371: Internal strife in the spirit world

Inside the Heavenly Venerable Palace, Emperor Qin and Shen Wuya exchanged glances, smiled, and watched the commotion.

The destruction of the Spirit Realm had no impact on them.

Both of them were currently at a critical juncture in their Breakthrough to the Ascension Realm, wishing that the Five Great Heavenly Venerables and the army outside would start fighting. This way, once they achieved Ascension, they would be able to escape the Spirit Realm and regain their freedom.

Taichu Heavenly Venerate was exceedingly shrewd and saw through their intentions at a glance.

If he were to act personally, the three would surely use the chaos to escape, rendering all efforts futile.

"Qingyang, Ziming, Minghe, Great Evolution!" he commanded coldly, "You four, suppress the rebellion on my behalf!"

The four Heavenly Venerables instantly understood, no longer holding back—this battle could not be lost!

In an instant, heaven and earth changed color.

Grand Flame Heavenly Venerable clapped his hands together, and the earth veins roared. Ten thousand miles of magma surged from a rift valley, forming a thousand-zhang-diameter World-Burning Fire Lotus. Wherever it passed, the air steamed, and the earth turned into scorched glass.

Fairy Zi Ming lightly raised her delicate hand, and a cold tide, like a waterfall, froze time and space. Within three thousand miles around her, the flow of time drastically slowed. The movements of the million-strong army became as sluggish as clay figures and wood carvings; even their breaths condensed into ice crystals that shattered upon hitting the ground.

Old Ancestor Minghe opened his mouth and inhaled, and the wails of ten thousand souls rose from the Nine Nether, transforming into a towering black river that swept across the battlefield. Anyone touched by the black water had their life force instantly extinguished and their Divine Soul extracted.

Great Evolution Heavenly Venerate stood above the starry sky, his hands manipulating the stars of the heavens. The Star River coiled back like a Dragon, and ten thousand rays of starlight transformed into Law chains. A Soul Transformation Cultivator, merely brushed by the aftershock, immediately bled from all seven orifices, his Divine Sense disintegrated, leaving him like an imbecile.

The four Heavenly Venerables, all out, displayed monstrous Divine Might. Four-colored Divine light tore through the sky, rushing directly towards the central army—their target was singular: Spirit Firmament Child's head!

However, Spirit Firmament Child was already prepared.

He suddenly retreated to evade, and seven emaciated figures flew out—precisely seven half-Immortal Old Ancestors who had been in seclusion for ten thousand years! They either leaned on staffs or carried swords; though their aura was weak, their eyes were like sharp blades piercing through clouds.

"Protect the Realm Master!" a white-haired old woman roared, confronting the World-Burning Fire Lotus. Using her Physical Body as a shield, she took a direct hit from Grand Flame Heavenly Venerable, her chest bursting open, her internal organs incinerated. Yet, she clung desperately to his arm, letting the flames consume her, her bones and flesh turning to ash, but refusing to let go.

"Today, with my broken body, I forge the backbone of the Spirit Realm!" Another old man detonated his Primordial Spirit, transforming into a sky full of sparks, forcibly sealing Fairy Zi Ming's time-freezing Domain. Ice and fire clashed, erupting in a dazzling white light; both perished together, leaving only half a charred bone falling to the ground.

The third Old Ancestor charged towards Minghe, using his own Divine Soul as bait to draw the ten thousand souls to devour him, shouting, "Realm Master, flee!" Before his words finished, he was swallowed by the black river, leaving no trace.

It was utterly tragic.

Seven half-Immortals, six of whom fell in an instant. The last one, heavily wounded, knelt on the ground, still propping up a barrier with his bone staff, hoarsely crying, "Realm Master... quickly summon the Spirit Realm Origin!"

Spirit Firmament Child's eyes were blood-red. He bit his tongue, using his essence blood as a guide to activate the Spirit Realm Origin.

He raised the Realm Master's Token above his head and roared to the sky, "Ancestors of the Spirit Realm! Hear my call!"

Boom—!

A mournful cry came from deep within the earth. The remnants of the world's will were forcibly awakened, transforming into a green light curtain, like a mother protecting her egg, enveloping Spirit Firmament Child and the last Old Ancestor.

"You, as Realm Master, were appointed by us. Do you think only you can mobilize the Origin!"

The four Heavenly Venerables sneered and launched a combined attack!

The World-Burning Fire Lotus, the Space-Time Ice Prison, the Ten Thousand Souls Black River, the Star River Chains—four destructive forces violently collided with the green light curtain.

Heaven and earth shattered, clouds poured down, space fragmented inch by inch, revealing the pitch-black Void Realm turbulence.

The light curtain held for three breaths, then finally shattered.

Spirit Firmament Child flew backward like a kite with a broken string, blood gushing from his mouth, staining his battle armor. But he struggled to his feet, raising the broken Realm Master's Token, and with his last shred of strength, roared:

"The Spirit Realm was destroyed by you five old stubborn fools!!"

