The divine projection of the Arbiter Venerable appeared above the Mountain of Fate, overlooking the assembled gods of the Tribunal Division. “Who said Tian Lao would never emerge? Who said her heavenly decree was worthless? Who can tell me how she has appeared in the world?”
The gods of the Tribunal Division fell completely silent; none dared reply.
“All operations targeting Zhang Ruochen cease immediately. There is no need to become enemies with a Heaven for his sake.” With those words, the Arbiter Venerable’s projection dissipated.
The pressure on the gods of the Tribunal Division lifted at once. They exchanged glances and bitter smiles.
“Even if Tian Lao is formidable, our Tribunal Division represents the Temple of Destiny. How can we compromise because of her?” An aggressive ancient god felt deeply dissatisfied.
The Tribunal Division was the sharpest blade of the Temple of Destiny; it never yielded to any power. Not only this powerful ancient god, but every great god, true god, and false god present wore ugly expressions.
“Zhang Ruochen is listed in the Rebel God Scroll. How can the Tribunal Division let him go?”
“Princess Qing Feiwei, do you think the Venerable is making too cautious this time?” a god called out to the departing Qing Feiwei.
Qing Feiwei paused and smiled. “I only know the Venerable always sees farther and weighs matters more clearly than we do. Oh, and a reminder: Tian Lao has not shown herself for hundreds of thousands of years, yet she emerged because of Zhang Ruochen. Ponder the weight of that carefully. Do not follow in the footsteps of the Mosang War God. The Tribunal Division has already suffered enough losses!”
At those words, the gods inside the grand hall were stunned. The clamour died instantly, and their divine projections vanished one after another.
…
“Greetings, Tian Lao!”
Across the Rakshasa clans, gods emerged from divine halls, stood atop mountain peaks, crawled from the earth, or stood upon starships. Almost simultaneously, they bowed toward the radiant silhouette above Xing Huan Tian.
Such reverence not even Emperor Luo Yan of the Tian Luo Divine Kingdom commanded.
The cultivators of Hell Realm worshipped strength.
And Tian Lao was universally acknowledged as the foremost powerhouse of the Rakshasa, the faith of the entire race, as though the progenitor herself lived again. Many Rakshasa even firmly believed Tian Lao’s cultivation surpassed the Great Emperor of the Capital of Darkness and that she was qualified to contend for the position of Tianzun.
That depth of worship was incomprehensible to outsiders.
The news spread from divine realms to saint realms and then to the common folk of every divine kingdom. The entire Rakshasa race boiled with excitement.
A young cultivator of an ancient clan cried out in exhilaration, “The number one powerhouse of the Rakshasa has returned! All clans of Hell and all realms of Heaven will tremble!”
“Who would have thought Zhang Ruochen held such weight with Tian Lao? I used to resent him, thinking his bloodline impure and unworthy of Princess Luo Yi. Now I support this marriage with both hands raised high. Apart from him, no one is worthy of Princess Luo Yi.”
Someone laughed. “Zhang Ruochen is Tian Lao’s envoy. Who are you? Does he need your approval to marry Princess Luo Yi? Ha ha!”
“To be honest, with Zhang Ruochen’s exalted status now, the proud daughters of heaven in the Rakshasa would break down doors to marry him. Forget marriage—even to follow him would be supreme glory! He is the person closest to Tian Lao!”
…
The Clan Chief of the Undying Blood Race gazed at the colossal red-robed, white-haired silhouette in the starry sky, eyes shining with fervour. “Unbelievable, truly unbelievable. The goddess has actually emerged. Now the show will be spectacular! Blood Jue, your grandson is quite something.”
“As if you needed to tell me,” the Blood Jue War God snorted.
“To be chosen by the goddess—there can be no mistake. In the future he will truly achieve greatness in the domain of spiritual strength.”
The Blood Jue War God could not bear the old man’s fanaticism. “You say I lack the bearing of a Great Clan Butcher, but look at yourself. Where is the dignity of a clan chief?”
The Clan Chief immediately straightened, smoothed his hair, and adjusted his robes. “How about now?”
“You’ve cultivated for how many years, old man? Yet you still gush ‘goddess’ at every turn. You’ve thrown away the face of the entire Undying Blood Race!” Blood Jue grumbled.
“You understand nothing!” the Clan Chief retorted. “You cannot possibly know how dazzling and peerless Tian Lao was in our era. Few cultivators from that age remain alive. The goddess is still as young and beautiful as ever, while I… alas, time ages us all. The hot-blooded heroes of yore have become decrepit old men.”
The Blood Jue War God shook his head, unwilling to entertain the old romantic, yet his spirit soared. “Hey, old man, now that Tian Lao has emerged, can she turn the tide in Xing Huan Tian?”
The Clan Chief answered without hesitation. “Need you ask? Since the goddess has stepped forward, forget preserving Xing Huan Tian—she could preserve the entire Rebel God Clan if she wished.”
“Is that so? Yet even the Star-Sea Angler and that thieving old heaven, both supreme figures, could not save Xing Huan Tian. And the Rebel God Clan issue is far more sensitive,” Blood Jue countered.
The Clan Chief sneered disdainfully. “What are those two old ghosts compared to the goddess? Let me ask you this: if the Great Emperor of the Capital of Darkness wished to protect the Rebel God Clan, could anyone stop him?”
“Naturally not. The Great Emperor is a Tianzun, unrivalled in the universe. His will is the will of all Hell Realm. If he wished to protect them, none would dare object,” Blood Jue admitted.
Clap!
The Clan Chief slapped his hands together. “Exactly! Boy, I’m not bragging, but had the goddess not withdrawn from the world these past hundreds of thousands of years, whether that brute in the Capital of Darkness could have become Tianzun would still be in question.”
