Chapter 1246: Fate's Waves Come

Chapter 1246: Tides of Destiny

Military merits formed the primary criterion for an immortal cultivator’s advancement within the military.

They were also the sole currency for procuring resources across all battle zones.

Their significance and value required no elaboration.

Acquiring military merits on the battlefield was not overly arduous.

Yet to amass one million merits inverted the difficulty, becoming staggering.

For mere enemy kills, one must slay at least ten Divine Platforms, or a single peak Divine Platform cultivator.

As for ten million… only those who beheaded True Gods could attain it.

Now, merely reporting the Divine Maiden’s whereabouts granted one million merits.

Capturing her alive would yield ten million.

Such rewards held immense allure for the vast majority of cultivators.

Especially when, beyond merits, Primordial Essence was also offered.

Primordial Essence was measured in fang.

Like the hundred-fang procurement missions Xue Qing’s team once received at the Supply Bureau.

Thus, the ten-fang reward for reporting the Divine Maiden equaled one-tenth of their entire past assignment.

The hundred-fang reward for capturing her alive spoke for itself in its magnitude.

If the military merits within this decree, now echoing across the entire frontline, stirred most cultivators…

Then the addition of Primordial Essence rewards made even the elite among them ache with desire.

And what moved the pinnacle cultivators among these elites—the quasi-Immortals at perfection within each legion—was…

The True Lord’s Title!

True Lord was an exclusive honorific for the Immortal Sovereign’s disciples.

It signified status, resources, and future.

This declared to all: the captor of the Divine Maiden could become the Immortal Sovereign’s disciple!

Combined, these rewards could ignite ninety-nine percent of cultivators into frenzy.

The remaining few were primarily Lower Immortals—commanders of various factions and legion guests—whose profound cultivation and elevated status set them apart.

Yet even they now gazed with luminous eyes.

Their hearts churned.

The reason lay in the final reward for capturing the Divine Maiden:

The Immortal Sovereign’s Dao Artifact!

A supreme treasure imbued with the Immortal Sovereign’s might, possessing power at his level.

Such treasures were exceedingly rare, scarce as phoenix feathers.

Even Lower Immortals yearned for them desperately.

Thus, the moment this decree spread, the entire left-wing frontline erupted.

Search efforts, unprecedented in scale, exploded across the battlefield.

Every legion, every cultivator—even corpse-stripping squads—joined the hunt with absolute resolve.

Lower Immortals not only searched personally but dispatched orders: any subordinate finding a clue must report instantly, rewarded handsomely.

Amidst this fervor, the ascended cultivators surrounding Xue Qing now burned with fierce ambition.

Especially Xie Lingzi, whose eyes burned crimson.

For him, his fractured blade was both his source of power and his shackle.

He must constantly suppress it; a single lapse, and the blade would dominate him, turning him into its puppet.

But if he became the Immortal Sovereign’s disciple… all would change.

Li Mengtu’s breath quickened slightly.

He sought escape from the karmic ties binding him to his master, the Poison Lord.

This decree’s task was his chance.

Not only them—Yuan Shansu and other ascended cultivators felt the same.

Each harbored private struggles and dreams they dared not voice.

Now, hope shone to break those chains and fulfill those dreams.

Qianjun Biyi trembled with excitement.

Their path was simpler: once disciples of the Immortal Sovereign, Xue Qing would bow before them with utmost reverence.

The mere thought thrilled them.

Even Xing Huanzi’s eyes gleamed with unusual intensity.

The rewards were simply too lavish.

This bounty also confirmed their earlier suspicion:

The Divine Maiden was of paramount importance.

Clearly why she must be captured alive.

Zhou Zhengli’s heart surged too, yet glancing at Xue Qing’s calm expression, his own cooled.

After reflection, he sensed something amiss and spoke sharply.

“Comrades! Do not act rashly!”

His voice thundered, echoing in the minds of the ascended cultivators, lingering long after.

As all eyes turned to him, Zhou Zhengli’s face grew grave.

“Consider her identity, her significance—even wounded, we must not underestimate her!”

“Her father is Li Zhu, the God-Slaying Immortal Sovereign!”

“Such a Divine Maiden surely possesses countless life-saving measures, and guardians ever near. Even if battle reports mention many slain…”

“Still, I refuse to believe she has no other contingencies!”

“The greater the reward, the greater the mortal peril!”

Zhou Zhengli’s words prompted Yuan Shansu and others to ponder deeply.

Xie Lingzi’s eyes flashed with cold fury.

“Absurd! We cultivators defy heaven itself. What endeavor is ever smooth? We must strive—against men, against heaven, against gods!”

Zhou Zhengli snorted.

“We may face True Gods! A single misstep could annihilate us all.”

Xie Lingzi sneered, his gaze sweeping the others.

Soon, voices rose in chorus, each voicing their stance.

