Chapter 1 Sound and Meaning Roll, Echoing in the Clear Northwest Sky

Two ancient war gods, each towering two meters tall with muscles cast like steel and bodies covered in bizarre magic纹(wen – patterns), hammered against each other’s bodies, as hard as steel, with resounding “bang, bang, bang” sounds.

Hearing the words “Five Elements Alliance” and “second level,” the Demon Eye Heavenly King, fighting with true fire, forcefully suppressed his anger and stopped fighting.

The Fear Heavenly King, even more in control, retracted his magic eyes with a single stride, his tall and robust body shrinking back to normal human size.

The Demon Eye immediately returned to its normal state.

Both the Demon Eye Heavenly King and the Fear Heavenly King were bare-chested, wearing only bronze armor on their lower bodies. The sunlight illuminated their streamlined physiques, their abdominal muscles distinct and powerful, exuding masculinity, dominance, and battle prowess.

An outsider might mistake them for filming an ancient costume idol drama, as the wicked Demon Eye Heavenly King pulled out a sports headband and placed it on his forehead.

The Fear Heavenly King took a step and arrived before the Silver Moon Heavenly King, a gentle smile gracing his face. "It seems there are unexpected gains."

The Silver Moon Heavenly King nodded, reporting directly without any preamble: "Yuanshi Tianzun (Original Heavenly Lord) unleashed demigod-level power during the tribunal, fighting to the death against four Sovereigns, including Cai Qinhe. They were utterly annihilated, and after the battle, he completely returned to Lingjing (Spirit Realm)."

"Four *zhanglao* (elders) and sixteen high-level deacons have announced their withdrawal from the Five Elements Alliance, including Ling Diao and Huang Daji. The number of grassroots official Xingzhe (Walkers) announcing their withdrawal exceeds 200."

"The Five Elements Alliance is experiencing its biggest crisis of confidence since its founding." The Fear Heavenly King chuckled with delight, clicking his tongue repeatedly. "The three major free organizations have been fighting the Five Elements Alliance for so many years, but the damage caused is not as great as their own internal strife. Interesting, very interesting. It's just a pity about Yuanshi Tianzun."

The Silver Moon Heavenly King snorted coldly. "If this kid had grown up, he would probably have become another... at worst, a member of the Ten Elders."

"It's better that he's dead. The entire Army of Holy Light is cheering!" After a pause, he continued to report: "According to the consultant team's analysis, this crisis of confidence will last for a long time. During this period, as long as we put pressure on the Five Elements Alliance, actively attack, and hunt down official Xingzhe, we can further collapse the Five Elements Alliance. More and more grassroots Walkers will withdraw from the official organization."

"The official forces will weaken, the private organizations will rise, and the power of the Lawful Good alignment will be dispersed."

The Fear Heavenly King smiled joyfully. "Then what are we waiting for?"

The Silver Moon Heavenly King nodded, then turned to the motionless Demon Eye and said, "Aren't you very fond of Yuanshi Tianzun? Now is a great opportunity for you to take revenge on the official organization!"

The Demon Eye Heavenly King looked troubled as he gazed at the setting sun on the horizon, his expression tinged with sorrow. "He has already returned to Lingjing... I want to know the truth and specific details of the incident."

He only knew that Yuanshi Tianzun was facing a tribunal of the Five Elements Alliance for colluding with evil professions and killing official elders.

However, even the high-level deacons who participated in the tribunal only belatedly understood the truth and details of the incident after Yuanshi Tianzun perished together with his enemies.

Official sources and evil professions usually only know a rough outline. More detailed information requires time to investigate.

The Silver Moon Heavenly King said, "Cai Qinhe used the Inhumans at the No Trace Hotel as bait, preparing to set a trap to kill Yuanshi Tianzun, but the elders he sent were killed instead. Thus, the tribunal was a scheme within a scheme."

"Yuanshi Tianzun is a freak like you. You, a freelance professional, are constantly thinking about eliminating evil, while he actually spoke up for a group of freelance professionals. Ridiculous!"

Speaking up for a group of freelance professionals... These words seemed to deeply sting the Demon Eye Heavenly King. At the bottom of the headband on his forehead, crimson blood tears seeped out.

It was blood tears flowing from the vertical eye.

The Demon Eye Heavenly King suddenly clutched his head and bent over, his body trembling non-stop, as if enduring some intense pain. The blood moon on his forehead surged, staining half his face red.

The Fear Heavenly King frowned. "Demon Eye?"

He was answered by a burst of low laughter: "Hahaha, hahaha."

The Demon Eye, bent over, laughed, his whole body trembling, his laughter growing increasingly frantic and desolate.

