Wang Lin’s visage was grave as he remained hidden within the severed head of the Celestial Ancestor. Enshrouded by the head’s presence, he was concealed from the eyes of the outside world. Yet, should the Celestial Emperor cleave the head asunder, his own existence would surely be revealed.

His eyes flashed, and Wang Lin steeled his resolve.

The Celestial Emperor, with his right hand, seized the ten-foot-wide Celestial Ancestor’s head. Holding it before him, he cast his gaze upward, his eyes filled with grim determination.

Raising his left hand, he formed a blade with his palm. A golden aura enveloped his form, and veins bulged upon his face, as his blood, like a boiling torrent, surged within his veins and flowed into his bladed hand. With a mighty roar, he cleaved at the Celestial Ancestor’s head, and a deafening boom echoed through the land. A fissure appeared upon the head, and golden light burst forth, while agony twisted the Celestial Emperor’s features, causing him to age at an alarming rate.

From afar, Tao Yi, Wu Feng, and Jiu Di watched intently, while only the Celestial Reverent Hai Zi remained aloof, her expression complex as she pondered the head. But in that moment of the Celestial Emperor’s pain, Jiu Di roared, his form blurring as he lunged forward with incredible speed. Simultaneously, Tao Yi and Wu Feng’s faces contorted with fury, and they followed suit.

It was then revealed that the Celestial Emperor, as his hand fell upon the Celestial Ancestor’s head, had channeled his blood essence to create the fissure. Yet, his bladed hand did not continue to rend, but instead, he struck the head with his palm. He had not yielded, nor did he intend to fully cleave the ancestral head. Instead, with his palm upon it, his blood essence surged forth, flooding into the Celestial Ancestor’s veins!

“You have all underestimated my audacity!” the Celestial Emperor bellowed. “What is death to me? To exist in servitude is worse! Better to gamble it all!” As Jiu Di and the others closed in, the Celestial Ancestor’s head, infused with the Celestial Emperor’s blood essence, snapped open its eyes once more, and its mouth agape, exuded a thick, golden mist from its seven orifices.

As the golden mist billowed forth, the Celestial Emperor pressed his hands upon the head, inhaling the mist with reckless abandon. If he could absorb it all, he would inherit the Celestial Ancestor’s cultivation, perhaps even reversing the effects of the ancestral curse and the blood backlash from cleaving the head. His earlier strike had not only cracked the head but also shattered the sorcery of Celestial Reverent Hai Zi, allowing the head to once more permit the Celestial Emperor’s absorption.

Celestial Reverent Hai Zi paled, and blood trickled from her lips. Tao Yi, with venom in his eyes, raised his hand, forming a palm print, and struck at the Celestial Emperor. Wu Feng, likewise, unleashed a devastating blow. Jiu Di, as he arrived, was wreathed in a phantom white wolf, which howled as it sought to devour the Celestial Emperor!

But as the three attacks bore down upon him, the Celestial Emperor raised his head, golden blood flowing from his eyes and all his orifices. His blood swiftly changed color, a sign that his blood essence was dissipating. Yet, his bloodied eyes burned with madness.

“Impossible!” Jiu Di exclaimed, attempting to retract his attack, but it was too late. The Celestial Emperor was not truly absorbing the golden mist. It had all been a charade. The mist drawn into his orifices now surged forth, expelled outward.

With a wild laugh, the Celestial Emperor’s body swelled at an impossible rate before shattering, a suicidal act that took all by surprise. Even Jiu Di had not anticipated such a move. Though not cornered, the Celestial Emperor had chosen to detonate his corporeal form! The explosion of a Great Celestial Being, though merely of the flesh, held immense power. Its reverberations shook the Forbidden Palace, shattering the earth and collapsing the heavens. The force surged upward, engulfing the subterranean palace, demolishing the altars and pillars within. As the subterranean palace dissolved, the separate reality in which it existed, but overlapped with the Imperial Palace, merged with the Imperial City, unleashing a devastating shockwave that erupted from the Imperial Palace’s grand plaza.

