"Lan Qinghuan, in three days, do you really intend to take Di Lianzhe's place and suffer the ultimate punishment of the Nine Heavens?
The Zhuxian Stage is no game. Once you step inside, the best-case scenario is the complete destruction of your immortal cultivation and mastery, while the worst is the utter annihilation of your very soul and spirit.
In these countless billions of years, your brother has never once heard of anyone walking out of that Zhuxian Stage alive and unscathed.
That bald monk simply wants you dead; you must not fall for his schemes..." Dressed in a yellow, nine-dragon profound robe and radiating the graceful charm of a tree of jade, the Celestial Emperor furrowed his brows deeply as he tried to reason with his only beloved younger sister, Lan Qinghuan.
At that moment, he felt an agonizing headache, regretting that he had been far too indulgent and spoiled with this sole younger sister of his, allowing her to become so impossibly reckless and ignorant of the immensity of heaven and earth.
In the past, when she traveled the mortal realm and roamed the pugilistic world behind his back, he had tolerated her, even covering her tracks in secret so that no one dared gossip.
When she went ahead without a word, taking Han Zigu to wipe out the Underworld Clan, he pampered her still; as long as the stakes were right, the remaining Underworld Clan members would eventually lean toward him.
Yet now she wanted to elope with Di Lianzhe?
Fine, he admitted that he could no longer control her.
However, who was Di Lianzhe? He was Jin Lingzi, the direct and personal senior disciple of the Western Buddha Rulai.
Now that the Buddha himself had come to intervene, even he could no longer casually meddle in the matter.
"It is merely a trifling Zhuxian Stage, and I, in all my dignity as the Martial God, am certainly not afraid!
To save me, Lianzhe took a palm strike from his master that injured his very heart and soul, and now his master intends to punish him severely without the slightest regard for whether he lives or dies.
All of this was my fault to begin with, yet Rulai refuses to see reason and insists on punishing him heavily—how could I ever bear to stand by and watch?" Her proud, cold, and exquisite face was filled with helplessness.
She, Lan Qinghuan, was the personal sister of the Celestial Emperor and the peerless Martial God whom few in the Nine Heavens Mysterious Realm could match.
With a hibiscus face so exquisite it was dazzling, and a figure both perfectly alluring and exquisitely graceful, countless heroes and heavenly deities harbored romantic feelings for her; yet she had fallen in love with none other than the Buddha's senior disciple.
"A mere Zhuxian Stage? Lan Qinghuan, do you have any idea how many immortals, demons, mortals, gods, and spirits at the very pinnacle of cultivation have had their souls and essences obliterated by this Zhuxian Stage?
Your cultivation and power are indeed profound, and your brother admits he cannot compare to you.
Yet do you know? Every single soul fragment the Zhuxian Stage absorbs makes its power grow stronger still. Do you truly believe you stand a chance after stepping inside?
You cannot bear to see that Jin Lingzi enter, but do you think your brother can bear to see you go in?" Yet what good was it not to bear the thought?
As the Supreme Celestial Emperor, he had to consider the common people of all realms at every turn. With the great calamity of heaven and earth fast approaching, Rulai had divined that she was the savior of the common people.
He could not allow her to forsake the entire world for the sake of petty personal love. Huanhuan, he could only hope you will not blame your brother in the days to come...
"Good brother, my dear brother, Qinghuan of course knows that you love me the most... But Rulai has promised us that as long as we can walk down from the Zhuxian Stage alive, he will grant us reincarnation so we can become a carefree pair of immortal companions in the mortal world.
Brother, I want to be with Lianzhe. I know you have a way; you will grant us our wish, won't you?" Her exquisite hibiscus face bloomed with a ingratiating, playful smile. Shedding her usual tough-girl demeanor, Lan Qinghuan nestled into the arms of the Celestial Emperor Lan Moyun, tugging at his sleeve and acting like a spoiled child.
After these three days, she would never again be able to tug at her brother's clothes and act so spoiled—it was truly hard to bear.
Yet at the thought of being with Lianzhe as a pair of immortal companions, Lan Qinghuan felt that any hardship would be entirely worth it.
"Fine, I will find a way to keep you alive as you walk down the Zhuxian Stage. But are you certain that once you enter reincarnation, you will truly be able to remain with that monk?
Once you enter reincarnation, all past memories are wiped away. Is it truly worth giving up everything you have just to obtain a mortal Jin Lingzi of flesh and bone?" And would you truly be safe left all alone in the mortal world in your mortal flesh?
