However, the rumor about the fight between the Golden Divine Nation and the Divine Palace over the dominance of the Higher Heavens Realm kept spreading around as if every single person in the Higher Heavens Realm knew that the two top forces would have a fierce battle soon.

The Golden Divine Nation was an ancient country with a long history and rich heritage. They even had someone cultivating under Donghuang the Great Emperor.

The Shangxiao Divine Palace, on the other hand, was the holy land of the Higher Heavens Realm for imparting knowledge to cultivators. To some extent, many people were leaning toward the Shangxiao Divine Palace. After all, the Shangxiao Divine Palace had maintained a pristine reputation for many years and had raised many excellent cultivators.

They even provided chances every few years for cultivators to prove their paths.

Some disciples who cultivated in the Divine Palace in the past were also ready to go back and fight for the Divine Palace.

Although they might not be consequential in a high-level battle like this, they could at least do their utmost and prove their Mindfulness of the Path without feeling regretful in the future. Many of them owed a debt of gratitude to the Divine Palace for their guidance on cultivation and would love to lend a hand when the Divine Palace was in trouble.

The tension between the Golden Divine Nation and the Divine Palace not only piqued the interest of people in the Higher Heavens Realm but also attracted cultivators to come from other realms. This was another event that drew the attention of the entire Nine Realms ever since the battle between the Holy Land of Taichu and the Heavenly Mandate Academy. It bore upon the future landscape and control of the Higher Heavens Realm.

Several realms among the Nine Realms were already settled. The rest of the realms would go through rounds of reshuffle one after the other. Two top forces—the Divine Sword Li Family and the Divine Capital of Xiling—were destroyed during this reorganization of the Higher Heavens Realm.

Although the Shangxiao Divine Palace had a better reputation in the Higher Heavens Realm, more forces in the Nine Realms hoped that the Golden Divine Nation could win this fight.

The reason was simple. The Heavenly Mandate Realm was once the least significant in the Nine Realms. However, ever since Ye Futian established the Heavenly Mandate Academy, the Heavenly Mandate Realm started to form an alliance with other top forces. The rise of the Hell’s Army only bound them together more tightly. Even the Nantian Divine Kingdom now joined hands with them. Other realms had lost their dominance over the Heavenly Mandate Realm.

Under such circumstances, some groups in the Nine Realms didn’t want the Heavenly Mandate Academy to keep growing.

The Divine Palace was one of the allies of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. What kind of a situation would it create if the alliance harnessed more power?

The control of the Higher Heavens Realm would fall in their hands.

By that time, two realms of the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms, both the Higher Heavens Realm and the Heavenly Mandate Realm, would be dominated by the alliance. Would they continue to expand their influence to other realms following that?

People shouldn’t forget that two groups in the Ziwei Realm—the Dou tribe and the Clan of the Seven Slayers—also sided with the Heavenly Mandate Academy. If these two groups fought for the control of the Ziwei Realm, the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Divine Palace certainly would support them.

Wouldn’t the Ziwei Realm fall in their hands again?

The Central Emperor Realm also had three groups that aligned themselves with the Heavenly Mandate Academy. They comprised one-third of the forces in the Central Emperor Realm. If this went on, the alliance led by the Heavenly Mandate Academy would quickly snowball and grow stronger and stronger.

Who in the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms could serve as a counterbalance to their influence when that happened?

No single group could keep them in check. If the power balance were lost, the entire Nine Realms would have to obey the orders of the Heavenly Mandate Academy in the future.

It was obvious that many people didn’t want to see this happen, especially the forces that were already antagonistic to Ye Futian and the Heavenly Mandate Academy.

For example, the Shen clan would be the first to jump out and protest. Therefore, the Shen clan also sent a quite impressive team of cultivators to the Higher Heavens Realm. They didn’t mind getting their hands dirty at such a crucial moment.

The Higher Heavens Realm seemed calm to all appearances, yet a deep undercurrent was surging underneath the surface.

Right now, the cultivators from the Shen clan in the Central Emperor Realm were meeting with the Golden Divine Nation in the Higher Heavens Realm.

The cultivators from the Shen clan left the Golden Divine Nation after the meeting.

A team of powerful people was flying in the air. Shen Gao, the master cultivator who came back from the Divine Prefecture, was holding his hands behind his back. Shen Ji, the Chief Elder of the Shen clan, and other cultivators were right next to him.

“We should have killed Ye Futian at all costs back in the days if we had known that the Heavenly Mandate Academy would expand so rapidly,” the Chief Elder Shen Ji said in a cold and menacing voice.

“You only realize that now?”

Shen Gao shot a scathing glance at Shen Ji and said, “Ye Futian turned the Shen clan upside down and put us under siege when he newly entered the Renhuang Plane. Nowadays, even the Golden Divine Nation is not capable enough to kill him anymore. They have to rely on the help from the Divine Prefecture. If we wait for a couple of years until he becomes full-fledged, even the Shen clan might not be able to take him out with ease.”

“So, should we intervene this time?” Shen Ji asked.

“Of course. How much longer do you want to wait if not now?” A cold look flashed in Shen Gao’s eyes. He continued, “We wouldn’t go through this kind of trouble if you recruited him for our use in the past. It’s a pity that we didn’t take such a talented man in our employ. Nevertheless, since the matter has developed to this stage, we have to kill him as soon as possible.”

Shen Gao was a highly-capable man with extraordinary boldness and swift decisiveness. He remembered that the Heavenly Mandate Academy and Ye Futian got away unscathed when the Dark Army struck them. A major conflict was resolved easily.

The Holy Land of Taichu didn’t conquer the Heavenly Mandate Academy either.

