Chapter 190: The Lord of the Mother River

This dwelling, a branch of the River of Life, was about to recruit new members and was currently overseen by a Chaos Lord. The Chaos Lord, settled there with a nine-sectioned tail slowly swaying, had a hint of unease in his emerald green eyes. "Did God King Luohe himself give the order?"

He didn't take Yuan seriously, as Yuan was merely a newly promoted Chaos Lord who had become an honored guest of the Blazewind Ancient Kingdom thanks to Luohe's connections. However, God King Luohe was a formidable overlord capable of fighting head-on with the Skyroc Lord. The Chaos Lord immediately sent a message upwards to report: "God King Beifeng, Honored Guest Yuan, by order of God King Luohe, has commanded us to withdraw from the twenty surrounding Chaos Prefectures."

"Luohe? Even the Shi and Yu Kingdoms wouldn't dare to oppose us, yet he has the nerve! I'll handle this."

"Yes, sir." The Chaos Lord breathed a sigh of relief. God King Luohe could obliterate him with a mere breath; indeed, he was under immense pressure. Such matters were best left to the higher-ups.

Yuan stood on the plaza. After he relayed Lord Luohe's command, the entire dwelling fell silent; no one responded further. A small branch like this likely had no authority to decide whether to withdraw and was probably reporting the matter upwards. Yuan waited patiently.

*Hum!* Suddenly, a terrifying energy descended from the void, forming a burly figure with green hair. As he stood there, the operational rules of the surrounding world changed, and endless winds blew in all directions.

The green-haired figure, with a luxuriant beard and a single eye, looked at Yuan. "Honored Guest Yuan? I've heard of you. Luohe values you highly and helped you secure your position as an honored guest of the Blazewind Ancient Kingdom."

"So it's God King Beifeng," Yuan recognized him at a glance, as the figure hadn't concealed his identity. He smiled faintly and said, "As a newly promoted Chaos Lord, I am indeed quite fortunate to become an honored guest of the Blazewind Ancient Kingdom."

"Let's get straight to the point," God King Beifeng said. "Luohe wants our River of Life to completely withdraw from these twenty Chaos Prefectures? That's impossible! Our River of Life is spread across numerous territories. We were already here before the Shi and Yu Kingdoms were established, even when there were other kingdoms. No matter who establishes a kingdom," God King Beifeng looked at Yuan, "none have the right to forbid us from recruiting members."

"We wouldn't mind if it were small-scale recruitment," Yuan replied. "But you're recruiting in every single one of those twenty locations, screening and taking all the elites. And you didn't even inform our Lord Luohe. Isn't that going too far?"

"We recruit only once every thousand epochs in each city. Is that a lot?" the green-haired figure said. "It's not much. As for informing you? Your Lord Luohe just needs to make a few inquiries to know who we are! He should know... he can't afford to provoke our River of Life! Alright, just get lost." The green-haired figure sneered, looking at Yuan. "Don't think that just because you can fight the Skyroc Lord to a draw, you can provoke my River of Life!"

Yuan sighed softly.

Suddenly, an invisible force descended upon the plaza within the dwelling. It was an incredibly potent world power that completely suppressed the aura fluctuations of the green-haired figure. God King Beifeng's expression changed slightly.

A silver-robed figure appeared beside Yuan. He wore silver robes, had a pointed horn on his forehead, and his eyes were cold. It was none other than God King Luohe, renowned throughout the Origin Continent.

"Luohe is really here?" God King Beifeng stared at Luo Feng.

The silver-robed Luo Feng's aura seemed ordinary, yet the boundless world around him was entirely composed of his world power. He looked at God King Beifeng, his voice calm. "God King Beifeng, you are this brazen on my territory?"

God King Beifeng reined in his aura, becoming much more serious. The world power spreading throughout the surroundings exerted too much pressure on him. "Greetings, Lord Luohe." God King Beifeng spoke politely.

"You should know my meaning," Luo Feng said. "Give me an answer, River of Life: withdraw, or not withdraw!"

God King Beifeng shook his head without hesitation. "Our River of Life has been rooted in this territory for a long time; withdrawal is impossible. Lord Luohe... though your talent is extraordinary, you should know which existences on the Origin Continent you cannot afford to provoke."

"Of course, I know the renown of the River Master," Luo Feng said with a faint smile.

"Knowing that, you still dare to expel our River of Life?" God King Beifeng said angrily.

"I'll ask one last time," Luo Feng calmly looked at him. "Will you withdraw, or not?"

God King Beifeng was enraged. "Luohe, don't bring disaster upon yourself!"

Luo Feng gently shook his head.

*Rumble—* Boundless world power converged, enveloping God King Beifeng's body. The world power of Luo Feng's true body was enough to encompass an area of eighteen Chaos Prefectures; when the vast majority of that power converged in one place, the resulting pressure was unimaginable!

God King Beifeng felt himself being suppressed and bound from all sides. "You dare!" God King Beifeng was shocked and furious, yet he found that even with his considerable strength as a First Realm God King, he couldn't struggle at all.

"I showed you respect by asking you to withdraw, but you wouldn't. So I'll just drive you away!" Luo Feng's eyes turned cold.

*Boom!* The world power's might rapidly surged, and God King Beifeng was terrified.

"You'll regret this," God King Beifeng stared at Luo Feng, and then his body was crushed and pulverized under the terrifying might.

"Just a small lesson for you," Luo Feng said calmly.

Indeed, merely destroying a true body was just a lesson. God King Beifeng had been prepared for negotiations to break down when he came, and he hadn't brought any treasures.

