Chapter 870: 神府境后期

As time progressed, the competition for the Chief Pavilion Master position of the Four Pavilions was drawing near. Its popularity also began to surge within the Tianyuan Region. Now, discussions everywhere in the Tianyuan Region revolved around this event, and the level of attention it garnered far surpassed that of the previous Heavenly Flame Ritual.

The four Pavilion Masters participating in the competition—Lu Xiao, Zhou Yuan, Han Yuan, and Mu Liu—also gained significant prominence during this period. Betting houses even opened odds, allowing people to wager on which pavilion would claim the Chief Pavilion Master position this time. This quickly gained immense popularity and became extremely hot.

Unsurprisingly, Lu Xiao was the clear favorite among the bettors. After all, regardless of other factors, he was the undisputed top-ranked young Divine Dwelling Realm expert in the Tianyuan Region. Even if there were suspicions about his ninth-place ranking on the Divine Dwelling List, Lu Xiao's strength was undeniably recognized by everyone. Besides Lu Xiao, Han Yuan and Mu Liu were also considered strong contenders. These two were second only to Lu Xiao in the Tianyuan Region and had a real chance of winning the Chief Pavilion Master position.

As for Zhou Yuan, he was ranked last. Although the Wind Pavilion's momentum had soared under his leadership over the past few months, even surpassing the Fire Pavilion in the Heavenly Flame Ritual, everyone knew that both the Four-Mother Runes and the Heavenly Flame Ritual involved some clever maneuvers. However, the competition for the Chief Pavilion Master was purely a test of individual strength. On this front, any trickery would be ineffective. Therefore, Zhou Yuan's mid-stage Divine Dwelling Realm strength left people with little confidence in him, making his low ranking among the favorites entirely understandable.

While the entire Tianyuan Region focused on the Chief Pavilion Master competition, news of the wager between Yi Qiushui and Zuo Ya also circulated. This sparked some discussion, as ten thousand Genesis Qi Treasure Coins were no small sum. Many people secretly sighed for Yi Qiushui regarding this wager, seeing it as an obvious trap set by Zuo Ya. How could Yi Qiushui fall for it? Even a rich woman shouldn't squander her wealth like that. Regardless of their lamentations, the wager was officially on, which only served to further elevate the excitement around the Chief Pavilion Master competition.

Thus, under the true gaze of countless spectators, only one day remained until the Chief Pavilion Master competition.

Wind Island, cultivation chamber.

Inside the cauldron, the Heavenly Sun Flame burned fiercely, and a terrifying temperature condensed within it. A figure sat quietly amidst the blazing fire. His skin was as translucent as jade, seemingly shimmering with a glow, and deep within that jade light, a brilliant silver radiance faintly appeared and disappeared. It was Zhou Yuan.

The Heavenly Sun Flame sealed within the crimson orb floating before him was now exhausted. During nearly a month of intense secluded cultivation, the two hundred forty thousand Heavenly Sun Flames had clearly been completely consumed by Zhou Yuan. Zhou Yuan's eyes were tightly shut, and his breathing resonated like a dragon's roar, exhaling golden flames. The Heavenly Sun Flame inside the cauldron gradually diminished until the last wisp of flame was absorbed by Zhou Yuan. At that moment, the firelight within the cauldron swiftly faded. Zhou Yuan, however, remained quietly seated, unmoving like a bedrock.

This silence lasted for a full three hours.

At a certain moment, Zhou Yuan's body trembled violently. Inside him, a faint sound of something breaking seemed to reverberate. The sound was incredibly pleasant, and as it echoed within his body, even the circulation of his blood seemed to become smoother, like a heavenly melody. This was the sound of breaking through a barrier! The seventh Divine Dwelling was finally unblocked at this very moment!

Zhou Yuan's eyes, which had been closed for a long time, suddenly opened. Golden light surged within them, erupting as if materializing, immediately followed by a vast and powerful surge of Genesis Qi that exploded from his body like a volcano. Azure-golden Genesis Qi enveloped Zhou Yuan's figure, faintly appearing as if a massive azure flood dragon had coiled around him. The cauldron's lid was directly blown off, and Zhou Yuan's figure, like a flash of lightning, instantly broke through the cultivation chamber's roof, appearing above Wind Island. He let out a long cry against the raging gales of Wind Island, with the azure flood dragon's light-figure swirling around his body, fully resisting the sharp winds.

The cry lasted for a while before finally subsiding. On Zhou Yuan's face, however, there was an undisguised expression of exhilaration. This secluded cultivation had finally gone as he wished, ultimately unblocking the seventh Divine Dwelling. At this moment, he could truly be considered to have entered the late stage of the Divine Dwelling Realm.

Zhou Yuan calmed his emotions and subtly sensed the interior of his Divine Dwelling. A look of uncontainable joy then appeared at the corner of his mouth.

Six million!

This time, upon unblocking the seventh Divine Dwelling, the number of Genesis Qi stars within his Divine Dwelling had increased by a staggering six million! Such an increase was far greater than any previous advancement he had made! Previously, his own Genesis Qi foundation had reached fifteen million Genesis Qi stars. Now, with this six-million increase, he had directly broken through the twenty-million mark, reaching a terrifying twenty-one million! It was important to note that when he fought against Fang Ao before, even with the Wind Spirit Rune and Fire Spirit Rune activated, his total only reached twenty million! And now, even before using any other techniques, his Genesis Qi foundation already surpassed his full power from that time... This clearly showed how immense the benefits of this breakthrough were for Zhou Yuan!

"The Chaotic Divine Dwelling is truly extraordinary!" Even with Zhou Yuan's usual composure, he couldn't help but be exceptionally joyful at this moment. He knew that the substantial increase in his Genesis Qi foundation was largely due to his mutated Divine Dwelling. What was even more formidable was that he still had room for two more advancements. Once he unblocked all nine Divine Dwellings, what level would his Genesis Qi foundation reach then? At that point, Zhou Yuan dared to say that within the entire Hunyuan Heaven's Divine Dwelling Realm, excluding external techniques and considering only one's intrinsic Genesis Qi foundation, those who could compare to him would likely be fewer than a handful.

Furthermore, this secluded cultivation's breakthrough to the late Divine Dwelling Realm was not his only gain. Zhou Yuan slightly closed his eyes, and the strong, steady thumping of his heart echoed in his ears. Within his heart, golden light circulated, and upon sensing it, he realized it was drops of golden blood! This was the golden blood produced by the Profound Saint Body! Previously, Zhou Yuan's Profound Saint Body could only produce a few dozen drops of golden blood at most. However, this time, under nearly a month of burning and tempering by the Heavenly Sun Flame, Zhou Yuan's Genesis Qi not only became purer, but his physical body also gained tremendous benefits. That benefit was the more than two hundred drops of golden blood currently present! If these golden blood drops were unleashed, Zhou Yuan's physical strength would undoubtedly surge. This gain was truly an unexpected pleasant surprise. This pleasant surprise would also significantly boost Zhou Yuan's combat power.

Feeling the vast Genesis Qi flowing within his body and his increasingly powerful physique, Zhou Yuan's eyes filled with satisfaction. Moments later, he looked into the distance and saw several figures rapidly approaching. Leading them were Ye Bingling and Yi Qiushui, their faces showing pleasant surprise, clearly drawn by the commotion he had caused. Zhou Yuan looked at them, then turned his gaze towards the distant Fire Pavilion. In his eyes, a fiery battle intent surged forth. After this breakthrough, he would no longer have anything to fear. Even when facing Lu Xiao, he truly possessed the strength to contend. As for tomorrow's competition for the Chief Pavilion Master, he now felt a certain anticipation.