"You received the invitation too?"
Inside the imperial study, the emperor looked at the invitation, a hint of amusement flashing in his eyes.
Since inheriting that power, he had not slept for three years. And it was under these circumstances that someone delivered the invitation directly to his side, right in front of him, suddenly appearing on the desk in his study.
He sensed the energy of the spell immediately, but he couldn't detect its source or destination from beginning to end before the invitation appeared.
But that's not the most crucial point. The most crucial point is that King Xiang also received a copy.
At this moment, King Xiang was sitting in his study in the King Xiang Palace, looking at the invitation with a furrowed brow.
The invitations all contained the same message: "Your Majesty is invited to attend the ceremony."
It seems that he and the emperor are considered to be on the same side, but how did the invitation get to the King Xiang Palace?
The King Xiang Palace Yu was protected by a barrier; without King Xiang's permission, even one could not enter. The fact that the other party was able to deliver the invitation suggests...
"This Celestial Master Mansion is no ordinary place," King Xiang said. "Do you know its secrets?"
The emperor shook his head. "Back when the King of Qin was at the height of his power, he wielded the power of the ancient celestial phenomena. His army would detour around Cloud Capital whenever they encountered it. The King of Qin should know more than I do."
"You didn't know?" King Xiang looked at King of Qin with a deep gaze. "For twenty years you've let Cloud Capital run rampant. I thought you knew how troublesome Cloud Capital."
"I simply didn't want to create unnecessary trouble," the Emperor said calmly. "The people and forces we faced at the time were already complex enough; how could we possibly provoke an unknown entity? When the Mother and Child Ghosts Temple was being established, Cloud Capital clearly possessed a high degree of Kingly Dao destiny, yet the Black Queen never intended to do anything to Cloud Capital. I knew then that Cloud Capital no ordinary entity."
"No wonder." King Xiang nodded. In his previous Samsara, the capital was always located in Cloud Capital. Cloud Capital was situated in the center of the Central Plains, with three major passes overlooking it. It was not only fertile land but also crisscrossed by rivers. Its terrain was suitable for trade routes and easy to defend, making it a perfect place for a kingdom to rise. It was practically the default capital.
Its location was far superior to that of present-day Capital. Logically, if conditions allowed, the capital should have been moved long ago; it turns out they were afraid to provoke it.
"I never imagined that such a wondrous force would emerge during my time in slumber." King Xiang looked at the invitation. "What is the meaning of his invitation to me?"
"I've only heard about it," the Emperor said quietly. "In the era of the Warlock Dynasty, the Celestial Master Mansion held immense authority. Once the Celestial Master Decree was issued, no sorcerer in the land dared disobey. And the selection of each Celestial Master required the participation of emperors from various sorcerer families and surrounding dynasties, whether from the Northern Wasteland or the Southern Barbarians. If I'm not mistaken, anyone whose title of emperor was recognized was among those invited."
"Oh?" King Xiang immediately laughed, "How interesting. Does that mean that if I hadn't been born in their era, they would have invited me back then?"
"That's probably what it means." The emperor smiled as well.
The Cloud Capital Zhang Family has really gone all out this time, managing to send invitations to the King Xiang Palace. It seems everyone in this world should have received one, so the Heavenly Python Palace must have received one too.
"Human Celestial Master?"
In the heart of the Northern Kingdom, the former capital of the Northern Wolf Kingdom: the center of Northern Nether City, nine giant pythons coiled in every corner of the capital, their enormous heads close together, all looking at a floating invitation.
The Heavenly Python Palace is a complex power structure where the strong rule. Millions of giant pythons are now under the jurisdiction of these nine snake kings, and beneath these nine giant pythons is a group of people wearing cloaks of different colors.
"A dynasty once existed in this world, said to have changed an era. We don't know exactly what it changed, only that every time a Celestial Master is selected, those recognized as kings receive an invitation. It's only natural that you were invited."
"To be acknowledged?" Black venomous gas billowed from the mouths of the nine giant pythons. "What right do mere humans have to acknowledge us?"
The players in the guild below remained silent. Mere humans, some mere human-born emperor, about to invade the Northern Lands and rip off your snakeskins! Where does this arrogance come from?
"Is it necessary to participate?" Among the nine giant pythons, there was one that was pure white and the smallest in size. This python had clear eyes, unlike the terrifying eyes of the other pythons, which were as beautiful as two precious pearls like those of a dragon.
The voice also had a female quality.
"It should be necessary." One of the guild players looked up and said, "If we follow their rules, the Human Emperor should also participate. Shouldn't we take a look at such a face-to-face opportunity?"
Emperors of the Mortal World
Several enormous, cold, black eyes stared down. "Is this the human emperor you speak of, the one who's coming to cause us trouble with his ghostly army?"
"Yes"
"Hmph, he still has time to attend that?"
"If it's an invitation, I think we wouldn't refuse. Everyone Cloud Capital, what power it holds, and why would they invite all the emperors? At this critical juncture of impending war, what exactly is this force plotting? We feel it's necessary to take a look."
"If we don't go, but other forces do, we'll never know what they're plotting, will we?"
The giant pythons exchanged glances, their eyes filled with hesitation. "But this Northern Lands needs us to guard it."
"Not all of them need to go." The leading player looked up and said, "The fact that the two Snake Kings are going is already a great honor. It's also a good opportunity for them to gather intelligence. If the Emperor goes as well, we might even consider launching a preemptive strike to catch them off guard!"
These words piqued the interest of all the giant pythons.
Now that the ghost soldiers have been mobilized, if that emperor of unknown strength is not present, it would indeed be an opportunity.
Who would be the best candidate to go?
"I'll go!" The white snake flipped and Samsara several times in mid-air, and in the next instant, its bones rapidly deformed, transforming into a stunningly beautiful woman with a pure white body.
"You have difficulty transforming into human form, and going out would cause a great disturbance, so let Elder Lie and I go instead."
All the giant pythons looked in one direction, where there was a dark mist. Within the mist, a pair of eerie green pupils were extremely terrifying. Everyone's eyes were filled with strange expressions. Lie was the other party's name. He was an ancient survivor from the previous Heavenly Python Palace and a senior to everyone present.
The Heavenly Python Palace has reopened this time, and all the Heavenly Python were invited from beyond the heavens by it, making it essentially the core of the palace.
"Girl, do you want to go?" In the darkness, Lie's voice had a hoarse quality, unlike the other giant pythons' deep and resonant tone; instead, it was somewhat shrill.
"This junior wishes to go." The white snake nodded. "Senior's ability to transform is the best among us. I will feel more at ease with you leading the way."
"Is that so?" The snake head in the black mist nodded, then looked at the guild players below. "And you? How many people are you sending?"
"We suffered heavy losses last time, we can't send too many people this time," a woman in red said, taking off her straw hat. "I will go myself."
"Oh?" The eyes in the black mist immediately flashed with light. "You're going yourself?"
The woman in red smiled slightly and said nothing. The white snake in the sky, however, was surprised. Lie was the middleman of this group of mysterious Samsara, so it should know their background. Judging from her tone, this woman in red must have an extraordinary origin.
"It seems that the Celestial Master Mansion's Mansion should have what you're looking for."
"That's none of your concern," the woman in red said with a smile. "I'd also like to meet this mortal emperor who has driven us to this point; what kind of person is he?"