1293: Chapter 1293 Hei Fan Emerges from Seclusion, a Sixth-Order Immortal

Li Wuji's pupils dilated abruptly.

A muffled groan erupted from the depths of his throat; it was not a scream of pain, yet it was more chilling than any such cry.

It was the instinctive reaction of a body pushed to its limit, the mournful cry of a piece of steel being hammered and tempered on a forge.

His body was trembling.

Not a slight, controlled shiver, but a violent, uncontrollable shaking, like a sieve in the wind.

Every inch of muscle was spasming, every bone was groaning, and every Meridian was enduring an impact far exceeding its breaking point.

After surging into his body, those gray-white dao marks did not settle down; instead, they rampaged through his Meridians like a herd of wild horses, attempting to carve out new channels and a new order within him.

Dense, gray-white patterns began to emerge on the surface of his skin, as if someone were using an invisible brush to draw an incredibly complex totem upon his body.

These patterns spread from his fingertips, climbed up his arms to his shoulders, traced down his spine, and eventually covered his entire body.

With every breath, the patterns flickered; with every heartbeat, they squirmed like living creatures.

Pain.

Intense pain.

It was not a localized pain from a specific wound or fracture, but a comprehensive, inescapable agony originating from the deepest depths of his body and the very foundation of his Divine Soul—a pain that made him want to tear his own flesh apart.

It felt as if countless blades were slicing through his body simultaneously, as if countless fires were burning within his Meridians, and as if countless thunderbolts were exploding inside his Divine Soul.

His consciousness teetered on the edge of collapse amidst this pain, like a candle flame flickering in a storm.

He did not lose consciousness, he did not give up, and he did not even let out an unnecessary sound.

After that muffled groan, he clenched his teeth so tightly that his gums bled and the veins on his cheeks bulged.

His hands rested on his knees, his fingers digging deeply into his own muscles; his nails pierced his skin, and blood dripped through his fingers onto the gray-white "ground" beneath him.

"Hahahaha, I didn't expect this last fellow to be so surprising."

Feeling the power within his blood, the Lord of Chaos could not help but laugh aloud.

"Kid, how much you can accept depends on you; before long, this Star Sea will fall into chaos."

Li Wuji persisted.

It was not because he did not fear the pain, but because he knew clearly: if he fell here, if he gave up at this moment, he would lose more than just these dao marks, more than just this Opportunity.

He would lose the final trust of the existence before him, lose his status as a "variable," and lose his only chance to jump out of the chessboard.

He would lose himself.

So, he persisted.

It was not the calm, effortless operation of his usual practice, but a forced operation of sorting through chaos, rebuilding amidst collapse, and carving a path through despair.

His Divine Sense, like a tempered blade, pierced into the chaotic torrent of dao marks; he no longer tried to block them or force them out of his body, but instead guided them, sorted them, and incorporated them into his Meridian system.

As his Meridians tore, he rebuilt them at the site of the rupture. As his bones shattered, he reforged them at the site of the fracture. As his Dantian shook, he stabilized it amidst the tremors.

Every breath was a reshaping, every heartbeat a rebirth.

Time lost all meaning in this abyss.

Li Wuji did not know how much time had passed—it could have been a quarter of an hour, a day, a month, or even a year.

His consciousness swayed repeatedly between clarity and haze, his body cycled between collapse and reconstruction, and his Divine Soul was tempered repeatedly between destruction and rebirth.

Yet, he never closed his eyes.

His gaze remained fixed on the darkness ahead, staring in the direction where those two extinguished eyes lay.

There was no pleading, no hatred, and no regret in that gaze—only a nearly obsessive determination and persistence.

...

Three months later, a majestic and vast pressure suddenly erupted from the depths of the Black Emperor Star imperial palace.

"This pressure... could it be that a Sixth-Order powerhouse has descended?!"

"No, this aura, is it Your Majesty?!"

"How can that be? Isn't Your Majesty..."

"It is, it is definitely Your Majesty! This feeling of boiling Bloodline cannot be wrong!"

The moment this pressure appeared, the royal powerhouses hidden throughout the imperial palace and Black Emperor Star were all struck with horror, followed immediately by shock and wild joy.

"Hahahaha, from this day forth, my Black Cloud Empire shall march toward the Peak!"

A jet-black pillar of light shot into the sky, surrounded by black lightning as thick as a water bucket, emitting a chilling aura.

As the pillar of light dissipated, Emperor Hei Fan appeared in the firmament, clad in black imperial robes.

Everyone in the Black Cloud Empire knelt to the ground in unison; they were overjoyed, as the various events of recent days had left them in a state of panic.

Now that their Emperor had returned from the dead and seemingly broken through to a higher level, everything would be resolved.

"Open the national gates. From today, the Black Cloud Empire shall return to normal order."

After speaking, Emperor Hei Fan descended back into the imperial palace, but the outside world had already been turned upside down by his return.

"The Black Emperor indeed faked his death; it seems Immortal Lord's prediction was correct!"

The powerhouses of the Hundred Flowers Star Domain, located on Black Dream's sub-planet, listened to Emperor Hei Fan's words, their eyes filled with solemnity.

"Hmph, Immortal Lord's original strength was already above this Black Emperor. Even if he is a Sixth-Order Immortal, he can still be suppressed."

Another powerhouse from the Hundred Flowers Star Domain said confidently. The others did not speak, but their expressions said it all.

"Has Father broken through?"

Black Dream naturally heard Emperor Hei Fan's voice, but there was not much joy in her eyes; instead, they were filled with worry.

"What is Your Highness worried about?"

Behind her, A-Mu suddenly spoke.

"Nothing. Perhaps everything we have done was in vain."

"How could it be in vain? All efforts are never in vain; it is just that the timing has not yet arrived."

A-Mu's expression was certain; he had made many preparations over these past few months.

Although Emperor Hei Fan's Breakthrough had some impact on their plans, overall, there would be no deviation.

Suddenly, A-Mu keenly sensed something and instantly shielded Black Dream behind him.

"Who goes there!"

The moment his words fell, a Shadow Guard, ghost-like, appeared before the two.

"Your Highness, Your Majesty has ordered all princes to the imperial palace, and Mr. A-Mu must also go."

After speaking, the Shadow Guard vanished again like a phantom.

"Father wants to see you just after emerging from seclusion?"

Black Dream's brows furrowed slightly. Even A-Mu was somewhat surprised, but he smiled slightly.

"Perhaps it is because I saved you, and His Majesty wants to reward me—who knows?"

Black Dream, however, shook her head. She understood her father well; it would be no exaggeration to call him iron-blooded and ruthless.

But at this point, she could not disobey the order and could only take it one step at a time.