Nearby, Bing Yan overheard the conversation and, eager to please, transmitted everything he knew to Heavenly Monarch Bing Yu via divine sense. As the Monarch listened, his expression shifted unpredictably. Even Li Xue and the other cultivators could sense the tumultuous waves of shock crashing through his heart.
Heavenly Monarch Bing Yu turned his gaze toward Li Xue. The intensity of it made her flinch, her body trembling involuntarily; even a fraction of an upper-realm immortal’s pressure was nearly unbearable for a mortal cultivator. Realizing this, the Monarch retracted his aura entirely and spoke to her gently. "You possess a spirit body, do you not? Might I see her?"
Li Xue grumbled inwardly. *Why are these spirit beasts such blabbermouths, telling everyone everything?* However, she could hardly refuse a request from a Heavenly Monarch. Resigned, she summoned Li Xiao Yin.
As soon as Li Xiao Yin emerged and saw the translucent, shimmering Crystal Palace, her eyes lit up. She looked left and right, taking in the sights, until she suddenly spotted Heavenly Monarch Bing Yu. "Are you a Luo Tian High Immortal?" she asked curiously. "You're radiating immortal qi!" As a spirit body, she was exceptionally sensitive to different types of energy.
Seeing her, Heavenly Monarch Bing Yu nodded with satisfaction. "Indeed, she bears the mark of the Luo Tian, Bai Yixing." He then sat cross-legged, his hands moving in complex patterns as he began to perform a divination.
Li Xue and the others dared not move, staying rooted to the spot. Before a Heavenly Monarch, any action they took would be laid bare.
Li Xiao Yin, however, lacked the self-awareness of a lowly cultivator. Back when she had awakened the Luo Tian High Immortal Bai Yixing, he had been gentle and refined with her. She had always assumed all immortals were like that. Ignoring the gravity of the situation, she happily wandered off to inspect the ice-crystal pillars, clicking her tongue in wonder.
After a long time, Heavenly Monarch Bing Yu opened his eyes. He found himself unable to deduce anything further.
In the Immortal Realm, major frictions with the Demon Realm occurred every hundred thousand years, with smaller conflicts cropping up every thirty or forty thousand. Heavenly Monarch Bing Yu had descended to the lower realms forty thousand years ago to investigate demonic movements, only to encounter the Dark Night Demon Emperor. The two had fought for seven days and seven nights, eventually resulting in mutual exhaustion and heavy injuries.
At the time, the severely wounded Monarch had found a random ice star to begin his recovery. He had awakened ten thousand years ago and built this Crystal Palace, crafting the Ice Soul Divine Needles from leftover materials on a whim. He had also found an Ice Whale Beast—a creature carrying a divine bloodline. His original plan was to take the beast back to the Immortal Realm once his healing was complete. He hadn't expected that after waking up a month ago, a simple whim to practice a minor technique would lead him to encounter Li Xue’s group.
He had sensed these youngsters long ago, but he never expected the Ice Whale Beast to recognize one of them as its master of its own accord. When so many coincidences converged upon a Heavenly Monarch, they ceased to be coincidences. A Monarch’s power was close to that of a Nascent Divinity; they existed outside the cycle of the Heavenly Dao and the reach of karma. There was no such thing as "heavenly will" or "coincidence" for them. This meant someone had deliberately obscured the secrets of heaven.
The thought soured the Monarch’s expression. He needed to return to the Immortal Realm as soon as possible. He patted the Ice Whale Beast on the head and addressed the group. "Since fate has brought us together, everything in this Crystal Palace is yours. I hope to see you in the Immortal Realm soon." He cast a final glance at Li Xue before his silhouette gradually faded and vanished.
"Phew, he’s finally gone!" Dongfang Jing collapsed onto the ground, gasping for air, completely disregarding his dignity as a Core Formation cultivator.
Yu Ming, Ji Rufeng, and Bai Xingyu all let out deep sighs of relief, cold sweat still pouring from their brows. The pressure of an upper-realm Monarch was not something a mere cultivator should have to endure. Even with his aura retracted, the sheer weight of his presence had been suffocating.
Hei Yan, possessing a divine bloodline, had only felt uncomfortable, while Bing Yan watched the spot where the Monarch had vanished with a hint of reluctance.
