This expanse of heaven and earth fell into profound silence.
The Kunlun Realm cultivators in the temple had long sensed something was wrong, they wanted to rush out and fight alongside Wan Zhaoyi, but the Nine Heavens Mysterious Lady had held them back.
Only now, seeing the spark of life extinguished in Wan Zhaoyi, did their hearts sink to the depths, overwhelmed by a sorrowful urge to weep.
In a mere quarter-hour, a lifetime ended, all his glory and brilliance bloomed in that fleeting moment, only to fade into coldness and stillness.
The era of the Kunlun Realm’s younger generation, marked by Wan Zhaoyi’s dragon-and-snake rivalry, concluded here!
East without heaven, West without law, South with cunning, North with rainfields, the world no longer held the *Heroic Ode*.
Beneath the thick earth, countless heroic bones lay buried, Wan Zhaoyi was but one among them.
There were many before, there would be many after.
“Rustle.”
Wan Zhaoyi’s essence, qi, and spirit were utterly spent, a cold wind blew, his body crumbled into grains of blood-red sand, spilling from the Azure Dragon Treasure Armour, his legs, torso, and head vanishing, as if he’d never graced this world.
Xun Ya exhaled a long breath, propping up his aching, battered body, he slowly rose, swallowing a healing saint pill.
Once his injuries stabilised, his gaze fixed on the Mandate of Heaven Decree and Azure Dragon Treasure Armour hovering in midair.
The Kunlun Realm cultivator had nearly killed him moments ago, not due to profound cultivation, but because of these two treasures.
As Xun Ya reached to claim them, furious shouts erupted from the Kunlun Realm cultivators in the temple.
“Those are Wan Zhaoyi’s relics, how dare you Paradise Realm filth touch them?”
“The Little Saint Heavenly King fell in battle, not even his bones remain, we must take his relics back to the Kunlun Realm.”
…
Chen Wutian, Qing Xiao, and Pei Yutian rushed out from the temple, intent on reclaiming the Mandate of Heaven Decree and Azure Dragon Treasure Armour.
Born in the same era as Wan Zhaoyi, they’d fought together, vied for treasures in ruins, and clashed on the Earth and Heaven Rankings, they held deep respect for this rival.
But Paradise Realm Saint Kings intercepted them, blocking their path to Xun Ya.
Xun Ya sneered mockingly, “With your measly cultivation, you dare bounce around before this king, do you too have some peerless secret art to make a desperate last stand?”
“What’s a desperate last stand? I wonder who was just crawling on the ground like a dog, unable to get up,” Qing Xiao retorted darkly.
Xun Ya’s face darkened, his eyes brimming with killing intent, “You won’t shed tears until you see the coffin, today this king will flay your souls and strip your hides.”
Though gravely wounded, as saint qi surged within him, a powerful saintly might burst forth, unsteadying Chen Wutian, Qing Xiao, and Pei Yutian’s footing.
Chen Wutian’s eyes flashed with resolve, “This man’s the leader of the Blood War Temple, even at the same realm we might not match him, now with his cultivation far above ours, we’re even less his foes. I must use the final move of the *Forty-Nine Mysterious Arts*, Beyond the Five Elements, to have a chance against him.”
Pei Yutian said, “Unleashing Beyond the Five Elements would indeed grant you unmatched power, but beyond the five elements lies death. Lend me your saint qi instead, help me wield the Stone Blade, one strike to cleave him down.”
Pei Yutian’s Stone Blade, a supreme treasure birthed in the Kunlun Realm’s Northern Region, bore patterns identical to the region’s mountains and rivers.
It was prophesied that if Pei Yutian reached Great Saint level, the blade could harness the Northern Region’s full might.
With his current cultivation, forcibly wielding its power would fare no better than Wan Zhaoyi’s fate.
But they couldn’t afford to care now, Chen Wutian, Pei Yutian, and Qing Xiao braced for a fight to the death, if they could kill Xun Ya, their deaths wouldn’t be in vain.
Just then, something strange occurred.
Xun Ya reached for the Mandate of Heaven Decree and Azure Dragon Treasure Armour, but the decree blazed with dazzling light.
“Swish.”
Caught off guard, Xun Ya stumbled back several steps.
The Mandate of Heaven Decree and Azure Dragon Treasure Armour flew off, landing in the hands of a sixteen- or seventeen-year-old youth in white.
The youth stood atop a broken peak, strikingly handsome, though young in appearance, his eyes held a profound depth, exuding an imperial aura of commanding the world and gazing down on all creation.
Xun Ya, irritated, demanded, “Who are you?”
“Heaven’s Mandate,” the youth replied.
The Azure Dragon Treasure Armour draped itself over him, its azure glow far more radiant than when Wan Zhaoyi wore it.
Holding the Mandate of Heaven Decree, he murmured to himself, “Seven thousand years, it’s finally back in this emperor’s hands. A pity for Wan Zhaoyi, such a heroic talent born in the wrong era. Without Chi Yao, without Zhang Ruochen, without the Kunlun Realm’s upheavals, he might’ve used this decree to become a great emperor of his time.”
The Kunlun Realm cultivators in the temple were baffled.
