Chapter 819: Divine Punishment!

At this time, the events across the various shops were finally drawing to a close.

Ning Bi was in the midst of announcing the winners of this event: "For the Master Musician event, the highest scorer is the piece from World of Warcraft performed by the Nanhua Sect, 'I am MT'!"

"It's us?!" At the Nanhua Sect's seating area, Mo Xian and her fellow senior and junior sisters stared at the result in sheer disbelief.

Then, Mo Xian pinched Yue Yan's cheek. "Junior Sister, does it hurt? Is this real?!"

"Ah—!" Yue Yan, her cheek pinched red, protested loudly.

"For the most profound memory event, the highest scorer is World of Warcraft, 'Believe in the Holy Light!' The memory materials were jointly provided by Wilson, Layton, Evan, and others."

"We...?! They mentioned us?!" Inside the Canglan City shop, a burst of cheers and joyful leaps erupted.

"For the Number One Player Easter Egg Hunt, the highest scorer is Nalan Hongwu and his squad with Diablo Two's True Demon Body!"

"Second place goes to the elven squad led by the elf Xiwei—the Legend of Sword and Fairy Four, Shichenxi Cave easter egg."

"Ah—!" A group of elves simply could not believe their ears. "We won a prize—?!"

"We won a prize?!"

They looked at one another, and then all cried out in surprise together.

...

"Quick, look! Let's see what prizes are in the Boss's grand gift pack!" a crowd shouted in excitement.

Especially those elves, who had been drooling over Boss Fang's prizes for the longest time!

...

Though these people of the foreign world once lacked technique and possessed low strength, they truly possessed talent.

They were like pearls covered in dust; with a gentle wipe, they gradually revealed their proper brilliance.

Meanwhile, Boss Fang's competitive tournament was also proceeding as scheduled.

In the Immortal Relic Continent division.

"Mid lane!"

"Come to the Baron! Force a team fight at Baron!"

"Oh—! My goodness!" Xiao Yulv cried out from the commentary desk. "Five strikes in one second! No, that's completely five strikes in an instant! The contestant Nalan Mingwei actually pulled off this ultimate fatal move! The Royal Team's ADC was instantly deleted in a single encounter! This round is in the bag for Team Lingyun—!"

In the Western Continent division.

The assassin Irina tightly gripped the flying daggers in her hand.

The champion she chose was Talon, and she was like a leopard waiting for its prey.

The circular blade formation, as if commanded by an invisible force, flew outward. Operating this assassin champion, she was like a terrifying phantom.

As the opposing Xerath passed by, she instantly lunged forward like lightning from invisibility!

Countless flying daggers gathered back into one, mimicking the sword-controlling technique!

"Instant kill! The opposing mid-laner was instantly deleted!"

...

"We control such grand power... and consequently, we continually break through our skills in using them within the mystic realms." Meanwhile, outside the shop, upon a remote, soaring mountain range where few humans ever set foot.

"This terrifying blizzard will annihilate everything..." Swain stared intently ahead. That wisp of ice and snow power continually expanded, but in the end, it was confined by him within a fixed range.

"Swain, watch out!" The World Mage Hermadon warned, "This is a signature spell of the Ascended. In the game, one can only use energy below the seventh stage, but now I am unleashing it with the power of the peak Holy Stage..."

The restless energy instantly grew violent around him, and an incredibly terrifying beam of destructive energy shot forth!

"Face the wind!" With a sweep of his blade, a tempest like a natural chasm suddenly seemed to rise before him!

All energy vanished and was utterly annihilated!

...

Rumble—!

A sudden clap of thunder tore through the sky.

No one had ever witnessed such a terrifying sky before; it was as though the entire heaven and earth were in a furious rage.

It felt even more as if... the sky was being swallowed.

The elves who had just pushed open the shop doors to walk out suddenly pointed at the sky.

"Look!"

The sun, which had been blazing red like fire just moments ago, now seemed to be slowly swallowed by something.

The sky... turned dark.

In just a brief instant, daytime turned into night.

Not only that, but the Immortal Relic World, which existed in another plane, actually experienced the exact same phenomenon!

It was as if an incredibly terrifying... catastrophe was brewing!

It was like the wrath of heaven and earth, a world-destroying divine punishment brought down by the gods!

...

