Chapter Forty-Eight: Regicide

“What’s happening to me?”
Jiurong’s beautiful eyes shimmered with rosy light, surprise flickering across her face. Her entire body radiated brilliance, her skin aglow, as strange and wondrous fragrances wafted from her flesh. With each breath of cosmic energy, it seemed as if some unimaginable transformation was overtaking her.

“To bow one’s head willingly as nourishment for a spirit flower.”
The Star-Moon Divine Sovereign sighed softly. Even though cosmic spirits were rare and intelligent, they willingly risked their lives for her. After all, Jiurong had been blessed by the spirits of the universe at birth.

“Dream is far too unique. Her destiny is more precious than even the eight Flower Sovereigns before her. I suspect that even when her life is returned, she will remain within the cosmic spirit,” Mingluo murmured in a daze.

At these words, the expressions of the other divine sovereigns shifted; they stood in silence—some lost in thought, others sighing, a few touched by sorrow.
The fall of a Flower Sovereign is the pain of the Ocean of Blossoms—a law as ancient as time. All eight previous Flower Sovereigns could not escape it. Even the peerless Li Immortal Sovereign ultimately had to give her life for the world.

The subject grew heavy, and in tacit understanding, the divine sovereigns let it drop.

Mingluo looked up at Jiurong, who hovered in the air. “Dream, cosmic spirit energy is born against the current of the universal way. It lays the supreme foundation for all spiritual things. For the next three years, it will continue to work upon you. Now, return to your flower form and root yourself in the Sacred Heart.”

Jiurong nodded softly.

“Wait a moment.”
Suddenly, Brahma Bamboo Sky called out.

Tall and graceful, she wore an exquisite gown of emerald green. As she stepped forward, her slender hand turned over, revealing a dazzling, miraculous Dao Crystal, radiant with sacred power. It shimmered with the essence of the Great Dao, distorting the very laws of the cosmos.

“Swallow this. At a crucial moment, it can mend any flaw in your first blossoming.”

“That’s Brahma Sister’s Dao Crystal!”
The divine sovereigns of the Ocean of Blossoms exchanged startled glances, wondering if they were being too cautious.

Three Dao Crystals are enough to match an ordinary divine lord; ten would place one at the very pinnacle.
Though Brahma Bamboo Sky possessed ten Dao Crystals, it was no small thing to give one away. Each contained the purest divine energy and the insights of the Dao, and losing even a single one would take millions of years to replace.

“Sister, Dream’s first blossoming is already perfectly prepared. Isn’t this unnecessary?” asked a gentle and refined divine sovereign.

“It is always better to have more,” Brahma Bamboo Sky replied, serene as still water, showing neither regret nor hesitation, as if giving away a Dao Crystal meant nothing at all.

“Brahma Sister, this is too precious. Everything is ready already,” Jiurong protested.

“This is no ordinary event. Your first blossoming will shape your future. Do not refuse.”
Brahma Bamboo Sky’s three thousand strands of hair cascaded like a waterfall, her voice ethereal and compelling. With a gentle push, the wonder-filled Dao Crystal slipped swiftly into Jiurong’s mouth.

---

“Brahma Sister…”
The First Divine Sovereign was shaken. Brahma Bamboo Sky’s ten Dao Crystals marked the start of her enlightenment in the six innate cosmic paths—a critical moment—yet she gave one away. Not only did the other sovereigns think it excessive, even she found it almost too anxious, too caring.

“It’s nothing. I can restore my Dao Crystal soon enough,” Brahma Bamboo Sky said calmly.

“Very well. Let us begin the world-sealing.”
Mingluo frowned and nodded.

Within the Pure Land of Blossoms, spiritual energy was thick, mingling fragrances drifting like immortal clouds, transforming the realm into a transcendental paradise.
Around a celestial stone, seven beautiful women surrounded a single girl. Mysterious power flowed forth, the scene at the heart growing hazy, shrouded in drifting mist—utterly concealed from view.

…

A beast's roar split the heavens—its cry echoing like shattering gold, exploding across the stars.
Its might was overwhelming, its dominance silencing the void.
The shockwave spread, crashing against a blazing star and throwing its gravity into chaos. The entire planetary system spiraled into turmoil, worlds colliding in cosmic disaster.
Countless meteors were reduced to dust.

Then came a terrifying sight.
A vast, shadowy hand descended from the heavens, grasping the radiant star—three hundred million miles in diameter—and hurled it into an abyssal maw.
With a muffled crash, like teeth breaking bones or a sun’s core imploding, the shining star vanished without a trace.

Thunder rumbled.
Suddenly, cosmic winds howled, explosions resounded, and the spiritual energy of the starry expanse was thrown into chaos. Dimly, something vast and dreadful emerged from the darkness.
Eyes the size of planets glared coldly at the distance.
There, stretched a beautiful continent of blossoms.

It was a colossal beast, its body beyond imagination, occupying half a planetary system, its entire form radiating the aura of destruction. Moments ago, it had devoured a brilliant sun three hundred million miles across, a sight both awe-inspiring and terrifying.

“Restrain yourself. Don’t alert the Ocean of Blossoms.”
A mysterious, ancient voice called from afar. An old man, traversing a light-year with a single step, appeared beside the massive, shadow-dark beast’s head.

---

The old man’s face was impassive, brows long and black, hands clasped behind his back as he gazed toward the continent of blossoms alongside the beast.

“What’s there to fear? We’re still some distance from the Ocean of Blossoms. My presence won’t reach them. Besides, those divine sovereigns are surely preoccupied with the first blossoming of the sacred flower,” the beast answered coldly.

“The Ocean of Blossoms is not as simple as you think. You would be wise to tread carefully,” the old man warned, his aura mysterious, robes whipping in the cosmic winds. His piercing eyes held the sun, moon, and stars within them, so intense that none could meet his gaze.
Old man and beast stood together, an ominous presence in the starry void, watching the distant sea of flowers with chilling intent.
The scene was truly terrible.

“A shame. That Nine Sovereigns fellow just left. Otherwise, with our combined strength, we might have seized a strand or two of Star-Refining Divine Qi,” the black beast said, a flash of greed and savagery in its sinister eyes.

Star Refiners were fabulously wealthy, and among them, none were more renowned than Da Jiuxing. Ever since the black beast arrived in the Realm of Great Cultivation, it had heard many legendary tales of him.
Divine qi coveted by all…

“Ignorant fool!” the old man snapped. “You dare to scheme against Da Jiuxing? He need not summon allies—just the Star Heaven Tower standing in the Ancient God Domain could crush you with ease!”

The black beast bristled, its icy gaze flickering to the old man as it growled, “However powerful he is, he hasn’t reached sainthood. The Star Heaven Tower is not at his side. Alone, how strong could he possibly be?”

The old man sneered. “You have not been in the Thousand Realms long, coming from the Grand Dawn World. You know the allure of Star Refiners, but have yet to grasp their true terror.”

“What’s there to fear?”
The black beast laughed coldly, its eyes flashing with malice.
Arrogant beyond measure, it had rampaged across the Realm of Great Cultivation, devouring billions of lives, growing ever more swollen with power, no longer counting even god-lords in its eyes.

“I have no patience to explain. If you wish for death, so be it. But let me remind you—the Godslayers have issued strict warnings: do not provoke Da Jiuxing. Even if you escape by luck, you will face the alliance’s wrath,” the old man said coldly.

Godslayers!
At that word, the black beast shuddered violently, as if hearing something dreadful. Its immense form, spanning the stars, trembled like a mouse before a cat.
For all its power, the mere mention of that name filled it with terror.