Asura Emperor Venerable
Chapter 547: News of One’s Origins

Chapter 547: Chapter 547: News of One’s Origins

After consuming the Nurturing Spirit Netherworld Fruit, Shi Hao’s Soul Force rose sharply, alleviating his immediate crisis, but unless he addressed the issue of the slow enhancement of Soul Force, it would become a bottleneck continuously choking the improvement of his cultivation.

From the academy’s side, he could also exchange Contribution Value for corresponding treasures, but their value was shockingly high. Unless Shi Hao could wipe out an extraordinarily large gathering of Elemental Creatures, it would be utterly extravagant for him to do so.

Actually, most people wouldn’t feel the urgency as he did, even if their cultivation improved faster due to slaying in the Elemental Cave, it wouldn’t be to an unbelievable extent.

But Shi Hao was different, his Black Hole Physiognomy could directly devour energy to nourish him, letting his cultivation soar as if he had grown wings.

Therefore, he couldn’t frequent the earthly grotto too often; he also needed to visit other places to acquire some treasures that could enhance his Soul Force.

He asked Weng Nanqing for help, in case any ancient relics were discovered, to inform him.

As a local powerhouse of the South Wood Continent, Weng Nanqing was certainly well-informed.

However, before Weng Nanqing could bring him any news, Shi Hao received another message first.

This too came from the Weng Family, but not from Weng Nanqing.

— Previously, didn’t Weng Anhe and Weng Lekan promise to help Shi Hao investigate his origins to see if there was any connection to the Royal Family of Stone Country?

Now, Stone Country had sent back information, inviting Shi Hao to make a trip there. Whether he was a descendant of that Shi Family could be discovered immediately.

Shi Hao hesitated briefly, then decided to make the journey.

Coming to the South Wood Continent, one of his critical purposes was to investigate his lineage.

According to the four big shots from the Weng and Du Families, he bore a striking resemblance to the once-prodigy Shi Feng of the Shi Family. So, the surname may be a coincidence, but there might be a bloodline connection.

It was worth making the trip.

With the Weng and Du Families orchestrating from behind, even if it turned out he had no relation to that Shi Family, he believed there wouldn’t be any danger to himself.

What worried Shi Hao was the possibility of an actual relation!

To know that he was almost certainly sent adrift in the river while being pursued, then who were the pursuers?

The Shi Family of Stone Country was indeed a tremendous force and part of the royal governance structure, where infighting for the throne wasn’t uncommon.

If that was the case, this trip could be equivalent to walking into a trap.

Yet, unraveling the truth of his lineage was essential. If someone had indeed killed his parents, as a son, was it not his duty to seek vengeance?

Go!

He set out immediately, heading towards Stone Country.

Perhaps he departed so abruptly that the West Rock Alliance did not target him on the way, and he arrived in Stone Country quite smoothly.

In other places, even within regions led by Great Sects, the living environment for commoners was incredibly harsh.

For the Great Sects, precious resources included only Spiritual Medicines and Spirit Stones, thus they cared about medicinal fields and mineral veins, but not so much about the life and death of ordinary people.

They needed a population not as slaves but to select outstanding talents from, ensuring the sect’s enduring legacy.

Under this overarching principle, they were indifferent to bandits roaming freely or bullies extorting markets.

However, within Stone Country, there existed a set of extremely strict laws, and if anyone failed to comply, even a Great Sacrificial Heaven expert would be subject to punishment; there were no exceptions.

It was precisely because of this that the ordinary citizens of Stone Country could be said to be the most contented, living and working in peace and prosperity, without having to worry about problems like bandits. As soon as such a threat emerged, the authorities would immediately dispatch troops to exterminate them.

After all, who would dare to cause trouble in this superpower that built the Heaven Building Ladder?

As Shi Hao walked along the way, all he saw was peace and entertainment.

Stone Country was vast.

Of course, it was a Heaven Building Ladder power. How many such families could there be on Yunding Star?

After traveling for four days, Shi Hao finally arrived at the Imperial Capital, Haifeng City.

This was truly a place steeped in the dazzling allure of wealth and pleasure, from the moment of entering the city, Shi Hao saw entertainment venues filling the streets—brothels, gambling houses, restaurants, each one extravagantly decorated, the epitome of luxury and decadence.

There were many Martial Artists here, but even more common people, and commoners did not show any inferiority when facing Martial Artists, rather, there was a sense of equality.

It wasn’t because ordinary people were mentally strong, but because Stone Country had laws that protected them—if Martial Artists attacked ordinary people without cause, they would be subjected to severe punishment.

Shi Hao headed straight towards the Imperial Palace, and before long, he arrived in front of a huge palace.

It was resplendent and spanned a vast area, like a city within a city.

In front of the palace lay a huge square, and on the square stood a tall stone statue, nearly a thousand feet high, akin to a mountain, dominating over the entire Imperial City.

This statue represented the founding Emperor of Stone Country, named Shi Fengxiao, who had also reached the heights of the Heaven Building Ladder, thus propelling Stone Country to become one of the strongest forces on the continent.

After Shi Fengxiao, thousands of years passed without another Heaven Building Ladder expert emerging, but before Shi Fengxiao ascended, another prodigy named Shi Geng arose from the Shi Family, reaching the heights of the Ascend to Heaven Ladder and continuing the Shi Family’s enduring prosperity.

Now, Shi Geng was also nearing the time of his ascension, and the recent generations of the Shi Family had been brimming with talent.

There was Shi Feng, who had been a prodigy unrivaled under the Great Sacrificial Heaven, and then came Shi Zhong, who was said to surpass even what Shi Feng had been, albeit being extremely low-key, never appearing on any famous list.

And between Shi Feng and Shi Zhong, there was only a generation’s difference, at most thirty to forty years, which showed how much favor the heavens had bestowed upon the Shi Family.

If Shi Hao had been a member of the Shi Family, it would have made other families green with envy. Were they to give others a chance to thrive?

He glanced at the statue and then strode forward, reaching the main gate.

The Imperial Palace was magnificent, and naturally, the main gate did not disappoint, reaching a height of ten zhang. Standing in front of this gate made anyone feel their own insignificance.

At the gate stood eight soldiers dressed in the Qing Yi, along with one leader in yellow clothing. As Shi Hao approached directly, the leader in yellow stretched out his hand and said, "Halt! Do you have a token?"

Shi Hao smiled, "My name is Shi Hao, I’ve come to see the Commander, Shi Dang."

The leader in yellow immediately showed a solemn expression and saluted, "So you are Shi Hao. Please follow me."

Shi Hao followed him into the Imperial Palace. As the palace was astonishingly large, and they were on foot, their pace was naturally slow. So it took quite some time before they entered a side hall.

There was strict security here, and even the leader in yellow had to go through numerous reports before they were granted entry.

"Please." He led Shi Hao to the entrance of a study and then gestured for Shi Hao to enter.

As Shi Hao pushed the door open, he saw a person in the study, sitting upright with a sturdy build. However, his eyes were closed, as if he were dozing off.