He pointed at the divine silhouette in the starry sky. “See that? The goddess emerges with such dominance, clearly intending to use Zhang Ruochen’s hand to slaughter in all directions and awe those who have underestimated her. Let the ancient gods who have forgotten her and the new gods who have never heard her name tremble at the mere mention of ‘Tian Lao’ from now on. Why can she be so domineering? Because she is strong enough to fear no one.”
“No one else dares interfere, yet she does. That is absolute confidence.”
The Blood Jue War God found himself agreeing. His worry for Zhang Ruochen vanished. He sighed sincerely, “Only unrivalled beneath the heavens is true strength. When will I reach the level of Hao Tian, the Great Emperor of the Capital of Darkness, or Tian Lao?”
The Clan Chief stood ramrod straight, brimming with pride. “Since the goddess has declared her stance and stepped to the forefront, she will bear whatever consequences arise. We have nothing left to fear. I see you’re eager—go. The armies of the Undying Blood Race are temporarily yours to command.”
“Magnanimous, Clan Chief.”
The Blood Jue War God tore open space and vanished into the starry void.
The Clan Chief touched his nose, somehow feeling the words “magnanimous” carried a hint of mockery. Yet “Clan Chief” had been spoken with genuine respect.
…
Princess Luo Yi’s bright eyes and white teeth flashed in a smile. “So it was the venerable Tian Lao who emerged. With her stepping forward, the entire situation will shift. The tide in Xing Huan Tian has finally turned.”
An ancient god in black armour laughed. “Princess, you underestimate. This is not merely shifting the situation—this settles the universe in one move!”
“Not only does it settle the universe, it catapults the Prince Consort’s status sky-high, shaking the world in a single stroke. From now on, who would dare harm the Prince Consort? The gods of our Rakshasa would be the first to object.”
Luo Yi was in high spirits. She secretly resolved that once the situation in Xing Huan Tian stabilised, she would hold the wedding as soon as possible. Otherwise, with so many rivals, someone might snatch him first and her own position would unwittingly fall a rank.
Moreover, with Tian Lao’s emergence, her sole divine envoy’s status would rise with the tide. Countless powers would trample the Blood Jue family threshold. Without a proper title to guard the gate, who knew how many betrothals the Blood Jue family might accept on the sly?
“Since the venerable Tian Lao has acted,” Luo Yi said, “what do we have left to fear? Imperial Father, I shall now lead the Rakshasa armies into Xing Huan Tian.”
The Rakshasa gods were all eager, rubbing fists and wiping palms, burning for battle.
Emperor Luo Yan knew full well that whether the Five Pure Sect’s journey to the Desolate Ancient Ruins City or Tian Lao’s emergence, both came at tremendous cost. That the Five Pure Sect had actually succeeded in bringing Tian Lao out had somewhat surprised him.
Did Tian Lao emerge for the Rebel God Clan, or for the junior Zhang Ruochen?
Or was it to awe the universe and elevate the Rakshasa’s voice among the ten clans?
As Emperor of the Tian Luo Divine Kingdom, he had to consider deeper layers. He could not help but think of Tian Yin. If she were here, with her wisdom she could surely analyse all the hidden currents.
“Imperial Father, what are you thinking? The Rakshasa armies are assembled. We can march on Xing Huan Tian now and rescue Imperial Brother,” Luo Yi urged.
Emperor Luo Yan replied, “No rush. Let us wait a little longer. I want to see, once the Heavenly Court gods are defeated, what choice those lurking in the shadows will make.”
Luo Yi was clever and wiser than her mother, yet her time as a god was short. Her thinking still lingered at the level of mortal wars. She lacked experience in divine gambits, cosmic strategy, and reading the minds of supreme gods.
Still worried, she said, “Tian Lao has not come in true body—her real form is who-knows-how-far away. The power she can lend Zhang Ruochen across such distance must be limited. He is still so young and lacks understanding of divine-level strength. How can he contend against more than ten peak great gods of the Heavenly Court? If he falls…”
Emperor Luo Yan cut her off. “Do you know the saying ‘care clouds the mind’? You are too focused on Zhang Ruochen. Have you considered that if the Hell Realm armies charge in now, we may fight to our hearts’ content, but Xing Huan Tian could not withstand a war of such scale?”
“Zhang Ruochen stands before the Goddess City to protect the cultivators inside. If this battle, because of our armies’ involvement, destroys the Goddess City and destroys Xing Huan Tian, do you think he would be happy?”
“The current situation is unclear and could escalate into large-scale divine war. Divine wars can be fought, but not like mortal wars. Do you know how difficult it is to nurture a single god? Every one that falls pains my heart.”
Luo Yi calmed and bowed. “Imperial Father speaks wisely.”
Emperor Luo Yan waved. The black-armoured ancient god behind him stepped forward.
“Yu Ying, Luo Yi, summon every Rakshasa great god who has come to this star sector, no matter which divine kingdom they hail from, and proceed to Xing Huan Tian.”
The black-armoured ancient god was puzzled. “But Your Majesty just said…”
Emperor Luo Yan replied, “I did not say fight! But Zhang Ruochen is, after all, my son-in-law. I, Luo Yan, have come in person. If I do nothing, will not every Tom not every every bully my descendants in future? Unless absolutely necessary, do not act. Stand by the side and intimidate those Heavenly Court scoundrels who bully with numbers. Let them taste fear for once.”
“Imperial Father is brilliant,” Luo Yi laughed.
“Look—the Blood Jue War God is leading the Undying Blood Race gods there already! The Undying Blood Race is too cunning. Only when Tian Lao steps forward and someone can bear all responsibility do they dare move.”
“What’s going on? Why has another Blood Jue War God appeared? Blood Jue is stealing the show today!”
