High in the sky, a black lotus blotted out the heavens. Streaks of black lightning crawled across its petals, and in the blink of an eye, they condensed into a thousand-zhang-long bolt of lightning!
The instant this lightning took shape, it was like a black divine dragon, crashing straight down toward Zhao Zhong's Absolute Ice Celestial Body below.
This immediately drew the attention of many within the great hall.
In particular, the black thunder lotus suspended in the sky caused even the Three Emperors to reveal looks of surprise.
"So it's the Thunder God Lotus. This is an exceedingly rare thunder-attributed divine object. With a bit of refinement, it can become an extremely powerful divine artifact," the Spiritual Pupil Emperor said, his pitch-black eyes glimmering faintly as he looked at the black thunder lotus in the sky.
"It's just unclear whether this little fellow also possesses a Thunder God Pill—that would be the truly good stuff."
Whether it was the Thunder God Lotus or the Thunder God Pill, the conditions required for their formation were extremely harsh. Since Liu Bai had obtained one of them, there might well be some connection to the other. That was a genuine treasure capable of making even Ninth-Grade Sovereign tempted. Whether the Spiritual Pupil Emperor was hinting at something or merely curious was hard to tell.
On the battlefield, when Zhao Zhong saw the thunder dragon descending from the sky, even he couldn't help but change expression.
However, he quickly snorted coldly. Lacking a Sovereign Celestial Body was still the opponent's greatest weakness—so what if he had a divine artifact to assist him?
"Absolute Ice Finger!"
Zhao Zhong stomped heavily, his seals changing. Instantly, the Ice Celestial Body raised a finger and pointed it toward the thunder dragon. Extreme-cold spiritual energy swept out, freezing even the air itself.
The massive thunder dragon and the frigid finger force collided violently in midair.
Under the tremendous impact, the icy finger force shattered instantly, while the black thunder dragon exploded into boundless lightning slurry. The two forces eroded each other in the sky, but in the end, the lightning proved more violent, overwhelming the cold energy and emerging slightly victorious.
Zhao Zhong's expression turned ugly. He had originally believed that confronting his Celestial Body head-on with spiritual energy would guarantee the opponent's defeat. Yet with the aid of a divine artifact, he had actually fallen into the disadvantage. This result caused him considerable loss of face.
And while Zhao Zhong was still fuming over this embarrassment, Liu Bai had already more or less assessed his true strength…
How to put it—just an utterly ordinary First-Grade Sovereign.
Whether it was his Celestial Body or the spiritual energy attribute he cultivated, everything about him was painfully average. No powerful divine object to fuse and enhance himself, no formidable spiritual art or divine art, no powerful divine artifact for protection—he was a complete and total "triple-nothing."
And this was also the most common type of person in the Great Thousand World…
"Being ordinary isn't tragic. What's tragic is being ordinary while lacking self-awareness—that's truly pitiful."
As this thought crossed his mind, Liu Bai's hand seals suddenly changed.
In an instant, the black thunder lotus in the sky transformed violently. Its originally pitch-black petals began to shimmer with dazzling, multicolored hues.
At the same time, patches of multicolored clouds gathered in the heavens—azure, gold, black, crimson, yellow… A scorching aura instantly spread through the air, and the heavy pressure made even the Kings inside the great hall feel a hint of alarm.
"A divine art!" The Sleep Emperor, who had been dozing off, had somehow awakened. His hazy eyes flashed with sharp light. "And a Great divine art capable of controlling lightning!"
Lightning itself was an exceptionally offensive force, but its violent nature also made it extremely difficult to control.
As a result, divine arts involving lightning were exceedingly rare in the Great Thousand World. Yet any one of them—even a lesser divine art—possessed power far surpassing other divine arts. A great divine art capable of controlling lightning like this could threaten even Fourth- or Fifth-Grade Sovereign.
Of course, that was on the premise that the caster's own strength was not too low; otherwise, they simply wouldn't be able to mobilize sufficient lightning power.
"The outcome is already decided. Zhao Zhong will likely fall beneath this divine lightning…" The Sleep Emperor's voice was soft, yet everyone in the great hall heard it clearly.
For most people, this was merely shocking—they were curious about Liu Bai's identity, wondering how he could wield such a powerful divine art. But the expression of the Blood Hawk King turned ugly…
Zhao Zhong was one of his commanders. If he died just like that, it would be no small loss for him.
Yet even if he wanted to intervene, he couldn't. Jiuyou would never allow him to succeed. Unless one of the Three Emperors personally stepped in…
But clearly, from beginning to end, the Three Emperors had no intention of acting. Otherwise, the battle outside would have already been stopped when the Sleep Emperor spoke those words.
