The white clouds surrounding the Flowing Cloud Star Shuttle suddenly disintegrated, revealing the shuttle’s pale gold body interlaced with countless milky-white streaks.

Thunderbolts hammered down from above. Even from far away, the leaking kinetic energy from the lightning nearly destroyed the Star Shuttle’s core. The Nine Great Immortal Envoys and three hundred Star Shuttle Guards were forced rigid by the impact, unable to move. The shuttle shrieked as it fractured, several deep rents tearing from stern to bow, clearly on the verge of shattering completely. Suddenly, Gu Xiechen roared sharply, “Thunder Hall disciples, attack with all your might!”

Among the Spirit Artifact Sect disciples who had followed Gu Xiechen to the First Line Star Abyss, there were more than twenty thousand from the Thunder Hall. Hearing Gu Xiechen’s command, these Thunder Hall disciples instinctively drew their most potent thunder artifacts and unleashed them in unison toward the descending lightning.

With a colossal boom, hundreds of thousands of lightning streaks coalesced into a ball of thunder a hundred li in diameter, roaring as it flew to meet the raging thunder from the sky.

When the two thunders collided, the resulting explosion shook the heavens and earth. Countless surrounding meteors and asteroids were hurled far away by the blinding electric light, causing all thirty thousand Spirit Artifact Sect disciples to spit blood simultaneously. The Flowing Cloud Star Shuttle could not withstand the massive shockwave of the electrical detonation; with a teeth-rattling groan, it finally disintegrated into countless fragments.

Gu Xiechen swept his wide sleeve, gathering up the two most severely wounded Thunder Hall disciples, and swiftly retreated with them from the disintegrating shuttle.

The Spirit Artifact Sect disciples urged their escape lights, following Gu Wuchen into the distance. This First Line Star Abyss was truly miraculous; though situated in the vast star sea, the atmosphere within it was abundant and of excellent quality. Flying among the planets and meteors was entirely without difficulty—even low-level Qi Stage cultivators could maneuver freely within the First Line Star Abyss.

Seeing the three thousand disciples of the Spirit Artifact Pavilion flee, the Nine Great Immortal Envoys and three hundred Star Shuttle Guards finally snapped out of their shock and hastily attempted to flee using their escape lights.

However, the colossal figure swooping down from above had just been blasted back a hundred li by the lightning explosion. As it re-aligned for its strike, it saw Gu Wuchen and his group already far away. The figure roared in fury, “Trying to escape the clutches of this lord? You dare?”

With a sudden whump, two enormous fleshy wings burst forth from behind the figure. One wing whistled sharply with wind, while the other crackled with lightning. The movement of the Wind and Thunder Wings agitated countless meteors and asteroids within a thousand li radius.

The figure thrust both hands towards the void, summoning a sharp electric cone in his left hand and grasping a heavy thunder hammer in his right. He poured all his strength into smashing the electric cone with the thunder hammer.

With a tearing crackle, like the Milky Way breaking its banks to cascade upon the mortal world, a streak of electric light several li wide twisted down from the tip of the electric cone, instantly engulfing the Nine Great Immortal Envoys and the three hundred Star Shuttle Guards.

The electric light flashed and vanished. The nine Celestial Immortals and three hundred Immortal Soldiers and Generals disappeared without a trace, leaving behind only an Immortal Spirit Stone radiating intense, multi-colored light, and a thumb-sized, shuttle-shaped golden bead floating in the void. The enormous figure let out a thunderous laugh, reaching out to seize both the Immortal Spirit Stone and the bead. “Hahaha, the Seven-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone! Wonderful, simply wonderful! This trip was not in vain, truly not in vain!”

Before the laughter died down, the golden bead in the figure's palm suddenly transformed into a streak of golden light that shot into the void, vanishing after only a few flickers.

The figure merely sneered coldly a few times, unconcerned, instead continuously rubbing and caressing the Seven-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone, not even glancing at the departing golden bead. Of course, he must have known that the bead contained a restriction left by the Primordial Heavenly Venerable, meaning he could never seize it by force.

Fleeing rapidly toward the Jiazi Star Fortress with the three thousand Spirit Artifact Sect disciples, Gu Wuchen finally looked back at the massive figure.

The figure was about a hundred zhang tall, his Wind and Thunder Wings spread wide to cover three hundred zhang. He was built powerfully, his skin a deep azure, faintly flickering with arcs of lightning. As his eyes opened and closed, streaks of golden light occasionally shot out. His face, however, was indistinguishable from that of an eagle—lacking the mouth and nose of a human, possessing only a hooked beak that radiated a faint, cold glint.

“The Thunder Duke?” Gu Xiechen frowned. This figure’s appearance was identical to the Thunder Dukes among the subordinates of the Thirty-Three Heavens Thunder Division he had summoned, yet this was none of the Thunder Dukes Gu Wuchen knew.

Merely muttering the word ‘Thunder Duke’ softly, the figure—who was busy fiddling with the Seven-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone—heard Gu Wuchen’s voice. He snapped his head up, glaring fiercely, and grinned hideously, “You curs also know of this lord’s mighty name? Good, I shall spare a remnant of your souls for reincarnation!” With a burst of maniacal laughter, he flapped his Wind and Thunder Wings, transforming into a bolt of electric thunder that shot toward Gu Xiechen.

