Immortal of the Ages

The Ice Cloud Valkyrie Queen had anticipated Empyrean Emperor Mu's suspicions. She responded calmly, "I don't think so. What he's using is far superior to Zu Wei's abilities. Perhaps it's merely a resemblance; it may not be your Ancestral Dao."

"There's no point in quibbling," Empyrean Emperor Mu shook his head, a hint of frustration in his voice.

"Empyrean Emperor Mu," said the Ice Cloud Valkyrie Queen as she raised her gaze, her eyes meeting his. "Things have come this far; there's no need for further words. Let's watch what unfolds next."

Empyrean Emperor Mu hesitated, an unknown fury simmering within him. He might be even more enraged and resentful than the Great Dream Lord herself.

Though they had harbored ill intentions, Yun Xiao's two successive slaps had been too ruthless and brutal, leaving their two great sects utterly disgraced. Yet they could only swallow their humiliation.

"Fine!" Empyrean Emperor Mu spat out the word through clenched teeth. The atmosphere among the nearby seats of the Heavenly Deity Alliance grew icy.

One could imagine the depth of loathing the Ancestral Land and Nine Yin Soul Sea now bore toward the Harmony Divine Palace.

Their animosity even surpassed that toward the Southern Divine Dragon Realm.

Because of these events, the Dragon Devil Clan, who had also been humiliated earlier due to the Young Dragon Consort, exchanged uneasy glances, their emotions a tangled web.

"The Ice Cloud Valkyrie Queen is truly audacious, still defending that little celestial slave. They've completely torn off all pretenses now," Gong Tianjian murmured softly.

Even so, the Golden Dragon Emperor furrowed his brow, saying little.

"Do you fear that after the Grand Assembly of Myriad Sects concludes, the three factions won't truly clash?" Gong Tianjian asked.

The Golden Dragon Emperor slowly shook his head. His gaze was fixed on the white-robed youth within the shimmering screen. In a deep voice, he said, "They will clash. The Ancestral Land values face above all else; causing them to lose face is more painful than destroying them."

"Then what concerns you?" Gong Tianjian inquired, puzzled.

Pointing at the white-clad youth, the Golden Dragon Emperor said, "This boy first employed the Nine Yin Dreamscape of the Nine Yin Soul Sea, then wielded the Three Ancestral Swords and Law of Heaven's Order in succession. Whatever others use, he mirrors effortlessly.

"His talents in swordsmanship, sigil arts, martial arts, and soul arts are exceptional. His status as a celestial slave makes us naturally despise, underestimate, and pity him, diminishing his perceived threat. But when we set aside the fact that he's a celestial slave and think carefully, this lad is quite an enigma."

Gong Tianjian was struck by his words, her brows knitting together. "You're right. It's evident that the Supreme Yin Cauldron appears to be his mistress on the surface but behaves like his little darling, even a pampered daughter. And the Three Divas allow him free rein, even to the point of offending the Ancestral Land..."

"Indeed, it's very strange," the Golden Dragon Emperor said gravely. "Had we known earlier that this boy was such a variable, we should have eliminated him outside. Now that he's within the Grand Assembly Arena, it's more difficult to deal with him."

Gong Tianjian nodded, sensing the Golden Dragon Emperor's concern. After a moment's thought, she said, "But after all, he's just a young man, not some ancient monster. And whether it's the Ancestral Land, Nine Yin Soul Sea, or the Dragon Devil Clan, all have their main forces present. As long as they recognize his threat and go all out, capturing him shouldn't be too challenging."

"Well..." The Golden Dragon Emperor wasn't one to bolster others while undermining himself; he simply felt something was very strange, very peculiar.

"I hope that after this humiliation, that boy Long Hao will learn a little," the Golden Dragon Emperor muttered with a sigh.

Long Hao was his son, the husband of Shen Nanyin—the Young Dragon Lord of the Golden Dragon Emperor.

"During his first attack, Long Hao went all out like a lion pouncing on a rabbit, not underestimating his foe in the slightest. Yet that celestial slave exploited his weakness. Now, the entirety of the Southern Divine Dragon Realm's forces has gathered nearly 2,000 geniuses, showing how seriously they take this opponent," Gong Tianjian remarked.

"Indeed." The Golden Dragon Emperor rested his hands on the armrests, leaned back on his seat, and narrowed his eyes as he waited.

After the commotion, calm gradually returned.

Everyone knew that after a brief lull, the lively Heavenly Deity Stellar River region would soon face an even more ferocious storm.

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In the Grand Assembly Arena, on the Extreme Yin Star…

"Wahhh! Wahhh!" Zu Wei's spirit slumped over her Dao Heart. Her long hair was disheveled, her face pale, eyes red and swollen. Even though she was in spirit form, tears of despair streamed down.

She was distraught, consumed by grief and rage, and murmured miserably, "You wretched celestial slave, you've ruined me! You deserve 1,000 deaths. You'll meet a terrible end, and all those vile bitches of the Extreme Yin Celestial Realm will perish with you…!"

"Are you cursing me or blessing me? With so many beauties accompanying me, wouldn't I be quite the romantic even as a ghost? I'd be busy for tens of thousands of years," a teasing voice echoed in her ear, pushing her further into despair.

"You... shameless scoundrel!" Zu Wei was like a drenched cat; her pride had been utterly shredded, and even her voice quavered with sobs.

She didn't know what else to do but hurl curses in her breakdown.

"This is what you get for being stubborn—call it karma," the voice sounded again, now tinged with impatience, "Alright, enough teasing. You're taking it too seriously."

