A cloud sailed across the blue sky. Li Fengyuan stood on the surging water vapour as he gazed at the ground sternly.
After receiving news of her, he rushed over to the Harmony province immediately, but this was the sight he saw.
The sun blazed down on the earth. It was originally a season of plant growth, yet there was only empty, barren land as far as the eye could see.
There were no birds in the sky or fish in the waters. Even the deserts of the Scarlet province and the permafrost of the Frost province was not so deathly silent.
A third heavenly tribulation featherfolk said, “My king, I heard she even opened the largest demon cavern in the Harmony province. The north is currently surging with demon qi, with hundreds of kilometres of land contaminated. Even demonfolk struggle to match such evildoing. Are you still going to help her despite this?”
Li Fengyuan looked away, gazing at the sky, “She no longer needs my help. She doesn’t need anyone’s help. We’re returning to the Cloud province! No, we’re going straight to the east sea, away from this land of trouble!”
The featherfolk all said, “Wise be the king!”
Li Fengyuan suddenly looked back, vaguely hearing the strange sound of a bell.
The featherfolk failed to sense anything. They asked curiously, “My king, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing. Let’s go!”
The cloud rose up, shooting off into the east with a long tail and vanishing into the horizon.
Cling… clang…
The sounds of bells rang out as Xiao An shot across the open wilderness, landing gently within a city. She stood on the tallest building with her bare feet, before rising high into the air again. The Soul Stirring Bell on her waist shook about loudly!
On the bustling streets, within the restaurants where cups were raised… wherever the sounds of bells reached, it stirred souls, making them suddenly erupt into a ball of pale flames. Wisps surged into the sky one by one, following after he figure.
She seemed to wander through the world aimlessly with millions of pale streaks of fire following behind her, traversing the tall mountains and deep valleys, walking through day and night…
The Dragon province.
The countless mountains surged towards the centre like turbulent waves, clustering around a tall mountain, like a colossal dragon raising its head from the ocean, about to take flight.
This was the head of all mountains in the world, Dragonshead mountain!
It was rumoured that this mountain originated from the corpse of a true dragon, but that had already become a matter of a million years ago. The Dragon clan had left this world a long time ago, so many rumours could no longer be verified.
A hall that stood three hundred metres tall resided on the top of the mountain, standing above the sea of clouds and almost connecting with the sky, as if it sat above the nine provinces.
Under the glow of the sun, it manifested with a multitude of colours, flowing and changing, like it was surrounded by neon lights. It was as majestic and glorious as it could get.
This basically did not resemble a creation of man, much less a creation for man.
That was the reality too. This was the senate constructed by the godfolk during the age of the divine kingdoms.
Each race of godfolk would send representatives here and hold conferences. The senators of the seven great divine races were responsible for mediating the conflicts between the races, discussing the strategy against the demonfolk, as well as to quell the rebellion of slaves.
Apart from the Giant Lumberfolk, the shapes and statues of the godfolk were all human-like. It was said that they had only made the hall so large under the influence of the Dragon clan.
In order to celebrate the arrival of the new age and strengthen their respective race’s right to speech, every single race devoted themselves to the construction of this majestic hall.
There should have never been such a tall mountain in the world. It was the Clayfolk that had raised Dragonshead mountain to such an unbelievable height and the Merfolk that changed the flows of hundreds of rivers, creating this natural formation and structure.
The great architects of the Night Roamingfolk merged the styles of the various races and designed the original appearance of the hall.
The Featherfolk were renowned for their elegance, but they were accustomed to spending time up in the clouds, so they were forced to degrade themselves and do some “lowly” work, transporting over the materials from distant lands, or even the ocean, so this hall could be built.
It was said that the Featherfolk had once designed a staircase of clouds that wound around Dragonshead mountain without ever dispersing, leading straight to the top of the mountain, but it was destroyed in the flames of war afterwards, just like the hanging gardens meticulously designed by the Giant Lumberfolk.
However, the boulders forged by Fire Devouring folk and the metallic patterns personally laid down by the Metal Essence folk could not be destroyed that easily. Even after thousands of years, they continued to stand and shine.
This was probably the one and only time the godfolk had poured their efforts together shoulder to shoulder to achieve something. Afterwards, even when the demonfolk invaded, it had been filled with schemes and skirmishes with one another, even hoping their enemy races to be destroyed by the demonfolk.
These lowly “slaves” were the best cannonfodder, especially the humans that could turn into demonfolk at any time. Instead, they were closer to the daemons that could serve as mounts.
But back then, humans already possessed their own sects, schools and even beliefs. The generations upon generations of cultivators blazed open a trail, using cultivation methods that grew more and more profound to shorten their distance with the godfolk. Over a long period of accumulation, the Daemon race produced an endless number of Daemon Kings too, each possessing powerful abilities they were born with and an unruly temperament.
Finally one day, the gods and the demons both sustained heavy losses. The slaves gained their freedom and the mounts broke free from their reins.
By the time the young man had travelled across the nine provinces with the hawk and wolf, climbing up Dragonshead mountain, the godfolk had already become the otherfolk, while the hall had gone from the senate to the imperial court, continuing to rule over the nine provinces.
At this moment, the emperor of Great Xia sat on a golden dragon throne. His appearance beneath his crown was filled with a sense of dignity and authority.
The full court of officials and generals, the three ducal ministers and the nine ministers, all held ritual sceptres, standing to the two sides.
In such a spacious hall, it was just unavoidable for the figure of humans to seem insignificant, but the auras they gave off truly made them seem like giants, and that was the result from intentionally holding back. Otherwise, any single one of their aura was enough to fill the entire hall.
A stern voice echoed through the hall, “As the governor of the Harmony province reports, the buddha nemesis has rampaged through the Harmony province, leaving none alive. Apart from the capital, Daliang city, and where the Great Banyan Tree King stands, the other cultivation sects have all been destroyed. Many cultivators have retreated to Daliang city. The daemons of the Harmony province had received the Great Banyan Tree King’s warning, either hiding deep underground, gathering by the Great Banyan Tree King’s side or downright fleeing from the Harmony province.”
The Guardian Hawk God paused, before summarising, “The Harmony province is done for.”
The hall was so silent that they could even hear a pin drop. The danger of the buddha nemesis was so great that it took everyone by surprise.
They all gazed towards where the three ducal ministers stood. Grand preceptor Dong was no longer around, while the faces of the remaining two became sunken.
Originally, standing in their positions, the only thing they had to consider was facing the tribulation and ascending. The threat of death had ceased to exist a long time ago, but now, they deeply experienced it once more.
Grand preceptor Dong had not even died a meaningful death, basically butchered casually, dying as worthlessly as a mortal. Back then, that had already been viewed as a challenge towards all of Great Xia. As it seemed now, perhaps she had not taken Great Xia seriously at all.
The emperor of Great Xia asked, “Where is she right now?”
“We are unable to pinpoint her location. She might have come to the Dragon province.”
There was a series of whispers in the hall. What were they supposed to do if the buddha nemesis came to the Dragon province? Were they supposed to hide on Dragonshead mountain like the governor of the harmony province? But their sects and dwellings were all scattered throughout the Dragon province. If they retreated or avoided her, that would be a great disgrace.
