of the star, radiating a terrifying pressure that caused their very souls to freeze.

A primal fear, born from the instinct of life itself, instantly seized the hearts of everyone present.

What... what is that thing?!

A feudal lord?

No... that is not it!

That aura was far more terrifying than any feudal lord they had ever known.

"Pilihuo, here to execute the Qin Feng Territory Subsidiary Act."

The cold, synthetic mechanical voice, devoid of a single shred of emotion, rang out like the judgment of a god, echoing directly within the minds of every living creature on the planet.

"Tianlang Universe Kingdom, in breach of contract, tax payments in arrears for three thousand seven hundred years."

"Verdict: The Sovereign, death. Sentence to be carried out immediately."

As the words fell, a crimson beam, brighter and more blinding than the explosion of a neutron star, erupted from the single eye of the mechanical titan.

The beam ignored the planet’s defensive arrays, ignored the vastness of space, and ignored the layers of protection surrounding the palace, striking with lethal precision upon the face of the Silver Moon Wolf Lord, who still wore a mask of shock and terror.

There was no explosion, no thunderous roar.

The Silver Moon Wolf Lord, along with his throne and a corner of the palace behind him, was silently erased from the fabric of existence, as if he had never been.

A deathly silence descended upon the entire palace.

Every minister collapsed to the floor, bowels loosening in terror, unable to summon even the faintest thought of resistance.

"The tax arrears will be automatically deducted from the Tianlang treasury."

"Next stop, Red Fox Universe Kingdom."

The cold voice declared the end, the massive shadow in the sky slowly dissipated, and the terrifying mechanical titan vanished without a trace, as if it had been nothing more than a nightmare.

Yet, the punctured palace and the utterly erased sovereign stood as silent, chilling proof that the nightmare was real.

That day, the same scene played out in thirty-seven consecutive universe kingdoms.

Not a single sovereign could withstand that crimson beam; not a single kingdom dared to resist.

As news spread, the entire Qin Feng territory—comprising over seven hundred universe kingdoms—fell into a state of terrified silence, every faction with ulterior motives trembling like cicadas in winter.

They scrambled to pay their overdue taxes with interest, even offering up the next ten thousand years of tribute in advance to prove their loyalty.

The entire territory fell into absolute, hushed order.

Everyone remembered once more the name that had supposedly "fallen" three thousand years ago, and the iron-blooded majesty that name represented—a power that brooked no defiance.

Though the fierce god was dead, his lingering shadow still ruled the world!

While Pilihuo purged internal threats with thunderous force, Qin Feng’s mechanical avatar, "Vanguard," had already transformed into an inconspicuous speck of metallic dust, merging into the vast cosmic shipping lanes to begin its long journey.

Its target was the coordinates provided by the Stone Buddha—a chaotic sector on the edge of human territory known as "Tianheng."

The cosmic wonder, [Dou], lay hidden within.

This journey lasted for ten thousand years.

For the mechanical body of Vanguard, which neither slept nor tired and survived by absorbing stellar energy, ten thousand years was but a blink of an eye.

Qin Feng’s consciousness remained immersed within, maneuvering the avatar while continuously analyzing and refining his own [Limit Law]. More importantly, he acted as a cold observer, recording the changes in human territory over that millennium.

As he had expected, and as the Golden Emperor had once predicted, humanity had indeed entered a difficult "period of hibernation."

The once-bustling interstellar routes that connected major secret realms and resource points were now desolate.

Countless merchant fleets had vanished, replaced by unmanned star fortresses and automated sentry outposts deployed jointly by the Holy Academy and Sacred Terra.

Many human cosmic cities he passed had activated their highest level of defensive posture.

Massive energy shields, like inverted bowls, shrouded entire star systems, leaving only a few heavily monitored entry points.

Above the cities, squads of formidable King-level warriors could be seen leading legions in routine patrols.

The entire race was like a wounded giant, retracting its claws and pouring all its strength into guarding its core territory, exuding a wary, "keep out" aura.

"The catastrophe at Eternal Mountain hit humanity harder than I imagined."

Data streams flashed through Vanguard’s electronic eyes, analyzing every piece of intelligence gathered along the way.

