Justification

"Yaoguang!" Looking at the figure that had materialized before him without warning, True Monarch Buzhou was gripped by uncontrollable terror. Throughout his flight, he had pushed his mental perception to its absolute limits. Forget an entire person—even if a single speck of dust had appeared beside him, he would have noticed it instantly, analyzing its precise structure to determine whether it was formed by a divine ability, drawn by a Dao art, or merely a natural phenomenon. Yet he had not detected Yaoguang's appearance in the slightest. It was as if Yaoguang were the void itself. As long as the void existed, he could be everywhere. Who would ever take note of whether the surrounding void was out of place? And who could possibly detect an anomaly in the void at the very first instant? The void was the foundational medium that carried all things. Unless a person ceased to exist entirely, they could never be separated from the void. They could never truly avoid its influence. Not even if they hid within their own grotto-heavens. Because... The structure of any Void Piercing cultivator's grotto-heaven was itself built upon the Grand Dao of the Void. In an instant, True Monarch Buzhou sank into profound despair. "Yaoguang, what exactly do you want...?" He hurriedly added, "I can swear to you that from this day forward, I will support your ascent to sect master of the Heavenly Dao Sect! I will never stand in your way when you take the helm!" "Your words have zero credibility," Yaoguang replied calmly, raising his hand slightly. The golden glow of the Swimming Dragon Sword flared, quickly giving rise to an exceptionally sharp Void Sword that cleaved downward. Feeling that cutting force woven entirely from the void with merely his divine sense, True Monarch Buzhou was seized by the sensation that his consciousness itself was about to be shredded apart. No! It was no illusion! Even divine sense required the power of the void to sustain its presence. When the void's power sought to crush everything into dust, divine sense naturally lost the foundation for its very existence. "Yaoguang, you cannot kill me! No matter what, I am a disciple of Dao Lord Juntian! If you kill me, even if only to preserve his own dignity and standing, he will certainly strike you down! No matter how formidable a Void Shattering cultivator is, they can never contend against a Dao Lord who commands the forces of the cosmos! When that time comes, you will surely pay with your life! It is simply not worth it for you!" True Monarch Buzhou's divine sense vibrated with frantic persuasion and pleading. "You have such a glorious future ahead of you! Becoming the sect master of the Heavenly Dao Sect is well within your grasp, and in the future, you even have hope of attempting Dao Integration to become a Dao Lord! Once you become a Dao Lord, not only will you enjoy a lifespan of one hundred and twenty-nine thousand six hundred years, but you will also have the chance to cross the Gate of the Immortal Realm, ascend to the heavens, and attain eternal immortality! Why throw away your brilliant future just to kill a Void Shattering cultivator like me, who isn't destined to live much longer anyway?" "It seems you overestimate yourself. Even if I kill you, I will still have a way to placate Dao Lord Juntian." Yaoguang calmly reached out. "Besides, if you were meant to die simply at my hand, you wouldn't have made it out of the Southern Domain alive in the first place. Your death must serve some purpose..." Before he finished speaking, the Void Sword driven by the Swimming Dragon Sword slashed brutally into True Monarch Buzhou's body. Just as the True Monarch attempted to violently retreat and open up distance between them, the Heaven-Sealing Stele, already poised to strike, crashed down with oppressive might. The space where True Monarch Buzhou stood froze instantly. "No!" Panic surged like a tsunami of divine sense, crashing in all directions. Yet no amount of indignation could avail him against such overwhelming force. True Monarch Buzhou's grotto-heaven was instantly cleaved open by the Void Sword. Carrying an irresistible momentum, the razor-sharp blade sliced through every defensive barrier within the grotto-heaven and struck fiercely against the Dao seed at its core, shattering the True Monarch's Dao seed in an instant. However, before the destruction of the Dao seed could trigger the complete collapse of the grotto-heaven, Yaoguang made a sweeping motion, instantly seizing the incapacitated True Monarch Buzhou and hurling him out into the void. *Rumble!