Even when beating a dog, you must consider its master. You dare touch an Emperor serving my Su Family?

Zeng Kuxuan jerked his head up and looked at the dark figure, his lips trembling slightly.

"The Hong Family... the Su Family..."

His mind raced.

The Su Family was one of the foremost of the Ten Great Emperor Clans across the heavens.

With Divine Emperor Su Qi presiding over it, the hundred-year-old Emperor Su Linxian had burst onto the scene.

The entire heavens sang of the Su Family's might.

That worthless Yang Kong had actually offended His Highness the Divine Son?!

Zeng Kuxuan said, "Your Majesty, could there... be some misunderstanding?"

"Still refusing to see reason."

The Great Emperor of the Hong Family shook his head.

He raised his hand, gathering a beam of dark Emperor light in his palm.

"Since you refuse to explain yourself, I shall take him myself."

The Emperor light crashed down upon the mountain-protecting formation.

BOOM!!!

The golden mountain-protecting formation shuddered violently beneath the Emperor light.

Countless cracks appeared across its barrier, spreading rapidly like a spiderweb.

Zeng Kuxuan's expression changed drastically.

"Activate the mountain-protecting formation! Activate all of it!"

He roared, and dozens of elders behind him acted at once.

They poured every last bit of their spiritual energy into the formation.

Under that infusion of spiritual energy, the cracks in the barrier slowly closed.

"A last stand in a dead-end corner." The Great Emperor of the Hong Family sneered and raised his hand again.

A second beam of Emperor light took shape.

It was even more terrifying than the first.

Just as that beam of Emperor light was about to descend—

BOOM!

The sky was torn apart.

A rift a hundred thousand feet long burst open in the center of the heavens.

Golden light poured from the rift, bathing the entire world in brilliant gold.

Dragon roars and phoenix cries rang through the clouds together.

A figure stepped slowly out of the rift.

It was a woman.

She wore a long golden dress, her face exquisitely beautiful, her bearing as cool and distant as the moon.

A golden divine mark adorned her brow, and an ancient aura that transcended the Emperor Realm swirled around her.

She resembled a deity descending from the Nine Heavens.

Every eye turned toward her.

Everyone looked up at the golden figure, their expressions varied.

Some were stunned, some awed, and some bewildered.

Yang Kong appeared at the edge of the rift.

He stood beside the Nine Heavens Profound Lady, his aura restrained, yet a resolute light burned deep in his eyes.

He swept his gaze over the densely packed ranks below, pausing briefly on Luo Wutian and the Great Emperor of the Hong Family, then shouted angrily.

"Luo Wutian!"

"I alone will answer for what I have done!"

"Whatever I owe you, I, Yang Kong, will repay alone!"

Yang Kong?!

Zeng Kuxuan and the dozens of elders behind him jolted in unison.

They stared at the golden figure standing at the edge of the rift, their pupils contracting sharply.

The disciple who had vanished ten years ago had actually appeared here now.

And that woman beside him...

Zeng Kuxuan's gaze fell on Mu Chiyu, and every hair on his body stood on end.

The aura surrounding that woman was too ancient, too unfathomable, like a deity who had walked out of the primordial age.

"Yang Kong!" Luo Wutian snapped. "Who is that beside you?!"

"You killed people from my cities and stole their treasures, then refused to repay your debts. Can you truly answer for all that?!"

Yang Kong did not answer him.

Instead, he turned toward the golden figure beside him and cupped his hands slightly, lowering his voice.

"Senior, please."

Mu Chiyu did not look at him.

Not a ripple stirred in her cool eyes.

"The first time."

She spoke, her voice as clear as spring water, yet cold to the bone.

Yang Kong nodded slightly.

He had obtained a piece of Primordial Immortal Essence from the Primordial Immortal Realm and used it to awaken the divine maiden sleeping deep within his sea of consciousness.

Mu Chiyu, the divine maiden of the Primordial Imperial Court.

She had promised to act on his behalf three times.

This was the first.

The Great Emperor of the Hong Family stood with his hands behind his back, looking up at the golden figure with a cold snort.