Gu Xiechen snorted coldly. With a sweep of his sleeve, the Seven Spirits Profound Yin Sword shot out as seven rays of cold light. Instantly, the air filled with biting cold, and countless razor-sharp fragments of profound ice rained down from the sword's edge, forming a thick wall of ice shards before Gu Xiechen.

With a loud shriek, the electric light that was the Thunder Duke crashed headlong into the profound ice wall. His speed was astonishing, and the ice shards were lethally sharp. He plunged almost entirely into the mass of ice fragments. The extremely sharp, chilling profound ice shards tore into the Thunder Duke’s body, embedding themselves deeply in his flesh. In the blink of an eye, at least seven or eight thousand profound ice shards were embedded in his body.

Scalding gold blood erupted in torrents. Blood sprayed from over eight thousand minute wounds across the hundred-zhang-tall body of the Thunder Duke. His form was stained crimson by his own golden blood within moments, turning him into a hundred-zhang-tall golden statue. The Thunder Duke shrieked in agony, hopping backward a hundred li.

Gu Xiechen chuckled softly, “Remember this: when it comes to flying swords and magical treasures, greater power isn't always better. We forge treasures that are merely the most suitable, the most nimble; we do not forge instruments for brute force confrontation!”

Hearing Gu Xiechen’s words, the disciples of the Spirit Artifact Sect gained new insight into the Dao of Artifact Refining that Gu Xiechen had been teaching them over the years.

The power displayed by the Seven Spirits Profound Yin Sword was only on par with a High-Grade Immortal Artifact of the Human Realm, yet it managed to easily wound a Thunder Duke whose power seemed immeasurable. Although the Thunder Duke had run headlong into the trap himself, this proved Gu Wuchen’s point: there is no single most powerful flying sword or artifact, only the one most suitable for oneself.

The Thunder Duke howled in pain, hastily fumbling for a massive golden pill bottle, from which he extracted two immortal pills. He swallowed one, and crushed the other, which dissolved into a sphere of spiritual energy enveloping his entire body. In just a few breaths, the Thunder Duke’s injuries were completely healed.

His large eyes blazing with golden light, the Thunder Duke glared at Gu Wuchen and sneered, “This brat actually has some skill! Hmph, if I don't kill you today, the news will spread, and my reputation will be utterly ruined! To be wounded by a mere Void Realm whelp using a Human Realm immortal artifact! Do I, Lei Hongzi, still have any face? Can I still mix in the Celestial Mansion?”

Raising his electric cone and thunder hammer, Lei Hongzi shouted sharply, “Remember this, the one who kills you is Lei Hongzi, the Ninth Son of the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder Demon-Quelling Grand Marshal, Lei Zhenzi!” Gu Xiechen’s eyes narrowed, and he instinctively gripped the Heaven Dao Seal hidden in his sleeve. Lei Hongzi possessed the cultivation of a High-Grade Grand Unity Golden Immortal; a single strike of his lightning would reduce the thirty thousand Spirit Artifact Sect disciples to dust. Now that Gu Xiechen and the Spirit Artifact Sect had formed bonds, how could he allow Lei Hongzi to slaughter these disciples wantonly? If it truly came to action, he would use the Heaven Dao Seal to kill him!

Lei Zhenzi? The 100th son of King Wen who achieved physical sainthood after the Investiture of the Gods war? Back then, Gu Xiechen had only heard that he achieved physical sainthood, but he didn't know his exact post in the Celestial Court; even among the celestial troops and generals Gu Xiechen had summoned, Lei Zhenzi was nowhere to be found.

To think that he now held the position of the so-called Nine Heavens Divine Thunder Demon-Quelling Grand Marshal in the Celestial Mansion! Just hearing the title suggested Lei Zhenzi held significant authority there. His ninth son already possessed the cultivation of a High-Grade Grand Unity Golden Immortal!

Gu Wuchen snorted coldly, about to speak, when thousands of small Flowing Cloud Star Shuttles, each spanning about a li, burst forth from the Jiazi Star Fortress. Thousands of small shuttles surrounded a mass of white cloud a hundred li wide, within which faint palaces and towers radiated light tens of thousands of zhang high.

A deep, powerful voice echoed from the cloud mass: “Lei Hongzi, you’ve come seeking trouble again! Out of respect for your father, this seat has captured you eighteen times and released you eighteen times. Are you looking for more suffering today?”

Lei Hongzi threw his neck back and laughed loudly, “Grand Monarch Taifu, you old immortal, I specifically came to confront you! Since you dare not kill me, I’ll bother you every day. Why don’t you bite off my bird?”

Grand Monarch Taifu’s tone clearly faltered. Gu Xiechen could even hear the sound of the Grand Monarch grinding his teeth. He couldn't help but let out a dry laugh. Lei Hongzi was clearly a reckless brute; his manner of speaking revealed him to be simple-minded and foolish. Having been captured eighteen times and released eighteen times, he still had the audacity to cause trouble here?