* In the next breath, the grotto-heaven—already slipping out of control—unleashed an unprecedented wave of destructive energy. To an unknowing onlooker, it would have seemed not like an uncontrolled collapse, but rather a grotto-heaven driven to its absolute limits. Almost simultaneously, Yaoguang opened his own grotto-heaven wide. Demon Lord Chihun and Demon Lord Zhanpo, who had been imprisoned inside and hanging by a thread, shot out. Both knew full well that remaining trapped within Yaoguang's grotto-heaven would only result in being refined by him one after the other. Thus, over the course of these mere dozen or so breaths, they had not ceased struggling for a single moment, employing their most violent means to break free. Now, suddenly sensing the grotto-heaven tear open, the two demon lords unleashed all their remaining power and surged out desperately. Yet before they could even get a clear view of their surroundings, they found True Monarch Buzhou barring their path. The destructive energy radiating from his body... Was nearly comparable to a grotto-heaven's self-detonation! At the mere perception of it, both demon lords shuddered in horror. "Buzhou!" Demon Lord Zhanpo roared. Yet before his fury could fully vent through his divine sense, Demon Lord Chihun acted with even greater decisiveness. "You think it's that easy to kill me, Chihun?! Hahaha! If you want my life, one of you will pay the price! Die with me!" In the next instant, this demon lord detonated the power of his entire demonic body. Over ninety-nine percent of his Heavenly Demon origin transformed into demonic flames capable of corroding the void and annihilating all creation, violently blasting into True Monarch Buzhou's grotto-heaven. This demon lord was actually willing to abandon everything, retaining only a sliver of his true spirit for future body possession, just to drag True Monarch Buzhou down with him in mutual destruction. "No... that's not it..." Desperate ripples of divine sense radiated from True Monarch Buzhou. Yet before the message could fully carry, it was thoroughly corroded and dissolved by the exploding Heavenly Demon origin. As the demonic flames slammed into True Monarch Buzhou's grotto-heaven, they became the final straw that broke the camel's back... The already overextended grotto-heaven spiraled entirely out of control! Instantly, it collapsed and detonated. A destructive power beyond the description of thousands of words erupted in a manner countless times more terrifying than a supernova, violently colliding with the near-suicidal demonic flames of Demon Lord Chihun! Such a horrific collision left even Demon Lord Zhanpo profoundly shaken. He had never imagined that people from the Heavenly Dao Sect would fight with such ruthless resolve! Detonating without a shred of hesitation! The two had truly fought until they destroyed each other entirely. Yet after watching for a moment, this demon lord sharply noticed something. *Something's wrong!* Something was terribly wrong! True Monarch Buzhou just now... Had not pushed his grotto-heaven's power to the limit to intercept the two of them as they escaped from Yaoguang's grotto-heaven. Rather... It was as if he could no longer stabilize his grotto-heaven and was on the verge of collapse from the start?! No! It wasn't just "as if"! That was exactly what happened! His natal Dao seed had already been shattered by someone, and his grotto-heaven was on the brink of collapse. That was precisely why, the moment he faced Demon Lord Chihun's desperate counterattack, he had succumbed to a detonation, perishing alongside Chihun! And the one who had destroyed his natal Dao seed was... "Yaoguang!" The demon lord's gaze instantly locked onto Yaoguang, who was once again unfurling his grotto-heaven. Murder with a borrowed blade! The Lord of the Southern Domain was murdering someone using another's blade! In fact... It was far more than just borrowing a blade to kill! He wanted to use True Monarch Buzhou's death as a justification to force the Heavenly Dao Sect to wage war on the Shadow Moon Sect! *How can this be... Why incite a war between the two sects?! Once an all-out war begins, how many cultivators will perish, how many families will be torn apart, and how much suffering will be unleashed upon the living? Has this deputy sect master of the Heavenly Dao Sect lost his mind?!