A Martial Odyssey

When Yi Ping had regained consciousness, he found himself in a cave and he was startled to see that Lord Judas was grinning at him, face to face with him!

He immediately tried to get up panicky as he shouted angrily, "What have you done to my companions?!"

Lord Judas laughed heartily, "I did nothing actually. They are all safe and sound. I have only one aim and that is you."

Yi Ping looked at Lord Judas suspiciously for a while. All of a sudden he noticed that his divine swords were by his side. He muttered weakly, "What do you want?"

Lord Judas laughed jovially, "You are my protégé disciple now!"

Yi Ping smiled weakly, "The duel is a draw. Since it is a draw, why should I be your protégé disciple?"

Lord Judas laughed, "Why don't you feel your pulses first?"

Although Yi Ping was bewildered by him, he did as he was told. All of a sudden he gasped out, "What is this?!…"

He could feel a wondrous energy pulsing through him. It was his Righteousness Essential Energy but only this time, it seemed to be more obvious and alive now!

He muttered, "What did you do?"

Lord Judas said, "So now you know? The Invincible Divine Force is also an absorbing skill. Because it is able to absorb, it is also capable of transferring. I have transferred my Golden Invincible Force to you."

All of a sudden he gave a martial shout and there were nine hovering wisps of blue energy. The golden shimmering wisps of energy spheres could no longer be seen!

Lord Judas said solemnly, "As you can see now, my Golden Invincible Force has degenerated. Try channeling your intricate energies to your life and death channels and see what happens."

Yi Ping did as he was told and was immediately speechless when a burst of martial force warped out of his body and it had formed into six hovering golden spheres!

Because Yi Ping was still weak and could not sustain his internal strength and martial power at the same time, the golden spheres soon disappeared and he was breathless from the attempt!

Lord Judas clapped his hands, "Excellent! It seems that your Righteousness Essential Energy has merged well with my Golden Invincible Force!"

Yi Ping said breathlessly, "The Golden Invincible Force is even more tiring to use than my Asper Divinity…"

Lord Judas laughed aloud, "Well, the Golden Invincible Force is slightly more difficult to use than the Invincible Divine Force but it is a good internal strength and martial power exercise too. When you have used it for ten years, you will start to see the benefit. When you have used it for a hundred years, you may be able to reach the seventh invincible rank. With some luck after a thousand years, you may be able to reach the eighth invincible rank. Maybe after ten thousand years, you will be able to reach the ninth rank."

Yi Ping was startled, "So long?!"

Lord Judas patted his shoulder, "If you have started at a lower rank of the Golden Invincible Force, it is even longer and even more impossible to reach the peak of perfection of this divine skill. But a sixth level for starter is extremely good. Now all you need is to get used to it and meditate upon it. Even though you are not a true immortal yet but given your present martial strength, I can say that you will be on par with the majority of the true immortals now and even the rest of the Heavenly Kings soon enough!"

He began to examine Yi Ping wrist and put his hands on top of Yi Ping's head, "It seems that you have just successfully overcome the Primordial Core Immortal Stage and is now at the beginning of the Divine Crisis. Excellent! When you have overcome the Divine Crisis, there is one last hurdle of the Celestial Unison. You must be extremely wary of both the Divine Crisis and the Celestial Unison. Both are extreme tribulations that will prove to be the undoing of many. The Divine Crisis, the most deadly heavenly tribulation that you will ever face. The Celestial Unison, if you fail to unify the self with the Heavens, then you will turn to dust!"

Yi Ping was startled to hear this, "I have overcome the Primordial Core? I didn't feel it…"

Lord Judas laughed jovially, "The crisis of the Primordial Core can take many forms to and varies from each practitioner. That is why all the celestial and immortal stages can only depend on self-enlightenment. But of course, there always a shortcut but that is only used by the dark practitioners."

Yi Ping nodded but all of a sudden, he had a sudden realization. "Oh no! Lele, she is at the Celestial Unison now…."

Lord Judas said, "Is this Lele the maiden with a silver divine sword and a long scythe?"

Yi Ping nodded panicky, "You…must help her!"

Lord Judas said solemnly, "The whole lot of you has advanced too quickly and it is too dangerous. Your worst enemies are not the Heavenly Kings but your heavenly tribulations. As for this Lele, you don't have to worry. If I am not mistaken from our short martial exchanges, she is a practitioner of the Celestial Force and it is extremely pure…and…"

He closed to his eyes to meditate for a while.

Yi Ping called him. "Lord Judas?….Lord Judas?"

But there was no respond from him!

And this a while was actually ten minutes!

Finally Lord Judas opened his eyes and he had a startled expression, "She has the Universal Harmonic Chain!"

He quickly said to Yi Ping, "You don't have to worry for her. She has the heart of the goddess and will surely attain as an immortal if nothing major happens."

Yi Ping asked, "The heart of the goddess?"

Lord Judas was trembling excitingly, "That is right. The heart of the goddess, the pure heart of the Great Goddess Fantian! That is an immortal artefact of an unimaginable power and it seems that the Universal Harmonic Chain has picked her to be its mistress."

Yi Ping was relieved to hear that.

