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“Someone killed the Three Pure Ones?!”

The Three Pure Ones were the highest entities in the Celestial Realm, even overshadowing the Jade Emperor himself. They were more symbolic figures rather than actual beings, and due to their lofty status, people wouldn’t serve them directly; they’d study their ideologies. I always thought the Celestial Realm was led by the Jade Emperor and the Three Pure Ones.

But they got murdered?!

I was so shocked I responded with disbelief, “You mean the Primordial Heaven Master, Taishang Laojun, and Spirit Treasure Heaven Master were all wiped out by the Queen Mother of the West?! “

“Yes.”

“That’s impossible! How could…”

I wasn’t the only one shocked; the Fire Dragon Incarnate also looked pale as he spoke up, “Are you sure? This sounds too unbelievable.”

Heavenly Mysterious Woman sighed and added, “I didn’t figure it out long ago—just a fortunate coincidence.”

“A coincidence?”

She continued, “You must remember, Fire Dragon Incarnate, the day when Xiang Yu with his twelve powers of the constellations died and ascended to the Celestial Realm.”

Fire Dragon Incarnate nodded subtly, “That was a significant event. He was so powerful he even ripped apart the messenger of the underworld with his bare hands, rejecting death itself.”

As I listened, I couldn’t help but feel absurd. How on earth did Liu Bang manage to kill such a monster?

“No one knew what Xiang Yu’s intentions were when he came to the Celestial Realm. So I thought a great crisis was approaching and went to report it to the Jade Emperor and the Three Pure Ones. It was such an urgent matter that I skipped informing the Queen Mother of the West first.”

“Right. You were supposed to report directly to the Queen Mother, and whatever was beyond her purview was up to her to handle. I’ve heard only she gets to meet them directly.”

Heavenly Mysterious Woman slowly continued, “When I entered the Palace of the Jade Emperor, I felt something was off. All the seats of the Four Sovereigns were vacant.”

The Four Sovereigns refer to the Three Pure Ones and the Jade Emperor. While the Jade Emperor was considered a bit weaker, they were mostly viewed as equals. Fire Dragon Incarnate’s expression shifted unpleasantly at this.

“If the Four Sovereign seats are empty, the Celestial Realm faces destruction.”

“Exactly. The reason the vast Celestial Realm can sustain itself is due to the powers of the Three Pure Ones and the Jade Emperor. But at that moment, all the Sovereign seats were genuinely empty.”

“This can’t be happening…”

Heavenly Mysterious Woman sensed the gravity of the situation and used the Corpse Dissolution Technique to trace their tracks, discovering the Three Pure Ones were killed by the Queen Mother of the West. While she couldn’t pinpoint when exactly, she could perceive the causal connections of their deaths.

Fire Dragon Incarnate was utterly taken aback; I bet this was the first and last time I’d ever see such an expression on his face. He briefly pursed his lips before asking, “So, does that mean the Jade Emperor is also gone?”

“I don’t know.”

“You don’t know?”

“As you know, the Jade Emperor has shown himself occasionally after that and proved he was still around. I haven’t visited the Palace since that day, but there’s no doubt he exists in the Celestial Realm.”

Fire Dragon Incarnate pondered for a moment before speaking. “Could it be that the Jade Emperor has been killed and a fake has taken his place… or maybe he’s an accomplice of the Queen Mother?”

“Nothing is certain. That’s why I want to step forward and uncover the truth.”

Heavenly Mysterious Woman firmly stated, “When I told the Celestial Sage and Yeodong-bin about this, they all vowed to cooperate. We must join forces to break Pangu’s command and save the Celestial Realm.”

“Alright… I’m in. I’ll gladly join forces.”

After Fire Dragon Incarnate expressed his determination, he turned to Yeodong-bin, “Did you sense the gaze of a powerful being watching you?”

Yeodong-bin nodded in response, “Yes, Master. After receiving the secret directive from Heavenly Mysterious Woman, that figure has been trailing me.”

“Do you know who it is?”

“Their stealth technique was too advanced; I couldn’t figure it out.”

“They seem to belong to a higher level, so how strong do you think this mysterious assassin is?”

Yeodong-bin hesitated in silence before replying, “I sensed an oddly foreign energy.”

“Were you thinking that foreign energy was possibly Demon Ki?”

“Not quite. It was just a type of power that I barely felt in Kunlun or the Mortal Realm.”

Fire Dragon Incarnate crossed his arms, “Sounds like you have an idea.”

“Yes.”

“When you meet that fellow, make sure to eliminate them.”

“Understood.”

Once their conversation ended, the Celestial Sage spoke up, “Alright, it seems like we’ve gathered the situation. Let’s discuss our specific plan. Honestly, the current situation isn’t very lenient.”

Everyone’s attention shifted to the Celestial Sage as he continued, “I predict that within the next week or so, Pangu’s command will be completed. It won’t be finished in just a day or two, but the longest is about a week. Hence, we need to break that barrier before then.”

“What kind of barrier are we talking about?”

As I asked, the Celestial Sage gave me a sidelong glance before responding, “The primary barrier is the three-thirty-three Heavenly Gemlike Treasure Pagoda from the Burning Lamp Daoist, followed by the Heavenly Fire Pearl from the Yunzhongzi, and then a gathering of powerful beings performing direct security.”

“Is it really the strongest defense in Celestial history?”

