Carefree Haven's thirty-three heavens were steeped in a chilling, murderous tension.
All divisions of the Pioneer Heaven Court's armies had finished mustering; generals strode back and forth before the formations, shouting orders and rallying morale.
The thirty-three heavens gathered their forces mainly to shield the migrants who'd come here. Each heaven housed Divine Cities—easy to defend, hard to assault—with tightly coordinated troops, far surpassing the rabble of Creators outside.
Yet for all their chaos, the Creators were terrifyingly powerful; even the youngest among them were a force to be reckoned with.
A Creator as young as two or three could slaughter dragons—no other race could compare. Perhaps only the Netherworld Divine Son, Fenix Greenwood Keane, could outmatch them as an infant.
Everyone craned their necks, gazing up at the sky.
The sky was packed with countless giant planets, jostling and crowding together—some whole, some shattered—colliding as they pressed for space.
Over the past twenty thousand years, Creators had repeatedly invaded, inflicting heavy casualties on Carefree Haven.
The Dead Star Belt was even more perilous. Creators often lurked there, visualizing all manner of monsters to attack Carefree Haven, even conjuring disasters—thunderstorms, floods, hurricanes—that left the realm in constant turmoil.
Now, word had spread: the Creators were coming in full force, their entire race marching on Carefree Haven!
Though Carefree Haven's thirty-three heavens had been fortified into an ironclad bastion over the years, could their Divine Cities truly withstand an assault from the Creators?
Suddenly, the sky split open. Two colossal, rough hands reached in from beyond, effortlessly flicking planets aside like marbles. Then, wave after wave of Creators appeared, grabbing planets and setting them far away.
More and more Creators arrived. In no time, a vast swath of the Dead Star Belt encircling Carefree Haven was cleared away.
Shifting stars and moving constellations—such feats would tax even Carefree Haven's gods!
The Divine Generals of Carefree Haven's thirty-three heavens looked grim, unconsciously tightening their grip on their weapons. Sweat beaded on some foreheads, trickling into their eyes; they hurriedly lifted their faceplates to wipe it away.
A general spotted this and barked out a reprimand, ordering the man to cover his faceplate at once.
Inside the city, a child began to cry, but his mother quickly clamped a hand over his mouth, muffling the sound.
Up in the sky, gigantic faces loomed down, sweeping their gaze over the Divine Cities.
"Hold your positions!"
A Divine General shouted sternly, "Pass my command: hold your positions! Wait until the enemy sets foot in Carefree Haven, then heed my signal!"
The gods guarding each Divine City grew ever more tense, their yuan-qi surging. Heaven Palaces shimmered behind them, and their primordial spirits rose to their peak, ready to strike at a moment's notice.
But then, the Creators in the sky vanished from sight.
The Divine Demon army and common folk of Carefree Haven all looked up, gazing toward the outer void. Even the battle-hardened found themselves unsettled at this moment.
They saw towering figures outside the heavens, each like an ancient god, standing in the void with ranks perfectly straight, radiating murderous intent.
From within Carefree Haven, the Creators seemed endless—bodies ramrod straight, clad in gleaming gold armor, gripping weapons stained with untold blood.
Those weapons were so massive, it looked as if just one or two could obliterate a Divine City, grinding it to dust.
Even more terrifying, the Creators outside were arrayed in distinct formations; each had its own unique armor and weapon designs, covered in intricate rune patterns. Clearly, every weapon had been forged through countless trials, packed with deadly arrays and divine arts.
Every weapon was a killing artifact of the highest order.
Inside Carefree Haven, even the generals commanding the Divine Demon army were sweating, their palms trembling.
Clang.
He heard a sound behind him. Turning, he saw a soldier who'd lost his grip—the divine weapon had fallen to the ground.
"Pick it up!" he ordered in a low voice.
The soldier hurriedly retrieved his weapon, looked up at the sky, then froze, mouth agape and speechless.
The general quickly turned to look at the sky himself, and his own hand shook—he nearly dropped his weapon.
Outside, a million Creators roared in unison. Divine light erupted behind them as vast Heaven Palaces rose from the void!
Countless Heaven Palaces linked together. Nearly every Beyond-Shore Creator had two or three floating behind them; some boasted more than ten, forming their own Small Heaven Courts.
The sight was utterly hopeless.
The Creators of the Beyond-Shore World had mastered visualization and the God-Treasury Heaven-Palace system, but how could they possibly have advanced this far?
Even in Carefree Haven, few could cultivate the Small Heaven Court Arts!
Yet among these million Creators, almost every one had mastered the Small Heaven Court Arts!
On Jade-Pure Heaven, the big-headed monster baby, Fenix Greenwood Keane, was fully armored, gripping a pair of massive round hammers—heavy divine weapons custom-forged by Carefree Haven's Heavenly Works at the Pioneer Emperor's order, specifically to battle Creators.
His armor was painstakingly crafted, every rune etched to counter the Creators' divine sense attacks.
