It sounded as if the Quadform elders weren’t in a hurry. After all, there had yet to be a seadragon king capable of picking up the weapon for hundreds of thousands of years. So how could anyone steal the divine artifact? Obviously, the thief must have been one of the seadragon king candidates who had failed to usurp the throne and wanted to make a final attempt. 

“Go!” 

Long Youyue stood up and flicked her skirt, her blue eyes flashing with a fiery gleam. She had longed for the Godbane for a long time. As soon as she walked out of the hall, there was a sudden red light up ahead. 

“The Godbane has moved!” 

The expressions of tens of thousands of tribulation elders altered drastically as they all stared blankly in the direction of the Seadragon Temple, then back at Long Youyue.

“Who could’ve picked up the Godbane?!” 

The entire Seadragon Hall was shocked.

In a daze, Long Youyue bit her red lips, her expression turning cold.

"Who could it be? No one’s ever succeeded...." 

She wasn't even sure she could do it; she merely wanted to try her luck. Breaking through the waves, she rushed toward Seagod Hall with all the tribulation elders following behind her.“Our ancestor has declared that whoever picks up that weapon will be king of the Quadform Seadragon Clan." 

“But Long Youyue has just taken the throne. What shall we do?” 

“The question is, who’s strong enough to actually lift the weapon? There isn’t anyone in Quadform stronger than Long Youyue.” 

If it weren’t for the fact that there were few precedents for women to take the throne, Long Cangyuan might not have been able to compete with her. Long Youyue soon arrived near the Seagod Hall.

“Surround Seagod Hall!” 

The tribulation elders quickly spread out. More than twenty third-origin tribulation elders all followed Long Youyue into the Seagod Hall. There were corpses everywhere. Long Youyue's eyelids twitched uncontrollably. 

With a wave of her sleeve, Long Youyue entered the hall. In the main hall, the ten-meter-tall statue of the Quadform Seagod, Sixiang Poseidon, stood right in front, looking down at Long Youyue. 

Under the idol, a man in black and red robes sat on the altar, holding a mighty weapon in his hand and looking at her with a smile on his face. His third blood-red eye between his eyebrows was extremely conspicuous. The instant Long Youyue saw him, she narrowed her eyes and stumbled backwards. 

“Dugu Jin...." Long Youyue clenched her fists and stared blankly, her delicate body trembling lightly.

“Do you know why I’m able to pick up the divine artifact? Dugu Jin asked with a smile on his face as he fiddled with the weapon in his hand. 

The tribulation elders watching were stunned. They certainly wanted to know why. Their ancestor had declared that the one who picked up the Godbane would be their king! 

“Yes, I do." Long Youyue gritted her teeth. 

“This weapon originally belonged to the blood ancestor of my clan, but it was passed down to the Quadform Seagod. He isn’t its creator. Do you understand?" said Dugu Jin. 

“Your clan? What clan?” asked Long Youyue.

“That’s not important anymore.” Dugu Jin jumped down from the altar and waved his hand. "Let them leave. You stay." 

“No, Sect Master....”

Even if their ancestor had left them with instructions, the tribulation elders weren’t convinced by an outsider.

“Everyone out,” Long Youyue said coldly.

While they were all still hesitating, Long Youyue roared and they reluctantly withdrew. Thus, only Dugu Jin and Long Youyue remained in the Seagod Hall. Long Youyue lowered her head, her voluptuous body slightly undulating. She was almost bewitching. 

Picking up one of the corpses on the ground, Dugu Jin walked up to Long Youyue and said, "Is this your man? The head of the Seagod Hall who’s in charge of worship? He can’t compare to you. He’s unworthy.” 

Long Youyue turned pale. "Why bother? You know in your heart that he and I were forced to get married. We’ve never really been husband and wife." 

“How can an irrelevant person enjoy the title of your husband. I resent him." Dugu Jin threw the corpse under his feet and placed the Godbane down. Then he placed his hands on Long Youyue's shoulders and looked at her with a fiery gaze. "Yue'er, I haven’t seen you since the day your father and Long Cangyuan ruthlessly separated us. For more than a hundred years, everyone thought I’d forgotten you, but how can I forget? I made an oath that one day I would come here and take you away. Back then, I was no one. I had no status. I was weak. How many laughed at me? But today, here I am.”   

“It's too late. We’re not young anymore. We’ve changed—I’m no longer me, and you’re no longer you. What’s the point in all this?" Long Youyue said blankly. 

“No, I'll always be me. I haven’t changed." Dugu Jin added, "I was willing to die for you back then, and I’m willing to die for you now.” 

Long Youyue stared at him for a long, long time, and finally glanced at the Godbane.

“You attempted to assassinate the goddess, so there’s no way you can return to your sect. From this day on, you vow loyalty and devotion to me? You’ll serve Quadform?" Long Youyue looked at him dubiously. 

“No, you’re mistaken. Dugu Jin pointed to his third eye and said, "I’m not the same man I was a month ago." 

