Meng Hao stared dumbly, his mind reeling. All the fantastic and bizarre things he had seen in his life couldn't compare to the shocking sight in front of him. His mind was blank, as if he had lost his ability to even think. He could only stand there and look numbly.

Patriarch Reliance was actually… a mind-bogglingly enormous black turtle!

And the State of Zhao existed on the earth upon his back!!

He himself had lived on Patriarch Reliance's back for these twenty years. No wonder he was called Patriarch Reliance. He was relied upon not just by a single person, but by an entire nation! Cultivators and mortals alike relied on him!

After Patriarch Reliance had been sealed, he began to slumber. Yet he still managed to force out a tiny bit of his will, which then attempted to destroy the legacy of the Demon Sealing Sect.

Now it made sense why the Reliance Sect had formerly been called the Demon Sealing Sect, although few people even knew that nowadays. And no wonder the Reliance Sect was called an evil Sect and had such brutal, internecine struggles.

The body containing the sliver of his will practiced Cultivation until reaching the Spirit Severing stage, but as for his actual body… how powerful was it, exactly?!

There were still many things Meng Hao didn't understand. For example, if Patriarch Reliance was so powerful, why hadn't he been able to save himself from the very beginning? If Meng Hao hadn't appeared, would he have died? Considering how powerful his actual body was, why did he need to absorb the power of those Cultivators?

Lifted up along with the land containing the State of Zhao, the three Pseudo Nascent Soul Cultivators stared in shock as all of this happened. Their minds spun and expressions of astonishment covered their faces. They were even incapable of feeling fear. They could only stare blankly. They could scarcely even believe what they saw.

Lord Revelation was also struck speechless as he looked up at the massive head. It was immeasurably larger than he himself; in fact, it was so large that you couldn't even see from one end of it to another. Fear began to shine out from his eyes; how could he possibly have imagined that the Patriarch Reliance he had cursed and challenged to fight… would be like this?

As Patriarch Reliance's voice echoed out, his words stabbed into Lord Revelation's ears, causing his body to tremble and his scalp to go numb. He was sapped of any and all will to fight.

Patriarch Reliance didn't need to strike out. Now that he had truly appeared, he casually exuded a bit of pressure onto Lord Revelation, causing his body to tremble. Lord Revelation's blood seemed as if it would stop flowing. The Dao enlightenment he had acquired with his Spirit Severing collapsed. He was as weak as a bug. Patriarch Reliance could crush him with a single breath.

The terrifying pressure exuded by the head caused Lord Revelation's mouth to go dry. Despite his extraordinary Cultivation base, cold sweat broke out across his body. The Revelation Bell next to him didn't give him the slightest sense of comfort. Even the Spiritual Sense imparted by the Dawn Immortal didn't give him the slightest sense of safety.

Now he understood why Patriarch Reliance hadn't paid the slightest bit attention when he mentioned the Dawn Immortal. Of course he wouldn't, considering his extraordinary actual body.

And now he knew why Patriarch Reliance didn't fear the Dawn Immortal….

Even more astonishing was that in his recollection, according to all of the ancient texts he had studied, the State of Zhao had existed for a very, very long time. This made him even more frightened. Which had existed first…. Patriarch Reliance, or the State of Zhao?!

If it were the latter, that would be easier to accept. If it were the former…. Thinking of this, Lord Revelation began to tremble so violently he felt as if his skin might explode.

"Well, shall we fight?" The words echoed out Patriarch Reliance, each one of them rumbling like thunder. The thunderous booming caused Lord Revelation to be hurled backward several thousand meters. Blood showered from his mouth. The bell seemed completely ordinary now; it was covered with vast amounts of cracks and fractures.

"No… there's no need to fight," said Lord Revelation hastily, his face pale. "Just now, I of the junior generation was simply joking. Patriarch… Sir… please don't take offense…." Patriarch Reliance's two enormous eyes stared directly at him, and he trembled.

"Without your two palm strikes, I wouldn't have been able to come out. Those damned bastards sealed me many years ago; the seal has been growing weaker recently. But to break through it, I needed to recover my Cultivation base a bit more. But then in the midst of it all, someone released the power of the Spirit Severing stage. That knocked the seal even looser, and finally I was able to break out!" His voice boomed out in all directions. When Meng Hao heard the words, his body trembled.

