Gathering of Elites

"How did you get your hands on such a flawless transformation magical ability?"

Feng Wu Shuang inquired as they flew across the sky.

"I obtained the inheritance of Tian Mo."

Cat Hou Hui didn't conceal. Causing Feng Wu Shuang's incredulous eyes to fall upon the small creature within her grasp.

"The Tian Mo?"

"Does anyone else dare use that name?"

Although his light was, in this era, eclipsed by Tian Tu's, Tian Mo was still a legendary figure that immortals and even deities could only look up to. But upon hearing his confirmation, fear grew evident within Feng Wu Shuang's phoenix eyes.

"Are you also planning to become a saint?"

"In the future, I shall. But for now, perfecting my immortal dao is more important."

Although the Demonic Realm had been subjugated, cultivating the holy path was still forbidden within the Heavenly World. To embark on such a road under the eyes of the Heavenly Emperor was no different than courting death.

For an instant, Feng Wu Shuang remained silent.

"Although saints are more powerful than immortals in the equivalent realms, their existence goes against heaven's will, so they have many limitations. With your talent and foundation, as long as you can solve your issue and break through the Great Dao Immortal Realm, you are destined to become a God-Emperor upon deification. In time, you can certainly become a Supreme God. Why bother?"

She pursued with a crease of worry across her eyebrows.

Having learned that he successfully reached wielding in five paths and had laid the foundation to cultivate a sixth, she had no doubt that he would one day become a Supreme God. That being the case, she didn't understand why he would frustrate himself with the woes of the holy path.

While saints were usually more powerful than immortals at the same level, the prices they paid for their strength was not negligible. If Immortals were the disciples of heaven's will, saints were the rebels.

Their ability to transform spiritual qi into holy qi alone was already the source of many tribulations.

"Let's not worry about that for now. Do you want first to join the phoenix clan's group? I can help you snatch a coffin."

"Do you think the bird alliance cannot even snatch one coffin? With all the preparations that have been made and all the deals that have been struck, I don't believe they will fail to get at least one."

She reasoned.

But Hou Hui wasn't as optimistic.

"It's not that I look down on your bird alliance, it's you who underestimate the dragon clan. Because of the war of one hundred thousand years ago, you all seem to think that the dragon clan's glory relies solely on my imperial father and uncle. In fact, even without them, the dragon clan can easily suppress the Celestial Realm."

…...

Meanwhile, Long Ming had once again emerged from unconsciousness and was shocked to see Long Wei standing by his side.

"Imperial brother…"

But before he could finish his sentence, Long Wei tossed a spatial pouch toward him.

"Those are the supplies imperial mother specifically prepared for you. Take a healing pill and cleanse your mind of all its negativity. Remember, your future hangs on the success of this operation."

Their father never jested. They knew that better than anyone. If they failed to bring back all the six coffins, Long Ming's future was in jeopardy.

Long Ming grabbed the spatial pouch and pulled out a healing pill which he tossed into his mouth. And in the blink of an eye, the many wounds he had suffered were mended.

Still, he remained dispirited.

"If it's about getting four coffins, I have full confidence. But are the other divine clans so feeble that they cannot even get their hands on one or two? Even if they individually are, can't they cooperate? How is this task different than direct expulsion?"

He complained with his eyes glued onto the ground. His father's words had crushed what remained of his spirit and made sure that he would have a hard time pulling himself together.

"Utter nonsense. Have you forgotten who you are? Have you forgotten who we are?"

"We are the dragon clan! The noblest race of the three realms! As long as the surname Long hangs above our heads, there is nothing we cannot accomplish!"

Long Wei proclaimed with irresistible force.

"So stop mopping around like a wronged little girl. Stand up, straighten your back and keep your chin up; for it is time we dragon princes remind the three realms why we reign!"

Within Long Ming, those words rekindled the arrogance and fighting spirit that had been subverted by the recent events. He rose, and his silver eyes shimmered with domineering light.

"Yes, imperial brother!"

...

Worried about her elder brother and wanting to see why Hou Hui was so confident in the dragon's ability to suppress all sides, Feng Wu Shuang headed toward the bird alliance's first team.

