Transcending the Nine Heavens

When Chu Yang extracted this piece of Holy Crystal, Chu Yang suddenly felt his heart tremble for some unknown reason.

All of a sudden, a strange battlefield seemed to appear before his eyes!

At the same time as he looked over, Chu Yang felt like his soul had been violently rammed against!

In the scene stood a mighty and domineering man of great stature and large build. His body was entirely purple. Holding a sword of purple light on his hand, he maneuvered left and right among an endless crowd of people. When his sword slashed through the air, several hundred strange-looking people died under his sword.

The battle situation became increasingly intense. More and more of his opponents appeared, surrounding him as though crashing tides. He fought on just like that, as though a madman.

Behind him was a magnificent-looking gate of strategic importance!

He had no comrades, no companions!

He fought all alone just like that, using all of his strength to stand against these strange people from entering that gate! He knew nothing of fatigue and his expression was fierce and forceful. His eyes, however, were tired though persistent, carrying a hint of the composure of someone who had already seen through worldly affairs.

But since he had already seen through worldly affairs, why, then, was he engaged in such a desperate battle?

As Chu Yang watched on, he became very sure of something — If this man wished to leave, even if the other party boasted a million-strong troop, no one would be able to stop him! If he wished to, he was able to leave any moment.

In fact, the enemy was also hoping for him to leave.

Yet he didn’t! He remained fighting! Fighting on in a frenzy!

Seemingly at the end of their wits, three shadows suddenly flew out from the enemy camp. Coming from afar, they flew to the top of the battlefield in an instant.

There was a pair of jet-black wings on the back of each of these three people. Their complexions were strange and their noses sharp and pointed. They didn’t seem like they were part of the continent’s human race.

The three of them stopped above ground, seemingly discussing something.

On the ground, the man, who was as well-built as a celestial god, raised his head. He was also saying something furiously.

As for what they were saying, Chu Yang couldn’t hear anything. These images were completely silent!

After a long time, the enemy troops retreated, much like the receding tide.

On the battlefield, four people stood facing each other! Three against one.

Holding his sword, the man got into a fighting pose. Then, he said something, a very short sentence.

Even though there was no sound, Chu Yang could still tell from the movement of his lips what he said —”Come!”

The other party seemed to say something, but the man paid him no heed whatsoever.

At last, the three on the other side separated with a whoosh and went into a battle formation.

The man, who had purple light circling around his whole body, let out a hearty laugh and charged toward them with his sword in hand. The four of them flipped and rolled about, fighting with each other.

Immediately after, the image was magnified dramatically.

As the four of them fought, Chu Yang could clearly see the mountains in the surroundings exploding one by one, rendering the area into flat ground, which then became huge potholes…

Then, the four of them rose into the air and straight into the clouds. During the fight, Chu Yang could see the stars surrounding them being extinguished one by one…

Was that the remnant force of their power destroying living realms one after another?

This battle seemed to go on for very long.

Judging from the cultivation levels of the four of them, if they were to fight one-on-one, the man would no doubt have the upper hand. However, when fighting three against one, he was not their match. In the battle, he suffered injuries constantly. Yet he continued to engage them in battle, not retreating even a single step.

At last, these four had all reached a point of exhaustion. The man, who had fought one against three, was already covered in injuries all over!

In the end, he suddenly stopped and said something.

The three winged beings opposite him suddenly revealed a frightened expression and turned to leave.

However, blinding rays of purple light suddenly shot out from the body of the man instantly!

Brilliant and dazzling, the purple light lit up the entire starry skies!

Thereafter, the man bellowed something. Then, his body suddenly exploded. Those three seemed to cry out in shock at the same time before they disintegrated in the explosion…

A good half of the enemy camp in the far distance was also destroyed by this huge explosion at this moment!

Chu Yang’s heart shook intensely. A kind of emotion called ‘heroic sacrifice’ suddenly permeated throughout and filled his heart!

Reading the man’s lips, Chu Yang could tell very well what his final words were!

“Extraterrestrial Demons! Come along with me!”

…

A light pillar stretching all the way to the sky suddenly appeared and disappeared in a flash.

The images also disappeared without warning.

Chu Yang stood there in a daze. Only then did he realize that his face was already wet with tears.

This was most likely the battle with the Extraterrestrial Demons.

Just that, why did it appear here?

At this point, the Sword Spirit shouted, “There are words here!”