Shaking his head, Gu Xiechen’s eyes focused. He casually reached out to the swiftly passing asteroid belt beside him and grasped a faintly blue-glowing meteor, which came into his hand. He rubbed and kneaded the stone with both hands, revealing a nine-colored Immortal Spirit Stone the size of a human head within.

The Spirit Artifact Sect disciples stared dumbfounded. Their Vice Sect Master, their Young Lord—were his hands a treasure trove? How could he simply reach into the air and retrieve a stone that was obviously extraordinary?

Gu Xiechen smiled faintly, then suddenly yelled at the top of his lungs, “Grand Monarch Taifu, senior, save us! Our thirty thousand disciples of the Spirit Artifact Sect came in response to the summons; the immortal envoys and guards accompanying us have been killed by this villain! He also stole the Seven-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone we prepared to offer to you, senior!”

While Gu Xiechen was shouting for help, the cloud mass where Grand Monarch Taifu was located, along with the thousands of small Flowing Cloud Star Shuttles, showed no reaction. However, the moment the words ‘Seven-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone’ left his mouth, the speed of the cloud mass instantly increased by more than tenfold.

The cloud mass, which had been ten thousand li away, arrived before Gu Xiechen in the blink of an eye. Grand Monarch Taifu’s voice drifted from within the cloud: “So it is a Daoist friend from the Spirit Artifact Sect. Hmm, the Seven-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone? Did Lei Hongzi steal the Seven-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone?”

Gu Xiechen ushered the thirty thousand Spirit Artifact Sect disciples onto the cloud mass. He bowed respectfully toward the golden, resplendent palace at the center of the cloud: “Senior, Lei Hongzi stole the Seven-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone. This junior has another Nine-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone I wish to offer to you, senior!”

“A Nine-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone?” Grand Monarch Taifu, who had previously sounded so steady, broad, and powerful, suddenly shrieked.

Then, realizing his lapse, Grand Monarch Taifu coughed lightly and spoke slowly, “A Nine-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone? That is indeed rare!”

Golden light suddenly blazed forth before Gu Xiechen. A middle-aged man appeared, wearing a tall crown of dark jade that reached the heavens, clad in robes embroidered with purple-gold stars, wearing boots with twin dragons coiled around pearls, carrying a purple jade sash at his waist, and holding a five-colored jade ruyi scepter. He was accompanied by several thousand celestial officials.

This celestial official possessed a full moon face, appearing quite noble and magnificent, smiling gently with a kindly expression like a spring breeze, giving an excellent first impression. This was Grand Monarch Taifu, the Governor-General overseeing the Jiazi Star Fortress, the high-ranking official governing this sector of the star field in opposition to the Celestial Mansion.

His gaze swept over Gu Xiechen’s hand, and the smile on Grand Monarch Taifu’s face grew warmer. He nodded and chuckled, “Indeed, a Nine-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone!”

Gu Xiechen was astute and handed the Nine-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone to Grand Monarch Taifu. He smiled faintly, “This junior, Gu Xiechen, Vice Sect Master of the Spirit Artifact Sect, pays his respects to the senior Grand Monarch. In such a vast place as the Jiazi Star Fortress, besides you, Senior, no one else is worthy of this Nine-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone. This junior has one small request: the thirty thousand disciples of the Spirit Artifact Sect are willing to be incorporated under your command.”

Grand Monarch Taifu raised his brow slightly and smiled calmly, “Thirty thousand disciples? That must be an edict from the White Dragon Spirit Lord. It’s truly a bit much!”

He swept his sleeve over the Nine-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone, and as the sleeve passed, the stone vanished without a trace.

Grand Monarch Taifu smiled serenely, “Very good. Your Spirit Artifact Sect belongs to the Dui Xuan Star Domain, which was originally a domain directly managed by the White Dragon Spirit Lord. Hmm, note down this lord’s command: henceforth, all affairs within the entire Dui Xuan Star Domain will be under my personal jurisdiction. The thirty thousand disciples of the Spirit Artifact Sect shall be incorporated into the Artisan Camp of the Jiazi Star Fortress Main Base. Gu Xiechen, you shall henceforth be the Left Commander of the Artisan Camp of the Jiazi Star Fortress Main Base!”

It seemed bribery and corruption still yielded infinite benefits here. Gu Xiechen hurriedly thanked Grand Monarch Taifu and led the Spirit Artifact Sect disciples to the edge of the cloud mass, positioning them so that Grand Monarch Taifu and the green-eyed Lei Hongzi faced each other.

Lei Hongzi was not just green-eyed; drool was dripping from the corners of his mouth. Flapping his great wings, he flew to within a li of the front of the cloud mass, staring intently at Grand Monarch Taifu’s sleeve and laughing, “Old immortal, take out the Nine-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone so I can see it! A Nine-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone—I’ve never seen such a treasure in my life.”

Grand Monarch Taifu smiled faintly, pointed at the Seven-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone held in Lei Hongzi’s hand, and said softly, “Lei Hongzi, you had best quickly return the Seven-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone you plundered to this seat, or today you will suffer great hardship!”

