After the Skyfall

Chapter 949 Li Yan
Within the imperial city.

With the death of King Yu, one force was defeated, and the Celestial Clan forcefully moved into the vicinity of the Imperial Palace, their intentions clear: they wanted to get a share of the spoils when the Imperial Palace opened. Anyone who dared to obstruct them would suffer the same fate as King Yu.

Although many people have heard of the power of some of the top races in the celestial realm, hearing about it is one thing, seeing it with one's own eyes is another.

After witnessing it firsthand, everyone near the imperial palace was filled with apprehension towards Li Yi and his companions.

With the battle over, the god will return.

Li Yi captured the encampment without losing a single person. From here, he could see a distant imperial palace, which stood at the edge of the sea of ​​clouds, absorbing the energy of heaven, earth, sun, and moon, and was infinitely magnificent.

But the surroundings were filled with a terrifying killing intent, and the imperial might was faintly surging.

This is a killing formation and restriction set up by Hua Qing during his prime. Anyone who gets close will be killed by the power of the Heavenly Emperor. This is why many Heavenly Kings gathered together, but dared not advance even an inch.

However, Li Yi also saw that at the four corners of the imperial palace, four Heavenly King weapons were floating. The four Heavenly King weapons formed a new great formation, which isolated the spiritual energy of this world and continuously unleashed their power, bombarding the location of the imperial palace.

They were attempting to wear down the great array near the imperial palace in this way, thus opening a safe passage directly into the palace.

Although this method is slow, it is a very reliable approach.

Moreover, judging from their appearance, they have been setting up their formation for a long time and bombarding the imperial palace for quite some time. They have also achieved good results, and it seems that they have broken through many of the great formations and restrictions. They are only a little short of being able to enter the imperial palace.

"Without anyone to maintain it, Hua Qing, your imperial palace won't last long. What Qinglan Heavenly King said is a bit conservative. Perhaps your last imperial palace will be breached in less than twenty days."

Li Yi observed for a while and drew a conclusion.

“I know a safe route that leads directly to the Imperial Palace. If you have the courage, you can act on it beforehand,” Hua Qing said.

He was the one who personally arranged the imperial palace, so of course he knew the correct route.

Li Yi glanced around and said, "There are at least a dozen Heavenly Kings gathered here. I only have Hanshan Heavenly King by my side. If I rush in like this, and the Imperial Palace is destroyed, I'm afraid I'll be torn to pieces by these Heavenly Kings. My identity as a member of the Heavenly God Royal Family is useful now, but if you really push these Heavenly Kings too far, they won't care who you are."

"It's better to wait until the Imperial Palace is breached so I can take advantage of the chaos. Besides, I'm still waiting for the Divine King's support."

Even after seeing the imperial palace, he remained calm and was not overwhelmed by emotions.

He had long been aware of just how terrifying the Heavenly King's combat power was.

Even the weakest Heavenly King could easily kill it.

"But speaking of which, Hua Qing, do you really not have any loyal subordinates? Perhaps I can impersonate you, deceive them, and make them my helpers."

Then, Li Yi's gaze lingered on the other Heavenly Kings in the distance, and at the same time, a good plan appeared in his mind.

“Even Qinglan has betrayed us, and my wife has taken away ninety imperial palaces. I doubt even Shadow King can be trusted. I just don’t know if the commander of the imperial palace, Barbarian Stone King, can be trusted. If even he can’t be trusted, then you shouldn’t even think about it,” Hua Qing said.

"Shadow Cloak Heavenly King and Savage Stone Heavenly King? Okay, I'll remember that. I'll find an opportunity to make contact with them." Li Yi nodded slightly.

In the following days
Li Yi did not take any action; he did not attack the other Heavenly Kings.

They weren't fools. If the Celestial Clan wanted to kill a second Celestial King, whoever it was, they would join forces to fight against it and avoid being defeated one by one.

Li Yi's inaction also dispelled the concerns of many people.