"Originally, I planned to use my sliver of will to break the seal. But mortal Cultivation and I don't quite agree. Even with my knowledge of the Sublime Spirit Scripture, I couldn't break through to the next level of Spirit Severing. Just when I was about to make the final breakthrough, I got cheated by a hateful little bastard. Dammit, everyone from the Demon Sealing Sect is a bastard! Stealing the spiritual energy I needed to break the seal, robbing me of my demonic lamp…." He let out a roar. Meng Hao wanted to flee; he knew exactly who Patriarch Reliance was talking about.

"You did well, very well. Luckily you attacked, helping break my seal. I need to repay you."

Hearing Patriarch Reliance's words, Lord Revelation gaped in shock. Then his expression changed to one of wild joy. How could he have imagined that he would score a lucky break? He had gotten lucky after all! Even as he clasped his hands in respect, Patriarch Reliance opened his mouth, and with blinding speed, snapped him up.

Lord Revelation and his Revelation Bell were swallowed down in an instant!

Crunching sounds emanated from Patriarch Reliance's mouth, but no blood-curdling scream. When Meng Hao saw this, he began to breathe harder. He was all too familiar with Patriarch Reliance's unreasonableness. He unconsciously retreated backward. Suddenly, Patriarch Reliance's head swung around to face Meng Hao. It came to stop several hundred meters in front of him, staring at him.

Meng Hao squeezed out a smile. He didn't necessarily believe everything that Patriarch Reliance had said to Lord Revelation, but neither did he disbelieve. From his experience, most of what the Patriarch said wasn't true.

"Congratulations on emerging from seclusion, Patriarch. Your might is all-encompassing. You…"

"Now that you know the truth, are you frightened?" Patriarch Reliance's voice rolled out like thunder, and he glared at Meng Hao. The sound of his voice was so loud it was almost deafening. He coughed up some blood.

"You Demon Sealing Sect people are all bastards," said Patriarch Reliance slowly, staring at Meng Hao. "Those old bastards were like this, and you're the same, kid. You all cheated me. Oh well, forget it. You're a member of the Reliance Sect, after all. Allow me to bless you with…" As Patriarch Reliance spoke, Meng Hao's scalp began to grow numb. He thought of what had just happened with Lord Revelation, and his mind began to race as he tried to think of what to do.

Suddenly, a spark of inspiration hit him as he remembered something.

He remembered what the young girl Guyiding Tri-rain had said to him at the North Sea.

"Big Brother, its aura … is beneath your feet. Don't provoke it. Remember… the great path of Demon Sealing, a concept like a scripture."

At that time, Meng Hao hadn't understood her words, but all of a sudden, now he did. The "it" beneath his feet… was none other than Patriarch Reliance!

Don't provoke it. Remember… the great path of Demon Sealing, a concept like a scripture.

"The great path of Demon Sealing, a concept like a scripture. Don't provoke it…." Meng Hao's mind flashed like lightning. Even as this happened, Patriarch Reliance finished speaking.

"…bless you with some good fortune. I need to repay you!"

The instant he finished speaking, Meng Hao lifted his hand and slapped his bag of holding. Instantly, the Demon Sealing Jade appeared in his hand.

When it appeared, a strong wind buffeted his face. The wind faded, and when it did, Patriarch Reliance's head was less than nine meters away from him.

The ends of the colossal head couldn't even be seen. The only thing Meng Hao could see was black skin and a massive eye the size of a huge city.

The eye seemed to be struggling.

"Ancient Dao," said Meng Hao hurriedly, reciting the first line from the Demon Sealing Jade. "Tenacious Desire to Seal the Heavens; Benefaction for All in the Mountains; Dao Tribulation Must Come to the Nine Mountains and Seas; My Fate is the Aeon!"

As the words left Meng Hao's mouth, Patriarch Reliance lifted his colossal head up and let out a massive roar. As it billowed out, ripples appeared in the air to accompany it. A nine-sided mystical symbol suddenly appeared on Patriarch Reliance's forehead. It appeared to be ancient and archaic, and deeply imbedded into his forehead. It flickered, and his body shook.

"Stop! Damned Demon Sealing Scripture and damned Demon Sealing Sect!!" A ferocious expression appeared on his face and he let out another heaven-shaking roar, then stared at Meng Hao. Meng Hao's heart pounded as he looked back at Patriarch Reliance.

