Gaislesen's Fear, the Storm of the Divine Plane

News from the Water Elemental Plane spread rapidly, and since a portion of the Four Divine Beasts Clan members were still at the Tianji Mountain Range, they naturally received the news immediately.

"What did you say? Say it again!"

In the Azure Dragon Hall, Gaislesen stood up abruptly, his eyes fixed intently on Hoke, as if he wanted to glare him into flying away.

"Patriarch, Barbary, he... he led the entire clan to attack our family stronghold in the Azure Dragon Continent. The clan, they were all wiped out. He even said that the day of the Four Divine Beasts Clan's destruction is not far off..."

Hoke knelt on the ground, trembling, his heart filled with despair and fear.

"Bang!"

Gaislesen collapsed onto the floor, his expression filled with terror. As the only person in the clan who knew that Reding and the other three had gone to battle the Sovereign of Water, he naturally understood what this meant.

"You, get out!"

After a long silence, Gaislesen finally squeezed these words through his teeth, trying his best not to lose his composure.

"Patriarch, the ancestors, are they...?"

Hoke hesitated for a moment, asking cautiously.

"Get out!"

Gaislesen's voice grew significantly louder, cutting Hoke off directly, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.

"Yes!"

Hoke quickly lowered his head and retreated from the hall, though in his heart, he had already guessed the answer.

After Hoke left, Gaislesen sat quietly for a long time. He took a piece of parchment from his spatial ring and then, with trembling hands, ignited it using divine power.

"Whoosh!"

The parchment burned instantly, and a strange energy fluctuation flashed by. However, the Azure Dragon Sovereign, who should have appeared, did not manifest, as if the call just now had been a mere hallucination.

"Father!"

Gaislesen fell to his knees with a thud, tears streaming down from his eyes. He could not imagine that his father, Reding—who had patted him on the shoulder not long ago and told him they would fight side by side after he became the Sovereign of Water—had just fallen like this.

"Ah!!! Sovereign of Water!"

Gaislesen's eyes turned bloodshot as he roared toward the sky, as if he wanted to pour out his endless rage.

However, the next moment, Gaislesen sat slumped on the ground, looking at the sky with a listless expression.

What was the use of anger? What did it matter if he knew who the murderer was? The other party was the Sovereign of Water who had killed all four ancestors; what could he, a Highgod, possibly do?

"Big Brother, Big Brother!"

Before Gaislesen could recover his senses, a cold, feminine voice rang out, and a woman with dark hair wearing a mask rushed in.

"Big Brother, something has happened! That bastard Barbary actually dared to make a move against our Four Divine Beasts Clan, and over on the Water Elemental Plane... Big Brother?"

Gaia's words trailed off halfway as she suddenly froze. What met her eyes was Gaislesen, sitting slumped on the floor as if he had lost all hope.

This left Gaia feeling somewhat bewildered. She had been with Gaislesen for countless years since birth and had never seen her brother look like this—not even when they were bullied by Ninisha and the clan had suffered heavy losses.

"Big Brother, what is wrong with you? What happened?"

Gaia immediately forgot about the matters concerning the Water Elemental Plane and stepped forward to help Gaislesen up.

"Little Sister, Father and the others, they might have met with disaster."

Gaislesen's mouth hung slightly open, his voice raspy. Gaia could clearly feel his body trembling slightly.

"Big Brother, what are you saying?"

Gaia was slightly stunned, unable to process what it meant for their father and the others to have met with disaster.

"A year ago, Father and the others told me they were going to hunt down the Sovereign of Water, but they haven't returned. Then, Barbary from the Water Elemental Plane attacked the Four Divine Beasts Clan. Just now, I used the parchment to call for Father, but there was no response."

"Plop!"

Gaia couldn't help but take two steps back, her body leaning directly against a pillar. Her mouth opened slightly as if she wanted to say something, but in the end, nothing came out.

"Big Brother, Big Brother, something has happened! Big Brother? Gaia? What is wrong with you two?"

Following an anxious voice, three figures entered the Azure Dragon Hall side by side and saw the despairing expressions of Gaislesen and Gaia.

"This, what happened?"

Gus was the first to regain his composure, asking with an anxious expression.

With hollow eyes, Gaislesen explained what had transpired.

"No, that's impossible! How could this be? I, I will contact Father!"

Gus's eyes instantly turned bloodshot. He immediately took out a piece of parchment and ignited it in the void. The energy of heaven and earth manifested once more, yet the White Tiger Sovereign did not descend.

"This, how could this be?"

Gus retreated several steps, then looked toward Morei and Mori with a final glimmer of hope.

Seeing this, Morei hurriedly took out his parchment and ignited it. Likewise, the Black Tortoise Sovereign did not appear.

The Vermilion Bird Patriarch, Tiya, had not returned from the Vermilion Bird Continent, but there was no need for her to do the same. Everyone present had already realized exactly what had happened.

"Father!"

The First Elder of the Black Tortoise clan, Mori, collapsed onto the ground, his eyes vacant and lifeless.

"We cannot remain in this state of despair!"

Gaislesen stood up abruptly, wiping the tears from his eyes in one swift motion.

Gaislesen, who had been immersed in sorrow and pain, looked at his younger siblings and suddenly realized that with their father gone, he, as the eldest brother, was now the true leader of the Four Divine Beasts Clan. He could no longer grieve alongside them; he had to shoulder the responsibilities of the patriarch.

"Notify the clansmen immediately. Issue the Four Patriarchs' Order: command all clansmen across every plane to abandon everything and return to the Tianji Mountain Range. If necessary, sacrifice a portion of the clansmen as bait to provide cover."

Gaislesen spoke with a cold expression, knowing that at this moment, the Four Divine Beasts Clan faced the threat of total annihilation.

The tragedy in the Water Elemental Plane was largely due to a sneak attack; as long as they prepared in advance, they could still withdraw the majority of their people.

"Big Brother, what happens after we withdraw?"

The White Tiger patriarch, Gus, had already lost his composure, and upon hearing Gaislesen's words, he asked instinctively.

"Let's get them back first. Surely not all of our enemies will be willing to risk everything to hunt us down to the Tianji Mountain Range."

Gaislesen opened his mouth, ultimately offering a word of comfort to Gus.

Although he had no confidence himself—the Four Divine Beasts Clan had offended no small number of people over the years—he didn't know if they could withstand the onslaught, even if not all of their enemies pursued them to the end.

"In any case, the clan must not perish on my watch!"

A flash of resolve crossed Gaislesen's eyes, and he was the first to walk out of the Azure Dragon Hall.

He had to transmit the orders. The Four Patriarchs' Order was issued jointly by the four patriarchs and was second only to the commands of their ancestors. He now had to notify everyone through clansmen who possessed divine avatars and arrange for clan elders to provide support and prepare for battle.

At this moment, the Four Divine Beasts Clan had lost its backing, and as patriarchs, they had to shoulder the final responsibility.

As Gaislesen left, Gaia and the others gradually regained their senses, realizing that now was not the time for grief, and one by one, they suppressed their sorrow to issue their commands.

At this very moment, a storm centered on the Four Divine Beasts Clan began to erupt rapidly across the divine planes.