The Starry Sky Waterfall Domain had fully materialized in the blink of an eye.

Is that... an actual sky full of stars? And that waterfall... They're both real?

As if to answer his question, a stream of water from the waterfall flowed into his palm.

It's cold!

A chill seeped into his bones. He truly felt like he stood beneath a starry sky, where the air itself was frigid. He brought his hand to his mouth and took a sip of the water.

It's fresh... just like spring water from the mountains. This is real water!

Lu Changsheng was utterly stunned as he realized that his Domain had actually materialized. Of course, the starry sky and the waterfall were only real within the range of the Domain. Regardless, now that it was part of reality, the power of the Domain had to be incredible.

He recalled Xiao Jian, a true inheritor disciple of the Northern Domain Heavenly Sect, a Divine Treasury Martial Artist. When they last clashed, Xiao Jian materialized his Sword Domain, nurtured in his Mind Space. A hail of sword, real sword, fell down on Lu Changsheng and everyone else in the arena, cutting everyone mercilessly. That defeat was still vivid in Lu Changsheng's memory.

I wonder just how powerful this Starry Sky Waterfall Domain really is.

A spark of realization flashed through him. With the Domain now materialized, he instinctively grasped its terrifying potential.

Rumble Rumble...

The Starry Sky Domain shook violently. Within the vast starry sky, waterfalls emerged and plunged one after another, cutting across the heavens and sweeping over everything in their path. Nothing could stand against that force.

Lu Changsheng thought back on Xiao Jian’s Sword Domain. He felt like his cascading waterfalls could actually pierce through the Sword Domain.

Of course, this was only his intuition. Without testing it, he could not be certain. But in terms of sheer power, the Sword Domain would be at most comparable to his Starry Sky Domain or Waterfall Domain individually. The fused Starry Sky Waterfall Domain was on an entirely different level.

"Agh!"

Suddenly, a sharp pain pierced his mind. At the same time, the Starry Sky Waterfall Domain flickered and quickly reverted to its partially manifested state.

My heart power can't keep up? But it's only been a few moments.

He felt an emptiness within himself, and he quickly realized that his heart power had been completely depleted. He had only managed to sustain the materialized Domain for approximately three seconds.

Was that all a heart scale of sixty-three could manage?

Three seconds... That should still be enough, if I use the Domain well. Three seconds can very well decide the outcome of a battle. Once my Domain materializes, I'd be wielding the power of a Divine Treasury martial artist, and not just any, but one at the very top. That's how powerful this new Domain is. Now, I have a trump card that allows me to go head-to-head with Divine Treasury experts.

With his experience in battle, Lu Changsheng could easily secure victory in less than three seconds, with just one strike.

Of course, he would not use this lightly, as materializing the Starry Sky Waterfall Domain seemed to drain his heart power completely. Leaving his opponent alive after resorting to this trump card would be a fatal mistake. If he materialized his Domain, he had to end the fight in that instant.

If push comes to shove, this trump card would allow me to fight beyond my current realm. Still, it's not like Divine Treasury martial artists would have no means to deal with my materialized Domain. I need to keep that in mind.

In any case, I don't really roam outside the first layer of the Ancient Region, so I shouldn't run into any Divine Treasury martial artists. As long as I can quickly earn enough contribution points and raise my mental scale to open the Mind Space... I'll finally manage to step into the Divine Treasury Realm, and then I won't have to worry about depleting my heart power anymore.

Regardless, that was not his priority at the moment. He had just depleted his heart power, and so he needed to focus on recovery. He pushed aside any other thoughts and closed his eyes.

In five days, Lu Changsheng's heart power was fully restored.

Alright, time to get back into it. Liu Yuan must've managed to rest enough as well.

He rose and went to look for him.

Liu Yuan was at the martial grounds, along with the rest of the Heavenly Lin Squad. The moment they saw Lu Changsheng, their eyes lit up.

"Senior Brother Lu, your name's known throughout the Ancient Region Heavenly Sect now."

"Yeah, people out there are saying that some monstrous figure wiped out the entire Five Peaks Squad. Everyone's scared of you like a beast. And these are not even the wildest rumors going around..."

Xia Bao and the others were thrilled.

With Lu Changsheng's addition to the Heavenly Lin Squad, their reputation had soared along with his. Among squads in the first layer of the Ancient Region, the Heavenly Lin Squad ranked in the top. Naturally, Xia Bao and the others were positively delighted with this newfound glory.

"Lu Changsheng, you're here about something, right?" Liu Yuan asked.

"Captain, I was wondering... should we head out again soon? Last time we picked up some Frigid Ice Grass and made a pretty good haul. Are there any places like that left in the first layer of the Ancient Region or somewhere we can earn a large amount of contribution points? I'm working on my Domains right now, and I need a lot of contribution points to exchange for Dao Comprehension Pills."

Lu Changsheng did not beat around the bush, and Liu Yuan understood his bold ambition. Having brought his Waterfall Domain to Perfection and seen its potential, it was only natural for Lu Changsheng to seek Perfection for his other Domains as well.