"With over eighty percent of the Emperor-level experts trapped, humanity faces a massive void in high-end combat power. While the various races dare not launch a war of extinction due to the mutual deterrence of Universe Lords, small-scale infiltration, harassment, and resource plundering will never cease."

"Hiding behind defenses, purging from within... it is the safest, yet most helpless choice."

Qin Feng understood.

However, the situation was not entirely bleak.

In some core cosmic cities, he could sense many obscure and powerful auras.

These auras belonged to old monsters who rarely appeared in the world, having spent their lives in deep seclusion.

Now, in the face of the race's crisis, they had awakened to stand guard, becoming the anchors that helped humanity weather this difficult time.

"The foundation remains; the fire is not extinguished."

Vanguard continued its journey, its form constantly shifting—sometimes a dilapidated cargo ship, sometimes a floating meteorite—never once noticed by any outpost or patrol.

Finally, in the last month of the ten-thousandth year, its sensors detected a strange and kaleidoscopic nebula.

The Tianheng sector had been reached.

...

Unlike the orderly and highly guarded human heartlands, the first impression of the Tianheng sector was chaos.

This was a true "no-man's-land," where the territories of the human, demon, mechanical, and zerg races converged, creating a tangled, gray zone of overlapping interests and deep-rooted factions.

There were no unified laws, no absolute overlords; here, might was the only passport.

Countless interstellar pirates, bounty hunters, outlaws, information brokers, and "lone wolves" like Qin Feng, each harboring their own secrets, gathered here.

Vanguard Qin Feng’s destination was the most renowned transit hub in the Tianheng sector—the "Star of No Owner."

It suppressed all its auras, disguised itself as a common "T-800" model combat robot that had just reached the Domain Lord level, and landed at the planet’s public docking port.

As he stepped out of the port, a cacophony of smells—a mixture of machine oil, alcohol, blood, and various biological pheromones—assaulted his senses.

Strange creatures were everywhere on the streets, their shouting, arguing, and the clashing of weapons constant.

Qin Feng maneuvered Vanguard, walking straight through the chaotic streets without glancing aside.

His mental energy, like an invisible spiderweb, spread out silently, filtering and capturing the massive amount of information in the surroundings.

Just as he was about to turn into an alley leading to the intelligence market, his footsteps faltered slightly.

A familiar and powerful aura flashed briefly from a tavern behind him. That aura was as steady as a mountain, carrying a Buddhist quality of seeing through the void, yet beneath that serenity lay a terrifying power as indestructible as diamond.

"Stone Buddha..."

A faint light flickered in Vanguard’s electronic eyes.

He had not expected to encounter this "old friend" here, and so soon.

He did not look back, nor did he release any intent to probe; he simply resumed his normal pace, as if he had noticed nothing, and continued forward.

Almost at the same moment, in a private room on the second floor of the tavern, a Stone-race cultivator dressed in simple monk’s robes, yet with a physique as massive as a mountain, frowned slightly.

"Hmm?"

He seemed to sense something and cast his gaze out the window, just in time to see the unremarkable mechanical back of Vanguard disappearing around the corner of the alley.

"A strange mechanical being... quite interesting, it seems."

The Stone Buddha murmured to himself.

He could sense that the mechanical entity from moments ago possessed an innate, seamless quality that even he found difficult to penetrate.

Yet, the creature’s energy fluctuations were undeniably at the level of a newly ascended Domain Lord.

"Perhaps with the dawn of the Golden Age, some ancient mechanical relic has awakened, birthing a new prodigy."

The Stone Buddha shook his head, dismissing the thought.

In the current universe, geniuses emerged in droves and monsters ran rampant; he had seen far more intriguing existences than that machine.

There was only one thing that concerned him now.

He cast his gaze back to the intelligence report on the table, the title of which read: "Latest Battle Report from Martial Combat Mountain."

At the other end of the alley, Qin Feng finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"He did not recognize me."

This proved that his disguise was a success.

After splitting his soul with the Twin Masks and using a pure mechanical body as a vessel, the aura and soul fluctuations he emitted were entirely distinct from his human self.

