Star Trace Gate

Chapter 930 The Illusion Ends, Welcoming the New Master

In the battle against the Death Star, Zhao Mi's three Yang bodies shattered amidst a vibrant scene of life, his Dao intent was damaged, he was seriously injured, and he even nearly fell from his cultivation level. In the end, he personally admitted that he had lost.

The storyteller, number 79, forcibly merged with a wisp of creation energy at the cost of "transformation into the Dao," recreating heaven and earth, changing the name of the Death Star to the Human Emperor, and in this illusory supreme realm, narrated a tale of unparalleled mortal power. He ended his criminal career somewhat tragically, his soul dissipating, his body vanishing, and his breath returning to stillness. To outsiders, he was clearly dead beyond any doubt.

Of course, only Ren Ye saw through the clues, and he was also willing to accept this "result".

Tonight's conflict between the four clans was filled with intrigue and bloodshed, but the final outcome was still quite satisfactory. Especially for the Qian family, the Li family, and the Wudao Academy, the ending was much better than they had anticipated.

Regardless of the final number of casualties, it wouldn't be difficult for Zhao Mi's three yang bodies to force someone to perish with them if he wanted to.

Beneath the Nine Netherworlds, the Zhao family members carrying the Soul Banner were also filled with despair, their faces etched with hopelessness.

With the patriarch's three yang bodies shattered, they certainly cannot be awakened again in the short term, and his personal condition is definitely not at its peak. It may even take decades, or nearly a hundred years, of seclusion to fully recover. Under such circumstances, if those ten old fellows who have been watching the show suddenly join forces to attack, not only will the patriarch's life be in danger, but the lives of the entire Zhao clan may also be lost.

Most importantly, Zhao Mi, the usually arrogant patriarch, has personally admitted to the world that he has lost, which means that... he really has no trump cards left and can no longer lead the Zhao family.

For the Zhao family now, accepting the current outcome is the best possible result.

On the planet of the Human Emperor, Zhao Mi gazed forlornly at the vibrant scene before remaining silent for a long time before finally taking flight.

Apart from vomiting a mouthful of blood when his three yang bodies were shattered, he did not show much signs of exhaustion after the earth-shattering battle. Even his soul and body did not seem to have changed much, except that his face was slightly pale.

He took only three steps before returning to the Fallen Star River.

He hovered above the sky, looking down at Li Taishan, Qian Zhongge, Qin Yanting, and thousands of cultivators, his face expressionless, his words utterly decisive: "Defeat is defeat. There is no reason for me, Zhao Mi, to be so enraged, to be branded with the infamy of being unable to win or accept defeat in my old age. Whether this infamy comes from your mouths or not is of no importance. What matters is that I, Zhao Mi, cannot accept it…!"

“I, Zhao Mi, admit it. The matter of framing Huang Qi, the matter of secretly fabricating false evidence, the confinement of the clan hall, the attempt to seize the old master's inheritance... all these events were secretly instigated or instructed by me, and hinted to the clan members. As for the clan members, they dare not disobey the head of the family. Although they made mistakes, they did not deserve to die.”

“Today, all the blame rests on me, Zhao Mi. I am willing to enter the Heavenly Prison and wait for the next day of death and silence, to commit suicide in the prison in the name of the laws of the False Village, and to kneel beneath the Divine Tomb and Immortal Palace for eternity.”

He was greedy and openly honest, and when he failed, he showed no remorse whatsoever. He was like a bystander reading out the crimes of others, his tone calm and his attitude clear and firm.

"boom!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhao Mi slowly raised his arm and swept it across the sky, causing the Soul Banner beneath the Nine Netherworlds to emit endless Yin energy.

In an instant, the two terrifying auras beneath the Nine Netherworlds vanished from everyone's perception, as if they had never existed.

The Zhao clan patriarch demonstrated through this action that he could afford to lose, and so could the Zhao family, thus bringing the conflict to a complete end.

"call……!"

Seeing this, Uncle Li breathed a long sigh of relief. To be honest, he was really afraid that Zhao Mi would deny it and trigger the two strange auras from the Nine Netherworlds to fight against these thousands of cultivators. In that case, it would inevitably be a lose-lose situation.

Among the crowd, Zhao Haochen, who was bound hand and foot, looked dazed and tear-streaked when he saw his father concealing the two strange auras.

His eyes were filled with regret, resentment, and despair. Compared to his father, he seemed more like a sore loser.

"Ha ha ha ha……!"

Suddenly, a burst of maniacal laughter echoed from the crowd.

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw Sun Michen, who was bound by twelve dragon-locking chains, with disheveled hair and a mad expression, staring at the scene of the Fallen Star River and laughing wildly.

I don't know what happened, but he started laughing and then started crying, just like an immature child, his emotions were extremely unstable.

In truth, only Sun Michen himself knew the kind of opponents he had faced throughout his life.

He had thought that in this Heavenly Prison, he was the one who disguised himself best, and who possessed the most strategy and patience. But in the end, he discovered that his own strategies were utterly insignificant compared to those of his opponents.

He had always believed that Qian Zhongge was feigning integrity, creating a persona to fill a void in the clan hall and secretly advance the family's interests. But only now did he realize that Qian Zhongge wasn't faking it; he was genuinely upright, a true man of principle. Even when imprisoned and facing mortal danger, he withstood the pressure and refused to hand over the Dragon Key.

How can you compete with such a number one idiot and stubborn old man?! All your schemes will fail you because he has no selfish motives and only insists on following his own path.

Then there's Li Taishan. You might think he's outwardly domineering and reckless, but actually quite clever. However, in the end, you realize that he's not just clever, nor is he on the third level; he's on the fifth! He possesses great wisdom and understands human nature perfectly. He has thoroughly analyzed the situation in the illusory village and the personalities of the decision-makers. Moreover, the courage and decisiveness he displays at crucial moments are truly unexpected.

