Chapter 1817: Freedom
Editor:
Atlas Studios
The mysterious and radiant ball of light flew toward Xu Qing under Erniuâs command.
Yet, after that momentary surge of passion, Erniuâs voice abruptly weakened.
The blue hue on the Brilliant Heaven God Emperorâs left handâwhere he had taken refugeârapidly faded. Simultaneously, the God Emperorâs divine might erupted violently, intent on utterly suppressing and erasing Erniuâs presence.
At this critical moment, the phantom of Profound Earth around Old Master Seventh shone even brighter, enveloping the surroundings to isolate external anomalous substances and delay the God Emperorâs revival.
Meanwhile, as the radiant light flew toward him, Xu Qing raised his right hand.
Embedded in his palm was a mirror shard!
A diamond-shaped fragment, its surface shimmering with flowing light, capable of reflecting all things in existence within itself.
An aura of Ordinance Lawâsurpassing that of a Summer Immortal, reaching the level of an Immortal Lord, even exceeding ordinary Immortal Lordsâswirled within it.
Immortal intent permeated all of Brilliant Heaven.
This artifact came from Immortal Lord Mi Ming!
A gift bestowed upon Xu Qing before he left the Fifth Star RingâMi Mingâs very own Ordinance!
For others, this Ordinance would yield mediocre effects.
But Xu Qing was different.
He had once stepped into Mi Mingâs memories, lived through the most pivotal moments of Mi Mingâs life as if they were his own.
That experience made Xu Qing, in a way, the only person across the thirty-six upper star rings who could nearly fully manifest Mi Mingâs Ordinance.
Apart from the divine-eye lantern given by Grandmaster Bai, this was the most powerful treasure Xu Qing now possessed.
As the mirror shard in his palm gleamed, the skies of Brilliant Heaven transformed, and the earth churned.
Mi Mingâs Ordinance, with its terrifying rank, suppressed everything.
Especially the returning Brilliant Heaven God Emperor!
The moment the mirror reflected Him, the God Emperorâs colossal body shuddered violently.
Golden mist rapidly coalesced within the mirror, gradually outlining a blurry humanoid figure.
Old Master Seventh, watching nearby, felt his mind tremble.
He sensed the extraordinary nature of the mirror in Xu Qingâs palm and recognized the faint silhouette forming inside itâthe God Emperorâs divine soul!
Even more astonishingly, a True Name faintly flickered within!
"This mirror... seems uniquely capable of suppressing gods!"
Old Master Seventh murmured inwardly.
Xu Qing, noticing his masterâs expression, understood his thoughts.
Old Master Seventh was unaware of Immortal Lord Mi Mingâs Immortal Lord ascension method.
Mi Mingâs breakthrough had relied on the Primordial Home Planet of the Fourth Star Ring. By forcibly embedding himself into the star, he first borrowed its power to attain Lord God status, imprinting his True Name, then transitioned from god to immortal.
This method made Mi Ming both god and immortal!
Thus, his Ordinance held unique suppression over divine beings.
Later, Xu Qing had analyzed that ascension. Relying on the Primordial Home Planetâa being of unimaginable rankâmeant the starting point was extraordinarily high.
Yet Mi Mingâs ultimate choice had carried regret.
He had only temporarily fused with the star.
He had not... devoured it!
Had he done so, history might have been rewritten in an even more terrifying manner.
But Xu Qing also knew the near-impossible obstacles to that path.
Whether it was the Fourth Star Ring Venerable Godâs interference, the Primordial Home Planetâs ultimate rejection, Mi Mingâs own capacity for sacrifice, or the risk of his will being assimilatedâany misstep would have doomed the ritual.
Like walking a spiderâs thread!
Thus, Mi Ming had chosen the safest, most viable methodâborrowing the fusion to ascend, then separating voluntarily.
These thoughts flashed through Xu Qingâs mind before his gaze settled on the God Emperor below.
The God Emperorâs eyes had closed again, but His aura fluctuated intensely. His body trembled, clearly strugglingâyet Mi Mingâs Ordinance suppression rendered all resistance futile.
Even at His peak, the God Emperor could not have withstood Mi Mingâs current power, let alone now, during His incomplete revival and after losing His raceâs enshrined Primal Light!
Thus, He could only watch helplessly as the mirror shard in Xu Qingâs palm forcibly drew His divine soul away.
During this process, Erniu was ecstatic. He could feel the resistance and rejection from the body he inhabited rapidly diminishing.
Without hesitation, he initiated fusion once more.
In an instant, the fading blue on the God Emperorâs left hand flared brilliantly, spreading swiftly across His body.
Within moments, it reclaimed half of the God Emperorâs form, charging toward the other halfâunstoppable!
Yet even now, the God Emperorâs resistance persisted stubbornly. Though powerless against Mi Mingâs mirror, a hint of mutual destruction emerged.
