Thankfully, the two celestials had apparently not yet reached the point of fully losing control. After the initial cathartic impact, both of them backed down. And yet, the residents of the capital city were still gripped with terror.

Everyone knew that if Bai Xiaochun and Aged Spirit truly came to blows, and didn’t control themselves perfectly, then it could cause a cataclysmic catastrophe.

Of course, the Saint-Emperor was also notified of the tensions between the two, and Saint-Emperor City as a whole was shaken by the news.

There were rules prohibiting celestials from fighting each other, especially in their own territory. But rules could not govern self-control, and the consequences of violating such rules could be immense.

It was at around this time that official requests came in to the Saint-Emperor from both Bai Xiaochun and Celestial Aged Spirit. Then, perhaps because of the persuasiveness of Celestial Aged Spirit’s request, or perhaps of other secret methods he employed... the Saint-Emperor issued a decree!

“King Heavenspan is hereby appointed as the king of the north in the second immortal domain. As the immortal lord of the realm, he shall restore the glory of the five northern prefectures!”

Everyone in the Saint-Emperor Dynasty was stunned by this sudden development, not because it was an amazing promotion for Bai Xiaochun, but rather... because none of the five northern prefectures in the second immortal domain were controlled by the Saint-Emperor Dynasty. Bai Xiaochun would be the king of the north, but he would have no territory to rule over!

And that wasn’t even mentioning that his mission was to ‘restore the glory’ of the north. Some people were puzzled, but most shook their heads at the realization that because Bai Xiaochun was not well-liked in the Saint-Emperor Dynasty, he was essentially being expelled from it.

That was the general consensus as word spread through the second immortal domain. However, the Giant Ghost King and the Grand Heavenmaster reacted differently. They were quite excited.

“The time has finally come!”

Equally excited was Bai Xiaochun. Although no one realized it, this new appointment was crucially important. Not only did it get him out of the capital city of the second immortal domain, but it also gave him quite a bit of ostensible freedom. Everything was going according to the Grand Heavenmaster’s plan!

Instead of wasting time locking horns with Celestial Aged Spirit, it would be better to start out on a new path in the north, where no one would be looking over his shoulder! That was where he would build his strong foundation!

It was a good plan. That was why, when Celestial Aged Spirit had come for his visit and asked Bai Xiaochun what he wanted, the answer had been simple.

I want the north!

It was no skin off of Celestial Aged Spirit’s back. He could get rid of Bai Xiaochun, and end the exhausting conflict between the two of them.

The two of them had put on a bit of a show of hating each other in order to reach their mutual goal. Furthermore, Celestial Aged Spirit had worked very hard to make sure that his request was granted immediately. After all, there were many intelligent people in the empire who could see through Bai Xiaochun’s plan, including the Saint-Emperor. In fact, the only reason the Saint-Emperor had agreed to the request so quickly was because of all the pressure from the groups Celestial Aged Spirit had called in favors from.

“This Celestial Aged Spirit isn’t a bad guy,” Bai Xiaochun thought. “It must not have been easy to get that request approved so quickly.” He sighed. Not only would staying in the capital city have made it hard to carry out his plan, it would have been a bit of a loss of face.

Therefore, two days after getting the Dharmic decree from the Saint-Emperor, he left. He didn’t take anyone with him, nor did he say farewell to anyone. At dawn, he turned into a brilliant beam of light that shot off into the distance.

His destination: the north!

An army of cultivators had already begun to gather in Plumflower Prefecture, some of them from that prefecture itself, and others from the nearby Godsifter Prefecture.

This was the army that the Giant Ghost King and the Grand Heavenmaster had begun to gather in preparation for Bai Xiaochun’s arrival.

That was also part of the plan to resolve his differences with Celestial Aged Spirit. Because of Celestial Aged Spirit’s orders, it was possible for the Grand Heavenmaster and the Giant Ghost King to openly gather an army, and not worry about doing it secretly, as had been the original plan.

