The Disaster God roared furiously, struggling to shake off Quinn Shepherd, but Quinn clung to its back like glue, gnawing relentlessly at its skull.
Crack!
The Five-Thunder War Gourd whirled through the air, five great thunderclouds swirling around Quinn, crackling and blasting him with chaos. In the thunderclouds, fire-bell divine weapons erupted, thunder rolling and hammering Quinn, finally blasting him clear off the Disaster God's back.
The Disaster God rallied, charging Quinn again. Suddenly, teleportation formation patterns spun around Quinn—he vanished, then reappeared behind the Disaster God, latching onto its back and gnawing its skull once more.
Heaven Duke and the Crimson Emperor exchanged glances, both completely at a loss.
In Mingdu, the Mingdu Heaven Gate forcibly suppressed the Nether Sea. Two Yin Heavenly Sons stood to the left and right of the gate, simultaneously fending off the assaults of Tanner Shue, Lord Hades, and Lady Umbral.
With the Mingdu Heaven Gate open, the Yin Heavenly Son stood beneath it, nearly immortal. Any wound inflicted by Tanner Shue, Lord Hades, or Lady Umbral instantly healed as the power of reincarnation from the Heaven Gate flowed through, keeping him at his peak.
The more Lord Hades, Tanner Shue, and Lady Umbral fought, the more alarmed they became. The current Yin Heavenly Son was utterly invincible—unless they could erase him completely, there was no way to defeat him.
The Mingdu Heaven Gate was a treasure refined by the Yin Heavenly Son himself—such divine arts and methods truly befit an Emperor’s-Throne sovereign, worthy of the title Mingdu Black Emperor.
At that moment, deep within Mingdu, countless Primordial Spirits imprisoned in the underworld prison felt the terrifying tremors and disturbances from outside. One by one, the inmates awoke, confused and fearful.
"The best way to infiltrate the enemy's heart is to let them invite you in," murmured the Woodcutter Sage, his Primordial Spirit opening its eyes.
He had been summoned by the Book of Life and Death and suppressed in Mingdu Prison. The walls of his cell were specially designed to restrain Primordial Spirits, covered in rune-seals, with chains piercing his body to limit all his divine powers.
The Woodcutter studied each rune in turn. After a moment, his gaze settled on the chains binding him. He quickly comprehended the principles hidden within the seals.
Crash.
The chains slithered out of his body like agile serpents. The Woodcutter landed lightly on the ground and walked toward the cell door.
With a creak, the cell door swung open on its own.
He had comprehended the method to break Mingdu Prison’s restraints in record time, moving through the place as if no one could stop him.
The Woodcutter stepped out, facing the guards, then walked to the next cell. With a wave of his hand, the cell opened and the chains binding the First Human Emperor fell away.
The First Human Emperor leapt out of the cell, slaughtered the rushing prison guards, smashed open other cells, and freed Furylo, the Fishing Elder, Chi Creek, and others.
"Break open every cell as you go—free all the prisoners! The more chaos we cause in Mingdu, the safer Everpeace will be!"
The Woodcutter Sage's expression was as calm as still water. "The more chaos in Mingdu, the safer Everpeace will be. If we can keep Mingdu in turmoil for decades or centuries, Everpeace will be safe for just as long!"
Everyone nodded, cutting down the Mingdu prison guards as they advanced, smashing open cells and releasing the prisoners within.
This underworld prison was the most heavily fortified in Mingdu, holding gods and demons who had shown disrespect to the Heavenly Court. Their bodies were stripped away, leaving only their Primordial Spirits to suffer here.
There were many guards in the prison—they were used to dealing with dangerous inmates. But against experts like the Fishing Elder, Chi Creek, and Furylo, the guards stood no chance. The trio unleashed killing moves without hesitation.
The Fishing Elder cast his soul-hook, reeling in spirits with every throw; Chi Creek fought with three heads and six arms, while Furylo's demon arts dazzled all. The three tore through the prison, and for any foe they couldn't handle, the First Human Emperor stepped in.
