Divine Emperor of DeathDivine Emperor of Death
There was a white-robed man walking restlessly at the entrance to a palace.
His white hair flowed down his shoulders, and his chin hung with a long beard. His facial features were middle-aged, and he possessed a calm and gentle look, but right now, that gentle expression was filled with nervousness.
He was none other than Empyrean Miller Skyrend. His injuries seemed to have disappeared, but his aura was still low, slowly regaining his cultivation after being crippled.
At this moment, a warrior came running in and knelt while cupping his hands.
"Venerable Elder, we have not been able to detect Autarch Elluro Coldwing anywhere. There's been no news about his majesty ever since he took an entire battalion of our warriors and disappeared a week ago. It's been three days since we lost all contact with them. They've already been too silent about their activities, but now…"
"What happened to the elders who died?
"We couldn't find where they died exactly other than to the Great Desolate Plains in the Eternal Twilight Lower Realm. Even then, we cannot find anything strange other than battle marks left by them. It is suspected they came into contact with the Divine Emperor of Death, but there is not a single piece of evidence that supports that. They all… disappeared…"
"…"
Empyrean Miller Skyrend's expression turned solemn.
"I told His Highness not to hunt the Divine Emperor of Death until the Supreme One arrived, fearing all those mysterious Divergents and that other Anarchic Divergent will gang up on him, but he took off on his own…!"
He controlled his anger and shouted like an old man as he trembled. He appeared to have aged even more from the time he fought the Divine Emperor of Death.
He had advised Autarch Elluro Coldwing to wait. But the other party had other ideas, and now he didn't know what happened to them. He couldn't accompany them while he was still recovering. Besides, people also doubted that the Divine Emperor of Death might've done something to him, like making him a spy or a sleeper.
It was an insult to him and the people who healed him, but there was nothing he could do than be patient until the Divine Emperor of Death died. Everyone was afraid since the Divine Emperor of Death even made two leaders his death puppets. So they feared the same outcome for him. Even now, he was told to take a rest, but the truth was that he was locked up and investigated occasionally.
He didn't mind, but he was now in a situation where he had to go find Autarch Elluro Coldwing.
His life jade, a Peak-Level Empyrean Grade Treasure, didn't seem broken, but it had certainly dulled to a point where there were two outcomes. Either he was going to die, or the distance was too far that even karma couldn't reach the place where he was thrown. Usually, for a life jade of this caliber in the Third Layer, it only happened if he was in the First Layer or some other mini-realms that had high karmic restrictions.
For the others, it was similar, but it wasn't as dull as Autarch Elluro Coldwing's.
Clenching his teeth, Empyrean Miller Skyrend tried to go out, but he was soon blocked by his juniors. Unable to overcome them, he could only return inside, but he did all there was to it, which caused a huge wave of Heaven's Warriors from all over the realms to scramble towards the Eternal Twilight Lower Realm.
"Hopefully, the Supreme One can make it faster…"
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A lot of mountains loomed ahead, its black peaks piercing through dense, shadowed clouds. The mountain seemed to breathe with darkness energy, its canyons and narrow paths hidden within the jagged terrain creating a treacherous atmosphere, especially with obsidian walls lining every passage, giving off an ominous sheen under the dim light.
The mountain ores here not only released darkness energy but also warped space, making it difficult for anyone to traverse.
A lone figure clad in a lavish crimson-purple robe glided silently along a narrow path carved into the mountain. Her beauty was striking, her countenance noble. Her steps were sure and light as she ventured through the oppressive darkness of the mountain.
Dark crimson flames flickered at her fingertips, and arcs of crimson-silver lightning occasionally danced along her arms, giving her a lethal aura as she radiated a destructive intent.
Without warning, a giant tiger lunged from the opening near a turn, practically emerging from the shadows. It appeared to be a hulking creature, its body twisted and warped by countless spatial strands that made it look funny, with its upper body smaller than its lower body, yet no one could deny that the weight behind its attack could shatter the skull of an Empyrean.
But despite the terrifying leap of the tiger, the woman nonchalantly raised her head. With a flick of her wrist, a surge of dark crimson flames erupted and encased the tiger, the flames twisting through the air with fierce intensity.
The tiger didn't seem to retreat. Without care for danger, it continued through the flames and jumped out, pouncing on the woman, but with another wave of her hand, a flash of crimson-silver light jolted out of the blue, exploding on the tiger.
*Bang!~*
The tiger abruptly came to a stop as though it was paralyzed before it seemed to have dropped dead with its head shattered.
"The Abyssal Mountain Maze sure is a drag with so many Vacuous Beasts…" She sighed gently.
Without giving it another glance, she waved her hand, collected the carcass, and continued.
She met more of them, particularly near the open spaces like valleys. But the moment she combined her flames and lightning, sending out black-crimson waves of firestorm energy, there was nearly nothing left in the scenes. She cleared any traces of her that she could find and journeyed ahead day and night.
There were times she was unable to beat a Vacuous Beast purely because of the power difference, and she had no choice but to take a detour.
She had also met other people, but they were only in the outer region while she was in the core region. Although killing Vacuous Beasts was a drag, she was at least able to journey ahead without being found out. She was extremely careful, only attacking with her uniqueness if no one was around.
The spatial distortions made it worse for her to follow directions, but as she remained here for days, she became more and more aware.
After numerous skirmishes, she finally reached a hidden valley nestled in the heart of the Abyssal Mountain Maze.
A strange silence hung in the air with no Vacuous Beasts to be seen. It only made her more cautious, causing her to move slowly. The obsidian walls produced a lot of shimmering black stones and precious rare ores, and the valley floor was covered in silver-streaked gravel as if it had been bathed in the essence of space.
It reminded her of the void dust space that she had seen when she was invited to his home.
A few minutes later, she finally arrived at the center of the valley, and her face broke into a pleasant surprise. Her eyes were wide as she gazed at the treasure before her. The gaze slowly turned into one of shock as she recognized the tremendous undulations the treasure gave her.
It was almost a miracle for her to see three Laws evenly distributed in one treasure.
"Space, Time, and Karma… a Mystic Diviner would kill a Heaven's Warrior to obtain this mythical treasure. It is also a supreme ingredient to increase the Fate Discarnate Soul's grade to the peak of the Empyrean Grade- Nexus Triadveil Clover."
She recognized it at a glance, her eyes still trembling.
The first leaf pulsed with a faint, silvery glow, curving gracefully as though manifested the flow of time. Every so often, it shimmered with a subtle flash, as if glimpsing into moments yet to come or those long past. She could practically see herself in that leaf.
This herb instinctively knew her next moves, faintly sparking with spatial energy using the second leaf that possessed a translucent quality, edged with tiny sparks of energy that distorted the space around it, trying to intimidate her. The third leaf was darker, carrying a faint glow of deep, spectral blue. This leaf seemed calm but incredibly profound, exuding an energy that resonated with the mysterious threads of karma.
"Sss…"
She sucked in a breath of cold air, unable to believe what she had chanced upon.
Not anyone could've reached here since these same treasures formed strange resonances with the surrounding ores and blocked anyone with a prowess above Mid Stage Empyrean. Therefore, only someone like her could invade this region and get these treasures.
She didn't doubt that the moment she moved these treasures, the spatial restriction would disappear, the Vacuous Beasts would run outside, and the cultivators would flow in, trying to find the reason that caused this change, but mostly hoping to find a supreme treasure.
Even then, she possessed a face full of confidence as she reached out with her hand.