Seeing the spectacle outside, Fenix Greenwood Keane tucked his hammers under his arms and slipped into the Pioneer Heaven Palace. Princess Consort Hansen hurried after him, asking, "Fenix, where are you going?"
"Packing up to escape," he replied.
The big-headed baby turned and said, "Mother, you should come too. This isn't Carefree Haven anymore—those hungry monsters are coming, and even I can't hold them off. I might get eaten instead. Go fetch Father, we'll take a ship and slip out the back. I'll bring you both to the Netherworld. Tu Bo promised if I return, he'll do everything he can to protect me. Our family can still survive!"
Princess Consort Hansen snapped, "Our whole clan is here. How could we abandon them and run for our own lives?"
Fenix scratched his head. "Well, you could bring them too? But that's too many. I can't keep everyone safe, and Tu Bo probably wouldn't take in so many..."
Princess Consort Hansen, furious, leapt onto his shoulder, yanked his ear, and dragged him back. "There's no escape outside either! Only by holding Carefree Haven and fighting to the death do we have a chance. Have you forgotten your brother? He was captured by these Creators. Instead of rescuing him, you want to run away? I'm ashamed of you!"
"Stop pulling, stop pulling!"
Dragged back to the front lines, Fenix protested, "I'm an adult now! Don't keep yanking my ear—everyone in Carefree Haven respects me, and this is embarrassing. That bad little brother never dies; I've never seen him dead. He's probably hiding among the good food, laughing at us right now..."
Princess Consort Hansen hauled him to the front, just as the Pioneer Emperor smiled at Qin Hansen and the others, "Those Heaven Palaces look real—terrifyingly so."
Around the Pioneer Emperor, top experts flared with power, their auras rising into various Dao visions, all scrutinizing the Creator army outside.
"They do look real," someone agreed, "but there are too many repeats."
Elena Cloud grinned, "There are fourteen types of Heaven Palace behind these Creators. Some are even incomplete. Clearly, someone showed them these fourteen Heaven Palaces and had them visualize them to scare us."
Qin Hansen laughed, "Their armor and weapons are visualized too, not real. Each Creator unit has unique armor patterns and weapon designs. With a million Creators split into a thousand units, that's a thousand different sets. Just designing all these would require vast knowledge. Reminds me of someone..."
Elena Cloud and the others nodded, smiling. "We thought of the same person."
"Wen Heaven Pavilion's Wen Celestial Teacher—his knowledge runs deep, his vision is unmatched, and he's the smartest man alive. He always insists on perfection. If he'd set up this scheme, it would be flawless."
The Pioneer Emperor said, "That's exactly the kind of person he is. But it's also his weakness. He studies too broadly to fully integrate his knowledge, so his cultivation can't advance much."
Elena Cloud smiled, "Your Majesty may not know, but he took three disciples. Each inherited part of his strengths and flaws. All three insist on perfection. The second disciple is from your own Keane clan."
Qin Hansen's eyes flickered. "Celestial Teacher Zixi, are you saying..."
Elena Cloud smiled, "Not only was the Keane clan child spared, he truly became the Divine Infant of the Creators—their leader."
Qin Hansen exclaimed, "You mean the one who set this all up is Mu'er?"
The Pioneer Emperor said calmly, "He's the one in charge among the Creators. Ha! Such a massive army, such a spectacle—he's got guts. If you see him, remember to address him as Mu Tianzun, not as a Keane clan child."
Everyone was stunned, not understanding the meaning.
The Pioneer Emperor continued, "He has Keane blood, but the clan gave him neither nurture nor guidance. Even his birth debt has been repaid. As a Tianzun, he deserves the respect of his title."
Qin Hansen frowned, sensing the ancestor's anger.
But it was hard to blame the Pioneer Emperor.
Few could see that the Creators' Heaven Palaces were mere visualizations; most were terrified by the army outside—even Fenix Greenwood Keane wanted to flee.
And all of this was orchestrated by Qin Mu—no wonder the Pioneer Emperor was upset.
Outside, fourteen Heaven Palaces floated behind Qin Mu. Using Langhuan Divine King's divine sense, he implanted the structures of his fourteen Heaven Palaces into the Creators' minds, causing them to visualize them.
Shu Jun coughed, reminding, "Divine Infant, aren't you worried this is going too far?"
"Too far?"
Qin Mu sneered, "When Yankang most needed Carefree Haven's protection, one order withdrew all the gods, leaving Yankang to face Heaven Court alone. I don't think this is too far. He shouldn't have given Yankang hope, only to snatch it away. Yankang..."
His resentment toward the Pioneer Emperor had never fully faded. "Yankang's people have always been abandoned—twice! It was never the Pioneer Emperor who saved them, but the First Ancestor."
He rose, floating onto Langhuan Divine King's shoulder, his feet level with the woman's earlobes. "Sister, your divine sense is vast. Notify everyone in Carefree Haven: the Creators' Divine King and Divine Infant wish to meet the Pioneer Emperor to establish everlasting peace between our peoples! Ask him if he dares come!"