The Stone Buddha’s presence here also indirectly confirmed Qin Feng’s suspicions.

"It seems he is not entirely ignorant of the 'Cosmic Wonder' I spoke of. He remains here perhaps to see who, in the end, will be the one to claim that object from Martial Combat Mountain."

Thoughts raced through Qin Feng’s mind as he stepped into the Tianheng Star Sector’s largest intelligence market, "The Know-It-All."

He bypassed the polished, glittering counters and walked straight to the deepest part of the market, stopping before an inconspicuous stall run by an old robot that looked as if it might fall apart at any moment.

"I wish to buy information."

Prowl spoke in a synthesized, raspy mechanical voice.

"I sell everything, provided you can afford the price."

The old robot replied without looking up.

"Two questions."

Prowl extended two metallic fingers. "First, the highest-level strategic movements of the human race over the past ten thousand years."

"Second, I want to know everything about Martial Combat Mountain."

The old robot finally lifted its optical lens, which flickered with static, scanned Prowl, and let out a dry chuckle.

"Young man, you have a bold tongue. The first question involves the highest secrets of the Human Saint Academy and Sacred Terra; it is worth the entire fortune of a peak Marquis."

"As for the second, Martial Combat Mountain is known to all, but the word 'everything' carries a heavy price. Can you afford it?"

Prowl did not waste words; he placed a storage ring gently upon the stall.

The old robot flicked it over with a mechanical claw, but the moment its spiritual sense probed the contents, the rusted claw froze solid.

Inside the ring lay a small mountain of "Universal Crystals."

It was hard currency enough to make any Emperor-level powerhouse turn green with envy.

The static in the old robot’s electronic eyes vanished, replaced by a piercing, greedy red glow.

With an agility that belied its decrepit appearance, it stowed the ring away, its attitude undergoing a complete transformation.

"Guest, please, have a seat. Regarding your questions, 'The Know-It-All' guarantees to tell you everything, leaving nothing out!"

Having paid a price that would move even an Emperor, Qin Feng obtained all the intelligence he desired from the inscrutable old robot.

Regarding the first question, the human race’s top strategic movements:

The intelligence largely aligned with his observations and guesses along the way, yet it was far more detailed and harrowing.

"...The cataclysm at Eternal Life Mountain stems from a long-planned joint operation between the Chaos Evil Gods and the Alliance of Ten Thousand Races.

Over eighty percent of the human Emperors, including top-tier existences like the Heaven-Cold Emperor and the Weapon-Refining King, are trapped within a 'Time-Dead Zone' deep inside Eternal Life Mountain.

A million years pass in the outside world, while only an instant occurs within.

This is an open conspiracy, intended to deplete the human race’s high-end combat power for a million years, seizing the initiative in the resource wars of the early 'Golden Age'..."

"...To counter this, the Human Saint Academy and the Supreme Council of Sacred Terra have jointly ordered all human forces to shift entirely to strategic defense. Simultaneously, they have initiated an internal purge project codenamed 'Pure Land'..."

"The 'Pure Land' project is led by the Inquisition of Sacred Terra and the Enforcement Hall of the Saint Academy, with the goal of completely eradicating all members of the 'Ten Thousand Races Cult' hidden within humanity, as well as other traitors corrupted by Chaos.

The project will continue until the blockade of Eternal Life Mountain is lifted.

During this period, the human race will not proactively participate in any secret realm disputes or external expansion..."

"So that is how it is."

Data streams flowed slowly through Prowl’s electronic eyes.

"Purge the internal, consolidate the foundation. A million years of dormancy to exchange for a clean, unified internal environment while awaiting the return of the Emperors. A very sound decision."

This intelligence put Qin Feng’s mind completely at ease.

It meant that for the next million years, he could operate in the outside world as "Prowl" without fear, never needing to worry that the human high command would, for some reason, notice the "avatar" of a man who was already "dead."

He turned his attention to the second piece of intelligence.

This was an information crystal containing everything about "Martial Combat Mountain."

As Qin Feng’s consciousness sank into it, a vast star map unfolded in his mind.

At the center of the map stood a black-brown divine mountain of indescribable majesty.

