The night stretched endlessly over the ruined battlefield, the cold winds whispering through the torn remnants of war. Shao Xian stood atop a crumbling pillar of stone, his robes billowing in the darkness, his gaze fixed upon the distant horizon. The words of the celestial envoy lingered in his mind, but not as a warning—rather, as an affirmation.
They feared him.
Even after all these eons, the so-called divine beings still trembled at the thought of his rise.
He smirked. "Pathetic."
The ground beneath him trembled as a distant rumble echoed through the valley. The stench of death and scorched earth hung thick in the air, but Shao Xian remained unbothered. His mind was elsewhere, weaving countless possibilities, contemplating the next step in his grand design.
Then, a flicker of movement in the shadows.
Shao Xian's gaze sharpened. His divine sense flared, piercing through the darkness like a blade.
A lone figure emerged—a woman, cloaked in black, her features obscured by a thin veil. But her aura… it was unmistakable.
"Lord Shao," she whispered, her voice carrying across the silent battlefield.
He did not answer. He simply watched.
She stepped forward, her posture poised yet cautious. "The elders sent me. They wish to parley."
"Parley?" Shao Xian mused, his tone laced with amusement. "After what I did to them?"
She hesitated, but only for a moment. "They understand now. You cannot be stopped by force."
Shao Xian chuckled. A dark, hollow sound that sent a shiver through the air. "And yet, they still believe words will save them?"
The woman remained silent.
Shao Xian descended from the stone pillar with an effortless step, his movements fluid, almost unearthly. As he approached, the woman tensed, though she masked it well.
"Tell me," he said, his voice soft, almost teasing. "Did they send you because they thought I would be merciful?"
Her lips parted, but no words came.
"Or did they send you… because they wished to test if I still had a heart?"
She exhaled, a slow, steady breath. "Neither. They sent me because they fear you, Lord Shao. They do not seek your forgiveness. They seek survival."
Shao Xian tilted his head slightly, considering her words. "Survival," he echoed, almost tasting the word.
He lifted a hand, and the air around them shifted, thick with power. The very fabric of reality trembled under his touch.
The woman tensed.
Shao Xian did not strike. Instead, he let his power settle, coiling around him like a slumbering beast. "Return to them," he said finally. "Tell them their pleas are wasted. If they wish to live, they must kneel. If they wish to resist… they will be erased."
The woman hesitated, then nodded. "As you command."
She turned, vanishing into the night.
Shao Xian watched her go, his expression unreadable.
He had no illusions. The elders would never kneel. Their arrogance would demand resistance.
And so, he would grant them the death they so foolishly sought.
Far above, the stars flickered in the dark sky, as if bearing silent witness to the storm that was soon to come.
Shao Xian closed his eyes.
The war had begun.