Within the hidden tomb, the remaining members of the Hao Clan stood in stunned silence, unable to comprehend what had just unfolded. But before they could even regain their senses, flames without origin suddenly ignited from within their own bodies.
"Aaaaagh!! It burns! What... what kind of fire is this?!"
"Aaaaagh!!"
"Aaaaagh!! Hao Song, you traitor!!"
Screams of agony echoed across the sky and ground alike. One by one, their bodies were consumed by purifying flames, vanishing entirely in the inferno. And in the stillness that followed, only the fire remained along with the cold, expressionless smile of Hao Song.
Hao Song turned to gaze quietly at the face of his third son. His eyes were shadowed with sorrow, but there was no trace of hesitation. At last, he spoke.
"I'm sorry… I won't ask for your forgiveness for what I've done… but I want you to remember this.... I will always stand by your side."
Hao Yang stared at the man before him. he man he had called father for half his life. The man who was supposed to be his pillar, his shield against the cruelty of the world. And yet, the same man who had just spoken such gentle words… was the one who had murdered his own son and daughter without a shred of remorse.
Hao Yang had already heard part of the truth from Han Ming. Hao Song was merely the head of a branch family of the Hao Clan in one of the lower worlds. The Hao Clan, in truth, was spread across countless minor worlds, comprised of numerous offshoots. Each branch family originated from punishment those who erred in the main bloodline were expelled to form their own branches. If they later managed to contribute something of value to the main family, they might be allowed to return.
What Hao Song had done was simple he used his own children as stepping stones to climb his way back to the heavens. He offered the bodies of his two children to be taken over by the two ancestral figures without hesitation.
Hao Yang may not have been born with a special physique like his elder siblings. He didn't possess a distinguished bloodline or the kind of power that would draw an ancestor to choose him as a vessel. But that didn't mean he would be spared from sacrifice.
Even though Hao Yang's body held no immediate appeal, it had the potential for growth. It was the very same physique once possessed by the first ancestor of the Hao Clan. And Hao Song personally extracted the source of Hao Yang's Solar Body, offering it to the grandson of a high elder from the main clan.
After that, Hao Song sold Hao Yang to the Ten Thousand Seas Trading Guild as a test subject. From there, he was passed on again to the Bronze Sand Chamber of Commerce, treated no differently than worthless merchandise.
What Hao Yang had experienced in the Ten Thousand Seas Trading Guild… was a nightmare so horrifying that even if he lived for a million years, he would never forget it. That place was now one of the names on Hao Yang's list marked for death.
He gave a faint smile, then spoke in a soft but icy voice.
"If you're going to apologize to me… don't forget to apologize to my brother and sister too."
Hao Song lowered his head. His face grew heavy with guilt, lips trembling before he spoke in a hoarse whisper.
"I'm sorry… back then, I truly had no choice."
"Those two were born far too special. The main clan wanted their bodies. I begged them... I begged many people but no one listened, not a single one offered help."
"In the end, I had no choice but to agree. But I did ask them to let their souls go. The main clan refused. They were afraid that word of what they did to our children would leak to the outside world."
Hao Song clenched his teeth. His expression twisted with genuine pain as he continued.
"I had no option but to sacrifice them… and I could only save one of you. I handed you over to someone from the Ten Thousand Seas Trading Guild—someone I trusted more than anyone. That was all I could do."
The air around them grew utterly still, so silent that even the sound of breath could be heard. Everything was compressed under an invisible pressure, as if the heavens themselves were watching, weighing the choice between the two men.
Hao Yang stood in the sky, a faint smile still lingering on his lips, and tears slowly sliding down his face.
"Father…" Hao Yang said quietly.
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Time passed slowly. Hao Song stared downward, not daring to meet his son's eyes.
…..
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"…Die."
Suddenly, nine massive spheres of fire emerged silently from the heavens, slowly rotating midair as they released a searing heat that distorted everything around them. That heat evaporated the last traces of Hao Yang's tears, leaving nothing behind. His gaze, once filled with sorrow, now stared coldly downward at the father he had once respected. There was no gentleness left in his eyes only frigid detachment.
The pressure radiating from the flames was so overwhelming that every eye turned instinctively toward them. None dared to move.
Those who retained even a shred of awareness immediately fled without a moment's hesitation.
Hao Song looked up at the sight before him, his eyes wide with disbelief. He hadn't thought his son would choose this. He hadn't thought the blow would come with such merciless resolve. In that moment, it dawned on him Hao Yang now looked exactly like he had once looked, all those years ago.
A voice pierced into Hao Song's mind at the last second. It was Hao Jing's.
"Your foolish plan is going to cost us decades of our lifespan!"
