'Heart of the Stainless Sovereign, Celestial Dao Bones, Eternal God Physique…hehehe, this mother and son pair really milked the Heavenly Emperor dry.' Though pinned down by the pressure of Xinzi's true shell, Baxian didn't lose his smile.
'The Heart of the Stainless Sovereign not only makes Zhen'er's true shell heartless, but enables him to extinguish the emotions and desires of those that worship him, leaving only the desire to spend a lifetime at their sovereign god's altar. Better, it makes him entirely impermeable to any form of soul strike.
Next comes the Celestial Dao Bones. On top of large reserves of Divine Power, they can connect to the Elemental Dao of Heaven, draining the enlightenment of all those that ever cultivated them, and even some of Heaven's insight, to bring the owner's comprehension skills to unrivaled heights.
As for the Eternal God Physique, only that perverse physique enables body refiners of the celestial path to cultivate an endless amount of Blood Energy, even going beyond the ninth order—traditional limit that even Gods cannot exceed. Add to that the Glorious Eye of Heaven, and this is without a shred of doubt the number one mortal shell of the Celestial Paradise.' Baxian filled Xiao Hu in, but just like her, his gaze didn't move from Xinzi, staring at that matchless body with flashing desire.
Based on the level of Divine Power and Blood Energy alone, this mortal shell could slay Heavenly Immortals. Overzealous worshipers aside, who could watch it without surging envy and greed? But just like Xinzi, so long as the shadow of the Thousand-Faced God stood at that body's back, Baxian dared not covet it.
Now exposed to all the secrets of Xinzi's past, Xiao Hu felt torn between curiosity and dread. A part of her wished that she never knew, that she could still treat him as the perverted abbot of the Dongli state. At the very least, she wished that the gap between them wasn't this massive. Alas, the distance between heaven and earth separated them, making her look like an insignificant dot in Xinzi's storied existence.
And to think that she once cursed his ancestors. As she remembered Xinzi's reply, Xiao Hu laughed at her own audacity:
'You should be more careful of who you curse. My ancestors are petty folks, and could very well show up to obliterate you in body and soul.'
The words now made perfect sense, making Xiao Hu wonder how many other hints she'd neglected.
"Follow me." With a series of quiet steps, Xinzi ambled out of the throne room. The Mourning Shadow hall's six leaders, each boasting a peak-stage Supreme Clarity cultivation base, stayed on his heels. Outside the throne room, lower-ranking Night Spirit nobles had gathered. At the head of that group, Baxian and Xiao Hu seemed out of place. Xinzi's gaze swept past the swordswoman, locking on Baxian.
"Oh, Greatest One, your humble servant greets you," Baxian said, lowering his head. He could take liberties in other circumstances, but whenever he stood before Xinzi, Baxian dared not refer to him as "Zhen'er." After all, unlike Yuemi, he didn't have Yongye's Face-Erasing Whip to rely on.
And due to their respective status, the relationship between the two was awkward at best.
"Baxian, what is the meaning of this?"
"Oh, Greatest One, your humble servant couldn't endure watching the Lord-Regent abuse her authority to question your actions. So, in a fit of rage, I executed the impudent maids and led your witness to safety. A pity that they'd already transferred the memories to the Lord-Regent."
"Oh? Baxian, how kind of you. My Divine Self has grown impotent lately, and cannot deal with the Lord-Regent's antics. Luckily, you are here to back me up. Perhaps it's time that you graduate from that eternal God-Child seat and take on the reins of this branch."
"Your words terrify me. One dynasty cannot have two monarchs." Baxian's tone carried none of the Hengye clansmen's zeal, and Xinzi's voice didn't match his jesting words either. Tension rose as their interaction went on, and the nearby Night Spirits held their breaths.
Indeed, 10,000 years ago, Baxian should have climbed the Divine Consecration Ladder to become the new monarch of the Eternal Night. But Yuemi forbade his coronation, foretelling that, by Yongye's will, Xinzi would descend upon the Great Desolation world to deal with Qingxin and take the reins of the Night. In success, as his foster family, they'd rise alongside him. In failure, they'd pay for their mistake in blood. Since then, Baxian became the eternal God-Child.
Though both had their fates altered by Qingxin's betrayal, Xinzi's descent suppressed Baxian's rise.
"You don't say. I thought you'd forgotten." Divine light burst from the Glorious Eye of Heaven, sweeping through Baxian's soul. His knees buckled, blood dripped from his nostrils, and he fell face-first, cratering the ground underneath him.
"Baxian, a God-Child's Divine Soul might be hard to crack for others, but before my eye, you can hide nothing. Don't follow your mother into madness. Stupid games will earn you stupid rewards. It would be a shame if you never got the opportunity to become the monarch that you so desire to be."
