The Fall of the Three Clans

The heavens were blood-red, and the earth wept tears.

At the foot of Buzhou Mountain, the richest and most sacred land in the Primordial Wilderness had now become a living hell. Mountains and seas of corpses lay piled across the scorched earth. Dragon scales mingled with phoenix feathers, while broken qilin horns and shattered armor covered every inch of the ground. Thick, foul-smelling blood gathered into streams, then lakes, staining the once-brown soil a shocking dark red. The air was saturated with bloodlust and baleful aura so dense it could not disperse, even condensing into a pale red mist visible to the naked eye. Breathing it in stirred the violence and desire lurking within one's mind.

The surviving members of the three clans had long since killed until their eyes were red. Or rather, the last remnants of their reason had been utterly devoured by the all-pervading Tribulation Fiend Qi. They no longer fought for victory or survival. Battle had become instinct—an absolute madness that would destroy the enemy at any cost!

An azure dragon with half its body severed roared and detonated its inner core. Blinding blue light mixed with destructive energy, swallowing several fire phoenixes and earth qilins nearby as they perished together.

A multicolored phoenix with a torn wing let out one final, shrill cry. Unstable Nirvana Fire ignited around its body as it crashed into the qilin ranks like a meteor, exploding with a thunderous blast and burning everything away.

An Ink Qilin, blinded and stripped of its horn, ignored the dragon spears and phoenix feathers embedded all over his body. He charged madly toward the Dragon Clan's formation and detonated his Qilin Pearl the instant he reached its core. Violent earth-elemental power reduced the entire area to dust.

Self-destruction! Self-destruction! Nothing but self-destruction!

Such scenes of utter horror played out across every corner of the battlefield. Life had become incomparably cheap at that moment. Its only value seemed to be taking more enemies down before it ended. The chain of hatred could no longer be undone. Only total destruction could bring even a moment of peace.

As the earth-shaking battle cries, explosions, and wails gradually became sparse, and only a handful of figures remained standing on the battlefield, the three clans' greatest powers were finally reduced to the three monarchs who had once looked down upon the Primordial Wilderness.

Ancestral Dragon's ten-thousand-zhang dragon body had been broken into several pieces. Only an undying breath of imperial Dragon Qi barely maintained his form. Golden dragon blood poured from countless bone-deep wounds like a burst riverbank, scattering through the sky as a tragic rain of blood. One of his dragon horns, the symbol of supreme authority, had broken. The scales on his majestic dragon head were shattered; one dragon eye was dim and lifeless, while the other was filled with blood and a near-numb madness.

Yuanfeng's dazzling wings, which had once eclipsed the sun and moon, were now charred and broken like scraps of cloth burned by flames. Her natal True Undying Fire had weakened to only a few flickering sparks around her body, as though it might go out completely at any moment. Her beautiful neck hung weakly, and blood capable of melting gold and forging iron dripped continuously from the edge of her beak. Every breath came with the sound of shattered organs.

Beginning Qilin, once the most auspicious and benevolent being, now had the armor symbolizing the earth's blessing completely shattered. The seven-colored auspicious clouds that had once circled him had turned into deathly gray-black clouds of Karma. He lay sprawled upon the devastated earth, his sacred body stained dark red by the blood of his own clan and the filth of his enemies. Every attempt to rise caused the light around him to flicker violently—a sign that his origin was rapidly collapsing.

Just as the three broken figures faced one another, preparing to unleash their final strike—a strike that would surely end in mutual destruction—

"BOOM-CRACK!!!"

A terrifying thunderclap that surpassed every sound in the world exploded from above the Ninth Heavens!

The World-Destroying Thunder Tribulation had finally descended!

Pitch-black Tribulation Clouds, like congealed ink, covered the sky for countless miles. Then, from the center of those clouds, the first bolt of lightning struck! The purple-black thunder possessed not only horrifying destructive power, but also the absolute intent of "ending," "returning to nothing," and "erasure"!

