Immortal of the Ages

BOOM! Like an Azure Bird, the Western Kunlun Palace sailed through the void of the heavens, its wings slicing through the air with incredible speed.

Atop the bird's back, the Azure Bird Mystical Array held fast, a cage suppressing the limbless Crown Prince within.

The Crown Prince's body was deathly pale, his blood seemingly drained. His face was creased, his eyes dull, and his once-black hair had turned ash-gray overnight.

Gone was the Crown Prince who had stood noble for several millennia, replaced now by an old man whose frail and withered body could barely move, a man who found even dying hard.

His lifeless eyes seemed to have departed this world already.

Standing beside the Azure Bird Mystical Array was a tall woman clad in golden armor, the last remaining Rank 1 Sovereign of the Celestial Court.

Known as the Combat Sovereign, she was a woman who did not bow to men, a Rank 1 Sovereign, naturally indicating her unparalleled abilities.

While others dallied in the Peach Blossom Villa, she was tasked with guarding the Crown Prince.

She was not one for love; unlike the other delicate celestial maidens, she was merely a part of this plot crafted by the Empress Dowager herself—a plot she could not escape from.

"Word has it that your Imperial Father was slain by Yun Xiao and Divine Dawn," the Combat Sovereign spoke somberly.

After saying this, she observed the Crown Prince. For him, this was undoubtedly the cruelest news, snuffing out his last shred of hope. Yet, it seemed the Crown Prince had anticipated this; aside from two lines of muddy tears at the corners of his eyes, he showed no other reaction.

"This means your family’s celestial dynasty has completely collapsed, becoming nothing but a relic in the annals of history," the Combat Sovereign remarked solemnly.

She truly lamented! How many years had this imperial line ruled the Great Dao Celestial Realm?

For so many years, the Celestial Court had faced no challenges. She had never imagined that it would meet its ruin in this generation's madness.

"If there were no incense offerings, there would be no Great Mother, perhaps no Yun Xiao or Divine Dawn either... but there would certainly be him! So, your doom was destined."

Of course, the Combat Sovereign was referring to Lu Fan, who was relaxing within the Peach Blossom Villa. She murmured to herself, while the Crown Prince seemed to be in another world, unresponsive.

"Your Highness!" The Combat Sovereign drew closer, her cold gaze fixed on the Crown Prince, her voice a whisper, "Your father died at the hands of Yun Xiao, your lineage has ended. But this also means Yun Xiao has grown stronger, more able to contend with Lu Fan. Are you pleased, or are you not?"

"Leave!" The Crown Prince closed his eyes and trembled as he spoke.

The Combat Sovereign smirked, a slight twist to her lips that spelled both amusement and disdain. Toying with the normally brutal and tyrannical Crown Prince brought her quick comfort. As she watched his fallen state, an old, dusty memory rose unbidden to her mind...

In those years long past, she had been but a girl, her talents just beginning to show, when she was summoned to the Taiwei Imperial Palace and met him. And after that encounter, she was a girl no longer.

Yet, the Combat Sovereign did not care much for such personal grievances. The Celestial Court was a monster of power, its vortex inherently dark. Her ambitions lay in her cultivation and career advancement, which had smoothly carried her to her current exalted position.

But today, seeing the Crown Prince so reduced, her heart leapt with a vengeful joy! She could trample him mercilessly, treat him as no more than a dog.

"Your Highness, do you still hope that Yun Xiao will defeat him?" the Combat Sovereign taunted softly, "You never truly understood him, from beginning to end… That boy indeed defies the heavens. But sadly, his opponent is the heavens themselves."

The Combat Sovereign turned her gaze back towards the Peach Blossom Villa. She had encountered the heavens up close; she knew the terror it represented.

The essence of that man transcended imagination. The way she looked at him was filled with the obsession and adoration that mortals in the lesser realms felt towards a high Immortal. Her belief in him was unshakable.

The Crown Prince caught all this in her eyes, yet all he could do was offer a bitter smile. Indeed, there was no hope left. He sighed deeply, not yet dead, but the world before him was already filled with darkness.

At that moment, the wife of the Dragon Tiger Sovereign, Lady Fortune, neatly dressed, emerged from the Peach Blossom Villa carrying a fresh corpse.

"Who?" the Combat Sovereign gasped. She stared, and the body was that of one of Lu Fan’s most favored ladies, the Crown Princess.

"Saintess Yao Xi is dead!"

Upon hearing these trembling words, the Crown Prince paused, his eyes shifting abruptly.

"What happened?" the Combat Sovereign asked quickly.

Lady Fortune shook her head and explained, "Yao Xi had just entered the Night God Realm when her spirit passed through the Gate of Death. She encountered someone who could wield the Emperor Proliferation Sword Technique with their spirit alone and was struck down with a single blow."

"The Emperor Proliferation Sword Technique? Intelligence reports say that Yun Xiao had executed the Emperor Proliferation Sword Technique with his spirit during the battle against the White Emperor!" The Combat Sovereign clenched her teeth.

"But the Empress Dowager said the spirit didn't look like Yun Xiao, though it had a similar bearing," Lady Fortune added.