Yuan watched the entire process from the side. Only after God King Beifeng's true body was annihilated did Yuan speak. "Luohe, the River of Life isn't easy to deal with, is it?"

"Don't worry," Luo Feng said with a faint smile. He was very clear about the River of Life's true nature.

"What do we do now?" Yuan looked around; he could sense that there were still some internal members of the River of Life within the dwelling, but they were all just Eternal True Gods.

***

In a secretly established world within the Origin Continent, also known as the River World, numerous beings lived and multiplied. Eternal True Gods, Chaos Lords, and God Kings cultivated here; it was the true core of the River of Life's influence.

"This Luohe is too brazen! He utterly disregards our River of Life," God King Beifeng's divine power avatar roared in anger. "On the Origin Continent, what does a Luohe amount to?"

"I heard he can match Skyroc, and his vitality is extremely powerful," a voice chimed in. In the distance, several figures were sitting idly. One incredibly majestic figure suddenly stood up, revealing a smile. "I'll go test him. Let's see how many moves his body can withstand from me."

"Yugu, why would you need to intervene for such a small fry?"

"Yugu, leave this matter to me." The surrounding God Kings all tried to stop him.

God King Yugu was second only to the River Master in the entire River of Life organization; in terms of head-on combat strength, he was even comparable to the River Master. However, the River Master's methods were even more mysterious and unfathomable.

"I will handle this matter personally," a voice rang out. The numerous God Kings turned their heads and saw a black-robed figure who seemed to merge with the entire world. All the God Kings rose and bowed.

"River Master."

"Zongfu."

"Brother Zongfu."

The God Kings used different forms of address, but all were very respectful.

"Zongfu, you're going to meet him yourself?" the majestic God King Yugu asked.

"This Luohe's current strength is ordinary," the black-robed man said with a faint smile, "but in the future, he will have the ability to influence the order of the Origin Continent. It's time to meet him." God King Yugu nodded slightly. They were lifelong friends who had reached this point together, step by step. They were the very core of the entire River of Life organization!

***

On the plaza within the dwelling, the silver-robed Luo Feng stood waiting, with Yuan also by his side.

"He's here." Within the range enveloped by his world power, Luo Feng sensed a force that had instantaneously arrived on the plaza, following causality, as if teleporting from a distant place to stand before him. It was a black-robed man whose smile carried boundless charm, imbued with endless life energy and mystery.

"River Master, God King Zongfu," Luo Feng looked at him.

"It seems your master told you all about me?" the black-robed man said with a smile.

"The strongest minister of the Blazewind Ancient Kingdom in the past," Luo Feng said. "How could I not know?" In the early days of the Blazewind Ancient Kingdom, Emperor Yan was its first emperor. At that time, there were only three Second Realm God Kings in the imperial family, and five Second Realm God King honored guests. Among them, the strongest was God King Zongfu, who was the Blazewind Ancient Kingdom's mightiest minister, conquering all directions. In that era, God King Zongfu's strength was almost invincible.

"Indeed," the black-robed man sighed. "At that time, Emperor Yan relied heavily on me. As an honored guest God King, I chose to fully join the Blazewind Ancient Kingdom and wholeheartedly serve it. But you've seen the final outcome. Because my weapon was too powerful, Emperor Yan mobilized the entire Blazewind Ancient Kingdom's forces to encircle and kill me." The black-robed man scoffed. "He truly couldn't tolerate a minister stronger than himself! I didn't have many resources, nor was I an ultimate life form... I simply relied on my high cultivation realm and merely acquiring a powerful weapon to match him. He could no longer tolerate me." The black-robed man looked at Luo Feng. "Luohe, your potential is probably greater than mine. Do you think they will tolerate you in the future?"

"At least for now, my master and the others have been kind to me," Luo Feng replied. Luo Feng was very aware of the power of the person before him. Across the entire Origin Continent, according to his master's intelligence, there were five individuals in the Second Realm of God Kings who could fight beyond their realm against Emperors and Lords. They were Empress Fengdu, God King Dadi, the mysterious powerhouse from the Shadow Heavens, Fire Ancestor, and this River Master before him. Empress Fengdu and Fire Ancestor were relatively detached. God King Dadi, who had a deep enmity with the Thunder Ancient Kingdom, generally acted alone but joined the Samsara Pavilion simply because of his extremely good relationship with Empress Fengdu. The one from the Shadow Heavens was very mysterious; even the two great ancient kingdoms didn't know his true identity. The River Master, whose true identity was God King Zongfu, had fought the Blazewind Ancient Kingdom too many times over long years. Many God Kings who held enmity with the Blazewind Ancient Kingdom joined the River of Life, making it grow even stronger. The two great ancient kingdoms, three first-rate forces, and five super powerhouses—these were the forces that determined the order of the Origin Continent.

As for the three major forces—the Two Worlds Palace, the Myriad Laws Tower, and the Solitary Time-Space Ark—they were very formidable because they were guided by alien powerhouses comparable to the two great ancestors. They didn't seek to change the order of the Origin Continent, but only to acquire some resources left behind by the Primordial Being.

None of the five super powerhouses had joined the three major forces established by the alien races.

"You're right, they are kind to you now," the black-robed man said, smiling at Luo Feng. "Well, today we can consider ourselves acquainted. You want my River of Life to leave your twenty Chaos Prefectures. I agree; I will have them leave immediately. I believe in the future... there will be a day when we join forces." The black-robed man smiled faintly. After speaking, he vanished into thin air.

Luo Feng stood on the plaza, slightly frowning. *In the future, will we join forces?*