“The Sword Wielder, Qingqiu!”
For a moment, all the powerful experts in the First Star Ring were astonished.
The Sword Wielder, Qingqiu, was a congenital sword cultivator, possessing an invincible sword body. She was the daughter of the Star River Alliance Leader. Her cultivation had already reached Nine-star Myriad Phase Realm late-stage Great Perfection, just one step away from the Ancient Ancestor Realm! In this epoch, Qingqiu wielded the sword, protecting the Fallen Star Sea!
Everyone knew that Qingqiu had dedicated her life to the Dao of the Sword. Though she was a woman of peerless beauty, she was as unapproachable as a ten-thousand-year-old ice mountain.
At this moment, Shenwu Emperor Tianye's illusory form frowned slightly. “Qingqiu, I require an explanation.”
Qingqiu stood suspended in the air, her back still turned to Shenwu Emperor Tianye. She spoke indifferently, “I owe you no explanation.”
Her words fell, and everyone present was stunned. The Shenwu Emperor’s brow furrowed deeply.
Only then did he recall that Qingqiu had vehemently opposed the establishment of the four Star Rings in the Fallen Star Sea! The idea had been proposed by Ju Shou back then, with the aim of gathering the Star Sea’s power to help Ancient Ancestor Realm forces ascend to even higher levels. This matter involved an ultimate secret of the Fallen Star Sea! After that ultimate secret, all remaining Ancient Ancestors considered breaking through the Ancient Ancestor Realm to step into an even higher realm! Thus, Ju Shou had put forward the “Star Ring” concept.
“Only the strong are worthy of commanding more cultivation resources. Ancient Ancestors, who establish sects and are revered as Ancestors, rightfully deserve to enjoy more cultivation resources! Others simply aren’t worthy!”
However, after Ju Shou’s Star Ring concept was adopted and the four Star Rings were forged by numerous Ancient Ancestors, Ju Shou was expelled from the Star River Alliance due to his arrogance and self-importance. He drifted into the First Star Ring, eventually encountering the Sixth Prince Yun Zeng of the Shenwu Empire!
But Qingqiu had vehemently opposed the creation of the four Star Rings! In her view, all beings in the world were equal. There was no Hierarchy of Ranks! This was also the philosophy of “that being”! The creation of the four Star Rings undoubtedly divided all living beings into a Hierarchy of Ranks. Were Ancient Ancestor Realm experts born as Ancient Ancestors? No. They too had cultivated step by step to reach the Ancient Ancestor Realm! And now, numerous Ancient Ancestor Realm forces sought to establish the four Star Rings, completely severing the hopes of all others in the Fallen Star Sea from breaking through to the Ancient Ancestor Realm! To achieve an Ancient Ancestor monopoly! All under the guise of “breaking through to a higher realm!”
However, there was one aspect of the four Star Rings’ existence that Qingqiu acknowledged. The presence of the four Star Rings indeed suppressed the power of the Dark Void! The Dark Void was a sword hanging over the heads of all living beings!
After a moment of silence, Qingqiu, clad in her plain skirt, turned to return to the Star River Alliance. The Shenwu Emperor declared, “That White Robe Star Venerate dared to belittle my Ancient Ancestor’s might. Since you are the Sword Wielder, go and kill him.”
Qingqiu’s face remained placid, utterly devoid of emotion. She offered no response. This was clearly a refusal! Everyone was stunned. Below the Ancient Ancestor Realm, only Qingqiu dared to defy the Shenwu Emperor in such a manner. This was due to her transcendent identity and power! She was the daughter of the Star River Alliance Leader, and her combat prowess could rival an Ancient Ancestor!
Just then, a sudden anomaly erupted from the distant Dark Void! Boom! A terrifying power spread outward from the Dark Void, a surge of ‘Stance,’ ‘Dao,’ and ‘Rhyme.’ Instantly, Shenwu Emperor Tianye, Qingqiu, and the others all blanched. The power of the Dark Void!
It was widely known that the Dark Void contained a terrifying ‘Fallen Power.’ What was ‘Fallen Power’? It was a force that relentlessly dragged all stars and all living beings in the entire Fallen Star Sea downwards, towards annihilation! To fall was to perish! The Fallen Star Sea itself had a lifespan, and the existence of the Dark Void was undoubtedly accelerating its end! The Dark Void’s power spread rapidly throughout the Fallen Star Sea, but only the strongest cultivators could perceive this change! Those below the Myriad Phase Realm were utterly unaware of this profound mystery!
