Heavenly Court!
West Sea.
This vast ocean, located in the far west of the Xuanhuang Home Realm, has been a dead land devoid of life since ancient times.
The seawater was so thick and dark that it seemed to have solidified an eternal solitude. The surface of the sea was calm and smooth as a mirror, reflecting the perpetually gray and gloomy sky, but it could not reflect any life.
No birds dare to fly by, no fish leap and ripple, and even the smallest plankton cannot survive in this eerily "dead" sea.
Beneath the surface of the sea lies unfathomable darkness.
Legend has it that it connects to the Ruins of Return, the end of all things, the place where all life is utterly annihilated.
However today -
Above this sea, which had been silent for countless ages, an unprecedented phenomenon appeared.
The sky is no longer gray and gloomy.
Instead, it was completely shrouded by a boundless, thick, and oppressive dark cloud that seemed capable of crushing the eternal sky!
It was as thick as solidified ink, yet as it churned, it revealed a cold, metallic sheen. Every wisp of cloud seemed to carry a weight heavy enough to crush stars.
Thunder rumbled through the dark clouds.
The thunderous roar shook the heavens and echoed across the vast ocean!
The sound was so loud, so intense, and so terrifying that it would cause any cultivator below the Foundation Establishment to have their mind shattered and their Dao Foundation to crumble upon hearing it!
And at the very depths of this scene of destruction, which seemed like an omen of the apocalypse—
A vast and boundless palace complex was faintly visible amidst the heavy, gloomy clouds.
The palace was so vast that it defied description!
The outermost gate alone was tens of thousands of feet high, and its entire body was made of some kind of mysterious material that was neither gold nor jade, but shimmered with a warm luster.
Above the lintel, countless ancient seal characters, extremely intricate, can be faintly seen.
Each seal script exudes a terrifying Daoist aura that is enough to make Great True Person's Dao heart tremble!
Beyond the gates lay layers upon layers of palaces and pavilions, standing side by side.
Each palace is like a floating sacred mountain!
Each pavilion seemed capable of encompassing a whole realm!
Their energy intertwined, forming a supreme array that covered the entire sky!
As the formation shifted, the phantoms of the sun, moon, and stars rose and fell, the outlines of mountains and rivers condensed and disintegrated, and countless indescribable Dao patterns intertwined and entwined within.
That's the Heavenly Court!
It is an unparalleled Divine Court jointly created by countless True Lord who gathered the most powerful forces in the entire Xuanhuang Home Realm and spent countless years!
It is an attempt by the True Lord to transcend this realm and explore the ultimate Dao!
A storm raged over the West Sea.
The chaotic lightning that poured down from the dark clouds tore the void within a radius of ten thousand miles to pieces, only to be instantly smoothed out by some invisible force within the clouds.
Destruction and rebirth cycle wildly in the skies above this sea, with each cycle lasting a fraction of a billionth of a second.
A fierce wind howled, carrying terrifying power capable of tearing apart the protective divine light of Great True Person, sweeping across the heavens and earth.
However, in the very core of this desolate land, which is enough to make any living being tremble with fear, it is only a thousand miles away from the floating Heavenly Court.
A series of figures stood atop the storm-raging clouds.
There were a total of eight figures.
Four in front, four behind.
They had no dazzling protective aura around them, as if the fierce winds and thunder that could tear the void were nothing more than a gentle Fresh Breeze to them, not worth mentioning.
But they just stood there quietly, as if they were at the very center of this devastating world.
Four figures stood in front, positioned at opposite ends.
Sword Pavilion, the Qingyuan True Lord Wendao!
Master Shixiu, the Dragon Elephant Prajna Bodhisattva!
Dragon Clan, Eastern Sea Dragon Lord!
The Wuji Sacred Sect, the Wudao Extreme Dharma True Lord!
Good, Demon, Release, Dragon.
The four most powerful forces in the Xuanhuang Home Realm each have a True Lord here!
A short distance behind them, four figures stood silently.
The Sword Pavilion Dragon-Slaying Sword Master, dressed in snow-white robes, carried an ancient sword on his back, his eyes lowered, his Sword Intent condensed but not yet released.
