Chapter One Hundred Thirty
"I am not the only one who has not undergone tribulation for Divine Transformation." Hua Shu's gaze fell upon Feng Yin. "The Phoenix Sovereign can descend into the world as a deity, so why can't I?"
"This sovereign has not undergone tribulation?" Feng Yin raised an eyebrow slightly, meeting Hua Shu's provocative gaze, her eyes revealing a trace of reminiscence and profound meaning. "How do you know this sovereign has never endured tribulation?"
Hua Shu and the assembled immortals were momentarily stunned by the depth of meaning in Feng Yin's words. Before they could react, Feng Yin had already taken a step forward and declared loudly, "Hua Shu, regardless of where your peculiar Spiritual Power comes from, why did you recklessly severely injure three Immortal Venerables in the struggle for the Celestial Emperor?" Her gaze swept toward the outside of the Nine Palaces Tower, pausing briefly in the direction of the Peacock King before continuing, "Is this your intention alone, or the will of the entire Peacock Clan?"
As soon as these words were spoken, the immortals turned their angry gazes toward the Peacock King, who remained unmoved. Sensing something amiss, the immortals were about to question the Peacock King when the voice of the Kunlun Patriarch echoed from within the Nine Palaces Tower.
"Venerable Hua Shu." The Kunlun Patriarch looked up at Hua Shu beside the imperial throne, his voice heavy. After a long pause, he asked, "Is the Spiritual Power of the Venerable derived from Demon Tribe techniques?"
As soon as the Kunlun Patriarch's words fell, the immortals were shocked, and Hua Shu's expression abruptly changed. She angrily retorted, "What does the Patriarch mean by this? Could it be that this venerable one's attainment of Divine Attainment is only possible through cultivating Demonic Power?"
Seeing Hua Shu deny it, the Kunlun Patriarch sighed. "Venerable Hua Shu, although the Demon Tribe has long vanished from the Three Realms, thirty thousand years ago, I once slew a low-level demon in the Southern Sea. The Spiritual Power it used is identical in origin to the power you just used to injure me and Venerable Yu Feng. Within the Three Realms, cultivating as an immortal or a demon requires undergoing tribulation. Only the Demon Tribe does not. You achieved Divine Transformation without undergoing tribulation. If not through cultivating Demonic Power, then what is it?"
Hua Shu's eyes darkened. She had not expected the Kunlun Patriarch to have encountered the Demon Tribe, and her technique had been recognized as soon as she used it. Knowing that concealment was no longer possible now that she had been exposed, she said indifferently, "So what if it is, and so what if it isn't?"
Hearing Hua Shu not deny it, the immortals were all enraged, with only Feng Yin and Yan Huo showing no change in their expressions.
The Kunlun Patriarch also wore a grave expression as he looked at Hua Shu. "As one of the Five Venerables of the Heavenly Palace, how could you cultivate Demon Tribe techniques...?"
"What of cultivating Demon Tribe techniques? The Demon Tribe has long been absent from the world. It is merely a technique—why should it not be cultivated?" Her gaze fell upon Feng Yin. "The Celestial Emperor and the Phoenix Sovereign colluded with the Demon Tribe, harming our Immortal Tribe. If I had not cultivated Demon Tribe techniques to attain Divine Attainment, how could I oppose the Celestial Emperor and the Phoenix Sovereign to seek justice for High Lord Lanfeng!"
Hua Shu's voice was filled with grief and fury, shocking the immortals. They exchanged glances, utterly confused as to where this accusation had come from.