Lei Hongzi’s eyes rolled back, and he shrieked, “Nonsense! Lies! This Seven-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone is a treasure passed down by my ancestors! Who says I stole it? Who said that? Where is the witness? Who dares say this Seven-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone was stolen by me? Step forward if you have the guts!”

Grand Monarch Taifu frowned. Given his status, he naturally could not resort to such rabble-rousing as Lei Hongzi. If Lei Hongzi managed to solidify the claim that the Seven-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone was his ancestral possession, it would be difficult for him to forcibly take it. Yet, this stone was extremely important to Grand Monarch Taifu; with it, he might finally break through his current bottleneck and ascend to a higher realm!

Gu Xiechen suddenly strode forward, pointing at Lei Hongzi and roaring sharply, “I will be the witness! It was you who forcibly took the Seven-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone I was preparing to offer to the Grand Monarch! Lei Hongzi, if you are a man of honor, swear upon the primordial spirit of your father, Lei Zhenzi, that if you indeed stole this Immortal Spirit Stone, your father Lei Zhenzi shall have his primordial spirit destroyed by ten thousand thunders and be eternally damned!” Grand Monarch Taifu’s eyebrows lifted, and he smiled. Lei Hongzi’s face darkened with rage. He casually tucked the Seven-Colored Immortal Spirit Stone into his sleeve, then raised his thunder hammer to smash down directly onto Gu Xiechen. He roared in fury, “How dare you oppose your master! Die, die, die, die a thousand times! Ten thousand times isn't enough!” The thunder hammer flew out, transforming into a mass of purple and black lightning about a zhang in diameter, crashing down toward Gu Wuchen.

Gu Xiechen cried out in alarm and hastily retreated backward. Grand Monarch Taifu intervened precisely at that moment, sneering, “Lei Hongzi, what place do you take this to be?”

The five-colored jade ruyi in his hand let out a dragon's roar, transforming into a dragon-shaped, five-colored radiant cloud that lunged at the thunder hammer. The hundred-zhang-long dragon-shaped aura circled and twisted around the purple-black thunder light. With every rotation, the lightning visibly weakened. After three or five such passes, Grand Monarch Taifu gave a slight shake, and the massive thunder hammer was firmly held in his hand.

Lei Hongzi roared with exasperation, looking up at the sky and bellowing, “Are all the celestial artisans in the Celestial Mansion just pigs? This thunder hammer has been reforged for me eighteen times, front to back, yet it still can’t smash open your old immortal head?”

Grand Monarch Taifu played with the thunder hammer and smiled gently, “This has nothing to do with the artifact, Lei Hongzi. Your cultivation is insufficient for you to be so presumptuous in front of this seat!”

Lei Hongzi snorted coldly. The electric cone in his left hand suddenly transformed into an extremely fine beam of light that stabbed toward Grand Monarch Taifu’s chest. Then, he let out a great roar to the heavens, suddenly drawing a wind-and-thunder staff that glittered with golden light from tip to end. He dove down, bringing the staff crashing down upon Gu Xiechen.

The materials in this universe possess immense density. For the same metal like gold, silver, bronze, or iron, the material weight in this universe is tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands or millions of times that of the original universe for the same volume. This Wind and Thunder Staff in Lei Hongzi’s hand was forged from various rare materials, including ‘Evil Gold’ produced in the Chaos Space. Its weight was terrifying, yet it was an object of destruction with limitless power.

As this strike descended, even a hundred zhang above Gu Wuchen’s head, the staff’s wind was already causing the cloud mass around Gu Xiechen to ripple violently, emitting a deep ‘humming’ sound. If this strike had landed, anyone below the peak of the Grand Unity Golden Immortal realm, unless specifically cultivating body refinement techniques, would have had their bones broken, muscles torn, and body pulverized into mud.

Not to mention that Gu Xiechen was only displaying the cultivation of the Void Realm. In Lei Hongzi’s eyes, when this strike landed, Gu Xiechen was absolutely dead!

Grand Monarch Taifu’s brow furrowed, and he shouted sharply, “Lei Hongzi, how dare you! To kill someone in front of this seat—do you still see this seat here?!”

The five-colored radiance rose again, meeting Lei Hongzi’s strike head-on. Grand Monarch Taifu formed hand seals, causing the radiant light to circle and dance in the air, peeling away layers of the uncontrolled power of Lei Hongzi’s Wind and Thunder Staff. The diving Lei Hongzi visibly slowed down, becoming slower and slower, until his body gradually solidified in mid-air, unable to descend even a fraction of an inch further.

Grand Monarch Taifu looked down at Gu Xiechen proudly and nodded, “Gu Xiechen, rest assured. Within the Jiazi Star Fortress, no one can harm a single hair on your head!”

Gu Xiechen hastily bowed in thanks to Grand Monarch Taifu. Suddenly, Gu Xiechen noticed a sinister flash in Lei Hongzi’s eyes. He shivered violently and quickly warned, “Senior Grand Monarch, watch out! There is something wrong with Lei Hongzi!”

