Chapter 1344: The Purple Radiance of the Other Shore

Xing Mingzi was dead, his body utterly destroyed, just like the Star Guards who had fallen to Yun Che’s sword. In fact, his demise was even more gruesome than most of the Star Guards.

However, his death was a concept entirely different from the deaths of the Star Guards; it was an event momentous enough to shake the entire Eastern Divine Region.

This was because Xing Mingzi was a genuine Divine Master!

Divine Masters are the highest-level practitioners in the Primal Chaos Dimension. In a world devoid of True Gods, they are supreme deities, beings crowned with the title "Rulers of Heaven and Earth."

Even in a powerful realm like the Star God Realm, apart from its unique Star God legacy, there were only thirty-seven Divine Masters in this generation, with a new one appearing on average only once every thousand years.

In higher star realms, one appeared on average only every ten thousand years, or even tens of thousands of years.

The power of a Divine Master ensures they are the most difficult beings to destroy in this world; their ultimate fate is almost always to die of old age. Although Xing Mingzi was the last of the thirty-seven elders of the Star God Realm, he was a true Divine Master. His death was equivalent to the demise of a higher realm king, enough to alarm every land and every corner of the Eastern Divine Region.

Yet, he did not die at the hands of another king realm or another Divine Master; he was buried by Yun Che, a junior who had only just become a Divine Sovereign and was less than thirty years old.

And this happened within his own Star God Realm, surrounded by numerous Star Guards...

Without a doubt, if this news were to spread, not a single person would believe it, not even if the Star God Emperor himself announced it.

Yet, this utterly preposterous event was unfolding vividly and gruesomely before their very eyes.

"My King... this..." The Star God Grand Elder looked at the Star God Emperor, but the latter showed no reaction to his words.

From now on, there would only be thirty-six Star God Elders instead of thirty-seven.

They were performing a blood sacrifice ritual. The ritual had already begun, and to ensure the highest success rate, no distractions were permitted during the entire process...

But now, this ritual — incredibly important to the Star God Emperor and, in their estimation, likely connected to the future of the Star God Realm — seemed to have been completely forgotten by all of them.

Their eyes and minds were entirely consumed by the blood-soaked figure.

The scattered flames continued to burn fiercely, quickly consuming all of Xing Mingzi's flesh and blood, leaving not even a speck of ash. Meanwhile, the flames on Yun Che's body and sword slowly extinguished. The Golden Crow Phantasm he had just unleashed also dispersed in the air. The Heaven Smiting Sword heavily struck the ground, and his body slumped to his knees, head bowed... motionless.

A gentle breeze swept through, carrying away most of the blood and murderous aura from the air. The terrifying pressure was gone, leaving only a chilling fear that might linger for a lifetime, causing all the Star Guards to shiver uncontrollably.

"He... he's dead?"

Another gentle breeze blew, further dissipating the murderous aura and blood. Yun Che remained motionless. His right arm was shattered, and his entire body was wounded, yet there was no pool of blood beneath him... perhaps all his blood had already drained.

"Dead... he's dead!!" A cry rang out, trembling with excitement.

However, facing Yun Che, who was motionless, his aura dispersed, and very likely dead, none of the Star Guards dared to step forward for a long time.

"Why aren't you finishing him off immediately!" Star God Tian Yuan said in a deep voice, looking at the Star Guards who were clearly terrified.

In any other circumstance, he would have been utterly disappointed and deeply ashamed of such pathetic Star Guards. But at this moment, he felt no anger, because even he, even the Star God Emperor, was overcome with uncontrollable fear, let alone the Star Guards.

He was thankful once again, incredibly, overwhelmingly thankful, that Yun Che, in his youthful impulsiveness, had foolishly sought death for Jasmine. Otherwise... otherwise... if Yun Che had shown even a little more restraint, the Star God Realm would have faced a truly terrifying catastrophe in the not-too-distant future.

As he thought this and felt such relief, so too did the Star God Emperor and the other Star Gods.

At Star God Tian Yuan's command, silence lingered for a few more breaths. Then, the twelve Star Guards at the very front rose simultaneously and charged towards Yun Che, their profound light flaring to its maximum intensity in the shortest time possible.

Facing a "dead man" who was motionless and whose aura had completely dissipated, all twelve of these Star Guards unleashed their full power, holding nothing back.

They weren't just frightened out of their wits!

Yun Che remained motionless, finally seeming to erase the heavy fear and dread from the hearts of the Star Guards... But just as the power of the twelve Star Guards was about to reach Yun Che, his long-bowed, silent head suddenly lifted.

His gaze, as substantial as fresh blood, pierced deeply into the eyes of the twelve Star Guards. In an instant, the twelve Star Guards, already like startled birds, were completely terrified. The Divine Sovereign power that had been nearing Yun Che didn't press down; instead, it instinctively retreated in terror... a completely subconscious withdrawal.

Yun Che did not rise. He swung his left arm, unleashing Heavenly Wolf Howl.

This sword strike carried no flames, as both his Golden Crow divine blood and Phoenix divine blood had burned out. Yet, its might and momentum remained extraordinarily formidable, shattering the chaotic power of the twelve terrified Star Guards. The lingering aftershocks swept over them, sending them flying far away.

The Star Guards in the rear let out a collective howl, as if witnessing a sleeping demon god being awakened. Almost half of them retreated in panic, their legs trembling.