The army was already 50,000 cultivators strong. Although the Giant Ghost King and the Grand Heavenmaster were the only two demigods, they had quite a few devas under their command. There were also some cultivators from the Heavenspan Realm. Although it was difficult for them to seek asylum with the Giant Ghost King and the Grand Heavenmaster, some were able, and they were treated as precious gems.

The assembled armies didn’t have to wait for long. Bai Xiaochun soon appeared in a gust of wind, and as he hovered in the air, his celestial cultivation base rippling out, all of the cultivators from the Heavenspan Realm looked up in both astonishment and reverence.

Bai Xiaochun looked over the group until his gaze came to rest on the Grand Heavenmaster. “Have the preparations been made, Grand Heavenmaster?”

Although neither the Grand Heavenmaster nor the Giant Ghost King had been in the capital city recently, they had been in communication with Bai Xiaochun the entire time. They already had a detailed plan in place, and the first phase of it was to take over a prefecture!

“Yes, exalted one. Everything is ready. We are confident in being able to take Mistysea Prefecture, as long as you can hold off Ghostmother. Exalted one, we should be able to achieve victory within one month!”

Bai Xiaochun gave the Grand Heavenmaster a long look, and then they looked at the Giant Ghost King, who seemed eager to start fighting. Then he nodded. And with that, he headed north, alone.

As soon as Bai Xiaochun was gone, the Grand Heavenmaster and the Giant Ghost King mobilized their troops and began moving. Clouds of dust rose into the air as they headed through Plumflower Prefecture... north toward Mistysea Prefecture!

As for Bai Xiaochun, he entered Mistysea Prefecture alone, and found a mountain peak where he sat down cross-legged to meditate. He didn’t move, but he sent his celestial cultivation base fluctuations out to fill the prefecture. Within moments, he became like a blazing fire in the dark night, visible clearly even from a distance.

His energy instantly attracted the attention of the preceptor and other powerful cultivators in Mistysea Prefecture, as well as those beyond. As a result, the armies that had immediately mobilized with the intention of entering Mistysea Prefecture to bolster the Vile-Emperor Dynasty forces there were too scared to do anything!

None of them dared to even get close to Mistysea Prefecture.

With a celestial present, even demigods could do little more than bow their heads. None of them qualified to fight back!

At this point, a cold voice suddenly echoed through heaven and earth. “Bai Xiaochun!”

The hearts of the Vile-Emperor Dynasty troops swelled as this voice echoed through the air, and a red-robed woman appeared in Mistysea Prefecture. She headed... straight toward the mountain peak where Bai Xiaochun sat.

She was extremely beautiful, but at the same time, radiated an intense murderous aura that was like a mist of ghosts. She even had numerous ghost faces surrounding her, and rode upon a battleship that looked like a huge lizard!

She was Celestial Ghostmother!

As she sped through the sky, her mist of ghosts filled the air around her!

Bai Xiaochun took a deep breath as he saw her approaching. Ideally, he would like to refrain from fighting her. However, he was dead set on taking Mistysea Prefecture. This was where he intended to set down roots, and therefore, he gritted his teeth, looked up, and waved his hand through the air, causing blue light to flash.

The Greatsword of the North appeared in his hand as he slowly rose to his feet. Then, he slashed the sword out in front of him.

𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

Rumbling sounds filled all creation as blue light erupted out. Backed by a celestial cultivation base, Bai Xiaochun could now fully utilize the power of the world treasure of the north. It was something that demigods couldn’t even comprehend. Sword qi erupted out that could sunder the heavens and crush the earth. As it slashed into the mist of ghosts surrounding Gongsun Wan’er, the entire world seemed to vibrate.

Then, an enormous ravine opened up in the ground between Bai Xiaochun and Gongsun Wan’er!

“You will not pass this mark!” Bai Xiaochun said coolly, flicking his sleeve, and then putting his hand behind his back. In his opinion, he had worded things in a very domineering way, and couldn’t wait to see Gongsun Wan’er’s reaction....