It belonged to no star system, standing solitary in the void of the universe, its scale so immense that even super-giant stars appeared insignificant before it.

The entire mountain radiated a terrifying, primordial aura of boundless battle intent, as if it were the spine of a supreme war god from the dawn of time.

This was Martial Combat Mountain.

Opinions on its origins were divided. Some said it was the ultimate weapon of a lost, supreme civilization; others claimed it was the ultimate trial ground set by the will of the universe to filter for the strongest warriors.

The only certainty was that for countless eons since its discovery, it had been controlled by a mysterious, neutral faction known as the "Cosmic Martial Arena."

"The Cosmic Martial Arena has influence across the entire universe. It is rumored that behind it sits an existence at the level of a 'Universal Lord.' It never participates in racial conflicts; its sole purpose is to provide an absolutely fair dueling platform for the strong of the entire universe."

"Martial Combat Mountain is one of their most important holy sites."

The intelligence detailed the rules of the mountain.

Any living being, regardless of race or cultivation, could enter Martial Combat Mountain upon paying an entrance fee to challenge the "Gatekeepers" manifested by the mountain’s own laws.

The strength of a Gatekeeper would be identical to the challenger, including cultivation, law comprehension, physical strength, and even energy reserves—a perfect one-to-one replication.

The only difference was that the Gatekeeper possessed the infinite, inexhaustible combat techniques contained within the mountain.

It was an absolutely fair contest of pure "Skill" and "Dao."

Each victory over a Gatekeeper counted as one win.

The victor would be rewarded with "Battle Qi," which could be exchanged for divine arts, secret techniques, and heavenly treasures in the Cosmic Martial Arena’s exchange list.

And the Cosmic Martial Arena had publicly issued an ultimate bounty that had hung for countless epochs—

"Any existence capable of defeating eight million Gatekeepers in a row, completing the feat of 'Eight Million Consecutive Victories,' will be qualified to become the new master of Martial Combat Mountain!"

"Eight million consecutive victories..."

Reading this, even with his current state of mind, Qin Feng could not help but feel a tremor of shock.

This was a task that bordered on the impossible.

To battle an opponent identical to oneself tests not only combat technique, but also willpower, mental state, endurance, and the profound understanding of one's own power.

Lose once, and you must start over from the beginning.

Eight million consecutive bouts, without a single mistake, without a moment of slack.

For any powerhouse, this is an unimaginable form of torture.

"Throughout the endless ages, challengers have been as numerous as carp crossing a river, including many brilliant, peerless figures who attained the titles of Emperor or even Saint. Yet, the highest recorded streak was set thirty million years ago by a warrior known as the 'Mad Saint'—seven million, nine hundred ninety-nine thousand, nine hundred ninety-nine victories..."

"He was only one match away."

"But when he challenged the eight-millionth guardian, he failed. It is said that after he emerged, he did not utter a word; his Dao heart collapsed on the spot, and he dissolved into cosmic dust."

This story imbued the Martial Combat Mountain with an even more sinister and terrifying aura.

Since then, although countless confident powerhouses have attempted the challenge, no one has ever come close to that record.

Over time, "eight million consecutive victories" became a distant legend, a synonym for the absolutely impossible.

The Martial Combat Mountain also became the "golden signboard" of the Universal Combat Arena, a source of stable profit and immense popularity.

No one believed anymore that anyone could truly claim it.

"So, they do not know that the true core of this mountain is the cosmic wonder [Combat]..."

Qin Feng’s consciousness withdrew from the information crystal, his electronic eyes flickering with sharp light.

This secret, he suspected, was known only to the Stone Buddha who left the clues, and now, to himself.

"The Universal Combat Arena... perhaps they know, or perhaps they do not.

If they know and still set this rule, either they have absolute confidence in the trial they created, or... they themselves are unable to truly refine this wonder and can only wait, through this method, for a 'fated person'."

Whichever the case, it made no difference to Qin Feng.

He intended to make the attempt.

Just because others could not do it did not mean he, Qin Feng, could not.

Because he possessed the greatest advantage that others lacked—

His Dao was the Dao of [Limit]!

