When the domineering newcomers emanating mighty undulations of resonant power appeared in the sky above them, Qin Beiming, Li Zhihuo, Lu Shuanglu, and the rest were moved to the brink of tears. They could finally sense the tension in their minds loosening.

After which, they miserably slumped on the ground as their chests heaved heavily, like drowning men struggling to climb to shore, greedily slurping up the air.

The sight of the high-grade Dukes had made them emotional.

Their deeply longed for expectations were finally fulfilled. Their reinforcements had finally arrived.

With these Dukes here, they would no longer have to bear the brunt of the pressure of resolving the situation. After all, if the sky were to fall, these greater beings would be the ones to keep the sky lifted up. If they couldn't, everyone would die together and it wouldn't matter anyways.

All of the Dukes from the different powers had rushed over. Shock and anger filled them when they witnessed the tragic scene, quickly splitting up into different directions to search for their descendents. Unfortunately, some were fatally injured and some pained roars rang out. It seemed that individuals close to those Dukes had died in this disaster.

They had come too late and they were only in time to witness their deaths. At the same time, the entire situation was explained to the newcomers.

"What? Qin Lian was killed by Li Luo after he destroyed one of his Ten-Pillar Duke Bergfrieds?" When they found out that Qin Lian had fallen, some of the more well-known high-grade Dukes in the Heavenly Origin Divine Continent were completely flabbergasted. After which, they shot gazes full of disbelief towards the pale and seated figure. It was important to note that Qin Lian was an eighth-grade Duke! And she wasn't your average rogue cultivator—she was from the Bloodline of Heavenly Emperor Qin. She possessed exceptional talent and had built a robust foundation in order to climb to the peak. In fact, the number of Dukes present that were capable of challenging Qin Lian could be counted on one hand. Yet that mighty woman had been struck down by the hands of a junior who had just broken into the Duke Stage. That said, Li Luo had paid an incredible price, sacrificing a Ten-Pillar Duke Bergfried, something so valuable that even a high-grade Duke would treat it as an incredible treasure. Who could’ve imagined that he would be willing to bear the backlash and take this risk, all to fight for his life?

That was an eighth-grade Duke he had challenged! Thinking back, wasn't it a little too monstrous to have achieved this feat? Even considering the price he had paid?

Over at the group from the Bloodline of Heavenly Emperor Qin, a silver-haired middle-aged man with an extraordinary temperament quietly listened to Qin Beiming's explanation with a serious expression.

It was Qin Baiyan. He was the strongest amongst the group sent by the Bloodline of Heavenly Emperor Qin, superior to even Qin Lian. He had been an upper eighth-grade Duke for many years and some had even suspected that he had reached the threshold of the ninth-grade.

At that point, he would only be one step away from becoming a true King. His position would ascend to the skies and he could even form his own Palace, becoming a titan within the Bloodline of Heavenly Emperor Qin.

"Qin Lian..." Qin Baiyan's eyes were filled with hurt. She was his cousin and was considered to be quite talented. The fact that she had died here was a crippling blow to the Bloodline of Heavenly Emperor Qin.

Kings rarely took action and thus, high-grade Dukes were considered to be the pillars and peak fighting force of a Heavenly Emperor power.

Nurturing another high-grade Duke would require an immense amount of resources that was difficult to even estimate.

"Uncle Yan..." Qin Yi's face was pale and her beautiful eyes, which were as clear as a lake, were filled with immeasurable sadness and tears. Her grief was palpable, and anyone who saw her would be moved by her pitiful appearance.

Qin Baiyan lightly sighed as he consoled her. "My condolences, Little Yi."

She shook her head lightly and said with much difficulty, "Mother was deeply corrupted by the Origin Reversion Institute, causing her to massacre everyone. Perhaps this was the best result."

Qin Lian had slain many prided geniuses of the continent. Even Zhao Xiuyuan, a fifth-grade Duke from the Bloodline of Heavenly Emperor Zhao, had been killed and turned into mere nutrients for the blood-red flower bud. The other powers would not have let her off lightly if she hadn't died here.

Qin Baiyan smiled bitterly. "This was something that no one could have ever predicted. Before this, we were all attempting to seize Foundational Spirit Treasures from a large Other Dominion in the depths of the Treasure Domain. All of a sudden, Qin Lian triggered some sort of hidden power that was so terrifying, it froze the entire space and trapped everyone inside. That wasn’t something that could be set up overnight. Now that you've mentioned that this was all part of the Origin Reversion Institute's plan, it all makes sense. Only that strange and inscrutable organization is capable of carrying these things out whilst hiding from the eyes of the Heavenly Emperor powers."

Qin Baiyan's expression turned solemn. This entire situation had blown up, and he could vaguely sense that even with their arrival, they could still be doomed.

The power that Qin Lian had demonstrated had kept them in place for far too long.

