The moment the golden gate appeared behind Su Chen, the entire world seemed to stop breathing.
Even the violent storms above the heavens froze briefly.
The Heavenly Executor halted completely midair while countless silver spears hanging above the planet trembled violently like they had encountered something far more terrifying than themselves.
The massive golden gate continued rising slowly behind Su Chen.
Ancient.
Majestic.
Overwhelming.
Golden chains wrapped around its surface endlessly while incomprehensible symbols burned across the enormous structure. The gate itself towered beyond the clouds, rivaling the heavenly gates in size.
No—
Larger.
And older.
The moment it fully appeared, hidden cultivators throughout the world instinctively lowered their heads without understanding why.
Because the pressure flowing from the gate was fundamentally different from heaven.
The heavens ruled through suppression.
But the Ancient Court…
Ruled through dominance.
High above the skyline, the Observer's giant silver eye finally changed completely.
For the first time—
Fear appeared within it.
"The Ancient Court…"
Its cold voice carried visible disbelief now.
"…It truly survived."
Below the heavens, Su Chen stood before the enormous gate calmly while golden light spread around his body continuously. The black ring on his finger had almost completely shattered now, revealing an ancient golden symbol hidden inside.
A throne.
The synchronization voice echoed deeply.
Primordial synchronization: 97%
Ancient Court Authority fully acknowledged.
Opening first imperial seal.
BOOM.
The golden gate behind Su Chen trembled violently.
Then—
It slowly began opening.
The moment the gates parted slightly, ancient pressure erupted across the world like a tsunami.
Mountains cracked.
Oceans surged violently.
Countless hidden arrays buried since ancient times awakened simultaneously across the planet.
Inside hidden cultivation sects, old monsters who had remained asleep for centuries suddenly knelt instinctively toward the direction of the gate.
Their faces filled with terror.
Because they recognized that aura.
The aura of the ancient rulers who once dominated countless realms.
Inside the rooftop atmosphere, Xu Mingshan's breathing became uneven while staring at the opening gate.
"…So the legends were true."
Yan Ruoxue's crimson eyes gleamed with shock and excitement.
"The Ancient Court wasn't destroyed…"
Lin Yanyan quietly stepped closer toward Su Chen despite the overwhelming pressure shaking the entire city around them.
Her eyes remained fixed only on him.
Because even now—
Even with heaven and ancient worlds colliding above the mortal realm—
The only thing she cared about was whether Su Chen was safe.
Above the heavens, the Heavenly Executor suddenly roared violently.
The roar shook the entire planet.
Then the millions of silver spears behind it descended simultaneously.
BOOM.
The sky itself disappeared beneath endless silver light.
Humanity screamed worldwide as the spears rained downward like heavenly punishment.
Entire continents faced destruction.
Xu Mingshan's face turned pale.
"We can't stop that…"
No mortal force could survive such an attack.
Not even Saint Realm experts.
But Su Chen simply looked upward calmly.
Then—
From within the partially opened Ancient Court gate—
A hand emerged.
Not gigantic like the Heavenly Executor.
Not overwhelming in size.
A normal human hand.
Pale.
Elegant.
Yet the moment it appeared—
The descending silver spears froze completely.
Silence spread through heaven and earth.
The Heavenly Executor stopped roaring instantly.
The Observer's giant eye trembled violently.
Because that hand carried a pressure even heaven recognized instinctively.
Ancient supremacy.
Then—
The hand moved slightly.
CRACK.
The first silver spear shattered instantly.
Then another.
Another.
Thousands.
Millions.
BOOM.
The endless heavenly spears exploded across the sky simultaneously, transforming into storms of silver fragments that illuminated the heavens like dying stars.
The shockwave tore through the clouds violently.
And humanity watched in stunned silence as heaven's attack was erased effortlessly.
The Heavenly Executor took another step backward.
This time—
In fear.
The Observer's voice finally lost all calmness.
"Impossible!"
Silver lightning exploded chaotically across the heavens.
"That power should no longer exist!"
Then suddenly—
The partially opened golden gate stopped moving.
The hand slowly withdrew back into the darkness beyond the gate.
But before disappearing completely—
A deep voice echoed faintly across the world.
Only one sentence.
Ancient.
Cold.
Absolute.
"Who allowed heaven to speak so loudly before the throne?"
BOOM.
The heavens themselves trembled violently.
The Observer's giant eye cracked slightly.
Silver blood spilled from the sky.
Every hidden cultivator on Earth felt their souls freeze completely.
Because they understood something horrifying now.
Something inside the Ancient Court was still alive.
Not inheritance.
Not memories.
Alive.
The synchronization voice echoed again inside Su Chen's mind.
Imperial Guardian awakening incomplete.
Energy insufficient.
Gate closing temporarily.
The golden gate behind Su Chen slowly began fading.
But the pressure it left behind still suffocated the heavens themselves.
Above the world, the Heavenly Executor no longer attacked.
Its massive silver body remained motionless while countless heavenly chains trembled around it.
Then—
For the first time—
It bowed slightly toward the fading gate.
Not willingly.
Forced.
The Observer's cracked eye stared downward at Su Chen with growing hatred.
"You…"
Its voice carried killing intent powerful enough to distort the atmosphere.
"…must die before the throne fully awakens."
Su Chen's golden eyes remained calm.
Then he answered quietly.
"Come try."
The Observer suddenly fell silent.
Because after witnessing the Ancient Court gate—
Even heaven hesitated now.
Finally, the giant silver eye slowly retreated upward into the heavenly crack.
The Heavenly Executor followed silently behind it.
The silver gates began closing.
But before disappearing completely—
The Observer's final words echoed across the planet.
"The upper realms will descend fully in three days."
Silver lightning flashed one final time.
"And when heaven arrives…"
Its cracked eye locked onto Su Chen one last time.
"…the mortal world will drown in blood."
BOOM.
The heavenly gates closed completely.
The sky returned to darkness.
Silence fell over the world once again.
But nobody felt relief.
Because everyone understood now.
The real war…
Had officially begun.