It seemed He would rather obliterate Himself than surrender His divine body!
Seeing this, Old Master Seventhâs eyes flashed coldly as he prepared to act.
But Xu Qing, gazing at the God Emperor below, suddenly spoke.
"If your act of deception goes too far... hindering my senior brotherâs fusion, Iâll assume you intend to turn pretense into reality."
As soon as Xu Qing spoke,
The God Emperorâs trembling abruptly stilled.
Xu Qing continued calmly.
"You used my senior brotherâs handsâspecial summoning, a special location, a special methodâto create a special ritual... for your return."
"On the surface, it seems logical. Had I not returned unexpectedly, you might have succeeded."
"Yet I refuse to believe you were unaware of events beyond Brilliant Heaven."
"Or that you didnât realize your original plan, given current circumstances, would still end with your suppression even if you revived."
"So why struggle so desperately..."
Xu Qingâs gaze bore into the God Emperorâs corpse.
"You wanted to exploit my masterâs and my karma to vanish completely here... so you could revive in another star ring through alternative means."
"Fearing exposure, you put on a show of resistance while secretly clinging to hopeâtrying to have it both ways!"
As he spoke, Xu Qing glanced at the mirror in his hand. Though it contained the God Emperorâs soul and True Name, seemingly unified, Mi Mingâs Ordinance revealed an almost imperceptible dissonanceâ
The True Name... did not belong to the Brilliant Heaven God Emperor!
"Senior Li Zihua never truly returned. I suspect his journey to Wanggu and everything that followed... was also meant toâ
"Help you escape!"
Xu Qingâs voice was cool. He hadnât been certain earlier, but his experiences in Brilliant Heaven and the mirrorâs revelations had solidified his judgment.
Most importantly, he refused to believe this once-glorious God Emperor would leave Himself no room for retreat.
Xu Qingâs words echoed across the land.
On the ground, the God Emperorâs closed eyes suddenly snapped open again.
Golden light erupted from His gaze, locking onto Xu Qing.
Xu Qing turned to Old Master Seventh.
"Master, may I take full authority over matters here?"
Old Master Seventh nodded slightly, already guessing Xu Qingâs decision.
Xu Qing bowed, then addressed the God Emperor below.
"I owe Senior Li Zihua a debt from past events. Since he has taken your True Name... cease your resistance and let my senior brother complete his fusion."
"In return, Iâll set you free!"
"Henceforth, you may not set foot in the Ninth Star Ringâit will no longer concern you!"
Xu Qingâs voice carried the weight of heavenly decree.
"To gain something, one must first let go."
The God Emperor remained silent.
Xu Qingâs words had laid bare His entire scheme. Initially, He had indeed planned to use that greedy individual to facilitate His return.
But external changes had forced His handâthough not to the point of panic, for He had other avenues.
Li Zihua and Crimson Goddess had left Brilliant Heaven with His tacit approval.
After their departure, He hadnât interferedâonly instilled in all departing clansmen one conviction:
To rescue Him.
And Li Zihua, through his own brilliance, had come closest to success.
All He needed was to sever all ties and karma with Brilliant Heaven, willingly erase all traces of Himself, and it would be done.
Yet a sliver of reluctance had lingered in His heart.
After several breaths...
A sigh reverberated around Him.
He finally released that last vestige of unwillingness and closed His eyes.
Resistance ceased.
Instantly, the soul shadow in Xu Qingâs mirror fully manifested, completely severed from its original body.
Meanwhile, Erniuâs fusion accelerated dramatically. In mere breaths, it spread across the entire God Emperorâs form.
Then, he fell into deep slumber, beginning the final assimilation.
Seeing his senior brother would need time to awaken, Xu Qing clenched the mirror shard in his palm.
With a soft crunch, the God Emperorâs soul within shatteredâalong with the True Nameâerased entirely.
All karma with Wanggu and Brilliant Heaven was severed.
Even memories.
Across Wanggu and Brilliant Heaven, all recollections of the Brilliant Heaven God Emperorâs existence faded silently.
None could remember, none could recall.
He was... free.
As Xu Qing had said: to gain something, one must first let go.
By abandoning everything here, He had bought His freedom.
"Freedom... perhaps itâs for the best. After all those years of war, though we claimed victory, this land was never truly unified. Brilliant Heavenâs presence meant it was never fully Profound Earthâs."
Old Master Seventh sighed inwardly.
This resolution also brought closure to his past.
"That light of Brilliant Heaven..."
He looked to Xu Qing.
Xu Qing reached out, grasping the floating radiance before him. After a moment of contemplation, he spoke softly.
"Master, senior brother will need time to awaken."
"And this light... is extraordinary. It holds Brilliant Heavenâs secrets... and its will."
"I wish to absorb it here and uncover... what those secrets truly are!"
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