Chapter 1268: A Friend from Afar

Chapter 1268: A Friend from Afar

Beyond the miniature world, the clash between heaven and earth raged with venomous intensity.

The sky wept a torrential downpour of blood, as countless homunculi wielded cleavers, relentlessly hacking down trees and cleaving mountains.

The terrestrial veins bellowed in response, dry trees taking flight as they fought back with the desperation of the dying.

And within the miniature world, a matching crimson rain fell, serving as the backdrop for a slaughter in full swing!

The piercing shrieks of the dying, the deafening detonations echoing across the eight wildernesses, and the undulating ripples of divine arts painted the entire realm in a kaleidoscopic, sinister brilliance.

This was a transaction.

The term set by one party was simple: slaughter every god here!

Only then would the obscured tether and the missing shards manifest once more.

Even though... from Xu Qing's perspective and judgment, this matter bore the distinct stench of deception, he still chose to commit the slaughter.

Because the awakening of the Golden Rat could not possibly be a mere coincidence.

Thus, the blood rain within this miniature world grew heavier and heavier.

Divine carcasses plummeted from the heavens one after another, crashing into the earth, pulverizing the ruins, and raising plumes of dust that coalesced with the crimson downpour into an endless, rolling fog of blood.

At this moment, amidst the churning crimson mist, the silhouette of Xu Qing's Immortal Embryo flickered in and out of view.

Simultaneously, one could discern the three Altar Gods he had previously marked with special attention, drifting close and far from him within the bloody fog.

They were the Eyeball, the Old Crone, and the Withered-Flourishing One!

The authority emanating from them was erupting.

Particularly that single eye, within whose pupil grew a bronze chime-bell; its gaze gave Xu Qing a sensation akin to Zhou Zhengli's Edict, and the instant it locked onto him through the blood mist...

The chime pealed with world-shaking force, vibrating with a maddening frenzy!

It sought to anchor Xu Qing's soul!

Furthermore, a bronze hue rapidly dyed the surroundings, threatening to invade the blood mist and petrify Xu Qing's flesh!

Compounding this, astral sand wrapped in twisted divine script poured from the slit of the eyelids like a torrential flood, intending to block Xu Qing’s forward path.

Accompanying this assault were the Buddhist-hand-like suckers at the rear of the eye; with every respiration, a colossal suction force enveloped Xu Qing, aiming to consume his body whole.

At the same time, the Old Crone and the Withered-Flourishing One erupted with their own power.

Within the blood mist, a dark light flashed in Xu Qing's eyes; he knew time was of the essence, and any delay would breed disaster!

Therefore, the sooner this slaughter concluded, the better.

With this thought, decisiveness welled in Xu Qing's heart, and enveloped by that suction, he did not hesitate for a fraction of a breath, completely abandoning all resistance to let that bizarre bronze eye drag him inward.

He even actively propelled himself forward, accelerating his velocity.

In an instant, the blood mist surged, obscuring all sight so that the carnage within was hidden from the outside world, leaving only the reverberating thunders of battle.

It was the simultaneous eruption of divine arts from several Altar Gods.

Accompanied by Xu Qing's muffled groan, the chime of bells rose and fell in waves.

In the next breath, where the spreading mist wore thin, Xu Qing's blood-spitting figure finally materialized directly before the Eyeball God.

There, drenched in gore, he did not pause for a fraction of a second, thrusting the iron skewer in his hand brutally into the pupil of the giant eye!

The bronze chime-bell shuddered, letting out an unprecedented wail of agony.

Countless faces surfacing on the bell's facade twisted in excruciating pain, and their weeping materialized into a torrent of blood-colored curse runes that spewed from the eye to envelop Xu Qing.

Simultaneously, the eye's myriad tentacles thrashed frantically, piercing toward Xu Qing like sharp blades.

They seemed desperate to push Xu Qing away...

In the distance, the other Altar Gods seized this opportunity and rushed forward at extreme speed.

A ruthless glint appeared in Xu Qing's eyes; he allowed those tentacles to impale his body, indifferent to his wounds and the spilling of his blood, as he unleashed the full power of the iron skewer.

Amidst a deafening boom, the iron skewer drove straight through the bronze pupil!

The eyeball convulsed violently!

The bronze fractured, oozing a thick, golden divine blood!

Then, with the eruption of the Immortal Embryo's power within Xu Qing, a terrifying celestial aura flooded inward.

