Volume One, Chapter 20: The Prodigy's Return, Lofty Ambitions Dashed
A prodigy who emerged from this star region and was accepted into an ancient and supreme main lineage that spanned countless heavens and worlds—an existence so venerable it defied imagination.
Legend had it that he bore a blood feud of unfathomable depth. A collateral branch of the Gu family to which he belonged had been exterminated by another top-tier force, the Pantheon, leaving him as the sole bearer of his family's hope, escaping with his life.
It was said that his talent was unparalleled; after joining the main lineage to cultivate, his progress was meteoric. During a certain trial, he had obtained the complete legacy of an ancient Heavenly Emperor, rendering his strength unfathomable.
And now, he was returning.
Everyone knew that his return heralded the beginning of vengeance. The Sirius Star Region, indeed the entire Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, would soon be engulfed in unprecedented bloodshed and chaos because of him.
“He’s come!”
An exclamation echoed somewhere.
At the summit of a pillar of light, a figure slowly materialized.
It was a young man dressed in white, handsome and dignified. His jet-black hair flowed over his shoulders, his eyes shining like stars. Standing silently, an overwhelming aura of supremacy radiated from him, pressing down on all the reigning lords and supreme beings present, stealing their breath away.
Around him, the ethereal shadow of a Heavenly Emperor shimmered, encircled by the sun, moon, and stars, while thousands of gods and demons knelt in reverence.
He was Gu Fan!
“Welcome back, Lord Gu Fan!”
The rulers of all factions bowed in unison, their voices resounding throughout the starry sea.
Gu Fan’s gaze swept coldly over the crowd, utterly indifferent. These beings who once seemed unattainable to him no longer deserved even a second glance.
His eyes pierced the endless void, fixating on the direction linked by the teleportation array—the Mortal Realm.
That was where the Gu family’s main lineage resided.
And it was the greatest pillar of support for his vendetta.
“The Pantheon… for the annihilation of my clan, today, I, Gu Fan, will exact payment, principal plus interest!” he sneered inwardly, brimming with unshakable confidence.
He believed that with his current strength, combined with the mysterious power of the main lineage—rumored even to command the Dao itself—wiping out the Pantheon would be but a snap of the fingers.
“The elders of the main lineage should have been waiting for some time now.”
A faint smile curved Gu Fan’s lips as he took a step forward, his figure instantly vanishing within the pillar of light.
He imagined the grandeur of the main lineage.
How magnificent and splendid it must be!
Perhaps a mansion floating high above the Nine Heavens, guarded by countless stars. The stone lions at its gate might well be primordial chaos beasts of the Dao Ancestor level. The maids and servants inside would at least be saints in cultivation.
As for the elders of the main lineage, and the young master whose status was said to be exceedingly noble—what elegance and charisma must they possess?
Filled with excitement and anticipation, Gu Fan traversed the long spatial tunnel.
At last, the warped light distorted before him cleared.
Then, he was stunned.
No divine kingdom floated above the Nine Heavens, no countless stars stood guard, and no Dao Ancestor-level chaos beasts were in sight.
Before him lay only an ordinary courtyard.
Its walls were built of stone, moss growing in patches. The wooden gate’s red paint had long since peeled away, showing signs of disrepair.
Within the courtyard, a young man wearing coarse linen clothes lay sprawled in a rocking chair, sound asleep, drool nearly spilling down.
An emaciated old man, looking as feeble as a monkey, slowly swept fallen leaves nearby, his movements sluggish as if the wind might topple him at any moment.
Two women of extraordinary beauty attended the young man—one fanning him, the other trimming his nails—both with expressions of reverence, like maids.
Nothing else was present.
The entire courtyard exuded an air of laziness, leisure, even decadence.
The smile on Gu Fan’s face gradually froze.
His heart sank deeper and deeper.
“No… this can’t be…”
He could not believe his eyes.
This… was the main lineage of the Gu family, the very lineage that spanned countless heavens and worlds and maintained cosmic order?
What a joke!
A sweep of his divine sense plunged him into an icy abyss.
The young man sleeping in the chair emitted no trace of spiritual energy. He was a thorough mortal!
The old man sweeping the floor, known as Uncle Fu, bore a strange aura but at most was a hidden expert—nothing like the commanding presence Gu Fan had imagined.
As for the two women, though possessing exquisite physiques, their cultivation was merely passable.
It was over.
Only two words echoed in Gu Fan’s mind.
His greatest pillar of support, the hope for his revenge, had turned out to be such a dilapidated family?
A surging tide of fury and boundless disappointment erupted from his heart.
He could not comprehend it!
Why?
Why had the main lineage declined to such a state?
Why had the young master of the Gu family become so degenerate, so complacent, indulging only in pleasure?
He recalled the suffering he had endured over the years, the gruesome massacre of his kin, the relentless cultivation he pursued day and night, burdened by a sea of hatred.
In contrast, the immense resentment and unwillingness within him burned his eyes blood-red.
“I! Gu Fan! The 97th generation descendant of the Gu family’s Sirius branch, pay my respects to the main lineage!”
His voice thundered through the courtyard like an explosion. He deliberately unleashed the oppressive aura fused with the Heavenly Emperor’s legacy without restraint.
He intended to awaken these souls slumbering in their comfort!
He wanted to show them the true meaning of power! What it meant to be a descendant of the Gu family!
A terrifying aura swept forth; the void trembled, skies darkened.
Yet...
Within the courtyard, apart from leaves swirling wildly, nothing changed.
Uncle Fu merely raised his eyelids, glanced at him, and said calmly, “Young Master Gu Fan, you’ve returned. The journey must have been tiring. Please keep your voice down and do not disturb the young master’s afternoon nap.”
The two maids, Ye Qingxian and Ji Ruxue, looked at him as if he were a fool.
Their gazes brimmed with pity, sympathy, and a hint of... schadenfreude?
They pitied me?
Gu Fan felt deeply insulted.
He was a prodigy bearing the Heavenly Emperor’s legacy, an existence revered throughout the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths!
How dare those two mere maids look at him with such eyes?
And that old servant dared tell him to keep quiet?
His fury was fully ignited.
“Afternoon nap? Afternoon nap!”
Gu Fan laughed bitterly in rage, “With enemies at the gates and the family on the brink of extinction, you still have the leisure to nap here?”
“Today, I will punish you unworthy descendants on behalf of our ancestors!”
He no longer held back his power.
“Boom!”
A pillar of golden light shot from his forehead, piercing the clouds.
A majestic, yet blurred, shadow of the Heavenly Emperor slowly formed behind him. The phantom wore an imperial crown and dragon robe, its eyes opening and closing as if galaxies were born and destroyed within them.
The Dao of the entire Mortal Realm trembled under this aura, emitting mournful wails.
“See this? This is the legacy of the ancient Heavenly Emperor!”
Gu Fan’s voice surged with unparalleled pride and arrogance. “With this legacy, I can sweep across the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths and restore the Gu family’s glory! Yet you guard this crumbling courtyard, accompanying a worthless man in lazy slumber! Do you deserve the name ‘Gu’?”
He intended to use this supreme power to annihilate all decadence before him, to awaken their numb souls!
However, the formidable pressure that could shake a great world fell upon this tiny courtyard like a stone sinking into the sea, stirring not even a ripple.