The competition always took place at the "grave of Xuan Yuan," the place where he was butchered by Tian Mo.

Across the eons following his demise, the dragon clan had tried to conceal, distort and erase the truth. But the three realms dearly clung onto the memory of the day a Heavenly Emperor was slaughtered like a pig for all to see.

It was a colossal mountain range stretching across fifty thousand miles with three main peaks and a countless number of hidden caves.

Floating above the highest peak were six ordinary looking wooden coffins shrouded in multicolor fog.

And while they appeared defenseless, a terrifying barrier prevented anyone from approaching them.

Aligned only a few miles away were three disproportionate groups that stood in perfect opposition. On one hand, the fish and serpent clans stood side by side and on the other hand was the bird alliance which had already gathered its immortal troops and was eager to start.

Alas, the key to breaking the barrier was within the hands of the dragon clan so they could only gnaw on their impatience. At the helm of the bird alliance team were Feng Wu Chen and Kong Ren. But although they shared leadership, it was clear that Feng Wu Chen was the one who called the shots.

The bird alliance team was composed of their elite immortals less than five thousand years old. They numbered around three hundred with two hundred peak stage Life Immortals, seventy-five early stage Dao Revelation Immortals, and twenty-five middle stage Dao Revelation Immortals.

The serpent and fish clans did not come with such numbers. The serpent clan came with a hundred and fifty immortals while the fish clans only brought fifty. Of the three main branches of the serpent, the ba branch had been considerably weakened by Si Wang She's death and was still in recovery so they could not bring out their full force. As for the fish clan, they had always bottomed out among the great clans. Their resources were limited.

But unlike the bird alliance, they had brought their most outstanding beneath the age of ten thousand.

"Odd. Why did the bird alliance only bring this motley crew? Do they really expect to compete for the coffins with such a team?"

Jiu Fang You wondered as her violet slit gaze scrutinized the bird alliance's team.

Age was an important demarcation line in the path of immortality. Although the seven sons of heaven and nine celestial fairies were the most outstanding among the immortals less than five thousand years old, they were after all way too young.

The number of older immortals capable of suppressing them with ease was, at best, enormous. It was their vast potential, not their current strength that the world praised.

With that in mind, it was evident that the main players would be those immortals in the range of five to ten thousand.

But the bird alliance had brought none whatsoever.

"They must be decoys. Their main team must be lying in ambush and will certainly have the likes of Peng Yuan."

Said the man on her right. He was a purple-haired youth that stood tall at six feet with powerful musculature, a square face, and violet slit eyes. He was Jiu Fang You's older cousin Jiu Fang Kui. More than seven thousand years old, although in the past he had failed to become a son of heaven, his talent wasn't much lower than Ba Zu's, and he had already broken through the Great Dao Immortal Realm.

Therefore, he paid no heed to the likes of Feng Wu Chen and Kong Ren.

Were they more talented than him? Certainly.

Could they receive three of his blows? Perhaps in a thousand years.

At that time, Feng Wu Shuang's appeared by her elder brother's side.

"You're late."

But then his gaze fell on the three-eyed white cat within her grasp from which he could feel great fluctuations of truth laws and he frowned.

"Where did you find such a rare truth law beast?"

"I picked it in the street."

Feng Wu Shuang leisurely replied and turned to face a group of incoming beams of light.

But it wasn't the only one. Several groups of light beams rushed from all the corners of the Heavenly World to hover in the vicinity of the coffins. Once the lights faded, several clans were revealed.

The lion clan's group.

The tiger clan's group.

The tortoise clan's group.

Afterward, the snail clan's group also made its entrance. Except for the snail and fish clans, most divine clans were around the same level of strength.

So, in normal times, the deals that had been established beforehand would determine the outcome of the contest.

This time, however, there were some variables.

From within the starry sky, two dazzling red and green meteors descended onto the Heavenly World's atmosphere and stopped right above the heads of the gathered immortals.

From one of those meteors emanated enormous, unbearable pressure which came crashing on the immortals that hanged below. In a red and green haze, those meteors were replaced by two distinct groups both numbering in the hundreds.