Grand Flame Heavenly Venerable's eyes gleamed with killing intent. He pointed a finger, and a fiery energy pierced through Spirit Firmament Child's glabella.

Spirit Firmament Child's body stiffened, and the Divine light in his eyes rapidly dimmed.

In his last moment, he looked towards the distance—that homeland, once beautiful with clear mountains and waters, now withered like bones. A trace of relieved smile actually appeared at the corner of his mouth.

"As the Realm Master of the Spirit Realm, I have no regrets!"

Before his words finished, a generation's Realm Master collapsed, his Divine Soul utterly annihilated.

Although the four Heavenly Venerables had slain Spirit Firmament Child, they themselves were also severely wounded.

Grand Flame Heavenly Venerable's left arm was incinerated; Fairy Zi Ming's Divine Soul was torn by lingering resentment, and her cold meridians flowed in reverse; Old Ancestor Minghe's ten thousand souls lost control, backlashing against him, half his body already turned to withered bone; Great Evolution Heavenly Venerate's star core vibrated, and he could barely stand.

The four were unable to maintain their pressure and hastily fled back to the Heavenly Venerable Palace, sealing themselves within nine layers of Seals, not daring to emerge.

The million-strong army, leaderless, instantly disintegrated.

The once strictly ordered Spirit Realm, overnight, reverted to a savage era where the strong preyed on the weak.

Lei Jicang, the leader of the Starfall Envoys, seized the opportunity, declared himself king, purged dissenters, conscripted young men, occupied Spiritual Veins, and established a new hegemony through iron-fisted methods.

Wherever his Starfall Legion passed, not a blade of grass grew.

The five departments under the Spirit Realm—the Star Observation Department, the Dharma Transmission Department, the Law Enforcement Department, the Spirit Crossing Department, and the Realm Patrol Department—which already harbored ulterior motives, now completely tore off their disguises.

They no longer cared about the survival of the Spirit Realm, instead vying for the Spiritual Veins in the seventy-two shattered Small Worlds that had not yet collapsed.

Taichu Heavenly Venerate in the Heavenly Venerable Palace remained completely indifferent to this.

He kept Emperor Qin, Shen Wuya, and Ling Tian trapped around him, assisting his final sprint. As long as he could Cultivate to the Heaven-Reaching Realm.

Then, all crises would become opportunities.

What if the Spirit Realm was destroyed? As long as he could Cultivate to the Heaven-Reaching Realm, he could create ten Spirit Realms, a hundred Spirit Realms. By then, even if an Immortal Emperor came, he would have to call him Senior... Immortal Realm, Lingxiao Hall.

Above the nine-layered cloud palace, golden light shone brightly, and Immortal music drifted ethereally.

However, a chilling aura permeated the hall.

Immortal Emperor Haotian stood with his hands behind his back before the Star Observation Jade Wall, his gaze like a knife, coldly watching the Spirit Realm: mountains and rivers collapsing, Laws disintegrating, and millions of living beings wailing like a tide.

"Taichu... you truly have a ruthless heart." Haotian's lips curved slightly, but there was no trace of a smile in his eyes. "You would rather destroy the entire Spirit Realm than hand over Emperor Qin, Shen Wuya, and Ling Tian. It seems you are prepared to burn both jade and stone with the Immortal Court."

Before his words finished, shadows in the corner of the hall slowly writhed, and a black figure silently condensed, its aura deep as an abyss. It was none other than Zi Xuwu, who should have died in the Spirit Realm.

"Your Majesty," his voice was low and hoarse, "we may have to act sooner. If we let Taichu continue to Cultivate, he truly might step into the Heaven-Reaching Realm within a year!"

It turned out that what died in the Spirit Realm was merely a meticulously refined "Life Soul Clone" of Zi Xuwu.

This move was a plan to kill three birds with one stone: First, to quell the monstrous rage of the Five Directional Emperors caused by the annihilation of ten thousand elites;

Second, to provide the Five Directional Emperors with a "reasonable explanation"—even the Immortal Emperor's most trusted strategist had died in battle, indicating that this war was not the Immortal Emperor intentionally sacrificing the five divisions;

Third, he himself quietly hid behind the scenes, continuing to manipulate the overall situation.

However, Immortal Emperor Haotian looked relaxed, even with a hint of playful anticipation: "No hurry. I am very much looking forward to Taichu entering the Heaven-Reaching Realm."

Zi Xuwu's heart tightened: "Your Majesty?!"

"One hundred thousand years have passed," Haotian looked up at the Void Realm, his tone surprisingly somewhat desolate. "The Immortal Realm has long become a stagnant pool. No one dares to challenge me anymore, no one can force me to use my trump cards. If Taichu can truly reach that step... perhaps, it can add a bit of interest to my boring eternal life."