That purple-black lightning did not strike directly at the three monarchs. Instead, like a whip of Heavenly Punishment, it lashed viciously through several areas where the surviving members of the three clans were most densely gathered!

There was no explosion, no firelight.

Wherever the lightning passed, space silently vanished like fragile glass. Dragons, phoenixes, and qilins caught within it—regardless of cultivation, regardless of the severity of their wounds—had their bodies collapse and their primordial spirits dissolve the instant they touched that purple-black radiance. Every trace of their existence was erased from the Primordial World! Not even a speck of dust or wisp of remnant soul remained!

Then came the second bolt, the third... More World-Destroying Divine Thunder poured down like torrential rain, mercilessly cleansing this land soaked in sin and baleful aura. Every flash of lightning meant that another region of surviving three-clan members had been completely "cleared."

Ancestral Dragon, Yuanfeng, and Beginning Qilin barely endured the aftershocks of the thunder tribulation through their formidable strength, far beyond that of ordinary Quasi-Saints, and their imperial fortune. One used his ruined dragon body to withstand it head-on, one formed barriers with weak True Fire, and one gathered the power of the earth for protection. But the World-Destroying Divine Thunder was too terrifying. Every sweep of lightning shook their already crumbling origins violently, worsening their injuries still further. Never had the shadow of death hung so clearly over their hearts.

Yet it was precisely this threat of utter destruction, along with the sight of their clansmen being mercilessly erased by the Heavenly Dao, that crashed through the mental barriers clouded by baleful aura like an icy torrent!

Pain! Not merely pain of the flesh, but agony from the depths of their souls!

The madness in Ancestral Dragon's bloodshot eyes receded like a tide, replaced by boundless pain and regret. He looked at the Four Seas Water unleashed by the Dragon Clan, which had drowned countless living beings. He looked at the mountain-like heaps of corpses from his own clan and their enemies. He looked at the few remaining young dragons trembling beneath the thunder tribulation... An unprecedented sense of guilt bit into his heart like a venomous snake.

Blood tears flowed from Yuanfeng's eyes. She remembered the Phoenix Clan's arrogance as its True Fire burned the eight wildernesses to ash, the countless living beings who had wailed amid the flames, and the reluctant, desolate look in Beginning Phoenix's eyes before her eternal slumber... So the glory of a hegemon had been built upon such profound sin.

Beginning Qilin let out a low, grief-stricken whimper. He felt the agonized moans of the earth beneath his feet—the consequence of the Kirin Clan trampling mountains and rivers and tearing apart Earth Veins. Auspiciousness? When had they ever brought true peace? All they had brought was endless slaughter and destruction.

The three monarchs looked at one another from afar. In each other's eyes, they saw the same emotions—endless regret, acceptance of their own fates, and one last faint hope for their clans' futures.

They could not fight any longer.

For this Primordial World, and for whatever sliver of bloodline might still survive.

Ancestral Dragon moved first. With the last of his strength, he raised his massive, scarred head toward the thunder-filled heavens. His voice no longer held majesty. Hoarse and thick with blood, it branded itself into the Heaven and Earth Laws like an oath:

"Heavenly Dao above! I am Ancestral Dragon of the Dragon Clan! Today, Karma coils around me; I have only myself to blame! I seek not survival. I ask only to use this remnant body and dragon soul to forever suppress the Sea Eye of the Four Seas, regulate the waterways of the Primordial Wilderness, and atone for my clan's sin of overturning the four seas and flooding the land! I beg the Heavenly Dao to grant my clan a thread of life. The Dragon Clan is willing to forever bring clouds and rain to the Primordial Wilderness, repaying its karmic debt!"

With those words, his enormous dragon body, broken into several pieces, suddenly ignited with golden dragon flames! These were not flames of battle, but flames of sacrifice! Carrying his remaining essence blood, dragon soul, and imperial origin, the dragon flames transformed into a Golden Shackle spanning heaven and earth, radiating endless sealing power. With tragic resolve, it surged toward the bottomless, restless Sea Eye of the Four Seas! He would use himself to forever lock down the water-elemental power driven wild by the Dragon Clan!

