Zhongzhou.
Among the thirty thousand great states governed by the Central Heavenly Realm, it was the largest in territory, deepest in heritage, and strongest in power.
Above the vast Zhongzhou.
So-called King Sects like the Qingxuan Sect and the Tianyi Sect were everywhere. Their status was incredibly low, and they posed no threat to the Heavenly Court's rule.
Only truly great sects and religions, presided over by Quasi-Heavenly Venerates or Heavenly Venerates, possessed some degree of influence.
But even that was only a little influence.
Before the colossal entity that was the Heavenly Court, even Heavenly Venerates could not act recklessly.
After all, besides those four Heavenly Venerate overlords,
There was also the Dao Yi Heavenly Venerate, arguably the foremost figure in all the heavens today.
He was the true pillar of the Heavenly Court.
Ling Fan, after passing through massive teleportation arrays capable of transporting tens or even hundreds of great states, barely reached Zhongzhou before the Heavenly Court Genius Competition began.
However, in reality, the Central Heavenly Court was not located in any corner of Zhongzhou.
Instead, it resided in the boundless Outer Heavens above Zhongzhou.
Without the escort of powerful Heavenly Court experts, cultivators below the Emperor Realm could not safely traverse the terrifying spatial turbulence of the Outer Heavens to reach the Heavenly Court's location.
"Central Heavenly Court..."
Ling Fan stood with his hands behind his back in the void.
His eyes reflected a magnificent structure that was a miracle across billions of spaces. Countless palaces floated on various continents, like celestial palaces from the nine heavens, appearing dreamlike and illusory.
"I once joked with Dao Yi, saying I would establish an unprecedented Supreme Heavenly Court to unify the Central Heavenly Realm, and even all the myriad realms. But I only ever thought about it, as I was never keen on power or influence. I only sought ultimate strength and the Great Dao. I never expected Dao Yi to harbor such ambition and actually bring the concept of the Heavenly Court to fruition."
Ling Fan gazed calmly at the immeasurably vast, colossal entity that symbolized the supreme seat of the Central Heavenly Realm.
Suddenly.
He seemed to hear a sound, which caused his body to tremble violently, and his gaze rapidly turned cold.
"Good, good! Dao Yi! You've truly gone too far. You actually used the fragments of my shattered Azure Cloud Heavenly Sword as the foundation for building your Central Heavenly Court! Are you proclaiming to the world that you are the ultimate victor?"
The closer Ling Fan got to the palace that resembled an immortal palace.
The clearer the calls and laments became.
It could be seen.
The resentment and laments of the Azure Cloud Heavenly Sword had formed countless terrifying storms around the immortal palace, roaring and howling incessantly, venting its unwillingness and fury.
Although its spirit had long since perished.
But the Azure Cloud Heavenly Sword was the foremost sword in the Central Heavenly Realm, directly rivaling forbidden supreme weapons of the Dragon clan like the Supreme Ancestral Dragon Seal. Even without its spirit, it retained a trace of its final sentience.
As if sensing Ling Fan's arrival.
The calls and resentment intensified.
This immediately caused the entire Heavenly Court palace to shake.
Deep within the Heavenly Court.
A terrifyingly boundless figure, seated within a colossal immortal palace, surrounded by endless time and space, as if heaven and earth were beneath his feet, opened his eyes.
"Behave yourself!"
His cold snort was instantly followed by action. An invisible force swept across the countless fragmented continents of the Heavenly Court.
The commotion of the Azure Cloud Heavenly Sword fragments was quickly suppressed and calmed.
"The fragments of the Azure Cloud Heavenly Sword haven't shown such unusual activity for many years. Could it be... that person has truly returned?"
"It seems nothing has escaped His Majesty's notice."
"It's a pity His Majesty has more important matters. He is no longer in the heavens, so we, as his subjects, must share his burdens."
...
As this terrifyingly boundless figure closed his eyes again, everything within the colossal immortal palace returned to peace.
