Chapter 3077 - A Blood Debt

Six Heavenly Sovereigns shot through the air, doing their utmost to escape the collapsing hidden realm.

A ferocious blue and gold bird appeared out of nowhere, its wings blotting out the sun. It swiftly carried the remaining Sovereign Corpses away.

A similarly enormous hand appeared just as suddenly, then wrapped around the black seal’s power, ruthlessly suppressing it.

A middle-aged Daoist with a willowy beard and an otherworldly air appeared out of nowhere beside Qing Shi. He stretched out his hand, and the black seal withdrew its power and landed gently in his hand.

The giant hand covering the firmament faded away. The chaotic, collapsing landscape and churning Fate Tribulation Light both sank into an unnatural stillness.

Someone had just suppressed everything that had happened here. All that movement and chaos vanished into nothingness! It all happened in the blink of an eye, so quick that it seemed unbelievable.

The six Heavenly Sovereigns came to a halt beneath the distant skies, bewildered looks on their faces.

Elsewhere, that enormous bird lowered its wings, then took on the form of a beautiful, golden-eyed woman in a feather coat. Colorful light flowed over her entire body, shielding the three Sovereign Corpses.

Heavenly Sovereign Qingyi and the River Ancestors didn’t relax. On the contrary, their expressions were increasingly solemn.

Far, far too much had happened at once.

The woman in the feather coat hadn’t appeared prior to this. She’d arrived out of nowhere to save the Sovereign Corpses at a critical juncture.

They hadn’t seen the middle-aged Daoist before, either, and he was far more intimidating. He’d suppress the collapsing landscape, quelling the chaos and upheaval all on his own. They couldn’t even begin to imagine how capable he must be.

Su Yi’s eyes narrowed. The black seal was a treasure beyond the limits of a Heavenly Sovereign, and the middle-aged Daoist was obviously an expert far beyond a Heavenly Sovereign. He had to have risen above Eternity a long time ago.

In other words, he was surely a terrifying expert of the Far Shore!

“Your Excellency!?” Qing Shi’s expression shifted dramatically.

The middle-aged Daoist shouted, “Wastrel! If I hadn’t come in time, you’d have caused a disaster!”

He drew his fingers through the air, and Qing Shi’s body exploded into a rain of light.

A yellowed talisman floated into the middle-aged Daoist’s palm.

After seeing this, Su Yi naturally understood. Qing Shi was manifested from a talisman, too? How astonishing. After all, he was the leader of their group, the man who orchestrated this entire ambush and set that terrifying killing formation.

He behaved no differently from a true living person, and Heavenly Sovereign E even called him ‘Daoist Brother.’ Who could have imagined that he was the product of a talisman all along?

It wasn’t just Su Yi. Everyone who saw this was similarly stunned, their hearts churning with shock. What kind of talisman is that? How could it have such wondrous applications?

Silence descended over the area.

The middle-aged Daoist put away the yellowed talisman, then gazed into the dome of heaven as if to confirm something. A moment later, he visibly relaxed.

A moment later, he looked at the woman in the feather coat. “Are you one of Sovereign Venerate Yi’s followers or disciples?”

The woman in the feather coat blinked in surprise, then clasped her fist. “Greetings, Senior. This junior is called Hong Ling. Sovereign Venerate Yi is indeed the founder of my faction!”

The middle-aged man subtly inclined his head. “A deep positive karmic tie exists between Sovereign Venerate Yi and one of our founders. I won’t cause trouble for you. You can leave.”

The woman in the feather coat hesitated. “These three Sovereign Corpses were members of the Primordial Divine Court in life. Might this junior take them with her?”

“As I’m sure you know, they’ve sustained their strange, deathless existence thanks to the Sea of Fate," said the middle-aged man. "The moment they leave these waters, they’ll dry up as surely as water without a source or trees without roots. They’ll inevitably rot, then turn to ash.”

The woman said softly, “I won’t lie to you, Senior. I came here with the Edict of Karmic Stillness, one of the Nine Edicts of Heaven’s Will. It was given to me by our founder, and with it, I can safely take the three of them away.”

“The Edict of Karmic Stillness?” The middle-aged Daoist’s gaze grew strange. “Does that mean your founder didn’t die back then after all?”

The woman in the feather coat nodded. “He’s still alive.”

Inwardly, Su Yi lost his cool. Sovereign Venerate Yi! The one they called the Sovereign Among Sovereigns, and the founder of Primordial Divine Court! The greatest legend of the early days of the Primordial Era!

It was Heavenly Sovereign Yi who led the experts of the Primordial Divine Court into battle against True Progenitor Shi Yin and the Chaos Fiends.

Even True Progenitor Shi Yin sighed at the mention of his name. Even he had no choice but to acknowledge his old enemy’s strength.

Who could have imagined that the Sovereign of Sovereigns was still alive, even now, countless years later?

The Edict of Karmic Stillness drew his attention, too.

It wasn’t just Su Yi; those who knew the secrets of the early days of the Primordial Era reacted similarly. All of them were shocked to learn that Sovereign Venerate Yi was still alive.

“Extraordinary. No wonder our founder admired him. He really is blessed with extraordinary good fortune,” said the middle-aged Daoist. “In that case, go ahead and take them with you.”

