In the boundless void of the cosmos, a dark meteorite drifted silently, undisturbed by anything within several hundred light-years. Anything that entered this void was crushed to dust.
The very air here was saturated with a mighty magnetic force capable of decomposing and compressing anything into its most primal magnetic particles.
Yet, this black meteorite floated peacefully, as if slumbering. The surrounding magnetic forces did not grind it to pieces; instead, they seemed to worship it like a deity, forming three concentric rings of magnetic energy around its body. Each ring radiated a terrifying pressure—a pressure so immense that even a World Sovereign, should they touch it, would be stripped to the bone, if not killed outright.
These three magnetic rings possessed an attractive force more terrifying than a black hole, drawing in every planet, every floating continent within a thousand light-years, pulling them toward the dark meteorite. They were pulverized into raw magnetic power and fed into the meteorite.
These planets and floating continents had all established their own civilizations. Some continents revered martial prowess, fostering countless dynasties, empires, and cultivation sects. The ultimate aspiration of every being there was to break free of their continent and ascend to the rank of "Heavenly" () expert.
If the sensory perceptions of their Heavenly experts were sharp enough, they would realize that their home continent was constantly drifting, inexorably drawn toward a mysterious and terrifying destination…
“The Five Great Divine Seals… Has he awakened…”
A deep, commanding voice, imbued with a masculine, magnetic charisma and carrying a hint of profound age, slowly emanated from within the black meteorite.
The three magnetic rings encircling its body flickered with a transparent ripple. Suddenly, the gravitational pull intensified dramatically, expanding its coverage to millions of light-years. Every planet, every meteorite, every floating continent, along with cosmic debris, light, and cosmic rays—every form of energy within this vast expanse—was violently dragged toward the black meteorite.
In that instant, every living being on the inhabited worlds within this range felt a sudden, violent gale sweep the planet. Forests snapped, mountains roared and collapsed, and the earth cracked open with gaping wounds. The planet cores suffered severe gravitational failure, detaching from their respective galaxies and hurtling toward the twenty-foot-tall black meteorite at varying speeds.
Immeasurable panic spread throughout the area covered by the three magnetic rings. All life across millions of light-years became restless, as if the Heavenly Gods were enraged. Some rare sentient races even began to pray fervently to their respective deities.
Rumble~~
Countless planets slammed into the outermost magnetic halo, immediately swallowed by an invisible maw. Ripples distorted the void; planets and meteorites vanished, and even incoming light and cosmic rays were decomposed into their fundamental magnetic essence.
“Darkness… I have arrived!”
The black meteorite radiated a fierce brilliance, and a deafening, earth-shaking roar burst forth, like a giant bending its waist. The entire meteorite transformed into a blazing meteor, shooting off toward a distant, mysterious void.
Snow Region.
The heavy, goose-feather snow of early winter fell ceaselessly, like down shaken from feathers, blanketing the entire Snow Region and shrouding it in a world of ice and snow.
The remote frontier town of Wellman—many things had transpired here, but the Snow Country folk remained oblivious, continuing their routine of eating, sleeping, and working.
Life seemed to consist of only these three actions.
No one knew that several peerless experts of the Stomping-the-Ground Realm ()—those whose mere stomp could shake the world—had once fought a desperate battle to the death here. Some had fallen, while others survived and grew stronger.
It seemed that no matter how great a person was in this world, they would eventually be forgotten. Was this sorrow, or was it fortune?
Mercenaries returning from hunting Snow Beasts in the wilderness found refuge in the tavern. To emerge from the icy expanse back into the world of men, to sip a cup or two of hot wine, was surely one of life’s greatest pleasures.
If they could find a few like-minded comrades to discuss their daily hauls and future aspirations, nothing could bring greater joy.
Someone in the tavern appeared to be immersed in this happy moment, but a sudden, resounding boom shattered the tranquility.
Throughout the entire Snow Region, every person and every animal felt the ground tremble momentarily. Those eating froze mid-bite; those conversing stopped talking; even the thief pilfering goods paused in his tracks.
When certain events occurred, regardless of status—noble or destitute, even animals—the reaction seemed universally the same.
The booming sound was like an earthquake, a single, abrupt tremor that ceased just as suddenly.
As everyone stood bewildered, a hazy flurry of snowflakes began to drift from the sky over the Snow Region. Though beautiful, the flakes were intensely cold, capable of freezing exposed skin.
Snowfall was commonplace in the Snow Region, yet never in history had a snowstorm covered the entire realm so completely. Within the most mystical sacred mountains of the region, atop the majestic peaks, stood twelve magnificent palaces sculpted from ice crystals. Now, they were deserted. The twelve Snow Region Emissaries had been pulverized by a mysterious energy during the last closure of the region. Even the Bronze Sovereign only narrowly escaped with his life.
