Divine Awakening

Two armies of the same size clashed against each other, the pitch-black banners and azure eagles of the Black Fiend and Grand Asura Nations could be seen across the battlefield. The Grand Asura Nation was clearly winning with its organised tactical formations that utilised ranged profound attacks while the Black Fiend Attack's forces simply charged forwards with brute force.

It didn't help that the Grand Asura Nation was holding a chokepoint, forcing the Black Fiend Nation to go through Grand Asura Nation's vanguard very slowly to the point where Grand Asura Nation's ranged forces were simply devastating.

The way that armies worked in the Profound Sky Continent was that everyone beneath the Sky Profound Realm was considered a soldier. After all, they fought on the ground. Those above the Earth Profound Realm were experts who'd face each other in the sky... but rarely intervene in the battle below. It was a strange rule... but a rule people followed nevertheless.

It was even seen as despicable for a Sky Profound Realm profound practitioner or above to slay a soldier.

"It seems that you've lost in both ways, Chang." Jin Zhihao stated in an indifferent tone as he looked at the battle from above.

"Damn... it. I never thought you'd be in the Emperor Profound Realm already. You're barely even twenty years old... that's insane! What are they feeding you back home?"

"Good food, something your Black Fiend Nation sincerely lacks." Jin Zhihao mocked.

"Pfft... whatever." Bo Chang chuckled playfully. "I've admired you for such a long time, you know... but there's a point where your success... how should I say this?"

"..." Jin Zhihao frowned, drawing his sword once more.

"You've reached the point where your success has become a detriment to the Black Fiend Nation's future is what I meant to say. And so, I must and will ensure that you die here."

"...!" Jin Zhihao turned to see a peak Emperor Profound Realm practitioner charging at him with frightening killing intent.

Clang.

Something had stopped the expert's attack in its track completely.

Naturally, Jin Zhihao had brought an expert of his own.

"We agreed not to bring any experts to this battle..." Bo Chang frowned, seeing that Jin Zhihao was now protected and more than capable of striking him.

"We did shake hands on it earlier... though, it seems that we both broke this agreement, in the end. You broke it to attempt to kill me and I broke it as a countermeasure in the case that you did so."

As the two experts clashed behind them, it was clear that Jin Zhihao's guard was superior and would slay the other in a relatively short time. That was when Jin Zhihao slowly approached Bo Chang, his sword pulsating with lightning.

"Damn it all...!"

Bo Chang turned around and flew at the greatest speed he could... but he was simply too slow.

BOOM.

A thunder strike from the sky sent him spinning into the ground. When he opened his eyes, all he saw was Jin Zhihao's murderous azure eyes staring into the depths of his soul along with his glowing sword pointing towards his neck.

"We... we can talk about this, no? Killing me would surely bring a war between our nations... something I know you wouldn't want. After all, you'd be facing the Sunflower Dew Nation and the Black Fiend Nation on... two... two fronts!"

Jin Zhihao was silent, though he did not retract his sword... it did not even move an inch back.

"Afterwards, who knows, the Navy Tide Nation might attack you as well... you'd be fighting on three fronts!"

"Desperate trash... you've shown your true self already." Jin Zhihao moved his sword inwards and cut through Bo Chang's neck.

"To think that I once viewed you as a friend..."

Jin Zhihao left the field, wiping away his tears with his sleeve.

'... I will conquer every last nation if that's what it takes to reclaim my Ancestral Lands.'

Afterwards, a new full-scale war between the Grand Asura Nation and Black Fiend Nation was waged. It was not long until the Sunflower Dew Nation joined the fray, leading to a majority of Grand Asura Nation's south and western borders being under fire. However, Grand Asura Nation's royal army turned out to be even mightier than foreseen and actually managed to hold off both nations.

The observing nations, all but the Divine Phoenix Empire, held their breath as the weeks passed.

~

Meanwhile, in the Floating Cloud City.

Both in their human and true appearances, Aria and the Golden Crow sat together in Xiao Jiantian's palace.

"Now with that Xiao Jiantian gone... what the hell am I supposed to do in this mortal world?" The Golden Crow sighed, looking at Aria for answers.

"Just... find something to do. It's not hard, hehe. This Feng Xue'er girl turned out to be a full inheritor of mine... so I intend on passing down all my knowledge onto her. Along with that, there's a whole Phoenix Clan for me to oversee here. As for you... well, you're just as useless as ever." Aria chuckled, looking down on the Golden Crow who was a good bit shorter than her.

"Why... you. My Golden Crow flame is far more destructive than your useless and pathetic phoenix flames!"

"Your tantrum of destruction is pointless when my flames are innately stronger, hmph." Aria countered. "I'd beat you any day in a one-on-one battle, don't you forget that."

"Hmph... whatever you say, Phoenix."

"The name is Aria now, Golden Crow."

"Oh? You gave yourself a name?"

"No, Xiao Jiantian did." Aria replied in a fond tone.

"You allowed a mortal to name you, hmph... how low have you fallen, Phoenix?"

