Four deities had quietly arrived at Ice King Star.
There were true gods and pseudo-gods among them.
At this moment, the four deities stood outside the Ice Emperor’s Palace, preparing to pay their respects to the Ice Emperor. As deities, their methods of concealing their auras were highly sophisticated, but on Ice King Star, hiding from the Ice Emperor’s perception was a fool’s dream.
Since the Ice Emperor had emerged from seclusion, who would dare not come to pay homage?
They were quite apprehensive, wondering if the Ice Emperor’s emergence at this time was related to their arrival.
Upon reaching the Ice Emperor’s Palace, they confirmed this suspicion, as the Ice Emperor showed no intention of inviting them in. Nor did he dismiss them.
This was not a good sign; it was clearly a deliberate rebuke.
The four deities exchanged glances, each giving a wry smile. Leaving now would be inappropriate, so they could only continue waiting.
…
In the Ice Emperor’s Palace.
Xia Huangchao, clad in a white robe, sat beneath a vermilion divine tree.
The tree was covered in red leaves.
Leaves stacked upon leaves, resembling a red mountain. Falling leaves floated in the air, like red butterflies.
Qing Yulou entered from outside, bowing respectfully. “Master, the four deities are waiting outside. Shall I invite them in?”
“Let them wait,” Xia Huangchao said.
“Yes.”
Qing Yulou noticed a figure seated across from Xia Huangchao but dared not look closely or discern their appearance.
This person, able to sit opposite his master while the four deities of Hell waited outside, clearly held immense significance.
After Qing Yulou retreated, the golden-haired man seated across from Xia Huangchao lifted a clay cup, took a sip, and said, “Your disciple is impressive.”
The golden-haired man had a pair of dragon horns on his head.
“Your praise, if spread, would make him renowned across the Heavenly Court and Hell,” Xia Huangchao smiled. “In truth, I haven’t taught him much, only tempered him for thirty thousand years in a dream.”
Thirty thousand years in a dream did not equate to thirty thousand years in reality.
Sometimes, a single night’s dream could span a lifetime.
The golden-haired man shook his head. “Times have changed. After a hundred thousand years, few in the Heavenly Court and Hell likely remember me.”
Xia Huangchao gazed at the golden-haired man for a long moment, sighing wistfully. “What a pity, we can never return to those days. I miss those youthful, song-like years when we roamed the realms together, seeking secret treasures, stealing sacred herbs, catching golden kuns. Our cultivation was low then, yet there was no place we dared not go, no deed we dared not do, escaping death countless times. But now, having achieved divinity, I’ve lost that former freedom.”
The golden-haired man was silent for a while, then said, “And… Ajiu.”
Xia Huangchao had been avoiding that name. Only when the golden-haired man mentioned it did he respond, “Yes, Ajiu. We’ll never see Ajiu again. She was the Undying Phoenix, yet she couldn’t escape death. I watched her being killed, her divine soul refined to nothingness.”
The golden-haired man’s eyes grew colder. “You’ve never told me this. You watched her die?”
“She knew I would intervene, so before rushing out of the temple, she trapped me with an array. I could only attack the array desperately, trying to break out, but in the end, I could only watch, helpless!”
“The world sees Xia Huangchao as peerless, the pride of the Undying Blood Clan, but in reality, he’s just a pitiful wretch. I can’t forget the look in her eyes as she left the temple. Those eyes… those eyes held so much emotion.”
Xia Huangchao closed his eyes, his voice trembling with sorrow.
Who could imagine the renowned Ice Emperor, the most resolute and formidable figure, shedding divine tears at this moment?
The past was too painful to recall, each memory tearing at his heart.
The golden-haired man said, “I have no right to blame you. Without you, the gravely injured me wouldn’t have escaped back to Kunlun Realm. When Ajiu went to you, she knew the odds were against her, so she sent your only child to Death God Island, where the Island Lord raised them.”
“You were too entwined with Kunlun Realm then, distrusted by the Destiny Temple, and unwilling to act, so you claimed to stay guarding the Undying Temple. I understand your predicament, and she knew your difficult position, so when she received your plea for help, she went without hesitation.”
“I never sent her a letter,” Xia Huangchao said.
The golden-haired man nodded. “She suspected the letter wasn’t from you, knowing the danger. But since it was your plea, she had to go.”
“Where is that child? Are they still alive?” Xia Huangchao’s eyes held both joy and fear.
After a hundred thousand years, he felt fear again.
Even gods have emotions, and for a supremely powerful deity, this was a massive fluctuation in his state of mind.
No enemy could make Xia Huangchao fear; his fear stemmed from his own heart.