On the wicked eyes, the bare upper body sprouted pair after pair of crimson-gold demonic pupils, dense and terrifying.

Each vertical eye was spewing crimson-gold beams of light, each carrying a terrifying pollution.

On this day, the seductive demons of the entire Army of Holy Light headquarters were corrupted and went berserk.

As the sun sank below the horizon, Yin Ji sat in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows in the Taiyi Sect's office building, silently watching the city light up with its first lanterns.

The sorrow and pain lingering in her heart, after a day, had not dissipated but instead brewed, churned, and grew increasingly intense.

Yuanshi Tianzun's death was a great blow to her. That young man should have had feelings for her, occasionally trying to strike up conversations, wanting to get close but also rationally keeping his distance.

Yin Ji often felt guilty. Her heart had long been filled with the Demon Lord and could not accommodate other men, so she really could not respond to his affection.

But undeniably, Yuanshi Tianzun was an excellent opposite-sex individual, and Yin Ji was filled with admiration for him. This friendship even surpassed most of the fellow disciples in the Taiyi Sect.

Yuanshi Tianzun's return to Lingjing left her feeling lost.

Bright starlight rose from the bedroom, interrupting Yin Ji's thoughts. She quickly stood up and bowed respectfully. "Teacher!"

The one who came was Elder Hongying.

Elder Hongying scrutinized her, then sighed softly. "Still grieving over Yuanshi Tianzun's death? Alas, it's fortunate you didn't develop into lovers with him. Otherwise... otherwise, how much more despair would you feel? First the Demon Lord, then Yuanshi."

Yin Ji bit her lip.

Tears welled up in her eyes, revealing her vulnerability in front of her teacher.

"He wasn't wrong, he wasn't wrong. He shouldn't have had this ending..."

Elder Hongying sighed again. "The person is gone, so saying more is useless. I came to tell you a piece of news that I feel you have the right to know."

Yin Ji took a deep breath, holding back her tears.

"Just now, the Grand Elder summoned us for a meeting and said something..." Elder Hongying looked at her disciple with a complex expression, pausing for several seconds. "Yuanshi Tianzun is the Demon Lord's successor."

Yin Ji was stunned, staring blankly at her teacher.

Elder Hongying smiled wryly. "No one expected it to be him. Even the Tiger Talisman couldn't detect it."

Yin Ji's mind was in a mess. At one moment, the two figures in her mind overlapped. She had too many doubts and confusions to seek answers for, but she was destined not to have any answers.

She stood in the room, lost and dejected, her heart filled with sorrow.

Miao Teng'er, dressed in a plain white dress and with her beautiful hair tied high, removed her hair ornaments and jewelry, looking simple and elegant.

After the tribunal, she changed into this outfit, as if she were mourning someone.

She walked through the lush green courtyard, bypassed a sunny room, ignoring the attempts of small animals to curry favor and show affection, and came to the Institute of Plant-Based Alchemy with a heavy heart.

Under an ancient pine tree, a middle-aged man in a green robe was feeding a plump squirrel with a pine cone.

"Uncle!" Miao Teng'er stopped several meters away.

"Ling Jun is gone?" Yun Zhongzi's voice was somewhat low.

Miao Teng'er gave a soft "hmm" and said softly, "Cousin said he won't be coming back in the future. He said that his grandfather raised him, so he can't blame his grandfather, but he can't forgive his grandfather for killing his brother."

Yun Zhongzi snorted coldly and then sighed. In just one day, headquarters received three hundred resignation letters. The Five Elements Alliance suffered heavy losses in today's tribunal.

The loss of a peak Sovereign, a genius with infinite potential, and even more fatally, the official credibility was gone.

To put it bluntly, they had lost the hearts of the people.

Those who resigned need not be mentioned, but those who did not resign did not mean they had no objections in their hearts. They just needed to work, but in their hearts, they probably no longer trusted headquarters.

That Zhou fellow wanted to manipulate public opinion and ruin Yuanshi Tianzun's reputation, and the effect was indeed very good, but now the public opinion had backfired and become uncontrollable.

This was the price of manipulating public opinion.

"Grandpa, hasn't he returned yet?" Miao Teng'er asked.

Yun Zhongzi's face immediately filled with gloom. "Chief Jiang and Palace Master have returned. The two Alliance Leaders were extremely angry when they learned about these things. Your grandfather and another person have been pulled into Lingjing for a meeting."

Yun Zhongzi scattered the pine cones on the ground, turned to look at his niece's refined and ethereal face, and said in a deep voice, "Just now, the Scarlet Sun Enforcer of the Taiyi Sect sent a message that Yuanshi Tianzun is the Demon Lord's successor."