"This person you call a 'mortal' has revived both of us and has all the attributes to surpass even the Creation Gods and... Devil Emperors of the past given the right conditions." Aria countered, shaking her head. "If I were you, I'd view him more highly than just a simple 'mortal'."

'When he returns, I'll have him name me too... you're not special, Phoenix!' The Golden Crow closed her eyes before opening them once more. "Since there is a Divine Phoenix Empire on this Profound Sky Continent... I believe that there should be one named in my honour, as well."

"Don't you have that other continent all to yourself?"

"Actually... that is a fair point. What do I do, then?"

"Hmm..." Aria stroked her chin in thought before turning to the Golden Crow. "You know... well, you don't know but Xiao Jiantian has a brother by the name of Xiao Che. You could oversee his progress if you're that bored."

"Hmph... is he just as special?"

"No... although Jiantian did pass down a few natural gifts to him."

"Fine... I'll go see him. Anything that puts me away from you is a good task in my eyes..."

"Tsk, you act like you hate my presence but I honestly believe that the opposite is true."

"Shut up... delusional Phoenix."

And so, the Golden Crow vanished in a trail of golden light.

"Ahh, everything's so much calmer now with that brat gone." Aria smiled, breathing in the pristine air of Xiao Jiantian's palace.

~

Later, it was announced that the Divine Realm Conference would only be open to participants in the Divine Spirit Realm or above... all of whom must be at or below the age of sixty! Also, none of the participants could be from any one of the Royal Rank Star Realms and Star Realms below that could only send three participants at the most. Naturally, this thinned the number of possible participants to a relatively low number.

35,000 Star Realms were technically eligible to send out 105,000 young profound practitioners... but due to the Profound Strength restriction, this number greatly dwindled. The 1,800 High-Rank Star Realms all had a massive selection of geniuses to choose from but this wasn't the case for Middle-Rank Star Realms, nevermind Low-Rank Star Realms where a Divine Spirit Realm profound practitioner could be considered to be an overlord of a region!

From some estimations, Xiao Jiantian had determined that there wouldn't be more than twenty thousand participants.

As for spectators, all of the Realm Kings who would send qualified participants would naturally be given an invite. God-Emperor's were naturally invited and even strongly recommended to attend (minus the Northern Divine Region ones).

Brahma Monarch God Realm, Xiao Jiantian's new estate.

'This is good... weeding out the trash before the event even starts. As for the event itself, I'll need to think on its various rounds.' Xiao Jiantian sat at a decorated table, sipping his tea. "Hmm, Caiyi, you're getting the gist of making good tea, I see."

"Hmph." Huan Caiyi, who had been through a minor course under one of Qianye Ying'er's servants, was getting used to her new status.

"Let's see... I desire something sweet now. Can you bake a cake?"

"What, do I look like a housewife to you?"

Xiao Jiantian sighed, shaking his head. "What a useless maid... whoever the future Demon Emperor would be, I can't help but pity him. Come, I'll show you."

While he did insult her in a jestful manner, this act was greatly overshadowed by his helping hand. In a swift moment, he changed into a chef's attire and got out all the ingredients that he would need in the kitchen. Then, with his masterful hands, he got to work as Huan Caiyi assisted him with the minor things.

In that time, Qianye Ying'er had come to spectate.

After some work and reading in between, while his cake was baking up, he presented the most magnificent carrot cake the world had ever seen!

"Muahahaha... this King surely is the God of Cooking!" Xiao Jiantian smiled as he tasted a spoonful of his creation.

As Huan Caiyi watched him feast, she wanted to try it herself more and more.

Seeing this with his perceptive eyes, Xiao Jiantian cut her a piece. "You can try it, of course. I won't be eating the whole thing."

Huan Caiyi hesitated at first but eventually, she got the piece for herself on a plate and dug in.

"Mn... it's... delicious."

"I wouldn't mind trying it myself." Qianye Ying'er sat down beside Xiao Jiantian and took a piece for herself.

"You know I'm not the unanimous ten-time champion of cooking in the Northern Divine Region for no reason..." Xiao Jiantian stated rather proudly. "I was also declared the most Valuable Husband without even being married!"

"That title was just the Witch trying to pursue you... hmph, the gall of that woman." Qianye Ying'er replied, her golden eyes emitting a flash of killing intent for a brief moment.

That was when Xiao Jiantian forced his spoon through Qianye Ying'er's lips softly. "You always focus too much on irrelevant details..."

"Mn..." Qianye ying'er blushed slightly as she swallowed the piece of carrot cake he had given her. Meanwhile, to his other side, Huan Caiyi huffed a little watching Xiao Jiantian feed Qianye Ying'er with romantic grace.

Qianye Ying'er repaid the favour afterwards, feeding Xiao Jiantian a piece of her cake.

"Tastes even better when it's from Ying'er..."

Eventually, the temperature got somewhat hot and the two found themselves growing more intimate. Qianye Ying'er had gotten on top of Xiao Jiantian's lap and they were, well... passionately making out.

"Maybe get a room first!?" Huan Caiyi questioned, turning her head away as she prepared to leave.

Qianye Ying'er glanced at her for a moment in a mocking fashion, looking down on the Little Demon Empress like 'you'll never be in this position, little gyal'.

