Side Story

In the vast haze, he seemed to have lost consciousness.

As Dou Di Space trembled, Zhang Tian felt his soul arrive in a starry expanse.

An endless river of stars stretched before him. Countless stars glittered, and the Milky Way resembled a massive ribbon, dotted with innumerable tiny stars.

Meteors streaked down from time to time, yet there was not a single fixed star in the sky-wide galaxy.

Zhang Tian floated in the cosmic void, incomparably small. He tried taking two steps, only to discover that his feet stood upon solid ground.

With every step he took, ripples spread beneath his feet, dispersing all the way to the end of the endless galaxy. As the ripples passed, Zhang Tian saw countless tiny squares beneath him, crisscrossing like an enormous chessboard suspended in the void.

Every star in the universe trembled and transformed into streams of light. Beam after beam became projections cast upon the chessboard.

Sealing heaven and locking earth, weaving the cosmos into a net, with four hundred million million ancient stars as pieces, all controlled by one man.

"I am Zi Shou!"

"Starry Sky Numerology, ever-changing stars at my command."

A colossal fist that covered the sky emerged from the end of the universe, tearing apart all space as it slammed heavily onto the chessboard. The chessboard laid out in the void appeared, its radiance blazing as it instantly illuminated the universe. Every star seemed drawn by an unknown force and crashed rapidly into the giant fist.

Meteor after meteor struck the giant fist, annihilating all life and shattering the universe into silent fragments. Explosions erupted from one celestial body after another, like dazzling fireworks blooming in the void.

"Gather Star Power, shatter evil and drive out demons!"

Lines of white light tore through the universe from the chessboard, exposing the black inner wall of the Outer Universe. The two sides collided madly, sending the endless galaxy surging backward and bursting stars across the sky. In the end, four hundred million million stars combined into a river of starlight. An energy pillar nearly wider than the Milky Way descended upon the giant fist that covered the sky, carrying majestic heavenly might and unfathomable suppressive force. The universe had become like a fragile toy, unable to bear such immense pressure as it began to vanish and collapse.

"If heaven presses upon me, then I shall tear heaven apart! When man gives rise to killing intent, heaven and earth shall turn upside down!"

The mysterious man's furious roar rang out. His aura, utterly fearless of heavenly might and ready to battle heaven and earth, swept across the universe, tearing heaven and splitting earth, roaring stars from the sky!

A divine-fiend true form barely lit up, only to quickly turn illusory. It was directly struck by Zi Shou's Infinite Annihilation Starlight and transformed into starlight that filled the heavens.

"Mortals without divine bloodlines, die!"

Zi Shou, hidden within the universe, shot icy lightning from his eyes, illuminating ten thousand miles of starry sky. With a single finger pointed down, the chessboard collapsed, and endless starlight transformed into stars that filled the sky.

Yet another supreme beam, no weaker than the previous one, shot toward the direction from which the giant fist that covered the sky had reached in.

"Alas." A middle-aged man clad in an imperial-colored robe sighed at the sight. Though he was the true king with the purest bloodline, he had no power to fight back against Zi Shou. The blue-robed middle-aged man who had remained by his side was likewise silent.

That man's power was too great. He had already reached the pinnacle of true divinity. There were truly very few people capable of restraining him.

Just as the two were powerless to stop Zi Shou's final attack, an arrow flew in from the Inner Universe beyond the heavens.

That arrow instantly pierced through the inner wall of the Outer Universe, cut across the sea of stars, and penetrated the power of space and time, piercing straight through the beam of light.

Two more arrows shot out together, merging into one and instantly destroying more than half the universe.

"Lie Di!" Astonishment and wild joy appeared on the face of the middle-aged man in imperial robes. Lie Di had made his move!

"Yi."

Without using the imperial title bestowed upon him by the Heavenly Emperor, Zi Shou called out the true name of the newcomer, his expression slightly cold.

Ignoring Zi Shou's ugly gaze, the mysterious figure of light that emerged from the Inner Universe looked over the ruined starry sky. That single arrow had destroyed more than half the universe. Otherwise, no one could contend against Zi Shou, who had gathered the power of the entire universe. Not him, and not Shi either. Zi Shou was too powerful, too defiant of heaven.

"Back then, you shot down nine suns to save the common people. Now, for one person, you have destroyed more than half the universe and buried half its living beings." Zi Shou's voice echoed through the ruined universe, carrying a faint trace of mockery.

Yi remained silent. He said nothing, because he knew that if he had not destroyed the universe, even if he joined forces with Shi, they would not have been able to suppress Zi Shou. In the end, their battle would only bring about the destruction of the entire universe, leaving both sides ruined.

Sacrificing the chariot to preserve the king—or cutting off an arm to survive.

"The Imperial Court honored you, Yi, as an emperor, yet you betrayed the Imperial Court. I find it strange that you would intervene." Myriad streams of starlight gathered again, though they were much fainter now. Zi Shou did not care. His face remained proud; he was still invincible in this world.

"I did not betray the Imperial Court, and the Imperial Court does not belong to you, Zi Shou." Yi spoke for the first time since arriving. The mysterious man who had unleashed the giant fist that covered the sky still had not appeared, but everyone present knew he was merely healing his injuries. Unless Zi Shou was defeated, he could not possibly escape.

"Oh? Then tell me, whose Imperial Court is it? Is my status as Emperor Lord not enough?" Zi Shou sneered. As he strolled leisurely, he drew upon the power of the universe, shattering starfields with every strike.

Yi evaded Zi Shou's attacks. Every ray of starlight brought destruction to a vast expanse of stars. He clenched his hands, and the phantom of an ancestral phoenix divine bow appeared in the universe. He gripped it tightly, poured his conviction into it, then pulled back the bowstring with two fingers and released it.

Whoosh! The arrow's shadow swept through the universe with heaven-piercing force, annihilating every stellar art. In but an instant, it crossed the starfield.

"Your arrows are still so fast." Zi Shou gave an evil smile. At that moment, the starry sky seemed to freeze. The arrow shadow still advanced at tremendous speed, yet the universe and spacetime before its tip shattered inch by inch.

"The Imperial Court naturally belongs to heaven and earth, to all living beings, and to the Myriad Spirits of the universe!" Yi said deeply after releasing the arrow of annihilation.

"Hahahahaha! Before all things in this universe, what right do you, who just destroyed half or sixty percent of all living beings, have to spout such grand words?" Zi Shou laughed loudly, slapping away the terrifying arrow-light with one palm. Even the universe sank beneath the imprint of his hand.

"I control seventy percent of the Outer Universe, and you control the Inner Universe. Is that still not enough for you? Do you know what crime it is to defy the Imperial Court?" Zi Shou's eyes shifted slightly, like a cold and merciless god passing judgment.

The middle-aged man in imperial robes clenched his fists tightly within his sleeves, and the aura emanating from him warped the space around him.

"Zi Shou, you have gone too far." Looking at Zi Shou, who enforced the law in heaven's name, the Heavenly Emperor spoke almost through gritted teeth, each word deliberate.

"Why did I intervene?" Soft golden light radiated from Yi's entire body, enveloping him. He looked at his hands, then clenched them into fists.

"I am light, and I am human."