The Immortal Realm has now undergone a complete transformation, shedding its old skin and emerging anew. Above the sky, there lies another layer—a true heaven, the fifth path of Chen Xia.
The Lord of Nine Mountains gazed at this sky, his heart filled with complex emotions. He was no longer the master of the Immortal Realm; Chen Xia had taken that role. Chen Xia was now the true ruler of the Immortal Realm, the lord of its nine continents and the vast seas, the one who had merged with the entirety of the Immortal Realm.
Thus, the Lord of Nine Mountains often found himself in a state of melancholy. He felt insignificant in the Immortal Realm now. At best, he was the second to Chen Xia; at worst, he was nothing more than a defeated rival, trampled under Chen Xia's feet.
After much contemplation, he realized there was no way he could compete with Chen Xia, let alone the Martial Emperor. His only option was to follow the path of the other five great emperors—to flee.
The Lord of Nine Mountains had come to terms with it. The Immortal Realm was likely to become the final battleground, and as the primordial land of the myriad realms, its significance was immense. Staying here would only mean becoming a corpse in the final conflict.
With this resolve, he took action. Three hundred years later, he left the Immortal Realm with the cultivators who chose to follow him, venturing to a new realm which he named the New Immortal Realm.
As for Chen Xia, what he had merged with shouldn't be called the Immortal Realm anymore. It was more fitting to call it the Primordial Land.
Connected by a red thread of causality forged by the Martial Emperor, Chen Xia's fusion with the Primordial Land progressed rapidly. The sky above him grew vaster and denser. He wore the heavens like a crown, pressing down on the earth with his presence, as if he had become a true god, reigning supreme over the myriad realms.
Meanwhile, the puppet body at the Heaven Pill Gate was growing increasingly fragile. Cracks spread across its form, filled with faint light, like a porcelain vessel on the verge of shattering, its light threatening to spill out.
"Three hundred years... no, seven hundred years should be enough," it murmured in a stiff voice.
The Star Gate was being prepared within the Heaven Pill Gate, ready to transport everyone, even the Great Death Realm and the realms attached to East Jia State. This was a task entrusted to it by Chen Xia.
Using the Star Gate technique to transfer two realms was still within the puppet's capabilities.
Five hundred years passed.
The puppet gathered everyone, its body trembling as if on the verge of collapse. Its expression was calm as it spoke softly to the crowd.
"I will open the Blue Sky Barrier. You may go to the heavens and see Chen Xia one last time. After that, we will depart."
The atmosphere was heavy. No one spoke, their heads bowed low. Suddenly, Emperor Capital clenched his fist and shouted,
"I'm not afraid of death! I'll stay in the Immortal Realm and stand with Brother Chen!"
"This isn't about whether you're afraid of death or not. If you stay, Chen Xia won't let you die, and that will only add to his burden," the puppet retorted.
Emperor Capital fell silent, lowering his head once more.
"You came here to impart causality and opportunities to Chen Xia. Now that you've done so, don't add unnecessary pressure. The Star Gate will open soon, and you will depart for the Blue Sky Sword Sea. Then, you will wait for Chen Xia's return."
The crowd remained silent for a long time. Finally, the leader, Big Yellow Dog, nodded. "Very well. We will go to the Blue Sky Sword Sea and make it the most prosperous sect in the Great Heaven, awaiting Chen Xia's return."
This was the only thing they could do.
Though reluctant, everyone agreed. Together, they ascended to the heavens to see Chen Xia, who was in seclusion, merging with the Immortal Realm.
The puppet opened the barrier of the heavens, sending the group to Chen Xia's side. They gazed at him, each with their own thoughts, though few words were spoken.
The puppet did not rush them. Everyone had something to say, but no one spoke, for Chen Xia would not respond. They simply held their thoughts in their hearts.
Today, a light rain fell, the sky overcast, the ground damp, and the green mountains shrouded in mist.
It was not a good day for farewells.
