The full moon hung heavy in the sky, dyed a deep crimson, as if the heavens themselves wept blood. Xiang Tian stood atop a jagged outcropping overlooking the shattered remains of the Eastern Ridge. The winds howled with a sorrowful cry, carrying the scent of ash and something older… more ancient.
He tightened his grip around the Crimson Tyrant Spear, its aura pulsing with a quiet but insatiable hunger. The weapon had awakened fully after the duel with Elder Huo Lin, revealing its true nature. It was no mere artifact—it was a relic of the Ancient War, forged in the flames of a long-forgotten god. And now, it had bonded with him.
"From this point onward," Xiang Tian murmured, "I do not walk the path of a disciple. I walk the path of domination."
Behind him, Mei Lin approached, her robes stained with blood—none of it her own. Her eyes shimmered with concern. "You've been silent since the fight. What are you thinking?"
He didn't answer immediately. His gaze swept across the devastated land—the battlefield he had carved through disciples and elders alike. He had spared those who fled, not out of mercy, but indifference. Those too weak to stand against him no longer mattered.
"I'm thinking the sect will send more," he finally said. "Not elders this time. Someone stronger."
She nodded grimly. "They've sent word to the Inner Sanctum. The Supreme Elder is expected to return from seclusion."
Xiang Tian turned his eyes to her. "Then I'll kill a Supreme Elder."
Mei Lin's breath hitched, but there was no mockery in his voice. No bravado. Only cold certainty.
---
The Inner Sanctum – Vermillion Temple
Far away, beneath the shimmering celestial canopy of the Vermillion Temple, Supreme Elder Bai Yun stirred from his decades-long meditation. His third eye opened, gleaming with divine sight.
"The anomaly continues to rise…" he whispered, reading the karmic threads. "Xiang Tian… born beneath a cursed star, bathed in calamity, shaped by betrayal."
A disciple knelt in the shadows. "Shall we send the Celestial Hunters, Elder?"
"No. I will go myself."
---
Back in the Eastern Territories
Xiang Tian's cultivation had advanced at an alarming rate since the battle. Not only had he stepped into the Peak Spirit Ascension Realm, but the Scarlet Tyrant Physique had begun to evolve into something else—something darker, more primal. The bloodlines of dragons and demons stirred within him.
"Your foundation is unstable," Mei Lin warned as they rested near a withered lake under the crimson sky.
"It doesn't matter," he said, his voice calm. "My rage is stable enough."
She stared at him, then lowered her gaze. "Why do you trust me?"
"Because you never tried to chain me."
A silence passed between them, filled only by the crackling of the fire. Then, from the darkness, a ripple of space warped around them.
Xiang Tian rose instantly, spear in hand. "Come out."
Three figures stepped through the distorted air—Sect Assassins, clad in night-silk robes, faces hidden behind obsidian masks. Their presence was so light, even the wind didn't notice them.
"The Crimson Calamity," the leader spoke, voice like whispering steel. "The Sect deems you a threat to cosmic balance. You are to be destroyed."
He didn't wait for them to move. With a flicker of crimson lightning, Xiang Tian vanished, reappearing mid-air, spear thrust forward. The lead assassin blocked with dual daggers, but the force behind the strike shattered his bones instantly.
Mei Lin drew her blade, a silver streak slashing across the second assassin's chest. He screamed as she infused Moonlight Qi into his veins, causing his blood to crystallize.
The third assassin turned to flee, but Xiang Tian's voice froze the air. "Kneel."
His Dominion Voice echoed like a divine command. The assassin dropped to his knees, gasping, unable to resist.
"You came to kill me," Xiang Tian said, walking forward. "Now tell your masters…"
He thrust the spear into the ground beside the kneeling man's head.
"I'm coming for them."
---
A Hidden Pavilion – Somewhere in the Northern Range
Deep in a hidden realm guarded by ancient arrays, an old man sat in front of a chessboard. Opposite him was a woman cloaked in violet clouds—her eyes sharp, her aura unearthly.
"Xiang Tian is becoming a variable," she said, placing a piece on the board.
The old man laughed softly. "He was always a variable. But not unpredictable."
"You knew he would rebel?"
"I knew the moment they humiliated him before the outer sect." He leaned back, exhaling smoke from a long jade pipe. "What they did was not just betrayal. It was sacrilege against a monster they hadn't yet realized they'd created."
"And now?"
"Now?" He smiled, revealing ancient fangs. "Now, the Heavens will tremble."
---
Back in the Mountains – A Vision of the Past
That night, as he meditated under the blood moon, Xiang Tian fell into a vision. He stood once more in the ruins of his childhood village, but this time, he wasn't alone.
A child stood there, a younger version of himself, eyes wide with tears. "Why did they all die?" the child asked. "Why did no one come for us?"
The adult Xiang Tian approached and knelt. "Because weakness is a curse," he answered. "And curses must be broken."
A figure emerged behind the child—a woman cloaked in golden robes, her eyes glowing with power.
"You are near awakening," she said. "Do you know what lies within you, Xiang Tian?"
He stared at her. "I only know I will never bow again."
She smiled. "Then rise. Rise, Tyrant of the Celestial Realms."
---
The Supreme Elder Arrives
The skies rippled as Supreme Elder Bai Yun descended atop a jade lotus, his presence pressing the world beneath a mountain of divine will. Trees bent, animals fled, and cultivators across the region knelt instinctively.
Xiang Tian felt it instantly.
"So, you've come," he whispered, standing atop a plateau, spear in hand.
Bai Yun floated down, face calm. "You've broken the laws of the sect. Defied the heavens. Killed your kin. There is no forgiveness for your sins."
Xiang Tian's eyes flared. "There was no forgiveness when they threw me away. No mercy when they shattered my dantian. But I survived. I rebuilt. I rose."
The Supreme Elder raised a hand. "Then fall."
Lightning descended from the heavens, ten thousand spears of divine judgment.
But Xiang Tian laughed. A deep, terrifying sound.
"You think the heavens can strike me down?" He raised his spear to the sky.
"Then I shall strike back at the heavens themselves!"
Crimson energy erupted, swallowing the lightning, turning it into fire. The plateau exploded beneath his feet as Xiang Tian soared into the sky, spear glowing with the fury of a thousand storms.
And thus, the battle began—not just between a disciple and a master—but between Heaven's will and mortal defiance.