The Lord of the Xia’s Intervention

“Senior Red Snow, this Pure Yang True Immortal is exceptionally skilled in the Grand Dao of Qiankun. I must ask the seven of you for your help!” Ji Ning’s Primaltwin sent out a frantic plea for aid. The seven Empyrean Gods, including Red Snow, who knew Ji Ning was in danger, had long since arrived in the aquatic palace from their own world. They hadn’t expected Ji Ning to need their promise so soon after receiving it.

He had previously shot seven arrows to buy some time, simultaneously channeling Primal energy to activate his Greater Teleportation Dao-tal. The time he bought had been sufficient, but the Greater Teleportation had still failed.

There were countless Daos in heaven and earth. Who would have thought he’d run into someone who had completely mastered the Grand Dao of Qiankun? In the presence of such an existence, even Greater Teleportation was useless.

“Junior apprentice-brother.” Yu Wei looked at Ji Ning, her face filled with anxiety. The Diancai Immortal and the Tonghe Celestial Immortal were also frantic with worry, but they were helpless.

“Die.” Fu Hua True Immortal’s face was twisted in a savage snarl, his eyes blazing with killing intent.

And then—

“Ji Ning, you’re saved.” The yellow-furred bear’s voice suddenly rang out in Ji Ning’s mind.

“Boom~~”

A rift in space tore open in the void between Fu Hua True Immortal and Ji Ning. A black passageway frantically ripped through the fabric of reality, and a man in a black imperial robe stepped out, walking through it.

“Lord of the Xia?”

“Your Majesty?”

The Diancai Immortal, Yu Wei, and the Tonghe Celestial Immortal all revealed expressions of excitement and joy.

The one who had stepped through the black passageway was none other than the black-robed Lord of the Xia. As he emerged, he pointed a finger, and a streak of golden light flew out, transforming into a golden dragon that sent the black and white grand seal flying. He cast an icy glare at the maddened Fu Hua True Immortal in the distance. “Fu Hua, how dare you act so recklessly in my Grand Xia!”

Ji Ning let out a breath of relief.

“My apologies for disturbing you seven, seniors.” In the aquatic palace, the black-robed Ji Ning was bowing in apology.

The yellow-furred bear beside him said with a smile, “The Lord of the Xia has arrived, so there’s no need for the seven of you to act.”

“Does this count as fulfilling the promise?” the seductive Snow Scorpion Empyrean God asked with a laugh.

“No, of course not,” Ji Ning said hurriedly.

Seeing Ji Ning like this, the seven Empyrean Gods all burst into laughter.

“Haha…”

“We wouldn’t quibble with you over that.”

Red Snow Empyrean God’s expression soon turned serious. “But Ji Ning, I must warn you. Previously, in that ancient ruin world, your master, Patriarch Subhuti, could act without many concerns. But now we are within the Three Realms… the enemy is powerful, and Patriarch Subhuti has many constraints. Even if he were to act, he might not be able to save you.”

“I understand.” Ji Ning nodded. He knew well that his master was treading on thin ice during this great tribulation.

“Besides, your master can’t always be using ‘One Dream, Three Realms’. He may not even know when you are in danger,” Red Snow Empyrean God said.

Ji Ning nodded again.

That was true.

His master hadn’t given him a communication talisman. If he found himself in danger, there was no way to notify him.

“We promised to help you once, but that is all,” Red Snow Empyrean God said. “Your master is a distant source of help for a nearby fire. Look, you haven’t been back long and you’ve already run into danger. You should understand… during the tribulation, you must be even more cautious.”

Ji Ning nodded. “I survived a karmic hellfire ordeal and returned. I’ve definitely caught the attention of the Seamless Gate; they’ve already marked me as a major enemy. I’ve thought it through. Since I can’t hide my sharp edges, I’ll wield them openly. I’ll let more experts notice me, make them feel I’m worth helping!”

