Four more transparent bubbles slowly floated out one by one in silence.
Inside them, the figures of Ye Chen, Ye Xin, Mu Ling, and Huang Ran floated motionless in a deep sleep. Their faces were calm as if dreaming, yet faint golden light flowed around their bodies like thin mist gently wrapping them.
Long Suyao's eyes widened, her pupils trembling slightly. Her heart pounded so loudly she could hear it echo in her ears, yet her body could not move even the slightest bit within Zhang Wen's bubble. Some force pressed down from every direction as if she were bound by invisible laws.
At that moment, Zhang Wen spoke in a calm voice.
"You came looking for someone named Ye Xin, didn't you… is she important?"
Lin Taiji looked at the transparent bubble where Ye Xin floated for a moment, her deep eyes seeming to weigh something.
"I was just interested in taking her as a disciple."
She paused briefly.
"But now… it's better not to."
Suddenly, Zhang Wen moved his wrist slightly. The Heaven-Severing Umbrella in his hand began to rotate.
The golden cloud patterns on the dark black surface slowly shifted like a night sky filled with drifting mist. Some lines glowed faintly, like silent star paths crossing one another.
The surface of the umbrella was not ordinary cloth but seemed like a fragment of the sky itself, compressed into form. The darkness within appeared endless, like gazing into the depths of space.
The matte black handle was engraved with ancient patterns, fine lines resembling runes that recorded certain laws of the world. As the umbrella spun, those runes flickered faintly in rhythm with the pulse of power.
At that very moment, the sky above trembled.
The black clouds were torn apart rapidly, as if a colossal hand had ripped them open.
Within that opening, a pure golden eye slowly opened. Its iris was formed from radiant light, emitting an emotionless, chilling brilliance.
It stared directly at Zhang Wen. The pressure was so immense that even time itself seemed to slow.
Lin Taiji stood calmly, her mind unshaken, yet her body reacted with a faint tremble. Meanwhile, Long Yantian felt his muscles tense without realizing it.
The surrounding space began to crack. Black fractures appeared in the air like shattered glass as the power from the eye in the sky pressed down relentlessly.
But at the same time, the Heaven-Severing Umbrella spun faster. The black canopy released an overwhelming suction force, like a miniature black hole opening in midair.
The transparent bubble containing the five people with golden luck was instantly drawn into the canopy. Faint golden patterns began to flow across the surface as if alive.
Then the first image slowly emerged.
The shadow of a massive dragon rose from the darkness.
Its scales were silver tinged with blue, shimmering like moonlight reflected on water. Its long body coiled within golden mist, eyes closed as if in deep slumber. It rested at one corner of the umbrella like a guardian sealed in place.
Not far away,
an image of crimson-black flames quietly ignited. The flames did not burn but revolved slowly like a miniature sun.
On another side,
a pure nine-colored lotus gradually bloomed. Its petals were translucent like jade, tiny motes of light drifting upward like scattered stars.
The next image was an ancient golden throne slowly taking shape, carved with elegant dragon and phoenix patterns and adorned with golden gemstones.
And the final image was a soft pink mist rising gently. Flower petals drifted down like a dream. Within the mist stood the silhouette of a woman facing away, long hair flowing softly, an aura gentle yet mysterious spreading outward. Just looking at it made one feel their heart being pulled without knowing why.
All five images slowly stilled, becoming permanent patterns on the canopy. Thin golden runic lines connected them together like a ring of laws. The Heaven-Severing Umbrella became like a miniature world holding the fate of the five within.
However, Zhang Wen did not particularly like the patterns, so he spun the umbrella once. The designs reverted to how they were before, a deep black surface with golden clouds spread across the canopy.
At the same time, above the torn sky, the pure golden eye still stared down emotionlessly, like a being that existed beyond cause and effect.
Zhang Wen smiled faintly beneath the mask.
"Sorry… looks like you decided too late."
At that instant,
the golden eye in the sky trembled slightly before a thin golden beam shot straight toward him.
The beam made no sound and released no pressure, yet it caused the surrounding laws of the world to freeze, as if anything touched by that light could vanish instantly.
Zhang Wen slowly raised the umbrella. The Heaven-Severing Umbrella opened fully. The moment it was lifted, the beam trembled and then faded as if swallowed.
But in the next fraction of a second,
it transformed into a thin strand of light and slipped through the barrier directly into the miniature world within the umbrella.
Inside the miniature world of the Heaven-Severing Umbrella, it was like entering another realm.
A small world of quiet beauty, peaceful and serene, filled with mountains, forests, and gently flowing rivers beneath a sky of golden clouds, as if created to escape the chaos outside.
The strand of light shot toward all the sealed figures.
But the moment it drew close, a certain power trembled. The light was severed, then completely crushed.
All of its power was absorbed instead, becoming nourishment for that small world.
Outside, Zhang Wen smiled faintly.
"Don't hesitate. If this is all the power you're sending, it'll be a bit difficult… try harder."
At that instant,
a deafening roar erupted.
It was not just a single roar, but the thunderous cries of countless beasts echoing across the sky.
Lin Taiji immediately turned to look, her eyes activating instinctively as visions of the future flooded in.
Half-Emperor spirit beasts… twenty of them, along with countless Saint Emperor, Saint King, and Saint-level spirit beasts, were advancing from every direction.
But what shocked her the most was not their number.
Boom!!!
A certain pressure exploded outward as an aura of unimaginable power surged from Zhang Wen's body.
In a fraction of a second, the entire area was suppressed. The laws of heaven and earth trembled, all natural forces seeming to recoil in fear. Every living creature nearby trembled uncontrollably.
The sky stopped moving. The world seemed to hold its breath. Lin Taiji and Long Yantian stared at Zhang Wen before them.
Their eyes filled with disbelief, because the aura spreading out was
not the power of a Half-Emperor, nor the power of someone half a step into the Great Emperor realm.
It was the power of a Great Emperor.
That pressure was not merely strength. It was authority, the authority to define the laws of the world itself.
Lin Taiji felt slightly dizzy as the pressure radiating from Zhang Wen made her breathing grow heavy without her realizing it.
All this time,
she had believed Zhang Wen was merely at the peak Half-Emperor level. Even her eyes had told her so.
But now she knew.
It was wrong. It had been wrong from the very beginning.
Lin Taiji stared at the man in white. She should have realized from the start that someone who wore a pitch-black mask covering every part of his face and clothing that concealed every inch of his body
would never reveal his true cultivation from the beginning. The level he showed at first had only been an illusion he deliberately allowed others to see.
All along, her Eyes of Heaven had been extraordinarily powerful, rarely ever mistaken in situations like this.
But at that moment, she sensed another Emperor-level artifact, and as she looked at Zhang Wen she spoke,
"Emperor-level armor… I see now what caused my eyes to go completely wrong."
Long Yantian, who also felt Zhang Wen's power, spoke with a slight tremor in his voice.
"If you had this much power along with two Emperor weapons, why didn't you use them from the start…"
Zhang Wen's voice sounded out.
"You all came at the wrong time. I happen to be busy with something as well."
The moment his words fell,
the entire world seemed to freeze. All spirit beasts, regardless of their level, stopped completely, unable to move even an inch.