“Yes, my Lord.”
Among the nine awakened Elders, one of them—a short and stout Elder—produced a jade vial shimmering with starlight. He uncorked it, and an immense suction force instantly enveloped the slumbering elite warriors of the Five Clans, drawing them all into the vial. With evident excitement, the stout Elder swiftly recorked the bottle and reported, “My Lord, all thirty elite warriors of the Five Clans have been captured, and not a single life has been taken.”
His booming voice echoed throughout the Starlight Citadel, reaching even the Five Clans’ warriors aboard the massive ships outside the city walls.
The warriors of the Five Clans turned their fearful gazes toward the white-robed youth, now surrounded by reverence, even the Lord of Starlight treating him with utmost warmth.
“How could this happen?”
“The elite warriors handpicked by our Five Clans were all subdued in an instant—was it a soul-based technique?”
No visible attack had been seen.
Yet, all thirty of their elite warriors had collapsed into slumber. Undoubtedly, it had to be a soul-based technique. The sheer terror of such an ability sent chills down their spines! After all, those captured were the strongest warriors beneath their five leaders. The guards aboard the warships were far weaker by comparison.
If the same large-scale soul attack were unleashed again, they would be swept away in an instant.
Hadn’t they witnessed how even a large group of elite warriors from the Starlight World had fallen earlier? Clearly, numbers meant nothing against such a technique!
“What do we do?”
“Even Elder Fuchen was subdued without resistance—who among us could withstand it?”
“This attack is too terrifying.”
Panic spread among the Five Clans’ warriors.
The five leaders, equally unsettled, exchanged glances from their respective ships, communicating silently through secret transmissions.
“Brothers, even Elder Fuchen and the others were subdued without resistance. But we five have all stepped into the Emperor-level! Compared to them, our souls have undergone a qualitative transformation. I believe we won’t fall into slumber so easily,” the serpent-tailed woman transmitted among them. “Across countless worlds, even among the Deathblight Clan, there has never been a case where an Emperor-level was directly forced into slumber.”
“Indeed, it’s impossible for us to be subdued.”
“We have all reached the Emperor-level.”
They murmured among themselves.
The Emperor-level.
Whether among the Deathblight Clan or the native inhabitants, it was considered the highest tier of power. The legendary Supreme Existence was merely the perfected Emperor-level in their eyes.
Take, for example, the ‘Prince Bloodflame Ji’ whom Dongbo Xueying had encountered—he hadn’t reached the Emperor-level, which was why he couldn’t contend against the ‘Great Elder’ on the Floating Island.
Only by attaining the ‘Emperor-level’ could one become the undisputed leader of a clan.
“However, the fact that so many elite warriors were subdued instantly means this white-robed youth’s soul technique is terrifying. Even if we can resist it, our strength will likely be reduced by thirty to forty percent,” the serpent-tailed woman continued. “In the Starlight World, the Lord of Starlight can amplify his power by drawing upon his clan’s strength. Alone, he can barely hold off all five of us. But if our strength is diminished by the youth’s soul technique, we may no longer be a match for him.”
“Now, we no longer hold the advantage.”
“Retreat.”
“Let’s withdraw for now and report to the Divine Emperor.”
The warriors of the Five Clans were uneasy, their fighting spirit utterly drained.
Soon.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
One by one, the ships tore through the void and departed.
“Lord of Starlight.” A hazy figure remained hovering in the air—an avatar of the serpent-tailed woman. She spoke coldly, “We came here under the orders of the Northriver Divine Emperor. You would do well to release our people. Otherwise—”
“Enough.”
The Lord of Starlight cut her off sharply. “Since they have been captured alive, we will not release them! Over this period, your Five Clans have attacked our Starlight World, slaughtering many of our kin. The fact that we haven’t executed the prisoners is already an act of mercy! If you dare attack again, do not blame us for showing no quarter.”
The serpent-tailed woman glared at the Lord of Starlight.
She understood all too well. Their previous assaults had been ruthless, following the Northriver Divine Emperor’s command—to exterminate the Starlight Clan! With such a goal, they had shown no mercy in battle. Now, expecting the enemy to return their prisoners was nearly impossible.
“What conditions would you demand to release them?” she asked.
“Only if the Northriver Divine Emperor personally issues an edict—written in his own hand—declaring that from this day forth, the Starlight Clan shall no longer be subject to his commands, nor shall our world be attacked again,” the Lord of Starlight declared. A written edict from the Divine Emperor, bound by his pride, would not be violated.
“Your demands are… excessive,” the serpent-tailed woman said darkly.
Given the Northriver Divine Emperor’s temperament, such an edict was unthinkable.
“These are our terms. The choice is yours,” the Lord of Starlight said coldly. “Now, leave the Starlight World.”
With a flick of his sleeve—
Whoosh!
A surge of spatial force swept outward, dispersing the serpent-tailed woman’s avatar. She could only accept this outcome in silence.
……
The Lord of Starlight’s senses confirmed that all enemies had departed the Starlight World.
“The warriors of the Five Clans have all retreated,” he announced loudly. “The enemy has withdrawn!”
“We’ve won!”
“They’ve retreated—they’ve truly retreated!”
“At last… at last, we’ve won!”
The countless clansmen within the citadel erupted into cheers. Though they knew this was only a temporary reprieve, even a fleeting victory was something they had longed for.
Moreover, they now held crucial prisoners—nearly half of the Five Clans’ elite warriors. With such leverage, the Five Clans would think twice before attacking again. While the Northriver Divine Emperor might not care for his subordinates’ lives, the five leaders were high-ranking figures within his court, with many allies. Even the Divine Emperor’s other subordinates would hesitate to risk the prisoners’ lives by launching another assault.
Unless the Northriver Divine Emperor issued a direct order!
“Not only do we hold prisoners, but we also have Brother Feixue by our side,” the Lord of Starlight said, gazing at Dongbo Xueying with deep gratitude. “Brother Feixue, I truly never imagined that a mere act of kindness I once extended to you would now save my entire clan.”
Dongbo Xueying smiled. “For me, it was equally effortless.”
The Lord of Starlight laughed heartily. “Enough words. This great debt, I shall remember. Ah, one more thing—when you unleashed your technique earlier, even my Starlight Clan’s warriors were affected. Was it indiscriminate?”
“Not at all. How could it be?” Dongbo Xueying shook his head with a chuckle. “Our techniques are meticulously controlled. The reason everyone was affected was that I feared if I only targeted the Five Clans’ warriors, our own might not cease their attacks in time, resulting in unnecessary deaths.”
“Ah, I see! In the heat of battle, your soul technique is utterly silent. Our warriors truly wouldn’t have stopped in time,” the Lord of Starlight realized. “This way is better. Capturing them all is a boon for our clan, deterring further aggression.”
“My Lord,” a silver-haired Elder interjected softly, “such a great victory, and Emperor Feixue’s salvation of our clan—surely this calls for celebration!”
“Indeed! We must celebrate!” The Lord of Starlight laughed, seizing Dongbo Xueying’s hand. “From this day forth, Brother Feixue, you are the savior of our entire Starlight Clan.”
In the distance, standing beside her mother, the princess of the Starlight Clan watched Dongbo Xueying intently, her eyes gleaming. She murmured to herself, “Feixue… is this fate?”
……
Meanwhile, elsewhere.
The warriors of the Five Clans sailed through the void aboard their great ships, arriving at the ‘Northriver World.’
“Not only did we fail to conquer them, but so many of our elite warriors were captured. Now, we have no choice but to report to the Divine Emperor,” the five leaders said anxiously, deeply concerned for their captured kin.
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