"Hua Shu, the Celestial Emperor and the Phoenix Sovereign are wholeheartedly devoted to our Immortal Tribe. How dare you slander both sovereigns!" Venerable Yu Feng, who had been sitting cross-legged recuperating his internal energy, suddenly rose, glaring angrily at Hua Shu, no longer even addressing her as "Venerable."Hua Shu remained unmoved, a cold glint appearing in her eyes as she looked at Yu Feng. "The Celestial Emperor and the Phoenix Sovereign are wholeheartedly devoted to the Immortal Tribe? What a joke. Over the past thousand years, one of them secluded herself in the North Sea, reviving a lover who died millennia ago while disregarding the entire Immortal Realm. The other, blessed by heaven to descend as a god, has only been in this world for a few short months. What have either of them done for the Immortal Tribe? My Lan Feng guarded the Heavenly Palace diligently for a thousand years in Feng Ran’s stead. That demon fox killed him—the evidence is ironclad. Yet, because Feng Ran is close to Chang Qin, they actually intend to clear the Demon Emperor of the charges..." Hua Shu’s gaze swept over Yu Feng’s face before turning indignantly toward the multitude of immortals outside the Nine Palaces Tower. "If I do not become a god, who will seek justice for him!"
Several months ago, at the birthday banquet of High God Yuan Qi, Qing Yi, the Immortal Lord of Great Marsh Mountain, and Yan Shuang, the princess of the Eagle Clan, forcefully argued that Hong Yi had been controlled by the Demon Tribe when he committed the wrongs at Great Marsh Mountain. This led many immortals to speculate that the death of High Lord Lan Feng might also conceal hidden truths. Due to Hua Shu’s relationship with Lan Feng, no one had ever dared to speak of such matters in her presence. Yet, unexpectedly, she had still heard these rumors. Seeing Hua Shu’s grief and indignation now, the immortals felt a wave of shame, and some even began to waver in their convictions.
Could it be that the Celestial Emperor, for the sake of her past friendship with the former Fox King, was truly distorting the truth of that year and deliberately clearing the Demon Emperor of his crimes?
Feng Ran was known for her wild and unrestrained nature, often treating immortal laws as if they did not exist. Her close friendship with Chang Qin was also widely known. Lan Feng, who had governed the Heavenly Palace in her stead for a thousand years, had indeed won the hearts of many. Now, as Hua Shu declared that she cultivated Demonic Power for the sake of Lan Feng’s justice, no one could bring themselves to blame her.
Feng Yin had not expected to hear such words from Hua Shu. Meeting Hua Shu’s grief-stricken and indignant gaze, she thought of the truth buried deep within the Heavenly Palace, and her eyes filled with complexity and pity.
She had always thought Hua Shu spent her life obsessing over power and reputation, never imagining she held genuine feelings for Lan Feng. But regardless of what she sought, she could not tarnish Master Sovereign’s name with such accusations.
"Hua Shu, if the immortal soul of High Lord Lan Feng still lingers, I fear he would not wish to bear the weight of your so-called justice and righteousness in his name." Feng Yin stopped Venerable Yu Feng, whose expression was filled with indignation, and with a slight lift of her hand, Divine Power surged as she slowly rose into the air, leveling her gaze with Hua Shu beside the imperial throne.
"What nonsense are you spouting?" Hua Shu’s face darkened with rage as she pointed at Feng Yin. "You merely rely on the divine lineage of the Fire Phoenix to ascend to the heavens in a single step. You have never endured any of the world’s tribulations, nor have you performed any meritorious deeds. What right do you have to decide Lan Feng’s justice? Even Feng Ran had to endure the Heavenly Thunder’s flames to ascend to godhood. You rose to the heavens in one step—who knows where your Divine Power truly comes from? You accuse this venerable one of cultivating Demonic Power, but perhaps your own Divine Power is even more tainted and dubious!"
"You say this sovereign has never endured any tribulations?" Amid Hua Shu’s malicious accusations, Feng Yin looked at her, her ink-black phoenix eyes cold and profound. Step by step, she walked through the void toward Hua Shu, watching as a tempest of fury surged in her eyes.
A thousand years ago, right here on the Azure Dragon Platform, she had knelt wounded and helpless, trembling as she endured Hua Shu’s six bolts of Heavenly Thunder, each one sealing her fate!
Hua Shu met the killing intent in Feng Yin’s eyes and shuddered, involuntarily taking a step back.