Accompanied by the tolling of a bell, within the Haotian Sect, the old cultivator guarding the Ancestral Hall respectfully lit the incense.

Above the portraits of the past patriarchs were several more human figures. Throughout the generations of every sect, only true immortals and gods would be enshrined above the founding patriarchs.

According to ancient lore, let alone the Haotian Sect, even the Three Saint Sects of the Immortal Relic Continent were exactly the same.

These were... the greatest existences they revered.

They were also... the end point of the Dao they sought.

Furthermore, they were... the most sacred existences that carried all the faith of cultivators throughout the ages.

According to legends, these several Immortal Lords coexisted with eternity and possessed magnificent immortal kingdoms unimaginable to mortals.

There was also the Heaven-Monitoring Lord, whose gaze fell upon the mortal dust, choosing those with destiny to enter the Gate of Ten Thousand Immortals and All Wonders.

...

The Divine Kingdom of Radiance, the Peak of the Gods.

Radiance seemed to eternally shine upon this land; night never fell here.

Splendid and brilliant.

Countless believers bowed their heads in worship, incomparably devout.

In the legends, mortals could not transcend; only powerful and pious souls could be guided by the gods after death to enter the kingdom where the gods resided.

There were further legends that the Radiance inherited from the higher gods—this kingdom named after Radiance—possessed a noble royal family whose pure souls came from that endlessly distant kingdom where the gods resided.

Saint Hynes, who managed the Arbitration Shrine, had even personally stated that he once served by the side of the God of Radiance Arbitration.

They possessed true "divinity."

That was the divine grace that all believers envied, yearned for, but could never obtain!

...

According to ancient legends, they dwelt in a celestial kingdom high above the clouds, a place described in countless hymns of praise as possessing a beauty far beyond the wildest dreams of mortal men, a flawless realm born of pure reverie.

The deities residing within were elegant and noble, such that all the laudatory words beneath the heavens could not capture even a fraction of their majesty.

When the morning sun ascended, its perfect, immaculate golden radiance was hailed as a divine blessing.

When the twilight faded, the splendid, boundless sunset was seen as the woven brocade draped across the shoulders of the gods.

The believers clung to their devout faith, certain that one day, these sublime beings would look upon their piety with mercy and guide them into the divine kingdom.

A single day in the heavens equated to a year upon the earth.

The eternity of the gods was something a mere mortal could never hope to fathom.

Within the profoundest depths of the cosmic void, the chaotic ice and flame pulsed in rhythm.

The greatest sound is left unvoiced, the grandest form remains invisible; from that infinite expanse, they looked down upon the myriad living souls bowing their heads.

Whether they were mortals or gods.

The entirety of the dark void seemed illuminated by a sudden light, banishing all shadows into the distance.

Yet, just as suddenly, all light seemed devoured by it, leaving behind nothing but an empty, yawning darkness.

Deep within that convergence of light and shadow lay a remote world far beyond mortal reach.

The Sea of Ten Thousand Immortals, the Pantheon of Gods, and the Celestial Courts formed the realm of deities and immortals that existed beyond the void.

Those who dwelt there were the very entities revered, worshipped, and enheartened by the faith of mortal men.

...

And at this very moment, within the ancestral hall on the rear mountain of the Haotian Sect.

An old cultivator who was offering incense suddenly rubbed his eyes.

He thought he saw one of the portraits of the patriarchs suddenly stir!

Those were portraits of the supreme, paramount entities!

To his sheer horror, a figure truly stepped down from the canvas!

That figure, bearing the visage of an immortal deity, spoke: "You mortals have actually forgotten the oath sworn many years ago and committed such a transgression! Before long, a world-shattering calamity shall descend upon you!"

"Yet Heaven values life; if you are willing to forget the events of the past, sever all ties with all information regarding that shop, and atone for your crimes through merit, perhaps a sliver of hope remains!"

"I... Great Immortal, what wrong have we committed?!" the old cultivator asked in a panicked rush.

"The Martial Restriction Decree concerns a secret from ancient times, a matter of paramount importance... Even if other sects lack it, did the patriarch of your Haotian Sect truly never mention it to you?!"

"Where is your sect master?"

"He went to the internet cafe..." The old cultivator scratched his head. "We really haven't broken any taboos..."

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The next chapter will likely be completed during the day, apologies to everyone, today's chapter had over a thousand words of draft deleted, so it was a bit slow

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