The moment the Three Pure Ones appeared, the outcome of this battle was already decided.

With just one finger, they made the stars dim into darkness.

Heaven and earth fell into disorder and gloom. Every Dao Law within the Nether Realm was seemingly sealed away as streams of light carrying endless destructive force wove across each other and slowly descended toward that figure.

No one even had time to cry out.

In fact, aside from people like Mu Wanxuan, who had been watching Wang Sheng the entire time, most didn't even manage to catch a glimpse of the flickering band of light.

Wang Sheng didn't hesitate in the slightest despite feeling the indescribable force of destruction—a force that carried some fundamental truth of heaven and earth within it—rushing toward him. He gathered all his enchanted power, primal qi, sword intent, essence, vitality, spirit, and Great Dao into the Great Dao of Creation, turning everything into shackles that tightly locked Feng Jiu's desperately struggling soul within him.

This was not how Wang Sheng had imagined things beforehand.

He had never fully understood Feng Jiu's schemes. From the very start, his only plan had been to approach her no matter the cost. As long as he could trap Feng Jiu, he would immediately use the Heavenly Tribulation Sword Intent to draw the attention of the Three Pure Ones.

If even this plan failed to destroy Feng Jiu, Wang Sheng truly had nothing left.

He had intended to sacrifice himself and perish with Feng Jiu. Now, that was exactly what he was doing.

He did not know whether the Three Pure Ones would spare him, nor did he know what awaited him afterward, but he had no other choice.

This truly was the only way to defeat Feng Jiu.

She had already calculated every step. Long ago, she had placed layers upon layers of restraints around Earth. Every moment of seemingly effortless success Wang Sheng experienced before this, along with every strange response from her faction, had all been part of her plan.

The goal had always been to replace Wang Sheng, recreate the legend of the Immortal Emperor, and achieve complete unification of the Immortal Saint Realm and the four great sky regions.

Her entire plan was like using a nuclear bomb against a coughing baby.

Yet today, Feng Jiu had finally stumbled.

Ah... I feel so unwilling.

Wang Sheng's consciousness blurred slightly as a phantasm seemingly appeared before him.

The figure stood with its back to him, staring calmly at the approaching destruction.

Despite its strange appearance, it... was probably a woman.

Time itself seemed frozen. She turned to Wang Sheng, a bitter smile forming on her lips and deep unwillingness filling her eyes.

"Wang Sheng, do you know how much I sacrificed to sever this world's connection to the Sea of Dao Laws?"

Wang Sheng remained silent. The shackles he had created unleashed their full potential, transforming into golden chains that tightly wrapped around the woman.

In truth, his worry had been a bit unnecessary.

Feng Jiu laughed bitterly. She seemed as though she wanted to say more, but the destructive force had already reached them.

Long ago, the same scene had once taken place in the Heavenly Court.

Now, after endless years, a single finger from the Three Pure Ones was once again using the most primordial power of heaven and earth to erase a living being within the Nether Realm.

It didn't matter even if one was the Immortal Emperor.

When erased at the level of Dao Laws themselves, there was no real difference between him and a comparatively new cultivator like Wang Sheng.

"Wang Sheng!"

Senior Sister... What are you crying for...

A pitch-black crack tore open across the sky of the Nether Realm. The end of it swallowed a figure, making it disappear completely. Not even ashes were left behind.

Across every battlefield, Feng Jiu's subordinates froze before instantly collapsing into piles of ash. Meanwhile, feeling their enchanted power returning, her allies finally turned and fled.

The phantasms of the Three Pure Ones stood above the crack in midair.

The old man in the center slowly raised his hand with visible effort and drew a simple symbol. Right after, all living beings in the Nether Realm suddenly gained insight into the full chain of events.

Beyond this great heaven and earth, this universe, there existed other great heavens and earths—other universes.

One such universe had suddenly fallen silent. It lost all life and vitality before imploding. Within it, a phantasm absorbed countless points of light, broke through some mysterious restraint, and rushed into a dazzling river of stars.

This was the true origin of the Immortal Emperor—of Feng Jiu. The experts of the Nether Realm already knew most of the events that followed.

What they truly cared about was what had just happened.

Wang Sheng and Erlang had been fighting Feng Jiu together when Feng Jiu used a scheme to separate Erlang. Alone, Wang Sheng struggled desperately.

Then came Spiritless's sudden betrayal, Feng Jiu's mockery, and her sinister plan to replace Wang Sheng. She wanted to turn "Wang Sheng killing Feng Jiu" into an established truth and then use his form to push her onto the throne of the Immortal Emperor in one move.

The Heavenly Court's former forces and Earth's cultivators, who had limitless potential, around Wang Sheng would have all become the foundation of the new Immortal Emperor. The depth of that plan and the malice behind it rendered the immortals speechless for a long while.

Wang Sheng then grasped Spiritless, comprehended the Heavenly Tribulation Sword Intent, drew the gaze of the Three Pure Ones, and used the Dao of Creation to completely lock Feng Jiu inside him. Finally, he calmly faced death and perished together with her.

Even the immortals who were just slightly sentimental could not help but sigh deeply.