This type of opportunity probably would be rarer in the future. The Shen Clan had to take action soon.

It would only be more and more difficult if they didn’t kill Ye Futian now.

“However, if the war breaks out this time, the Heavenly Mandate Academy will have to face the Golden Divine Nation and some other forces from the Divine Prefecture first. As a result, we don’t need to get ourselves involved if not necessary. Although Ye Futian is a young cultivator who is still in a lower plane, he is the soul of this alliance. They would launch a ferocious counterattack if he was killed. We shouldn’t submit ourselves to that. Nevertheless, the alliance would disintegrate shortly after that. It was born because of Ye Futian, and it’s only natural for it to die with him,” said Shen Gao.

He certainly realized that many groups joined the alliance only because Ye Futian was the key figure. They would attack in response fiercely if Ye Futian were killed, but the alliance would definitely crumble not long after that.

Because no one as influential as Ye Futian would emerge again to unify these groups.

Yu Sheng might be very strong, but he was not the same kind of person as Ye Futian. He was more like a lonely, devilish soldier who was destined to become the sharpest spear. God knows who trained him.

Their different personalities determined their different positions and niches in life.

Yu Sheng would most surely become an unconquerable war god in the future. Even so, he might not be a charismatic leader, at least not the leader of an army of insurgents.

“Yes,” Shen Ji nodded. The cultivators from the Shen clan standing behind him were all somber and solemn. It seemed like they were serious about killing Ye Futian this time.

The Shen clan was going to get involved in this storm.

Shen Gao came back from the Divine Prefecture. It was apparent that he held Ye Futian in high esteem. Nevertheless, his praises and appreciation for Ye Futian didn’t discourage him from killing Ye Futian.

The more admiration Shen Gao expressed for Ye Futian, the more he wished for Ye Futian’s death.

It was only because they stood on different sides.

Shen Gao had to eliminate Ye Futian now if he wanted to secure the future of the Shen clan.

Ye Futian was already extremely influential in the Void Realm at present. Shen Gao was afraid that Ye Futian would become a dire threat to the survival of the Shen clan in a few years before he even reached the peak Renhuang Plane.

…

The Shangxiao Divine Palace towered in the Sea of the Path. Ordinary cultivators might not be able to find its location, but it was a challenge for the master cultivators.

A man was rowing a small boat in the boundless Sea of the Path at the moment. He was bathed in divine golden light, and the small boat looked like a bolt of golden lightning. While he was drifting unhurriedly in the Sea of the Path, an imposing city gradually came into his sight in the distance.

The man stepped out of the boat and walked to the Divine Palace. Several people hurried toward him and blocked his way. They were all extraordinary cultivators.

“Who are you?” one of the men who stopped him shouted.

“I’m an envoy of the Golden Divine Nation, here to visit the Divine Palace,” the man answered. His sonorous voice reverberated throughout the void. Many cultivators in the Divine Palace in the distance could hear him.

The guards who stopped him were a little hesitant. Then they heard an order coming from the Palace.

“Come in.”

The cultivator from the Golden Divine Nation immediately stepped ahead and came to the central area of the Divine Palace. A lot of people appeared in front of an ancient hall and stared at the incoming man.

The envoy was a high-level Renhuang and enjoyed a special status back in the Golden Divine Nation. In a stately manner, he spoke, “I come to visit the Divine Palace as my Sovereign ordered. May I meet with the Palace Lord?”

“The Palace Lord is not available at the moment. You may speak freely with us,” a master cultivator in the Divine Palace answered. Did the Golden Divine Nation believe a random envoy could have a meeting with the Palace Lord so easily?

The Divine Palace certainly didn’t have much consideration for the Golden Divine Nation since they were on the opposite sides now.

“Alright.” The cultivator from the Golden Divine Nation nodded and said, “The Nine Realms are in turmoil right now. Our Higher Heavens Realm should unite as one. The Divine Palace is the holy land of the Higher Heavens Realm and should shoulder more responsibilities. People from the Heavenly Mandate Realm destroyed a top force in our realm. No matter what excuse they used, we hope the Divine Palace could draw a clear line of demarcation. Besides, there are divine items in the Ancestral Lands of the Divine Palace that can help people develop perfect Divine Wheels and become remarkable cultivators. We would like to encourage the Divine Palace to step forward in times of crisis and generously allow the talented cultivators in the Higher Heavens Realm to enter the Ancestral Lands. It can better prepare the Higher Heavens Realm for any changes that may happen in the future.”

People in the Divine Palace gave the envoy a stern look after hearing what he had to say. They probably would punch him right away if not for diplomatic decorum.

The Golden Divine Nation was truly audacious.

They didn’t mention how they wiped out the Divine Sword Li Family, yet they dared to ask the Divine Palace to separate themselves from the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Wouldn’t the Divine Palace be trampled upon by the Golden Divine Nation at will if they did what they asked?

Furthermore, they wished to use the Divine Palace’s resources to rope people in. They asked the Divine Palace to open the Ancestral Lands so everyone could cultivate inside since every cultivator wanted the best opportunities they could get.

However, people in the Divine Palace knew that it was useless for ordinary cultivators to enter the Ancestral Lands. They might develop the Divine Wheels only if they could pass the test in the Ancestral Lands.

But the public wasn’t aware of that. Some people would surely have fanciful notions if they learned they could get in the Ancestral Lands.

The Golden Divine Nation was so despicable to exploit such mentality.

“F*ck off,” the head of the Divine Palace uttered two words without any pretense at politeness. He was already being polite, as he hadn’t smacked him in the face.

The Golden Divine Nation didn’t need to look for excuses to start a war!