NOVEL NEXT Chapter 1: Prologue
Blood painted the heavens.
The Void Emperor, Xuanyuan Zhi, stood atop a floating battlefield of shattered stars and broken realms. His black robes billowed, torn and stained with crimson. Around him, the void pulsed—alive and raging, a force of creation and destruction barely held in check.
Across the fractured sky, his enemies gathered. The Seven Heavenly Sects, the Divine Clans, and the Immortal Guardians—forces that once bowed before him—now formed an unholy alliance to bring about his downfall. Their banners burned like suns, illuminating the endless void with their golden light.
Xuanyuan Zhi's gaze swept over them, his eyes cold and unreadable. Divine chains wrapped around his arms and legs, digging into his flesh and glowing with heavenly runes. Each chain pulsed with energy, sealing his cultivation and suppressing his connection to the void.
Even bound, his presence weighed heavily on the battlefield.
"You betray your oaths." His voice resonated, sharp as thunder. "Did you think the heavens would spare you once I am gone? You will kneel again, but by then, it will be too late."
A figure stepped forward from the opposing ranks—Dao Lord Tianheng, Xuanyuan Zhi's most trusted disciple. His once-reverent eyes now burned with determination.
"Master, your ambition doomed you." Tianheng raised the Heavenly Slaying Sword, its edge gleaming with divine light. "You defied the natural order. You claimed dominion over the void itself. For that sin, the heavens demand your death."
Xuanyuan Zhi laughed, the sound hollow and cold. "The heavens fear what they cannot control." He raised his bound hands, and the void trembled in response. Shadows rippled outward, devouring light and space. "And you—my most loyal disciple—were always too blind to see beyond their lies."
Tianheng hesitated, but the Divine Elders behind him roared their commands. Golden arrays lit up the void, forming sealing formations that encircled Xuanyuan Zhi. Runes shifted and locked, draining the void energy he struggled to maintain.
The Emperor's knees buckled, but his glare never wavered. "You cannot kill me." His voice was a whisper now, yet it resonated through the heavens. "The void does not die."
The sealing arrays flared. Heavenly flames descended, scorching his flesh. His vision blurred, but he clenched his teeth and endured. He had faced worse. He had risen from ashes before—and he would rise again.
Tianheng's blade fell.
Pain lanced through Xuanyuan Zhi's chest, but he did not scream. His body crumbled, shattering into fragments of light and shadow. The void trembled, recoiling as his soul scattered into the infinite dark.
The battlefield fell silent.
The victors lowered their weapons, their expressions grim. Even in death, the Void Emperor's presence lingered, a weight that refused to lift.
Tianheng's hand trembled as he wiped the blood from his blade. "It's done," he said, though the words rang hollow.
But far beyond their sight, in the endless abyss where light dared not tread, fragments of Xuanyuan Zhi's soul drifted.
And the void whispered.
"I will return."