“I can see that you’re more powerful now than before. So what? Are you going to leave with the Godbane?” asked Long Youyue.  

“Of course not.” Dugu Jin stretched out his hand and pulled her into his arms, making it difficult for her to move. 

Leaning in toward Long Youyue's ear, he said with a gloomy expression, "From now on, I am king of Quadform. And you’ll belong to me from this day forth.” 

……

Taiji Peak Lake in Archaion. 

The appearance of the grey star had garnered everyone’s attention and amazement. Soon after, a five-colored column of light burst out of the Heaven Cauldron, shooting to the lower starry sky and turning the grey star colorful. It was a shock to the entire divine realm. 

Numerous people were gathered beside the Heaven Cauldron, including Xuanyuan Dao, who was overseeing the sect, and Ouyang Jianwang. After the shock and excitement, they were still clueless as to what exactly the grey star was, let alone why the Heaven Cauldron had undergone such drastic changes. 

“The Kilostar Domain is gone. If Tianming is still alive and Fang Taiqing and others have succeeded, they might be on their way back now," said Ouyang Jianwang. 

“Yes. Watch the Heaven Cauldron." With that, Xuanyuan Dao turned around and left. 

“Where are you going?” 

“I’ll follow the beam of light. I can lend them a hand if they’re being hunted,” said Xuanyuan Dao.

“Alright.” Ouyang Jianwang nodded and closed his eyes. “Yi, my little friend, the both of you must return safely.” 

After Xuanyuan Dao left, Ouyang Jianwang stared blankly at the glimmering Heaven Cauldron, like the others around him.

“The progenitor’s divine body is within the Heaven Cauldron. Does the grey star have something to do with him?" 

……

The courtyard within Soulburn Hall was a white paradise. A young woman dressed in blue stood under the plum blossoms, her hands clasped in front of her.

“That’s in the direction of the Kilostar Domain. Big Brother...." She nervously stared at the grey star in the sky, her heart pounding. “With such drastic changes in the Kilostar Domain, whether he’s alive or dead will soon be revealed.” 

She had never been so nervous in her entire life. Every time she looked up at the grey star and watched it turn into a five-colored star, she closed her eyes and prayed. 

“I hope the paper cranes keep him safe!" 

At the thought of that, she quickly pulled out several boxes from her spatial ring and opened them in the courtyard. 

“Fly. Fly away. Bring him back.” 

She paced back and forth in the snow, and soon the snow was full of footprints. When she was most anxious, she looked at the star, her eyes turning red. 

“Why is this happening? No, I must control myself." 

Although she thought that in her heart, the nervousness didn’t ease; instead, it deepened. It suddenly occurred to her that he was surrounded by so many elders. Once the sealing formation was gone, it would definitely be very dangerous. At the thought of him disappearing forever, she paced back and forth once more. 

“You must come back, Big Brother. We’ve encountered so many dangers together. We’ve been doing alright from the day we met till today. You must pull through.... You said that as long as a person has something they care about, they can change their destiny. After listening to your words, I didn't give up in the Tomb of the Ancients. I fought Xuanyuan Xi, so you can't give up.” 

She was so nervous that she kept muttering almost incoherently.

“I won’t be the goddess anymore, as long as you come back. I want to be with you all the time, whether it’s dangerous or not. I can face it all with you...."

She picked up numerous paper cranes and held them in her arms. It was noisy outside, but inside Soulburn Hall, there was dead silence. Only Feiling’s nervous breathing could be heard in the courtyard. 

At this moment, a cold voice sounded behind her.

“If you’re not Her Eminence, then you can be with your big brother and live together, isn’t that right?” 

Feiling’s body suddenly stiffened, as if she were struck by lightning. Trembling, she turned around. 

She was shocked to see Fang Qingli standing no more than three meters behind her. The elder had approached extremely quietly. Who knew when she had arrived?

“H-how dare you! Who let you in?" said Feiling.

Fang Qingli looked at her coldly. There was a brokenness in her eyes.

“Are you human, god, or ghost?” Fang Qingli asked, her voice trembling. 

She walked toward Feiling.

“Fang Qingli, what do you mean?" Turning pale, Feiling quickly backed away. 

“I was depressed. Why would Your Eminence love a mortal? I could never have imagined that you’re not a god. You fought Xuanyuan Xi, a goddess. Then who are you? Are you a carbon copy, or did you seize her divine body?!"  

Fang Qingli's eyes widened as she continued approaching Feiling, the rage inside her growing. Her words meant that she had been here the entire time. However, Feiling had been so worried that she didn't even notice her. 

“What the hell are you talking about? Anybody?" Feiling shouted. 

“Shut up!” Fang Qingli suddenly screamed, her body bursting with coldness and her gaze fierce. “So Your Eminence and her disciple are really a disgraceful pair who stole the divine body? Where is Her Eminence?” In an instant, she appeared in front of Feiling and wrapped her hands around the girl’s neck.

“Answer me!”