Chapter 1922: Chapter 1914: Those Outside
The spatial region designed by the Zeniths by unanimous acceptance for the galactic boundary of the Neo Zenith Tower, slightly beyond the edge of the Refining Skies Galactic Zone, had been rife with activity since the festering, putrid rumor of the Neo-Dawn Ascendant Emperor's possession of a top-tier, god-like youthful talent of the Alchemic Dao.
Under a united sense of righteous indignation, experts throughout the galaxy showcased their unity, gathering to surround the Neo Zenith Tower's spatial territory in an encapsulating blockade of Void Vessels. Scattered throughout the region were talismanic clusters aboard the titanic-sized vessels of the Mystic-World grade known as the Endless Disruption Talismanic Formation, preventing spatial travel, temporal manipulation, and access to the Void.
By uniting each talismanic formation, allowing them to act as an array flag, the blockade was capable of deploying the Endless Disruption Imprisonment Array, a genuine Mystic-Heaven grade array that could halt Supreme Sages from executing their powers toward space, time, or the Void.
They were provided by none other than one of the seven top palaces of the galaxy, the Endless Star Palace. However, they were only provided by, bought, and deployed by the Peerless Primal Pavilion that was jointly led by Chu Xing and Long Shiya.
Unfortunately, due to recent schisms, including their decision to distance themselves from Chu Xing after she chose to side with Su Yi, which was aided by Chu Xing herself who receded all her authority to segregate herself from the palace in the event of a catastrophic outcome that could lead to the condemnation and annihilation of the palace, they were left mostly leaderless.
Long Shiya's situation was dire, but the recent publicly issued statements of the Neo-Dawn Ascendant Emperor's abilities supporting the foundation of his potential act of possession allowed the Peerless Primal Pavilion to have some semblance of Supreme Existence leadership. At its head was the Grand Elder of the Peerless Primal Pavilion, who was only under the two Supreme Sages, Sage Everburn also known as Grand Elder Shao Hai.
He was a stern-looking, average-statured man of great age, with faintly greying hair tied into a tight bun, and a pair of dark yellow eyes. He somberly stood at the helm of a titan-sized Void Vessel, observing the hollow recreation of Worldly Awakening of a True Saint safeguarding the Neo Zenith Tower. On board his Void Vessel was the main Endless Disruption Talismanic Formation that enforced its authority to seal off the region, preventing any escape regardless of this Alchemical Phenomenon.
The Peerless Primal Pavilion wasn't the only pavilion involved, surrounding the Neo Zenith Tower and standing outside its doors with a forceful momentum.
Another titan-sized Void Vessel shaped like two lotuses conjoined together, one black and one white, was recognized as the prominent sixth-ranked Peerless Pavilion of the Utmost Purity Galaxy: the Peerless Earth & Sky Pavilion. At the helm was an elderly woman whose presence exuded maturity and breadth of spirit forged by authority and strength.
She was the Grand Elder of the Peerless Earth & Sky Pavilion, Sage Gao Cui. She rarely went by her title, known as Sage Heartscent. Despite her elderly appearance, those of great age would know her past was littered with struggles, especially her early years as she was a famous courtesan amongst Ascended beings, and then lived as a concubine to three separate men at different times. All of whom died early in their lives out of ambition or the struggle for treasure.
Sage Gao Cui was often regarded as a fabled jinx, her lovers were destined to have bad endings. However, her presence was granted great respect from her subordinates, granting them confidence and safety. Especially since their leader, Sovereign Dual-Lotus, whose father and mother were both Heavenly Saint Alchemists and Supreme Sages, was leading this operation to burrow into the truth.
But Sage Gao Cui had none of that sense of safety. Unease flooded her heart without restraint as she observed the Worldly Awakening of a True Saint surrounding the Neo Zenith Tower, including watching her Pavilion Master invite her parents to break the manifestation. From the beginning, she was hesitant to participate in this operation, but for one reason or another, the Pavilion Master was adamant about getting involved.
She could only silently pray in her heart that things would fall in their favor without any unexpected disasters.
Aboard a Void Vessel, standing at its edge with thick, muscular arms folded against a chest with a prominent set of pectoral muscles that bled through the tight-fitting cloth robes, exuding the presence as if mountains would bounce off contact, was a short-haired, brown-skinned, tawny-eyed middle-aged man. He was known by all within the Holy Void of Fortune blessed enough to have access to knowledge of Supreme Existences as one of the three Pirate Devils of the Bloody Fortune, the Void Pirate organization that operated throughout the Holy Void of Fortune!