* Disbelief filled the demon lord's eyes. Right at that moment, a cry of sorrow—which seemed to carry a faint trace of mockery—rang out, confirming the suspicion in his heart. "True Monarch Buzhou, what a tragic death you have suffered!" Holding a shadow-recording stone in his hand, Yaoguang projected his divine sense through the void. His formidable grotto-heaven once again descended toward Demon Lord Zhanpo. "How dare the Shadow Moon Sect murder a Supreme Elder of our Heavenly Dao Sect—a direct disciple of our Dao Lord! This enmity is irreconcilable under the heavens! Shadow Moon Sect, prepare to bear the fury of the Heavenly Dao Sect! You will pay the price for your actions!" "No... that's not how it happened..." Demon Lord Zhanpo tried to explain. Yet amid the tremors of Yaoguang's divine sense, Great Annihilation Sword Qi bombarded down like artillery shells. Four consecutive blasts of sword qi instantly shattered the demonic body Demon Lord Zhanpo had painstakingly reassembled. Giving him no chance to coalesce his demonic body again, the unfurled grotto-heaven swept outward violently, once more suppressing the demon lord within its depths. Having finished this, Yaoguang immediately produced a communication jade talisman and transmitted a message straight to Supreme Elder Zhen Xuanyuan. Moments later, the Chief Supreme Elder's divine sense emerged from the talisman. "Sect Master Yaoguang?" His voice carried a hint of wariness and confusion. "True Monarch Buzhou is dead. He was killed under the joint siege of the Shadow Moon Sect's Demon Lord Zhanpo and Demon Lord Chihun," Yaoguang said plainly. Instantly, Zhen Xuanyuan's emotions flared with intense agitation through the jade talisman. "True Monarch Buzhou is... dead?! He... he was a direct disciple of Dao Lord Juntian... How... how could he have fallen?!" "He is dead. Though I did everything in my power to save him, I was still too late. In the end, I could only watch helplessly as he perished alongside Demon Lord Chihun," Yaoguang said. "This... how could this be..." Zhen Xuanyuan seemed incapable of processing the news for a long time. "Things have come to this; grief is useless. Our Heavenly Dao Sect must make our stance clear and let the Shadow Moon Sect understand the price of murdering a Supreme Elder of our sect!" Yaoguang said in a grave voice. Zhen Xuanyuan did not reply for a long time. Another had died. First Jing Yuntian. Now True Monarch Buzhou. In such a short span of time, two of the Supreme Elders the Heavenly Dao Sect had painstakingly nurtured had fallen... This was simply... "Supreme Elder Zhen Xuanyuan, I need you to mobilize our forces immediately and make preparations for a full-scale war against the Shadow Moon Sect. When necessary, lead our forces directly into their territory. Of course, for now, the objective is preparation and declaring our stance. You will follow my commands regarding specific actions. If the Shadow Moon Sect shows some sense and is willing to pay an adequate price, the Heavenly Dao Sect does not necessarily have to fight them to the bitter end." Yaoguang laid out his plan. However, Supreme Elder Zhen Xuanyuan did not respond to those words. After a long silence, he suddenly asked, "True Monarch Buzhou... was he truly killed by the demonic cultivators of the Shadow Moon Sect?" "Beyond any doubt. I possess conclusive proof, recorded via shadow-recording stone... Though the footage is somewhat incomplete, I can guarantee that True Monarch Buzhou indeed died at the hands of the Shadow Moon Sect's Demon Lord Chihun!" Yaoguang gave an affirmative answer. At the same time, he sighed with emotion. "True Monarch Buzhou brought True Monarch Jinghong to my Southern Domain for friendly negotiations, and True Monarch Jinghong had even agreed to support me as sect master of the Heavenly Dao Sect. Who would have thought that on his way back, True Monarch Buzhou would encounter such an unforeseen disaster..." "True Monarch Buzhou brought True Monarch Jinghong to the Southern Domain?! And... True Monarch Jinghong agreed to support you as sect master?!" Zhen Xuanyuan was thoroughly stunned. "Of course. If you doubt it, you can ask Supreme Elder Gu Li," Yaoguang replied placidly. Zhen Xuanyuan remained silent for a long time, the ripples of his divine sense in total disarray. Only after a great while did he finally utter, "I understand. I shall comply with Sect Master Yaoguang's orders, rally our forces, and prepare for war against the Shadow Moon Sect!"