Chapter 801: Flowering and Withering

To all observers, the scene unfolded like a moth drawn to a flame.

The Human Emperor was the sole Sovereign of humanity, the most powerful being apart from the Sword-Wielding Great Emperor. Before him, the distinctions between a Return to Void realm cultivator and a Spirit Nurturing realm cultivator were negligible.

Even as Bai Xiaozhuo incinerated the heart derived from the Divine Realm's laws and consumed his entire God-Melding physique, he gained a power resembling fireworks, far beyond mere sparks. Yet, he could not achieve eternal indestructibility, thus failing to truly ignite divine fire.

There was an insurmountable gap in power between one who had not ascended to godhood and a Sovereign. The outcome of this battle was thus predetermined.

Despite this, Bai Xiaozhuo persisted, his eyes clear and his heart calm, accelerating relentlessly. Enveloped in destiny and the other shore, he tore through the sky, carrying a golden-red sea of fire, traversing space with effortless speed. Even though the Human Emperor's presence in the Imperial Academy was merely a projection of his palace, to Bai Xiaozhuo at that moment, illusion and reality seemed indistinguishable.

In a flash, his aura merged with celestial might, forming a dazzling brilliance. Like a meteor, he descended rapidly from the Nine Sword Heaven, piercing the void to appear directly before the Human Emperor. He joined his hands, palms together, two fingers forming a sword. All power, both from within and around his body, converged into the sword formed by his two fingers. It encompassed the surrounding golden-red flames, destiny, the other shore, and even his life, his time, and his entire being, as he bore down on the Human Emperor.

Billowing heat waves radiated outward, igniting everything in their path. The world distorted, giving the impression that even the palace projection was being consumed by the intense flames. The Heavenly Kings under the Human Emperor looked up, their auras flaring, ready to intervene, but the Human Emperor halted them.

"Interesting!" the Human Emperor spoke calmly, raising his right hand and lightly pointing his index finger at the fiery meteor hurtling towards him. This single gesture seemed unremarkable, devoid of any apparent cultivation power or the manifestation of a vast illusory shadow. However, the instant it connected with Bai Xiaozhuo's two-fingered sword, the heavens and earth roared, unleashing a deafening explosion. It was as if countless stars had exploded simultaneously; the entire world seemed to tremor, and the ensuing shockwaves caused the Imperial Academy to sway as if on the verge of collapse.

Outside, thunder rent the imperial capital, and the elements shifted dramatically. The sky instantly darkened, black clouds churned, and thunder roared, as an indescribable terrifying pressure spread outwards. Yet, at the epicenter of this terrifying power, the Human Emperor's body remained entirely unaffected, showing no discernible change. Only a corner of the Human Emperor's robe gently swayed, and a single strand of hair floated backward as if caught by a faint breeze. That was all.

Bai Xiaozhuo, however, trembled violently, his already indistinct form now gradually dissipating like dandelion seeds in the wind. Yet, his eyes remained strikingly bright. As he gazed at the Human Emperor, now mere inches away, he murmured softly.

Divine flames swirled between the shores of the afterlife. The Destiny Flowers surrounding him instantly bloomed to their fullest, then withered into ash, gathering before Bai Xiaozhuo. The Other Shore Flowers likewise blazed with momentary brilliance before dissipating, their embers returning. Furthermore, the golden-red sea of fire surged and converged from all directions, finally flowing into Bai Xiaozhuo, leaving not a trace outside. With all these elements converging, a wondrous flower, embodying the characteristics of both destiny and the other shore, blossomed before Bai Xiaozhuo. This flower, a sacred divine flame, burned with blinding intensity. Its emergence also drew the Human Emperor's attention.

Immediately afterward, Bai Xiaozhuo gently exhaled. His breath brushed the wondrous flower, causing its petals to scatter. They swirled around the Human Emperor, as if attempting to form a new flower with him at its core. A subtle light flickered in the Human Emperor's eyes, and he spoke calmly.

"Vanish..." As the single word escaped his lips, all the surrounding petals instantly trembled, disintegrated into countless fragments, and ultimately turned to dust. Bai Xiaozhuo, facing him, seemed to have fulfilled his entire mission and closed his eyes. His body completely dissipated into smoke and dust, transforming into countless memory-laden fragments that shattered, vanished, and turned to ash.

As if unwilling to be tainted by the lingering dust, the Human Emperor withdrew his finger. With a slight flick of his sleeve, he dispersed the almost invisible remnants before him, leaving no trace. From the firmament, human voices and ancient sighs echoed from within the crack in the Divine Realm. Then, the celestial fissure began to heal, and everything seemed to conclude.

Bai Xiaozhuo, the former governor of Fenghai County who had followed Crown Prince Ziqing since the era of the Ziqing Upper Kingdom, his history was already buried in the annals of time. Now, his life seemed to have returned to its destined conclusion. From beginning to end, Crown Prince Ziqing never appeared.

The sky outside was no longer dim; the lingering glow of the setting sun bathed the entire capital in golden hues. On Ancient Emperor Star, the Great Emperor gazed at the Imperial Academy, his eyes profound. It was unclear whether he was observing the Human Emperor, Xu Qing, or perhaps... the fissure in the Divine Realm and the unnoticed entity beyond it.