Like rotting wood before a gale, the eyeball exploded into a shower of blood that splattered in all directions.

And within every single droplet of blood was reflected the image of Xu Qing inside the mist, besieged and swarmed by the other Altar Gods and multiple Ignis Gods.

The blood mist churned once more!

A few breaths later, the silhouette of the Old Crone flickered within, fleeing at a desperate pace to escape the confines of the crimson fog.

Behind Her, Xu Qing's body had become completely dyed in red; stepping upon shattered begonia flowers, he flashed through the blood mist in relentless pursuit.

Vaguely, he appeared severely wounded.

Yet his killing intent was overwhelmingly fierce, his entire being radiating a celestial wave of blood that seemed to fuse perfectly with the mist permeating the miniature world.

And behind him lay the bifurcated divine corpse of the Withered-Flourishing One, the god who embodied cyclic decay and possessed an authority akin to time and space.

The begonia flowers on half of its body had already withered, while the ash of the other half drifted away.

Its Soul Lamp was extinguished, and the drowning soul within the lamp's flame had turned to dust.

Killing the Eyeball first was because it could lock onto Xu Qing's position.

Killing the Withered-Flourishing One next was because its authority could supplement Xu Qing's own Edict, serving as nourishment in this trade of wounds for lives!

As for now, the one Xu Qing wanted dead was that Old Crone!

Having witnessed Xu Qing slaughter numerous gods—including the Eyeball and the Withered-Flourishing One—in a mere matter of breaths, the Old Crone's primal instinct for survival had driven Her into a frantic flight.

She no longer wished to participate in this.

But the surging mist swallowed Her figure anew in a fraction of an instant.

Moments later, amidst echoing, agonizing shrieks, the blood mist permeating the miniature world finally dispersed, revealing a blood-dyed firmament above.

The Old Crone's figure stumbled out once more, though Her state was wretched to the absolute extreme.

Behind Her, beneath the crimson sky, Xu Qing stood suspended in midair, his robes soaked in divine blood until they shone a dark gold, while thirty-six thousand shattered human-faced stars hovered around him, unextinguished divine fire still flickering upon their fractured cores.

As for the earth below... countless divine carcasses littered the ground.

Xu Qing licked the bloody scab at the corner of his mouth, gazing at the horrified, fleeing Old Crone in the distance, before his form abruptly blurred into nothingness, leaving behind only a pierced afterimage.

When he solidified again, he was already beside the Old Crone.

No matter how the Old Crone dodged and shifted, it was all in vain; amidst Her terror and despair, the nails of Xu Qing's right hand dug unhesitatingly into Her throat, gripping it in a vice.

The power of the Immortal Embryo instantly swarmed and blanketed Her entire body.

The crushed windpipe produced a rattling gasp, and though the golden light in the Old Crone's eyes flared wildly, it soon turned turbid under the erosion of the celestial aura.

In the end, it became a desiccated corpse.

Xu Qing released his grip, suddenly turned his head, and stared expressionlessly into a patch of empty space.

That void shattered in an instant.

Revealing a dwarf staggering backward, spitting blood.

Now, His face was grim, His body weak, eyes filled with terror.

Earlier, He had struck within the blood mist—but successive wounds from outside had left Him barely surviving His clash with Xu Qing inside the mist. Gravely injured, He fled swiftly to observe from afar,

hoping other subordinate deities would wear Xu Qing down, creating the perfect moment for His own decisive strike—

ideally even capturing Him alive.

Yet the bursts of slaughter that erupted shortly after His departure from the blood mist sent violent tremors through His spirit. Even though He knew the opponent was formidable, waves of dread still surged within Him now.

Especially when Xu Qing’s gaze fell upon Him—

the moment their eyes met, His unease intensified instantly. His weakened body instinctively retreated as He urgently cried out:

“Fellow Daoist! My clan’s True God’s revival is what matters most to me—and the True God has already made promises to you… Come with me! I’ll open an exit and let you leave!”

He knew such words were unlikely to be believed at this moment; what He truly needed was just a sliver of hesitation from the other side—

and in that hesitation…

His mind raced—but before the thought fully formed, His body suddenly shuddered. He looked down sharply, only to find His divine form melting away.

This dissolution gave no prior warning, caused no pain or anomaly—it happened utterly silently.

The source? Black threads coiled around His ankles, unnoticed until now!

Those threads were carving themselves into His divine flesh and soul.