The Burning Lamp Daoist and Yunzhongzi were both Great Immortals active since the Silver Age, veterans by the standards of Yeodong-bin and Jang Sam-bong, with powers far beyond mortal sorceries—let alone their special treasures creating barriers!

“To break through this might be a leap too far…”

Then I recalled that incident on Mount Penglai where Lee Heung-pae laid a barrier with the Half Yellow Pearl that endured for thousands of years against the Sea God’s forces. No one had breached the barrier he devoted his life to erecting!

“Can we really break through something like that?”

“That’s out of the question. Even I couldn’t manage it alone. So we need a solid strategy.”

The Celestial Sage placed his Ruyi Staff on his shoulder, “After breaching the barrier, you need to deal with the powerful beings directly. I’ll assist, but if you exert too much energy, it’ll only turn troublesome for you.”

“Hmmm…”

Even if my allies were the best, could we handle such a gathering of elites and powerful beings in the Celestial Realm? My doubts grew, but retreating here wasn’t an option.

“What if we enlisted Jang Sam-bong as our ally?”

With Jang Sam-bong on our side, it would’ve been a massive boost! However, Yeodong-bin looked troubled as he replied, “That’s not possible, Yeon-ja.”

“Why not? Jang Sam-bong would cooperate if we explained things to him…”

“I deliberately stepped outside the Celestial Realm using the Immortal Sword Technique because it’s under the constant surveillance of the Queen Mother. Almost everything aside from isolated places like White Silk Mountain is being monitored. If we bring Jang Sam-bong in, our surprise attack will be exposed.”

“If that happens, the Queen Mother will halt Pangu’s command and move to eliminate us directly. So no one aside from those present can become our allies in this Celestial endeavor.”

I felt utterly despaired at the news. Even if we shared this with the Great Immortals, it would expose our plans for a surprise attack. “So what’s the point of this surprise attack? Even if we interfere, it’ll be pointless if the Queen Mother is still there.”

“Right now, that monstrous command of Pangu exists entirely because of the Queen Mother. She’s holding back the backlash of causality, making it possible for that command to be completed. While she’s chanting those spells, she’s basically defenseless.”

The Celestial Sage smirked, “In other words, the Queen Mother is at her weakest right now.”

“Ah!”

“Anyway, I don’t expect to kill the Queen Mother, but even if we can disrupt her command, she’ll lose much of her power. A wounded tiger remains fierce, but once we break her formation, escaping will be our best course of action.”

“We really don’t have a choice, do we?”

The Celestial Sage nodded in affirmation, “How about we move out right now? The sooner, the better.”

Everyone was in deep thought. Sure, moving swiftly was essential, but could we really accomplish such a monumental task so quickly? I weighed my options carefully amidst the uncertainty.

‘Should we go now…?’

Time was on our side for the moment, but would taking more precaution actually shift the balance in our favor? Hesitating excessively might be the worst move of all.

Suddenly, I remembered something about the Seven Luminaries that sparked an idea.

‘Right, I still have more power left to gather.’

The higher the chances of success, the better! I cautiously asked the Celestial Sage, “By any chance, are you planning to use the Moon Sovereign you took last time?”

“Huh? Why would I do that?”

The Celestial Sage laughed, “My Ruyi Staff is much stronger than some unliberated Moon Sovereign!”

“I see.”

Indeed, even if I assembled the Seven Luminaries, their unliberated state wouldn’t measure up to even high-grade treasures. However, I wasn’t keen on rushing headlong into the fray. I took a moment to decide before speaking to Heavenly Mysterious Woman, “Could you wait a few days?”

“For what?”

“There’s something I need to do.”

“Very well.”

Heavenly Mysterious Woman agreed readily, while the Celestial Sage wore a frown. Then he said, “Listen, if you’re planning to gather the Seven Luminaries, scratch that idea. Like I said, it’s impossible to liberate them right now—it’s pointless.”

“That’s not it. I have another method in mind.”

“Hmph… fine. Since Jin So-cheong entrusted his last will to you, I’ll give you a shot.”

Brightening up, I soon returned to White Silk Mountain on the back of my cloud, flanked by Yeodong-bin and Fire Dragon Incarnate. The Celestial Sage dashed off after dropping us off.

Yeodong-bin turned to me, “What’s the game plan, Yeon-ja?”

“Isn’t it true that you no longer need to be an Immortal Sword?”

“Heavenly Mysterious Woman infused her power into the Immortal Sword Technique, allowing it to adapt to my will whenever needed.”

“Got it.”

I pondered for a moment before saying, “I plan to discuss this with my companions.”

With that, I returned to the Blood Sabre Group’s base and relayed everything I’d learned from the Celestial Realm to Mangnyang and Zhuge Sa. Zhuge Sa remarked, “So the Queen Mother has taken control of the Celestial Realm… intriguing.”

“What should we do?”

“What do you mean? Clearly, we need to prepare for battle.”

Zhuge Sa gazed at me intently. “Baek Woong, I can guarantee you’ll definitely die this time.”

“Huh?!”

I flinched in surprise. “You’re saying I’m literally going to fight the entire Celestial Realm?”

“It’s overwhelming, and if you don’t fight, you’re a goner anyway. But even with your special weapon, the Command of the Evil Spirit won’t likely tip the scales. There’s no running from this danger, right?”

Great, thanks for the uplifting talk.

“Then it’s a relief, isn’t it?”

“Huh?”

Zhuge Sa smiled ominously, “If you’re going to die anyway, you can prepare for anything without worry.”

 

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