The golden-haired man said, “When the time is right, you’ll meet.”
Xia Huangchao stood, amidst the falling red leaves, his white robe pristine, his melancholy and sensitivity fading, the aura of an unrivalled powerhouse returning. “Did you come to Ice King Star for the supreme Origin Divine Crystal or the Heavenly Pivot Needle?”
“Finding the Origin Temple is Kunlun Realm’s hope for resurgence. Seizing a divine artifact would be a bonus,” the golden-haired man said.
Xia Huangchao said, “No, your true aim is the Heavenly Pivot Needle, to locate the Island Lord’s exact imprisonment. Your ultimate goal is to rescue the Island Lord.”
“I can’t hide it from you. What’s your choice?” the golden-haired man asked.
Xia Huangchao said, “I am part of Hell, part of the Undying Blood Clan, the ancestor of the Xia Dynasty’s billions.”
“So, you’ll stop me? You know you’re not my match,” the golden-haired man said.
Xia Huangchao replied, “A hundred thousand years ago, Kunlun Realm activated the Sundial, and your cultivation surpassed mine. But these hundred thousand years, you’ve been sleeping and healing, while I’ve progressed. If we fight today, the outcome is uncertain. Besides, have your injuries truly healed?”
“Then let’s fight!” the golden-haired man said.
Xia Huangchao said, “We’ll fight after you rescue the Island Lord.”
The golden-haired man showed disbelief. He knew how stubborn Xia Huangchao was, having fought him countless times for the Undying Blood Clan and Hell’s interests and principles.
Their bond was forged through battles.
Yet now, he was willing to set aside his principles, doing something against Hell’s interests, which was astonishing.
It showed Xia Huangchao valued their bond above interests and principles.
“I won’t stop you, nor will I aid you,” Xia Huangchao said, hands behind his back, turning away, effectively dismissing his guest.
“I’m leaving!”
The golden-haired man rose to leave.
Suddenly, Xia Huangchao’s voice rang out. “Jiwang.”
The golden-haired man paused.
Two peerless men stood back-to-back under the gently swaying tree.
After a moment, Xia Huangchao said, “I swear, all the deities who acted back then will die. After a hundred thousand years, I’ll bring their divine blood to honour Ajiu.”
“I forgive you!”
Dragon Lord Jiwang’s form vanished.
…
All the great saints fighting halted.
Blood Spirit Immortal’s sword strike had stunned them.
Pang Hu, leader of the Great Evolution Sect, laughed loudly. “Wujian Pavilion’s masters have finally arrived!”
The ten dark forces dared to seize the Heavenly Pivot Needle because Wujian Pavilion had enlisted two unrivalled powerhouses. Pang Hu, Nine-Eyed Ghost Emperor, and Corpse-Eating Ape had already witnessed Blood Spirit Immortal and Crabapple Granny’s might, giving them full confidence.
The Ferocity High Priest’s eyes gleamed fiercely. “How could Wujian Pavilion silently cultivate two such powerful figures? And evade destiny’s calculations?”
Gong Nanfeng said, “From Kunlun Realm.”
“What?” the Ferocity High Priest asked.
Gong Nanfeng spoke as if recounting a familiar tale. “That sword is called the Wordless Sword Manual. The one atop it is Blood Spirit Immortal, a peerless figure from Kunlun Realm a hundred thousand years ago, second only to Empress Thousand Bones, a true eon representative.”
“You know little of Kunlun Realm, but I know he was the first divine son of Kunlun Realm’s Blood God Sect, the Blood God’s chief disciple. His life is nothing short of spectacular. Though not yet a god, he has lived over two hundred thousand years.”
“How is that possible? A flesh-and-blood being below divinity living two hundred thousand years?” The Death High Priest had also calculated about Blood Spirit Immortal but gleaned only fragments, far less than Gong Nanfeng.
Gong Nanfeng said, “Blood Spirit Immortal reached the great saint realm three times, was knocked down three times, and rebuilt. He reached divinity twice, was killed twice, and revived to continue cultivating. Ultimately, the Undying Blood Silkworm transformed into a butterfly, elevating him from a first-class genius to an eon-level representative.”
“It’s amusing. The one who knocked him down twice and killed him was his master, the Blood God. In the end, Blood Spirit Immortal was nearly driven mad, tried to defect, but was caught and killed again by the Blood God.”
Fortune Divine Lord’s eyes narrowed. “Undying Blood Silkworm. It seems the Blood God’s experiment succeeded!” (Chapter 2029 mentioned the Undying Blood Silkworm.)
