Chapter 1221 - Ambition and Position

Outside the shattered Huntian Palace, the Huntian Emperor knelt there, a bitter expression on his face. Behind him, the Huntian clansmen each had pale faces and their bodies clearly emanated a sense of weakness. Among them, the three clan powerhouses who had attempted to block Xinghuanzi were bleeding from the corners of their mouths, utterly dispirited. Their cultivation had already fallen! They were no longer at the Quasi-Immortal level but had directly dropped to the Sovereign realm. On closer inspection, it was apparent that not only the three of them were affected; the cultivation of other Huntian clansmen had also declined to varying degrees. Observing closely through the fluctuations of their souls, it became evident... this fall was eternal. Originating from their souls, as well as their bloodline! Their bloodline was severed, their souls were bound! The affected included the bitter Huntian Emperor. He knelt there silently, his cultivation level still barely at Quasi-Immortal, but it was only just maintained. This state would persist, difficult to change. Because, the second face on his back had already withered. His atavism had been interrupted! Yet, including him, all the Huntian clansmen at this moment chose to lower their heads, harboring little resentment. Ahead of them, in the starry sky, was a group of departing figures. They were the Ascendants. Leading them was Xu Qing. They were leaving. ... The vast amounts of primal essence accumulated from the Huntian clan's ritual to purify their bloodline had already been taken by the group, aligning with Xu Qing's judgment. Under the leadership of Zhou Zhengli, they voluntarily offered two-tenths of what they had acquired. Thus, Li Mengtu and the others followed suit. As for the handling of the Huntian Imperial Family... Xinghuanzi, in the name of order, united everyone to initiate the Edict of Balance. With this, they used the method of balance to extract the bloodline, making the bloodline of this clan mixed and impure. The Huntian clan had acted improperly first, and if it weren't for the involvement of other celestial domains, it would have been normal to report this matter and annihilate the clan. Now, without any slaughter, merely weakening the bloodline, no matter how this is reported, the actions of Xu Qing and his group are bound to align with the grand trend of the human race in the Fifth Star Ring. No one can fault them. Simultaneously, this approach aligns well with the reputation of the Procurer... It can be said that every aspect has been considered. Moreover, the Huntian clan agrees with this because they know that when facing such a team, entirely composed of ascendants, whether in combat power, background, or otherwise, they are inferior. The fact that their clan encountered these people is due to poor fortune. If the other party were truly determined to annihilate their clan, they would only be heading towards a dead end. After all, this is the Fifth Star Ring, where the human race reigns supreme. Thus, the result of this handling also allowed most of them to breathe a sigh of relief. As long as the clan members are still alive, it is the greatest blessing. In this way, the matter here is considered concluded. Next, Xu Qing led the group back to the location of Jiazi Twenty-Nine. On the way, he informed the team about his investigation and plans regarding the True God Sun. Upon hearing that the seaweed in Jiazi Twenty-Nine Prison was actually a warden of a True God, and that this True God could have its primal essence extracted, everyone became exhilarated. Although they had not only completed their own collection tasks but also gained considerable rewards, yet... For the primordial essence, their need was even greater. Hence, everyone's eyes burned with desire. Furthermore, after these days of interaction and having ventured together into a tribe, sharing the spoils had helped them overcome many differences. This process also fostered an acceptance of Xu Qing as their leader. Especially since Xu Qing was able to secure primordial essence for everyone, and his combat strength was unparalleled, their sense of approval naturally grew stronger. Thus, they sped all the way to the location of Prison A-29. The true god sun was still in its original position. Although the Seaweed that departed with Xu Qing was its true form, it dared not abandon its post. Therefore, before leaving, it had split off a clone to continuously monitor the true god prison. Now, having returned to this place, Xu Qing suppressed his inner anticipation. After a brief observation to ensure everything was fine, he turned to the crowd around him. "Then, according to our plan, let's harvest the primordial essence here!" Xu Qing spoke slowly. Around him, including Xinghuanzi, all the procurement envoys, already aware of the plan during the journey, now bore expressions of brilliance upon witnessing and sensing the situation firsthand. After a while, as they exchanged glances, a resolution was evident in each of their eyes. Seeing this, Xu Qing wasted no more words and was the first to dart towards the true god sun. The Seaweed clone's roots trembled, opening the entrance, and its true form returned at this moment, providing some degree of augmentation to everyone. Xinghuanzi followed closely behind Xu Qing. Zhou Zhengli, Xie Lingzi, Far Mountain Su, and Li Mengtu followed one after another. Soon, this group of procurement envoys, like a pack of hungry wolves, charged in en masse. ... Time passed. Three days later, the true god sun suddenly quaked, causing the Seaweed outside to shake violently. This tremor continued for seven to eight days, eventually accompanied by a thunderous roar. Even in the starry sky, one could sense a terrifying spread of primordial essence from within the sun, as if a seal had been broken. As days went by, the fire and heat of the true god sun began to diminish, and its overall size seemed to wither. Vaguely, it appeared as if an even denser primordial essence was about to erupt. But just then, a formidable divine sense suddenly surged skyward from within the true god sun. Transformed into a voice. "You... enough!!" "This grain, I shall take. Depart within ten breaths, or if you perish here beyond the time limit, neither your masters nor the powers behind you can blame me!" This voice exploded like celestial