Since breaking free from his inner prison, the First Human Emperor's cultivation had grown ever stronger, with signs he might soon break through to the Jade Capital Realm.
They fought their way down through many layers. Mingdu Prison burrowed deep beneath the city—the lower they went, the heavier the seals and the stronger the guards.
By the time they reached the bottom, the group was exhausted from the fighting. Thankfully, the chaos caused by the freed prisoners drew most of the guards away, easing their burden.
"This is the place!"
The Woodcutter Sage looked around—the place was dim and eerie, with strange lizard-like demon creatures crawling swiftly along the walls, their bodies huge and movements unsettling.
"The person we're here to rescue should be imprisoned here."
The group looked around. There weren't many cells here, but each was sealed with divine metal doors covered in decree-seals—each seal contained terrifying binding powers, their origins unknown.
Furylo asked gravely, "Who exactly are we here to rescue? Can you tell us now, brother?"
The Woodcutter Sage stepped forward, studying the decree-seals on the cells, analyzing the types of bindings to deduce who was imprisoned within. Calmly, he said, "This person is the foremost Heavenly King of the Kaihuang Era. In that era, the Heavenly Court had thirty-six Heavenly Palaces, with four most exalted palaces held by four great Heavenly Kings. The oldest was the Azure Emperor in the east, the youngest was Di Shitian in the west, the northern Mingdu Heavenly King was famed for drunken ferocity, and the strongest was the southern Heavenly King."
The First Human Emperor's heart skipped a beat. He said solemnly, "Di Shitian's 'Di' is a Buddha title—he was a master of forging and divine craftsmanship. But the 'Di' in the southern king's name is neither a Buddha title nor a surname."
The Woodcutter Sage nodded, "That's correct. The 'Di' in the southern king's name is an honorific. Her strength even surpassed the Azure Emperor's. In the Kaihuang Era, she was qualified to contest the imperial throne with the Pioneer Emperor himself. Though she lost to him, she was still called 'Emperor.'"
After a moment of silence, the First Human Emperor said, "Legend says that among the four Heavenly Kings, Emperor Yiyue died in battle before the Calamity erupted."
"I used to think so too. But she didn't die."
The Woodcutter Sage stopped before one cell, studying the decree-seals. "My eldest disciple once entrusted my second disciple with some maps, one of which was a layout of Mingdu Prison. The marked spot is the deepest part of the prison."
Irrelevant webnovel navigation message. Omit from translation.
His expression darkened. The Founding Patriarch of the Cult of the Heavenly Saint did many things in his pursuit of the path of sainthood—deeds so bold that even the Woodcutter Sage wouldn’t have dared to imagine or attempt them.
Yet to this day, that eldest disciple has vanished without a trace—no one knows if he’s alive or dead.
He must have come to Mingdu, trying to send me a message. On the map Quinn gave me, there’s a tiny rune at the marked spot—my eldest disciple’s mark, and it’s the divine art signature used by Aurora Yates.
He fell silent at this point, clearly worried about the Founding Patriarch’s fate.
The Fishing Elder praised, "Your eldest disciple truly is remarkable, sneaking in here and finding Aurora Yates without anyone noticing. Your other two disciples are extraordinary as well—I’ve met the Everpeace Imperial Preceptor, a genius even greater than you in your youth. As for your second disciple, he’s a bit mischievous. By the way, was it really wise to keep this operation secret from your second disciple and use him as bait?"
The Woodcutter Sage’s eye twitched as he carefully analyzed the decree-seal on the cell door. "He’s got a big monster sealed in his brow—he won’t die. Suffering a little will do him good. He’s still young, a bit too naive."
"Naive?" Furylo and Chi Creek both grunted. They had each suffered at Quinn’s hands before.
Even the First Human Emperor, picturing a 'naive' Quinn, looked uncomfortable.
The Woodcutter deciphered the decree-seal, his vital qi weaving into streams of runes that lit up one after another, shining onto the decree.
With each illumination, another layer of the seal was undone. He moved at astonishing speed, unleashing countless rune-forms, unraveling the decree’s stacked bindings layer by layer.
