It felt as though everything in heaven and earth had vanished, leaving only the white-robed God King himself, becoming an eternal beam of pure light, untouched by the dust of the mortal world.
He was like a true divine being, sitting perfectly still, the Dao of Heaven resonating in harmony with him, boundless auspicious radiance descending in his honor, countless traces of the Dao shimmering, all moving and resonating for his sake alone.
No one could draw near him — only the falling petals drifted around him, and even as he vomited blood in great mouthfuls from his grievous wounds, every Ancient King present felt their hearts tremble with fear.
It took a long time for people to come back to their senses. The various primordial clans wore expressions of dread, unable to guess what price would be needed to end the white-robed God King’s life.
And the human cultivators were filled entirely with worry, sensing that something was terribly wrong — their feelings stood in stark contrast to those of the primordial clans, for the God King’s life force had been severely depleted, and he might not be able to hold on much longer.
“He is this powerful — someone must be found to eliminate him. Otherwise, in the future, he will surely become the greatest obstacle on my path to attaining the Dao, for he began his journey earlier than I did. If I do not remove him now, it will be too late.” the Heavenly Prince’s Son said coldly.
“Will more people act within a short time?” Yuangu asked, his left eye a black sun, his right eye a crimson moon, an unsettling and eerie sight.
“Rest assured, there is an unrivaled being who will soon arrive. In truth, many do not believe Wushi is still alive.” the Heavenly Prince’s Son said calmly.
Not far away, Ye Fan could barely restrain himself from revealing his trump card, but having caught these words with his Wind-Following Ear, he forcibly suppressed the urge, his heart sinking.
More would still come — just how many terrifying Kings did the primordial clans actually have? This seemed to be only a portion of them. He felt that his trump card needed to be used where it mattered most, saved for the critical moment.
“Back then, after the Battle-Saint Emperor entered Nirvana, the world fell into chaos almost immediately. Even a peerless figure like the Divine Silkworm Princess was nailed to death by a single spear, and even that Battle-Saint monkey was forced to head west. The myriad clans… have no shortage of world-shaking experts, especially on this ancient star!” the Heavenly Prince’s Son murmured to himself.
“It really is difficult to kill him.” At the center of the battlefield, the Xuedian Queen spoke, the dragon spear in her hand glowing with a cold, blood-red light — even one as powerful as her did not dare act rashly.
They had surrounded the great enemy once more, and yet not a single Ancient King was willing to act carelessly, all of them fearing they might be killed by the God King’s dying strike.
The God King’s hands moved across the strings, notes ringing out clear and crisp, though he did not press the attack, and the two sides remained locked in a delicate, uneasy balance.
A single man facing down a host of Ancient Kings — this display of dominance was staggering, so much so that not a single person dared to cross the line, each wary of the other.
“Are you all afraid? Each of you is the ancestor of an entire clan — what storms have you not weathered? Do you truly not dare to kill a man on the verge of death?” the Xuedian Queen said, a wave of scarlet mist rising from her body, the dragon spear shooting forth beams of blood-red light that pierced through the clouds above.
“Kill!”
At last, the Ancient Kings attacked once more. The white-robed God King’s life force was nearly spent — they could not give him even a moment’s respite; this was the best opportunity to kill him.
The notes of the qin rang out sharply, petals drifting through the air, carving streaks of resplendent light, as brilliant as fireworks bursting forth, dazzling to the very extreme in that instant.
“Puff!”
A streak of blood-light appeared, and an Ancestral King’s head fell to the ground, his Origin Spirit severed, dead on the spot.
“Someone has died — another Ancient King has died!”
Chaos erupted outside the battlefield — so many Ancient Kings had already died at the hands of a single man today; the price paid was simply too great for any clan to bear.
Unsurprisingly, the God King’s face grew even paler, the divine blood he coughed up growing heavier, his body swaying as though he might collapse at any moment.
“Just a little more and it will be finished!” another Ancient King said coldly. Having fought this far, if they stopped their attack now, giving the white-robed God King time to recover, all their efforts would come to nothing.
“Kill him, he has no strength left to resist this time!” the others shouted, unleashing their divine laws once more, launching another fierce wave of assault.