The Heaven Smiting Sword struck the ground again, and Yun Che also heavily knelt, becoming motionless once more. The twelve Star Guards who had been blasted away slowly got up, trembling. Only after recovering from their shock did they realize... their bodies were intact, their Star God armor undamaged; they had suffered no injuries at all!

The gruesome deaths of other Star Guards, including the Star Guard captains Xing Ling and Xing Lou, were vivid in their memories. Yet, under the power of Yun Che's sword, they were completely unharmed. After the initial fear, what surged through them was an ecstatic relief at having narrowly escaped death, and much of their dread instantly dissipated.

"He's finished... he's done for!" A Star Guard in the center shouted excitedly, "Go... let's go!"

Yun Che's condition, coupled with the safety of the twelve Star Guards and their shouts, undoubtedly shocked all the remaining Star Guards, drastically reducing their fear. At a single command, a large contingent of Star Guards pressed forward, eager to personally slay Yun Che and avenge their past grievances and humiliations.

As if sensing their collective charge, Yun Che, still kneeling, stirred again. This time, he did not stand up; only the arm holding his sword slowly lifted. It seemed his remaining strength barely allowed him to wield the Heaven Smiting Sword. His movements were incredibly slow. Only when a large group of Star Guards approached within a hundred zhang did he raise his arm high, pointing the sword towards the sky.

CRACK!!

A startling clap of thunder exploded from a clear sky. The sheer shock of this lightning almost caused the Star Guards to fall to the ground. Amidst the earth-shattering peal, a bolt of deep purple lightning, originating from an unknown place, struck the sword in Yun Che's hand. It then flowed down the sword and enveloped Yun Che's entire body, crackling and hissing violently.

The lightning, merely covering Yun Che's body and sword, strangely illuminated the entire world with a brilliant purple light.

This sudden anomaly instantly caused unease in the nearby Star Guards, and their movements abruptly halted. In their wide-eyed gaze, the Heaven Smiting Sword, previously pointed at the sky, slowly descended. Its movements were incredibly slow, every bit of its trajectory perfectly clear.

The moment the sword touched the ground, a vast purple light curtain suddenly unfurled before their eyes. This curtain surged forward at a speed that left them no time to react, engulfing them completely. The sound of thunder belatedly boomed in their ears.

As if a Thunder God had descended, purple light filled the sky, and a towering column of purple light shot upwards, piercing through space and the firmament, extending towards unknown and distant star realms.

A massive lightning domain exploded with Yun Che's body as its center, spreading out into a boiling sea of lightning. Endless bolts of heavenly tribulation lightning roared, devouring and tearing everything apart, mercilessly engulfing large numbers of Star Guards who had charged forward with all their might...

The air crackled and ripped.

The Star God City seemed to be obliterated by a heavenly tribulation, with thunder shaking the heavens. Every wisp of lightning, every bolt of light within it, was genuine power of the Heavenly Dao. Within the boiling sea of lightning, space was utterly warped, the ground shattered layer by layer, and the Star Guards caught within were stripped of their profound protection, their Star God armor torn apart, their internal organs ripped, and then shredded into countless increasingly fragmented pieces...

And whether it was the wailing of the earth and space or the anguished screams of the Star Guards' dying souls, all were completely drowned out by the thunder.

"This... this is..."

"Heavenly Tribulation Lightning!!"

Inside the barrier, the eyes of the Divine Masters reflected the pervasive purple light, their souls nearly collapsing from fright.

Those who had witnessed the Conferred God Battle would never forget the astonishing sea of lightning that unfurled on the Conferred God Stage when the Nine-Level Heavenly Lightning descended. And the sea of lightning before them clearly resembled that scene... as if Yun Che, in his mortal body, had directly summoned a heavenly lightning tribulation!

"He can... completely control the lightning of the Heavenly Dao," Star God Tian Yuan's voice was even more shaky than before.

Heavenly Tribulation Thunder Emperor Formation... Yun Che had integrated the Heavenly Tribulation Lightning into a destructive formation derived from the Yun Family's Purple Cloud Arts forbidden move, "Underworld Prison Thunder Emperor Formation." This fusion had only truly been completed just a few days prior, in the Samsara Forbidden Land.

These Star Guards were the first beings fortunate enough to be buried within this Heavenly Dao lightning formation.

At the center of the lightning sea, the Heaven Smiting Sword slipped weakly from Yun Che's grasp, falling heavily to the ground. Yun Che, who had been kneeling for a long time, slowly tilted and collapsed onto the cold earth.

The lightning continued to roar, and the sea of lightning still churned, but Yun Che remained motionless, his last vestiges of aura dissipating silently like faint smoke and mist.

After an unknown duration, as the spatial tremors ceased, the terrifying sea of lightning finally subsided, and the purple light that had permeated the sky quickly faded.

Hiss... rip...

Residual lightning continued to crackle and hiss, but apart from its lingering hum, not a single sound could be heard in the entire world... not even the faintest breath or heartbeat.

Within the vast lightning domain, besides the remaining lightning, not a single living being or corpse was visible... not even a fragment. Even the ground, paved with profound stones and reinforced by profound formations, had sunk three feet deep.

Eight hundred Star Guards, vanished without a trace, not a single hair remaining.

Far in the back, the remaining Star Guards stood dazed, as if all their souls had been completely drawn out of them.

Of the three thousand Star Guards, only half remained. The Star God Elder who had stayed behind was also annihilated, without a trace of his body.

This was a nightmare the Star God Realm would never, ever forget.