It was a huge matter that Bai Xiaochun didn’t even need to go to the trouble of trying to announce publicly. Because of the celestial-level Daoist magic that Ghostmother had used, all of the celestials in the Vile-Emperor Dynasty had been paying attention, as well as the Vile-Emperor himself. Not long after the bone lizard departed, streams of divine sense began to converge on the location where the battle had occurred on the Eternal Sea.
There were five in total, which belonged to the five celestials of the Vile-Emperor Dynasty. As they scanned the area, and noticed the residual auras, they found themselves completely thunderstruck.
That was especially true because of Celestial Virūpākṣa. He had a special Daoist magic that was capable of taking images of the final moments of the battle and dragging them back through time to be viewed again. When he and the other celestials saw what had happened, they were both flabbergasted and enraged.
“One of our celestials was kidnapped?!”
“He’s going to give Celestial Ghostmother to the Saint-Emperor as a blood tribute?!?!”
“What outrageous gall! This is a humiliation of our entire dynasty!!”
The rage of the five celestials caused the sky to distort, and a huge wind to kick up. As a result, massive waves began to roll out across the surface of the Eternal Sea.
“Catch him!” Five streams of divine sense began to give chase. Although they were not present as their true selves, Bai Xiaochun was only a quasi-celestial, and could not possibly stand up to the divine sense of five true celestials.
Rumbling sounds echoed out over the screaming Eternal Sea.
The matter of a celestial being kidnapped was simply too monumental. Even as the five celestials came to understand what had happened, the demigods from the third immortal domain began to use various means and methods to spread the news, leading to even more shock.
The news spread like wildfire, passing from the third immortal domain to the rest of the Vile-Emperor Dynasty, and soon, to the Saint-Emperor Dynasty!
Of course, the Vile-Emperor himself had been aware of the situation from the moment that Bai Xiaochun actually kidnapped Ghostmother. Anger had burned in his eyes, and he immediately rose to his feet as if to take action. However, as he did… he stopped, and looked in the direction of Saint-Emperor City.
There, he could sense an aura that was no weaker than his own suddenly explode with full ferocity.
He could tell that if he left Vile-Emperor City and entered the Eternal Sea, then the Saint-Emperor would interfere. The consequences of that… could bring massive changes to the two imperial dynasties. What was currently minor friction between the two could escalate into all-out war.
Neither the Vile-Emperor nor the Saint-Emperor wanted that right now. Although the Saint-Emperor Dynasty was weaker than the Vile-Emperor Dynasty, the price the latter would have to pay to come out on top in such a conflict would be immense. At the moment, the Vile-Emperor simply could not bring himself to do something like that.
After a tense face-off, the Vile-Emperor slowly sat back down, his eyes flashing with more coldness than ever.
When the Vile-Emperor chose to back down, it was in another immortal domain, in Saint-Emperor City, that laughter suddenly echoed out. Then, a warm voice issued orders from the imperial city, orders that resounded into the ears of everyone in the city!
“Fellow Daoist Gu Tianjun, please take a trip to the border to receive… a spectacular tribute from a Fellow Daoist from the Heavenspan Realm!”
Even as the voice continued to echo out, a stream of sword qi erupted from within Saint-Emperor City. Visible within it was a handsome middle-aged man with white hair and a white robe, with a greatsword strapped to his back.
After clasping hands in the direction of Saint-Emperor City, he turned and sped off into the distance, flanked by several demigods.
Many people were surprised by this turn of events, and soon, inquiries were made. Before long, news began to spread throughout the city, leading to widespread shock.
“A cultivator from the Heavenspan Realm actually kidnapped Celestial Ghostmother from the Vile-Emperor Dynasty?!”
“He’s bringing her here to the Saint-Emperor Dynasty as a blood tribute?!?!”
“Heavens! How could these Heavenspan people be so daring?!?!”
“He kidnapped a celestial?!?!”
The commotion continued to rock the two imperial dynasties for a few days. Even at top speed, the bone lizard still needed time to get across the Eternal Sea. And considering it could move faster than Ghostmother’s true form, it meant that the streams of divine sense from the five celestials could not easily catch up.
Before long, they were further from the Vile-Emperor Dynasty than they were from the Saint-Emperor Dynasty, at which point their anxiety began to mount.
Based on their analysis, they would probably be able to catch up to the ship, but… they would be so close to the Saint-Emperor Dynasty that they wouldn’t be able to do much.
Soon, the Vile-Emperor himself ordered them to cease pursuit. The five blurry figures formed from divine sense came to a stop above the Eternal Sea, staring off into the distance with cold gazes.
“Bai Xiaochun, huh?” The Vile-Emperor wanted more information about him, and it didn’t take long for him to get it.
“The Arch-Ancestor of the Heavenspan Realm!”
As the five celestials in divine sense form faded away, Gongsun Wan’er was pushing the bone lizard forward at top speed. She could control the ship just as well as her true self could. After all, she was the discarnate soul from her left arm, and the left arm was key to controlling the ship. Therefore, under her control, it was capable of shocking speed.
Waves rolled out across the sea beneath the ship as it shot along. Meanwhile, Bai Xiaochun stood there, looking off into the distance, his heart pounding with excitement.
“Fudge. The Eternal Lands… aren’t so intimidating after all!!” Flicking his sleeve, he took a deep breath. As of now, he had completely emerged from his previous dispirited state.
“And who cares about some celestials? I already kidnapped one! Hm, what about archaeans…? I kidnapped a demigod when I was in Core Formation, and slapped a Mahayana Realm expert when I was a deva. Now that I’m a demigod myself… I’ve already taken care of a celestial!”
As the Vile-Emperor Dynasty disappeared far behind them, he looked down at the spark-shaped scar on the back of his right hand, and his eyes began to shine.
“Hao’er isn’t dead. I’ll figure out how to wake him up sooner or later. What I need to do now is establish a rock-solid foundation here in the Eternal Lands!
“My Dao has not changed. I want to live forever. I want the same things I’ve always wanted… I want all of my friends and family to live forever with me!!
“And there’s something else I need to do… I need to find a permanent home for the people of the Heavenspan Realm!” Bai Xiaochun had always thought of himself as somewhat of a nobody, and definitely not a hero. But as he proceeded through life, he had slowly come to acquire a sense of duty and responsibility.
His world had been doomed to be destroyed, regardless of whether he got his revenge on Daoist Heavenspan or not. After awakening in the Eternal Lands, he had found corpse after corpse, and had slowly descended into bitter depression.
With the exception of Daoist Heavenspan, he now felt a deep connection to anyone who had survived the destruction of the Heavenspan Realm. All previous grudges were a thing of the past.
“It’s too bad I can’t see the looks on their faces when they hear about what I just did. Well, I’ll see them all eventually!” As the wind buffeted his face, his eyes glittered with determination. He had his memories, and he had his hope for the future. His choice had been made!
At around this time, the Giant Ghost King walked out from the cabin, and saw Bai Xiaochun standing at the prow of the ship. At long last, the Giant Ghost King sighed in relief.
“The Bai Xiaochun I know is finally back….”