"Our realm's Gate of Death would not allow outsiders; it must have been Yun Xiao, no doubt, just with his spirit's appearance altered..." The Combat Sovereign stared at the wide-eyed, incredulous, and horrific expression of the dead Yao Xi, feeling a tingle on her scalp.

It was clear that Yao Xi had died abruptly with no chance to react, suggesting the perpetrator was indeed ruthless.

Both the Combat Sovereign and Lady Fortune were silent when the Crown Prince burst out in laughter. He laughed for the first time, starting with a chuckle, then bursting into roaring laughter.

"What goes around comes around, and debts must be paid," the Crown Prince bellowed maniacally, spewing blood as he laughed.

It was hard to imagine that amidst the despair following the White Emperor's death, he could actually muster real laughter.

"Shut your mouth!" the Combat Sovereign said coldly.

"It's almost your turn. Are you scared? You must be. Your paths aren't righteous either; you know you've done wrong. Lu Fan intoxicates you, but he too is a source of indulgent evil. In the face of karmic retribution, he too will walk the path of self-destruction after madness!" the Crown Prince asserted with unwavering conviction.

No one could understand the feeling of impending retribution better than him; in his eyes, no one could escape it.

"You give Yun Xiao too much credit," Lady Fortune sneered.

"Your souls are controlled by Lu Fan; you've lost all reason. It doesn't matter, he must be scared by now," the Crown Prince said, his eyes gleaming.

He wanted to see! He longed to see the end of this story! This was just the beginning, and already the faces of the Combat Sovereign and Lady Fortune were markedly grim.

"Pay no mind to this cripple."

After saying this, the Combat Sovereign instructed Lady Fortune to move Yao Xi's body to another hall in the Western Kunlun Palace, so as not to dampen the spirits of those still reveling in life.

The two carried the body away, but the Crown Prince's laughter continued unabated.

"Let the petty enjoy their moment; soon they'll cry themselves to death," Lady Fortune spat on the Crown Prince, her face full of disgust.

Just then, behind the Western Kunlun Palace, a colorful light suddenly pierced the darkness, soaring into the endless skies, as if penetrating the world itself.

The disturbance halted the azure bird in its tracks.

"What is that?"

Lady Fortune and the Combat Sovereign turned to look behind them, witnessing a radiant beam of multicolored light piercing the heavens from the Great Dao Celestial Realm, dyeing the endless void in vibrant hues.

"This is..."

Both women furrowed their brows, faces etched with confusion.

Meanwhile, the still-smirking Crown Prince shuddered, staring transfixed at the soaring prism of light. Suddenly, he screamed, "The Summoning Edict! The Summoning Edict!"

After repeating himself, he erupted into a frenzied laughter. "Father! I knew you wouldn't fall so dishonorably..."

The Crown Prince's face twitched from manic laughter to tears, but these were tears of joy, a wild and mournful jubilation.

BOOM! Lu Fan, Empress Zhao, and others burst forth from the Peach Blossom Land, turning their gaze toward the Great Dao Celestial Realm.

"The Summoning Edict..." Empress Zhao's face paled, stepping back as her heart pounded.

"Empress Zhao, what is the Summoning Edict?" the other celestial women asked anxiously, confusion in their eyes.

"The ancestors, not just forefathers, but the founding Emperors of our lineage—unrivaled beings in the Fourth and Fifth Dao Tribulations, the root of our imperial line," Empress Zhao said, her voice trembling with fear.

"What..."

The understanding women turned ashen, while those unclear on the details remained perplexed.

What could be so terrifying?

Their eyes turned to their cornerstone of strength.

This middle-aged man in the tattered golden robe watched the light calmly, having waited too long for this moment. "If they hadn't opened this Primordial Prison, I'd be stuck in this kennel forever," he said with a sly grin and a shrug.

The celestial women, not fully grasping his words, could at least see Lu Fan was plotting deeply.

This eased Empress Zhao's tension. She glanced disdainfully at the weeping prince and then said to Lu Fan, "My lord, we're ready to carry out your plan for the mortal stars."

"Indeed." The man in the golden robe turned, the mortal stars hanging in the void before him, almost within reach.

Lu Fan twirled the All-Life Empress Gu in his hand, his gaze burning as he looked toward the mortal realm. "Now that the call is made, time is of the essence. Get moving, and make it quick."

Empress Zhao led the capable and beautiful celestial women of the Celestial Court, all in unison, "Yes!"

"Remember," Lu Fan gazed at the stars, "I seek not their worship, but their souls."

"Their souls..." Empress Zhao's voice quivered, "My lord, offerings can nurture and be reused, like peach trees bearing fruit annually. But if we harvest souls, from thousands of worlds, countless billions of beings, this can only be done once."

Lu Fan chuckled dryly. "For one to ascend, countless must fall. Trees planted by the forebears, roots pulled by the later generations—it makes perfect sense."

▬ι══🪦✧⚰️✧🪦══ι▬

In the Celestial Court, the sudden burst of the colorful light startled Moon Fairy, the Great Mother, and Pale Revenant.

"What is that?" Moon Fairy was overwhelmed by the light. Looking up, he saw it seemed to burst from the front of the Taiwei Imperial Palace, very close to him...

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