Shocked, Chu Yang opened his eyes and looked over. In front of him, at the place where the Holy Crystals and Divine Crystal had appeared, there were several words formed by purple light.

Going through countless dangers and breaking through endless tribulations;

Experiencing every hardship and trial of the world;

I was originally a free and unfettered wanderer of the beautiful skies,

Moving the blue skies and bright sun about as I please;

War drums in extraterrestrial grounds ring throughout the heavens,

How can I let the blood of a warrior that lies in my heart rest;

My heart returns to dust today,

And so, I transform this body of mine into endless time;

Destroying my body to leave behind a legacy of centuries-long,

A loyal heart of eternity is but a legend;

There are so many people in the Nine Heavens,

What a pity that there is no one who can accompany me;

Today, I fight with my all and depart this world;

Can it get the passion in your heart burning in return?

When the lad of the younger generation receives this legacy,

Do not forget to battle the Extraterrestrial Demons in the extraterrestrial grounds!

…

Chu Yang was astounded — These were the last words written before the death of the person who had penned it. The one who had written this poem was most probably the man who had self-destructed and died in the battle. One could tell that this person probably wasn’t very learned; the poem that he had written didn’t flow very well in some places and some lines didn’t make much sense. However, there was a sense of boldness, a sense of tragedy and a sense of repression… That sense of heroism, however, charged straight into one’s heart, causing Chu Yang’s heart to feel rather heavy. For a moment there, his heart felt as heavy as lead.

At the bottom, large words continued to appear as the light flashed. It was about the man’s life.

“My name is Zi Hao, the Heavenly Emperor of the Imperial Court’s Purple Cloud Heavens! I rule over the Purple Cloud Heavens, which borders on extraterrestrial grounds. The Purple Cloud Heavens has always been a hotly-contested place of strategic importance between the extraterrestrials and the military of the Imperial Court. Back then, I, bathed in blood, had charged up to the Imperial Court. After warring in the east and the west for tens of thousands of years, I established the foundation of the Heavenly Emperor.”

“Because of my valiance and skill in warfare, the Saint conferred upon me the title of Heavenly Emperor of the Purple Cloud Heavens. I was conferred a rank of nobility, but in truth, I charged at the frontlines.”

“However, my personality is by nature violent. My blood boils where war is! Thus, I did not mind. I managed the Purple Cloud Heavens for a hundred and fifty thousand years! The extraterrestrial grounds are filled with nothing but thieves and rascals; they were unable to transgress the boundaries even a single step!”

“In the 19,310,918th year of the calendar of the Imperial Court, there was a great cataclysm in the extraterrestrial grounds. The living environment of the Extraterrestrial Demons was assimilated by the universe day by day and the condition of their living environment increasingly deteriorated. Restless and waiting for the first chance they get, they wanted to invade our Imperial Court. I contacted the Nine Heavens Imperial Court several times but was overruled every time. As such, I could only worry over this day and night and fight with all my might by myself.”

“In the ninth month and eighteenth day of the same year, while the Imperial Court sang and danced in celebration of peace, war drums reverberated throughout the heavens in extraterrestrial grounds. Ten million extraterrestrial troops entered the Nine Heavens Imperial Court! The commander-in-chief of the borderland, Zhang Liang, who led troops of nine million retreated without fighting. Within a single night, the Purple Cloud Heavens were laid bare to the enemy!”

“I fought hard to kill the enemies and sent a letter to the Nine Heavens Imperial Court. If the Imperial Court could come together as one to stand against the enemies, were the extraterrestrial clowns even worth mentioning? Yet, everyone wished only to stay in their comfort and cravenly clung on to life. With the crime of deliberately exaggerating and sensationalizing things as a reason, they threw me into a state of fighting without any support!”

“Within three years, the seven million warriors under me and all of their family members died under the hands of powerful extraterrestrial enemies. Not a single one of them dragged out a dishonorable existence! Out of my six sworn brothers, my seventh younger brother, Leng Yue, battled the Extraterrestrial Demons with all his might but was defeated and killed; everyone in his family perished together with him. My sixth younger brother, Han Qiang, fought without any reinforcements and was trapped guarding the Heavenly Wolf Pass. He fought until he was left with not a single soldier and died self-destructing! My fifth younger brother, Meng Hui, led troops of 100,000 to stand against the extraterrestrials’ troops of 400,000 and perished together with them…”

“My fourth younger brother, Kuang Dao, brought reinforcements to my fifth younger brother but was intercepted mid-way and died an unnatural death! My third younger brother, Bi Luo, died defending the Heavenly Wolf Pass; my second younger brother, Xue Ge, died guarding the Purple Cloud Gate, shedding his blood for a just cause!”

