27: The first time in life

Myriad Spirits Sect, the deepest part of the ancestral land.

Inside a black great hall sealed by ten-thousand-year profound ice, the originally dead air suddenly solidified.

In the center of the hall sat a figure as burly as an iron tower.

His upper body was bare, muscles coiled like dragons, his skin bronze, and every inch of it seemed to contain the power of thunder.

Saint Zilei.

The older brother of Ancestor Zishan, the true pillar of the Myriad Spirits Sect, a powerhouse who had already stepped into the Saint Fourth Heaven realm.

At the exact moment Ancestor Zishan's Soul Lamp went out.

"Crack."

Saint Zilei's tightly closed eyes snapped open.

Two pillars of thunderous light instantly shot through the hall's dome, piercing straight into the nine heavens!

"Brother!!"

A shrill roar, mixed with endless grief and fury, exploded outward in all directions from the hall!

Rumble—!

The entire mountain gate of the Myriad Spirits Sect trembled violently at this roar.

The Spiritual Qi within a thousand miles instantly went into a riot.

Countless Disciples who were currently cultivating didn't even have time to scream before their heart meridians were shattered by the sound waves, bleeding from their seven orifices and dying on the spot!

Even the Sect-protecting Spirit Beasts kept in the rear mountains were so terrified by this Saint Might that their galls burst; they collapsed to the ground wailing, losing control of their bowels.

"Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!"

Several streaks of light galloped from various Peaks; they were the few remaining Pseudo-Saint Grand Elders of the Myriad Spirits Sect.

Looking at the collapsing main Peak, their faces turned pale, eyes filled with terror.

"Old Ancestor, please appease your anger! Old Ancestor, please appease your anger!"

A Grand Elder braved the pressure and rushed forward, kneeling before the ruins, his voice trembling.

"What on earth has happened to provoke such wrath from the Old Ancestor?"

Amidst the ruins, the thunderous light dissipated.

Saint Zilei slowly stood up, his eyes blood-red, his whole body emitting a ferocious aura like a beast ready to devour.

He tightly gripped a shattered Soul Jade in his hand, his knuckles turning white, his voice as raspy as a malevolent ghost.

"Zishan... is dead."

Boom!

These words were like a bolt from the blue, striking heavily upon the heads of the Grand Elders.

Ancestor Zishan... has fallen?!

He took the saint slaying bow to kill a newly ascended Saint, and yet he was the one who fell?!

"Who did it?!"

Saint Zilei took a step forward, instantly appearing before that Grand Elder, his large hand death-gripping the other's crown.

"Tell me! Who killed him!!"

The Grand Elder's bones creaked under the Saint Might, tears and snot flowing from pain, yet he dared not hesitate for a second.

"It's... it's Su Xuanchen! Su Xuanchen of the Northern Wilderness's Su Family!"

"Ancestor Zishan took people to Tianyan City... and then... then the Soul Lamp went out..."

"Su, Xuan, Chen!"

Saint Zilei squeezed these three words through his teeth, each one carrying bone-deep killing intent.

"Good, good, good! What a Su Family! What a newly ascended Saint!"

"You killed my brother and wiped out my Sect's elite!"

"Today, this seat shall leave no one alive in your Su Family, not even the chickens and dogs! I will extract your Souls and refine your spirits, lighting them as sky lanterns for ten thousand years!!"

Boom!

The thunder around him surged, and he turned into a purple bolt of lightning, about to tear through the Void Realm to slaughter his way to Tianyan City.

However.

Just as he was about to depart.

An aura that made his Soul tremble descended over the Myriad Spirits Sect without warning.

The sky turned black.

It wasn't dark clouds obscuring the sun.

Rather, countless brilliant stars forcibly filled the firmament above the Myriad Spirits Sect, turning day into eternal night!

An indifferent voice pierced through the Sect-protecting array, clearly echoing in the ears of every Myriad Spirits Sect member.

"No need to go through the trouble."

"This seat has arrived."

Above the Myriad Spirits Sect.

Su Xuanchen stood with his hands behind his back, his groom's wedding robes appearing exceptionally eye-catching under the starlight.

Behind him was a vast sea of stars.

Beneath his feet was the trembling mountain gate of the Myriad Spirits Sect.

"Su! Xuan! Chen!"

Saint Zilei looked at the murderer of his brother, the fire of rage in his eyes almost erupting.

"You actually dare to deliver yourself to my door?!"

"Activate the Sect-protecting array! Suppress this villain!!"

Along with Saint Zilei's roar.

The Myriad Spirits Sect's tens of thousands of years of foundation erupted completely at this moment.

Hum—!