He went to the banquet alone, forcefully opened the void, and used his own life as a bargaining chip to send Blind Huang to his grave. Could any other family head do something like that? You have to understand, once the family head is placed under house arrest, the entire clan will be led by the nose, and if anything unexpected happens later, it's like surrendering at the start, completely losing any chance of competing.

His victory stemmed from his mastery of human nature and the hearts of people. In this respect, Sun Michen had to admit that his opponent was superior to him.

Finally, let's talk about Qin Yanting. This scholar has been biding his time for over a hundred years. Since becoming the dean, he has always seemed close to everyone. However, under the watchful eyes of the Zhao family and the other three clans, he has been able to slowly build up his own power base. Moreover, in times of life and death, he can command a large following with a single call.

With a mind as cunning as that, anyone who plays against him has a very low chance of winning!

As for Zhao Mi, he was an even more unfathomable figure. He was decisive when he wanted to win, and even more decisive when he foresaw the outcome. Everyone knew he was the number one person in the Illusionary Village, unparalleled in both skill and divine techniques, but the appearance of his three Yang bodies today still shocked everyone.

Everyone knows he is tall, but no one knows that he is actually this tall.

The trump card beneath the Nine Netherworlds and the three yang bodies all touch upon the Dao of the Extreme Realm. Even if Sun Michen obtains the inheritance of his former master and is given enough time to comprehend and grow, Zhao Mi can still firmly hold Sun Michen's head in the next one or two hundred years with his own strength, killing him or annihilating him at will...

Why is Sun Michen laughing?

Because he was laughing at a mediocre person who dared to overestimate his abilities and try to compete with a group of incredibly powerful enemies, and who was always complacent and thought he had everything under control.

Why is he crying?

Because he foresaw the fate of that mediocre man, and also saw the punishment that would befall the clansmen standing behind him.

If he had been defeated by someone else, Sun Michen might have felt resentful and cursed the heavens and fortune for not being on his side. But having been defeated by this group of people today, what could he say? What else could he possibly be resentful about?!

He couldn't win in a fight; he couldn't outsmart Zhao Mi either. Until the end of the great battle, Zhao Mi hadn't even looked him in the eye.

This is absolutely outrageous.

Since we've already lost and can't fight back, let's leave behind some integrity for the world.

Having laughed and cried, Sun Michen sat cross-legged in the desolate place, his hair disheveled, gazing up at the Fallen Star River. He shouted, "We've lost. The Dragon Key, my Sun family will hand it over; the clan secret technique to open the Path of Leaving Home will also be handed over. Although many members of the Sun family have been involved in the conflict between the four clans, from beginning to end, they have all served my lord. If you still remember that the Sun family has contributed to the Void, then... then don't go through with this extermination."

"Either we exile the Sun family out of the village, or we make them serve as henchmen on their journey away from home, so they can atone for their crimes through meritorious service. Either way is fine."

“Since I, Sun Michen, have fought for it, I have no regrets. After all… in the end, I witnessed the brilliance of my former master’s light, and that’s enough.”

"By the Heavenly Bell above, the 24th patriarch of the Sun clan requests to die!"

Sun Michen gritted his teeth and roared to the sky.

"Boom!"

The already dim and lifeless Cold Heaven Bell seemed to have sensed the host's sorrowful state of mind.

It soared into the sky, reaching the heavens.

All around, the endless onlookers remained silent and did not interfere.

"Whoosh!"

High in the sky, the Cold Heaven Bell exploded with endless frost and snow, then fell straight down.

"puff!"

As the bell rang, Sun Michen's head shattered, and his soul was destroyed by the wind and frost.

But what's really funny is that as he fell to the ground, he seemed to be murmuring something unintelligible: "Everything is fake... but the bright moon in my heart is real... Tianwei... I'm going with you."

A man deeply devoted to love has passed away.

Ren Ye's disgust for this person had reached its peak, especially when he heard his seemingly casual remark about "the bright moon in one's heart," which made him feel even more nauseous.

However, he admired Sun Michen's final decision; the other party was more principled than he had imagined.

Zhao Mi admitted defeat, and Sun Michen committed suicide; all of this came to a complete end.

Beneath the Fallen Star River, the incredibly perceptive Li Erbo was the first to react. He turned to face Ren Ye, and after a slight hesitation, slowly bent his knees and knelt down in the void with a thud.

His move completely baffled everyone.

"Clan Chief Li pays his respects to the Prince and the illustrious new ruler." Uncle Li Er knelt down and performed a grand salute, his voice booming through the heavens.

Not far away, Qian Zhongge glared with his old, irritated eyes and instinctively cursed, "Even kneeling to your father wouldn't be this fast."

After he finished speaking, he hesitated for a long time before bowing and kneeling down: "Clan Chief Qian pays his respects to the Prince and to my illustrious new master. I hope that the new master can see the bloodshed and the predicament we face today, and swear in his heart that he will not fail the legacy of the old master, so as to create a better tomorrow!"

With these two old fellows taking the lead, the others, though feeling uncomfortable and unwilling, all knelt on the ground and shouted loudly, "Greetings to the Prince, Greetings to the illusory new ruler!"

The shouts swept across the entire tomb like a tidal wave, echoing for a long time without ceasing.

Ren Ye knew very well that everyone was kneeling not for him, but for the unparalleled legacy of the former master, and for the Huang family's immortal achievements. Furthermore, this kneeling was a kneeling to the very spiritual anchor of the entire Illusion Village. Everyone yearned for the day he would grow strong enough to tear apart this prison of heaven and restore freedom to all living beings.