"Too seriously? You must take responsibility!" Zu Wei cried out in sorrow and fury.

"Are you joking? Asking me to take responsibility for something that didn't actually happen?!"

"One day, I'll bring you down with me to erase today's humiliation!" Zu Wei wailed desperately.

"No time to indulge your madness. Look up," the voice commanded once more.

When the voice turned cold, Zu Wei's entire being trembled. Noticing a violet light illuminating her, she slowly lifted her head.

"You...!" A colossal violet eye appeared before Zu Wei's primordial spirit. Within it coiled a nine-headed violet dragon—fierce yet divine—much like Yun Xiao himself. Though it seemed ethereal and graceful, it was, in truth, domineering and ruthless.

An instinctive fear gripped Zu Wei. She asked in alarm, "What are you doing?"

"Nothing much, just making you more obedient."

As Yun Xiao spoke, the nine-headed violet dragon emerged from the Soulfire Eye, looming over her spirit. The nine dragon heads lunged downward.

"Ahhh!" Zu Wei's terrified cries echoed once more.

No one knew how much torment and humiliation she had endured. Though it was on a spiritual level—not as intense or obvious as the Young Dragon Consort's public humiliation—it tugged even more at the heartstrings.

At last, the violet light faded.

In the center of the chaotic battlefield, the violet dragon shadows surrounding the white-robed youth slowly withdrew from Zu Wei. The proud beauty, once cold and aloof in her black-and-white dress, now stood before Yun Xiao with disheveled hair, a pale face, and tear-streaked cheeks, staring blankly.

"Have you become obedient?" Yun Xiao gazed into her eyes, where dragon shadows lingered.

"Mhm..." Zu Wei lowered her head, murmuring softly, her body still trembling.

Yun Xiao lifted her chin, making her look at the chaotic battlefield around them. "Order them to surrender their Personal Pledges to me. Not a single one is to be missed."

When Zu Wei raised her eyes, she saw that all her subordinates—including Mu Zixiao and Mu Zhilu—had been captured and were now held before her.

Among them, Empyrean Emperor Mu's two sons were restrained by Hai Qing and her six sisters. These female Martial Immortals possessed immense strength. The two elegant young men were covered in blood, their faces filled with resentment, unable to move.

"Damn celestial slave! Let her go! You'll die a horrible death!" Mu Zixiao shouted at Yun Xiao, clearly unconvinced and still clinging to the pride of the Ancestral Land.

He firmly believed that the Harmony Divine Palace stood on the brink of destruction, that the Southern Divine Dragon Realm would surely annihilate them, and that they—and Yun Xiao—must kneel and beg the Ancestral Land for protection as their only hope.

He couldn't be blamed; this was the common belief. It was precisely because of this that the Ancestral Land held such sway over the Extreme Yin Celestial Realm.

"Despicable dog! You're destroying the survival path of the Extreme Yin Celestial Realm! You've angered our Ancestral Land and the Southern Divine Dragon Realm. Once our elders join forces, you'll doom all the innocent people there!" Mu Zhilu snarled as he struggled.

Yun Xiao shook his head at their words. "Gentlemen, if you're going to speak, then speak. Calling me a celestial slave and eunuch dog with every breath makes you seem quite small-minded."

"You, a rootless man, know what shame is?" Mu Zixiao shouted, his face flushing with rage as he saw Zu Wei tormented.

No sooner had he spoken than a blade of light flashed next to his groin area, erupting in a spray of blood.

"GAHH!…!" Mu Zixiao screamed, his face turning a ghastly shade.

Beside him, Mu Zhilu didn't even have time to react before the azure light pierced him as well, felling two birds with one stone.

The two brothers collapsed together, their faces purple, bodies convulsing, their legs twitching uncontrollably.

"What?" Hai Qing and her six sisters, who had been guarding the brothers, were so startled they let go and stepped back.

Though celestial slaves were common in the Extreme Yin Celestial Realm, they had never witnessed such a scene. For a moment, they glared at Yun Xiao with a mix of annoyance and disbelief.

"Couldn't you have warned us first!"

Caught off guard, their dresses were stained with blood, making them feel both embarrassed and disgusted. They hurriedly washed it off with water.

Their frantic cleaning contrasted sharply with the Mu brothers' desperate wails, heightening the drama of the moment.

"Zixiao! Zhilu!"

The other disciples of the Ancestral Land and Nine Yin Soul Sea were horrified. The men among them instinctively covered themselves, fearing they might provoke this mad celestial slave and meet the same fate.

Only now did they break into cold sweat, fully realizing they had fallen into the hands of a reckless lunatic.

This madman had even killed Meng Huan without hesitation; would he spare them?

The fate of the Mu brothers was a glaring example.

They hadn't grasped the gravity of the situation, daring to curse at him repeatedly.

"Well, now it's settled. They're free from worldly desires and can't curse others anymore..."

The 100 followers trembled inwardly.

Facing a madman like Yun Xiao, they were utterly terrified, feeling like weeping but without tears.

Even more disconcerting was that Zu Wei showed no reaction to the brothers' miserable state. She stood beside Yun Xiao like a subdued chick and said to everyone, "Hand over your Personal Pledges to him. If you die, don't blame me."

"Hand them over! Hand them over!"

The 100 followers scrambled to present their Personal Pledges to Yun Xiao.

Yun Xiao accepted them with a smile, then turned to the somewhat conscious Mu brothers, who were still whimpering like drenched dogs. "Hand yours over too, gentlemen. Though you've lost your little heads, after handing them over, at least you can keep your big ones."