The Immortal Realm was now sparsely populated. The great cultivators had sensed the impending final battle. After the emperors fled, the quasi-emperors followed, then the great sages and saints.
Now, even the Mountain-Moving Realm cultivators were leaving, seeking refuge elsewhere if they had the means.
Six hundred years passed.
Winter winds howled, snow blanketing the earth.
Within the Heaven Pill Gate, the Star Gate opened, radiating unparalleled light, expanding like a black hole vortex, drawing everyone and the two realms into its depths.
The snow continued to fall.
But within the Heaven Pill Gate, there was only silence.
The puppet, on the verge of collapse, stood atop the mountain gate, beneath the snow-covered eaves, gazing at the heavens, lost in thought.
In the beginning, the Heaven Pill Gate had only three members: Chen Xia, the Inner Demon, and the puppet.
The Inner Demon had long since departed, and now it seemed it was the puppet's turn.
The puppet chuckled, its tone no longer stiff. Its hollow eyes filled with nostalgia as it recalled its hundreds of thousands of years of existence, finally settling on the Blue Sky Sword Sea. It let out a self-deprecating laugh.
"Indeed, those who appear early die early."
The wind and snow intensified, and rain began to fall.
Tap.
Fragments fell to the ground beneath the eaves, where no snow had settled. The puppet's face began to crumble, revealing the faint light beneath.
It was but a wisp of divine will, layers of faint light, now returning to the heavens and earth.
"After all these calculations, sustained by a single thread of obsession... Chen Xia, will you grant my wish?"
It received no answer. The fragments continued to fall, the porcelain vessel beyond repair.
When the final pressure came, it shattered with a crack.
The Star Gate closed.
That day, the sound of weeping echoed through the Great Heaven, reaching the ears of all cultivators.
It was the lament of the heavens, the fall of a supreme being.
And so, the great cultivators understood.
Daoist Suppressing Heaven...
Had fallen.
The Martial Emperor stood at the edge of the heavens, his left sleeve torn, blood streaming from countless wounds that refused to heal. These were the injuries Daoist Suppressing Heaven had left him.
In his right hand, he held a wisp of aura—the opportunity left behind by Daoist Suppressing Heaven's fall, the breath of the supreme, the lament of the heavens. It was his scheme. He exhaled softly and whispered,
"It's almost over. Once it's done, I can rest in peace."
With a wave of his hand, the Martial Emperor erected a tomb for Daoist Suppressing Heaven in this void. He glanced at it briefly, then turned away, his figure vanishing as he traversed the myriad realms to a certain place.
Here, he had nurtured a Supreme Great Demon, now fully matured, lacking only one thing—the breath of the supreme, the lament of the heavens.
The Martial Emperor fed the Supreme Great Demon the breath of the supreme.
The heavens and earth trembled.
The ever-restless Dao at the pinnacle of the Great Heaven stirred violently, descending to suppress the Supreme Great Demon, refusing to allow a demon that sought to steal the Dao's fortune to ascend to supremacy.
This was the moment the Martial Emperor had been waiting for. He reached out, pulling at the very essence of the Dao, while simultaneously sacrificing the Supreme Great Demon, shouting,
"Shift the Stars, Move the Heavens!"
In an instant, the scenery changed.
The Dao now hung above the Immortal Realm, poised to descend and crush it.
The Martial Emperor did not act, standing still to observe.
The cultivators still in the Immortal Realm looked up in terror, unsure of what to do.
The pressure of the Dao was like the end of the world, shaking the entire Immortal Realm the moment it appeared, causing spiritual energy to reverse its flow, signaling imminent destruction.
A gust of wind blew.
The sky seemed to ripple like a gray-white river.
A figure in green robes emerged from the river, shaking his sleeves and standing tall. He frowned at the Martial Emperor and the Dao, speaking with irritation.
"I've lived for tens of thousands of years, a life rare even in ancient times. Now that I've emerged from seclusion, I'm here to beat the crap out of idiots!"
Hmm.
The newly emerged Supreme Chen Xia didn't seem too friendly.