He immediately fell to his knees as he bowed, "I am grateful to your kindness but I really cannot acknowledge you as my protégé master! But why will you advance my martial level at the cost of your attainment?"

Lord Judas replied, "Doesn't matter. I didn't manage to defeat you so you can choose not to be my disciple. Of course I have my reasons to aid you. Do you know that you are the Great God that the Ancient Heavenly Sage King and I have been waiting for all this while to restore the order of the heavens?"

Yi Ping asked curiously, "You are waiting for me?"

Lord Judas nodded, "Yes, it has been an extremely long wait."

Yi Ping asked solemnly, "But even then, why are you imparting your precious martial internal strength to me at the cost of your own martial attainment? I don't deserve it…"

Lord Judas said solemnly, "My own martial attainment is nothing compared to yours! You are our only fighting chance or else we will have to wait for countless years again. Moreover this Golden Invincible Divine Force doesn't belong to me in the first place!"

Yi Ping had a puzzling look as he said, "It doesn't belong to me either…"

Lord Judas laughed heartily, "The reason why my Invincible Divine Force is able to advance into the Golden Invincible Force is because the Great Goddess Fantian has aided me secretly in the past. The only condition that she has imposed upon me is that I have to transfer it to the next Great God at the first opportunity!"

Yi Ping gasped, "The Great Goddess Fantian…"

Lord Judas nodded, "The Great Goddess Fantian is the Divine Creator of all the immortals while the Great God Pangu is the Divine Creator of the Three Known Realms. You have inherited the Pangu Intricate Energy and so naturally you are the future Great God."

Yi Ping smiled bitterly, "I don't even know if I am able to reach the top of the Stellar Sanctuary to become the next future Great God…"

Lord Judas clapped his hands, "So you are aware of it already?"

Yi Ping continued to smile bitterly, "I have made a guess."

He quickly asked, "Senior, you have made such a great sacrifice. Is there anything I can do for you?"

Lord Judas laughed jovially, "No need! It is because I got a reward from the Great Goddess Fantian already!"

Yi Ping displayed a puzzled look…

Lord Judas explained as he tapped his forehead which had a sudden golden radiance, "The day that I have transferred the Golden Invincible Force to you, is also the day that I will be able to advance my Heavenly Eyes to the Seventh Cosmos Positioning. That is already my reward! Hehe! I have been figuring this puzzle for millenniums and never knew why for Heavens' secrets are equally as forbidden to the first immortals. But now I know why!"

He grinned at Yi Ping, "Your Thousand Memories Swords is the key! You are really something. A sword technique that is created from the Essential Righteous Energy and it has also served as bridge between my Invincible Divine Force and my Heaven Eyes. Only when I have transferred the Golden Invincible Force to you, did I attain to a new state of divinity."

Yi Ping stared at him blankly, "It is just a new technique that I have created at a moment notice…"

Lord Judas smiled, "You have to believe in destiny. There are an infinite number of coincidences just waiting for things to happen at the correct time. As long as you play by the rules of destiny, you will be able to carve out the chosen destiny."

Yi Ping muttered, "If only the other Heavenly Kings see the same way as you then things would be more peaceful."

Lord Judas asked, "What? You have seen the other Heavenly Kings? Who are they?"

Yi Ping said, "I see the Old Man Xuantian and Yun Dingzhong…"

Lord Judas smiled bitterly, "And you have survived an encounter with them? Do you know how sadistic they are?"

Yi Ping smiled weakly, "I know…"

Lord Judas said, "They have joined the dark side and are now dark immortals."

All of a sudden he said, "No wait, I may need you to do something for me!"

Yi Ping said respectfully, "Just tell me and if it is within my means, I will surely do my very best!"

Lord Judas took out an orange pill, "This is my Western Paradise Divine Pill. It is a divine pill that I have spent countless years to refine and cultivate. Can I trust you to give it to that maiden with the Invincible Divine Force? What is her name?"

Yi Ping took the divine pill hesitatingly, "She is Lie Qing. What is this divine pill?"

Lord Judas laughed, "Alas, Lie…Qing. I must remember her name. I am getting forgetful nowadays."

All of a sudden he became solemn, "You must never take this pill for yourself or it will do you more harm than good. But for her, it will be beneficent to her. Who is she to you?"

Yi Ping said quietly, "She is my consort."

Lord Judas laughed heartily, "Good! Take good care of her. She is actually on the eleventh invincible level now. I wonder how she accomplishes that…"

Yi Ping said respectfully, "I hope that Senior will spare the practitioners that cross your path…"

Lord Judas roared with laughter, "You really think that those immortals are killed by me? No! So far I have only killed only one and he is the Epitome Sage Heavenly King. But that is only because he is a dark immortal. If I don't get rid of him then there will be more victims!"

Yi Ping asked solemnly, "Pardon me for asking but you are not a dark immortal? Then why are you in the Stellar Sanctuary?"

Lord Judas leaned back as he pondered, "It is not only me. All the surviving Heavenly Kings will surely come to the Stellar Sanctuary because in the entire immortal realm, nowhere else can compare to the martial treasures and immortal secrets that can be found here!"