Before the warning finished, Lei Hongzi suddenly flung the Wind and Thunder Staff aside. His right hand swiftly reached into his left sleeve, pulling out a golden spear three zhang and six chi long, shaped like writhing lightning in the sky, crooked with numerous branches. This spear seemed forged from some unknown material, entirely enveloped in haze, constantly emitting wisps of auspicious energy and divine light. Beneath the mist and clouds, the surface was densely covered with the ferocious seals of the Nine Heavens Thunder Gods.

Gu Xiechen took one look and instantly discerned the spear’s origin: it was the Innate Spirit Treasure ‘Nine Heavens Raging Thunder Hammer,’ formed from a strand of innate divine thunder within this universe—an attack-oriented spirit treasure of immense power.

The Nine Heavens Thunder God seals beneath the haze numbered three hundred and sixty million layers, each containing infinite mysteries. These three hundred and sixty million seals, combined, represented the most fundamental law of thunder in this universe.

Unfortunately, this Nine Heavens Raging Thunder Hammer seemed to have been extracted from its mother divine thunder before it had fully matured. While the external three hundred and sixty million layers of Thunder God Seals were fully gestated, the internal artifact spirit had only formed an embryo—it possessed the form but lacked the spirit.

However, observing it with his Chaos Eye, Gu Wuchen saw an egg-sized little man with wings seated at the core of the spear. This little man’s divine light was abundant, and wisps of lightning radiated from his body, perfectly replacing the spear’s original artifact spirit and completing the weapon’s power. This little man bore a ninety percent resemblance to Lei Hongzi, but his cultivation far surpassed Lei Hongzi’s. Even as a mere primordial spirit avatar, he was more than ten times stronger than Lei Hongzi. This was clearly the primordial spirit avatar of Lei Zhenzi, the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder Demon-Quelling Grand Marshal; he had completely refined this Innate Spirit Treasure, replacing the artifact spirit with one of his Three Corpses Primordial Spirits.

With a chilling sneer, Lei Hongzi raised the brilliant, golden Nine Heavens Raging Thunder, muttered a casual incantation, and flung the spear toward Grand Celestial Lord Taifu. The spear flickered once, instantly transforming into a nearly invisible, colorless streak of lightning, silently shooting toward him.

The lightning born from the spear moved thousands of times faster than Lei Hongzi’s own flight speed as pure thunder, leaving even Grand Celestial Lord Taifu, warned by Gu Xichen and possessing cultivation ten thousand times superior to Lei Hongzi’s, with no recourse but to watch as the light bore down on his chest.

This was no longer Lei Hongzi attacking, but Lei Zhenzi wielding a weapon through one of his Three Corpse Primordial Spirits. This Nine Heavens Raging Thunder was the inherent natal artifact of one of Lei Zhenzi’s Three Corpse Primordial Spirits; its destructive power was extraordinary. Grand Celestial Lord Taifu’s complexion shifted, his ruddy face draining instantly to a deathly pallor.

He stood rigid, rooted to the spot, as a colossal divine thought locked onto his body from within the Nine Heavens Raging Thunder. The tyrannical aura released by the spirit treasure rendered him like a man caught in a flood, passively swept along by the current, utterly incapable of independent movement.

Seeing that Grand Celestial Lord Taifu was about to be struck by the Nine Heavens Raging Thunder without even a chance to defend himself, Gu Xichen, standing nearby, had already raised both hands. Immediately, amidst a flurry of hissing and rushing sounds, two cascading waterfalls shimmering with seven-colored light shot out from his wide sleeves.

Swords, spears, halberds, meteor darts, axes, long-handled implements, needles, scissors, pots, pans, mirrors, and water vats—a chaotic assortment of at least three to four thousand immortal artifacts, each glowing with a different hue, burst forth from Gu Xichen’s sleeves and slammed into the streaking Nine Heavens Raging Thunder from an oblique angle.

A series of massive explosions erupted. Blinding bolts of lightning flashed violently less than three zhang from Grand Celestial Lord Taifu’s face. One after another, the immortal artifacts shot out by Gu Xichen detonated, shattering into dust under the terrifying might of the Nine Heavens Raging Thunder.

Yet, the immortal artifacts Gu Xichen deployed were too numerous and of sufficiently high quality. It was like ants gnawing on an elephant: though the beast was huge and immensely powerful, the sheer multitude of gnawing ants could eventually peel away a piece of its hide.

The three or four thousand varied immortal artifacts erupted simultaneously, barely delaying the Nine Heavens Raging Thunder for approximately one ten-thousandth of a breath. In that minuscule fraction of time, the divine sense locking onto Grand Celestial Lord Taifu flickered momentarily. That tiny tremor was insignificant, comparable to a playful child punching the Earth and causing a negligible vibration.

But for an immortal of Grand Celestial Lord Taifu’s caliber, that minuscule shock, that slight distraction undetectable by ordinary immortals, was just enough to grant him a vital opportunity to breathe. One ten-thousandth of a breath is fleeting—even a Grand Unity Golden Immortal could not react in such a span.

