Chapter 39: Dragon-Patterned Black Gold Tripod

The Yaoguang Holy Land was actually immense. Beyond the endless, cloud-piercing divine peaks and the ancient temples originating from primordial times on the ground, there were also giant floating islands suspended in the sky.

The sights in the deepest reaches of the Holy Land were even more staggering: the remains of gods and demons, and the celestial cities that never fell...

The scenery Qin Sheng had seen previously was merely a glimpse, as his range of movement had been limited.

Three days after the Wu Shang Secret Runes were inscribed, Qin Sheng arrived in the depths of the Holy Land, led by the Master of Dragon Pattern Peak.

The Master of Dragon Pattern Peak wore a solemn expression, carrying the air of a believer about to worship a deity. He spoke gravely

"Qin Sheng, this is a rare opportunity. You must seize it to achieve the greatest harvest."

"But remember, you must never be disrespectful!"

Qin Sheng nodded solemnly. "I understand."

Ahead of them, a massive black cauldron suspended at the highest point of the sky.

This cauldron was supreme; heaven, earth, the Great Dao, and all things were pressed down beneath it. Nothing could stand above it.

Its entire body shimmered with the luster of black gold, and its surface was engraved with flowers, birds, fish, insects, flying creatures, beasts, the sun, the moon, and the stars.

The deafening roars of dragons rang out incessantly. Thousands upon thousands of great black dragons emerged from within the cauldron, their heads facing the heavens, their scales appearing as if cast from black gold—terrifying and unpredictable.

At first glance, it felt as if one had entered a dragon's nest.

"This is the supreme Emperor Weapon of my Yaoguang Holy Land, the Dragon Pattern Black Gold Cauldron!"

The Master of Dragon Pattern Peak's tone was somewhat fanatical. "It is the ultimate guarantee of the Holy Land's invincibility in the Eastern Barrens and its eternal existence."

"In the era of the Desolate Antiquity, our Holy Land used immortal metal—Dragon Pattern Black Gold—to cast this cauldron. Since then, the Holy Land has produced twenty-eight generations of Sages, reaching the pinnacle of glory."

"Under the leadership of the Sages, countless Holy Lords and Supreme Elders of Yaoguang poured their hearts and blood into the Dragon Pattern Black Gold Cauldron. All disciples devoted their life's work with unwavering sincerity and piety, as if serving a deity, for a full fifty thousand years."

"Fifty thousand years of kowtowing, fifty thousand years of prayer, fifty thousand years of worship. Finally, the ancestors of the Holy Land moved the heavens, and on a stormy night, the Dragon Pattern Black Gold Cauldron transformed into an Emperor Weapon."

"It is a miracle, a miracle belonging solely to my Yaoguang Holy Land!"

At this moment, the Master of Dragon Pattern Peak was extremely devout, like a religious fanatic.

To refine an Emperor Weapon without ever having produced a Great Emperor—not only in Beidou, but looking across the entire universe, there was only this one instance!

This was the glory and pride of every disciple of Yaoguang.

But in reality...

*There is no such thing as a miracle born of collective will; it was merely the result of a Heavenly Emperor's secret assistance...* Qin Sheng thought to himself.

The truth behind this Emperor Weapon was that on that stormy night, the Ruthless One had descended upon the Yaoguang Holy Land unnoticed and personally refined the Dragon Pattern Black Gold Cauldron into an Emperor Weapon.

Without her intervention, no matter how many tens of thousands of years the ancestors of Yaoguang worshipped the cauldron, it would never have undergone such a transformation.

However, judging by the result, Yaoguang had indeed succeeded, securing its place as a hegemon of the Eastern Barrens from that day forward.

"What a magnificent treasure."

Looking at the terrifying and boundless Dragon Pattern Black Gold Cauldron, Qin Sheng felt a sense of longing.

*I wonder if I can use this Emperor Weapon...*

*The Ruthless One's Heaven-Swallowing Demon Cover chose me, I have cultivated the Heaven-Swallowing Demon Art to an unprecedented realm, and the Ruthless One's "brother" is my good brother.*

Qin Sheng mused that he should have the highest right of inheritance to the Dragon Pattern Black Gold Cauldron.

Even the Ruthless One wouldn't speak up in opposition!

"Go on, contemplate it well," the Master of Dragon Pattern Peak said, departing on his own.

Qin Sheng walked to the area beneath the Dragon Pattern Black Gold Cauldron and sat down, looking up at the Emperor Weapon.

This was one of the benefits he could enjoy as a candidate Holy Son.

When a cultivator refines their own weapon, they need to inscribe Dao patterns upon it to enhance its potential and power. The most powerful weapon patterns in the world were none other than the Emperor Patterns carried by an Emperor Weapon.