“Who is he, another Kunlun Realm cultivator?”
“Never seen him, but he seems to have a grand origin.”
The Nine Heavens Mysterious Lady gazed at the white-clad youth, “He’s the first after the Middle Ages to establish a central empire in the Kunlun Realm, Emperor Tianming.”
Many cultivators gasped, “Wasn’t Emperor Tianming dead seventy thousand years ago, how could he still be alive?”
The Nine Heavens Mysterious Lady, privy to many secrets, explained, “Back then, Emperor Tianming obtained the Azure-Eyed Blood Pearl, a supreme treasure left by Bi Luozi, preserving his corpse within it, he didn’t decay, transforming into a corpse emperor, living a second life.”
None present had heard of Bi Luozi, but they knew of the Azure-Eyed Blood Pearl, lending credence to her words.
Perhaps Emperor Tianming had truly returned!
The Tianming Corpse Emperor stared at the Paradise Realm Saint Kings in the sky, “This emperor is here to take the Kunlun Realm cultivators away, make way!”
“You think you can just take them, on what grounds?”
“Even if you’ve fully concealed your corpse qi, it can’t fool this king’s mental power, a mere corpse cultivator dares call himself an emperor?”
Among the Paradise Realm kings, a Six-Step Saint King ranked in the top ten, finding the Tianming Corpse Emperor too arrogant, drew a seven-shine ten-thousand-pattern saint weapon, an iron tower, and sent it crashing down.
The tower, originally seven inches tall, swelled with the wind, growing mountain-sized, thousands of inscriptions weaving across its surface, its momentum staggering.
Nearby cultivators scattered, fearing its force.
“Rumble.”
The broken peak where the Tianming Corpse Emperor stood shattered instantly, flattened as easily as a sand dune, a heart-shaking sight.
The Paradise Realm kings smirked.
“Facing King Juexin’s Skyward Tower without dodging, just an arrogant fool with a short life.”
“That’s… he’s holding up the Skyward Tower…”
An elf clan Saint King’s face paled, pointing at the shattered ground, heart pounding.
Indeed, the white-clad youth stood at the base of the ruined peak, single-handedly supporting the massive tower, his expression calm, as if unburdened.
“This emperor happens to lack a decent saint weapon, this tower’s not bad.”
The Mandate of Heaven Decree flew out, enveloping the Skyward Tower.
Its link to King Juexin severed, the tower shrank, landing in the Tianming Corpse Emperor’s hand.
A collective gasp echoed through the air.
Even Xun Ya retreated, keeping distance from the Tianming Corpse Emperor.
King Juexin was no ordinary foe, even an uninjured Xun Ya would struggle to defeat him, yet this youth effortlessly claimed his prized weapon, a truly formidable figure.
Shang Ziqi’s gaze grew cautious, “Your methods are impressive, but to take the Kunlun Realm cultivators away, your strength might not suffice.”
The Tianming Corpse Emperor’s eyes locked onto Shang Ziqi.
“Rumble.”
The moment their gazes met, a deafening explosion rocked the sky between them.
A powerful shockwave rolled outward, blasting countless Paradise Realm Saint Kings away.
The Tianming Corpse Emperor grunted, stepping back half a pace.
Shang Ziqi, hands behind his back, stood unmoved in midair, “As I said, your strength isn’t enough.”
Gongzi Yan and a Seven-Step Saint King dwarf appeared behind Shang Ziqi, forming a triangular stance, seemingly intent on keeping the Tianming Corpse Emperor too.
“How about with me?”
A melodious female voice rang out.
Then, in the hazy sky, a blood mist surged forth, its aura making even Shang Ziqi frown.
From the mist, eight cultivators bore a crimson palanquin the size of a palace, approaching with imposing grandeur.
On the palanquin lay a woman in palace attire, her skin snowy and crystalline, her long hair black as ink, her face masked in carved ice, revealing only a pair of captivating eyes.
Her cultivation wasn’t high, at least not enough to concern Shang Ziqi, but the eight bearers were all peak powerhouses, each a Nine-Step Saint King.
Eight Nine-Step Saint Kings carrying a woman, utterly bizarre.
That very strangeness put Shang Ziqi on guard, “You’re from the Kunlun Realm too?”
“Yes! But I’m not here for these Kunlun Realm cultivators, their fates don’t matter much to me, I’m here for someone else, though it seems he hasn’t arrived yet,” the woman laughed.
Shang Ziqi said, “You’ve brought eight elder Nine-Step Saint Kings into the Truth Heavenly Domain, quite a feat!”
“They’re my servants, why can’t I bring them here?” she countered.
The Paradise Realm cultivators could no longer stay calm.
Even a Great Saint would struggle to subdue eight Nine-Step Saint Kings as servants, let alone these eight, all millennium-old regional overlords.
The Kunlun Realm cultivators were equally stunned, since when did their realm produce such an unrivalled enchantress below Great Saint level?
Their eyes turned to the Nine Heavens Mysterious Lady.
If anyone knew the secrets of the Kunlun Realm, it was her, perhaps she knew this woman’s origins.
This time, however, the Nine Heavens Mysterious Lady didn’t speak, her eyes instead reflecting deep contemplation.
