Dominator Emperor

After Elder Daoist Peng returned to his seat, Li Qiye said, "I came here with a few wishes to fulfill. Now, only one remains. I’d like to hear about the Void Gate."

The Elder Daoist’s expression turned serious at the mention of the Void Gate. He shook his head and said, "I’m not clear on that myself. A while ago, my junior brothers from the Celestial Dao Academy sent word that the Earth Veins have been fluctuating greatly recently. It’s very likely a portal will open again, but I dare not say in which year or month. Several of my junior brothers are currently calculating this matter."

"The Void Gate has always been a mystery." Li Qiye sighed softly. In this world, if anyone understood the Void Gate best, aside from the deceased Ten Thousand Forms True God, it was him. As for Xiao Niqiu, it was still just an ignorant creature back then.

"The Sub-Saint Ancestor Master once went in to investigate," Elder Daoist Peng added. "Unfortunately, he never found the true portal. Or perhaps, a true portal doesn’t exist."

Xiao Niqiu shook its head. "The Void Gate definitely exists. It’s hard to say whether it has escaped to somewhere else, but your Celestial Dao Academy did manage to keep a portal! That’s the best clue to finding the real thing. Still, based on my gut feeling, it’s hard to say if the true Void Gate will even appear in this generation."

"We’ll see when the time comes," Li Qiye said unhurriedly. "I won’t be leaving this place for the time being. I’ll be staying at the Ancestral God Temple. If your Celestial Dao Academy receives any specific news, you can let me know."

When Li Qiye departed, Elder Daoist Peng personally saw him off, only returning after Li Qiye was down the mountain.

After leaving the Longevity Academy, Chi Xiaodie couldn’t help but ask, "What is the Void Gate?"

Li Qiye glanced at her. "One of the Nine Great Heavenly Treasures: the Void Gate!"

"One of the Nine Great Heavenly Treasures!" These words truly stunned Chi Xiaodie. Enough bizarre things had happened today, but nothing was nearly as shocking as this revelation.

"The Nine Great Heavenly Treasures and the Nine Great Celestial Books... aren’t those just legends? The so-called Nine Great Heavenly Treasures and Nine Great Celestial Books don’t actually exist," Chi Xiaodie said in disbelief after a long daze.

Xiao Niqiu immediately piped up, "Hey, little miss, you’re running with my Young Master now, right? Heh, you didn’t know? The Nine Great Heavenly Treasures and the Nine Great Celestial Books are all real. The Void Gate is especially real! Heh, I’m from..."

When Li Qiye glared at it, Xiao Niqiu immediately snapped its mouth shut, not daring to run its mouth any further.

Chi Xiaodie was too shocked to even notice this detail. The Nine Great Celestial Books and the Nine Great Heavenly Treasures were just childhood bedtime stories. Everyone had always believed that such things couldn’t possibly exist. But now that the words had come from Li Qiye, it all became believable.

When she finally composed herself, Chi Xiaodie took a deep breath. Since Li Qiye didn’t bring up the Void Gate again, she didn’t dare to ask any more about it. Still, she had another question. "Is the Longevity Academy part of the Celestial Dao Academy?"

After all, the Celestial Dao Academy was famous throughout the East Hundred Cities, even across the entire Human Emperor Realm, but she had never heard of it having a Longevity Academy.

"It was built later," Li Qiye said. "It didn’t belong to the Celestial Dao Academy in the past, but Wang Yuan later incorporated it into the academy."

Hearing this name again, Chi Xiaodie was stunned. Wang Yuan, the Sub-Saint of the Celestial Dao Academy. He wasn’t an Immortal Emperor, yet his prestige was as great as one. ’How does Li Qiye always know these kinds of secrets?’

"The Ancestral God Temple." Upon returning to the temple, Xiao Niqiu let out a strange, heartfelt sigh.

Li Qiye gave an order. "Find a place to stay. Don’t cause any trouble, and don’t run your mouth." With that, he returned to his room alone.

After Li Qiye left, Xiao Niqiu stood in the temple’s main hall, looking at the statue of the Chi Family ancestor. It sighed with emotion. "The Hundred Battles Divine Emperor..."

Then, Xiao Niqiu walked over to the statue of the Ten Thousand Forms True God and bowed deeply. "Old Master, may you rest in peace. After I, Xiao Niqiu, hid and slept in my Zero Realm, heh, I finally escaped the nightmare of those old monks in this generation. Don’t you worry, Old Master, I will definitely succeed in cultivating a human form this time! Heh, what a pity you couldn’t escape the nightmare of that Ghost Land. Damn it all! One day, I’ll follow the Young Master back there and drag that blasted chamber pot out!"

Despite its flippant words, Xiao Niqiu bowed again with great solemnity.

Chi Xiaodie was stunned to see it acting this way. After Xiao Niqiu finished its bows, she couldn’t help but ask, "The Ten Thousand Forms True God was your master? Then... doesn’t that mean you’ve lived for a very, very long time?"

"He was my old master," Xiao Niqiu said, looking at the statue with a reminiscent gaze. "It’s not like I’ve been alive that entire time. I later hid inside my own Zero Realm and slept until this current era. I only woke up about one or two hundred years ago."