A power like Yaoguang had the ability to arrange such a fortuitous opportunity for its disciples to contemplate an Emperor Weapon.

Of course, there was absolutely no possibility of fully comprehending the Emperor Patterns; even the high-level members of the Holy Land wouldn't dare dream such a dream.

As long as a disciple could gain even a sliver of insight after their contemplation and use it as a template to inscribe something onto their own weapon, that would be enough.

Even if they only imitated a tiny bit of the essence, it would still be a massive improvement—a chance that cultivators in the outside world could never hope to obtain.

"The Demon Cover hides its light and mostly looks like an ordinary object, but the Dragon Pattern Black Gold Cauldron is as domineering and dazzling as a true dragon, instinctively displaying its extraordinary nature..."

Looking at the flowers, birds, insects, fish, sun, moon, and stars on the cauldron, Qin Sheng felt a mysterious aura. He merged with the Dao and gradually became entranced.

At the same time, the Heaven-Swallowing Demon Cover, which had been lying quietly in his Sea of Wheel, trembled slightly, with the deepest black light flowing through it.

The Dragon Pattern Black Gold Cauldron suspended in the high sky paused. The eyes of those black dragons shifted, looking downward, gaining a trace of elusive spirit and intelligence.

*Rumble!*

Thunder roared, and torrential rain poured down.

Everything before Qin Sheng's eyes changed. It was as if he had arrived in that stormy night; everything in heaven and earth became blurred, leaving only the cauldron as a singular, undeniable reality.

Rainwater washed over the body of the cauldron, flowing through the patterns that resembled dragon scales. The pitter-patter of the rain changed color, appearing like dragon blood.

The Great Universe seemed to erupt in fury at this moment, as if descending divine punishment to destroy the cauldron, with all the myriad Daos of the heavens turning into calamities.

Yet, under such massive destruction, the Dragon Pattern Black Gold Cauldron suffered no damage. Instead, it was undergoing a metamorphosis, with Dao patterns being branded onto it bit by bit.

Qin Sheng watched the birth, perfection, and eventual peak of these Dao patterns. They exuded an essence of eternal immortality and indestructibility through countless tribulations.

The heavenly thunder and torrential rain grew increasingly violent, but it was merely futile rage, unable to change anything.

Simultaneously, the Emperor Weapon, the Dragon Pattern Black Gold Cauldron, displayed even more divine phenomena. The hundreds and thousands of black dragons roared, their bodies soaring for several feet like mountains, shaking the eight directions of the Holy Land.

"An Emperor Weapon?!"

"Qin Sheng of Dragon Pattern Peak is contemplating the Dragon Pattern Black Gold Cauldron, and he actually triggered it!"

"Incredible! Has he gained the favor of the Emperor Weapon?!"

"This kid is quite the troublemaker."

"..."

The commotion caused by the Dragon Pattern Black Gold Cauldron was a massive upheaval, far greater than the impact brought by Qin Sheng's crossing of the Four Poles Heavenly Tribulation.

One powerful expert after another turned their gaze toward this place, their expressions unreadable.

The Holy Lord of Yaoguang's face was as dark as water. Where did this lineage of the Ruthless One find such a monster?

As time passed, at a certain moment, Qin Sheng's vision suddenly blurred. The stormy night vanished, and he once again saw the layered scenery of the Yaoguang Holy Land.

"Was I just... witnessing the incomplete process of the Dragon Pattern Black Gold Cauldron's transformation into an Emperor Weapon?"

Qin Sheng was greatly shocked; he had not expected such an opportunity.

This was a massive fortune. To witness the birth of an Emperor Weapon meant that what he had seen and gained would be enough for him to inscribe immortal Dao patterns onto his own weapon.

"It seems my talent is indeed heaven-shaking; even an Emperor Weapon spontaneously shows its favor!"

Qin Sheng felt that this was the highest recognition of his orthodox status within Yaoguang.

He wanted to continue contemplating the Dragon Pattern Black Gold Cauldron, but as soon as his gaze fell upon those Dao patterns, he saw stars and felt dizzy.

"The experience just now has exhausted my divine sense; I can no longer continue."

Qin Sheng could only stand up in regret, only to see that the Master of Dragon Pattern Peak, who was supposed to have left, had reappeared at some unknown time.

He looked at Qin Sheng with an intense, eager gaze.

"Did you perhaps sense the divinity of the Emperor Weapon?"

Qin Sheng shook his head and spoke the truth. "No, I merely deeply contemplated the Emperor Patterns, as if I saw their birth and perfection."

"Very good, that is also very good!" The Master of Dragon Pattern Peak was extremely excited.

"You possess the potential of a Great Emperor!"

Qin Sheng: "..."

*That feels like a bad omen.*