Xu Qing's heart also stirred. Gazing at the fissure in the sky, he recalled scenes from Fenghai County. He had never anticipated encountering Bai Xiaozhuo here before arriving at the imperial capital. "Bai Xiaozhuo was the first. The crow will be the second," Xu Qing murmured to himself.

At that moment, the students of the Imperial Academy remained agitated, unable to calm their minds. Their emotions varied, ranging from excitement to complexity, apprehension, and bewilderment. The Imperial Academy's discourse concluded there.

The Human Emperor slowly resettled onto his dragon throne. The entire palace projection gradually blurred. At that moment, the Emperor's Sword also returned, merging into Xu Qing's body. Furthermore, Bai Xiaozhuo's puppets lost their vitality upon his death and tumbled to the ground.

Witnessing the true conclusion of events, the Head of the Imperial Academy stood in mid-air, a look of profound emotion on his face. He was about to declare the discourse officially over.

However, at that very moment, Xu Qing's mind was suddenly flooded with intense emotional fluctuations from the Shadow. "Master... consume the Time Soul... it's escaping."

Hearing this, Xu Qing instantly looked up, his eyes darkening completely as the power of the Poison Ban erupted, forming divine eyes that perceived everything clearly. The sky was normal, the fissure was normal, and everything in all directions appeared unchanged. Having followed Xu Qing for many years, the Shadow instinctively knew what to do. Thus, in an instant, it merged into Xu Qing's body, converging in his eyes and empowering them like a lens.

Guided by the power of the divine source and the Shadow's cooperation, a sight few could perceive suddenly appeared before Xu Qing's eyes. Though still somewhat indistinct, Xu Qing noticed a wisp of soul merging into the fissure in the celestial canopy, just as it was about to vanish completely. More precisely, it might not have been a soul but a fragment of time, like dust. This wisp was unique; without the Little Shadow's precise lock, Xu Qing would not have perceived it at all. It was precisely the fragment of time Crown Prince Ziqing had taken from Bai Xiaozhuo on that day.

The Human Emperor's final sweep of his sleeve had seemed to disperse mere dust, but now, upon reconsideration, something was amiss. Xu Qing's eyes sharpened abruptly, but he knew this was not the moment to ponder the Human Emperor's actions. Without hesitation, Xu Qing's divine form erupted, transforming into over 1.3 million soul threads that instantly shot towards the sky.

"Come back to me!" Xu Qing's cold voice rang out. The soul threads surged skyward, reaching the edge of the fissure in an instant, swiftly enveloping the wisp of time-soul. The Little Shadow, not to be outdone, rapidly expanded and spread. If it had been Bai Xiaozhuo himself, the Little Shadow would have desired to consume him but dared not approach, knowing it was too powerful to bite through. This intense craving had tormented it, causing it to stare incessantly from the beginning, its internal impulse growing stronger. It now clearly perceived that this wisp of time-soul, unlike Bai Xiaozhuo's prior terrifying power, presented no danger. As for its taste, the Shadow perceived it to be even more fragrant than before, as if it had undergone intense refinement, shedding all impurities to become a primordial essence. This perfectly aligned with the saying: "Heaven and earth are the furnace; all beings are the charcoal." Through such forging, one returns to simplicity. This primordial essence could reincarnate as a human or, under specific circumstances, as a born deity.

Therefore, at this moment, the Little Shadow went wild with excitement. Its drooling sound echoed all around. Simultaneously with Xu Qing's million soul threads, it instantly spread across the celestial canopy, fiercely seizing that wisp of primordial time-soul.

This scene astonished the onlookers at the Imperial Academy and various factions who witnessed it. From within the dissipating palace projection, the Human Emperor's gaze also shifted towards the scene. At that moment, under Xu Qing's control, the million soul threads swiftly moved across the sky, weaving themselves into a vast cage. This cage sealed off all directions. The Little Shadow was even more desperate, transforming into a shadow and clinging to the Divine Realm's fissure at all costs. It gathered all traces, blocking the escape route with its own form to prevent its "food" from fleeing.

Once these actions were complete, a cold glint appeared in Xu Qing's eyes. He raised his right hand and clenched it fiercely towards the sky. Instantly, the soul thread cage abruptly contracted, shrinking from its vast size to a palm-sized black orb in the blink of an eye, which then shot straight into Xu Qing's hand.

Xu Qing seized it without a glance, allowing the soul no opportunity to project any consciousness. He then clenched his hand tightly once more. With a resounding boom, the million soul threads, now condensed into a sphere, began to frantically devour the time-soul trapped within. The Little Shadow, anxious, quickly joined in, taking a few bites, but its eating speed was clearly no match for the soul threads. In a blink, the time-soul completely dissipated, ceasing to exist.

The nourishment from the primordial essence contained within was astonishing. Xu Qing distinctly felt his soul threads splitting and transforming under its influence, increasing to 1.4 million, then 1.6 million, and finally 1.8 million. The next instant, as the soul orb exploded, two million soul threads unfurled, covering the sky in a truly breathtaking display. Xu Qing stood beneath the two million threads, his hair and robes fluttering, resembling a god or a demon, his aura powerful enough to engulf mountains and rivers.

Bai Xiaozhuo had been annihilated, body and spirit. The Human Emperor cast a glance at Xu Qing, and then the palace projection completely dissipated. Simultaneously, within the Stargazing Tower in the Imperial Capital, the Imperial Preceptor, who had been observing the Imperial Academy, closed his eyes.