Ninety-nine main Peaks lit up simultaneously with blinding pillars of light.

An earthy-yellow light barrier, a thousand zhang thick, instantly rose, enveloping the entire Myriad Spirits Sect within.

Upon the light barrier, runes flowed, and the phantom of the ancient Divine Beast, the Black Tortoise, faintly emerged, emitting an indestructible aura.

This was the ultimate trump card of the Myriad Spirits Sect—the Black Tortoise Sea-Suppressing Array!

It was claimed to be unbreakable by anyone below the Saint King realm!

"Hahaha! Su Xuanchen!"

Saint Zilei stood within the array, a hideous, wild laugh appearing on his face.

"This array was left by our Sect's founding Ancestral Master! Even if a Saint at the Peak came, they couldn't hope to..."

Before he could finish his sentence.

Su Xuanchen gave a contemptuous smile.

"A turtle shell?"

"Are these your last words?"

Su Xuanchen slowly raised his right hand.

Inside his body, that supreme Cultivation Technique he had never fully unleashed—the Nine Tribulations Secret Codex—roared into operation!

Boom!

First Tribulation! Physical Body amplification!

Second Tribulation! Primordial Spirit amplification!

Third Tribulation! Magic power amplification!

...In an instant, the aura on Su Xuanchen began to skyrocket at a rate that defied all logic!

Twofold!

Fivefold!

Tenfold!!

His original Saint Fourth Heaven cultivation was forcibly pulled up to an unimaginable level at this moment!

The space around him could not withstand this power and began to collapse on a large scale, turning into chaotic nothingness.

Saint Zilei's laughter stopped abruptly.

His eyes widened as he looked at the figure outside the array who seemed to have transformed into an archaic god-fiend; a fear stemming from his Soul instantly drowned all his reason.

"This... what kind of monster is this?!"

"This aura... a Saint King?! No! It's even more terrifying than a Saint King!!"

Su Xuanchen ignored the ant's shock.

He simply pressed down a palm slowly towards the Myriad Spirits Sect below, towards that proud Black Tortoise array.

"Starfall."

Rumble—!

The sea of stars above the firmament boiled.

All the stars fell simultaneously at this moment!

They were not phantoms.

But real, physical stars condensed from supreme magic power!

One after another, densely packed like a world-ending meteor shower, carrying terrifying kinetic energy, they slammed heavily onto that earthy-yellow light barrier!

Bang! Bang! Bang!

As the first star fell, the light barrier trembled violently.

As the tenth star fell, the Black Tortoise phantom wailed.

As the hundredth star fell.

Crack!

The Black Tortoise Sea-Suppressing Array, which was claimed to be unbreakable by anyone below the Saint King realm, shattered like an eggshell hit by a hammer!

"No!!!"

Saint Zilei let out a desperate howl.

But this was only the beginning.

After the array shattered, the remaining thousands of stars fell into the Myriad Spirits Sect's mountain gate without any obstruction.

Destruction descended.

Peaks were leveled.

Palaces turned to ash.

Those Elders and Disciples still putting up a last-ditch resistance were vaporized the moment the starlight fell, having no time to even scream.

Saint Zilei went mad.

He burned all his Lifespan and sacrificed all his Magic Treasures, trying to block this world-ending strike.

But before the absolute power of the tenfold amplification.

All struggles were in vain.

A massive purple star struck him right on the crown of his head.

"Pfft."

This Saint Fourth Heaven powerhouse, along with his ambition, his hatred, and his Sect.

In this instant.

Was completely erased.

The dust settled.

Su Xuanchen stood in the Void Realm, looking down.

The Myriad Spirits Sect, which was originally full of Spiritual Qi and continuous mountains, had now turned into a massive crater ten thousand zhang deep.

All life, all buildings, all traces.

All disappeared.

Only scorched earth and the residual violent power of the stars in the air remained.

Su Xuanchen glanced at the time on the System panel.

"Nine minutes and forty-five seconds."

He brushed his sleeves, his expression indifferent.

"A bit slower than expected."

"Time to go back and drink the nuptial wine."

As his voice fell.

He took a step forward.

The starlight path spread out again, carrying this powerhouse who had just wiped out a top-tier power, instantly disappearing into the horizon.

Tianyan City, Purple Heaven Palace.

The wedding banquet was still ongoing, but the atmosphere felt somewhat oppressive.

All the guests craned their necks, occasionally looking towards the Void Realm outside the hall, their eyes filled with unease and anxiety.

Su Xuanchen had gone to destroy the Myriad Spirits Sect.

That was a colossus with an old-school Saint presiding over it and a Legacy of tens of thousands of years!