This time, no notes of the qin sounded, no ripples spread outward — there was only a single sigh from the white-robed God King, and yet it was even more terrifying than before.
“Ahh…” A terrified scream rang out, as one Ancient King’s body transformed into light, rapidly disintegrating, until finally he vanished entirely.
The Sigh of the Divine!
Heaven and earth fell silent in an instant. All the Ancient Kings halted their advance, each of them feeling a chill run down their spine — they had seen life and death many times before, but never had they felt such dread as they did today.
Their opponent could no longer hold out much longer, and yet he still refused to die. Killing enemy after enemy in this manner, continuing on like this would exhaust not the white-robed God King, but themselves instead.
At this moment, even the Xuedian Queen had ceased her attack, for she had no confidence left. Though she felt that the God King would fall at any moment, having failed time and again, seeing so many Ancient Kings cut down had drained them of their courage.
“So many of us… and yet, at this rate, we may all be killed by him!” one Ancient King said, his whole body turning cold.
This was an unforgettable scene — a blood-soaked man in white robes sitting before his ancient qin, transcendent and otherworldly, wrapped in the falling rain of petals, holding a host of Ancient Kings at bay, not a single one daring to make a reckless move.
Heaven and earth fell utterly silent, no one spoke a word, only the falling petals drifting down with a soft rustling sound, shimmering with crystalline light.
That such an outcome could occur — no one had ever imagined it. The human race had only a single Sage, and yet he could stand against so many Ancestral Kings!
“Why is this happening?” some among the primordial clans felt indignant, yet none dared step forward.
“A single man suppressing a host of kings all on his own — if word of this got out, it would be a disgrace to every clan present. What are you all so afraid of?” a cold, clear voice rang out from the sky.
Five brilliant beams of light descended from the heavens. Leading them was a Sage-King, his purple hair flowing loose, his figure tall and slender, nearly identical in appearance to the human race.
Behind him followed four more Ancient Kings — though they could not compare to him, they were formidable enough in their own right, especially arriving at such a critical moment.
“It is the Zilin Ancestral King, they come from the Myriad Dragon Nest!”
The various primordial clans were all startled — this was an extraordinarily powerful faction; legend held that within the Myriad Dragon Nest dwelt an ancient, primordial Great Sage capable of looking down upon this entire ancient star!
They advanced step by step. The Sage-King leading them was named Zilin, his reputation known throughout the primordial era, recognized by many, his expression cold and indifferent, clearly intent on attacking the white-robed God King.
“Boom!”
At that very moment, the West Emperor’s Pagoda thundered in the sky above, columns of energy as thick as mountains pouring down one after another, as though seeking to destroy every Ancient King present.
And yet Zilin remained utterly unafraid, gazing up at the sky, and said, “Jade Pool sacred grounds, do you truly dare to act? Outside, two ancient Emperor weapons are already trained upon this very place!”
The scene fell into dead silence — matters had escalated to this degree; the situation had grown extremely severe. The ancient Emperor’s weapons had already been readied — the slightest misstep could trigger a truly catastrophic confrontation.
This kind of collision would be nearly world-ending in nature; no one could imagine how terrible the consequences might be.
“It is not only you who possess Emperor weapons — our ancient Emperor weapons are even older, already having achieved divinity. If it truly comes to war, the outcome is already sealed.” From the sky, four more figures descended, each wreathed in divine flame.
The crowd’s hearts turned cold — with so many Sages among the primordial clans, if they were to wield their ancient Emperor weapons, the power would surely surpass many times over what the human race’s Emperor weapon could muster.
“Truly a hero among men, standing alone against so many Ancestral Kings — most unexpected indeed.” As these words fell, three more Ancient Kings descended, gray mist swirling around them, their presence deeply unsettling.
The human cultivators present felt their hearts turn to ash — how could this battle possibly continue? The white-robed God King was already gravely wounded and on the verge of death, and now twelve more Ancient Kings had appeared, among them a Sage-King.
“Does heaven truly intend to destroy the last Sage of our race?” a human sect leader lamented. It was a situation beyond words, the gap simply too vast, leaving people utterly powerless, filled with an inexplicable sorrow.