“Although the Seamless Gate acts arrogantly, they’ve always stayed in the shadows. It shows they are also afraid,” Ji Ning said with a smile. “My master and the other powers here are also very numerous. As long as I rally enough allies, I’ll be fine.”

“Finally using your head a bit,” Red Snow Empyrean God said with a chuckle. “If you have enough allies, you might not even need the seven of us to act; you could survive the tribulation on your own.”

…

Outside.

As soon as the black-robed Lord of the Xia appeared, Fu Hua True Immortal grew even more enraged. “Xiamang, you would block me? Make an enemy of me?”

“It seems you’ve already sided with the Seamless Gate. Since we are now on opposite sides, we have been enemies for a long time,” the black-robed Lord of the Xia said calmly. “I think it’s best you quickly scram out of my Grand Xia.” Although he held an absolute advantage in power, the Lord of the Xia knew full well that Fu Hua was an expert in the Grand Dao of Qiankun and could flee with terrifying ease.

Fu Hua True Immortal took a deep breath. He didn’t want to make an enemy of the Lord of the Xia either. The Lord of the Xia had an illustrious background, possessed several powerful Innate spirit-treasures, and was famous throughout the world. Earlier, Fu Hua had sealed off the space, but the Lord of the Xia had still torn it open. That was a transmission method similar to the ‘World-Sealing Pagoda’, able to ignore spatial barriers and forcibly tear its way through. This was one of the Lord of the Xia’s innate spirit-treasures, the ‘One Thought, One Heart Lamp’.

“I only need to kill this youth,” Fu Hua True Immortal said coldly. “I can spare the other three!”

The Lord of the Xia glanced at him. “Scram out of my Grand Xia right now.”

Ridiculous. He had come precisely to rescue Ji Ning.

“You—” Fu Hua True Immortal was furious. “Xiamang, let me see just how strong a descendant of the ancient imperial clan truly is!” Instantly, nine golden chains appeared around him. One end of the chains seemed to penetrate into the void itself, while the other end frantically snaked toward the black-robed Lord of the Xia.

This was his true combat method—far quieter, more insidious, and more formidable.

As for the black and white grand seal? Flying treasures were naturally faster than movement techniques, and the grand seal was far more ferocious. He had only used it to forcibly break the protective formations and crush Ji Ning and his group.

“Showing off these tricks in front of me?” The black-robed Lord of the Xia gave a cold laugh. A massive, pure-white lotus flower bloomed beneath his feet. Layers of the lotus radiated out in all directions, completely stabilizing the surrounding void and blocking the nine golden chains that had been seeking out every opening.

“Perish.”

The Lord of the Xia said softly.

Earlier, he had only manifested a single streak of golden light. Now, three streaks of golden light appeared. They shot through the air, transforming into three coiling, sinuous golden dragons. The auras of the three dragons were vastly different. One was wild and uninhibited, another was gloomy and chilling, and the third seemed to carry a benevolent intent, appearing utterly harmless.

These three golden dragons, each with a distinct aura, caused the distant Fu Hua True Immortal to fly into a rage.

“Life and death, illusion and reality, all are but vanity!”

Fu Hua True Immortal said coldly.

The nine golden chains around him began to dance in the air. The surrounding void undulated like the surface of water.

“Sssss~~” As the three golden dragons flew into the area, they began to slow down considerably.

“Hmph.”

The distant Lord of the Xia frowned. He flipped his hand, producing a small black bell. As soon as the bell appeared, it rang out—Ding!—once.

“Pfft.” Fu Hua True Immortal immediately spat out a mouthful of blood. Gnashing his teeth, he said, “Fine, fine, fine, Xiamang. Since you insist on protecting this brat, then we are irreconcilable enemies!”

“You?” The Lord of the Xia sneered, his contempt evident.

“Just you wait. That brat will die for certain. He will die for sure!” Fu Hua True Immortal’s eyes were filled with madness.

Whoosh.

