The Stars Beyond

Chapter 530: A Great Trouble Looming

After slaying an Earth Immortal and armed with two formidable treasures, Wang Xuan stood wary and wounded. His physical form, spirit, and inner landscape bore cracks—mostly self-inflicted in a grim ritual to foster a new spirit by tearing away the old.

The universe around him was enshrouded in a dense fog that ordinary spacecraft could not penetrate, a fog composed of high-grade supernatural matter. This fog, identified by the Sword Immortal, carried an oppressive aura that unsettled the nerves.

Clutching the Life Essence Furnace tightly, Wang Xuan kept a vigilant watch. Those daring to approach him now were either the mightiest of normal beings or unparalleled fallen spirits.

With his spiritual eye wide open, he scanned the void. The fog revealed nothing, intensifying his grim expression. Suddenly, a blinding beam of light shot towards him—a small spacecraft had appeared in the distance and opened fire. Under normal circumstances, such an attack could obliterate a transcendent being of the present world.

The Life Essence Furnace erupted in golden ripples, sweeping out and causing a cataclysmic explosion in the distance. Wang Xuan and the Sword Immortal shifted sideways, swiftly moving from their original location.

"Xiong Er, take it down!" Wang Xuan shouted. His psychic shout should have reached the nearby Mechanical Bear, but there was no response.

Beneath the strange fog, their silver spacecraft had vanished without a trace. Meanwhile, the Mechanical Bear, dripping with metallic cold sweat, was petrified. Not far from it, an ancient and massive spaceship hovered like a continent adrift, its imposing presence striking terror into the bear's heart.

It recognized this vessel: a true mothership related to another universe, a behemoth that could easily crush its modestly modified remains of an ancient scout ship.

Ahead, a massive spaceship as dark as ink and vast as a range of steel mountains spanned across the starry sky, instilling a soul-deep terror in the Mechanical Bear.

"What's the origin of that?" Wang Xuan couldn't see the distant mothership, primarily due to the dense fog that enshrouded everything.

After a brief volley, several smaller spacecraft retreated.

"This fog is a formation!" Sword Immortal Jiang Qingyao spoke up.

Wang Xuan felt increasingly uneasy, his focus sharpening as he also gauged whether he could sustain a prolonged battle. His condition was peculiar; the three light particles were visible but hadn't fully transformed into a new spirit, fresh flesh essence, or inner scenery. They emerged prematurely, still dormant.

He reflected with a tinge of regret, coerced into action today out of desperation. Without releasing the light particles, he would have been utterly defeated, unable to withstand the Immortal-level fallen spirit.

He had a sense that his old external spirit was meant to decay with this mythic era while the new spirit was supposed to wait, hibernate, and eventually break through the eternal darkness of the future.

Now, everything was in disarray, and he was unsure of the consequences this might trigger. The light particles were slowly fading, seemingly returning to "soil," not yet ready to sprout roots.

As danger drew nearer, Wang Xuan sighed, caught in a challenging situation where, despite his desire for calm, the storm raged on. As time passed, he felt an increasingly suffocating sensation.

He sensed icy eyes observing him from the shadows, eluding even his spiritual eye, which was truly terrifying.

"I need to go to the Void," Wang Xuan communicated privately to Sword Immortal Jiang Qingyao, pressing down hard on the lid of the Life Essence Furnace. He planned to isolate the Ascension Banner inside it, cutting it off from the world.

With various conjectures swirling in his mind, he felt a deep unrest. Hearing his words, Jiang Qingyao's expression also darkened, reflecting the gravity of their plight.

In an instant, the Life Essence Furnace disappeared, and Wang Xuan found himself standing on the native soil. However, just at that moment, terrifying waves emanated from the distance, as if a galaxy was crashing towards him.

Wang Xuan felt as though his body was about to burst. His complexion shifted drastically, and he instinctively retreated, activating the furnace. With a thunderous blast, he directed it towards the distance and momentarily saw a vague outline of a man, tall and imposing.

Although it was but a fleeting glimpse, the man exuded an overwhelming pressure, like ten thousand mountains bearing down, suffocating the soul.

Just as quickly, the figure vanished, and the surrounding area was once again engulfed in thick fog, silent as the grave.

“He’s blocking me!” Wang Xuan's heart pounded fiercely. That man had a profound confidence, appearing and disappearing in a flash, undaunted even though Wang Xuan wielded a supreme treasure.

“He looks unfamiliar, I've never seen him before!” murmured Jiang Qingyao, her Purple Celestial Dao Sword glowing like a purple sun, dispelling the nearby dark mists.

With a swift motion, the Sword Immortal slashed, her purple sword light soaring like a swath of the Milky Way, tearing through the void and striking towards the front right.