"A mere early-stage Emperor Realm cultivator dares play at being a god before me?"

He raised his hand, gathering a beam of dark Emperor light in his palm, and hurled it toward Mu Chiyu.

That beam of Emperor light carried the full might of the peak Emperor Realm.

It was powerful enough to grievously wound an ordinary Emperor.

"Taiyi Divine Light!"

Mu Chiyu raised her hand.

One palm strike.

An airy, effortless palm strike.

No divine art condensed in her palm, no Dao laws flowed, and not even a trace of spiritual energy stirred.

Yet the instant that palm struck out—

The entire sky darkened for a moment, and boundless Emperor power transformed into primordial savage beasts that rampaged forth!

An aura of primordial wilderness poured from her palm, like an ancient divine beast suddenly awakening after sleeping for countless epochs.

It was a supreme divine art passed down by the Primordial Imperial Court.

This is bad!

The Great Emperor of the Hong Family's expression changed drastically as an overwhelming sense of danger suddenly welled up within him!

BOOM!!!

The dark Emperor light shattered like paper beneath the phantom savage beasts.

Without losing any momentum, the strike landed squarely on the Great Emperor of the Hong Family's chest.

"PFFT!!!"

The Great Emperor of the Hong Family was sent flying, hurtling backward through the air!

"Pff—gah!"

He looked down at his chest. Most of his breastbone had shattered, and golden Emperor blood gushed from his seven orifices.

"This power... an Ancient Immortal Divine Art?!"

His voice was hoarse, his eyes filled with profound shock.

"Who exactly are you?!"

Luo Wutian stood behind him, his face deathly pale.

The lords of the Three Cities and the dozens of Emperor Realm cultivators behind him were likewise ashen-faced.

"Who is she?!"

"She gravely wounded a peak Emperor Realm expert with a single strike?!"

Ancient Immortal Divine Arts were incomparably powerful, every single art wondrous beyond measure!

Mu Chiyu did not answer.

"Blink."

She stepped through the air.

A hum rang out.

In an instant, she appeared before the Great Emperor of the Hong Family.

She raised her hand and struck, even more terrifyingly than before, shattering the void inch by inch wherever the blow passed.

The Great Emperor of the Hong Family's expression twisted wildly. Emperor power burned furiously throughout his body as he formed nine barriers of Emperor light before him.

"Divine Essence Wheel!"

The nine barriers shattered one after another beneath the force of her palm.

They were like sheets of thin ice smashed by an iron hammer.

Crack—

His flesh began to split from his chest, cracks spreading across his entire body like a spiderweb.

Golden Emperor blood spurted from every fissure.

"My sacred Hong Family serves the Su Family Emperor Clan!"

He roared, his voice distorted.

"You dare lay a hand on me—aaah!!!"

"No!!!"

BOOM!!!

The Great Emperor of the Hong Family's body shattered completely beneath that palm strike.

Emperor blood splashed across the sky, turning into golden fragments that rained down from above.

A divine soul escaped from the fragments and shot into the distance.

"Bastard!!!"

"Divine Sun Sect, if I do not avenge this, I, Hong Tian, swear I am no man!!"

"Don't let him escape!" Yang Kong's gaze sharpened, and he immediately shouted.

"Strike!"

Mu Chiyu nodded slightly.

Below, however, Zeng Kuxuan erupted in an angry roar.

"Yang Kong, stop!!"

"The Hong Family serves the Su Family Emperor Clan..."

Just then!

"Divine Sun Sect."

"Even when beating a dog, you must consider its master..."

"I would like to see... who dares touch an Emperor serving my Su Family."

The sky tore apart, and a rift a hundred thousand feet long burst open in the center of the heavens!

A white-robed figure stepped slowly out of the rift.

His black hair streamed in the wind, while divine markings interwoven with dark crimson and gold flickered across his skin.

The radiance of two Order Divine Laws swirled around him.

He resembled an ancient deity who had walked out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood.

Su Linxian.

Standing high in the sky, he lowered his gaze to the fleeing divine soul of the Great Emperor of the Hong Family.

He raised his hand and grasped.

