"Senior brother, let's go farther inside and look. Perhaps it'll be better in there." Seeing Haotian's ashen face, Yaochi could not help trying to comfort him.
Although she knew the chances of that were vanishingly small, she was even less willing to see Haotian sink into despair.
"Yes, yes, yes!"
Yaochi's words were like a straw for a drowning man. Haotian rushed headlong into the Heavenly Court, muttering as he ran.
"They must have deliberately made the outside look like this to put me in my place. It definitely won't be like this inside."
"Senior brother, wait for me!"
Seeing Haotian dart about like a headless fly, Yaochi hurried after him.
Reality, however, dealt Haotian a vicious slap in the face.
The farther he went, the worse his spirits became. The hope in his eyes gave way to uncertainty, then disappointment, and finally deathly stillness.
"How could this be the Heavenly Court every cultivator dreams of?"
The Heavenly Court before Haotian's eyes looked as though it had endured a world-shaking war. Everywhere was dilapidated and desolate, and broken jade pillars occasionally drifted past the two of them into the distance.
Ruined walls, broken masonry, withered flowers, and ruined blossoms—there was not a trace of life anywhere in sight.
Seeing Haotian remain silent, Yaochi moved to his side and asked gently, "Senior brother Haotian, are you all right?"
"Ha! Hahahahahahaha!" Haotian was so furious that he laughed.
His voice echoed through the empty Heavenly Court, as though countless Haotians were crying out at once, lending it a grotesque eeriness.
"Good! Just wonderful!"
"Whoever fucking wants to be Heavenly Emperor can do it. I quit!"
With that, Haotian dropped straight to his knees facing the Purplexiao Palace. A ring of air burst outward around his knees, and a dull clang rang out