The woman in the feather coat visibly sighed in relief. “Thank you so much, Senior!”

Only then did she lead the three Sovereign Corpses away.

In the last moments before she left, the woman glanced at Su Yi. Her gaze was inscrutable, a mix of pity, lamentation, and bitterness.

Su Yi instantly realized that this woman from the Primordial Divine Court had likely been targeting him earlier, but the appearance of the middle-aged Daoist meant she had no choice but to give up. Thus, she’d chosen to retreat.

“If you’re unwilling to accept this, you’re welcome to stay behind,” said Su Yi. “I promise you an opportunity to submit.”

Everyone was flabbergasted. This offer had come seemingly out of nowhere.

The woman in the feather coat frowned, then laughed coldly. “With that senior here, your fate is sealed, yet here you are, still bold enough to bark like a mad dog.”

With that, she shot off.

Su Yi couldn’t help but find this a pity; he felt as if he’d just watched the Karmic Stillness Edict slip through his fingers.

The middle-aged Daoist just laughed in response to this little interlude. He didn’t take it to heart in the slightest.

Surprisingly, he still wasn’t paying any attention to Su Yi. Instead, he fixed his gaze on the six Heavenly Sovereigns.

“I’ve really got to thank you all for ‘inviting’ Fellow Daoist Su into the Sea of Fate,” the middle-aged Daoist said warmly. “I’ve prepared a modest gift for each of you as a token of my appreciation.”

He waved his sleeve through the air, and dozens of treasures whooshed through the air, then floated before the Heavenly Sovereigns. All of them glowed with resplendent, multi-colored light.

These were all treasures fit for a Heavenly Sovereign. All of them emanated shocking energy fluctuations, and all of them were eye-catching.

The six Heavenly Sovereigns were unwittingly stunned. Their eyes widened.

Given their perception and breadth of experience, it was immediately obvious to them that all of these treasures were rare and top quality. All were forged from fragments of Eternal Thrones, and all of them had wondrous applications!

Su Yi’s eyebrows rose. We’ve yet to even determine a victor, yet here he is, already handing out rewards?

“All of these are treasures lost to the Sea of Fate during the early Primordial Era. Do any of them catch your fancy?” the middle-aged Daoist said softly.

The six Heavenly Sovereigns all spoke at once, each expressing their gratitude. There was no disguising the surprise or delight on their faces.

“Put them away, then,” said the middle-aged Daoist. “Next, I’d like to converse with the reincarnation of the Big Boss of Sword Sovereign City. If you have no other business here, you’re welcome to go now.”

From beginning to end, he spoke as calmly as if he were commenting on the weather, but his every word and gesture had the bearing of a ruler.

No matter how gentle his words were, they were full of incontrovertible force. None could defy him!

The six Heavenly Sovereigns exchanged glances, then agreed, but in truth, they were deeply unwilling to accept this.

They’d paid such a heavy price, only to be forced to give up their prey in the end. Who’d willingly accept this?

But they had no choice but to agree. The middle-aged Daoist’s strength was unfathomable. He was obviously a powerful expert of the Far Shore of Destiny!

Fortunately, they weren’t leaving empty-handed. They’d at least received some treasures in compensation.

It was just a pity that they couldn’t stick around to watch Su Yi die...

But just as they were about to leave, Su Yi said suddenly, “Wait up. Don’t you want to see how I deal with this old charlatan?”

The six Heavenly Sovereigns couldn’t help but find this absurd. He’s seriously this aggressive even at a time like this? Don’t tell me he really doesn’t know the meaning of the word death?

The middle-aged Daoist just laughed and said nothing. From beginning to end, he remained perfectly calm, but that only made him all the more inscrutable. No one dared to underestimate him.

In the end, the six Heavenly Sovereigns still chose to leave.

When the snipe and the clam fought, it was the fisherman who benefited, but... it took a certain amount of strength to play “fisherman.”

The six Heavenly Sovereigns knew better than to think they could seize this opportunity to loot a burning house. Better to leave for now and watch tigers fight from the safety of a distant mountain.

Su Yi seemed to see right through them. He laughed derisively. “You’re lofty Heavenly Sovereigns, and there are even six of you, but not one of you has enough spine to stick around?”

He made no attempt to hide his derision, but the Heavenly Sovereigns just disregarded him and left.

This was no time for empty posturing. Preserving their lives came first.

Now, Su Yi, his companions, and the mysterious middle-aged Daoist were the only ones left in this devastated, withered hidden realm.

The atmosphere was stifled and oppressive.

In the end, the middle-aged Daoist looked at Su Yi, then said slowly, “Once, a long, long time ago, Qing Shi was my servant boy. Later, he developed enough strength to oversee things on his own. That’s why I arranged for him to preside over the Lower Court of Three Purities Temple.

“Unfortunately... he’s dead. The people of Sword Sovereign City killed him. Not one member of the Lower Court survived. I can’t let a blood debt like that go unavenged, now can I?”

As his calm voice resounded throughout the surrounding area, heart-palpitating, formless pressure filled every last inch of the sky.

Qing Shi and the others died a long time ago? Hua Qingyi and the others were stunned. Were they really just talismans this entire time?