Desolate Era (Book 11 - Book 15)

And so, he had ordered Yu Dong and Shui Yi to make their moves.

“You remember now?” Ning said coldly. “That couple back then… they were my mother and father.”

“The one that was killed by your group back then was my father.” Xiyue began to grow even more crazed. Her father had absolutely doted on her when she was a child. His wide, mountain-like shoulders… his loud laughter… his repeated appearances in her dreams…

He was her most beloved father… and she had been her kind and gentle man…

Ning and Xiyue both stared at Dong Seven.

Dong Seven felt coldness in the bottom of his heart.

“It was you who killed Shui Yi and Yu Dong?” Dong Seven said quaveringly.

“Right.” Ning nodded. “And now, it is time for you. The principal instigator.”

“My cousin was far too gentle; he simply used the Heartburner Art to torment those two.” Xiyue was gnashing her teeth. “Those two died, so that’s that… but as for you, the main culprit? I’m going to let you taste all of the ten thousand-plus punishments the Grand Xia has to offer. When the time comes for you to die, I will absorb your soul into the Furnace of Despair. I am going to torture your soul, every day and every night, for thousands of years…”

Dong Seven’s gaze grew numb as he listened.

Ning looked at his nearby cousin. Although he felt tremendous hatred as well, and also wanted to torture and shatter this man’s soul… compared to his cousin, he was far off.

“Cousin, it’s enough for you to torment his soul for ten days and ten nights,” Ning sent mentally, his eyes red. “There’s no need for you to steep your soul in hatred for thousands of years for the sake of this piece of trash.”

Torturing Dong Seven for thousands of years would also mean that Yuchi Xiyue would be steeped in hatred for thousands of years. Torturing others was a form of tormenting one’s self as well.

“The seeds of my hatred are deep. Little brother, don’t worry about me.” Xiyue’s gaze had become twisted from madness.

As Ning had grown up, he had been taught by his parents for more than ten years, then taught by Immortal Diancai as well. He also had his good friend, Mu Northson; thus, Ning’s inner heart had never become twisted.

As for Xiyue, however… after her parents had died, she had lived by herself and suffered tremendously. She didn’t wish to think back to her days of suffering, but even after being brought back by her maternal grandfather to the imperial capital of the Grand Xia, she remained quite solitary. Only in front of her cousin would her heart feel slightly warm.

……

Dong Seven died an agonizing death.

After having been tortured for three months and perishing, his soul was indeed drawn into the ‘Furnace of Despair’ and tormented for more than another month. In the end… it had been King Yan who intervened. Although Princess Xiyue kept the Furnace of Despair on her own person at all times, and although there was no way an ordinary person could kill a soul that was located with a magic treasure… King Yan could. He destroyed Dong Seven’s soul.

“Ji Ning, spend more time with Xiyue. She’s given vent to her hatred for nearly half a year now; she should be about done. If she continues like this, then she will completely lose herself to madness. Spend more time with her; this will help her slowly begin to walk out from the grips of hate.” King Yan personally chatted with Ning on this, and Ning naturally memorized these words.

Deep autumn.

In the deepest reaches of the skies above the imperial capital, there was a hazy gray void. Whoosh… the dim gray void suddenly parted, revealing an enormous corridor which was filled with a hazy golden light. A large number of black soldiers flew out in columns, and behind them there was a group of black-armored warriors that were riding on celestial horses. Behind the riders, there was an enormous coiling black dragon whose incomparably powerful aura filled the skies. It was pulling an enormous Immortal carriage that emanated golden light. There were golden lamps hanging from the Immortal carriage, and seated atop it was a black-robed man.

This black-robed man had a plain, unassuming face. His eyes, however, seemed to hold thunder within them. Wherever his gaze passed, the world itself seemed about ready to split apart.

His might and prestige caused the surrounding soldiers to feel absolute submission in their trembling hearts.

Behind this Immortal carriage, there was a group of black-armored soldiers who were seated obediently within a warship. This warship was three hundred meters long, but it was much smaller than the Immortal carriage. It must be understood that the black dragon was more than thirty kilometers long… and the Immortal carriage was roughly the same size as the black dragon.

Whoosh.

The Emperor was out and about, with 999 guards escorting him.

This squad flew downwards, flying directly towards the Skylight Palace. Amidst the clouds at the highest point of the Skylight Palace, a large group of Immortal maidens and soldiers were already waiting. They all fell to their knees. Each of them were at least at the Primal Daoist level… but for them to be able to serve the Grand Xia Emperor was their fortune.

“We bow to you, your Imperial Majesty.” A muscular, two-headed Fiendgod was the first to immediately kneel down and call out the words.

Instantly, the other Immortal maidens and soldiers all knelt down as well. “We bow to you, your Imperial Majesty.”

The black dragon pulled the Immortal carriage downwards. The many black-armored soldiers that were escorting the carriage all quickly separated, moving to stand in different positions.

“Mm.” The black-robed man left the Immortal carriage. With but two steps, he arrived at the nearby imperial throne, then sat down. He looked downwards at them from his position on high, then instructed, “Send an order out to have King Qi come.”

“Yes.” The twin-headed Fiendgod immediately obeyed the order.

The black-robed man continued to sit there on the throne. He swept his gaze forward, seeming to stare through the layers of clouds and be able to inspect everything within the imperial capital.

He sat there on high. This was the Emperor of this major world… the one who had truly, absolutely unified it!

However, he had set his sights on the Three Realms long ago. He rarely came back to spend time in this major world of the Grand Xia.

“A few decades ago, the Netherworld Kingdom of the Three Realms suffered an attack. The Six Paths of Reincarnation were collapsed and destroyed… and then the attackers suddenly vanished without a trace.” The black-robed Emperor mused softly to himself, “The Netherworld… that is where the souls of the Three Realms reside. How important it is! The defenses there are very tight. The Yama-Kings of the Ten Halls and the Lord of Cui Palace are all Pure Yang True Immortals, and each of them are formidable.”

“Kshitigarbha [1. This is the bodhisattva who swore that he would only become a Buddha after emptying out all the hells of their sinners through enlightening mankind.], of the Buddhist schools, stands guard there as well. The Netherworld has some other ancient fellows there as well… it is a place of tremendous power, but upon suffering a sneak attack, it wasn’t able to fight back at all. In a very short period of time, the Six Paths of Reincarnation were destroyed… and they haven’t even been able to find out who caused it or where the attackers came from. Even someone like Master was unable to find out.”

“These forces which lie in the shadows… they are terrifying powerful. And their very first attack was against the Six Paths of Reincarnation.”