An invisible force field spread from his palm, imprisoning that divine soul firmly in midair.

It could not move.

The Great Emperor of the Hong Family was ecstatic. "Your Highness, Divine Son!!"

"Your Highness, save me!!"

Mu Chiyu abruptly looked up.

She stared at the white-robed figure, disbelief surging through her cool eyes.

That aura was far too terrifying.

It was several times stronger than she had been at her prime.

It was like facing a true Divine Emperor!

Su Linxian merely glanced at her.

BOOM!

"Pfft—"

Mu Chiyu's body jolted violently, and a mouthful of golden blood spilled from the corner of her lips.

Her entire body was blasted away by that invisible aura and slammed heavily into the ground.

Yang Kong went deathly pale. "Goddess!!"

Zeng Kuxuan and the dozens of elders behind him froze in place, trembling like chaff in a sieve.

"The Su Family... the Emperor Clan..."

"That's... the Su Family's Divine Son!!"

Everyone's gaze converged on that white-robed figure!

"Bastard..." Yang Kong stared fixedly at the divine ring of slaughter surrounding the white-robed figure.

The dark crimson radiance of the slaughter divine law swirled around him like burning flames.

Yang Kong clenched his fists until they cracked, his eyes blood-red.

"That's my slaughter divine law!!"

"Cough, cough..." Mu Chiyu climbed up from the ground.

Her gaze locked onto Su Linxian, complicated emotions surging through her cool, aloof eyes.

"It's him..."

Su Linxian swept his gaze over everyone.

It finally settled on Mu Chiyu.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, and a system panel silently appeared.

[Name: Mu Chiyu]

[Titles: Era Protagonist, Imperial Court Goddess]

[Physique: Immortal Dao Embryo Body]

[Heavenly Destiny: 50000000]

Immortal Dao Embryo Body.

Era Protagonist.

Su Linxian's eyes narrowed slightly.

What a terrifying amount of heavenly destiny!

All the Heaven-Destined Protagonists he had ever encountered combined did not have even half as much as she did.

And...

Deep within his sea of consciousness, the Primordial Imperial Court he had seized from Shenkong Ye trembled slightly.

The incomplete imperial court seemed to be responding to something, letting out a low hum.

Su Linxian's gaze fell on the golden divine marking between Mu Chiyu's brows.

The Primordial Imperial Court's goddess?

No wonder that imperial court reacted.

Luo Wutian, the lords of the Three Cities, and the dozens of Emperor Realm cultivators behind him all cupped their hands and bowed.

"Greetings, Divine Son!"

The moment the Great Emperor of the Hong Family's divine soul saw Su Linxian—

"Your Highness! Please uphold justice for me!"

Su Linxian looked down at him and nodded slightly.

Then he raised his head, looking down toward the Divine Sun Sect.

"You of the Divine Sun Sect."

"You dared lay hands on a Great Emperor subordinate to my Su Family?"

Zeng Kuxuan shuddered.

His face filled with horror, and the dozens of elders behind him trembled like chaff in a sieve.

"Your Highness! A misunderstanding! It was all a misunderstanding!"

Zeng Kuxuan abruptly rose into the air, leading the elders toward Su Linxian.

"We of the Divine Sun Sect never intended to attack the Great Emperor of the Hong Family... Please forgive our many offenses, Your Highness..."

Before he could finish—

"No need."

Su Linxian looked at them with an indifferent gaze.

"You destroyed his physical body, so I shall destroy yours."

He raised his hand and made a sweeping motion.

Hum.

The slaughter divine law gathered at his fingertip, forming a dark crimson ring of blood.

"Boom!"

The blood ring shot from his fingertip and rapidly expanded through the void, becoming a blood-colored halo spanning a hundred thousand feet.

It swept toward everyone from the Divine Sun Sect!

Zeng Kuxuan's physical body exploded beneath the blood ring, bursting into a skyful of bloody mist.

"Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang—!!!"

The physical bodies of the dozens of elders behind him exploded one after another.

Before the slaughter divine law, those Quasi-Emperor Realm bodies tore apart as though made of paper.