Boom! Boom! Boom! Within the Fallen Star Sea, the remaining three Star Rings erupted with dazzling divine radiance. This was the power of the three Star Rings spontaneously resisting the Dark Void’s force! Although other cultivators couldn’t detect the changes within the Dark Void itself, they could all witness the transformations of the three Star Rings. Everyone was shocked. What was happening? Could the shattering of the Fourth Star Ring have triggered a chain reaction, affecting the other three Star Rings?
A moment later, Shenwu Emperor Tianye looked at Qingqiu. “The Fourth Star Ring shattered, leading to the Dark Void’s power leaking out. This is your dereliction of duty. I require an explanation.”
Hearing this, Qingqiu’s expression remained unchanged. “I will personally journey to the Dark Void to investigate. However, in the cosmic order, there is always a predetermined outcome! A three-foot layer of ice isn’t formed in a single cold day, and the Dark Void’s power didn’t erupt in a single moment. It was absolutely not the shattering of the Fourth Star Ring that caused the Dark Void’s power to leak.”
As her words faded, Qingqiu’s plain skirt billowed around her. Under her jade-like feet, sword qi lotus flowers bloomed with each step, carrying her further away. Each stride covered a staggering hundred thousand feet! She walked beyond the First Star Ring, her destination: the Dark Void!
Watching Qingqiu’s beautiful retreating figure, Shenwu Emperor Tianye commanded, “Kill that White Robe Star Venerate for me.”
Qingqiu remained silent. A flicker of umbrage appeared in Tianye’s eyes. This Qingqiu was truly too audacious, daring to disregard him simply because she was the daughter of the Star River Alliance Leader. It was outrageous! However, despite his anger, he naturally wouldn’t send his true body to kill Lu Xuan! Simply because Lu Xuan was too weak!
Tianye’s divine sense swept through the First Star Ring, and he quickly located Ju Shou at the Sixth Prince Yun Zeng’s encampment. “Ju Shou.” Hearing his name, Ju Shou respectfully bowed to Shenwu Emperor Tianye. “Your Imperial Majesty!”
Tianye’s face was stern, radiating an unspoken authority. He commanded, “Kill a man for me, that White Robe Star Venerate.” Ju Shou asked, “The man who extinguished your Ancient Ancestor’s Eye outside the Fourth Star Ring?” Tianye nodded. Ju Shou replied, “I will have the Sixth Prince Yun Zeng handle it.” Tianye simply said, “Good.”
He held a certain fondness for the Sixth Prince Yun Zeng. This was because the prince, though banished to a remote region, had fortuitously discovered a Dragon Vein and risen from obscurity. Tianye had observed Yun Zeng’s actions over the years. He hadn’t interfered in the struggles between his princes! Simply because they were merely Myriad Phase Realm princes; how much trouble could they possibly stir, even if they tried to overturn the heavens? Their capabilities were limited. Tianye fully approved of his princes contending with each other, even if one killed another, it didn’t matter. Because this was the struggle for the crown! As the saying went, ‘How can plum blossoms smell fragrant without enduring the bitter cold?’ How else could his princes become as exceptional as he, Tianye, without such a struggle?
A moment later, Shenwu Emperor Tianye’s wisp of divine sense returned to his Great Tomb. Ju Shou, meanwhile, looked towards the Third Star Ring. “Yun Zeng has gone to the Charm Sect. I’ll inform him of this matter once he returns.” He muttered, “That White Robe Star Venerate dared to provoke an Ancient Ancestor. This is simply unheard of!”
Meanwhile, at Cloudrise Holy Land. Lu Xuan lay leisurely on his recliner. Ji Fuyao, Ye Chen, and the other two disciples were slaughtering their way through Cloudrise Holy Land! Not only that, but Cloudrise Holy Land was now a crumbling wall, with everyone pushing it down, besieged by forces from across the Fourth Star Ring!
At the same time, the Supreme Fox Clan members wore extremely solemn expressions. A grey-robed old woman looked at Ah Li and said, “Ah Li, I think it’s best we distance ourselves from this White Robe Star Venerate! This man is lawless and reckless! He will ultimately bring great disaster upon us!”