All beings in the Snow Region below the Epoch Realm () sensed nothing unusual, for that was a world far beyond their reach.
Inside the sacred mountain, down a long, deep, pitch-black passage, the formerly dark rock walls were now entirely sheathed in ice and snow, forming an elongated gallery of frost.
This mirror-like ice surface was utterly silent. In the deepest clearing, there rested a colossal, oval sphere of white crystal ice, smooth and pure, resembling a giant insect’s cocoon. Inside, it was a world of frost and ice, housing a massive coffin of snow and ice. Upon it lay a slender figure, clad in a silver-white robe so exquisitely detailed it seemed studded with stars. A faint chill enveloped the form, misty and ethereal, obscuring the face.
When that strange vibration occurred, a dense white mist—pure, crisp, and icy—emanated from the figure in the snow-ice coffin. Within the mist, two silver rays of light emerged, sharp and clear as eyes, proclaiming, “Darkness… you are finally emerging.”
The white mist suddenly swirled with unnatural speed, then flowed backward, revealing a long, delicate cheek, a refined, small nose, and soft, full crimson lips. Slender, curved eyelashes, like delicate feathers, curled slightly upward. Willow-leaf eyebrows drew together slightly as the eyelids slowly lifted, revealing a pair of eyes as clear as starlight.
If Ye Chen were present, he would have been greatly astonished, for the facial contours of the exquisite woman lying in the snow-ice coffin shared six or seven parts resemblance with his sister, Ye Zhu!
Yet, her expression was more refined, her beauty more pronounced, imbued with an aura of nobility, aloofness, and inviolability.
She was like a woman carved from the ice and snow of a distant mountain.
To be admired from afar, but never to be gazed upon directly.
The Ancient World, The Deserted Void.
In a silent, uninhabited stretch of the void, a shattered fragment of a continent floated listlessly. Faint vestiges of pavilions and structures could be seen on this fragment—it was unmistakably the remnants of the former White Lotus Divine Land ().
The White Lotus Divine Land of the past had fractured into several pieces under the onslaught of the Headless Corpse and the Death Army. This particular fragment was the ruin of the Fallen God Ravine (), one of the three great perilous zones of the former Divine Land. It was deathly silent, devoid of any life—empty, dark ruins, broken city walls, blackened, fallen forests, bottomless chasms, and ravines where stones fell without a sound.
This deep chasm was the Fallen God Ravine!
The Fallen God Ravine was designated one of the three great perilous zones because of its extraordinary gravitational pull, laced with a peculiar magnetic field. The outermost gravity was 1,000 times that of the ancient continent; approaching the central area increased it tenfold, approaching nearly one hundred thousand times. As for the innermost depths, no one knew the extent.
Even Divine-level experts dared not venture there.
Most critically, the ravine was infested with Electromagnetic Sprites ()—elusive entities that swarmed in legions. Any invading creature would be entangled by vast numbers of them.
A single Electromagnetic Sprite could effortlessly slay a Divine-level expert!
The only small comfort was that these sprites had never once stepped outside the confines of the electromagnetic zone, living their entire existence within it.
Now, in the deepest part of the Fallen God Ravine, a gentle trickling sound could be heard. Buried deep within the soil rested a purple sphere of light, brilliant as a blazing sun, crackling with electromagnetic sparks. A nearly transparent barrier enveloped the purple mass, yet faint traces of electromagnetic energy still seeped through the shield, dissipating outward.
This leaked electromagnetic energy immediately split into countless bolts of electric light, as if repelling each other in discord before separating.
A tiny stream of electromagnetic force first fragmented into tens of thousands of massive electric arcs, which then further subdivided into countless smaller sparks.
Layer upon layer of division ultimately produced millions of tiny, firefly-like electric lights drifting in the void. Slowly, like hatching from cocoons, these lights transformed into tiny Electromagnetic Sprites, the size of common houseflies.
“It has begun…” A crisp voice issued from the purple light sphere. The transparent barrier surrounding it slowly retracted, merging back into the sphere.
Poof!
A battle saber, brimming with killing intent, shot toward the Dark Heavenly God () like an ultimate sovereign of the world.
Where the Emperor’s Saber Qi () swept, the void cracked into shards. The bone-chilling saber energy surged upward in retaliation. The Dark Heavenly God frowned, daring not to be careless. Having devoured the Four Great Divine Seals, five distinct lights materialized on his forehead, resembling a single, dazzling jewel embedded there, blazing like a bright pearl.
“Five Emperors Shield ()!”
The Dark Heavenly God roared, thrusting both hands toward the sharp tip of the saber. Light shimmered from his palms as they slowly interwove to form a five-colored circular shield.