This at least proves that the Celestials are only here to get a share of the spoils, not to monopolize the entire Imperial Palace. All the Celestial Kings can accept this situation and will not have any objections.

But as time goes by.

Li Yi also observed that recently, new Heavenly Kings have appeared. They arrived with Heavenly Generals, seeking the Imperial Palace and the Heavenly Emperor's legacy.

Although this is a remote and impoverished area, there aren't many experts here.

However, the allure of the imperial palace still attracted more than twenty heavenly kings to visit.

These Heavenly Kings, whether allies, fighting alone, or harboring secret schemes, all maintained one thing in common: they stayed away from Li Yi's Celestial Clan and tried their best to avoid conflict with them.

The Celestial Race's power destined them to be isolated.

Li Yi couldn't even find an opportunity, as the Great Emperor Hua Qing, to contact his former subordinates.

"Send a divine general to help me find two Heavenly Kings, one named Shadow Robe Heavenly King and the other Barbarian Stone Heavenly King. Confirm their locations and, while you're at it, ask them about their relationship with Azure Orchid Heavenly King. Tell them that our Heavenly God Clan plans to take this opportunity to eliminate Azure Orchid Heavenly King." He finally decided to send a guard to investigate the situation.

A divine general named Wujue immediately stepped forward, accepted the task, and went to investigate the situation.

The appearance of a divine general immediately attracted the attention of many Heavenly Kings. This was the only action taken by the Heavenly Gods since they killed the Feathered Heavenly King, and this behavior stirred the hearts of many, who feared that the Heavenly Gods were about to do something again.

When the Heavenly Kings were visited by the divine generals, they dared not be careless and even chose to receive them personally. However, when they discovered that the divine generals of the Heavenly Clan were actually looking for someone, they breathed a sigh of relief.

"Shadow King and Barbarian Stone King? Have these two offended the Celestial Clan?" The kings then began to speculate.

But Qinglan Tianwang immediately became vigilant.

In her view, Shadow King, Barbarian Stone King, and she all had one thing in common: they were all once under the command of Emperor Huaqing. The Heavenly God royal family member had also mentioned Emperor Huaqing to her before.

"Could it be that this Celestial Clan is related to Hua Qing?" King Qinglan couldn't help but wonder if Hua Qing had some connection with someone in the Celestial Clan before his death, and left some message behind.

Has the other party come looking for us now?

"That old bastard, he's been dead for so many years and still can't stay still, he actually managed to cause some trouble." Qinglan Heavenly King cursed inwardly, while at the same time feeling a strange unease.

Because she remembered that the celestial royal family member had specifically said that as the concubine of Emperor Huaqing, such behavior was not very benevolent.

"Emperor Huaqing is dead. That Heavenly God royal family shouldn't come after me for what happened in the past, right?" Heavenly King Qinglan began to feel uneasy, and at the same time, he sensed a crisis.

Her intuition told her that she could no longer stay in this imperial city, and that she should perhaps abandon everything immediately and flee far away to avoid this great disaster.

But the Imperial Palace is about to open.

Is it foolish to be scared away by something as vague as an intuition or feeling?

Moreover, that last imperial palace might contain treasures and enormous wealth left behind by Emperor Huaqing. If I don't get a share, what will all my plans over the years amount to?
After much thought...

Without hesitation, the Azure Orchid Heavenly King flew off in another direction, no longer bothering to conceal his presence.

She went to the territory of another Heavenly King.

This Heavenly King is named Li Yan Heavenly King. He was a deputy commander of the Imperial City Guard. Sixty years ago, he achieved the Heavenly King position. Although he had only recently broken through to the next level, he had extraordinary potential. His combat power had been increasing over the years, and now he was no less than the veteran Heavenly Kings. Moreover, he was young and ambitious.

"Li Yan, something's happened." Qinglan Heavenly King rushed to the other party's palace and immediately shouted, "This group of Heavenly God Clan people are looking for Yingyi and Manshi. When we met before, they directly pointed out that I used to be an imperial concubine. They are most likely related to the old ghost Hua Qing from before."