There, only the empty shadows and surging fog remained, the supermaterial waves crashing like mighty ocean waves.

“He’s too fast, terrifyingly powerful, and stronger than an Immortal spirit possessing the fruit of an Earth Immortal!” Jiang Qingyao's mood was heavy, her usually optimistic nature struggling to find a smile in this grim moment.

......

As the news leaked, Qi Tian's followers, some old friends and others ordinary immortals he had recruited, could not keep the secret. Like a winged messenger, the news swiftly spread to all corners.

"What? Wang Xuan has slain the Evil Dragon? He's in the mortal realm and personally killed a powerful land immortal? Am I hearing this right? This world has gone mad!" When the outer world received the news, disbelief was rampant. The notion that someone could kill a land immortal, a pinnacle of real-world strength, seemed unfathomable.

The Immortal beings felt overwhelmed. After their return to the mortal realm, many couldn't even preserve the fruits of the Dao of Carefree Living, let alone reach the heights of a land immortal.

"Yan Yan, be wary of Evil Spirits. These creatures are always restless. Today, young Wang has slain a land immortal-level Evil Spirit possessing Qi Tian," even the parents of the demon lord were contacting outsiders, cautioning their daughter and warning old friends.

"You’re saying what? Little Wang took down Qi Tian, no, he killed the supreme Evil Spirit within Qi Tian?" Old Zhang was flustered.

Ming Xue, the Hades Blood Patriarch, was shocked, "Good heavens, the human world has indeed turned upside down. Wang Xuan has become so powerful that not even a land immortal can suppress him; instead, he’s the one doing the harvesting now."

Although they were all extraordinary Immortals, they couldn’t discuss the future of the transcendental world with those holding supreme treasures like Fang Yuzhu and others. Now, their minds were somewhat dazed, and even the demon lord was stunned as if she were listening to a myth. This news was too shocking for her.

"A mortal, Wang Xuan, has killed a supreme Immortal?" In deep space, aboard various spacecraft, whether from lands of immortality or those aligned with science and life, everyone was astonished.

Clearly, from this day forward, Wang Xuan's act of killing a supreme Immortal in the mortal realm would spread far and wide, leaving a profound mark before the collapse of the mythic era.

This event had a far-reaching impact. Even as the transcendental era was drawing to a close, it shook hearts. Both acquaintances and strangers would remember the name Wang Xuan.

Even many years later, when some had become mere mortals, scattered across the cosmos, reminiscing about the old times and discussing masters of the human and Immortal realms, they would recall the name Wang Xuan.

"I’ll be damned, Wang Xuan, no, Patriarch Wang has really defied the heavens this time!" Huang Ming couldn't help but marvel at the news he'd received so swiftly, thanks to his excellent connections across the major factions within the curtain.

At the Exiled Immortals' Tea House in the Old Earth, business was booming as countless transcendent beings rushed over, nearly all skeptical of the news. "Huang Ming, you're not spreading rumors, are you? Wang Xuan killed a supreme Immortal? How is that possible?" a round-faced girl gasped in disbelief. It seemed only moments ago that the man was merely mortal.

"You can ask the Demon Lord if you don't believe me. I got this directly from the Hades Blood Patriarch himself; they've already returned to the Old Earth!" Huang Ming explained.

"Amitabha," chanted a ghostly monk, seemingly calm, yet his hand shook slightly, splashing tea from his cup upon hearing the news.

The Demon Four were speechless, once again thinking of the Demon Emperor. Qi Lian Daoist was tongue-tied, wondering if he'd have to lower himself and call him Grandmaster Wang the next time they met. Surely, he couldn't just call him 'uncle.'

Zhou Qinghuang adjusted her glasses, her heart restless. "Is this for real?" she exchanged looks with Gu Mingxi, both rendered speechless. That man, in an era of depletion, had kept breaking through, making it all seem so unreal.

In the lands of Immortality, Divinity, and Science and Life, powerhouses from all three realms were momentarily speechless upon hearing the news. Particularly those supreme deities and immortal beings who had once clashed with Wang Xuan or had their earthly incarnations slain by him, silently cautioned themselves to hold back their hostility. "The past... let it be, it wasn't the true self that died anyway."

From that day forward, Wang Xuan's name echoed through the transcendent world. Regardless of whether the epoch was ending, or what future the myths held, this battle shook the cosmos, and gradually, his name spread far and wide.

It was also on this day that Wang Xuan faced the greatest crisis of his life, standing at the crossroads of fate—a pivotal moment in his life's journey.