“Whether it succeeded is uncertain; it depends on whether Blood Spirit Immortal, the test subject, is strong enough. The Undying Blood Silkworm was meant to cultivate eon-level geniuses. I think Blood Spirit Immortal still falls short of Blood Absolute War God and Desolate Heaven Great God from his era,” Gong Nanfeng said.
Only Gong Nanfeng, frail as an ordinary person, could say this so calmly.
The four high priests’ faces were ashen, clearly under immense pressure.
Figures like Blood Absolute War God and Desolate Heaven Great God weren’t created by a single technique or treasure; they required every condition to be perfect to emerge.
Que said, “He’s already terrifying. One sword suppressed the Ghost God Mask. My Shadow Pellet Sword is trembling. He is the opponent I must defeat in this life.”
Prajna asked, “What about that crabapple? Who is it?”
“It’s unclear. It resembles the Wordless Sword Manual’s weapon spirit, yet it doesn’t. But a crabapple older than Blood Spirit Immortal—how did it survive the eon calamity every 129,600 years?” Gong Nanfeng asked.
No one could answer.
In the Destiny Temple, he knew and calculated more than even deities.
If he didn’t know, who could?
Blood Spirit Immortal’s long hair fluttered in the wind, his voice resounding. “A hundred thousand years ago, Kunlun Realm suffered a crushing defeat, countless beings fell, reduced to bones and dust. Many cultivators became slaves and prisoners. Today, I come for revenge.”
The Ferocity High Priest recovered from his shock, having seen many deities in his high position. “So, a remnant from Kunlun Realm a hundred thousand years ago, still untaught. Since you didn’t die, why not hide and live out your days? The Destiny Temple is supreme. Can you alone shake it?”
“If Ferocity Divine Lord said this, I’d believe it. You? I don’t,” Blood Spirit Immortal said.
The Ferocity High Priest’s anger turned into tangible flames, setting thousands of miles of earth ablaze. In the vast fire plain, a crimson crystal ancient seal formed, striking at Blood Spirit Immortal.
As the high priest of Ferocity Divine Palace, his cultivation was exceptional, feared by great saints across the Heavenly Court.
His strike was a supreme-level high-tier sacred technique.
Ferocious God Falling Dust Seal!
The heavens and earth were filled with the saint path rules surging from the Ferocity High Priest. Where the crimson crystal seal passed, space tore, creating thousands of cracks.
Blood Spirit Immortal threw a punch, silver light illuminating the cosmos.
The deafening sound caused countless cultivators to lose their hearing. Fortunately, the mental power saint masters on the Black Tortoise divine corpse were protected by arrays; otherwise, even ten thousand miles away, they would have been severely injured.
The crimson crystal seal shattered, unable to withstand Blood Spirit Immortal’s punch.
“One punch broke my supreme-level high-tier sacred technique?” The Ferocity High Priest gritted his teeth.
Blood Spirit Immortal opened his mouth, spewing silver lightning that formed countless rivers of electricity, surging toward the Ferocity High Priest.
“Ferocious Blade.”
From the Ferocity High Priest’s brow, the palace’s treasured weapon flew out, radiating blood-red divine light.
This blade, steeped in countless saint and divine blood, was a ferocious weapon, no less powerful than the Axe of Judgment or Heavenly Fate Halberd.
Even with the Ferocious Blade, the Ferocity High Priest couldn’t withstand Blood Spirit Immortal’s silver lightning. His body retreated, his black high priest robe burning, beginning to turn to ash.
“High Priest!”
“We’ll aid the High Priest.”
Two Supreme Realm great saints in sacred armour rose from the ground, one burning like a sun, the other standing in a deathly black hole.
Both were guardian emperors of Ferocity Divine Palace, ancient beings over ten thousand years old.
The two guardian emperors flanked the Ferocity High Priest, each striking with a palm, releasing trillions of saint path rules, jointly wielding the Ferocious Blade.
“Boom.”
After three breaths, the Ferocious Blade flew back, crashing into the earth, sinking it a thousand miles.
The two guardian emperors, after two breaths, saw their supreme law bodies burn to ash, utterly annihilated.
The Ferocity High Priest, protected by a treasure, survived but was charred, falling into a crimson magma lake, motionless, his aura weakened to the extreme.
“Boom.”
Blood Spirit Immortal stomped, crushing him.
Wuyue Life Emperor tried to intervene but was swatted back by Blood Spirit Immortal’s twenty-thousand-meter stone sword.
One high priest and two Supreme Realm great saints perished instantly.
The heavens and earth fell silent, all were stunned.
The ten dark forces’ cultivators boiled with excitement. A lofty Destiny Temple high priest, killed just like that? It felt unreal, hard to believe.
