"Please give your orders, Master," the Golden-Winged Great Peng said. It had shrunk itself to roughly human size, and it spoke in the human tongue. Apart from its appearance, it was virtually indistinguishable from an actual person.

The Golden-Winged Great Peng knew that there had to be a good reason as to why Lu Yuan had decided to seek it out. In truth, Lu Yuan's sudden appearance today was not only about observing the trials.

He had another goal, and it was an important one.

"The changes to the world have become more extreme, with strange phenomena appearing everywhere along with numerous blessed lands. You and the Peacock King must know this, as both of you have been to many such places before."

Lu Yuan pondered over his words before saying, "So I want you to visit those places again. I'd like you to go there and look for the remaining Nine Cauldrons."

The Nine Cauldrons or the Nine Tripod Cauldrons.

Aside from the Yongzhou Cauldron, several other cauldrons existed somewhere on Earth. Those artifacts were critical for the Investiture Edict, as they would allow him to make use of the Investiture Edict's ability to bestow Providence.

In addition, the more Providence he possessed, the more he could accomplish. The problem was that no one knew where the remaining cauldrons were hidden.

Lu Yuan also had to remain stationed at Mount Tai for the time being, which meant he couldn't make the trip himself as much as he wanted to do so.

However, the Golden-Winged Great Peng was different. It was more than strong, and it could move at great speeds. Naturally, it could certainly find those artifacts the fastest.

"Master, I will obey your command without question, but the Nine Cauldrons are divine artifacts of this nation. I-I wouldn't even know where to begin looking for them," the Golden-Winged Great Peng replied. It had no issue with the task itself, but the world was vast, and those blessed lands were simply beyond counting at this point in time.

It had no idea where to go or how to find those cauldrons.

Given enough time, it could scour every corner of the world, but the amount of time required was staggering. Whether the Golden-Winged Great Peng could even live that long was a question in itself.

Lu Yuan knew that and replied, "I'll give you the means to find them. No need to worry."

He would never send it off to blindly comb through every last inch of the planet, as that was a completely unrealistic endeavor. The Earth of today was not what it once was. It had expanded many times over, and even Lu Yuan himself could not circumnavigate it in a short span of time.

Without further explanation, Lu Yuan raised his hand and closed his eyes. Within his mind, the Celestial Emperor's Ancient Token and the Investiture Edict pulsed with faint wisps of light—the power of Providence.

With a mere will on his end, it gathered at his fingertips and flowed into the Golden-Winged Great Peng. "I just gave you some Providence from the Yongzhou Cauldron. It will allow you to sense the location and aura of the other cauldrons once you are within a certain distance.

"Remember, don't try to find many of them at once. The moment you locate a single cauldron, come back and report to me."

In Lu Yuan's memory, several of the Nine Cauldrons were on Earth, but not all of them were here.

However, many beings from the Outer Cosmos knew their exact locations, so he had to collect the ones on Earth before those beings could make a full-on descent on Earth.

More cauldrons meant more Providence to invest more people. He needed those cauldrons to make the Celestial Court even stronger.

"Yes, Master." The Golden-Winged Great Peng nodded at once. It could feel the thread of Providence settling down inside it. Just as it was about to move, the Peacock King and several other beast kings stepped forward.

"King Lu, we can help with this as well. More hands mean faster results."

They already considered themselves Lu Yuan's subordinates. It was only right that they contribute to his goals. Otherwise, the Providence burning inside them would have been bestowed upon them in vain.

Lu Yuan paused. He had not intended to trouble the other beast kings, but the Peacock King had a point. With their help, the search would be far quicker. He thought it over briefly. What he lacked the most right now was time. He needed to move quickly—no, he had to be faster.

"All right." Lu Yuan quickly made up his mind and several more threads of Providence before channeling them into the beast kings.

Led by the Golden-Winged Great Peng and the Peacock King, they all left, except for the Spirit Monkey. It watched the departing beast kings and let out a sigh before saying, "Before, the gap between us wasn't so large. We stood as equals, but now... you're starting to look like the actual Lord of the Celestial Court."

Lu Yuan smiled at that. "I know you've been making progress in your evolution. Keep at it. You might become the first mutated beast to enter the Sage Realm."

The Spirit Monkey's talent and bloodline were both top-tier. It was based at Mount Tai, and it had the blessing of Providence from the Investiture Edict. All those favorable conditions combined meant it was stronger than the Peacock King and the others. Of course, entering the Sage Realm was not so easy. Even Lu Yuan had needed a considerable amount of time to do so.

"I hope so." The Spirit Monkey nodded. "I hope that when they come, I'll be strong enough to serve as one of the Celestial Court's experts."

With that, it bowed at Lu Yuan and went into seclusion. Mount Tai was safe, so it could easily enter seclusion without preparing anything.

Having completed his goal, Lu Yuan quietly left. Below, the trials were still underway, but he did not go to watch. He returned to his room and resumed his training.

Meanwhile, Jiang Ningxian was still in seclusion.

Now it's a matter of when the next cauldron is found.

Lu Yuan's gaze seemed to pierce the walls in front of him, and it seemed like his gaze could cover any distance. Since the Global Awakening, he had been scheming to maintain the initiative and brace for what was to come.

The third Global Awakening was nigh, along with the full-scale descent of those beings from the Outer Cosmos. He was running out of time. This could be his last chance to lay down the foundations of the future, and he hoped this foundation would allow him to achieve his goals.

The key to everything was whether the Celestial Court could accumulate enough strength. It didn't need to be overwhelmingly powerful. It just needed to be enough to withstand what was to come.

Lu Yuan set those thoughts aside and emptied his mind. His own strength remained the most important variable.

Just like that, he devoted himself almost entirely to his evolution. Of course, he also spent some time refining the Celestial Court's organizational structure.

The thirty-six selected individuals had their names inscribed on the Investiture Edict. Since they were not particularly strong, the effects of the added Prominence became immediately apparent to them. In fact, some of them reached the next stage of evolution on the spot, creating an awe-inspiring sight.

Publicly, Lu Yuan called them the "Thirty-Six Celestial Generals." The Celestial Court's resources, along with its breathing techniques and visualization methods, would be bestowed upon them. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

The goal was to produce as many elites as possible in the shortest time.

As for the Golden-Winged Great Peng's search for the Nine Cauldrons, it had been over half a month, but it still hadn't sent any word. This was expected. The world had just become too large, and those blessed lands were far too numerous.

Naturally, Lu Yuan was in no rush.

Fortunately, he made improvements to his evolution as well and was steadily advancing toward the Lesser Sage Stage.

Time flew by, and everything proceeded in an orderly fashion until a piece of news was released, shaking the world. The government of Huaxia had just announced its withdrawal from the global stage by transferring all of its authority away.