In a regal and ethereal palace, perched atop the sacred peak of the empire, the silence of the night was shattered by the sharp clang of metal and the hum of unleashed spiritual techniques.
"Stop that man!" the guard captain roared, desperation thick in his voice.
A group of five masked figures, cloaked in dark robes, raced down the grand jade-tiled hall. Ornate columns blurred past them as they moved like phantoms through the moonlit corridor.
Suddenly, a swirling shadowy blade erupted from the darkness behind them. It cleaved through the pursuing guards in a single, soundless arc, their bodies collapsing before they could even scream.
At the front, the group's leader—his breath ragged, his eyes stormy—came to a halt before a massive crystal pillar embedded in the center of the hall.
"It's not here?!" he gasped.
In frustration, he slammed his fist into the pillar. The ancient crystal cracked and then shattered—as if it were brittle wood instead of enchanted stone.
"Damn it," he muttered. "If the Heaven Supremacy Clan truly manages to restore the Primordial Tome, then the Seven Heavens will be forced to kneel… and we cannot allow that to happen."
The group fell silent. The weight of his words was heavier than the blood that soaked their boots.
A masked woman with flowing black and silver hair stepped forward.
"Maybe the intel we received was false," she said softly.
"Unlikely," the leader replied, narrowing his eyes. "The Heaven Legacy Sect has already begun annexing smaller clans. They're preparing for a power upheaval. If they don't possess the Tome… where is their confidence coming from?"
He turned to face the others.
"They would never make such bold moves—moves that risk angering the six Guardian Clans—unless they had something that tipped the scales."
The air grew tense as the sound of armored boots echoed faintly in the distance, drawing closer.
"The Supremacy Legion," the silver-haired woman muttered. "We have to decide—do we continue the search or escape while we still can?"
The leader clenched his jaw.
"If we stay, we die. Even if we find the Tome, we won't survive the encounter."
He turned to a man slightly shorter than him, whose mask had been stained with crimson.
"Brother Lao… I'm entrusting you with the clan. And with our final message."
"No—wait, don't do this!" Lao shouted, stepping forward.
The leader's expression softened for just a moment. His voice was calm.
"We knew the risks. The message must reach the others. The balance of the Six Guardian Clans depends on it. We'll stay and buy you the time you need… even if it costs us everything."
Lao's hands trembled, but he nodded. Behind his mask, tears welled in his eyes.
"Take good care of Ming'er and Tian'er," the woman said to Lao, her voice almost a whisper.
Suddenly, the heavy double doors at the end of the hall burst open.
A man clad in golden armor etched with crimson runes stepped into the moonlight. Each step he took pressed down like a mountain, his aura thick with disdain and contempt. Behind him, soldiers lined up in disciplined formation—but none dared move. This was his battlefield alone.
"Did you really think a few masked rats could sneak through my palace and take what isn't theirs?" he said coldly. "My Heaven Supremacy Clan is no breeze you can pass through."
The leader of the masked group stepped forward calmly.
"We thought we pay our brother clan a visit to exchange pointers," he replied in a neutral tone—neither submissive nor arrogant.
The armored man's eyes narrowed.
"Kong Shen, don't insult my intelligence. Only one man uses that Shadow Void Technique."
A low chuckle escaped the leader's lips. He reached up and removed his mask.
His face was sharp and refined, his eyes like star-lit abysses, radiating the calm of someone who had stood at the edge of death many times before.
"I didn't expect your Divine Sense to still be locked onto me after all this time," Kong Shen said. "Your cultivation must've improved since our last encounter."
"Improved?" The armored man laughed darkly. "Since you'll all die here, I'll offer you a gift on your journey to the underworld."
He raised one gloved hand. His golden armor began to hum with power as dark, liquid-like Qi slithered out of his pores, writhing like serpents in the air.
"I've transcended the limits of our bloodline. I've broken through to that realm… and with the power of the Primordial Tome, my celestial physique has been reborn. None of you are my match."
The masked group stared at him in silence. But in their minds, a cold realization settled:
So… the rumors were true.
The armored man cracked his neck, stretching his arms.
"Come at me together. I don't have time to waste."
Behind him, his legion stepped aside, forming a perfect arc around the hall, confident that not even five elite cultivators could challenge their commander.
Kong Shen's eyes narrowed as the oppressive Qi in the room turned thick and suffocating.
The man before them was no longer the arrogant son of a noble clan… he was a monster forged by ancient power.
"If you don't make your move…" the golden warrior growled, his body glowing faintly.
"Then I will."