Chapter 1349: I Would Never Have Another Friend

Blood-red light shone into my eyes. I saw endless corpses. They were corpses of the countless nonhumans!

After my cultivation base returned, I went mad and unleashed slaughter. Unfortunately... there was no end to the enemy forces.

I now stood in the ruins of the Sovereign Kingdom of Violet and Cyan, sticky blood covering my face, my nostrils filled with the acrid tang of gore. Every breath felt like knives slashing through my lungs, and yet, that flame which had long been extinguished in my heart was finally sparking to life again.

Then, a hoarse shout cut through the gory atmosphere. “Your Majesty... please suppress your grief! We cannot stay here any longer. We must seek refuge with Bai Xiaozhuo in Sea-Sealing County.”[1]

It was Ol’ Luo, captain of my personal guard. His grizzled face was covered with blood. Whether it was his own or the enemy’s, I knew naught. His left arm hung limply at his side, obviously broken. In his right hand he gripped a battle-worn saber that dripped with blood.

Behind him were a few dozen soldiers, all of them so covered with wounds they looked like they had just climbed out of a river of blood. Their armor was battered, their robes soaked in blood. They looked exhausted beyond measure, yet their eyes gleamed like fire-tempered blades as they looked past me at the smoke and dust roiling on the horizon. It was a tempest closing in, the armies of the countless species.

As the tempest neared, I looked at the ruins where all of my loved ones were buried. And then... I looked at my personal guard.

“Come with me to South Phoenix! Mirrorcloud will activate the regional teleportation portal there that connects to his location in Sea-Sealing County. When the time comes, he’ll join us!”[2]

“Emperor Mirrorcloud!” The name struck them like a thunderclap, piercing through the haze of death that filled the area. Their eyes lit up, just like a drowning person’s eyes would shine upon encountering a piece of driftwood.

The continent of South Phoenix was the spot Mirrorcloud and I had selected as our fallback position.

Mirrorcloud was my lifelong best friend. Long ago, the two of us had sworn a solemn oath to do everything in our power to revitalize humankind! The countless species were in a position of overwhelming power, and Mirrorcloud couldn’t deploy his main armies without courting disaster. But he had prepared in advance! There was a teleportation portal ready in an out-of-the-way corner of South Phoenix.

I trusted him! In fact, I trusted him as much as my own beating heart! It was a trust that, having been refined by the fire of countless battles, had become like the purest of gold.

I understood what held him back in certain areas. As the emperor of humankind, he was responsible for the lives of millions upon millions of humans. With the two of us split between south and north, we were like two pillars holding up all of humankind. We worked apart, but were always in unison.

The secret teleportation portal was my ticket to passing through this tribulation. It was a light pointing the way through the darkness and gloom. Only the two of us knew of its existence; the countless species were completely unaware of it!

Taking a deep breath, I said, “Let’s go!”

My voice resonated with the utmost determination, becoming like a flowing beam of light leading us to the south. Ol’ Luo and the handful of survivors mustered their strength and followed close behind me. We pierced through the gory air like arrows loosed from a bow, seeking life.

The forces of the countless species pulsed with terrifying fluctuations as they followed us. They refused to let us get away, and the ground shook beneath their might as they gave chase.

It was a blood-soaked journey. We eventually crossed the Forbidden Sea and arrived in South Phoenix. If we stopped to rest, it meant that comrades would fall and be consumed by the unstoppable tempest of death behind us.

Eventually, as evening fell over the interior of South Phoenix, we caught sight of our destination on the Peerless Plains. That was when the spark of hope finally lit up in my heart. But then an unprecedented sense of danger pierced my sea of consciousness like an icy awl.

“Stop!” I lurched to a halt in midair.

𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

Even as I did, the air up ahead rippled and then tore open! Piercing howls shattered the evening calm. The air was ripped open by a massive pair of claws. Then, hundreds of terrifying figures appeared, all of them pulsing with perverse energy.

Their leader was nine meters tall, covered with a gleaming black exoskeleton, the joints of which featured razor-sharp spurs. The thing had a long, narrow head and compound eyes that glittered with merciless crimson light. This was the emperor of the Voidcleavers, who were renowned for brutality among the countless species.