Bloody mist spread, staining the entire sky red.

"Divine Son?!!"

Dozens of terrified divine souls fled from the bloody mist and hovered in midair.

Watching this, Yang Kong's pupils nearly burst.

"Master!!"

"Stay back!" Zeng Kuxuan's divine soul wavered in midair as he roared fiercely at Yang Kong.

"I have no disciple like you!"

"Do you truly want our Divine Sun Sect annihilated?!"

Yang Kong froze in place, his eyes red.

Zeng Kuxuan turned around and bowed deeply to Su Linxian in his divine soul form.

"We... thank you for sparing our lives, Divine Son."

The dozens of divine souls behind him also bowed, trembling so badly that none dared even raise their heads.

Restoring a physical body required a vast quantity of resources.

But compared to losing their lives, this was already the best possible outcome.

Su Linxian said, "I don't care what methods you use. Gather the resources and restore the physical body of the Great Emperor of the Hong Family."

"Otherwise, the Divine Sun Sect will have no reason to exist."

Restore a peak Emperor Realm physical body?!

Zeng Kuxuan's breath caught.

The heavenly treasures needed for a peak Great Emperor's physical body were staggering in quantity!

Even if he emptied out the entire Divine Sun Sect, he still could not gather all those precious materials!

Zeng Kuxuan let out a weary sigh. "Divine Son..."

"This old man understands."

Su Linxian withdrew his gaze and turned to Mu Chiyu, his tone indifferent.

"Goddess of the Primordial Imperial Court."

"Do you also intend to oppose my Su Family, an Emperor Clan?"

Mu Chiyu did not answer immediately.

She stared at Su Linxian, as though weighing something in her cool, aloof eyes.

There was no fear in those eyes, no anger, only a fathomless calm.

It was as though she were evaluating something of tremendous importance.

His eyes red, Yang Kong growled hoarsely.

"Kill him!"

Mu Chiyu turned and glanced at him.

"The second time."

She raised her hand.

Golden light gathered in her palm, forming an ancient divine art of the Primordial Imperial Court.

Bearing an ancient aura that surpassed the Emperor Realm, the divine art thundered toward Su Linxian.

An Ancient Immortal Divine Art?

Su Linxian raised an eyebrow.

"Interesting."

He pointed through the air, and razor-sharp sword energy imbued with the slaughter divine law burst forth.

Dark Gold Sword Intent collided violently with the golden divine art in the void.

"Rumble!"

The entire sky shattered. Abysses a hundred thousand feet deep split the earth, mountains and rivers rolled backward, and the Dao Domain's barrier crumbled inch by inch.

Heaven shook and earth trembled!

Su Linxian narrowed his eyes.

Mu Chiyu's cultivation was only at the early Emperor Realm.

Yet her combat strength was not the least bit inferior to that of the peak Emperor Realm.

An Ancient Immortal Divine Art could actually bridge such an enormous gap in combat strength...

Su Linxian grinned, sweeping out a blood ring.

Mu Chiyu neither retreated nor dodged, golden divine arts continually gathering in her palms.

Each strike carried the ancient Dao laws of the Primordial Imperial Court, shattering the void and breaking the laws.

"Boom!"

"Boom!"

The entire Dao Domain fell to pieces beneath the aftershocks of these world-shaking divine arts.

Su Linxian said, "Enough."

Hum.

Heavenly Prison Art.

An invisible force field spread from his palm, enveloping the entire sky.

Mu Chiyu abruptly froze within the force field.

"What is this...?"

She felt her physical body sealed, her divine soul sealed, and even the Primordial Imperial Court's origin within her sealed.

Su Linxian said, "Go."

The next moment—

The divine ring of slaughter spun rapidly, cutting through all things between heaven and earth and piercing Mu Chiyu's body with unerring precision!

"Pfft—!!!"

Mu Chiyu was blasted away, blood gushing from her wound.

Her body shattered into several pieces in midair, golden fragments scattering across the sky.

[Ding! Severely injured Era Protagonist Mu Chiyu. Gained 100000 Villain Points!]

"Goddess!!!"