“A divine curse!”

The dwarf’s face twisted in horror as He shrieked aloud.

And in the next instant, Xu Qing vanished—reappearing ghostlike before the dwarf deity. With lightning speed, he raised his right hand; the chime of bells echoed as his fingertip traced across the dwarf’s brow.

The dwarf’s features contorted. He longed to resist, but his accumulated injuries, the grievous wounds from the blood mist, and now this sudden eruption of divine curse had drained him utterly.

Added to that, the arrival of the bell’s chime severed every last possibility.

In a blink, his entire body convulsed—golden blood threads burst forth from his seven orifices, rising into the air to weave a new rain of blood.

As his form exploded into ruin, the crimson shower scattered across the world.

Xu Qing stood suspended midair, letting the blood rain wash over his wounds.

This battle had left him grievously injured—he forcibly suppressed the pain, steeled his will, sensed once more the reemerging pull and the now-clear location of the fragment, then dragged his exhausted frame away in a blur.

Darting through one fragmented realm after another, he finally followed his senses to the place where the fragment lay—and there, amid ruins, found traces left by the golden rat!

A scattering of grass fragments on the ground—

arranged into an array woven from Star-Ring Grass!

Its structure bore no resemblance to techniques used by cultivators or deities—it resembled far more the innate talent of the golden rat.

Gazing at the array, Xu Qing fell into deep thought. He did not know where this teleportation formation led, but he could sense that activating it required two specific items:

one was Star-Ring Grass of the same origin,

the other was the aura of the golden rat—that is, Li Jin Beast.

Without both, there was no way through.

Only possessing these two simultaneously would allow one to perceive and activate the array.

Xu Qing narrowed his eyes.

“Years ago, beyond the outer seas of Wanggu Continent, I encountered an Immortal Sovereign who pursued the golden rat… He pointed me toward the Fifth Star Ring.

So I came to the Fifth Star Ring.

Then, on the battlefield, I was accidentally teleported to the Fourth Star Ring…

While healing there, I was forced into this secret realm the very moment the True God’s divine awareness swept over me.

And here, coincidentally, two True Gods were locked in combat…

Then, in this minor world, the golden rat awakened and sensed its kin.

Now, right here, I find a teleportation array woven from Star-Ring Grass fragments—and the final requirement happens to be the very Star-Ring Grass given to me by that Immortal Sovereign.”

Xu Qing fell silent.

“Were you saving me… or did you intend from the very beginning to send me here?”

Staring at the teleportation array before him, Xu Qing murmured inwardly.

After a moment, resolve flashed in his eyes. Regardless of the truth, this was now his only path forward. He stepped forward—

but just then…

An ancient voice echoed throughout the minor world:

“Young friend, would you consider a second transaction?”

“The True God Zhen Yi’s impending assimilation of me draws near. I possess a secret technique—one that allows you to absorb Zhen Yi here, increasing your Source Essence while granting me a chance to turn defeat into victory!”

Xu Qing halted mid-step and lifted his gaze toward the sky.

“That you could so confidently draw me in clearly means you’ve long known this karmic thread existed within your divine domain.”

“So tell me—was this transaction proposed by you yourself… or was there some higher existence compelling you to offer it?”

“And finally—I wish to know: are you a god… or an immortal?”

Xu Qing’s eyes remained calm as he spoke slowly.

…

Meanwhile, far beyond the Fourth Star Ring—in the Ninth Star Ring, at the heart of the vast starry expanse—lay Wanggu Continent!

There, the pressure emanating from the Ancient Immortals of the stars grew ever heavier, and the sense of urgency gripping all living beings of the myriad races intensified by the day.

Beneath Wanggu Continent, deep within the boundless caverns where the Huangtian Divine Race had been sealed by the Ancient Immortals,

in a remote corner, stood a ruined temple.

No statue graced its interior—but in one corner lay a severed head, facing upward, cursing loudly.

“It was just a corpse at the peak of Divine Throne—what’s the big deal about stealing it? You’ve chased me this long—you just wait!”

The head gnashed its teeth furiously—when suddenly, from nearby rubble, emerged a wild-looking, nearly bald, lame little mouse. It ambled over to the head and let out a lazy, squeaky chirp.

The head rolled slightly, adjusting its angle so its gaze fell upon the mouse—and its expression gradually turned astonished.

“What the hell?”

“You sensed a distant teleportation?”