However, as a peak Great Overarching Golden Immortal, one ten-thousandth of a breath was enough time for Grand Celestial Lord Taifu to obliterate a star system, or conversely, to birth the infinite vitality of one. Seizing the chance bought by Gu Xichen’s delay, Grand Celestial Lord Taifu’s pale face suddenly flushed red again.

With a cold snort, Grand Celestial Lord Taifu casually raised his hands. From his left and right sleeves shot forth two exquisitely small, quaint turtles, each the size of a copper coin. One was golden yellow, as if cast from pure gold; the other was pristine white, like mutton-fat jade.

The two turtles were identical in form, both bearing the Eight Trigrams etched upon their shells, with two tiny dragon horns atop their heads. Their tails, however, were two sinuous, living vipers. A faint purple luminescence and auspicious aura emanated from the turtles’ intelligent eyes. The moment they flew from Grand Celestial Lord Taifu’s sleeves, they tilted their heads back and let out a crisp, melodious cry—a sound thin and tender, like the call of a young maiden whispering to her first love.

It was this delicate cry that caused the surrounding heavens and earth to tremble. Boundless purple energy surged from Grand Celestial Lord Taifu’s side, and the two tiny turtles suddenly swelled in size, reaching up to ten thousand zhang tall. The two turtles brought their four feet together, their ventral shells pressed tightly against each other, and began to rotate rapidly in mid-air without any wind. The golden and jade lights flared intensely, and a shield of dazzling gold materialized before Grand Celestial Lord Taifu.

The shield was shaped like a tortoise shell, inlaid with countless jade-white markings that precisely formed an innate Eight Trigrams diagram. The Nine Heavens Raging Thunder shattered the thousands of artifacts Gu Xichen had launched and struck the tortoise-shell shield with full force.

A deafening explosion resounded. The cloud raft supporting Grand Celestial Lord Taifu disintegrated violently, and the palace structures above shattered into countless fragments of broken brick and tile, raining down everywhere. The thousands of celestial officials surrounding him had no time to react; they were all thrown outwards, suffering ruptured orifices and spurting blood, their bones fractured by the shockwave of the blast.

Where two innate spirit treasures collided, over ninety-nine percent of the force was absorbed by the treasures themselves, leaving only a trace of negligible residual energy. Even this minuscule residue was too much for Taifu’s subordinates; the least injured among them had at least thirty or forty bones broken, and their internal organs suffered severe jolts.

Only the disciples of the Artifact Spirit Sect, led by Gu Xichen, who had been standing respectfully behind Grand Celestial Lord Taifu, remained untouched by any residual force once the great shield appeared. The thirty thousand disciples of the Artifact Spirit Sect merely had their eardrums ruptured by the immense explosion, blood trickling from their ears, but sustained no other harm.

Grand Celestial Lord Taifu’s body shuddered, and he was forced back a few steps, two thin streams of blood slowly trickling from his nostrils.

Lei Hongzi, less than a hundred zhang from the collision point of the two spirit treasures, was not protected by such an artifact. When the explosion hit, he shrieked and was blasted hundreds of li away, his flesh and skin shredded by the force, exposing gleaming golden bone and viscera in many places.

The Nine Heavens Raging Thunder was knocked back a thousand li by the great shield. It circled in the air twice before suddenly turning into a golden streak and rocketing away. Lei Hongzi coughed up blood frantically, struggling miserably in the void to pull himself upright.

But Grand Celestial Lord Taifu, furious that Lei Hongzi had used the Nine Heavens Raging Thunder to launch a sneak attack, immediately pointed his finger at the great shield with menacing power. A fierce beam of golden and jade light shot out, crushing down mercilessly upon Lei Hongzi’s body. This crushing motion was like a millstone pressing on an ant. Lei Hongzi screamed, his bones exploding one after another with loud thumps.

The giant shield rose, then fell; rose, then fell. In the span of mere breaths, it smashed down upon Lei Hongzi hundreds of times in rapid succession.

Lei Hongzi’s skeletal structure was pulverized, his meridians crushed to powder, and his five internal organs were a pulpy mess. If not for his honed physical body and immensely tenacious vitality, this barrage would have utterly scattered his soul.

Furious, Grand Celestial Lord Taifu sneered, casually reaching out to snatch up Lei Hongzi with five streams of golden light. Then, a white spiritual light flashed out, circling Lei Hongzi wildly. In moments, Lei Hongzi’s tall frame was wrapped tightly by the shimmering white strip of light, bound like a mummy suspended in the void.

Grand Celestial Lord Taifu roared, “Guards! Throw Lei Hongzi into the Black Water Pond Prison and watch him closely! Torture him daily!”

Previously, Grand Celestial Lord Taifu had captured Lei Hongzi eighteen times and, out of respect for his father, released him eighteen times. But this time, Lei Hongzi had employed his father’s innate spirit treasure to attack him—an unambiguous declaration of open hostility. Enraged, Grand Celestial Lord Taifu certainly would not release Lei Hongzi easily.

A squad of fierce-looking Yellow Turban strongmen lunged forward, seizing Lei Hongzi and hauling him toward the Jiazi Star Fortress. Lei Hongzi continued to curse Grand Celestial Lord Taifu, spitting blood all the way as he was dragged off.