The Wuji Sacred Sect Qi Yun in full swing, his deep blue Daoist robe remaining perfectly still in the fierce wind. His pair of azure-gold eyes calmly gazed at the Heavenly Court, which was faintly visible in the dark clouds. Deep within his eyes, countless thoughts flashed by like lightning.
The Baoguang Amitabha Arhat, Shi Xiubao, was surrounded by blue flames, yet possessed a fierce aura.
The Crown Prince of the Eastern Sea Dragon Palace, with a dragon's head and a human body, was surrounded by a chilling blue current, and his long, narrow dragon eyes gleamed with an indescribable, complex light.
Four Great True Person, Four Venerable True Lord.
This is the complete lineup gathered here today.
The news of the Heavenly Court's emergence was kept tightly under wraps at the highest levels of the four major powers, without leaking a single word.
The silence lasted for a long time.
So long that even the raging gale seemed to weaken a bit.
Finally, in the void to the east, the figure in green robes slowly spoke.
The voice of Qingyuan True Lord Wendao, though not loud, clearly pierced through the clamor of the storm and reached everyone's ears. "Back then, the main body of the Heavenly Court mysteriously fell."
He paused slightly, and in the depths of his clear eyes, countless images seemed to flash by. "Leaving only ruins scattered throughout the void."
"We have searched for countless years and deduced countless causes and effects, yet we have still been unable to glimpse the secret of its fall."
He raised his eyes, gazing at the Heavenly Court, faintly visible through the dark clouds. His gaze, seemingly capable of severing everything, seemed to pierce through the layers of mist, looking directly to its origin. "Now, let's see—"
"The Heavenly Court must have found some clues back then."
"So the old guys made their move beforehand—"
He paused, then spoke each word with the sharpness of a sword, "Silenced them."
As soon as the words were spoken, the void fell into a deathly silence.
The raging storm, the streaking thunder, the churning dark clouds.
They all seemed to be stunned by the weight contained in those words, and paused slightly.
The Dragon Elephant Prajna Bodhisattva, with hands clasped in prayer, uttered a long chant. "Amitabha."
The Buddha's name was not high-pitched, but it carried a deep emotion after going through many tribulations. "Now the owner of the ancient coffin appears and drives us away like cattle and sheep----"
He slightly raised his eyes, and a faint yet chilling coldness flashed deep within those compassionate gazes. "[Above the True Lord], what kind of thoughts do they harbor towards us, towards Xuanhuang? It is already crystal clear."
The Eastern Sea Dragon Lord spoke slowly, his voice like a deep-sea icy current, steady yet exuding a bone-chilling coldness. "I originally thought the matter of the Ancestral Dragon was an internal secret of the Dragon Clan."
Looking back now—
He didn't finish his sentence, but everyone understood what he meant.
That lofty, legendary figure above the True Lord, never harbored any good intentions from the very beginning.
They had already laid out a plan that would last for eternity, and were secretly pushing it forward.
The True Lord of the Xuanhuang Home Realm are merely pawns in this game.
The Wudao Extreme Dharma True Lord remained silent.
He simply stood silently in the void, his eyes, which seemed to freeze everything, fixed on the Heavenly Court that was faintly visible through the dark clouds.
a long time.
He slowly raised his right hand.
Fingers slightly spread.
No words were spoken.
But his actions said it all.
Qingyuan True Lord Wendao a slight nod.
He also raised his right hand.
The sword was not yet drawn, but a terrifying Sword Intent, powerful enough to sever cause and effect and annihilate all laws, had already begun to condense at his fingertips.
The Bodhisattva of the Dragon Elephant Prajna Bodhisattva remained in the same posture of pressing his palms together.
But the ancient dragon-elephant phantom behind him suddenly solidified by a third, its trunk curling and its feet shattering the void, letting out a deep roar that seemed to come from ancient times.
The Eastern Sea Dragon Lord made no extra moves.
He merely raised his eyes slightly.
Two dark blue lights suddenly shone from the depths of those eyes.
Within the radiance, there are surging oceans, rising and falling tides, all waters converging into one, and the four seas submitting.
The four True Lord attacked simultaneously!
"Buzz!!!"
An indescribable tremor erupted from the location of the four True Lord!
That tremor was not a sound, nor a pressure, but a more fundamental and vast existence!
It is the manifestation of the Dao Fruit!
It's a clash of the great principles!
