A hundred years later, the Water Official Emperor formally returned to his post, and the Golden Decree from the Celestial Court also arrived at the Water Official Emperor’s Mansion.
Because the Water Official Emperor Zhang Jian had been stationed in the San Yuan Emperor’s Mansion, operating the Heaven and Earth Water Element Dao Laws, maintaining the Celestial Court’s order, and assisting Daoist Monarch Chunyang in elevating a Great Realm with meritorious service, his sequence rank was promoted by one tier, to Sequence Nine. His primary office was laterally transferred from Water Official Emperor to the Lower Realm Ninth Layer, Arctic Land, as the Eternal Ice Castle Guard Celestial Monarch.
The transfer order took effect immediately upon issuance.
This could be counted as the first real‑power Immortal Position at Sequence Nine that Zhang Jian had obtained.
The position of Water Official Emperor, after all, had only been held by him temporarily.
This was also the foundation of his ascent through the ranks.
Having already served one term as a real‑power Emperor of Sequence Nine, and with solid, unquestionable merit upon him, his transfer to a Sequence Nine regional Guard Celestial Monarch in the Defense Army naturally drew no objections.
Moreover, Zhang Jian’s move from a real‑power Emperor to a local guard within a defense corps hardly looked like a promotion from any angle.
The many Celestial Immortals of the Celestial Court naturally had nothing to say.
Ultimately, for the Celestial Immortals of the Celestial Court, seniority is of great importance.
Having served as a real‑power Emperor of Sequence Nine in the Celestial Realm, then serving as a Guard Celestial Monarch of one region, was not particularly conspicuous.
...
The Central Celestial Realm crowns the All Heavens Void, within which the lower tier has nine layers, namely the Nine Heavens.
The Middle Tier and Upper Tier likewise each have nine layers, totaling Twenty‑Seven Heavens.
Beyond these, there are six more heavens, of which the Duke Tier occupies three, and above them lie the Three Supreme Heavens.
Altogether, they form the Thirty‑Three Heavens.
Only the former Zhou Mountain once pierced through all Thirty‑Three Heavens, and the power of Zhou Mountain traversed the dimensions of the Celestial Realm, directly extending into the Human Realm, as well as into the void dimension where the Netherworld Underworld resides.
Unparalleled in its vast magnificence.
Only now Zhou Mountain has broken, and the structure of Heaven and Earth has undergone tremendous change.
It is said that the Lower Realm Ninth Layer, the extreme northern land, was born from a mass of unmelting ice and snow that fell when Zhou Mountain collapsed.
This is a land suffused with vitality; part of it is lush and teeming with life.
Yet small regions remain shrouded in perpetual snow that never melts, cold to the marrow; even Immortal Gods entering therein would have their Dao Practice Ice Sealed by the chill emanating from within, and sink into eternal slumber.
This place has transformed into an Eternal Divine Realm, also known as the Eternal Forbidden Area.
The Eternal Ice Castle has been established at the center of the Eternal Divine Realm. Here, within the void, tangible streams of frigid currents flow, layer upon layer coiling about. Even the river of space‑time in this region is stained by a veil of pure white storm‑snow, presenting a scene of fragmented ruin.
This region is very vast; at a single glance, the surrounding mountains and rivers are all covered in such pure white ice and snow.
Zhang Jian’s figure turned into a streak of Immortal Light, first descending into Beichi Zhou, sweeping his gaze across this vitality‑abundant land.
Here the four seasons are like spring, the earth is fertile, and it nurtures vast multitudes of living beings, among which are traces of several Immortal Sect Dao Lineages.
This place bears some resemblance to the Eastern Immortal Realm of the Upper Realm Fifth Layer, the Earth Realm where Qingyi City is located.
Only in terms of prosperity, the Eastern Immortal Realm remains far more flourishing.
At least in the Eastern Immortal Realm, Zhang Jian saw very few mortals, while Immortals were commonplace.
Yet here mortals are commonplace, and the number of Immortals is not large.
There are also many strange and diverse Alien Races, and the Celestial Race is present in considerable numbers.
"Truly, one region’s waters and soil nurture a uniquely its own local customs and character!"
As Zhang Jian gazed upon this scene, a faint smile surfaced in the depths of his heart.
In this land of living beings, as the Eternal Ice Castle Guard Celestial Monarch, he likely would not be overly bored.
Zhang Jian did not linger long in this land of life. His form turned into a streak of flowing light and plunged straight into the Eternal Divine Realm on the other side of the Eternal Mountain Range.
The snow‑white mountains, the vast green fertile basins, and the black plains formed a stark contrast.
More terrifying still was that extremity of cold intent.
That current of wind, carrying extreme chill from the depths of the void, swept forth; the entire snow‑white mountain range seemed to tremble, birthing waves of cold.
Zhang Jian likewise felt a chill.
His eyes flickered slightly, and something unusual surfaced within their depths.
At this moment, his Dao Practice was anything but ordinary in its might; the Earth Emperor Ancestral Qi spread throughout the many heavens governed by the Celestial Court, allowing his cultivation to advance by leaps and bounds.
Furthermore, his Divine Body, after being refined through the Nine Revolutions Chaos Green Lotus Transformation Method, was likewise exceptionally powerful; ordinary harm could not even approach him, for it would be directly assimilated by the Chaos Qi manifesting around his body.
That snow, born of this ice‑snow domain, could cause him to feel cold—its power was evident.
Zhang Jian raised one palm; wisps of snowflakes whirled and gathered in the depths of his palm, instantly condensing into a small snowball, within which flowed a terrifying will that annihilates heaven and earth and Ice Seals all things.
Feeling this will, a hint of surprise flickered in his eyes.
This was not mere material freezing, but arose from a certain horrifying will, even a chill that touched the heart and soul.
He harbored some conjectures within.
Yet his figure continued forward, and before long he saw, at the outer periphery of the Eternal Divine Realm, rank upon rank of silver‑white armor from the Divine Land. The armor was embroidered with various Runes that resist snow and ice, warding off Ice Seal; these Immortal Armors shone brilliantly upon the snow.
Each unit of three hundred Celestial Soldiers was commanded by a Low-tier Divine General.
That Divine General possessed the cultivation realm of a High-Tier Celestial Immortal.
Of the three hundred Immortal Soldiers, most were True Immortals, though not a few were Celestial Immortals.
Zhang Jian glanced over them and paid them no special heed.
This was already a region where Celestial Immortals walked everywhere and Great Powers could often be seen.
Considering that this place is the core region of the All Heavens Void, and moreover the Immortal Prison heavily guarded by the Celestial Court, such a display of force was not at all surprising.
Zhang Jian had no intention of directly revealing himself; he continued on toward the direction of the Eternal Ice Castle.
As he advanced in concealment, he saw from afar a drifting belt of ice and snow formed from endless cold currents. That drifting belt coiled layer upon layer; within, mists floated faintly, and points of frosty starlight flowed. That was the radiance of the Celestial Forbidden Technique.