"I will…keep those words in mind," Baxian said and clutched at his chest, suppressing a blood-coughing fit.
"Come with me," without glancing towards Xiao Hu, Xinzi said. And though she now knew that the Heart of the Stainless Sovereign pretty much erased Xinzi's mortal passion, the cold and oppressive tone that he faced her with still made her chest tighten. For a second, she didn't budge—as if her body rejected Hengye Zhen, demanding the monk's return. But the realization that without Xinzi, she'd be left alone in the Evernight Palace brought her back to reason, and she followed without further delay.
Little did she know that, as Xinzi walked past Baxian, the God-Child's eyes flashed with an eerie glint, and for the imperceptible split of a second, his lips curled up.
…
Outside the Evernight Palace, one obsidian carriage awaited. Radiant beast engravings brightened up the gloomy vehicle, but could do nothing for the chained sapphire dragon tasked to drive it.
Without a doubt, this was the largest carriage that Xiao Hu had laid her eyes on, and even without Xinzi to describe its abilities, she didn't doubt that this carriage alone could bring down half the Eastern Continent. The Mourning Shadow hall disciples assembled nearby, and like soldiers brainwashed from the cradle, awaited their orders.
'You don't need to do anything. Just follow and watch. May this purge serve as a warning for all those that would dare to challenge the Eternal Night.' Xinzi sent the Mourning Shadow hall leaders a mental message, then climbed into the carriage. Xiao Hu followed, and the two occupied a couch large enough to fit a dozen. Xinzi sat at the left-end side, looking absentmindedly at the world outside. Xiao Hu stood at the extreme right, and a rattling silence settled in.
Thousands of meters underneath, the sea tides rose as the dragon roared at the night sky, and flew towards the Qiu clan's private island.
"Are you scared?"
"Huh?" Barely had they stepped into the night sky that Xinzi broke the silence, startling Xiao Hu who'd prepared herself for a silent trip. Instinctively, she clenched her dress, not knowing how to reply.
"It's fine, I understand. I'd be scared as well. It won't be long before we return to Dongli. This…is temporary," Xinzi said, but in these words, Xiao Hu sensed multiple meanings and a deep loneliness—a void—that the 1,000 faces constantly hovering beside Xinzi…only made worse.
"Is the God-Child…plotting against you?" The swordswoman mustered her courage and asked. Only a fool wouldn't see that, if not for selfish motives, Baxian wouldn't feed Xiao Hu all this information. But based on the God-Child's own words, what good could come from plotting against those that had destroyed the Heavenly Emperor already. The more she considered Baxian's words, the more convinced Xiao Hu was that he hid secrets of his own—perhaps even a backer.
"Baxian? Just another toy who thinks himself clever. A pity, I didn't want to kill him." Xinzi's calm and straightforward tone carried none of the sinister vibe that he confronted Baxian with, but it was this contrast that made Xiao Hu's heart race faster, convincing her that, with one thought, Xinzi—no, Hengye Zhen—could put an end to all of Baxian's struggles.
'Is this also how Yongye speaks?' Xiao Hu kept this thought to herself and lowered her head.
…
An uneventful trip followed. With the Mourning Shadows at its back, and a rank-ten Heavenly Beast Sovereign to drive it, Xinzi's carriage bolted through the sky, arriving at the Qiu clan's island in record time.
There, the entire clan—hundreds of men and women—assembled at their ancestrall hall's doors, setting up the ritual formation as directed by their leaders. From the moment that they could speak, the children of the Qiu clan learned of their family's past, of Qiu Meng, the Celestial Hall and Great Desolation war.
All yearned to return to those days of glory, to bring their ancestor back, and alongside him, rebuild the magnificent Celestial Hall. For this grand endeavor, they could sacrifice anything. Thus, as soon as Qiu Sanren and Qiu Sanbao revealed their plan and presented the materials, sons and daughters of the Qiu got to work—progressing at a lightning bolt's pace.
At first, the Night's sudden appearance didnt bother them. After all, whenever a reigning God-Monarch unleashed his Divine Powers, the Endless Sea sky returned to darkness. But today…it was different.
"The timing…doesn't feel right." Qiu Sanren and Qiu Sanbao, the leading ancestors of the Qiu clan, said and spread their Spiritual Senses out.
Black-lightning flickered in the night sky.. The shadow of a colossal sea dragon covered the ground, and as Xinzi's carriage appeared underneath the two ancestors' startled gazes, all Qiu sons and daughters raised their heads—their hearts thumping as their eyes stretched impossibly.