’Could he be a descendant of the Ten Thousand Forms True God?’ The "he" Chi Xiaodie referred to was Li Qiye. She felt it was the only explanation that made sense: Li Qiye was a descendant of the Ten Thousand Forms True God, and he had returned to worship his ancestor and claim his inheritance.

Xiao Niqiu shot her a look and chuckled but didn’t say a word.

Since Xiao Niqiu didn’t answer, Chi Xiaodie pressed on, "Where are you from? Are you from the legendary Divine Realm? Does the Divine Realm even exist?"

Xiao Niqiu glanced at Chi Xiaodie. "Little miss, stop trying to dig into my background. Be careful you don’t invite disaster upon yourself." It had always been a big-mouth, and this was especially true after waking up from countless years of slumber in its Zero Realm without anyone to talk to. But after Li Qiye’s warning, it knew what could be said and what couldn’t! Otherwise, its Young Master would truly put it in its place.

Without Li Qiye’s permission, it wouldn’t tell anyone it was from the Void Gate. Back then, it was just a clueless little earthworm, brought out by its old master, the Ten Thousand Forms True God. Even the idea that it came from the Void Gate was just a guess on its old master’s part.

Later, to investigate the Void Gate, the Ten Thousand Forms True God had ventured into the Buddha Burial Plateau to find a certain item. Unfortunately, they both became trapped in that Ghost Land and couldn’t get out. Li Qiye, in his form as the Yin Ya, later rescued them. Alas, the Ten Thousand Forms True God did not survive the ordeal. As for Xiao Niqiu, Li Qiye had sent it into its own Zero Realm, allowing it to escape the disaster and slumber until now.

"So, little miss," Xiao Niqiu asked, eyeing Chi Xiaodie, "what exactly is your job at Young Master’s side?"

Chi Xiaodie was taken aback, unsure how to respond. ’A servant? That doesn’t feel right. A handmaiden? Not quite that, either.’ In reality, Li Qiye had never offered to take her on as a handmaiden; at best, she was just a temporary subordinate he could order around.

"Little miss, you need to be loyal and sincere. Only a true and sincere heart will turn this into a fortuitous opportunity for you," Xiao Niqiu finally advised her. "Geniuses are nothing. Heavenly Pride Girls are nothing. To my Young Master, even a Fairy is nothing! I see you’re some kind of Saintess Princess, but truth be told, that status is worthless in my Young Master’s eyes. You should think about that."

Back in the day, Xiao Niqiu hadn’t been with Li Qiye for very long before being sent to slumber in its Zero Realm. But even in that short time, it had seen countless legendary figures surrounding him. Divine Maidens, Fairies... at the Young Master’s side, they were merely handmaidens!

Chi Xiaodie remained standing there in a daze as Xiao Niqiu slowly ambled into a room.

「The next day.」 Li Qiye gave Chi Xiaodie a simple instruction. "Focus on your Cultivation. I’m going out for a walk." And with that, he was gone.

"Young Master, wait for me!" As for Xiao Niqiu, it goes without saying that it immediately scampered after him like an eager shadow.

Chi Xiaodie didn’t ask where Li Qiye was going; she just quietly stayed behind. She was already used to his habit of appearing and disappearing like a ghost. ’I understand now,’ she thought. ’Someone like me could never influence him. To him, I’m probably just someone he gives casual pointers to now and then.’

At this thought, Chi Xiaodie sighed softly. She didn’t know when it had started, but her mood seemed to rise and fall with his.

After leaving the Ancestral God Temple, Li Qiye entered the Celestial Dao Academy’s Western Border Mountains and Rivers, with Xiao Niqiu trotting eagerly behind him.

The Celestial Dao Academy possessed a vast territory. For it to have stood strong since the Desolate Era, one could only imagine the depths of its heritage! Its desolate, uninhabited Western Border alone spanned millions of miles. The landscape was magnificent, filled with treacherous valleys and perilous peaks. It was precisely because the academy owned such spectacular wilderness that Longevity Celestial Beasts often appeared in these uninhabited lands.

"Keep a sharp lookout and survey the area. See if the Void Gate might show itself," Li Qiye instructed Xiao Niqiu as they stepped into the mountain range.

Li Qiye had made his calculations; he was certain the Void Gate would appear in this generation. However, it was hard to say exactly when.

"You got it!" Even without Li Qiye’s instructions, Xiao Niqiu knew what to do. Having most likely been born in the Void Gate, it possessed an innate talent for crossing the Void, traversing Dimensions, and entering the Zero Realm. Thus, it was more sensitive to the existence of the Void Gate than anyone else, which was precisely the reason Li Qiye had dug it up in the first place.

"Young Master, the Void Gate isn’t necessarily in the Celestial Dao Academy’s territory," Xiao Niqiu said, sensing the fluctuations of the heavens and earth. It followed Li Qiye deeper into the wilds, probing the land’s changes with every step.

Xiao Niqiu continued, "My old master explored the portal opened by the Celestial Dao Academy several times back then, but he never found the real Void Gate! Or perhaps, my old master was misled from the very start."

The Void Gate was one of the Nine Great Heavenly Treasures. The *Void Book*, one of the Nine Great Celestial Books, was born from it. The gate was shrouded in mystery; throughout the eons, no one had ever been said to have entered the true Void Gate.

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