“How dull. Does the human race truly have only one Sage? And even with so many of you, you still could not bring him down — truly a disgrace.” Two men appeared in the void, every pore of their bodies emitting light, so brilliant that it was difficult to look directly at them.
“It’s them — the Twin Ancestral Kings!” The various primordial clans were struck with terror — these two men looked utterly identical, twin brothers whose reputation had spread throughout the primordial era, and terrifyingly, both were Sage-Kings.
Fourteen Ancient Kings had now gathered, three of them Sage-Kings — such a scene already foretold the outcome, leaving the human race in silence.
Especially with the arrival of the Twin Kings — this made people even more apprehensive. Originally, some of the other Ancient Kings had grown displeased at those earlier remarks, yet upon seeing the twins’ arrival, no conflict broke out after all.
“The one you spoke of — that is their father, isn’t it?” Yuangu asked in a low voice.
The Heavenly Prince’s Son nodded and said, “Indeed. He is the one with hope of becoming a Great Sage — the Fallen Heaven Ancestral King!”
“How many Great Sages can there truly be in the primordial era? Attaining that level of Sagehood is simply too difficult. I already knew the Fallen Heaven King would come — there have long been rumors that he has hope of succeeding.” Yuangu sighed.
“Rumble, rumble, rumble…”
At the edge of the sky, nine terrifying ancient beasts came running, each one at the level of a Great Ancient King, boundlessly terrifying, all of them primordial fierce beasts.
They pulled an ancient war chariot behind them, trampling across the high heavens, sounding like the divine drums of the Celestial Court being struck, resounding through the clouds, striking terror into every heart.
Nine primordial fierce beasts, each at the level of a Great Ancient King, used merely to pull a chariot — such an entrance was staggering, leaving people utterly chilled, every hair on their bodies standing on end.
“Boom!”
The nine primordial beasts came to a halt, and the ancient war chariot stopped as well, a sky-reaching aura pouring forth, and a terrifying figure stepped down from the chariot.
Mist swirled about him, hazy and obscuring, so thick that even Heaven’s Eye could not see through it — only a pair of pale green eyes shone with a terrifying light, and through the haze one could faintly make out a tall figure, like a demonic god given form!
“Greetings, Fallen Heaven King!”
The Ancient Kings present, however arrogant and proud they might otherwise be, all stepped forward and bowed in respect upon seeing this ancient ancestor — one could only imagine how exalted his status and how terrifying his power truly was.
At this point, the human cultivators fell into complete despair — how could they possibly continue to resist this? Even if the white-robed God King defied heaven itself, it would be useless now that the Fallen Heaven King had arrived.
More than twenty Ancient Kings, and now this Fallen Heaven King who had hope of becoming a Great Sage besides — how could anyone fight against that?
“A single man standing alone against a host of Ancient Kings, having slain three Sage-Kings — such an achievement is truly remarkable. He is indeed a man of extraordinary talent.” The Fallen Heaven Ancestral King stood before his ancient war chariot, looking down from above, his eyes even more terrifying within the black mist, like two divine lamps, his towering body visible only as a vague silhouette.
The white-robed God King rose to his feet, standing alone against the many Ancient Kings, and then turned his gaze toward the Fallen Heaven King, his expression calm, unchanged.
“I wish to take you as my adopted son. Would you be willing to join my clan? In time, you could become a Great Sage revered by all the myriad clans.” the Fallen Heaven King said, uttering these earth-shattering words.
Everyone was stunned into silence. All the Ancient Kings present were astonished, and even his own biological sons, the Twin Kings, were taken aback, turning to look at the terrifying figure atop the ancient war chariot.
“Hmph!”
The white-robed God King let out a cold snort for the first time, and said, “I only wish to know — how many more Ancient Kings will still come?”
“Since I have already arrived, no one else will act.” the Fallen Heaven King said calmly, and yet his words carried an air of awe-inspiring, unrivaled supremacy!
At that very same moment, in a distant, uninhabited region where great peaks rose into the sky, a dazzling Deification List suddenly shot into the heavens, soaring toward the Jade Pool!
Translation note: This excerpt is drawn from the middle of a very long web novel and references many earlier plot events and characters (Ye Fan, Wushi, the Divine Silkworm Princess, the Black Emperor, etc.) that are assumed to already be familiar to the reader.