Meanwhile, Ox Biaobiao, Li Jinpan, and the rest of the newcomers from the Bloodline of Heavenly Emperor Li were shocked. "Li Luo, did you actually kill off that madwoman Qin Lian?"

Even Li Jiluo and Li Qingpeng had strange looks on their faces. This sort of battle achievement was, frankly speaking, incomprehensible.

Li Zhiqiu's expression continued to shift as he stared at Li Luo and Jiang Qing'e with a look of fear. He was very clear that the two of them had some issues with him. He didn’t care much about them before as Jiang Qing'e was merely a first-grade Transcendent Duke whilst Li Luo wasn't even a Duke. However, their rate of improvement was simply too wild. They had merely separated for a month, and one was now a second-grade Transcendent Duke while Li Luo had managed to slay Qin Lian. Such an achievement was capable of causing his scalp to turn numb in terror. He was a seventh-grade Duke, and Li Luo still had a single Ten-Pillar Golden Duke Bergfried. It was completely possible he could choose to destroy the remaining one to deal with him. Although he understood that the enmity between them would not cause him to take such drastic actions, whether he wanted to do it and whether he could do it were two separate notions.

Thus, Li Zhiqiu was starting to regret the actions he had taken towards Li Luo all those years ago. He shouldn't have treated them with contempt and brashly butted heads with them.

Li Luo, however, was completely ignorant of Li Zhiqiu's inner thoughts. He said with a complicated expression, "Qin Lian was corrupted, so she was deranged and incapable of acting rationally. This gave us an opportunity to turn the tides. Otherwise, if she was determined to bring us all down with her even at the expense of her life, it would be hard to say who would have actually survived."

𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Despite killing Qin Lian, he did not think that he was suddenly capable of threatening high-grade Dukes. After all, destroying one's Duke Bergfried was incredibly dangerous; it was just that the one he had destroyed was not completely synchronized with his body and thus he could get by. If he were to encounter any other high-grade Dukes in the future, what he had done today wouldn’t serve as an effective threat as he could simply end himself with the backlash from destroying his remaining Duke Bergfried.

"Good, good, good!" Ox Biaobiao burst out with a hearty smile, his face full of joy. "That lunatic has finally died! All those years ago, she was the one who had forced us to leave the Heavenly Origin Divine Continent. This is something I've let go, and I have always been waiting for a chance to repay her. Now that she has died at your hands, we can be considered to be avenged!"

Li Jinpan then patted Li Luo's shoulders with a smile. "Good job, brat. A second-grade Duke killing an eighth-grade is an achievement that would make even your father proud."

Li Luo helplessly shook his head. Qin Lian might have hated him to her bones, but now that she was slain, the grudges between the generations had been resolved. Thus, he no longer wished to talk further about it.

"I think you big guys should quickly resolve the problem here. The flower bud contains an object that is capable of summoning a frightening existence. Even Grandpa has been restrained by it," Li Luo explained.

Li Qingpeng and Li Jiluo both nodded and then ascended into the sky. Qin Baiyan and the other eighth-grade Dukes from the Bloodlines of Heavenly Emperor Zhu and Zhao, Zhu Gang and Zhao Jinwu, did so as well. Zhao Jinwu glanced at Qin Baiyan with an ugly expression. It was clear he had heard about how Zhao Xiuyuan had been killed by Qin Lian. Now that Qin Lian had perished, he could only squash his frustration and anger. Furthermore, now wasn't the time to argue. The Dukes’ serious eyes were directed towards the flower bud. At the same time, they could see a face that resembled Qin Lian's on the petals.

"We'll all take action and annihilate that vile creature!" The high-grade Dukes quickly came to an agreement as their Worldspace Domains all activated. Overwhelming amounts of resonant power was condensed into terrifying energies.

Alas, just as they were about to take action, the gigantic flower bud let out a wail and began to wither at an alarming speed. At the same time, the face on the petals began to turn dark bit by bit.

In a short span of time, the blood-red flower bud turned into a desiccated husk before crumbling into ashes.

This sight elicited joy from the crowd.

However, before the look of ecstasy spread on their faces, they could see a black lotus appear in the center of where the flower bud once was. At this moment, it began to bloom even more vigorously. Layers of black lotus petals began to spread out in all directions, forming an intricate design that was difficult to understand. It exuded a gloomy and mysterious feeling.

It felt like all of the blood-red flower bud's energy had been transferred into this black lotus.

Qin Baiyan, Li Jiluo, Li Qingpeng, and the rest of the eighth-grade Duke's eyes flickered upon seeing this. The destructive force they had condensed was immediately redirected towards the black lotus.

They had brought the full brunt of their power down on this foreign object.

Bang!

When their terrifying attacks landed on the black lotus, the void shattered and rifts opened up.

Their gazes were fully focused on the point of impact.

A few moments later, the black lotus emerged before their horrified eyes, rotating ever so slowly. It was completely untouched by the previous assault. When Li Luo saw this, his heart sank once again. It seemed as though... they were too late.