Yi Ping listened attentively. It was because so far he had only known that the Stellar Sanctuary was a place for celestial practitioners to advance their enlightenment and all the celestials had long suspected that the Immortal Practice may be found inside.

Lord Judas explained further, "It is a little more complicated. Let me put it this way, all the Heavenly Kings are like the celestial clans that you are familiar with, with their own agendas. And of course, some will band together while some prefer to be on their own. Some even choose to become dark immortals but no matter the reasons, everyone knows that if they can reach the very top of the Stellar Sanctuary, they will surely gained untold martial treasures and even become the next Great God!"

Yi Ping asked, "So you are here to become the next Great God?"

Lord Judas laughed jovially, "To be honest, I did dream of it but I have something even noble in mind…"

All of a sudden he gave Yi Ping a pat, "But I cannot share my secret destiny with you. Young fellow, don't say that I didn't warn you. There will be a battle up there. If you really value your life and your cumulated divine practice, I will surely advise you to stay steer of all the troubles and be on your way."

Yi Ping said solemnly, "I know that Senior means well but like you, I have my business at the top of the Stellar Sanctuary."

Lord Judas looked at him for a while before he said solemnly, "I don't know how you got your Essential Righteous Energy without reaching to the very top but if you continue your way up, the sharper Heavenly Kings will soon find out and they will surely eat your heart to further their own attainment. You got me?"

Yi Ping nodded quietly.

Lord Judas said, "You are lucky to meet me. Very well, since you are so insistent I won't stop you. But if we do meet at the very top, we may even fight again. To each of our own destiny!"

Yi Ping said, "To each of our own destiny. You know, I am thinking you are not such a bad person after all."

Lord Judas laughed, "I am not a bad person but I am a mean fellow. Even my dearest Alice, Xiang and Asura are ignoring me now. What bad luck! But after I have finished with my secret destiny, then they will know that I am not such a mean fellow and they will fall to their knees as they worship me…"

Yi Ping smiled weakly as he felt like withdrawing what he had just said to him!

All of a sudden they heard footsteps from below the cave!

Lord Judas smiled wryly, "It is my dearest Alice. I can sniff her from afar and they have managed to find my trail now. I got to go now. Remember what I have said to you!"

As he got up, he turned to appraise Yi Ping solemnly, "I don't know if you are the true Great God. But if you want to become the true Great God, you must reach the top of the Stellar Sanctuary and there will be many tribulations waiting for you to face. I have already done what I am supposed to do!"

With that, he vanished out of the cave!

Yi Ping was left standing in the cave alone until Alice, Xiang, Lele, Yu'Er, Me'Er, Shen Xingyue and Asura had barged into the cave as they called him out excitedly, "Yi Ping! Yi Ping!"

Alice gasped with relief, "Are you alright? Where is that Lord Judas? Did he do anything funny to you?"

Xiang was also comforting him panicky, "Your Xiang'Er is here. Did that Lord Judas bullies you? I will get back at him later…"

Yu'Er and Mei'Er were examining him closely as they hugged him excitedly, "Master Yi Ping! You are alright…we are so glad!"

Shen Xingyue heaved a soft sigh of relief, "I was so afraid when you have fallen into his hands. Or else I won't forgive myself for letting him carted you away right in front of my eyes…"

Lele flew into his embrace, "Ping'Er, you…are alright? I am so glad? What actually happened?"

Asura was looking cautiously around the cave, "He is not here?"

Yi Ping immediately said, "He didn't hurt me and instead has helped me to treat my internal injuries."

Alice, Xiang and all the others were startled, "Oh? He did what?"

Yi Ping smiled weakly, "He isn't as bad as you think although maybe a little eccentric."

Shen Xingyue asked, "Huh? Why did he cart you away for then?"

Yi Ping smiled weakly, "He has imparted his Golden Invincible Force to me…"

Alice and Xiang were gasping, "He did what…"

Even Asura was trembling with shock!

Yu'Er asked, "What is wrong?"

Alice smiled weakly, "I can't believe that he has actually imparted one of the most powerful divine skills of the Immortal Realm to you…"

Xiang was already examining Yi Ping's pulse, "It is true…"

Asura laughed softly to Yi Ping, "Unfortunately, you are not a virgin or else you will be able to advance further with this divine skill…"

Yi Ping was flustered as he muttered, "I am really alright…"

Alice muttered, "Better check if you are really alright. I mean that there may be a side effect to this Golden Invincible Divine Skill that you may not be aware of. That Lord Judas is capable of messing up with people."

Xiang nodded, "I agree with Alice."

Yi Ping was smiling weakly, "Surely not that bad…"

Alice and Xiang said at the same time, "He really is!"

Alice added coldly, "You have heard him calling me dearest Alice as though I am particular very close to him. He is capable of twisting anything to suit his jovial mood. Stay away from him!"

Xiang nodded and her expressions were particular tortured, "Everyone avoids him like a plague in the Immortal Realm, you know what I mean? You don't want to know him particular well. I wonder how the Ancient Heavenly Sage King was able to bear with him…"

Yi Ping just smiled weakly. It was because he could tell that Alice and Xiang did not have any fondness for him!