Chapter Eleven: The Celestial Halberd

“Magnificent, truly magnificent!”
As the Second Prince was dealt with, applause and cheers echoed from the entrance of the stone chamber.
Shen Qingyun stood with his long halberd, gazing at the doorway.
Beiming Han strode into the chamber, eyes locked on Shen Qingyun. “You’ve really broadened my horizons!”
He advanced a step, and behind him appeared the phantom of a great eagle with wings outstretched. Spiritual energy erupted—he too had reached the Foundation Establishment stage!
“Hand over your weapon and Qin Ning to me!” Beiming Han demanded. He had witnessed everything from outside: breaking the Second Prince’s spiritual defense with a single blow, severely injuring him with another.
Shen Qingyun was but at the first tier of Qi Refinement; such feats should have been impossible. Clearly, it was the halberd’s power. The weapon, which seemed utterly ordinary, turned out to be a spirit tool of astonishing might!
Seeing Shen Qingyun unmoved, Beiming Han sneered. “Did you think I was a fool like Qin Yun?”
Qin Yun—the Second Prince’s name.
Beiming Han’s confidence stemmed from his physique; the bodies of the demon race were many times stronger than those of humans. Thus, he believed Shen Qingyun could not harm him.
“A treasure of this caliber is not meant for the likes of you!” Beiming Han lifted his chin arrogantly, his tone brimming with disdain.
As Beiming Han drew closer, Shen Qingyun’s eyes grew cold and indifferent, a gaze that disregarded all. Even Beiming Han was nothing to him.
“Thinking of resisting?” Noticing Shen Qingyun’s movement, Beiming Han curled his lips and unleashed his spiritual power. The eagle phantom behind him fully spread its wings. In such a presence, Shen Qingyun seemed minuscule—a lone boat tossed in raging seas, poised to sink at any moment.
He swung the halberd, its thrust plain and unremarkable. Shen Qingyun did not even use his own strength, relying solely on the halberd itself.
Beiming Han responded with a palm strike, the eagle phantom behind him screeching and charging at the halberd’s tip with unstoppable force.
But the instant palm and halberd met, Beiming Han’s confident smile vanished. His power was instantly shattered, and another force poured into his body, sending him flying.
A muffled groan—
Beiming Han crashed against the cold stone wall, finally coming to a halt, and spat blood. The strange power rampaged within him, leaving him in agony.
Shen Qingyun, halberd in hand, walked up. Beiming Han’s face twisted in terror; he had underestimated the halberd’s energy.
“Do you still covet my belongings now?” Shen Qingyun asked calmly.
“No, I don’t. Spare me!” Beiming Han pleaded in panic, though inwardly he plotted to beg his father for help upon returning, determined to make Shen Qingyun kneel and offer the spirit tool.

Unfortunately, Shen Qingyun saw through him, knowing well what lay in his heart. He raised the halberd.
Beiming Han cried out desperately, “No, don’t—you can’t kill me! If you do, my father will never let you go!” Yet the strange energy in his body prevented him from moving.
No matter how Beiming Han begged, Shen Qingyun remained unmoved, swinging the halberd. The phantom above Beiming Han’s head screamed and vanished, and the halberd pierced through him, claiming his life…
At the same moment, in a secret chamber, a figure’s eyes snapped open, shooting twin beams of light that bored a hole in the stone wall.
“Who dares harm my child!”
“I command you—find my son at once!”
…
Unaware of all this, Shen Qingyun turned away from Beiming Han, approaching the fallen Second Prince.
He glanced at Qin Ning. “Shall I kill him?”
Qin Ning bit her lip, then turned her head away after a moment’s hesitation.
Seeing this, Shen Qingyun asked no further, raising his halberd over the Second Prince.
Just as Shen Qingyun struck, the Second Prince’s eyes flew open, and a gleaming dagger stabbed toward Shen Qingyun’s abdomen.
Clang—
The dagger snapped instantly; Shen Qingyun’s eyes remained emotionless. “I have to admit, your endurance is impressive.”
The Second Prince clutched the broken dagger, his face twisted with fear. “Monster! You’re a monster!”
“If that’s what you call me, I don’t mind.”
Shen Qingyun thrust the halberd, piercing the Second Prince’s chest.
In the Tianlan Dynasty, Second Prince Qin Yun was dead.
Shen Qingyun glanced sidelong at Qin Ning, shouldered the halberd, and stepped aside. After he left, Qin Ning approached Qin Yun’s corpse with a complex expression.
This man, who had tried to kill her brother, was now just a lifeless body before her.
Suddenly, a phantom clad in imperial robes appeared above Qin Yun. It gazed coldly at its son’s corpse, then shifted its eyes to the conflicted Qin Ning.

“Did you kill him?”
Even facing his daughter, Qin Haotian’s words were devoid of emotion.
Qin Ning trembled, her lips parted, and finally she spoke, “Greetings, Father.”
Qin Haotian said curtly, “I asked if you killed him!”
As Qin Ning was about to reply, she caught Shen Qingyun quietly shaking his head at her. Somehow, courage surged within her and she nodded firmly. “I did.”
Upon her admission, a hint of satisfaction flickered in Qin Haotian’s eyes, but quickly faded. “You’re only at the ninth tier of Qi Refinement. How could you kill Qin Yun, who has already reached Foundation Establishment?”
Qin Ning was at a loss for words.
“You are unreasonable,”
Shen Qingyun’s calm voice sounded from the side: “You ask if she killed him, she confesses and you don’t believe her. If you don’t believe, why even ask?”
Qin Ning’s face changed, but before she could speak, Qin Haotian’s phantom had already turned to Shen Qingyun, frowning in displeasure. “First tier of Qi Refinement—what right have you to speak here?”
“Also, why do you not kneel before me?” Qin Haotian’s words seemed to shake the very soul, compelling obedience.
Shen Qingyun only sneered, “Kneel? Who in this world dares make me kneel!” His eyes gleamed purple, exuding imperial might.
“You—”
Qin Haotian’s eyes widened in shock; his authority crumbled. He hastily murmured a few words to Qin Ning before vanishing.
Qin Ning stared at Shen Qingyun, mouth slightly open. “Who are you, really? And what grade of spirit tool is your weapon?” Her mind was full of questions.
Shen Qingyun smiled and raised the halberd. “Heaven-Stabilizing Halberd!”
The Heaven-Stabilizing Halberd—signifying the power to command the heavens!
As if in response, the halberd itself glowed with a deep crimson light, swirling around its shaft.
In the Tianlan Dynasty’s royal city, Qin Haotian sat sweating and shaken, his mind in turmoil as he collapsed into his chair. “Who is this youth, truly…”