At the left were various young men and women dressed in the same black robes embroidered with red clouds. Leading them was a middle-aged man who stood tall at more than six feet with sword-like eyebrows, a straight nose, and eyes as dark as night. Vast divine power undulated around his form and made clear his status.

He was the origin of the pressure that weighed so heavily on the gathered immortals.

He was a demon god.

At the right, was a gathering of mild-mannered youths dressed in the same light green attire who methodically stood behind a white-haired old man with bright green eyes and a presence in perfect harmony with nature.

"Flame Demon Emperor, is it necessary to make things difficult for a bunch of juniors?"

Asked the green-eyed old man.

"Humph! This emperor is merely testing the will of the new generation of immortals. Is it possible that they cannot even bear this little bit of pressure!"

But as the ones bearing the pressure, the immortals inwardly cursed.

"Bastard! How could a god act so shamelessly?"

"No consideration for face!"

"The world is truly better off without those demonic hounds!"

In particular, the likes of Feng Wu Chen, Kong Ren, and Jiu Fang You were fuming. With their honorable statuses, had they ever suffered such blatant suppression?

The mixture between the rubbing of their gritted teeth and their blazing eyes was a delight to the Flame Demon Emperor.

"What? Dissatisfied? Are you qualified to show dissatisfaction? Didn't your elders teach you that only reverence was permissible in front of deities?"

He mocked.

Meanwhile, protected by Hou Hui's truth laws, Feng Wu Shuang remained undisturbed.

But to avoid bringing attention to the two of them, she mimicked her fellow immortals in their show of dissatisfaction.

"Flame Demon Emperor?"

Hou Hui pondered and thought of Tian Mo's father. Naturally, it couldn't be the same person.

"It seems the pressure is not enough. Let me increase it!"

The Flame Demon Emperor exclaimed and was about to follow his words with actions when a gigantic Taiji diagram appeared within the sky.

Emerging from it was a group of immortals dressed in silver robes embroidered with golden flying dragons.

With tyrannical golden and silver eyes that gave respect to none and formidable auras that clearly stood out of the leagues of the gathered youths, each and every single one of them looked like a young hegemon.

Leading them was a handsome middle-aged man with black and white hairs bound in a topknot and a large Guan Yu like beard.

And with a wave of his sleeves, the pressure weighing on the immortals collapsed.

"Zui Gao!"

The Flame Demon Emperor roared with soaring resentment and hatred.

"Hao Yan. Long time no see."

But unlike Hao Yan, Zui Gao showed no mood fluctuation.

"Zui Gao, do you dare fight this emperor?!"

The visceral hatred Hao Yan bore for Zui Gao stemmed from the events of a hundred thousand years ago. At that time, the Demonic Realm was at the height of its power while the Celestial Realm had declined. Rather, it wasn't the Celestial Realm, but the imperial dragon clan that was showing signs of frailty.

Then the Demonic Realm received news that the Heavenly Emperor Tian Yi died trying to cross a cosmic tribulation!

Immediately, they dispatched troops, sending a vast horde of demon saints led by powerful demon gods to annex the Celestial World! Among the divine clans, the bird alliance chose to protect itself and stand aside, leaving the remaining clans to fend for themselves!

With the power vacuum thus created, the Demonic Realm's armies advanced unfettered onto the Heavenly World. At the doorstep of the Heavenly World, they met the dragon clan's troops and battled the four dragon kings in a clash that lasted for an entire month.

But when the dragon kings were finally defeated, and the dragon clan's armies showed signs of collapse, the unthinkable happened.

Zui Gao, the then eldest prince of the imperial dragon clan, emerged from the Heavenly World no longer a Great Dao Immortal but a God-Emperor, and by himself suppressed the saints and gods of the Demonic Realm!

Hao Yan's father, the then Flame Demon Emperor, died in his hands.

Subsequently, what should have been a smooth conquest turned into the Demonic Realm's greatest shame and nightmare. With Zui Gao buying him time, Tian Tu achieved deification, and at one fell swoop became the three realms' only Supreme God!

And while his elder brother suppressed the demonic armies, he dived into the Holy Demon World to slaughter its three sovereigns!