A Will Eternal

Bai Xiaochun didn’t say anything. He held his cup of alcohol, hand trembling slightly. He could sense the contempt of Daoist Heavenspan, the mixed feelings in Gongsun Wan’er, and the cold expressions on the faces of everyone else. He slowly closed his eyes.

“Strength….” he thought. “If I were strong enough to fight an archaean, none of them would dare to humiliate me in this way. None of them would dare to tyrannize Heavenspan cultivators like this!!” Thankfully, his eyes were closed, making his struggle impossible to detect by anyone else.

Unfortunately, things weren’t over yet. In response to Bai Xiaochun’s restraint, the Vile-Prince smiled again, his eyes flickering with contempt.

“Don’t worry, Ambassador Bai. We’ve prepared more traditional entertainment for you….” He waved his hand to indicate to his followers to begin the next phase of his plan. “You know, we struck it off as friends as soon as we met. Furthermore, you represent the Saint-Emperor Dynasty. Therefore… I’d like to present you with a gift! It’s none other than, er--” He looked over and waved a finger at the dancing corpse puppets.

“Well, it’s the technique used to produce corpse puppets like this. That way, Ambassador Bai, you can go back and make some of your own to enjoy even more. And, yes, I did make all of these corpse puppets myself.” Before Bai Xiaochun could open his eyes, two cultivators entered the hall and approached the Vile-Prince. After clasping hands in greeting, they waved their sleeves, causing three cultivators to tumble out of their bags of holding!

They were all in the Nascent Soul stage, and were all unconscious.

“Watch carefully, Ambassador Bai. I’ll personally make some puppets right now, just for your benefit.” The Vile-Prince smiled broadly, but his eyes were as cold as ice. He had set this trap specifically for Bai Xiaochun, who he was convinced was just too stubborn for his own good. If Bai Xiaochun had agreed to trade bodies, he would have talked to his father the emperor to ensure that his stay in the Vile-Emperor Dynasty went smoothly and safely.

But Bai Xiaochun had refused him. Therefore, the Vile-Prince had determined to take by force what had not been given in trade!

Just as Bai Xiaochun had already guessed, if he was even the least bit impulsive in the presence of the Vile-Emperor, it could instantly be turned into an enormous problem!

Therefore, the Vile-Prince's intention was to put Bai Xiaochun in a situation where he couldn’t hold back from taking action!

Chuckling coldly, the Vile-Prince began to create corpse puppets right there in front of everyone. Within moments, anguished screams erupted from the mouths of the cultivators. Shivering, Bai Xiaochun opened his eyes. The truth was that he knew he needed to see exactly what was happening!

“There’s something about this technique you need to pay special attention to, Ambassador Bai. And that is, you must absolutely not let them die in the process. You must torment them in a way that makes them scream bitterly and in anguish, and yet, does not kill them. That way, the final product will be particularly lively.” The Vile-Prince smiled as he explained what he was doing. As for the brutal process playing out, it left everyone feeling quite shocked.

Bai Xiaochun’s hands were clamped onto the arms of his chair, and his eyes were crimson as he felt himself slowly slipping into madness.

The brutality on display was worse than someone being skinned alive. Living people were being slowly transformed into corpse puppets, and the Vile-Prince was describing the process in minute detail. And there was more to it. In order to provoke Bai Xiaochun even more, he released the magical seals on the three cultivators, allowing them to think and speak as normal.

One of the three was a middle-aged man who seemed to know Bai Xiaochun. When Bai Xiaochun’s eyes locked onto him, the man wailed, “Help me, Arch-Ancestor… help me….”

Gongsun Wan’er’s face twitched, and she shook her head warningly at Bai Xiaochun. As for Bai Xiaochun, his hands were gripping the arms of his chair so tightly that they suddenly shattered, sending splinters of wood out in all directions. As that happened, the celestials all looked over at him, energy surging.

Bai Xiaochun was so angry that he was losing control. Shivering from the inner pain, he wished that he didn’t have such a powerful fleshly body. That way the wood would stab into his palms and possibly help him forget about his inner anguish. Feeling profoundly grim, he rose to his feet!