Even if Saint Su's combat power was Heaven-Defying, to break through the Sect-protecting array and kill Saint Zilei, he would surely have to fight for at least three days and nights, right?

"Sigh, it seems we'll have to drink this wedding wine for a few days."

The Sect Master of Hunyuan Sect sighed, picking up his wine cup and taking a sip.

However.

Before he could even put down his cup.

Hum—!

The Void Realm in the center of the hall suddenly rippled.

A handsome, flawless figure wearing bright red wedding robes stepped out from the ripples.

His hair was not messy, his clothes were neat, and even his breathing was as steady as usual.

He didn't carry even a hint of bloodlust; instead, he bore a faint, fresh scent of the stars.

Su Xuanchen.

"This..."

"How is this possible?!"

"Am I seeing things? I must be seeing things!"

The hall instantly erupted into Chaos.

Countless guests rubbed their eyes, their faces full of disbelief.

From the time Su Xuanchen left to the time he returned.

At most, it had only been fifteen minutes!

Fifteen minutes!

What was that amount of time enough for?

It was just enough for a Mortal to drink a cup of tea, or for a Cultivator to meditate.

To go millions of miles away and destroy a top-tier Sect? What a joke!

"Hus... Husband?"

On the high platform, Gu Lingshuang was also stunned.

She looked at the man who had suddenly appeared and called out subconsciously, her tone carrying a hint of doubt.

"You... didn't go?"

Su Xuanchen walked to her side, took her hand again, a gentle smile on his face.

"I went."

He gave a casual wave of his hand.

Crash.

A pile of treasures emitting powerful fluctuations was dumped in the center of the hall like trash.

Those were the most precious resources from the Myriad Spirits Sect's treasury.

There was also a broken, massive plaque with the words "Myriad Spirits" carved on it, the symbol of the Myriad Spirits Sect's mountain gate.

And, a scorched black head that still carried the scent of thunder.

Saint Zilei.

The entire place fell into a dead silence.

So quiet that a pin drop could be heard.

Everyone stared blankly at that head, feeling the residual Saint pressure on it, and felt a chill throughout their bodies.

It really was Saint Zilei!

The Myriad Spirits Sect... was really gone!

In just fifteen minutes!

Traveling millions of miles, breaking the array, killing people, destroying the Sect, looting treasures, and then rushing back.

Was he even human?!

"Hiss—!"

The Sect Master of Lingxiao Sword Sect was currently kneeling in the corner, so scared he almost lost control of his bladder on the spot.

Too brutal!

Too terrifying!

This Su Xuanchen was simply an archaic Vicious Beast in human skin!

"The wine is still warm."

Su Xuanchen picked up the cup of wine he had filled before leaving and drank it in one gulp.

He looked at the group of guests below who seemed petrified and smiled faintly.

"Everyone, why aren't you drinking?"

"Could it be that this wine doesn't suit your taste?"

"We'll drink! We'll drink right now!"

"Saint Su's Divine Might is peerless! We are filled with utmost admiration!"

"A toast to Saint Su!"

The hall instantly erupted with a panicked yet enthusiastic sound of toasting.

Everyone was desperately gulping down wine, as if only this could suppress the fear and shock in their hearts.

At this moment.

The Su Family's position in the Northern Wilderness, and even the entire Eastern Region, was completely unshakable.

During the banquet.

The Old Ancestor of the Yunlan Dynasty, Bai Canglin, was flushed with excitement.

He looked at the god-like Su Xuanchen, then at his beautiful and moving granddaughter Bai Lingxi beside him, his eyes flashing with sharp light.

"An Opportunity! A massive Opportunity!"

As for Bai Lingxi, she was currently stealing glances at Su Xuanchen on the high platform, her pretty face flushed red, her eyes full of worship and shyness.

The strong.

An invincible powerhouse.

Which young girl doesn't dream of love?

The peerless grace Su Xuanchen displayed today had already been deeply etched into the bottom of her heart, impossible to wash away.

Deep into the night.

The clamor of the Purple Heaven Palace gradually faded.

The guests left one after another, carrying awe and shock.

In an extremely luxurious bedchamber behind the Su Family's main hall.

Red candles burned brightly, with patterns of dragons and phoenixes symbolizing prosperity.

The air was filled with a faint scent of ambergris and the delicate fragrance of a young woman.

Su Xuanchen pushed open the door and walked in.

In his heart, a rare trace of an emotion called "nervousness" actually arose.

This was the first time in his life.

It was also the beginning of his true rooting in this world.

The night was still long.

The legend belonging to Su Xuanchen and the Su Family.

Had only just begun.