To the galactic cluster, he was known as Sovereign Steelguard Devil!
Just his act of breathing disturbed the flow of space, light, and gravity, creating an exuded bearing of a raw physical dominance and thunderous presence. With a pair of thick dark eyebrows and a resting frowning face, he appeared threatening without needing to be angry in the slightest. That said, he was angry. Quite angry.
"How troublesome," he angrily thundered. Within his tawny eyes was the alchemical manifestation that served as a safeguard for the Neo Zenith Tower. These rules of the Utmost Purity Galaxy were stupidly frustrating to deal with. This operation was tacitly allowed by the Zeniths, even his own entry into the Utmost Purity Galaxy was granted when normally it wouldn't be in a thousand years. At least, not his true body.
After all, he was a consolidated Microheaven Envoy, and his strength was amongst the top-tier of his cultivation stage allowing him to operate one of the largest Void Pirate organizations the Holy Void of Fortune had ever known. However, just an entry fee and some loose agreements were enough for them to allow him into the confines of the galaxy.
As for the fear of being acted upon as a wanted figure throughout the galaxy, he would not carelessly enter a greater galaxy's borders without certain oaths sworn by its leadership. The Zeniths had more or less ensured that they wouldn't act against him while he was here acting on the will of an Alchemist, and if he was attacked by someone with a personal vendetta, they would ensure his safety if he was overwhelmed.
Without these assurances, he wouldn't foolishly enter here even if lured by great profits. Fortunately, he was lured here with promises of great profit and those assurances.
"Must you be so impatient, Li Tie?" A voice echoed out, sounding very familiar with Sovereign Steelguard. It belonged to a blonde-haired young man with an earthy brown gourd the size of a human adult strapped on his back. He was standing upon a smaller, personal-sized Void Vessel, slowly gliding in circles without an anchor. He kept the offensive, defensive, and mobility formations and arrays of his vessel constantly active, akin to keeping engines running, a sign of an extremely cautious individual.
Sovereign Steelguard scoffed in frustration at his real name being uttered. Despite that, he didn't act aggressively as one would expect from Bloody Fortune's Pirate Devil. It was clear that he was familiar with this person. And even if he wasn't, he wouldn't take any action either. This person's cultivation base was profoundly superior.
He was Superior Di, the one and only vice-union leader of the Unbroken Extremes Union, a Void Hunter organization that mainly operated at the fringe of the Prosperous Ruin Galaxy's Void Blank Space. It was said that Superior Di had a mysterious connection with the greatest dynasty of the Holy Void of Fortune and its Empress Dowager, the Goddess of Luck and Fortune! She was a top expert throughout the entire Holy Void of Fortune!!
Upon closer inspection, any Supreme Sage could sense that this Superior Di was not here in person, but an Avatar that was cultivated with extensive and exhaustive effort. The lack of a massive Void Vessel and crew was indicative of his solo expedition.
Superior Di smilingly observed Sovereign Steelguard's reaction, teasingly saying: "No need to pout. Sovereign Dual-Lotus has brought her parents to shatter the manifestation. When it's gone, you can direct your anger toward this newly built Neo Zenith Tower."
Elsewhere, a tall, willowy beauty with a stylishly equivalent mixture of black and white long, voluminous, and wavy hair with curtain bangs, the right side was black and the left side was white, was standing upon a milky white lotus as it glided toward the alchemical manifestation. Next to her were her parents, Sovereign Earthmother and Sovereign Skyfather. They carried a total of five other alchemists.
"Are you sure about this, Lian'er? The Neo-Dawn Ascendant Emperor is not simple." Sovereign Earthmother asked cautiously. She had met this Neo-Dawn Ascendant Emperor during the Incinerated Dominion incident, and the man was extraordinary in demeanor and mysteriousness. He felt unfathomable, and while that might be a strong concealment spell in effect, the sensation left a significant impression on her.
Despite the opinionated direction of the galaxy, to the point where his status was relegated to lower than theirs on the hierarchy of the galaxy's Alchemic Dao where no one referred to him as Heaven-Saint Neo- Dawn or the Neo-Dawn Alchemic Saint, this was playing in an uncertain undercurrent of various experts. Sovereign Dual-Lotus, also known by her parents as Hao Lianlian, spoke calmly, lacking any hesitation: "The will of the galaxy has spoken. This fraud is an affront to our galactic history, a great stain that we allowed to integrate into us. How can we not eliminate such a scourge?"
