Chapter 963: Zi Qing and Xu Qing (part 1)
In the imperial capital in Ningyan’s mansion, there was a courtyard set aside specially for Plumdark.
Plumdark was struggling. She sat cross-legged in the middle of a host of complicated sealing marks that floated around her. They formed a sealing barrier that bound her in place. The sealing marks were made of soul threads that had erupted the moment the ancestral sacrifices began, thus preventing Plumdark from leaving.
Not very far away in another residence, Erniu sat cross-legged, also struggling. In fact, blue veins bulged out on his forehead, and his eyes were bloodshot. He was surrounded by similar sealing marks. However, these weren’t soul threads. Instead, they had been set up by Master Seventh.
“Old man!” he roared, struggling with all his might. “You damn geezer! I can’t believe you plotted against me like this! You sealed me here? Fool! I refuse to be your apprentice!!”
Outside, the Nine Serenities wind blew through the imperial capital.
The sky seemed murky above. The door of the netherworld was opening, and it couldn’t be hidden. As it was revealed to Revered Ancient, everyone who had been paying attention to the empress’ godly ascension ceremony noticed it. After all, this involved an ancient kingdom being restored. And the ceremony itself was extremely gruish.
However... it was different from when the empress became a god. No species, and no god, attempted to stop what happened in the Heaveneater Region. They ignored it. It was almost as if it were some sort of taboo. The reason was that it was a sacrifice to a Living God, and Eminent Desolation was pleased.
In the imperial capital of humankind, the empress looked up, and a complicated expression flashed across hēr face briefly. An instant later, shē was calm. The deal shē had made with that certain person was now concluded. Both parties had achieved the desired result.
In the future, the interests of the species would be the most important.
Humankind had broken ties with the holy lands. The Grand Emperor had perished. Going forward, humans in Revered Ancient would not have the same stability as before. Whether or not humankind would rise to prominence would depend solely on the actions of the empress. Just as shē had said before. Shē would shoulder the responsibility of all karma!
Calm at heart, the empress looked out at humankind. The excitement of the commoners in the imperial capital was palpable, and the government officials were clearly feeling similarly. The imperial children looked nervous.
The empress finally looked at Xu Qing. That person’s younger brother in this life is the one the Grand Emperor chose to bear his sword....
Hēr gaze took in Xu Qing, who stood on the War Drum of Humankind, his face bereft of any injuries or wounds.
Xu Qing sensed her gaze. He bowed.
The empress nodded hēr head slightly, then looked at the rising sun and spoke in a voice that echoed through heaven and earth.
“A decree is hereby issued in the east of Revered Ancient, to all regions.
“The sun is rising. Let all of my people in all of the regions prepare for resettlement. No humans in any outside region are to be killed.
“King Firecrusher. King Northriver. King Cloudtide.... You will lead seventeen heavenly kings and seventeen commanders-in-chief to the regions controlled by nonhumans in the east of Revered Ancient. Find all of my people... and bring them home.”
Hearts swelled in response to the words.
From the time of Eastglory and on, there were too many scattered citizens in foreign lands to count. It wasn’t that other emperors hadn’t desired to gather them together. They just lacked the power. But on this day, the empress issued a decree as an Altar God. In the east of Revered Ancient, hēr voice was like a natural law.
King Firecrusher and the other heavenly kings instantly flew into action. Bowing to the empress, they voiced their assent.
Continuing, shē said, “All other government ministers, imperial princes, and other related personnel: in seven days in the grand hall of the imperial palace, a new imperial name will be selected, and a new dynasty will be announced!”
In response to the empress’ words, the officials all bowed.
“The ancestral sacrifices are hereby concluded. Everyone is dismissed. Eleventh, you come with me.”
Planet Ancient Emperor sank back down into its original position. The canopy of heaven went back to normal. The destiny aura of humankind was no longer active. The cultivators on the planet were teleported away and appeared in the air outside. The grand ceremony was officially over.
The officials could see that the empress wanted to talk to hēr son, and didn’t wish to be disturbed. After bowing, they took their leave, their minds full of thoughts about the ancestral sacrifices.
Eleventh Prince’s heart raced with nervousness. He felt like a child who had misbehaved as he walked over to the empress, his head hanging. When he reached hēr, he opened his mouth to speak, except he wasn’t sure what to say.