My foolish sister, have you ever considered that all those gods and immortals you offended over the years restrained themselves only out of respect for your brother or fear of your formidable strength?
If they were to discover that you have been reincarnated, what kind of situation might arise?
Why was it that neither he nor his host of ministers could foresee or calculate Qinghuan's destiny?
And how had Rulai managed to divine that outcome?
Should he gamble, or should he not? On one side lay the lives of all living beings, and on the other, his younger sister's lifelong happiness. How was he supposed to choose?
"As long as Di Lianzhe is willing to stay with me, everything is worth it.
Besides, do I not have you, my brother?
In this heaven and earth, most things are decided by you, Brother. You will protect your little sister, won't you?" Playing with a strand of Lan Moyun's meticulously groomed long hair, Lan Qinghuan said leisurely.
She had finally managed to make that wooden block Di relent—did she have any idea how hard that was? For Di Lianzhe, let alone the Zhuxian Array, she would march straight into the Demoniac Abyss or the Soul-Consuming Valley without batting an eye.
"Very well, this is Yuyin Dan. You must swallow it before entering the Zhuxian Stage. Big Brother will protect you!"
Three days later, the Xuantian Gate Execution Ground.
The usually desolate execution ground was now packed with a bustling, roaring sea of people.
Figures of every stripe who held any renown in the Nine Heavens Mysterious Realm had gathered here, all of them discussing the scandalous affair of the peerless Martial God abducting the Buddhist Jin Lingzi.
"This peerless Martial God is far too arrogant and overbearing, actually committing such an absurd act and bringing utter shame to our immortal path.
No wonder she provoked the endlessly merciful Buddha into handing down such a cruel punishment." A Daoist who appeared immortal and otherworldly yet possessed narrow eyes slandered Lan Qinghuan's character and conduct.
Anyone could tell at a glance that he had frequently been bullied by Di Lan Qinghuan in the past.
"How can Immortal Xuanming speak of Lord Martial God in such a manner? It was clearly Jin Lingzi who failed to uphold the Buddhist monastic rules.
Our Lord Martial God is so brilliant and stunning, yet she has never given a second glance to the countless young talents who adore her beauty—why would she ever need to abduct that monk?" The warm and lucid voice alone was enough to stir the heart. A figure clad in a luxurious jade-colored brocade robe fluttered without wind, a black jade belt at his waist shimmering with light, brows like crescent moons, eyes like black ink, and lips brilliantly red—exotic yet fierce, imposing, and formidable.
The moment these words left his mouth, the noisy, buzzing execution ground fell instantly silent. Everyone in the crowd felt a shiver of panic: why on earth had this fierce God of War appeared here?
Was he here to watch the execution stage because his beloved was going to her doom for the sake of another man?
The onlookers sighed inwardly, yet none dared show even a shred of disrespect on the surface.
Though this fierce God of War appeared refined and scholarly on the surface, he possessed an utterly fiery temper and an astonishing combat prowess when provoked; not a single person wished to court his bad luck.
In the silence of over a thousand people, the atmosphere hanging over the execution ground felt truly oppressive.
"The Celestial Emperor has arrived!" A desolate, profound sound echoed through every corner of the execution ground. The already silent arena grew even more pin-drop quiet as everyone held their breath, waiting for the arrival of the exalted figure.
Swish, swish, swish—countless radiant screens imbued with profound energy erected themselves out of thin air, isolating the crowd a thousand miles away from the Zhuxian Array.
It was not as though the execution ground had never been opened before, but the Zhuxian Array upon it had not been activated for nearly ten thousand years. For most of the newly ascended immortals and gods, this was their first time laying eyes on such a profound barrier of light.
Such an exquisite and peerless formation, deployed with such an unprecedented and grandiose scale, left even the most worldly and experienced observers marveling in awe.
Within the barrier of profound light:
"Rulai, why has Lianzhe not arrived? What have you done to him?" Having swallowed the Yuyin Dan and made thorough preparations, Di Lan Qinghuan arrived at the Zhuxian Array with her brother. Seeing Rulai sitting alone in meditation within the formation, she could not help voicing her worry.
"Qinghuan, show some respect." Lan Moyun once again felt a headache coming on for having such a sister. No matter how one looked at it, the Western Buddha Rulai was one of the creators of the Nine Heavens Mysterious Realm; even on the surface, he himself had to address Rulai as "Venerable One." For her to be so lacking in manners, and still dream of eloping with the man's disciple? Ah, truly a misfortune to the family!