Boom—rumble—rumble!
Terrifying thunder roared across the sky, as if even the entire Great Heavenlaw Peak were trembling.
Everyone outside raised their heads to watch the scene unfolding in the heavens…
The massive ice-blue Celestial Body let out a roar toward the sky. Boundless cold energy surged forth, and in just moments, it condensed into a thousand-zhang ice mountain, sealing Zhao Zhong within its core.
However, the five-colored divine lightning met no resistance at all. The moment it touched the ice mountain, the latter began to shatter, and under the terrifying might of the lightning, it was directly vaporized.
The divine lightning did not slow in the slightest. It tore through the ice mountain, shattered the Celestial Body, and finally erased Zhao Zhong's physical body completely within the lightning's glow.
Even though he already knew the outcome, seeing this scene still caused the Blood Hawk King's fury to surge.
"Jiuyou! This was merely a spar between fellow members, yet this Liu Bai struck with lethal intent. Today, you must give me an explanation!"
"Tch." Jiuyou let out a cold laugh and retorted without yielding, "An explanation? What explanation do you want? You proposed the duel yourself. Now that you've lost, you want me to explain? You're a dignified King—do you have no shame at all?"
"You—!"
"Hmph! I won't argue with you further. I request that the Three Emperors render judgment!" The Blood Hawk King said angrily, cupping his fists toward the Three Emperors above.
At this moment, Liu Bai also walked back inside. Hearing the argument between Jiuyou and the Blood Hawk King, he immediately cupped his fists and bowed, saying, "Commander Zhao Zhong was extremely powerful and had his Celestial Body for protection. As my strength was insufficient, I could only go all out in battle. I truly didn't expect to lose control and kill him. I ask the Three Emperors to mete out punishment."
Everyone present understood Liu Bai's little scheme clearly. If the Three Emperors simply went along with this and convicted him, then he would truly have brought disaster upon himself.
Fortunately, the presiding Emperor was the Sky Vulture Emperor—one of their own—so Liu Bai dared to play this "gain benefits then sell innocence" trick.
That said, his words were logically sound. On the surface, they indeed provided a reasonable excuse for his lethal action.
After all, he had already gained two hundred thousand experience points and one hundred Spiritual Pulse Awakening Points.
Upon the throne, the Sky Vulture Emperor finally spoke, "As a King-level force of the Great Heavenlaw Domain, the Nine Nether Palace naturally possesses the qualification to compete for the Greatlaw GoldPond. In the past, when Jiuyou was absent, the quota was temporarily replaced. Now that she has returned, the quota shall be restored."
As for a battle between two commanders, it was not worthy of being brought before the Three Emperors.
Hearing this, the Blood Hawk King glanced once more at the Spiritual Pupil Emperor. Seeing that the latter made no statement, he could only nod.
"Since the Sky Vulture Emperor has spoken, then this quota shall be returned to the Nine Nether Palace. As for the original one thousand drops of Sovereign Spiritual Liquid, there's no need to return them—consider it a gift to the Nine Nether Palace. After all, the palace is currently in a state of decline and is in great need of Sovereign Spiritual Liquid, isn't it?"
At the end, he smiled faintly at Jiuyou, the smile carrying a hint of mockery.
In truth, from the very beginning, the Blood Hawk King had known he wouldn't be able to keep this quota—unless the Spiritual Pupil Emperor personally stepped in to back him.
Unfortunately, it was merely a single quota for the Greatlaw GoldPond, not enough to make the Spiritual Pupil Emperor offend the Sky Vulture Emperor.
After all, to the Kings, this might be a major matter. But to the Three Emperors, it was nothing more than routine business—giving it to one or another made little difference.
Jiuyou looked at the Blood Hawk King, as though she hadn't seen the mockery at all, and said calmly, "Since the quota issue has been resolved, then let's discuss the cities that originally belonged under the jurisdiction of my Nine Nether Palace…"
The moment these words were spoken, the Blood Hawk King's expression immediately darkened.
If it were merely the quota for competing over the Greatlaw GoldPond, then so be it. After all, whether one could truly enter the Greatlaw GoldPond would ultimately depend on the abilities of Liu Bai, the newly appointed commander of Nine Nether Palace.
However, those cities were a completely different matter.
Each city was capable of paying a considerable amount of Sovereign Spiritual Liquid every year. This was real, tangible profit. Once it had already been swallowed, how could it possibly be spat back out so easily?