However, the empress wasn’t even looking at Eleventh Prince. Shē looked into the sky. There, the War Drum of Humankind had disappeared, and now that the officials were all gone, Xu Qing was visible.
“King Skycrusher,” the empress said calmly.
As Xu Qing floated in the air, he bowed to the empress. “I’m waiting for someone, Your Majesty. He should arrive soon.”
The empress looked at him deeply for a long moment. Without saying another thing, shē turned and went back in the direction of the imperial palace. Eleventh Prince took a deep breath and nervously followed hēr.
Heaven and earth were silent. Compared to the dramatic events of earlier, this silence seemed deathly and stifling. Within that pressure, Xu Qing hovered alone in the air. No one appeared anywhere nearby. He just patiently looked at the horizon.
Truth be told, he was being very patient. He had been waiting a long time for this day. And he was confident that the person he was waiting for would come. That was his premonition. To be precise, the year he arrived in the imperial capital and first caught sight of the person acting as the imperial preceptor, he knew that this day wasn’t far off.
Time passed.
The sun continued to rise until it sent light and heat out over the lands. Eventually... it was noon. Intense sunlight wiped all darkness away from the lands and cleansed everything. It was so bright that it almost seemed impossible to look at the sky.
Xu Qing had seen many days like this. There was one in particular that was branded into his soul. It was something he would never forget for his entire life.
It was the last noon he experienced in Peerless City. The sunlight that day had been very bright and strong, until a figure appeared. And then blood started to rain down in Peerless City....
On this day, that same figure appeared to Xu Qing at noon in the sun. The color violet invaded the light, cutting off the heat and descending from above. Step by step, he entered the world of mortals. Ultimately, he superseded the light in heaven. He replaced the sky. He became the only thing Xu Qing saw, filling his field of vision.
It was Zi Qing, the Crown Prince of Violet and Cyan![1]
He had beautiful facial features, a warm smile, peaceful eyes, and a soft gait.
Hovering in midair, he looked in the direction of the imperial palace and said, “Congratulations, Your Majesty. You successfully became an Altar God.”
A calm voice responded from the imperial palace. “You should be in your own region, not here with my people.”
Hearing that, Zi Qing smiled faintly and nodded. “You’re correct, Empress. As soon as I get the doll, I’ll leave.”
With that, Zi Qing turned to look at Xu Qing. His gaze was as gentle as ever, just like back in Peerless City. “Have you been waiting for me this whole time, lil’ bro?”
Xu Qing nodded, his expression unchanging.
“It seems you’ve really grown up. In that case, let’s go. I’m going to take you home.” Zi Qing smiled and reached out with his right hand gently to grab Xu Qing. His act of reaching out caused the dome of heaven to spin. The lands trembled. A terrifying force descended on the world, cutting off time and severing the surroundings from the fate of Revered Ancient.
Everything around Xu Qing became an instance of space-time separate from Revered Ancient. It was something that couldn’t be prevented or avoided. That hand... was like fate itself.
In fact, it was hard to say if it was a misconception or not, but within the palm prints on the hand, Xu Qing saw Peerless City, the blood rain, and himself, clutching a doll and crying.
But then a cold snort echoed out from the imperial palace. There were also five godly auras that erupted from the destiny aura of humankind. They locked onto Zi Qing. In an instant, the spinning of the world ceased, and the rumbling went away.
Zi Qing’s hand stopped in place and he looked at the imperial palace. “Your Majesty, this is a family matter between me and my lil’ bro.”
“Xu Qing is one of my officials,” the empress replied in a calm but firm tone. “He’s King Skycrusher of humankind, and is the tutor of the imperial princes.”
“Oh?” It sounded as though Zi Qing had just heard something very amusing. His smile widened, and something scintillating appeared in his gaze in addition to the warmth. It was something extremely ancient. His voice changed in a similar way. “From the look of it, my lil’ bro doesn’t want you interfering, Your Majesty. But since Your Majesty already spoke up, I suppose... we should play a little game of choice. What do you say?”
Zi Qing flipped his left hand over to reveal a violet wooden box.
1. In case you missed it, I have a footnote inchapter 938 explaining Zi Qing’s name. ☜