These eyes of the Phoenix Sovereign—why did they feel so familiar, so eerily reminiscent of that lowly, wretched Water Condensation Beast from all those years ago...The thousand-year-old memories buried deep in Huashu's heart surged to the surface, and before that absurd thought could fully form in her mind, Feng Yin stood a few steps away from the imperial throne, finally speaking as she looked at her: "Huashu, I wonder if having your immortal bones excised, your immortal status revoked, enduring seven strikes of Heavenly Thunder, undergoing a hundred lifetimes of mortal reincarnation, and bearing a thousand years of wrongful accusations—in your eyes, does that count as a calamity?"
Feng Yin's phoenix eyes rested calmly on Huashu, a faint, deep, and chilling smile curling at the corners of her mouth. "Come to think of it, this Divine Power and the position of Sovereign without a divine title were bestowed upon me by your own hands."
Feng Yin's voice was clear, resonating through the Nine Heavens. Before the assembled immortals could grasp the deeper meaning behind the Phoenix Sovereign's words, Huashu's expression changed drastically. She stumbled back a step, avoiding Feng Yin as if she were a flood or a wild beast, and pointed a trembling finger at her. "You are... you are... impossible! You can't be her! She was just a lowly Water Condensation Beast—how could you possibly be her!"
"Why can't I be her?" Feng Yin's eyes held not a ripple of emotion. "Huashu, the six Heavenly Thunder strikes of fate—a mere thousand years have passed. You may have forgotten, but I have not. You want justice for Lan Feng? Today, I will give you justice for Lan Feng."
The Phoenix Sovereign's voice rang out clearly, reaching the ears of the four within the tower and the immortals gathered outside the Nine Palaces Tower. Those Immortal Lords who caught the implication wore expressions of shock and disbelief.
Could it be... could it be that the Phoenix Sovereign was actually the Lady of Great Marsh Mountain who perished in Rakshasa Land all those years ago? What hidden truths lay behind the death of Lanfeng Supreme Lord? What exactly did the Lady Ayin from back then know?
Just as these thoughts arose in the hearts of the immortals outside the tower, eager to hear more from the Phoenix Sovereign, several streams of dark, heavy Spiritual Power suddenly gathered in mid-air. In an instant, they descended from the sky, landing around the Azure Dragon Platform and transforming into a cage that tightly encircled the immortals at its edge. The most formidable of these streams struck the imperial throne, shattering Celestial Emperor Feng Ran with a single blow.
The Celestial Emperor was dead? Just like that, obliterated by this unknown Spiritual Power!?
Shock and disbelief filled the eyes of the immortals. Before they could even cry out, terrifying tongues of flame erupted from the cage's Spiritual Power, forcing the immortals toward its center.
In their panic and unease, the immortals attempted to use their Immortal Power to break free from the cage. But the moment they touched it, they were injured by the dark aura. Wherever the dark aura touched, their immortal bones began to corrode, and even Immortal Power could not heal the wounds.
"Demonic Qi!" a terrified immortal immediately cried out, fear flashing in their eyes.
In the Three Realms, only Demonic Power could devour Immortal Power! The Demon Tribe had long vanished from the world—how could such a powerful demon appear within the Nine-Layered Heavenly Palace? Not only had it silently infiltrated the Heavenly Palace and slain the Celestial Emperor with a single strike, but it had also trapped all the High Immortals here in an instant!
"If you wish to live, stay quietly inside," a cold voice echoed from above the cage. A mass of dark aura enveloped a figure standing within it, whose form and voice were all too familiar to the assembled immortals.
"Peacock King!" several High Immortals of the Heavenly Palace exclaimed after a closer look. Once they confirmed the identity within the dark aura, they roared in anger, "You actually cultivate Demonic Power as well! As a noble Immortal King, you have fallen into demonic ways, slaughtering the Celestial Emperor and murdering your fellow immortals! You are unworthy of the Immortal Tribe!"
Before the High Immortal's words had fully faded, a surge of Demonic Power passed through the cage and struck them. The High Immortal let out a wretched cry, collapsing to the ground with eyes wide in agony. Blood gushed from their mouth, and their immortal spirit scattered completely.
In the blink of an eye, a dark mist enveloped the entire Heavenly Palace. The Nine-Layered Heavenly Palace, the sacred land of the Immortal Tribe that had stood for sixty thousand years across the Three Realms and Six Paths, was shrouded in an inescapable shadow.
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