Chapter Fifteen: Rebellion (Part One)

Year 133 of the Great Qian Calendar.

Immortal Master’s Manor.

“After spending more than a hundred years in the mortal world, it’s time to return to Xuanqing Palace.”

Pei You sat in a lavish chair, his expression as calm as still water. After more than a century of battles, he was no longer the naive child of his youth. Having witnessed life and death, he now faced all things with serenity.

He was preparing to return to Xuanqing Palace, to close himself off from the world and cultivate behind the gates of life and death, striving to break through to a higher realm.

“To return to Xuanqing Palace…” Yan Jun gazed through the window at the vast sky and spoke, “Go back and quietly cultivate for a lifetime, and when old age comes, be buried in the earth?”

“What else would you do?” Pei You retorted. “Now that the world is unified, our cultivation is profound; there is no one who can match us. We are invincible.”

“Remain among mortals, bask in their praise?” Yan Jun shook his head. “I want to step into the Immortal Realm!”

“I want to cross the Boundless Sea to its far shore, to see what kind of world lies there, to witness vaster lands!”

“I want to be immortal!”

His words rang out with unwavering resolve, carrying an indomitable will, as if swearing to overcome all obstacles, to ascend the peak of the immortal path and traverse the three thousand worlds.

“What!” Pei You and Xiang Yunqian were both startled by his words.

Though both had once dreamed of becoming immortals, years of practice had shown how impossibly difficult it was. The end of the immortal path was unfathomable; they hadn’t even taken one ten-thousandth of a step, let alone entered the immortal realm.

“How do you plan to become immortal?” Xiang Yunqian asked.

“By gathering the will of the people, establishing ancestral shrines, holding grand rites to heaven, absorbing the purple-gold dragon energy, and stepping into the Mortal Immortal Realm!”

Yan Jun produced an ancient scroll, inscribed with mysterious characters, each stroke profound and enigmatic; a mere glance would make an ordinary person’s head ache with pain.

There, it seemed, was a detailed account of the path to immortality, accompanied by golden images—tiny figures alive with movement, as if living within the scroll itself.

“What is this?” Pei You asked.

“The Immortal Ascension Diagram,” Yan Jun replied. “I obtained it from the Immortal Sect of Chu. From its materials, illustrations, and the spiritual energy it contains, it’s not hard to tell that this artifact has been passed down for tens of thousands of years…”

Xiang Yunqian asked, “How did the Immortal Sect of Chu acquire it?”

“I do not know,” Yan Jun shook his head.

Pei You’s gaze burned with desire. “With this, can we truly ascend to immortality?”

“It’s hard to say, but it’s worth a try!” Yan Jun’s voice was resolute.

“The diagram records that to step into the Mortal Immortal Realm, one must construct thousands of sacrificial towers of high grade. How could we accomplish this?”

Xiang Yunqian glanced at the scroll’s writing and images. “With the strength of the entire Great Qian.”

Yan Jun answered without hesitation.

“Will Emperor Qianwu agree?” Pei You asked.

Yan Jun’s face remained expressionless. “He must. The three kings of this world ought to belong to us…”

“Out of old affection, I haven’t killed him…”

Pei You and Xiang Yunqian fell silent.

…

Year 134 of the Great Qian Calendar.

Yan Jun mobilized the power of the dynasty, ordering the common people to build sacrificial towers, forge high platforms, and prepare offerings.

He commanded the other Immortal Masters who had submitted to Great Qian to oversee the people and jointly construct the towers.

The world was thrown into chaos.

The ministers resisted.

Yan Jun acted alone; those who opposed him were exiled, suppressed, or killed.

In the month of Osmanthus, Emperor Qianwu suddenly issued a decree, summoning Yan Jun, Xiang Yunqian, and Pei You to the palace, setting up a deadly formation—a feast in disguise.

He colluded with demons from the continent, hoping to use two supreme treasures to destroy the three national Immortal Masters.

Yet Yan Jun and his companions were of profound cultivation.

They easily suppressed the calamity, imprisoned Emperor Qianwu, destroyed the demons, and installed a puppet prince on the throne.

Within the prison.

Yan Jun questioned Emperor Qianwu, “Why did you try to surround and kill the three national Immortal Masters?”

Emperor Qianwu sneered, “Otherwise, should the Qian dynasty bear the name Yan, Xiang, or Pei?”

Yan Jun mocked, “Fool. Even ants can eke out a life; moths can only seek death in the flames…”

“Great Qian is nothing but a title bestowed by Xuanqing Palace…”

“No matter the surname, it would secure you a lifetime of wealth and generations free from worry, yet you insist on seeking death…”

With that, Yan Jun left the prison. Emperor Qianwu remained behind, his hair turning white overnight, his expression complex.

At year’s end.

Emperor Qianwu died in his cell, unknown to all.

Over the next twenty years.

Great Qian struggled to build thousands of sacrificial towers, but the results were minimal. Rites were held again and again; no celestial voice descended, nor did the path to immortality appear.

“What is the reason?” Pei You hovered in the air, overlooking the towers, his face grim.

“Lack of a spiritual contract…” Yan Jun replied.

“How do we find a spiritual contract?” Xiang Yunqian asked immediately.

Yan Jun remained silent for a moment, then said, “Sacrifice thousands of cultivators of profound realm.”

At these words, Pei You and Xiang Yunqian were both shocked.

They responded without hesitation: “Sacrifice thousands of cultivators? Such an act defies the natural order—it cannot be done!”

“To crave immortality by wantonly slaughtering others is the path of demons!”

Yan Jun asked, “What is righteous, what is demonic?”

“Since ancient times, the natural order has been the law of the jungle: the strong do as they please, the weak are meat on the chopping block, to be slaughtered. The strong pursue immortality, the weak must cooperate—this is fate…”

Perhaps unwilling to see his life’s end, Yan Jun’s gaze turned deep and distant, seeking only the path to immortality, killing any who stood in his way.

Xiang Yunqian and Pei You sneered coldly, angrily rebuking Yan Jun.

The three found their intentions irreconcilable.

They clashed instantly.

But Yan Jun’s cultivation was vastly superior; Xiang Yunqian and Pei You were no match, fighting as they retreated, ultimately returning to Xuanqing Palace.

“Who is causing trouble here?” Elder Tie sensed something amiss, led his disciples out, and saw Yan Jun battling Xiang Yunqian and Pei You, his face shocked.

In a moment of crisis.

Xiang Yunqian and Pei You explained the situation.

Elder Tie was enraged.

“Traitor! Such actions, defying the laws of nature, cannot be allowed to wreak havoc upon the world!”

Elder Tie led the cultivators to confront Yan Jun.

The battle shook mountains and collapsed earth; the ground caved in, ancient trees for a thousand miles snapped in half, thunder roared deafeningly.

Fire spread for a thousand miles, and the brilliance of spiritual arts flashed ceaselessly, like fireworks blooming in the sky for dozens of days.

“Unfortunately, I have already broken through—now at the third realm. You cannot stop me…”

Surrounded, Yan Jun stood calmly, hands behind his back, unmoved by the assault.

“I seek immortality. No one can stop me…”

“Since I’ve encountered you all, it’s just as well to sacrifice you together…”

Now fully corrupted, Yan Jun sought to betray his teachers and ancestors.

Just then, a streak of sword light swept across the sky like a hanging waterfall, pouring down.

A graceful figure followed, sword in hand, walking through the air.

It was Ye Qingyu.

“Palace Master!”

Yan Jun’s expression grew grave. “Are you willing to pursue immortality?”