Mu Wanxuan stood frozen in midair. She had already unleashed the Great Dao of Life and long prepared the supreme revival technique, but she could not find even the smallest fragment of her junior brother's soul to use it on.

At that moment, the old man among the Three Pure Ones drew another symbol in the air.

***

Just a moment earlier, there had only been emptiness; blankness stretched endlessly in every direction.

Wang Sheng floated within that emptiness. His thoughts had yet to return, and his consciousness remained muddled and shapeless.

Finally, he heard a soft voice.

"Fei Yu, Fei Yu?"

Instinctively, Wang Sheng looked toward the sound. A wash of green rapidly spread across his vision. By the time he regained his senses, he found himself standing within a tranquil mountain valley.

The stream sounded softly as it flowed past. The wind howled, then faded into a gentle whisper.

Snowy mountains could vaguely be seen in the distance, yet when he raised his head, all he saw above was a sky veiled in drifting mist.

Without warning, Wang Sheng tensed. Before he could even make sense of what was happening, he instinctively reached for a sword that was no longer there. He could not feel the slightest trace of strength in himself.

Beside him stood Feng Jiu, who still looked like the Queen Mother. Her expression remained vacant. Clearly, she had not fully regained her consciousness either.

Without hesitation, Wang Sheng lunged forward and punched her right in the face.

To his surprise, that single blow knocked her flat to the ground due to her current condition. The sensation of flesh against his fist felt completely real

What is going on? Didn't the Three Pure Ones already annihilate us out of existence with just one finger?

Feng Jiu lowered her head and coughed several times before sucking in a sharp breath. Shock immediately showed in her expression.

Before she could speak, he punched her again. He was clearly the type to punch first and ask questions later. Giving her no time to react, he hit her all over, especially the face.

Half a day later, Wang Sheng panted heavily as he stared at the woman before him. He had turned her face into a bloody mess, yet the vigilance in his eyes did not lessen in the slightest.

A streak of white light swept past. Feng Jiu's fading aura quietly recovered, and her wounds vanished without a trace. She regained her peerlessly elegant appearance, though her long dress remained rather plain.

The moment Wang Sheng raised his fist again and prepared to charge forward, someone instructed from behind him, "That's enough. For now, come over here. Don't keep the people who care about you waiting too long."

Wang Sheng froze with his fist still raised. For reasons he could not explain, his eyes reddened. He could only stand blankly.

Feng Jiu, who still lay on the ground, trembled violently. She covered her eyes and broke into sobs, tears streaming down her face.

Wang Sheng turned toward the source of the voice.

At some point, a simple grass hut had appeared behind him. Though the world around it remained a vast field of white emptiness, the flowers blooming around the hut and the pale grass swaying nearby gradually spread through Wang Sheng's vision.

A young lady stood before the hut.

She had on a flower crown and a pure-white dress. With her head tilted slightly to one side, she rested her hands behind her back and smiled at Wang Sheng.

T-that face...

Wang Sheng had seen her many times before, when he inherited the Great Dao of Creation. His memory of her was unforgettable.

"In a way, you could say you're my son, too."

Wang Sheng didn't know what to say.

"Come inside quickly. We don't have much time here, and I still have more important things to do."

"You are...?"

The young lady had already turned to walk toward the hut. She glanced back as she replied. "Nuwa. Right now, only my 'intent' remains. The way you see and hear me depends on how you have subconsciously envisioned me. What? Did you imagine me as some old grandmother?"

"Well... you really are..." He had used the formal address without realizing it.

"So polite all of a sudden, my eldest son."

Wang Sheng was still completely dazed.

In a haze, he followed her into the grass hut and sat before a counter covered in fresh flowers and wine cups. He watched the young lady bustle about behind the counter.

Feng Jiu walked over with her head lowered. She then knelt on the floor and quietly choked back sobs.

Wang Sheng said nothing. He accepted the teacup that the young lady handed him and downed it in one gulp.

"Get up, Feng Jiu," the young lady instructed softly as she sat across from Wang Sheng. Her feet seemed to sway lightly beneath the seat. "You have worked very hard, Fei Yu. I watched you always do your best. As for you, Feng."

The woman kneeling on the ground trembled several times.

"It seems you broke the agreement between us."

"My Lady, I—"

The young lady gently interjected, "I actually don't mind that you wanted to become the Immortal Emperor. I also don't oppose your struggle against the Three Pure Ones. In some ways, they're selfish people, too. However, you sealed away Fei Yu and even tried to become him yourself. Don't you think that was going a little too far?"

"My Lady, I thought you had already..."

"Ceased to exist, is that it?" Nuwa sighed faintly. "Your disregard and disrespect toward life have made it impossible for me to forgive you this time. Still, the spirits who followed you to our side are innocent. I won't give you a chance to survive, but I will allow you to atone for them. Go to the pool over there. You should be able to comprehend what to do."

Feng Jiu trembled several more times. After choking back another sob, she slowly rose to her feet. She bowed respectfully to the young lady seated before Wang Sheng, then turned and walked toward the shallow square pool that had suddenly appeared within the corner of the hut.

He felt as though the pool had always been there, just that no one had noticed it before.

Far too many things here defied logic. Wang Sheng felt he would actually find it more strange to come across something logical here.

Soon, a hazy divine radiance slowly emerged from the water.