"Those bastards were too malignant," thought Patriarch Reliance. "The seal is broken, but the sealing mark is still branded onto my spirit, forcing me to be the Dao protector of the ninth Demon Sealer. This cannot be! The Demon Sealing Sect has committed crimes against the Heavens, and was plagued by misfortune. They understood that the number nine is a preeminent, sacred number according to the Dao of the Heavens. They knew that the greatest opposition from the Heavens would come upon the ninth Demon Sealer. Therefore, they took precautions. They wanted me to be the Dao protector for the ninth Demon Sealer. But this trifling kid is of the Qi Condensation stage! How could he possibly act as my master? Those damned bastards! I changed the name from Demon Sealing Sect to Reliance Sect and created rules to pit all the disciples against each other, all in the hopes of preventing someone like Meng Hao from appearing!"

A mist began to seep out from the North Sea, which of course was part of the lands of the State of Zhao that rested on Patriarch Reliance's back. Within the mist, a boat magically appeared. An old man and a young girl stood at the prow of the boat, looking up at Patriarch Reliance. They clasped hands and bowed to him with utmost respect.

"Guyiding Tri-rain pays respects to Patriarch," said the young girl. Her voice, clear and melodious, echoed out with a light and spiritual tone.

"Ah, you're the sentient rain that fell in the third month of the Yiding year of the ancient Gu calendar. You fell onto my back… and became a lake."

The young girl smiled and nodded. Then she looked toward Meng Hao and winked.

Meng Hao took a deep breath. Now he finally understood the meaning of the girl's strange name.

Patriarch Reliance let out a cold snort. He looked at the little girl and then stared off into the sky. Meng Hao followed his gaze and caught sight of what appeared to be an indistinct blood-colored figure.

The figure clasped hands and bowed in respect to Patriarch Reliance, then disappeared.

Patriarch Reliance lowered his head once more and looked at Meng Hao. "Very well, Meng Hao. In the future, keep your distance from me!" He blew a breath out of his mouth, causing Meng Hao to fly up into the air. Buffeted by a glowing black wind, Meng Hao was tossed out of the State of Zhao to land on the edge of the massive hole in the earth.

"Son of a bitch! I can't even look at him. In my life, I'll never recognize him as my master. I'm out of here. The further away the better. He'll never find me. As for the treasures of mine that he took, fine, consider them payment. All of our debts are settled. In this way, my heart can rest at ease and I can continue to practice Cultivation." His eyes flickered, and then his body turned. Meng Hao watched as the colossal turtle, carrying the State of Zhao on his back, transformed into a massive beam of prismatic light… and then disappeared over the horizon.

He appeared to be heading in the direction of the Milky Way Sea. Perhaps this was why legends arose of an island of Immortals. If one searched for it, it could never be found. But when it appeared, anyone who stepped foot on it would find that it was a nation inhabited by mortals.

It was, of course, the State of Zhao.

Some time passed, and eventually the skies grew calm once again. Meng Hao stood there looking down at the deep, gaping hole. Then he looked off silently in the direction in which Patriarch Reliance had disappeared.

Time passed, and rain began to fall. It fell with urgency, slowly flowing down into the massive pit left by the State of Zhao. Many years later, this area would turn into a sea.

Standing amidst the sheets of falling rain, Meng Hao let out a long sigh. Images from the past several days flashed through his mind. It all seemed virtually inconceivable. Thinking upon it all, it seemed a dream-like fantasy.

The State of Zhao was gone…. Meng Hao looked around at the rain, then up into the hazy sky. He contemplated his life during the past four years.

"I started out as a scholar…" he murmured. "My life is like snow. I can only exist in winter. I can yearn for the summer of the mortal world, but that is not my life anymore…." After a long time passed, he turned. Surrounded by the falling rain, he once again began to trod a road which led away from his roots.

He struck a lonely figure amidst the rain. Eventually, he seemed to merge into it. Even if a hot wind blew over him, it would do nothing to disperse him. Because this was his life.

Life is comprised of one experience after another. Or, you could say that life is comprised of many experiences. Different experiences lead to different lives; if you experience a cold bitter wind, you will become snow. If you experience scorching heat, you will become rain….

Whatever you experience in life will shape the person you are. That is what makes life wonderful.

"Southern Domain, here I come! Although, before I get there, I must reach Foundation Establishment!" As he walked through the rain, he lifted up his head, and his eyes glittered brilliantly.

He would never forget the stubborn desire to achieve power that he had experienced underneath the descent of Lord Revelation's palm attack. In this world, only the powerful can be invincible.

"Wait a minute, where did that blood-colored glow come from…?"

With questions circling in his mind, Meng Hao disappeared into the distance.