405: Chapter 45 Resurrection (23)

The Ancient Starry Road, which had lasted for thousands of years, finally reached its conclusion.

This iteration of the Ancient Starry Road was exceptionally long, a rarity in the long river of history, signaling that the harvest for the returning Prodigies would far exceed any previous era.

In the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, before the mountain gates of every Immortal Dao Lineage, ancient Formations that had been sealed for ages were activated simultaneously, lighting up with brilliant divine light to welcome them.

Those were Formations meant to welcome the triumphal return of heroes.

Soon, figures bathed in glory stepped out from the Void Realm, descending before their respective Sects.

They were the most dazzling stars of this era.

Every single one of them was a powerhouse who had fought their way out of the Ancient Starry Road, carrying lingering Evil Qi and invincible conviction.

Some bore sacred phenomena, with the sun, moon, and stars rotating behind them.

Some possessed Sword Intent that pierced the heavens; merely by standing there, they caused the surrounding space to crack continuously.

They were the hope of the future, the Qilin children cultivated by the various Orthodoxies with every resource at their disposal.

Their return shook the entirety of the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths.

Among these returning Prodigies, the brilliance of a few was particularly dazzling; they were hailed as the leading figures most likely to prove their Dao and become Great Emperors in this lifetime.

Among them, the Li Family Holy Son was the most high-profile.

Born with the 'Primal Saint Dao Body', he returned holding a Saint Weapon seized at the end of the Ancient Road, with purple Qi rising thirty thousand miles around him as he looked down upon his generation.

“We respectfully welcome the Holy Son’s return!”

In front of the Li Family mountain gate, tens of thousands of Disciples and Elders cheered loudly with fanatical expressions.

The Li Family Holy Son only nodded slightly, his expression arrogant, as if all of this was only natural.

Another was the Saintess of the Heartless Holy Land.

She wore plain clothes and had outstanding features, yet her expression was ice-cold.

She had comprehended the legendary 'Heartless Great Dao', and her sword heart was clear; upon her return, ten thousand swords submitted, and her pressure made countless experts of the older generation look askance.

These Prodigies who had fought their way off the emperors road represented the strongest combat power of this new era.

After returning, they enjoyed the adoration of the masses, and their egos expanded to the extreme.

They firmly believed that they were the true protagonists of this era.

However, while these high-spirited Prodigies were pointing out the flaws of the world and envisioning the future during conversations with Elders at the celebratory banquets hosted by their Sects...

Some discordant 'noise' began to reach their ears.

“Holy Son, during these years you were campaigning on the Ancient Road, a... freak appeared in our Nine Heavens and Ten Earths.”

At the Li Family's celebratory banquet, an Elder brought it up cautiously.

The Li Family Holy Son held his wine cup, his brow furrowing slightly.

“A freak? How strange can he be? Could someone actually steal the spotlight from those of us who returned from the emperors road?”

That Elder had a bitter look on his face.

“This person calls himself ‘Yun’. He acts without any restraint or order, specifically targeting us Immortal Orthodoxies.”

“He... he crushed mountain gates and looted treasuries. He is secretly called the ‘Yun Bandit’ by the various major powers.”

“Pfft.”

A follower beside the Li Family Holy Son burst out laughing.

“Yun Bandit? Just a common robber. Holy Son, once you have rested for a few days, I will go and fetch this person's head to entertain you.”

The Li Family Holy Son was noncommittal, clearly not taking this so-called 'Yun Bandit' to heart.

In his view, it was merely a ridiculous farce of 'when the tiger is away, the monkey crowns himself king'.

However, the Elder's next words caused the smile on his face to freeze.

“What's even more absurd is that this person seems to possess a bizarre trait of immortality.”

“Hundreds of years ago, several Orthodoxies joined forces and laid down a Saint King-grade Killing Formation to surround him. They ‘killed’ him several times, but he always managed to revive, and... his strength grew stronger each time.”

“Immortality?”

The Li Family Holy Son finally put down his wine cup, a flash of surprise crossing his eyes.

“Absurd! How can there be true immortality in this world? It’s nothing more than some deceptive tricks.”

His first reaction was still disbelief and mockery.

Those like them, who had contended on the emperors road and seen countless Laws of the Great Dao, were the protagonists of the era.

How could such an irrational monster emerge from a 'mortal Realm' like the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths?

But soon, his contempt turned into fury.

The Elder hesitated for a moment but still braced himself to speak.

“Holy Son... our Li Family's treasury was also... looted clean by him three hundred years ago.”

“Even that Lifebound Treasure you left in the Sect to be nurtured is gone.”

Boom!

A terrifying aura erupted violently from within the Li Family Holy Son.

The jade cup in his hand instantly turned to powder.

The atmosphere of the entire hall instantly became incredibly oppressive.

“What did you say?”

His voice was ice-cold.

This was no longer just hearing about a strange anecdote.

This was an open challenge to his authority, a great insult to him, a 'Future Great Emperor'!

A similar scene was playing out in the Heartless Holy Land and several other top Orthodoxies.

When those conceited Prodigies discovered that their own Sects were also victims and that their precious treasures had been stolen, their fury was completely ignited.

A few days later.

At a gathering of Prodigies jointly hosted by several Immortal Orthodoxies.

The Li Family Holy Son sat high in the seat of honor, and before all the Prodigies who had returned from the Ancient Road, he issued a bloodthirsty declaration.

“A mere bandit hiding his head and showing his tail dared to disturb our rear while we were fighting on the emperors road. He deserves ten thousand deaths!”

“I propose we form the ‘Ancient Road Prodigy Suppression Alliance’ to rid the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths of this great pest!”

“We must grind that ‘Yun Bandit’ to dust and reclaim our glory!”

His words immediately caused an uproar throughout the venue.

“Seconded! If this scoundrel does not die, my Dao Heart will never find peace!”

“Count me in! I’ll use his head to sacrifice to my sword!”

Responders gathered in droves.

These Prodigies who had fought their way off the Ancient Road were each proud and arrogant, already viewing themselves as the future Dominators.

The existence of ‘Yun’ was like a stain on their perfect resumes, something they could not tolerate.

Soon, a grand army composed of hundreds of experts who had returned from the Ancient Road was assembled.

Every single one of them had at least a Saint Realm cultivation.

And leading figures like the Li Family Holy Son and the Heartless Saintess had long since stepped into the Four-Lotus Saint King Realm.

This was a terrifying force sufficient to sweep through any corner of the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths.

War chariots roared, and divine rainbows pierced the sun.

The massive suppression army, riding upon endless divine light, crossed Star Domains and bore down on the remote Star Domain where ‘Yun’ was last reported to have appeared.

In their eyes, this was not a war.

It was a one-sided execution to demonstrate their supreme authority.