Immediately after, Yuanfeng gave the final cry of her life. It was beautiful and resolute, like blood-weeping:

"Let the Heavenly Dao bear witness! I am Yuanfeng of the Phoenix Clan! My clan's sins are grave. We burned the eight wildernesses and brought ruin upon all living beings. Today, I am willing to repay them with my life! I shall scatter my soul and enter South Bright Undying Volcano, using my body to eternally suppress the earthfire, preventing Earth Veins from erupting and bringing disaster upon the masses! I ask only that the Heavenly Dao show mercy and allow the Phoenix Clan's bloodline to endure. I shall forever guard the volcano and atone thus!"

She gave this world one final, longing look, then lowered her noble head. Nirvana Fire blazed around her body. Carrying the intent of eternal silence and suppression, the flames enveloped her broken phoenix body and transformed into a brilliant yet sorrowful streak of light. Like a falling star, she plunged into the depths of the eternally undying, ever-restless South Bright Undying Volcano!

At last, Beginning Qilin released a heavy sigh, like the lament of the earth itself:

"Let the Heavenly Dao hear all! I am Beginning Qilin of the Kirin Clan! My clan has crushed the mountains and rivers of the Primordial Wilderness, and our sins are deep. We have no face to stand between heaven and earth. I am willing to transform my body into auspiciousness and scatter my Dao across the lands of the Primordial Wilderness, nourishing all things with this remnant body, restoring Earth Veins, and repaying our sins! I pray that the Heavenly Dao forgive my clan. Henceforth, the Kirin Clan shall be a sign of auspiciousness. Only where benevolence and virtue flourish shall qilins appear. Never again shall we involve ourselves in conflict!"

His body began to slowly break apart from the ends of his limbs, turning into countless drops of Golden Light Rain filled with vitality, peace, and blessings. Like the gentlest sweet rain, they fell upon the battered and fragmented land below. Wherever the light rain reached, enormous torn ravines slowly began to close. Tender green shoots stubbornly pushed through the scorched earth, and even the shattered mountains seemed to ease in their pain. With the most fundamental power of his own being, he gave back to the world his clan had harmed so deeply.

The three monarchs made the final great vows of their lives in three different ways. Carrying their endless remorse, final compassion, and hopes for their clans' continuation, those vows merged into the Heavenly Dao Laws with tragic solemnity and reverence.

In an instant, the roaring World-Destroying Thunder Tribulation above the Ninth Heavens gradually quieted, then slowly ceased and dispersed. In its place came deep, distant resonances of the Dao, as though heaven and earth were sighing for the end of the three monarchs. Endless rain of blood fell across the Primordial Wilderness. It was the merciful tears of the Heavenly Dao, and the beginning of sin being washed away.

The Tribulation Fiend Qi filling heaven and earth began to slowly recede. The terrifying shackles of Karma that had nearly driven the three clans to extinction did not vanish completely, but they were no longer an immediate sentence of death. Instead, they became eternal restraints and curses branded into the depths of every surviving three-clan bloodline:

Because of Ancestral Dragon's oath, the Dragon Clan would forever suppress the Sea Eye of the Four Seas and bear the duty of bringing clouds and rain, yet remain trapped within the four seas, unable to leave the waters.

Because of Yuanfeng's vow, the Phoenix Clan would forever guard South Bright Undying Volcano and bear the responsibility of calming the earthfire, yet remain trapped within the volcano, rarely knowing freedom.

Because of Beginning Qilin's prayer, the Kirin Clan would become a sign of auspiciousness, appearing only in places rich in benevolence and blessed with flourishing fortune. They would never again contend for supremacy in the Primordial Wilderness, instead withdrawing from the world.

The Dragon-Phoenix Calamity, the world-shaking Karmic Tribulation that had swept through the Primordial World, buried countless living beings, and utterly changed the order of the Primordial Wilderness, finally came to a close with the tragic curtain fall of the three monarchs, drawing its blood-red conclusion.