In every realm, he pursued the most extreme perfection, forging an incomparable foundation.

His mental energy was of the legendary "pure black quality," indestructible and far surpassing his peers.

He had also cultivated the "Nine Tribulations Battle Canon" and the primordial secret art [Kill], both of which were supreme techniques that purely elevated the essence of combat.

"A duel of pure technique and will, then..."

"It is fitting; let me see exactly how far my 'Dao' has reached."

Qin Feng controlled the Vanguard and slowly stood up.

His mechanical body, disguised as a T-800 model, walked toward the starport of the "Ownerless Star."

His next destination was clear.

That mountain, standing in the void of the universe, having witnessed the rise and fall of countless prodigies—the Martial Combat Mountain!

...

Setting sail from the "Ownerless Star," the Vanguard once again became the most inconspicuous speck of dust in the universe, leaping into the deeper, more desolate void.

The Tianheng Star Sector was chaotic precisely because it lay at the intersection of several civilizations, and the Martial Combat Mountain sat at the very core of this intersection, in a zone of absolute, empty nothingness.

There were no stars here, no planets, and even interstellar dust was incredibly sparse; it was a "cosmic desert" in the truest sense.

Without precise star chart coordinates, any ship would lose its way here until its energy was exhausted, turning into a cold, steel tomb.

Qin Feng’s mechanical avatar navigated through the absolute darkness and solitude for three full years.

Finally, on the screen of his long-range detector, a tiny black dot appeared abruptly against the void background.

As the distance closed, the black dot expanded in a way that defied visual logic, frantically swelling until it occupied the entire field of vision, exceeding the boundaries of the screen.

The Vanguard dropped out of superluminal flight and hovered in the void.

Qin Feng’s consciousness, through the avatar’s electronic eyes, witnessed the legendary sacred mountain for the first time.

Awe.

Even though he had viewed the images countless times through intelligence crystals, witnessing the physical form of the Martial Combat Mountain in person brought a shock from the depths of his soul that was incomparable.

It was too vast.

It stood silently in the center of the dark universe, like a pillar of creation holding up an invisible heaven and earth, or like the spine of an ancient divine beast that had long since died but still radiated endless battle intent.

The mountain was a battle-scarred black-brown, covered in massive, crisscrossing ravines. Each one seemed to have been carved by a god-level weapon, leaving behind indelible laws of slaughter.

An invisible yet incredibly real, terrifying battle intent radiated from the mountain, shrouding the surrounding tens of thousands of light-years of void.

Under the pressure of this intent, space itself twisted subtly; any life form below the King level could not even approach within a ten-thousandth of its area without having their soul crushed by this pure combat will.

"To feel such pressure just by approaching... it is worthy of being the vessel for the cosmic wonder [Combat]."

Qin Feng thought to himself.

He could feel that this battle intent was not directed at him, but was an indiscriminate "invitation to battle" that had existed since time immemorial.

It issued the most primitive, pure challenge to every creature that dared to approach it.

About one light-year from the Martial Combat Mountain, a ring-shaped starport, constructed entirely of artificial alloys and comparable in scale to a small planet, orbited the sacred mountain like a satellite.

This was the [Martial Combat Forecourt], the only official reception and registration agency established by the "Universal Combat Arena."

Every powerhouse wishing to challenge the Martial Combat Mountain had to register here first.

The Vanguard adjusted its course, flying toward the massive ring-shaped starport.

Its speed was not fast, maintaining the level expected of an ordinary Domain Lord-level robot, cautiously avoiding the spatial rifts caused by the battle intent in the void.

At that moment, the extraordinary perception granted by his pure black quality mental energy caught a trace of something unusual.

"Hm?"

He sensed the aura of the Stone Buddha again.

That aura, heavy as a mountain and carrying the Zen rhythm of the Diamond school, was entrenched in a relatively remote area within the [Martial Combat Forecourt] starport, seemingly sitting in meditation within a high-end lounge.

This was not strange; the Stone Buddha had arrived before him, and waiting here was a matter of course.

But immediately after, Qin Feng’s brow "furrowed" imperceptibly.

Because what he sensed was not just the Stone Buddha.