In that same moment, the Vile-Emperor stirred on the Dragon Throne, and looks of glee appeared in the eyes of Virūpākṣa and the other celestials as they prepared to attack.

And yet, in that very moment, Gongsun Wan’er waved her hand, sending three streams of black smoke speeding out. As a demigod, the Vile-Prince was powerless to do anything, and furthermore, his attention was fully focused on Bai Xiaochun. Before he could react, the smoke stabbed into the screaming, pleading Heavenspan Realm cultivators.

The three of them shivered, and then looks of release could be seen in their eyes as they died.

“Enough!” she said, her voice like a cold, sinister wind that swept through the imperial palace. “This is the imperial palace, Vile-Prince. Do your research elsewhere. It sickens me!” 

It was not in Bai Xiaochun’s place to do something like she had. But she was a celestial of the Vile-Emperor Dynasty, and therefore, any consequences she would face would be trivial at most!

“You!” the Vile-Prince blurted, turning to face her. Everyone else present also looked over in shock, including the celestials, upon whose faces could be seen slight frowns. But in the end, there was little they could say by way of response.

The Vile-Emperor opened his eyes and looked over, his expression unreadable.

Bai Xiaochun looked at the dead cultivators with faint expressions of relief on their faces. Taking a deep breath, he turned to the Vile-Emperor and clasped hands formally, his face expressionless.

“Vile-Emperor, Your Majesty. I’m afraid I must excuse myself early!” With that, he turned to leave.

A very grim expression could be seen on the Vile-Prince’s face, and his eyes flickered with hidden hatred as he looked at Gongsun Wan’er. As of this moment, he had vowed to one day transform her into a celestial-level puppet!

And yet, he simply wasn’t resigned to letting Bai Xiaochun leave. Rushing forward, he blocked his path.

“Ambassador Bai, His Majesty the Vile-Emperor hasn’t given you leave to depart. The banquet isn’t over! How could you possibly leave now? There’s a very important matter still on the agenda!”

Bai Xiaochun looked coldly at the Vile-Prince, the killing intent in his heart growing stronger by the moment. At the same time, the Vile-Prince’s heart was trembling with icy rage.

Were it not for the fact that the circumstances made it impossible, Bai Xiaochun would have cut this Vile-Prince down where he stood. Instead, he stepped around him and continued on his way out. The eyes of Virūpākṣa and the other celestials flickered hesitantly as they looked at him, and then over at the Vile-Emperor, who as yet had not spoken or done anything.

A cold sweat covered the Vile-Prince's body, born of humiliation and rage. Suddenly, he clapped his hands.

In response, a beam of light approached from off in the distance, within which was an old man with a demigod cultivation base. And he wasn’t alone! He was dragging someone else along with him!

Shockingly, the person being dragged toward them wore imperial robes, although his head hung down, making it impossible to make out his facial features. He did not wear a crown, and yet his robes alone made him spectacularly eye-catching!!

“Arch-Emperor!” Bai Xiaochun said hoarsely, stopping in place.

For many years, only two people in the Eternal Immortal Domains had qualified to wear imperial robes. One was the Vile-Emperor, and the other was the Saint-Emperor. But now… another person existed who held such qualifications!

He was a direct descendent of the Arch-Sovereign, the true and rightful ruler of the imperial dynasty from the Heavenspan Realm… the Arch-Emperor!!

Back when Bai Xiaochun fought with Daoist Heavenspan, the good fortune from the gravekeeper bestowed him with the bloodline of the Arch-Sovereign, and turned him into the new Arch-Ancestor. In addition to the fact that he had a celestial cultivation base, he was very much like an emperor to the current Heavenspan Realm cultivators. However, the Arch-Emperor… was the true paragon entity from the Heavenspan Realm!

The Heavenspan Realm had been destroyed, but the Arch-Emperor hadn’t perished. He had been captured by the Vile-Emperor Dynasty, tortured for information… and then locked up like an animal in the imperial palace. Now… he was being paraded out for Bai Xiaochun to see!

Upon hearing his title being spoken out loud, the dazed Arch-Emperor slowly looked up, and his gaze fell on Bai Xiaochun. And then…

He smiled.