This was their habit, forged through shared trials:

When confronted with matters, pool all perspectives for sound judgment, then leave the final choice to Xue Qing.

As they debated participation, Xue Qing remained silent.

He lifted his head, gazing into the distant starry void.

Within him, Xiao Ying’s emotional tremors had resonated for a long, long while…

"Lord... Lord... it’s here!"

"The great one... fragrant!"

Shadow strained to convey her perception to Xu Qing.

Fate’s whisper stirred within Xu Qing’s soul, rippling outward, swelling ever larger.

From the moment he had seen the battle report, Xu Qing had known his suspicion was true—the scene within the Divine Art of Suffering’s True Essence had indeed manifested.

A Divine Maiden truly walked the front lines.

And fate, like ocean waves, had carried her toward him as he foresaw...

"Lord... not far..."

"She hides... but the shadow is strong... lock onto her!"

Shadow trembled with excitement, her emotions cresting like a storm.

Not a single misstep, not a hair’s breadth off!

Meanwhile, Zhou Zhengli and the others reached the end of their debate.

"If you fear death so much, why cultivate at all?"

"Danger exists, but reporting it immediately counts as merit!"

"Truth be told, our words mean nothing. The front is vast beyond measure. Chancing upon the Divine Maiden is near impossible."

"This is but seeking a needle in the sea. Yet should we find her... it is her fate!"

"So..."

All eyes turned to Xu Qing. Zhou Zhengli sighed, then gazed at him with burning hope.

Xu Qing turned, drawing his gaze from the starry void, meeting the eyes of those who had walked this path with him.

"I may know how to find the Divine Maiden. But this path claims lives."

His voice was calm.

At his words, each face reflected astonishment.

Xing Huanzi studied Xu Qing meaningfully before speaking softly.

"Before Zhou Zhengli spoke, I never believed we’d truly find her."

"But now... you say it too."

"This journey’s life or death is my choice. And if we succeed... the reward is ours to share!"

As Xing Huanzi finished, Xie Lingzi laughed.

"Mine as well!"

Li Mengtu, Yuan Shansu, and the other ascenders each gave their assent after brief contemplation.

Last came Qianjun Biyi. Though initially eager, Zhou Zhengli’s words had failed to sway others—but these two brothers, seeming fools yet wise, had been convinced.

They already harbored thoughts of retreat.

Yet seeing others agree, they hesitated, exchanging secret whispers.

"Can this Xu really find her? Truth or trick?"

"He said ‘perhaps’! I wager he seeks glory. If we fail, he’ll explain it away. If we succeed... he’ll claim the credit! Hmph—why not humor his ploy?"

"Brother, you’re brilliant!"

Puffed with pride, they sent a chime of swords, declaring their willingness to risk all!

Seeing all consent, Xu Qing’s eyes flashed resolve. He turned and vanished, following Shadow’s guidance, guided by fate’s pull, streaking toward the distant stars.

Behind him, Xing Huanzi and the others surged forward.

Time flowed.

Days later.

Within the left-wing front’s starry expanse, a modest nebula of interstellar gas drifted.

Countless dust motes and unknown particles swirled within its elongated, cloud-like form. Flickers of lightning sparked at its edges.

Such nebulae were common in the void. When internal pressure mounted, matter coalesced into searing heat, birthing a sun.

They were also the final breath exhaled by dying stars.

In a sense, this was the last sigh of a sun’s life.

Now, within this nebula, the fugitive Star-Eyed Divine Maiden and the Old God concealed themselves.

They suppressed every trace of their presence, weaving divine arts to hide within the gas, absorbing the sun’s final breath to slowly mend their wounds.

"This art masks our essence; this place hides our aura. It should shield us for a time, allowing rest. Unless an immortal descends into this cloud, the cultivators cannot find us."

The Old God spoke slowly.

"Your Highness," he added, "has the Bloodline summoned the Divine Emperor?"

The Divine Maiden, deep in meditation, did not open her sacred eyes. Her voice remained serene.

"No response."

The Old God pondered, then opened his mouth to speak.

But in the next instant, golden light flashed in his eyes. He turned, gazing beyond the nebula.

Where his eyes fell, the void twisted. Ringed ripples spread from afar, and through the cascading waves, figures emerged—nineteen cultivators stepping into existence just beyond the cloud.

At their head stood Xu Qing!

The moment he appeared, brilliance blazed in Xu Qing’s eyes as he beheld the vast nebula.

Within the cloud, the Divine Maiden’s starry eyes trembled inexplicably. Her sacred gaze snapped open, fixed upon the outside.

For an instant, it seemed their eyes met across the nebula’s veil.

Fate’s pull surged violently within Xu Qing’s heart.

Thunder roared in his mind.

And Shadow’s voice, ecstatic beyond bearing, nearly shrieked within his soul:

"Divine... Divine Lord... Bloodline!!"