Most were unaware that on the day Wang Xuan slew the Immortal, he encountered a formidable enemy. Deep in the cosmos, the Purple Dawn Conjunction Sword cleaved through space, but once again it struck nothing. Even Sword Immortal Jiang Qingyao, only slightly less powerful than an Immortal and wielding a fractured sacred artifact, could not pinpoint the enemy.

"Could it be an Evil Spirit?" Jiang Qingyao murmured softly.

"Hard to say," Wang Xuan replied, shaking his head, a shadow of unease crossing his mind. The enemy seemed to anticipate his moves, thwarting his attempts to dispatch the treasures into the void. Each time he made for the void, he was disrupted, narrowly escaping assassination.

The mist surged, the array activated, and the adversary remained composed, appearing and disappearing at a rhythm that seemed practiced and unerring.

"He’s not afraid of the treasures I wield!" Wang Xuan's anxiety deepened as he clutched the lid of the Life Nurturing Furnace tightly. Though the furnace was awkward to use, it provided him some confidence; it wouldn't backfire on him.

He harbored suspicions, fearing the Ascension Banner more than the furnace, hence his attempt to rid himself of it, but without success. For now, he had no choice but to seal it within the furnace.

"The Ascension Banner, an ominous relic. Every owner has met with a dire end; none have survived its curse. And now, it's in my hands..." Wang Xuan muttered to himself.

With a thunderous roar, he once again spurred the Life Nurturing Furnace into action, having spotted a trace of the enemy. He pursued with the sacred artifact in hand. However, the swirling fog thinned, and Wang Xuan found himself grasping at air once more. The treasure unleashed its might, ripples expanding through the void, striking nothing.

"He's studying me, not rushing to strike. He's too confident," Wang Xuan realized, his heart sinking. The enemy was simply in no hurry to attack. They do not fear him.

“I feel like he’s surpassed even a Immortal in the real world by one minor realm,” Jiang Qingyao said bitterly.

“That seems about right,” Wang Xuan nodded, his voice tinged with a sigh. His condition was far from ideal; he had just survived a fierce battle that left him severely wounded.

Suddenly, with a hum, his inner landscape involuntarily opened, and through it, a pair of cold, scrutinizing eyes seemed to peer, examining the state within.

Wang Xuan, both shocked and angry, unleashed the power of his sacred artifact again. But once more, his attack met only empty space, the void exploding massively, torn apart into many black rifts, with no trace of the enemy.

Previously, only the transcendent Evil Spirit that had possessed Qi Tian had managed to achieve this feat, silently opening his inner landscape.

That was because the Evil Spirit had completely mastered all of Qi Tian’s unique traits, essentially possessing a special inner landscape of its own.

Moreover, at that time, the "Qi Tian" possessed by the spirit was far more advanced in realm than Wang Xuan.

Today, for Wang Xuan, who could slay a Immortal in the real world, it was nearly impossible for that Evil Spirit within Qi Tian to manipulate his inner landscape.

“Who is this?” Even Sword Immortal Jiang Qingyao was startled, the ease with which this entity could manipulate Wang Xuan’s unique inner landscape was truly frightening.

“I must admit I’m somewhat disappointed. Your flesh, soul, and inner landscape all bear traces of decay, and although your vitality still far surpasses other transcendent beings of this mythic era, it still falls short of my expectations,” the mysterious figure spoke, his voice cold and detached.

As Wang Xuan once again attempted to harness his sacred artifact, there was a resounding clang—the lid of the furnace shook violently. He couldn’t seal it, couldn’t suppress it; his hands gripping the furnace were bloodied and torn, blood flowing freely.

Clang!

The lid of the furnace was blown off, unstoppable, as a vast force like a surging ocean erupted from the mouth of the furnace, spewing forth Immortal light that dispersed the thick fog.

The Ascension Banner surged forth, fully revived and activated. It blazed with dazzling Immortal mists as it flew into the hands of a man in the starry sky, who grasped it firmly.

“The true master of the Ascension Banner, he had fully assimilated it long ago—it was never truly Qi Tian's!” Jiang Qingyao was profoundly shaken by this revelation.

Wang Xuan, his hands bloodied, clutched the Life Furnace and stared at the stranger, a man he did not recognize, a man he had never seen before.

The mysterious man was strikingly handsome, around thirty years old, with a tall and commanding presence. His vitality surged like the sea, overwhelming and imposing, exerting an unimaginable pressure.

“Is he an Evil Spirit?” Jiang Qingyao asked.

Using his spiritual third eye, Wang Xuan observed closely and immediately dismissed the idea. “No, he is not!”

The radiance of the man's soul was more brilliant than the blazing sun, far too luminous to possess any traits of an Evil Spirit.

Yet, within the blinding brilliance of his divine soul, there were faint traces of decay, giving an overall impression of an insurmountable mountain of the Immortal dao, oppressively powerful.