At the edge of his mental perception, within a belt of seemingly empty meteorites, he caught a trace of an aura that was extremely faint, yet shared the same origin as the Stone Buddha.

That aura was also of the Stone Clan’s Zen school, yet it was far more obscure, silent as a boulder, blending almost perfectly with the surrounding meteorites.

Had Qin Feng’s mental quality not been far beyond the ordinary, he would never have been able to distinguish it from the cosmic background radiation.

"There is another..."

Qin Feng felt a stir in his heart, his mental energy pouring forth like liquid mercury, spreading silently into the vast expanse.

This time, he did not merely scan the area; he conducted a meticulous, carpet-like filtration of the millions of kilometers of space surrounding him.

Soon, he made further discoveries.

On the far side, inside a vessel disguised as a common freighter, at least five such presences lurked; they had suppressed all energy fluctuations and deactivated the ship's life support systems, lying dormant in the cargo hold like five inert ballast stones.

At the opposite end of the Martial Arena Starport, in a public docking bay, several unremarkable and even dilapidated private star-shuttles each concealed one or two monks of the Stone Clan Zen Sect.

Even among the discarded space debris and mechanical wreckage on the outskirts of the starport, Qin Feng detected individual monks who had used secret arts to reduce their life signs and signatures to the absolute minimum, blending perfectly into the surrounding desolation.

Qin Feng withdrew his mental energy without a ripple of outward emotion, though his heart surged with turbulence.

"One, two, five, seven... add the one in the asteroid belt and those hidden in the refuse..."

He quickly tallied the numbers in his mind.

"Beyond the Stone Buddha stationed openly in the starport, I have discovered at least thirty monks of the Stone Clan Zen Sect in this sector!"

This revelation instantly sharpened his vigilance.

If it were merely three or five brothers-in-arms coming to support the Stone Buddha, that would be understandable.

But more than thirty, each possessing formidable cultivation—the weakest being at the peak of the Marquis rank, with several exuding auras that even Qin Feng found threatening, likely top-tier existences who had touched the threshold of the "Divine Forbidden"—was another matter entirely.

Such a powerful force, choosing to surround the entire Martial Arena Starport in the most clandestine manner, echoing one another through a hidden formation, was certainly not here for sightseeing.

"What... are they planning?"

A thought immediately surfaced in Qin Feng's mind.

"Has the Stone Buddha leaked the secret? Did he inform his sect about the cosmic wonder, the 'Dou'?"

Perhaps the Stone Buddha intended to leverage the power of his sect to ensure he could seize the artifact without fail?

No.

Could the Stone Buddha be destined to die at the hands of his own master, and these men were sent to purge him?

Qin Feng did not know, nor did it concern him.

This massive, latent force of the Stone Clan Zen Sect was like an invisible net cast over the region, casting the shadow of a "hunter" over him, the "oriole" who had hoped to snatch the prize.

"Things are becoming interesting."

A cold, icy glint flickered in Vanguard's electronic eyes.

Yet his forward pace did not falter, and his simulated energy fluctuations remained as steady as ever.

Like a newcomer, a common robot filled with curiosity and awe for all he beheld, he slowly approached the magnificent ring-shaped starport.

He knew that his identity was his greatest advantage for the moment.

In the eyes of the Stone Clan Zen Sect, he was nothing more than an insignificant pawn.

That was enough.

Passing through the transparent corridor formed by the energy shield, Vanguard’s feet finally touched the metallic floor of the Martial Arena.

The space here was immense, stretching beyond the reach of sight.

Ancient patterns were etched into the ground, appearing to form a colossal teleportation array.

Powerhouses from every race in the universe moved about, some with auras as oppressive as a prison, others as deep and contained as an abyss.

But without exception, every face wore a complex expression, a mixture of fanaticism, confidence, and solemnity.

This was a paradise for the strong, and a burial ground for the gifted.

Vanguard ignored everything around him, walking straight toward the most striking feature in the center of the hall: a black stone stele ten thousand feet tall.

There were no inscriptions on the stele, only a swirling vortex composed of pure, rotating battle intent.

This was the registration point for the Martial Arena Mountain.