But that voice… was the last thing he ever heard.
Boommmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!!
The explosion thundered through the world. The hidden realm shook as if it were on the verge of collapse. The nine fire spheres merged into a single cataclysmic blast of death, engulfing all that stood before it.
The shockwave surged outward in every direction, crashing through the desert like the wrath of a god. Everything grass, trees, corpses, even the wind itself was incinerated in an instant.
Those caught near the epicenter were turned to ash immediately. Not a scream was heard. Nothing was left.
Those farther away, though spared the core of the blaze, still found their skin blackening and blistering under the heat. Their bodies seared with agony, many collapsing with pained cries as if the gates of hell had opened above the mortal world.
And above all else… was the silence that followed. A silence more terrifying than the fire itself.
.....
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.....
Far away, across a vast expanse of frozen tundra, the landscape stretched endlessly in every direction. This land was rich in rare ice-element herbs, yet its sheer scale was bewildering. Everything within it had been consumed by a chilling power. The corpses of dozens of Saint Emperor–level beasts lay scattered, frozen alive in horrifying stillness.
Numerous cultivators had also been encased in ice, their bodies preserved in various poses some with expressions of terror, others mid-begging for their lives. But it had changed nothing. They had all become nothing more than lifeless ice sculptures.
At the center of the frozen plain sat Su Baining upon an ice throne intricately carved with elegant and commanding patterns. Her long hair shimmered with a blend of pale blue and white, glowing like the aurora against the dark. Her face remained calm and emotionless, resembling a goddess severed from the mortal world. And there she sat, waiting for someone... with growing boredom.
A radiant light pierced through the falling snow, descending in front of her before revealing six figures.
Four men and two women. One of the women had hair streaked with white and blue, her features uncannily similar to Su Baining's, as though she were a reflection in a mirror. But unlike Su Baining's detached presence, this girl radiated warmth, cheerfulness, and approachability.
Su Baining, who had been resting with her eyes closed, opened them at once the moment she sensed their presence. She recognized them well... five of them, at least. They were old acquaintances people she had once been close to. One of the girls had served her as a maid, and the other four were handsome men who had pursued her in the past. Only the final girl was a complete stranger.
The body Su Baining currently inhabited had originally belonged to another woman. By the time she took over it, the body had already been on the brink of death. She didn't even know the name of its original owner. It wasn't until later, through Han Ming, that she learned the one who now possessed her former body was named Yi Xin.
A voice rang out from one of the women in the group of six, light and playful.
"Miss Su, look! These spirit beast corpses look absolutely delicious!"
A man in armor chimed in eagerly.
"Sister Su, is there any herb you'd like? I'll find it for you myself!"
Another man, waving a folding fan, added with a smile.
"Or perhaps Sister Su would prefer I find you a nice skin-rejuvenating herb?"
But before any of them could say another word, all six of their bodies froze in midair suspended as though time itself had been sealed. And in the blink of an eye… they were turned entirely to ice. Not even their spiritual senses had time to register what had happened.
Suddenly, a powerful aura erupted from Yi Xin's body, splitting off into the projection of a young man with long black hair streaked with red and a sharp, handsome face. The souls of the other four men emerged from their bodies as well, floating in the frozen air.
Su Baining watched the scene unfold with a faint smile before flicking her fingertip lightly.
Crack.
The ice encasing all six shattered, and in that instant, their bodies were destroyed completely, disintegrating into fragments.
The souls hovering there reeled in stunned silence, but before they could comprehend what had happened, a puppet stepped out from behind Su Baining. It released the overwhelming aura of an immortal and struck, annihilating the souls entirely. They vanished without even realizing what had occurred.
"It's been a long time… my former fiancé," she murmured to herself, her voice devoid of emotion. "Even if those memories are hardly worth remembering."
Though they were no longer engaged, Su Baining still remembered him clearly because he was the one she despised the most. Back then, and even now, the look in her eyes remained filled with the same revulsion.
"How foolish must I have been to ever help trash like that?"
Her voice was colder than the wind that howled through the frozen plains as she looked down at the shattered remains of ice and bone.
"This is only the beginning… see you in the Upper World."
Her gaze shimmered with a terrifying intensity, and a hidden torrent of luck and fortune surged quietly into her body. Without another word, she began gathering the corpses of spirit beasts and collecting herbs scattered throughout the field, aided by the thousands of Emperor-tier puppets that Han Ming had gifted her.
Meanwhile…
On a golden throne high above in the Upper World, a young man surrounded by radiant divine light slowly opened his eyes.
He whispered softly… yet the sound carried like wind within a storm.
"…Why was the soul fragment I implanted in Su Baining's body destroyed?"