'... Is this really happening?' Xiao Jiantian felt his little brother start to rise and struggle as they continued snogging.

However, eventually, Qianye Ying'er let go and stood up.

"Surpass me in strength first, Jiantian..."

Xiao Jiantian hadn't felt so teased and violated in quite a while... technically, he hadn't done anything wrong. His technique could be said to be almost perfect, having been refined through many experiences.

He couldn't help but cry a little inside as he watched Qianye Ying'er's peerless figure fade away.

'So that's how we're playing...'

Xiao Jiantian chuckled, sipping his tea. Suddenly, he started to miss Xia Qingyue more. Though, the two certainly had their separate benefits. For example, Qianye Ying'er was a far more stern motivator when it came to his profound strength and overall progress while Xia Qingyue trusted him to go at his own pace.

'Can the two co-exist? It's probably comparable to trying to combine fire and ice... which, I've kind of shown to be capable of doing, actually.'

"Ying'er... come back, I need to go through my Divine Heavenly Tribulation Lightning."

"... You're doing it in the Brahma Monarch God Realm?" Qianye Ying'er appeared next to him as swiftly as she had vanished.

"I don't really want to be hidden and/or undercover every day of my life... so, I'll give you a public reason to show preferential treatment to me." Xiao Jiantian finally decided. "That way, everyone around these parts will respect me and I'll be able to walk freely!"

"Hmm, alright." Qianye Ying'er nodded, seeing the logic behind it. She grabbed him and teleported away. "I'll find a suitable location for that."

~

She brought him to a relatively remote location five hundred thousand kilometres outside of the Brahma Heaven City, where the stray lightning wouldn't harm many others.

Finally, Xiao Jiantian closed his eyes and took a deep breath. His peak Divine Tribulation Realm profound strength was extremely stable at this point and it had only been a week since he reached it. But... it was now time to go even further beyond!

Qianye Ying'er's eyes widened as the thunder clouds far above Xiao Jiantian began to grow at a rapid pace... covering the Brahma Monarch God Realm.... but it did not stop there... oh no, it wasn't even close to finished!

The entire Eastern Divine Region... Southern... Western... and even Northern Divine Regions were all completely covered in his terrifying dark thunder clouds!

"This..." Qianye Ying'er was completely caught off-guard. Sure, she did expect something rather impressive... but... this was completely absurd. 'Is this the extent of his potential?'

She decided not to wait around for long, summoning all three Brahma Gods, the numerous Brahma Kings and countless Divine Master Realm profound practitioners in the Brahma Monarch God Realm to minimise the destructive damage to come.

BOOOOOOOM.

Suddenly, the first round of tribulation lightning descended on Xiao Jiantian. The second came right after... so did the third... and the fourth... fifth... and sixth... the number of ferocious lightning strikes doubling each time. Although no one could see past the lightning, Xiao Jiantian was secretly enjoying it as he bathed in the lightning elemental energy.

The sky seemed to calm down after the sixth stage and even the dark clouds had shrunk a little, giving people reason to believe that it had ended.

"The sixth stage of tribulation lightning... only two people have managed to incur such punishment before this mysterious individual. Even then, only one of those two survived... and he was the invincible Sword God Xuanyuan who survived even the seventh stage! The Brahma Monarch God Realm is truly blessed if this person has survived!" Qianye Wusheng, one of the Brahma Gods, announced with great enthusiasm as he looked at Qianye Ying'er.

"Hold still... there's more to come." Qianye Ying'er stated with certainty as she looked up at the darkening skies. "We will be seeing more than seven stages today."

The purple brilliance of the lightning region above them turned blood red and started to form into the shape of a... sword!

It struck down at Xiao Jiantian's body which was already covered in a sea of lightning.

BOOOOOOM.

After a short pause, the eighth stage followed where a similar beam of lightning had struck him... the only difference being that it was ten times larger than before!

But the heaven's weren't done with venting on Xiao Jiantian...

CRACK...

"A... a... ninth stage of tribulation lightning!!!"

Everyone present gasped in shock and even greater fear as the lightning region above Xiao Jiantian turned pale white.

"Strengthen the barrier!" Qianye Ying'er ordered, her words springing all the personnel under her into action.

Xiao Jiantian smirked from deep underground as he looked at the brilliant sky, stretching out his arms wide.

'Come to papa, white lightning...'

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM.

And so, he was struck.

...

Finally, after what seemed an eternity, Xiao Jiantian's heavenly tribulation lightning ended and he leapt out of his giant hole. Of course, he couldn't show his naked divine body to everyone so he dressed into a simple black cloak before doing so.

Though the new outfit did show off his impressive chest.

Floating in the skies was a man who stood at the pinnacle of manly charm, covered in small traces of beautiful white lightning. Everyone looked towards him as if they just saw a God awaken... and they were most certainly correct to think so.

"From henceforth, this man is my betrothed and the future Brahma Heaven God Emperor! Any person who even breaths on him with malicious intent will face a thousand deaths at my hand... let this be known to every being in Primal Chaos!"