And below.
Ling Fan saw the resentment of the Azure Cloud Heavenly Sword fragments being suppressed.
His eyes immediately overflowed with intense killing intent.
This was his life-bound weapon, which had once accompanied him in battles across the myriad realms, enduring countless life-and-death struggles. It was like his left and right arm.
"Dao Yi, you should not have insulted it like this, nor should you have insulted me!"
Ling Fan took a deep breath, and when he opened his eyes again, they were filled with ice.
Soon.
Without the escort of Heavenly Court experts, Ling Fan directly forced his way through the terrifying spatial turbulence storm of the Outer Heavens and descended outside the Southern Heavenly Gate of the Heavenly Court.
"Who are you! Why do you trespass into the Heavenly Court?"
The heavenly soldiers and generals guarding the Southern Heavenly Gate quickly surrounded him.
Ling Fan looked at these heavenly soldiers and generals. The lowest-ranking heavenly soldiers possessed cultivation at or above the seventh-tier Heavenly Emperor. The number of powerful experts in the Heavenly Court was likely far beyond imagination.
This was enough to show how immense the Heavenly Court's authority was.
Ling Fan exuded a faint aura of a Half-step Emperor Realm.
He said, "I am Fan Lin, the Vice Sect Master of the Qingxuan Sect in Jinzhou. I am here to participate in the current Heavenly Court Genius Competition as ordered by the Heavenly Court."
Saying this, Ling Fan produced his identity token.
"So it's Vice Sect Master Fan. If that's the case, please enter!"
Only then did the heavenly soldiers and generals' attitudes improve slightly.
After all, even within the Heavenly Court, Half-step Emperor Realm cultivators were the backbone and intermediate forces, not comparable to mere soldiers like them.
Ling Fan nodded slightly and walked towards the majestic Southern Heavenly Gate.
"Wait a moment, we still need to verify your identity to prevent any spies from other realms or wanted criminals of the Heavenly Court from infiltrating."
As the leading heavenly general formed a hand seal,
A Bagua bronze mirror suspended above the Southern Heavenly Gate slowly rotated towards Ling Fan, and a beam of light was emitted.
"Heavenly Venerate Dao Artifact!"
Ling Fan was startled.
This bronze mirror was actually a Heavenly Venerate Dao Artifact.
And he recognized this bronze mirror!
"This is Tai Xu's Eye-Piercing Immortal Mirror! Even a Heavenly Venerate in disguise would be unable to hide from it."
Tai Xu was the current Tai Xu Heavenly Venerate.
One of the four overlords of the Heavenly Court.
In the past,
This person was a capable subordinate under Ling Fan.
However, when Dao Yi betrayed him, Tai Xu was one of the Heavenly Venerates who contributed the most.
The heavenly general cupped his hands and said, "Vice Sect Master Fan, please forgive us. This is also our duty. Previously, a major criminal from the lower realms ascended to the Heavenly Realm, causing quite a stir. They have yet to be apprehended, so the superiors have given strict orders, and we dare not be careless."
After the heavenly general finished speaking.
The beam of light emitted from the Eye-Piercing Immortal Mirror finally shone upon Ling Fan.
Ling Fan's heart tightened slightly.
Although his current strength was not weak, arguably making him invincible below the Heavenly Venerate realm, he was still far from being able to deceive the Eye-Piercing Immortal Mirror.
At this moment.
An object on Ling Fan's person suddenly vibrated.
Ling Fan's mind moved.
It was the Flowing Light Mirror he had obtained from the Divine Artifact Pavilion Master.
This item was extremely peculiar, and its origin was incredibly mysterious.
Ling Fan had spent a considerable amount of time studying it, but even he could not discern its origin.
The heavenly general glanced at the Eye-Piercing Immortal Mirror, which showed no abnormal reaction. The mirror reflected Ling Fan's current transformed appearance as Fan Lin.