“My eldest son, together with my eldest grandson and their family of three hundred, guarded the Heavens Breakthrough Gate. They were surrounded by enemies and lost their lives at the gate!”

“My second son…”

“My eldest son-in-law and eldest daughter…”

“…”

“Out of seven million soldiers and twenty million of their family members, not a single person in the Purple Cloud Heavens battle forces survived! Four hundred and five million citizens were all wiped out!”

“Today, this is the last battle of I, Zi Hao! The three great Extraterrestrial Demon generals of the other side will definitely make a move. This is no doubt a losing battle; there is no chance of a fluke at all. However, my brothers have already shed their blood before me. The bones of these great men are buried in Purple Cloud; how can I, Zi Hao, drag out my existence and live on dishonorably! I can only fight on and use this battle to avenge my brothers and my people!”

“I had said this audacious sentence back then —’With I, Zi Hao, around, the extraterrestrials shall not pass!’ I have done it! My heart is comforted!”

“My brothers and citizens, none of them are cowards. Though they may have died in battle, their noble spirit lives on! My heart is comforted!”

“When I die in battle today, I shall be reunited with my brothers! My heart is comforted!”

“The only thing which aggrieves my heart is that if the Nine Heavens Imperial Court had risen up to the challenge, what did the extraterrestrials amount to? Yet the heavenly troops of I, Zi Hao, fought for six years, until we have reached the end of the rope. At our time of life and death, the hundred billions of people in the Nine Heavens Imperial Court celebrate their peace… with no one sending reinforcements at all! I die a worthy death with no regrets today, but there is only one thing which remains troubling me — Why are the hearts of people so cold?!”

What followed after that were repetitions that reached as many as several hundreds!

“Why are the hearts of people so cold?”

“Why are the hearts of people so cold?”

“Why are the hearts of people so cold?”

The very last line —”After I have gone today, who will protect my Purple Cloud Heavens?!”

Staring at the words, Chu Yang was silent for a long while.

The message that this Heavenly Emperor of the Purple Cloud Heavens, ‘Zi Hao’, left behind slowly disappeared amidst the brilliant purple light. In the end, it turned into a tall and majestic gate!

30 kilometers tall, it stretched hundreds of kilometers left and right. Majestic and vast, it stood indomitable between heaven and earth!

In the middle were three gigantic words. Every word was the size of half a city and shone with purple light —’Purple Cloud Heavens’!

This was a hero! Chu Yang was filled with great respect for him in his heart. He thought silently, “Fighting by himself till he perished, this Zi Hao is surely a hero of a lifetime! Yet his final words aroused such indignation in people.”

‘There are so many people in the Nine Heavens, what a pity that there is no one who can accompany me’!

‘The heavenly troops of I, Zi Hao, fought for six years, until we have reached the end of the rope. At our time of life and death, the hundred billions of people in the Nine Heavens Imperial Court celebrate their peace… with no one sending reinforcements at all! I die a worthy death with no regrets today, but there is only one thing which remains troubling me — Why are the hearts of people so cold?!’

‘Why are the hearts of people so cold!’

This, when said by a hero standing against the invasion of outsiders, at a point where his hope for reinforcements when he reached the end of his rope had turned into hopelessness, was so terribly tragic!

Not even a single reinforcement soldier in six years!

“This is a great man!” Chu Yang murmured.

Seeing his brothers falling one by one; seeing his descendants stepping onto the battlefield one by one and dying without even an intact corpse. At last, he himself also stepped out with an air of vigor and magnificence for a final showdown in the Imperial Court with the powerful invaders!

Losing his life and perishing!

And yet, after his death, there actually remained a sliver of his heroic soul which left behind this amazing treasure trove. As well as a sentence —’When the lad of the younger generation receives this legacy, do not forget to battle the Extraterrestrial Demons in the extraterrestrial grounds!’

“Rest assured, if I can fight my way up to the Nine Heavens Imperial Court, I will definitely join the battle against the Extraterrestrial Demons!” Chu Yang clenched his fists and silently promised, “I will reinstate your Purple Cloud Heavens!”

With a clatter, all the Holy Crystals suddenly fell at this instant.