Grand Celestial Lord Taifu stared fiercely at where Lei Hongzi had been for quite some time before stamping his foot and muttering under his breath, “If you weren’t the cherished grand-disciple of Patriarch Yunzhongzi, I would have killed you long ago! That Lei Zhenzi, a disciple of a Saint, yet... yet serving the Great Emperor of Heaven, truly, truly…”

After grumbling for a good while, Grand Celestial Lord Taifu finally looked up, retracted the great shield, and flashed over to Gu Xichen’s side.

He examined Gu Xichen with immense admiration before remaining silent, clapping Gu Xichen heavily on the shoulder, and handing him the three artifacts he had retrieved: the Thunder Hammer, the Electric Chisel, and the Wind and Fire Rod.

Gu Xichen accepted them without ceremony, knowing this was a gesture from Grand Celestial Lord Taifu. He casually tucked the Thunder Hammer and Electric Chisel into his sleeves. Though he seemed to put the Wind and Fire Rod into his sleeve, he actually sent it directly into the Source Yang Profound Orb. Gu Xichen’s Source Yang Primordial Spirit roared inside the orb: “Monkey, see if this rod is to your liking? Take it and fuse it with your own treasured staff!”

Seeing Gu Xichen accept the three artifacts, Grand Celestial Lord Taifu nodded. He glanced down at the mangled remains of Gu Xichen’s several thousand immortal artifacts, destroyed by the Nine Heavens Raging Thunder, and frowned slightly. He reached to his belt, unclipped a purple jade token, and handed it to Gu Xichen. “For a thousand years of service, if you encounter any trouble within the Jiazi Star Fortress, come find me.”

After a slight pause, Grand Celestial Lord Taifu stated calmly, “Your thirty thousand disciples from the Artifact Spirit Sect will remain with the Crafting Camp. You may do as you please day-to-day; you won't be assigned specific duties. If you are interested in helping forge military equipment, all rewards will be preferential.”

This was a protective talisman. Gu Xichen respectfully accepted the jade token and thanked Grand Celestial Lord Taifu. He calculated inwardly: saving Grand Celestial Lord Taifu’s life in exchange for his protection within the Jiazi Star Fortress was a fair trade; neither owed the other anything.

After giving Gu Xichen these instructions, Grand Celestial Lord Taifu suddenly looked up, fixing his gaze on a rapidly tumbling asteroid belt far in the distance, and roared sharply, “Go back and tell the Second True Lord Yang Jian that Lei Hongzi has been captured by me! If he wants the man, tell him to come to the Jiazi Star Fortress himself to speak with me!”

In that asteroid belt, a golden light suddenly flashed, and hundreds of golden-armored celestial generals materialized out of thin air. The leading general, clad in armor patterned with two dragons chasing a pearl and wielding a great axe, pointed at Grand Celestial Lord Taifu and shouted, “Taifu! If you dare harm a single hair on our young lord’s head…”

Grand Celestial Lord Taifu merely flicked his hand, and a golden sword light streaked past. The hundreds of celestial generals cried out in unison, hundreds of sprays of golden blood erupting as over a hundred heads flew wildly into the air, leaving only the final general standing behind the rest. Grand Celestial Lord Taifu roared, “I have already beaten him until his flesh is mud! What nonsense is this about not daring to touch a single hair? Go back and tell Lei Zhenzi that by using the Nine Heavens Raging Thunder to plot against me today, any semblance of fellowship between fellow disciples is severed!”

With a sweep of his hand, a jade-green Qing Essence Divine Thunder flew out. The hundreds of corpses were instantly blasted into a wisp of green smoke.

The sole remaining general, his face ashen with terror, was blasted hundreds of li away by the Qing Essence Divine Thunder, slamming into a passing meteor before his momentum was halted. This general dared not utter a word, swiftly transforming into a streak of golden gale and fleeing desperately.

Grand Celestial Lord Taifu snorted coldly. With a gesture, a small white cloud flew out of his sleeve, gradually expanding until it became a cloud platform nearly a hundred li across, upon which stood an opulent palace.

The thousands of flowing cloud shuttles surrounding them struck up joyful and enthusiastic martial music, and countless soldiers and generals cheered in unison, returning to the Star Fortress with high morale.

Gu Xichen and the thirty thousand disciples of the Artifact Spirit Sect naturally followed Grand Celestial Lord Taifu to the main body of the Jiazi Star Fortress, rather than reporting to the Jiazi Number One Star Fortress under the jurisdiction of the White Dragon Spirit Lord. Thanks to Grand Celestial Lord Taifu’s special instructions, the celestial officials of the main Jiazi Star Fortress bustled about diligently, ensuring the members of the Artifact Spirit Sect were properly settled.

The main Jiazi Star Fortress stood on the foremost line of defense against the Heavenly Courts by the Immortal Sects. Immortal equipment and weaponry suffered tremendous attrition there, hence the massive Crafting Camp responsible for forging immortal artifacts for the soldiers and cultivators stationed there.

