The axe sang a song of shearing, a flash that threatened to cleave the very tapestry of the cosmos. A thunderous roar erupted, drowning out all other sound and quelling the hearts of the invading hordes from beyond the stars.

It seemed that the entirety of existence, every celestial cycle and cosmic current, was drawn into the orbit of this cataclysmic blow. The starfield itself seemed to dissolve, leaving naught but a vast, empty void dominated by the colossal shadow of the axe.

Before the dread Yun Luo Great Priestess, some few warriors remained, caught unprepared. Horror etched upon their faces, they beheld an axe-blade vast as the night sky descending. Foremost among them, a dark-clad warrior raised his arms, his fingers weaving desperate wards. But the axe, in its swift descent, passed directly through him.

A crimson line bloomed upon his brow, then spread down his body, splitting him asunder. His garments tore with a sickening screech, revealing the crimson tide within. His eyes still held the echo of his terror. Behind him, scores of warriors were frozen mid-motion, caught in the axe’s wake. As the blade flashed past, their bodies followed suit and were torn asunder.

Words could not capture the speed of this blow. Before the echo of its passage had faded, hundreds, nay, thousands of warriors protecting the Yun Luo Great Priestess were robbed of their sight. Their bodies crumbled into nothingness, following the axe’s song into oblivion.

Behind them, thousands more stood frozen, trapped like statues in the axe’s aura. Not until the light of the axe had streaked past, like a fallen star, did crimson lines mark their foreheads, and they too fell.

No power could hope to impede the axe’s course. It carved through the warriors as they are a mere mist, and its blade pressed towards the Yun Luo Great Priestess, whose face had drained of all color. A rare and unwelcome helplessness washed over her. Her pupils were filled by the rising shadow of the axe, eclipsing all else from her sight. She saw only death, embodied in that one terrible weapon.

All happened in the blink of an eye. As the axe neared, the Yun Luo Great Priestess bit her tongue, spitting forth a mouthful of blood that coalesced into a shield, small as a palm.

Eight-sided, the shield was etched with countless runes that pulsed and writhed. As it formed, the heavens-rending axe crashed down. With a roar that shook the stars, the axe collided with the shield. The shield shattered like tofu. Its runes twisted, forming a net of light in a desperate attempt to halt the blade’s advance.

But the net proved useless. The axe tore through it, and the shield shattered with a final crack. Still, the axe sang its song of destruction, aimed directly at the Yun Luo Great Priestess. In the blink of an eye the axe cleaved through her body.

The axe continued past the Yun Luo Great Priestess, impacting the very barrier that held this realm apart. The barrier shook with terrible force.

Yet, all of this happened in a breath. The Yun Luo Great Priestess coughed a mouthful of blood, and her body split in two. With a soft sound, the pieces fell away, revealing themselves as mere cloth dolls. They were crude likenesses, with stitched eyes and a painted nose, bearing a faint resemblance to the Great Priestess herself.

“A mere puppet!” Wang Lin roared, stepping into the space where she had stood. His eyes burned with insane rage. With a flick of his sleeve, he conjured forth a raging inferno, consuming the two halves of the doll.

“Even a puppet cannot hide you from my wrath!” Even as he realized he had been cheated, Wang Lin weaved arcane gestures. With a final blast, the burning doll disintegrated.

But from the ashes, two wisps of ghostly energy emerged, intertwining like serpents. They spun faster and faster, coalescing into a dark vortex.

“By the Soul, I shall find you!” Wang Lin roared. The vortex widened, revealing a black hole that swallowed all light. As it spun, a bolt of crimson lightning, born of his most extreme force, burst from Wang Lin’s eye. It tore through the vortex, vanishing into the unknown.

Then the Fire of Primordial Origin joined the chase.

Far away, within the heart of the Outer Realm, in a sanctuary hidden within a spatial rift passed down through generations of Yun Luo’s lineage, the true Yun Luo Great Priestess sat in meditation.

A clear lake surrounded a lone island. At the center of the island, beneath the eaves of a simple pavilion, the Yun Luo Great Priestess knelt, her white robes framing her dark hair. Her face was ashen. As her puppet was destroyed, she gasped, coughing up blood.

The blood formed a mist, scattering across her robes. Her eyes flew open, filled with terror. Then, horror seized her face as she looked upward. A vortex had formed in the sky above her island, like a miniature black hole. And as it formed, the heavens roared.

The thunder was a blood-red hue, painting the world in crimson light. A bolt of lightning, equally red and equally furious, hurtled towards the island where Yun Luo knelt.

The bolt swelled as it descended, becoming a hundred-foot-wide cataclysm of destruction. It looked like divine retribution, sent to obliterate all within the island’s confines.

An aura of extreme force emanated from the red lightning. A thunderous crash resounded, and the red lightning struck the island.

The entire island shook.

And after the thunder, came fire. Unending flames enveloped the island, turning it into a sea of burning wrath. Even the surrounding lake began to boil, transforming into plumes of white steam.

The island shook and groaned, as if struck by a colossal hammer. Then, with a final roar, it splintered and shattered. The island broke, and the shattered pieces scattered outward.

“Three Aspects: Heavenly Thunder descends… Four Aspects: Fiery Sea rises… Five Aspects: Lost Island scatters… ” The Yun Luo Great Priestess knelt amidst the debris of the island, a gentle light emanating from the remains of the pavilion behind her. She coughed blood again, her face a mask of despair. “My ancestors’ prophecy… it has come to pass.”

Then, the extreme lightning that had destroyed the island converged, rushing towards her from all directions. It swarmed like a thousand crimson serpents, closing in on the protective light that surrounded her. It collided with the light, and it pressed inward, desperately fighting to hold back the lightning’s fury.

But the light could not withstand the assault. In a moment it collapsed, allowing the red lightning to strike her body. In her moment of despair, the Yun Luo Great Priestess raised her hand, summoning a skeleton out of thin air. It was the bones of her master, radiating an aura of ancient knowledge.

The red lightning turned. It crashed into the bones and the skeleton shattered, absorbing all of the lightning’s power.

“Six Aspects: Ancestral Bones break… Seven Aspects: Clan Soul returns… Eight Aspects: Autumn Orchid wails… Nine Aspects…” Yun Luo’s voice faded into the roaring storm. Her body crumbled. Her soul shattered. Her essence dissolved into the storm, and, with a final shimmer of light, vanished.

On the battlefield, Wang Lin, axe in hand, stood amidst the chaos, scanning the ranks of the Outer Realm invaders. His eyes flashed with vengeful light.

A sea of venom roared, sweeping across the cosmos, followed by a swarm of monstrous mosquitos, tearing into the invaders.

In the distance, the fabric of space warped and tore, revealing the approach of hundreds of warrior stars. The reinforcements of the Luo Heaven warriors had arrived.

Further still, blackness split apart, and light burst forth. It was not the light of a star, but the light of a million lightning strikes.

The reinforcements of the Zhao River warriors had arrived.