Observing her daughter's steely resolve, Sovereign Earthmother could only silently sigh in her heart while choosing to support her to the end.
Sovereign Skyfather chimed in, "The Zeniths were fooled, but they won't admit it. This is why they've silently allowed others to seek out Lian'er to destroy this safeguard. All evidence suggests that the Neo- Dawn Ascendant Emperor has taken the body of an extraordinarily talented alchemist, inhibiting his body and trying to integrate it into his own. Why else would he go into hiding after the ascension of that body's alchemic Dao?
"It's clear a struggle is unfolding behind the scenes. We don't know who's winning or losing, but alchemists are not to be underestimated. Everything he's done thus far has been to evade an in-depth inspection into his circumstances. Why else would he need to hide his cultivation base? It's likely that when he pushed the body too hard against Sovereign Abhorrent Sky, his concealment spells had fallen against his will, exposing the truth of his circumstance.
"He was rather fortunate that the Zeniths' rules in regards to protecting alchemists made it so that this flaw was largely ignored. But unfortunately for him, the truth could never stay hidden." Sovereign Skyfather's voice was laced with thinly veiled anger. While the Zeniths may consider him an inferior within their galaxy's Alchemic Dao, he held the utmost respect for the Alchemic Dao and often praised how protective the Zeniths' long-standing rules allowed them to cultivate the greatest environment for
alchemists.
Sovereign Earthmother stayed silent. Not too long ago, the pre-discussed details of the Mythical Contract that the Zeniths had signed with the Neo Zenith Tower were exposed. While the exact contents of the contract weren't subject to scrutiny or casual reading, the detail of Wei Wuyin's admission of a mortal that had defied reason and become a Worldly Saint Alchemist was verified as true.
This fact allowed those who slowly gained knowledge of everything else a clearer picture. The Zeniths were tricked and lied to, indirectly of course. While they had lost in the end, their feelings were bound to be extremely complex, especially if the potential that the original owner of that Mystic Star Phase body was currently struggling to free themselves after eking out an unexpected win through enlightenment
against them.
While they didn't speak of it, it was obvious that the Zeniths began to plot ways to acquire that unprecedented genius by freeing him from possession. However, the person in question was absent. No one could locate him.
It was uncertain if he was even in the Utmost Purity Galaxy. But there was no indication that he had left. So he must be here. Somewhere. Hiding while struggling.
The only and likely location was none other than the Blank Dominion! Not only was it the best location, but the Neo Zenith Tower was the Gateway Door to the Blank Dominion! This simultaneously guarded him from divination and made it impossible for the Zeniths to directly invade due to the Mythical Contract's
restrictions!
If not for this, how could Superior Di, Sovereign Steelguard, and Sovereign Dual-Lotus dare act so brazenly otherwise?!
Sovereign Earthmother recalled that paragon-like bearing and the aura of six distinct Laws, and her heart was drowning in doubt. 'What if...what if they're all wrong?' She couldn't reason why, but her intuition made her as uneasy as Sage Heartscent, perhaps even more so.
Recently, Sovereign Oakfather, Sovereign Rainmother, and Sovereign Seafather were all actively contemplating a partnership with the Neo Zenith Tower. They were offered a similar contract, but refused it as they preferred joining their daughter's faction or staying as vagabonds.
The Heavenly Sages of the Seven Towers were on the verge of collapse due to Sovereign Littlefather and Sovereign Darkmother's deaths from an internal dissolution of unity. The chance at legitimacy was great, especially after those tantalizing promises made by the Neo Zenith Tower's representative-Luo Ning. The five alchemists they brought with them were assistants who grasped Alchemic Stars of Transcendent Purity, and they all had exceptional skills in alchemy. Not all of them were Exalted Worldly Saint Alchemists, two were Senior Worldly Saint Alchemists with Alchemic Souls. Those who were Exalted Worldly Saint Alchemists were all True Sages.
Sovereign Dual-Lotus asked, "Are you ready?" They reached the necessary distance to begin the dispersion of the manifestation. After doing so, the Neo Zenith Tower would be exposed.
Sovereign Skyfather instructed the five, who responded with decisive confirmation as their Alchemic
Stars of Transcendent Purity were fully unleashed.
"Wait!"
Erdiul's Note: Lol.