At the Qingyuan True Lord Wendao, a sword light, refined to the extreme, pure to the extreme, and sharp to the extreme, suddenly burst forth!
The sword light was as thin as a hair, yet it seemed to carry the essence of Sword Dao throughout history!
Upon its birth, it cleaved a smooth, mirror-like, bottomless crack in the void wherever it passed!
The cracks remained unhealed for a long time, as if even space itself had been stripped of its power to heal by this sword!
Behind the Dragon Elephant Prajna Bodhisattva, the ancient dragon and elephant phantom roared to the sky!
The elephant's trunk twitched, unleashing a seven-colored beam of Buddhist light powerful enough to shatter stars!
Within the Buddha's light, countless Sanskrit characters arise and cease, and countless illusory images of Buddhas sit cross-legged chanting scriptures, exuding a terrifying will to suppress all things and liberate all beings!
The Buddha's light followed closely behind the sword light, crashing headlong into the dark clouds!
The two dark blue lights in the eyes of the Eastern Sea Dragon Lord suddenly intensified!
He raised his right hand and lightly pressed forward with his five fingers.
This press--
On the surface of the West Sea, which had been eternally still, suddenly began to boil!
Billions of tons of seawater surged into the sky, transforming into a deep blue water dragon that stretched across the heavens and earth!
It roared to the sky, carrying the will of the entire ocean, and charged headlong into the dark clouds above!
at last-
The Wudao Extreme Dharma True Lord made a move.
He simply raised his right hand.
Then, with a gentle flick of the wrist, it moves forward.
There was no sword light, no Buddha light, no water dragon.
There is only one meaning of Return to Nothingness: colorless, formless, and without substance, yet truly existing.
Wherever the meaning of Return to Nothingness passes, all existence vanishes.
Only pure, utter "nothingness" remains.
It is not as sharp as sword light, as domineering as Buddha's light, or as vast as water dragon.
But wherever it passed, the chaotic dark clouds that even the Great True Person couldn't handle melted and vanished silently, like ice and snow under the scorching sun!
Four forces!
Sword light, Buddha's light, water dragon, Return to Nothingness!
Four distinct Daos, yet all reaching the pinnacle of this realm, manifested!
From four directions, they roared towards the boundless dark clouds that shrouded the Heavenly Court!
"Boom!!!"
An indescribable, terrifying roar erupted at that moment!
Countless cultivators who were in seclusion were shaken to their core at this moment and suddenly opened their eyes!
Countless ancient monsters hidden deep in the mountains looked up in horror at this moment, gazing westward!
Countless slumbering beasts cowered in terror at this moment, trembling with fear!
After the deafening roar came endless light.
Four different colored lights intertwined at the core of the collision, forming a destructive sea of light that was impossible to look at directly and seemed capable of melting everything!
Within the sea of light, the chaotic clouds that had shrouded the Heavenly Court for countless ages were being torn apart bit by bit in an extremely slow manner!
Peeling off!
Melt!
Vast swaths of dark clouds, like peeling paint from a wall, were stripped away from the outer edge of the majestic Heavenly Court, and then vanished into nothingness under the impact of four forces!
As the dark clouds parted.
That celestial Heavenly Court, which had slumbered for millennia, was finally beginning to reappear in the world, little by little!
The first thing to appear was the outer gate.
The towering gate, once only a vague outline, was now clearly and truly revealed to everyone!
Above the lintel are two ancient seal characters that seem to have been engraved by the very Dao itself!
[Southern Heaven]!
The instant those two words appeared, an indescribable pressure, seemingly emanating from the primordial chaos, swept out like a tidal wave.
After the portal.
Layer upon layer of palaces and pavilions, standing side by side, began to emerge little by little from the darkness.
First hall, second hall, third hall----
One, ten, a hundred, a thousand----
They are like giants who have been sleeping for ages, slowly being awakened by those four forces.
And the dark clouds that shrouded the Heavenly Court were becoming fewer and fewer.
The true appearance of the Heavenly Court became clearer and clearer.
Qi Yun gazed at this scene, a flickering light shone deep within his azure-gold eyes.
Heavenly Court ----
It happened again!
At that very moment, the [Investiture of the Gods] in his Purple Mansion [Great Luo Heaven] trembled slightly.
It seemed as if it had sensed something.