The flagstones of the Imperial Palace shattered, cascading outward like waves, collapsing under the force of the blast. In an instant, the shockwave swept through the Imperial Palace, destroying countless structures and obliterating all within its path. Monks, warriors, all vanished without a trace. The roar of the devastation shook the very foundations of the Imperial City, instilling terror in the hearts of its inhabitants.

As the shockwave neared the statue of the Celestial Ancestor, the statue erupted with a blinding golden light. The light clashed against the destructive force, creating a thunderous cacophony that echoed throughout the Central Continent.

Within the ruined Forbidden Palace, at the epicenter of the cataclysm, fragments of the Celestial Emperor’s flesh shot toward Tao Yi, Wu Feng, and Jiu Di. The self-destruction could destroy the Imperial Palace, but it could not obliterate three Great Celestial Beings, especially when they acted in concert, amplifying their power. Yet, their actions had also doomed them, for as their divine abilities merged with the Celestial Emperor’s flesh, their essence became entwined with the self-destruction. It was as if all four were unleashing their greatest powers simultaneously, and the most vulnerable was not the three Great Celestial Beings, but the head of the Celestial Ancestor!

The Celestial Ancestor’s head was not weak, but with the fissure created by the Celestial Emperor, it was vulnerable. The self-destruction, combined with the force of the three Great Celestial Beings’ attacks, tore the head further apart. The fissure at the top of the head widened until, with a final, earth-shattering boom, it shattered completely.

As the head fractured, all four participants became susceptible to the Celestial Ancestor’s final curse. Tao Yi, the weakest, screamed as dark miasma enveloped him, rapidly decaying his handsome features. Wu Feng groaned as black energy withered his flesh.

Jiu Di, with his superior cultivation, resisted the curse, his skin manifesting strange, runic symbols.

The Celestial Emperor’s soul, however, persisted, though his body was destroyed. As the head shattered, his essence rushed toward the fissure, seeking the left eye, where Lian Dao Fei resided.

“I am the Celestial Emperor! I have always been prepared for this eventuality! Lian Dao Fei is my contingency! By seizing his body, I can mitigate the curse and inherit a portion of the Celestial Ancestor’s power. Victory will still be mine!” the Celestial Emperor’s soul roared, burning with vengeful intent, as he charged through the fissure.

But as he neared the left eye, preparing to seize Lian Dao Fei’s slumbering form, a shocking reversal occurred! The right eye of the Celestial Ancestor flashed open, and Wang Lin emerged! He had waited for this moment, the perfect opportunity to strike, like a hunter poised to capture his prey.

As Tao Yi screamed, Wu Feng retreated, and Jiu Di struggled against the curse, Wang Lin seized his chance, plunging into the left eye of the Celestial Ancestor’s head. The Twin Heavens, witnessing Wang Lin’s emergence, rejoiced, while Celestial Reverent Hai Zi felt a surge of elation. Wang Lin’s arrival was swift and decisive, just as the Celestial Emperor’s soul, ravaged by the curse, sought to possess Lian Dao Fei.

Wang Lin’s eyes gleamed with determination. Without hesitation, he unleashed a sweeping wave of his sleeve. The Celestial Emperor, weakened and ravaged by the curse, recognized Wang Lin and issued a terrifying shriek.

“You… You…” The Celestial Emperor’s scream conveyed utter dread. He had planned for every contingency, even to the point of a heroic last stand, but he had never anticipated Wang Lin’s survival!

Not only he, but Jiu Di, Tao Yi, and Wu Feng were equally astonished by Wang Lin’s sudden appearance.

With a wave of his sleeve, Wang Lin prevented the Celestial Emperor’s soul from reaching Lian Dao Fei’s body. Instead, Wang Lin’s power drew the soul into his grasp and imprisoned it within his storage space. Weakened and cursed, the Celestial Emperor was no longer a threat.

As Wang Lin secured the Celestial Emperor’s soul, the Celestial Ancestor’s head, weakened by the previous damage, fractured further.

Wang Lin, supporting the unconscious Lian Dao Fei, emerged from the left eye of the head, stepping out into the shattered landscape, and standing upon the shattered head. His white hair swiftly regained its former blackness. Black hair, black robes, black eyes!

“This treasure, this person, I claim them as mine!”