If it were anyone else, Liu Yuan would dismiss it as wishful thinking, but he had witnessed Lu Changsheng perfect a Domain with only twelve Dao Comprehension Pills. With enough pills, he could very well achieve Perfection in his other Domains as well. And if he managed that, he could raise his heart power enough to advance to the Divine Treasury Realm.

Realizing that, Liu Yuan's expression turned serious. This concerned Lu Changsheng's cultivation path, and he would not take it lightly.

"Well, there is a place. If we pull it off, we could earn a huge number of contribution points. However... it's going to be dangerous. We might even have to go up against the strongest squads in the first layer of the Ancient Region."

"A-Are you talking about competing for the Golden Fruit?" Xia Bao blurted out.

Liu Yuan nodded. "That's right, the Golden Fruit. It ripens once every ten years, and this time, it's less than a month away. Whenever it's about to mature, the strongest teams in the first layer all show up to fight for it. Even the Five Peaks Squad used to fall just short of that level, let alone our Heavenly Lin Squad. We didn't even qualify to take part before.

"But now... with Lu Changsheng, our squad is among the strongest of the first layer. We finally have a shot at competing for the Golden Fruit. That said, every struggle for the fruit is deadly. Even the strongest perish in their attempt to capture it."

The other members of the squad listened with solemn expressions. Clearly, this was no trivial matter.

"How many contribution points are we talking about?" Lu Changsheng asked calmly.

"One Golden Fruit can be exchanged for 10,000 contribution points. Each time they ripen, there are usually more than twenty. If we manage to seize them... that's over 200,000 contribution points. With your strength, you'd be the one doing most of the work. We'd just be supporting you. If you take eighty percent of the credit, you could earn close to 200,000."

Lu Changsheng quickly ran the numbers. If he could secure 200,000 contribution points in one stroke, it would be a tremendous gain. At the very least, it would be enough to exchange for Dao Comprehension Pills to push his remaining three Domains to Perfection.

Of course, the danger would be tremendous. As Liu Yuan had said, every top squad in the first layer of the Ancient Region would compete for the Golden Fruit. To obtain it, the Heavenly Lin Squad would have to defeat them all.

Moreover, the ripening time was merely an estimation. No one could be certain of the exact moment. Once it ripened, the Golden Fruit had to be picked and preserved within two hours. Otherwise, it would fall to the ground and rot. That meant guarding the tree in advance and keeping other squads away—easier said than done.

They would be pressured from all sides. When it came to this, even a top squad could be utterly crushed. If the Heavenly Lin Squad decided to pursue this, they would rely almost entirely on Lu Changsheng. And if Lu Changsheng failed to protect the others, they could very well die. After all, many top squads unpredictable tricks up their sleeves, perhaps even techniques from the Immortal Masters.

Lu Changsheng alone feared no opponent, but while he engaged powerful enemies, he needed someone to harvest the Golden Fruit for him—a team.

For a while, no one said anything. Everyone was weighing the risks and the potential rewards.

"I want to compete for the Golden Fruit! If we succeed, I will take only eighteen fruits. No matter how many remain, the rest will be yours," Lu Changsheng proposed.

No matter how one looked at it, this operation was extremely risky. The other members of the Heavenly Lin Squad did not have his strength, and so they were at greater risk of death, which was why Lu Changsheng was so generous with splitting the benefits.

Eighteen Golden Fruits would yield 180,000 contribution points, enough to acquire thirty-six Dao Comprehension Pills. With the one pill still in his possession and 10,000 contribution points he had at the moment, he could end up with thirty-nine pills in total.

Each of his remaining Domains—the Sense Domain, Wave Domain, and Storm Domain—should require around twelve Dao Comprehension Pills to be brought to Perfection. He probably needed less than twelve pills for the Sense Domain, as its progression was already at forty percent.

Overall, eighteen Golden Fruits would yield enough pills for Lu Changsheng to finish his cultivation. The rest could go to the squad. This operation was an opportunity for the others as well. If everything went well, each could gain 20,000 contribution points.

"I'm in! The fight for the Golden Fruit is where the strongest Divine Fortification martial artists clash. Never thought I would get a chance to take part," said Chen Gang.

"Yeah. I mean, who in the Divine Fortification Realm could stand against Senior Brother Lu? We just have to back him up and gather the fruits. If we don't dare take this chance, then what are we even cultivating for?"

"Exactly. This is a rare opportunity! Maybe this battle will finally make the Heavenly Lin Squad known throughout the Ancient Region..."

In the end, all eyes turned to Liu Yuan. As the leader, he had to make the final call. The anticipation on the faces of his comrades brought a smile to his face.

"Alright, since everyone is on board, let us join the hunt for the Golden Fruit!"

Liu Yuan understood Lu Changsheng better than Chen Gang or Xia Bao did. After all, who in the Ancient Region at the Divine Fortification Realm could compete against two Perfect Domains?

They're right. With Lu Changsheng on our side, it's worth a shot!