"Nine Nether King, those words of yours go a bit too far," the Blood Hawk King said coldly. "Those cities were not seized by force. You were absent from Nine Nether Palace for many years, leaving those cities without protection. Under such circumstances, are others not allowed to seek a new master?"
"Blood Hawk King, we are all sensible people here. Why bother dressing it up so nicely?" Jiu You replied frostily. "Why those cities were threatened—do you really think I don't know?"
The atmosphere between the two instantly turned confrontational.
The ones who had divided up the cities under Nine Nether Palace were not limited to the Blood Hawk King alone. However, at this moment, none of the others stepped forward. Instead, they merely watched as the Blood Hawk King alone confronted Jiu You.
Jiu You, for her part, was extremely shrewd. She made no attempt to drag the others into the matter, instead locking onto the Blood Hawk King alone and pursuing the issue relentlessly.
For a time, the grand hall echoed with nothing but the sound of their argument…
"Enough. The two of you need not argue further."
From atop the lotus platform, the Spiritual Pupil Emperor, who had remained silent until now, suddenly smiled. His pitch-black pupils swept over the crowd as he said:
"Our Great Heavenlaw Domain has its own rules. As long as everything remains within those rules, anything is permissible. As for the ownership of those cities—if anyone has ideas, then they may act on them themselves. As I have said before, so long as it is within the rules, you are free to do as you wish."
Upon hearing this, Jiu You's brows immediately furrowed.
Meanwhile, the Blood Hawk King let out a smug smile.
As had been stated earlier, the Great Heavenlaw Domain had always adopted a laissez-faire attitude toward conflicts between its Kings, with only a single rule imposed—
Kings themselves were forbidden from taking action.
With this rule in place, the Spiritual Pupil Emperor's seemingly fair statement had, in truth, almost completely cut off any possibility of Jiu You reclaiming those cities.
There was no helping it. Given the current strength of Nine Nether Palace, attempting to seize those cities back from the Blood Hawk King and the other Kings was nearly impossible…
Jiu You clenched her teeth, clearly intending to say more, but the Sky Vulture Emperor, seated above, subtly shook his head at her.
Just as the Spiritual Pupil Emperor would not refute the Sky Vulture Emperor over trivial matters, now that the Spiritual Pupil Emperor had spoken, the Sky Vulture Emperor could not openly oppose him.
Without the Sky Vulture Emperor's support, anything Jiu You said would be futile.
At this moment, Liu Bai had already returned to Jiu You's side. Seeing her puffed-up cheeks and unwilling expression, he spoke softly:
"Don't be angry. Since the rules are like this, then we'll act according to the rules. When the time comes, I'll make them return everything that belongs to Nine Nether Palace—principal and interest included…"
Fighting was good.
If you don't fight, how do you gain experience? Without experience, how do you improve your cultivation?
Without improving your cultivation, how do you kill more enemies?
Without killing enemies, how do you gain experience?
Mm. Very good. A perfect logical loop.
Upon hearing his brazen words, Jiu You almost couldn't help laughing. Only when she remembered that this was not her Nine Nether Palace did she forcibly suppress the corners of her lips.
"Hmph. All talk. I'd like to see how you make them return everything with interest!"
Their hushed conversation immediately drew the attention of certain individuals—especially when they noticed that the newcomer was so intimate with Jiu You, showing none of the restraint expected between a King and her subordinate commander.
Unknowingly, Liu Bai had already become the focus of many hostile gazes. He couldn't help but shiver, as though he had been entangled by something unclean…
"Looks like you're quite popular in the Great Heavenlaw Domain. I feel like if I stand a bit closer to you, countless people want to kill me with their eyes."
At this moment, Tang Rou covered her small mouth and giggled.
"You're only realizing that now? Sister Jiu You is the only female King in our Great Heavenlaw Domain. She's beautiful, powerful—who knows how many people admire her?"
"Oh? Then I wonder if anyone likes our little Rou'er?" Liu Bai teased with a grin.
Tang Rou's face instantly flushed crimson. She immediately buried her head into her sister's embrace, too embarrassed to lift it.
Tang Bing held her younger sister and shot Liu Bai a glare.
However, recalling his earlier performance, she still couldn't help nodding as she said,
"You fought well just now. It seems Sister Jiu You did not choose the wrong person."
Liu Bai looked pleasantly surprised.
"That wasn't easy—have I finally earned Miss Tang Bing's approval? Truly, I'm overwhelmed by the honor…"
At his words, Tang Rou buried her head even deeper into her sister's chest to hide her laughter, while Tang Bing glared at Liu Bai once more before returning to her usual cold demeanor.
.....
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