“We can’t just sit here and wait to die. We have to make a decision. I suggest we leave here immediately and give up the fight for the last imperial palace. We’ve amassed a lot of wealth over the years, so there’s no need to take this last bite.”

"Li Yan, I'm talking to you, answer me."

"Qinglan, you're too cautious. A mere passing member of the Heavenly King Clan has scared you like this." The next moment, a surge of intense Heavenly King power erupted from the depths of the palace.

Then a burly man with crimson hair and an unruly demeanor, wearing the Heavenly King Armor, strode out. He frowned slightly, displeased with the behavior of the Azure Orchid Heavenly King.

Sure enough, someone who was born a concubine and was promoted to the Heavenly King by Emperor Huaqing is no good. He panics at the slightest thing and immediately thinks of running away.

This has absolutely no air of a king.

Or perhaps, spending too much time by Emperor Huaqing's side and feeling his imperial might for too long has turned him into a demon in his heart?
Qinglan said angrily, "Liyan, do you even know how serious this is? That's the Heavenly God Royal Family. Emperor Huaqing encountered the Heavenly God Royal Family before, and even though he was the Heavenly Emperor, he didn't dare to offend them. Wait, maybe that's when we made contact with the Heavenly God Royal Family. Now that they've come looking for us, if they find out what we've done and use that as an excuse to settle scores later, none of us will escape."

The Heavenly King of Fire sneered, "Afraid now? Too late. I'm determined to take this imperial palace. Over the years, I've often read the Heavenly Emperor's daily records and discovered something. Five hundred years ago, in the palace of Emperor Huaqing, a yin and yang energy shot straight into the sky with tremendous force. It has never been seen since. I suspect that it was a Heavenly Emperor's weapon, and that Emperor Huaqing did not take it away."

"The Empress took away ninety palaces before, but there was definitely no Heavenly Emperor Weapon inside. I was in the Imperial City at that time and did not sense the aura of the Heavenly Emperor Weapon. The only possibility is that the Heavenly Emperor Weapon was placed in the last nine Imperial Palaces. Because those nine Imperial Palaces were Emperor Huaqing's private property and were protected by the power of the Heavenly Emperor, no one dared to set foot there. Even the Empress could not take away the remaining nine Imperial Palaces."

"Over the years, the first eight imperial palaces have been breached one after another, and many treasures have been unearthed, but the Heavenly Emperor's Weapon has not been found. I am certain that it must be kept in the last imperial palace. Now that the imperial palace is about to be breached, you have been frightened away and abandoned the Heavenly Emperor's Weapon that was about to be obtained. What a ridiculous thing that is."

"I, Li Huo, rose from humble beginnings and overcame countless obstacles to reach where I am today. The Heavenly King Realm is by no means my limit. I aspire to become the Heavenly Emperor and reign supreme in the Heavenly Realm. The Heavenly Emperor Weapon is indispensable for me."

Li Huo Tian Wang makes no attempt to conceal his inner ambition.

"You're going to give away everything we've worked so hard to accumulate. If my guess is right, then we're finished," Qinglan Tianwang said through gritted teeth.

"Qinglan, I know you fear Emperor Huaqing, which is normal. After all, when you first met him, he was just an insignificant cultivator. He served by the Heavenly Emperor's side for many years, so it's natural that you fear the Emperor's might. But are you willing to live in Emperor Huaqing's shadow for the rest of your life?"

The Heavenly King of Fire said, "If I obtain the Heavenly Emperor's Weapon, I will definitely leave this place and devote myself to cultivation. In the future, when I become the Heavenly Emperor, you will be the Empress. At that time, when I rule the Imperial City, what will the Heavenly Gods be?"

He was very confident, believing that as long as he could become the Heavenly Emperor, nothing in the Heavenly Realm could threaten him.

All past humiliations can be washed away, because I only achieved the Heavenly King's throne because of Qinglan Emperor's concubine, and no one will say anything about it anymore.

He wanted to prove himself, that he was capable of surpassing Emperor Huaqing.

(End of this chapter)