Flanking him was a giant whose body was made of rough stone interspersed with magma, whose every step caused the land to shatter and ooze lava. He was the emperor of the Lavagiants!

Further off, other figures were appearing, all of whom emitted pressure that could make the soul tremble. We were surrounded. Their auras were like unbreakable fetters that locked down everything, making it impossible for us to retreat. The killing intent was colder than the chilliest autumn wind in South Phoenix.

“This is where your path ends, Crown Prince Zi Qing.”

Emperor Voidcleaver spoke by means of psychic fluctuations that smashed into my mind. He made no attempt to hide his disdain and greed.

There was no path of retreat available. The enemy had caught us! It was a desperate situation!

“Get into formation!” Ol’ Luo shouted, stepping forward and brandishing his saber in his one good arm. The surviving soldiers didn’t hesitate. They quickly got into a defensive formation around me. There was no terror in their eyes, only the mad, burning desire to fight. They were like torches who were about to burn out, and wanted to let loose one last blaze of heat and light.

I looked around at them, and then looked through the experts from the other species. The plain just ahead was the fallback position Mirrorcloud and I had set up! The secret teleportation portal was right there. But... why were these experts from the other species waiting in this very specific spot...?

Mirrorcloud

... I thought bitterly. Not ready to believe what was happening, I took out a jade pendant. It had been personally given to me by Mirrorcloud, and it contained some of his essence aura. It was the key to activating the teleportation portal.

All I had to do was get to the Peerless Plains, activate it, and teleport away. Without any hesitation, I sent some spirit power into the pendant!

WHIZZZ!

The pendant lit up! Faint strands of mysterious light, like life-saving spider webs, rose from the pendant, as if they wished to connect to the teleportation portal in the area. But then... the light twinkled like a candle flame in the wind. The light dimmed! The essence aura in the pendant, oh so familiar to me, faded away and disappeared! My heart sank.

“Try again,” someone said from among the experts of the other species. “See if that human Mirrorcloud will activate the portal. Crown Prince Zi Qing, you... have been abandoned. Perhaps that good friend of yours... wants you dead more than we do!”

The light of the pendant went out. It became as cold and lifeless as an ordinary stone.

The string connecting to the north was severed. It had not been tampered with externally. Rather... it had been decisively severed from the other end. And authority over the portal had been given to the countless species.

Time seemed to stand still. My subordinates panted for breath. The experts of the countless species grinned viciously. The deathly silent Peerless Plains... became blurry and distant.

My heart felt like it was being gripped by a massive hand, crushing it painfully. Torment filled my body.

“Hahaha... hahahahaha...” Bitter laughter erupted from my throat, hoarse and tinged with blood. The sound of the laughter grew louder and louder in the still evening.

I looked up, my gaze piercing through the countless tribulations I had endured as I looked toward the heart of humankind, the spot where Mirrorcloud ruled.

Mirrorcloud.... The only friend I had in life.... Right then, I swore that if I was ever born again, I would never have another friend!

My laughter grew louder.

The experts from the other species did something. The teleportation portal in the Peerless Plains activated. Light shone as innumerable nonhumans poured out! Raging power bore down on me with mountain-toppling, sea-draining force!

Ol’ Luo howled as he charged forth to death. He was the first to meet the onslaught! My other subordinates were like moths flying into the flames. Enraged roars echoed out as they threw themselves toward an enemy that could never be defeated.

The demented smile on my face was replaced by icy killing intent. Death lay before me. Death lurked behind. Therefore... I would fight!

My cultivation base surged, and I held nothing back! Violet light surged, like the lingering glow of a dying star. I became like a bolt of violet lightning smashing into the slaughter!

The Peerless Plains became a grindstone of flesh and blood!

1. Bai Xiaozhuo’s story was originally summarized in

chapter 533.2

. ☜

2. The story of Mirrorcloud and Zi Qing was originally told in

chapter 401

. Don’t forget that the person telling that story was actually Bai Xiaozhuo, although we didn’t find that until many chapters later. ☜