Yuanshi Tianzun is the Demon Lord's successor?

This news was like a thunderbolt, crashing heavily in Miao Teng'er's heart, causing her body to sway and almost fall.

It was him? Then the person that night was also him? Miao Teng'er's vision went black, and a wave of dizziness washed over her.

Jing City.

A new large manor in the suburbs, covering an area of hundreds of acres, with gardens, sunrooms, large swimming pools, fountains, and a castle-like themed building.

Security personnel in suits, wearing headsets and equipped with pistols, stood guard or patrolled.

On the second floor, in a European-style study, the curtains were tightly closed, and there were no lights on.

In the silent darkness, a figure suddenly appeared in the high-backed chair behind the old desk.

He had a handsome short ponytail, and his handsome face was like a knife-carved sculpture. Compared to the past, he was much more refined, and his temperament was even more mature and dignified.

The suit he was wearing was tattered and stained with blood, and his chest, waist, abdomen, thighs, and back... were covered in exposed wounds.

Three of his left fingers were broken, and even that handsome face that made women breathless was covered in scars.

Fu Qingyang had returned.

He looked around the study and, without regard for his injuries, immediately grabbed the phone on the desk and lit up the screen.

October 4th, 1:30 AM.

"An error of 12 hours." He nodded in satisfaction. Although he did not return to reality before October, he returned in early October after all.

Fu Qingyang's time in the instance was very long.

He flicked his finger lightly, and a sword aura whistled out, hitting the switch at the door.

"Click!" A small chandelier lit up, and the sword aura dissipated without damaging the switch.

The light illuminated his incomparably handsome face and also illuminated the woman on the sofa opposite the desk.

The woman crossed her legs, her absolutely beautiful face cold and majestic, like an empress who controlled the world. Her voice was cold as she assessed:

"The level of control over sword aura is superb. Truly enviable. I guarantee that among the scouts, only that old man from Sword Pavilion can compare with you in sword aura micro-control."

She took out a bottle of Life Nectar, tossed it gently, and frowned. "Heal your injuries. In less than a month, you've ventured into nine instances. If you don't have the talent, don't force it. You're clearly a useless younger brother, but you still like to show off. When I ventured into the gang instances back then, I was much more stable than you."

She was not very worried about her useless younger brother, so she entered the instance to watch.

In more than half a month, Fu Qingyang ventured into nine instances, one S-level, three A-level, and five B-level.

The B-levels were fine, but the three A-level and S-level instances put Fu Qingyang through a lot of hardship. He was either on the verge of life and death or on the way to it.

In fact, he had died several times, and the Life Nectar with abundant reserves in his item bar was consumed in half a month.

Healing items were used again and again.

Even so, he almost died in the instance. The fact that he was able to survive was due to his own solid foundation, excellent props (cloak), and a lot of luck.

Fu Qingxuan did not understand why he could not use a gentler method, such as resting for a few days after each instance to recuperate. This would greatly reduce the risk factor.

But Fu Qingyang seemed to be in a hurry to reincarnate, not giving himself a chance to breathe.

"I don't have time," Fu Qingyang said indifferently.

Fu Qingxuan was too lazy to ask more and said, "Don't enter the gang instance this year. Adapt to the level 8 realm, improve the proficiency of the Sovereign stage skills, and try to pass the level next year. Let me tell you, for you, every level 8 instance has a casualty rate of over 70%, and the mortality rate of level 9 instance exceeds 90%. If you don't have any adventures or a qualitative leap in swordsmanship, level 8 peak will be your limit. Of course, with the Sword Master's Cloak, you can fight a level 9 initial Sovereign."

Fu Qingyang ignored his sister's instructions.

He injected the Life Nectar, opened his address book, and dialed Yuanshi Tianzun's phone. Sorry, the phone you dialed is turned off?

Only a month in the instance, so it should be mid-October... Fu Qingyang frowned and then dialed Guan Ya's phone.

"Beep, beep, beep."

The phone did connect, but no one answered. Just as Fu Qingyang was about to hang up, it was finally answered, but the voice coming from the speaker was not Guan Ya's, but his aunt, Fu Xue.

"Qing, Qingyang? You've returned?"

His aunt's voice was very nasal, and her tone was full of exhaustion.

Fu Qingyang did not like this aunt very much and frowned slightly. "You've come to Songhai? Yes, I've returned. Tell Guan Ya and Yuanshi that I'll return to Songhai tomorrow morning."

Just as he finished speaking, he heard sobbing coming from the other end of the phone.

Then came Fu Xue's choking: "Qingyang, Yuanshi has returned to Lingjing!"