Because of Grand Celestial Lord Taifu’s decree, Gu Xichen became the Left Commander of the Jiazi Star Fortress’s main Crafting Camp. Besides the thirty thousand disciples of the Artifact Spirit Sect, he commanded over a million artifact refiners. The thirty thousand disciples were quartered in the Left Commander’s residence within the camp. The environment here was far superior to the roaring flames and ceaseless noise of the main Crafting Camp.

Moreover, the Left Commander’s residence was built directly upon a primary spirit vein of the Jiazi Star Fortress. Due to the unique topography of the First Line Star Abyss, the spiritual energy here was astonishingly dense—the spiritual energy concentration in the Hidden Truth Palace was less than one percent of what it was here. The cultivation efficiency was self-evident; the thirty thousand disciples of the Artifact Spirit Sect had effectively landed in a paradise.

The authority of the Left Commander of the main Jiazi Star Fortress’s Crafting Camp was immense. In addition to his million subordinate refiners and tens of millions of menial laborers, soldiers, and acolytes, thirty thousand elite celestial soldiers and generals were garrisoned here to ensure the camp’s security. These thirty thousand were all directly under Gu Xichen’s command.

Among these thirty thousand, there were numerous immortals at the Grand Unity Golden Immortal level, and their primary general was an old acquaintance at the Great Overarching Golden Immortal level.

If not for Grand Celestial Lord Taifu’s direct orders, how could Gu Xichen have subdued such proud and willful warriors? However, thanks to the special attention from Grand Celestial Lord Taifu, he only spent a quarter of an hour ensuring these elite forces obeyed his commands.

After a flurry of activity, while Gu Xichen was busy taking over the ledgers and official documents left by the former Left Commander, a commotion suddenly erupted at the entrance of the Left Commander’s residence.

Accompanied by the sharp crack of a whip, the dozen gatekeepers and the three hundred celestial soldiers guarding the main gate were systematically thrashed by a burly man clad in golden armor, who wielded a whip braided from white dragon hide, all the way from the entrance to the main hall where official documents were handled.

This burly man was the White Dragon Spirit Lord, who was colluding with the White Immortal Gate. In the few days since Gu Xichen arrived at the Jiazi Star Fortress, the Spirit Lord had been leading patrols along the First Line Star Survey defense perimeter, so he was unaware that Gu Xichen had managed to secure the patronage of Grand Celestial Lord Taifu.

When the White Dragon Spirit Lord returned to the Jiazi Star Fortress, an immortal whom he barely knew approached him for a casual chat and "accidentally" mentioned that the Artifact Spirit Sect disciples were currently stationed at the main Jiazi Star Fortress! Startled by the news that the Artifact Spirit Sect disciples had been assigned to the main fortress’s Crafting Camp, the White Dragon Spirit Lord erupted in fury! Since the people were not under his control, how could he fulfill his promise to the White Immortal Lord?

Without inquiring about the cause or effect, and without anyone informing him of the circumstances—no one told the White Dragon Spirit Lord that Gu Xichen was the Left Commander of the Crafting Camp, nor that this position had been personally designated by Grand Celestial Lord Taifu—the White Dragon Spirit Lord stormed in, thrashing everyone.

He didn't even return to his own residence or meet with his trusted confidants; he just barged in, bristling with rage. His confidant immortals, having heard the news, rushed to alert him, but they were intercepted halfway there with various excuses and detained.

Thus, the enraged White Dragon Spirit Lord marched triumphantly into the Left Commander’s residence of the main Crafting Camp.

Staring arrogantly toward the sky, the White Dragon Spirit Lord roared, “Old Daoist Fire, hand over that child called Gu Chenzi! This matter has nothing to do with you; do not interfere here!”

“Old Daoist Fire” referred to the previous Left Commander of the Crafting Camp, the ‘True Man of Fierce Fire,’ a master refiner at the peak of the Grand Unity Golden Immortal realm.

Gu Xichen, who was organizing ledgers and documents in the main hall, looked up, assessed the White Dragon Spirit Lord from head to toe, and then suddenly smiled. “Senior, Gu Chenzi is right here. May I ask if you have business with me?”

The White Dragon Spirit Lord froze, then abruptly snapped his head to look at Gu Xichen.

“You are Gu Chenzi? Why are you sitting behind the magistrate’s desk?”

With a cold snort, the White Dragon Spirit Lord laughed wildly, “Good, very clever methods. You managed to cling to Old Daoist Fire’s high branch right away, now you can handle his paperwork and documents for him? Heh heh, too bad! Old Daoist Fire won’t be able to protect you either!”

Staring coldly at Gu Xichen, the White Dragon Spirit Lord shouted, “The Jiazi Star Fortress has its own rules. You are someone I ordered here; you must serve under me. Gu Chenzi, hurry up and follow me to report to the Crafting Camp at Jiazi Number One Star Fortress!”

With a loud laugh, the White Dragon Spirit Lord flicked his wrist. The long white dragon-hide whip cracked, whipping a trail of white light toward Gu Xichen’s neck.

Gu Xichen’s brow twitched, and suddenly a Thunder Hammer and an Electric Chisel appeared in his hands.