After a long while, the Woodcutter Sage lifted his hand and gently peeled the decree off.
The crowd admired his skill, but were not particularly surprised. As the chief of the Four Celestial Teachers, the Woodcutter was famed for his vast knowledge; there was almost no seal in the world he couldn’t break!
The prison door creaked open with a harsh sound. A rush of cold wind swept in, making everyone’s robes flutter; soon, ice crystals hung from their brows and hair.
"Since ancient times, love has left only regret; sweet dreams are always the easiest to wake from. Is picking flowers so hard to escape? Pity the drifting willow fluff, so lost and alone."
A mournful sigh echoed from the cell, so cold it seemed to pierce the heart. Furylo exclaimed, "The famous Aurora Yates, Heavenly King, is a woman?"
The Woodcutter Sage nodded and led the way into the cell.
Inside was a terrifying ice chamber, freezing cold. Nine ice dragons coiled around the walls, hanging head-down, their nine heads encircling an ice coffin at the center. Within the transparent coffin lay a stunningly beautiful woman in black, adorned with a phoenix crown and bridal finery, quietly resting.
Her skin was whiter than snow, made even paler by the black wedding gown.
She lay in the ice coffin, as if floating in mist—silent, mysterious.
The nine ice dragons breathed cold frost onto the coffin, trying to keep the bride’s body frozen.
But the bride within the coffin had already awakened. She opened her eyes and gently raised a slender, jade-like finger, adorned with a luxurious black ring set with sharp spikes.
Crack, crack, crack.
One ice dragon after another shattered, leaving only the last one, which curled up in terror.
The Woodcutter Sage stepped forward, took the bride’s hand, and she floated up from the coffin, landing lightly on the ground, her eyes filled with exhaustion.
"Southern Heavenly King, please return to your post!" the Woodcutter said solemnly.
Emperor Yiyue replied bleakly, "What does returning matter? I am already dead."
Only then did everyone notice the finger-thick hole in her brow—an injury so deep you could see the wall behind her through it.
Though she wore black, her robes were clearly bridal attire. The phoenix crown atop her head was draped with a purple veil, now lifted to reveal her beautiful face.
She must have sat quietly by the wedding bed that night, nervous yet sweet, when the groom lifted the red veil—and in that intimate instant, struck her dead.
Only her beloved, her bridegroom, could have gotten so close to the foremost Heavenly King of the Kaihuang Era.
It was her bridegroom who, upon lifting the veil, killed her.
Back then, the Pioneer Emperor had planned to recruit the Heavenly Kings to resist the Great Calamity. But soon after her wedding came news of her death, and then the disaster erupted, slaughtering countless innocents.
The Woodcutter Sage said, "In those days, the Heavenly King traveled the world, studying under the Four Emperors, all to confront cosmic disaster. Now the Calamity is upon us again. You missed the first chance—you cannot miss the second. As for your death, my little disciple has already resolved it. You can be revived."
Emperor Yiyue murmured, "I can be revived?"
She turned her head, staring at the last ice dragon cowering in the corner.
The ice dragon shivered, pleading, "Have mercy, Your Majesty! We were only following orders—we had no choice but to freeze your body and spirit..."
"Your Majesty?"
Emperor Yiyue’s expression turned icy. "You call me 'Your Majesty'? When have I ever relied on a man? Even the Celestial Teachers never dared call me that—they addressed me as Heavenly King. You dare call me 'Your Majesty'? Call me Emperor Yiyue!"
The ice dragon hesitated, then ventured timidly, "Emperor Yiyue..."
Crack—
It exploded, scattering shards of ice everywhere—even its spirit was shattered beyond repair.
"Calling me by name is disrespectful. Death is too good for you!"
Emperor Yiyue turned, smiling coldly. "Let’s go. Time to visit my bridegroom—I haven’t seen that faithless man in twenty thousand years, and even in death, he never came to see me. I’d love to put a bloody hole in his brow just like the one he gave me..."
Irrelevant birthday and personal message. Omit from translation.