Fu Hua True Immortal immediately used an escape technique. Trying to stop someone who had fully comprehended the Grand Dao of Qiankun was exceedingly difficult.

Even the Lord of the Xia could only watch as his enemy fled.

“Thank you, Your Majesty.” The Tonghe Celestial Immortal, the Diancai Immortal, Yu Wei, and Ji Ning all flew over, expressing their gratitude.

The Lord of the Xia turned and glanced at the four of them. “It’s fine now. I sensed the battle here through my treasure and detected Fu Hua’s appearance. I knew things were about to go bad. I tried to use Greater Teleportation to come here, but that Fu Hua had already sealed off this region’s space, making it impossible. I had to forcibly tear through space to get here. I’m lucky I arrived in time. Had I been even a single step slower…”

Ji Ning and the others understood now. This was why the Lord of the Xia had only arrived in the final, most dangerous moment. Ji Ning had already been prepared to ask the seven Empyrean Gods for help.

Thankfully.

Thankfully, he hadn’t used up that promise.

“Ji Ning, you must be careful,” the Lord of the Xia said. “I don’t know why Fu Hua True Immortal wants you dead so badly, but I suspect that among the Celestial Immortals you killed, there was someone extremely close to him. That’s the only way to explain why a normally elegant and refined True Immortal like Fu Hua has become so unhinged. A Pure Yang True Immortal who has fully mastered the Grand Dao of Qiankun, bent on killing you—that is a very dangerous thing.”

“I understand.” Ji Ning’s expression turned serious.

“But compared to what’s coming, this danger is nothing,” the Lord of the Xia said. “The storms ahead will only grow fiercer. This is my personal talisman. Whenever you encounter danger, crush it immediately. As long as your enemy isn’t a True God or a Daofather, I am confident I can save you.”

The Lord of the Xia was slightly weaker than Lu Dongbin.

However, he possessed many life-saving items and could even hold his own against a True God or Daofather for a short time.

“Thank you, Your Majesty.” Ji Ning accepted the talisman.

“Prepare yourself well.” The Lord of the Xia looked up at the sky. “After this probing attack, I’m afraid a war that will engulf the entire Grand Xia is about to begin. As long as you are in the Grand Xia, there is no escaping it.” After speaking, the Lord of the Xia took a single step and vanished into the void.

Ji Ning looked at the talisman in his hand and revealed a faint smile.

Indeed.

Earlier, when he had dominated the nine Celestial Immortals of the Shaoyin clan, it had been impressive enough. But in the eyes of the Lord of the Xia and Daofather Crimsonbright, who had seen everything, he was merely a fairly talented genius of the Three Realms. But now, having revealed his true potential—a level of monstrous genius rarely seen even in the primordial era, even among those at the peak of the Void stage—his enemies would naturally become more wary of him. But the Lord of the Xia and Daofather Crimsonbright would also place far more importance on him.

And this talisman… Especially what the Lord of the Xia had said: ‘As long as your enemy isn’t a True God or a Daofather, I am confident I can save you.’ This had already made his stance clear. One had to realize that even Patriarch Subhuti had never said such a thing.

…

The Fifth World.

Within a towering, majestic hall, the leader of the Seamless Gate, the master of the Bloodcloud Tower, and the master of the Ten Thousand Demons Cave were all present.

“Qinghu!”

With an enraged roar, Fu Hua True Immortal burst in.

“Fu Hua.” The green-robed woman spoke.

“Qinghu, why didn’t you act? So close, it was so close! I could have saved Zicao!” Fu Hua True Immortal was furious.

The green-robed woman shook her head. “Zicao crushed the talismans she gave to you and to me at the same time. You have comprehended the Grand Dao of Qiankun; I have not. Even if I had rushed over, I would have been slower than you!”

Fu Hua True Immortal was stunned.

Yes.

He had simply been too furious to think straight.

“I will kill that brat.” Fu Hua True Immortal’s eyes gleamed with a terrifying red light as he howled, “I want him dead!”