thunder, resonating throughout the Huntian Universe, causing countless galaxies and stars to tremble, and all beings to shiver in fear. Among those whose hearts raced in terror were Xu Qing and his companions, who had ventured into this true god's sun. Soon, they were seen, each spitting blood, their expressions tumultuous as they hurriedly retreated. Finally, at the moment of the tenth breath, they flew out of this true god's sun. The instant they emerged into the starry sky, a massive vortex appeared directly below this true god's sun. This vortex was vast, like a gigantic ethereal mouth, from within which stretched out an enormous hand, grabbing the true god's sun and pulling it into the vortex. The Seaweed had no choice but to release its tendrils, lest it be dragged in as well. Though this all seemed slow in description, in reality, the vortex and the giant hand appeared instantly after the group's emergence, seizing the true god's sun, and vanished in the blink of an eye, as if they had never been. In the now empty starry sky, only the trembling Seaweed and the group of Xu Qing with their grim expressions remained. For a moment, they were at a loss for words at the scene before them. After they had entered the true god's sun, though they encountered some obstacles while breaking through the first two seals, they had generally proceeded smoothly and absorbed a considerable amount of the true god's essence. But... during the attempt to break the third seal, an unexpected event occurred. Within the third seal, an eye was contained! It was the eye of an immortal, left there as the main body to seal this true god's sun. When they saw the eye, it suddenly opened, unleashing a terrifying will that swept across like a storm. The force was irresistible to everyone present. As for his identity, it was self-evident; he was the Lesser Immortal behind the scenes. It was clear that this former official of the Aurora Beyond Heavens had learned of the identities of the visitors here through his disciple, and thus, in his rage, he still held back, granting them ten breaths' worth of time. Subsequently, he was unwilling to leave the true sun god behind, choosing instead to take it away at all costs. This action was evidently a helpless move by this Lesser Immortal. Otherwise, he wouldn't have needed to act now... As for Xu Qing and the others, they were equally helpless. In the face of a Lesser Immortal, they truly had no power to resist. At this moment, they could only sigh inwardly and choose to leave. There, the Seaweed was somewhat bewildered. The prison it guarded... was gone. The divine beings within its leaves had all been stealthily released by it. Now, with the vast sky and earth, it found itself without a mission... Thus, upon Xu Qing's persuasion, it chose to leave with them. In this manner, upon finding a meteorite belt, everyone dispersed, each choosing a meteorite, sitting cross-legged upon it, preparing to first digest their gains. They agreed to leave this universe in a month. After all, even though they had only absorbed the essence beneath two layers of seals, the total amount was still considerable. And half a month's time was not long, passing by in a flash. This meteorite belt drifted silently through the starry sky, and the people upon it were equally quiet. In these half a month, everyone sat cross-legged on their respective meteorites, striving to convert the obtained essence into their own cultivation and combat power. The aura emanating from them grew day by day, becoming increasingly fierce. Until the seventeenth day arrived... In the quiet starry sky, on this floating asteroid belt, suddenly, a vast aura soared into the sky. The strength of this aura shook all directions, causing the asteroids to become chaotic, impacted and drawn apart. In an instant, time and space twisted, the five elements manifested, invoking the laws of this universe, converging from all directions to form a dazzling, multicolored spectacle. There were also deafening heartbeats pounding at this moment, resembling the reverberation of heavenly thunder. This scene immediately shook everyone's spirits, awakening them from their meditation, and they opened their eyes one after another, all looking towards the source of this vast wave! It was an elliptical asteroid, upon which a person sat cross-legged, clad in a black robe, with long hair flowing, exuding a misty light, and a rich celestial aura continuously erupting in waves. It was none other than Xu Qing! "He is advancing to Quasi-Immortal!" Xinghuanzi's eyes sparkled with brilliance. "Such momentum, such waves..." Xie Lingzi's expression was solemn, Far Mountain Su seemed a bit lost, and Li Mengtu immediately paid attention to the surroundings, protecting Xu Qing. Thousand Army and Expel were each troubled, secretly exclaiming that this was not good. They had a premonition that once Xu Qing successfully ascended to Quasi-Immortal, it might take only a wave of his hand for the brothers to involuntarily transform into celestial swords and cheer away... Thinking of that scene, the two brothers became anxious. At this moment, Zhou Zhengli squinted his eyes, pondered for a moment, showed decisiveness, stood up with a sway, and sat cross-legged on the asteroid closest to Xu Qing, his expression solemn, speaking in a low voice. "Everyone, if not now, when will you protect the law!" "Moreover, regardless of whether any of you harbor other intentions, I, Zhou, must remind you..." At this point, Zhou Zhengli's eyes revealed a ghostly light. "Do not forget, this place... once known as the Celestial Beyond." "And the other Celestial Beyonds, the upper seats are mostly occupied." "These, you understand, so regardless of how you consider it, my goal, Zhou, is to secure a position beside the future master of this Celestial Beyond ahead of time!" "Although the possibility is not great, even minuscule, but... compared to the immense rewards, Zhou is willing to take the gamble!" "Therefore, anyone who might cause me to lose this gamble is my enemy!" This was the first time Zhou Zhengli revealed his ambition. Although everyone did not know if his words of ambition were his true purpose, it must be said that his statement indeed stirred many people. Thousand Army and Expel were no longer apprehensive, but after a moment of astonishment, their eyes shone with a strange light. "Position?"