Beneath the celestial tapestry, Wang Lin drifted as a phantom, not directly towards Tian Yun, but guided by a subtle resonance, a silent quest to reunite with Lei Ji, Da Tou, and Ta Shan.

In the chaotic throes of battle, Wang Lin had been forced to abandon them to fate. The void had then swallowed him whole, leaving no trace. Only now, emerged from that silent abyss, did he find the respite needed to seek them out.

Even Ta Shan had vanished after the battle’s storm, though the Celestial Guard seal that bound them together whispered of his whereabouts. Wang Lin recalled the battle, assured that his companions had escaped its fury unscathed. With eyes closed, he unfurled his divine sense, and after a long, silent vigil, detected a familiar pulse in the East.

His face serene, Wang Lin opened his eyes and strode forward. The cosmos rippled beneath his feet, and he vanished into the starlit expanse.

“The Mountain Shattering Art… its power is immeasurable. Though Bai Fan’s three arts surpass it in subtlety, the raw strength of the Mountain Shattering Art is beyond comprehension… Mountain Shattering… what profound understanding birthed such a mighty technique within the Celestial Emperor’s mind? When, oh when, will I forge my own divine power, unique and unparalleled?”

Far to the East of Wang Lin, a colossal rock drifted through the void, a fragment of some shattered world. Its form was chaotic, and small shards broke away in its silent journey.

Faint trails of magical energy swirled around it like wisps of smoke, slowly dissipating into the void. An unremarkable rock, lost amidst the cosmic sea, drawing no special notice.

Within this stone, Ta Shan sat in silent meditation. Since their separation, a sense of desolation had consumed him, yet the Celestial Guard art of Qing Lin, though it merged his soul with his body, retained his sentience, far from the mindless existence of a mere puppet.

Sensing Wang Lin’s absence, Ta Shan had instinctively sought this colossal stone, burying himself within to meditate, awaiting his master’s return.

On this day, the meditating giant’s eyes snapped open, revealing an unwavering calm. In a blink, he emerged from the rock and stood upon its surface.

Before him, ripples spread across the starfield as Wang Lin stepped forth.

Ta Shan beheld Wang Lin, his expression unchanged, yet radiating respect.

A smile graced Wang Lin’s face, and with a beckoning hand, Ta Shan strode forward, dissolving into mist, disappearing behind his master.

“Now, for Da Tou and Lei Ji,” Wang Lin murmured, closing his eyes to focus on the echo of Da Tou’s essence within his soul. But after a long search, a frown etched itself upon his brow.

“Da Tou’s presence is fading, as if it could vanish at any moment.” Without hesitation, he strode into the starry expanse, vanishing into the void once more.

Far across the starfield, a massive figure stumbled, its body a tapestry of bloodied wounds. With each stride, more gashes opened, and crimson flowed.

Horrifically, along its spine, from the first to the seventh vertebra, festered deep pits radiating a ghastly green light. These same pits, multiplied into the dozens, marked the joints of the beast’s bones. Upon its shoulders clung a pale figure, unnaturally shaped with a head as large as a boulder atop a frail, diminutive body.

A putrid, black handprint marred the large-headed man’s back, oozing tendrils of black smoke that hissed against the silent void. The flesh beneath the handprint was rotting, sinking in, and only the man’s incredible will kept him from succumbing to the pain.

“Lei Ji, release me… flee, and save yourself,” the large-headed man rasped, black blood staining his lips, his eyes fading.

The hulking figure surged forward, its pace growing ever faster, punctuated by agonized grunts. “Da Tou, you were wounded protecting me, Lei Ji. As a member of the Gigantes, how could I abandon you? Besides, if I flee alone, do you think they will abandon their pursuit? I am their target! Be silent now, and focus on healing!”

Da Tou smiled bitterly, his eyes growing ever more distant. He saw his mother, years gone, calling to him with gentle eyes.

“Mother…” Da Tou whispered, a deathly chill enveloping him. The ghosts of his past swirled around him, the spirits of those he had slain in his thousand years of life as an assassin.

They appeared before him, their eyes fixed upon him with cold condemnation.

Da Tou shuddered, the cold sinking deep, chilling his body and soul. Memories of his childhood danced before him.

“Am I to depart so soon…? After a millennium of cultivation, am I to fade into nothing?” The black handprint pulsed with foulness, darkening the entirety of his back.

His eyes slowly closed, the cold stealing his senses.

“Da Tou, hold on! I believe our master will come for us!” Lei Ji’s roar echoed in his ears, shattering his descent into oblivion.

Da Tou jolted, forcing his eyes open, a weak smile upon his lips. “Is… is it so…?”

Behind Lei Ji, two thousand-foot figures relentlessly pursued. Giants thundered in their wake, their strides shaking the heavens.

Upon each giant’s brow was emblazoned an axe mark, shining with purpose. Their faces were cold masks, their eyes brimming with murderous intent.

Perched atop one giant sat a young man in blue robes, handsome but radiating an unsettling aura.

He leaned casually back, toying with a string of crimson cherries, casually popping them into his mouth, his eyes fixated on Lei Ji with mocking amusement and predatory intent.

“This young master’s chosen vessel has never escaped him in the Alliance Star System! To encounter a member of the Gigantes royal family on a simple outing… How fortuitous!”

“The old fools at home warned me not to venture out during these chaotic times. If I had heeded their words, I would have missed such a treasure!” The young man spat out a cherry pit, which transformed into a green skull that rushed toward Lei Ji’s eighth vertebrae.

But as the skull was about to strike, a hand emerged from the void, seizing and crushing the skull. Wang Lin, his voice chilling, stepped from the void.

“How dare you attempt to harm my mount and servant!”

“Master!” Lei Ji turned, astounded.

“Master!” Da Tou’s eyes snapped open, filled with unspeakable joy.