Li Xue, however, was frowning deeply. She couldn't stand how everyone was being so mysterious. *I’m only at the Core Formation stage! I’ll have a heart attack and die before I even ascend if these upper-realm guys keep this up—assuming a Core Formation cultivator can even have a heart attack.*
Meanwhile, Li Xiao Yin had produced the Rain Jade Hairpin and was using her spiritual power to dig out the ice crystals. The screeching sound of the scraping finally drew everyone’s attention.
"Xiao Yin, what are you doing?" Li Xue asked in surprise.
"Mother, didn't that immortal say this palace belongs to us now?" Li Xiao Yin replied earnestly. "We can't take the whole building with us, so I’m digging out these pretty crystals. They’ll be fun for Brother Xiao Lin to use for smithing!"
The realization hit the group. They immediately sacrificed their magic treasures and began dismantling the Crystal Palace. These were top-tier materials, rare treasures that couldn't be left behind.
Bing Yan covered his eyes and slumped onto the ground, powerless. This pack of bandits was even prying up the ice floor tiles. They had no class at all.
***
Three hundred years ago, in the Palace of Emperor Hua within the Immortal Realm, the Luo Tian High Immortal Bai Yixing was reporting his experiences in the lower realm to the Emperor.
"Your Majesty, while I was searching for materials in the lower realm, I was ambushed by the Third Prince of the Demon Realm. I was forced to seal my divine sense and flee to an ordinary cultivation star. The strongest cultivators there were only at the Tribulation Transcendence stage. However, in one location, I encountered a Yin Spirit Grass that had just gained sentience yet possessed the aura of a living soul. Stranger still, there was a Crimson Marsh Flood Dragon of the Divine Clan there as well."
Bai Yixing’s frown deepened as he continued. "Just before I descended, I happened to 'borrow' three items from Ye Wuchen: the Jade Heart Sutra, the Hundred Flowers Jade Immortal Dew, and the Spirit Hiding Pearl. The Yin Spirit Grass used its Yin Spirit Fruit to wake me, so I gave those three items to her. Unfortunately, I was unable to divine the heavenly secrets behind these events."
Emperor Hua and the gathered Heavenly Monarchs turned solemn.
"The appearance of the Third Prince of the Demon Realm in the mortal world is no small matter," Heavenly Monarch Lingwei said, rising. "Your Majesty, I believe we should send someone down to investigate thoroughly."
Emperor Hua nodded. "Then I shall trouble Heavenly Monarch Daofan and Heavenly Monarch Lingwei to make the trip. The Third Prince shouldn't be able to bring many followers to the mortal realm."
Both Monarchs rose and accepted the command.
Three hundred years later, Heavenly Monarch Bing Yu returned to the Immortal Realm. In that same Palace of Emperor Hua, he recounted his encounter in the lower realm in detail. Emperor Hua’s brow furrowed as he closed his eyes to perform a divination.
"Haha! Truly, the secrets of heaven cannot be divined!" Emperor Hua suddenly burst into happy laughter.
"Your Majesty, even you cannot deduce it? Who could have hidden the heavenly secrets so thoroughly?" Bing Yu asked in shock.
"Monarch Bing Yu, if the secrets are not meant to be known, do not force it. You did well. Once that Li Xue reaches the Immortal Realm, you must look after her," Emperor Hua instructed. He then began to murmur to himself, "The Black Wolf Guard and the Ice Whale Guard of the Divine Clan... the Crimson Marsh Flood Dragon, the Purple Warbler, and the Yin Spirit Grass... Could it be? Could it be...?" A sharp light flashed in his eyes.
"Has Your Majesty discovered something?" asked Heavenly Monarch Yunyuan, the leader of the Monarchs.
"Yunyuan, don't you think the passage to the Divine Realm has been closed for far too long?" Emperor Hua said. "It seems the Demon Realm knows much more than we do. Never mind. Since the secrets are hidden, it means the time has not yet come."
Emperor Hua suddenly seemed much more relaxed. Ignoring the others, he murmured to himself as he returned to his chambers for meditative seclusion.
The various Heavenly Monarchs left the palace, each lost in their own calculations.
