It is said that when the Old Seniors of the Profound Mystery Grotto-Heaven discovered the twin brothers of great fortune, Emperor Wuzang and the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor, they were overjoyed beyond measure.
For they had long wished to nurture a prodigious talent capable of rivaling, or even suppressing, the Great Sun Yao Emperor.
Alas, for many years this wish remained unfulfilled. Though they had cultivated many prodigies, none to date could stand against the Great Sun Yao Emperor, let alone suppress him.
Originally, the Old Seniors of the Profound Mystery Grotto-Heaven had already given up, holding no further hope. After all, they all knew the Book of Fate recorded the impending Original Sin Cataclysm of the current era.
If they failed to cultivate such a talent before the Original Sin Cataclysm occurred, then only two possibilities awaited their Profound Mystery Grotto-Heaven, and indeed the entire Immortal Path.
The first: being slaughtered by the soon-to-be-born True Lord of Original Sin, just as the Book of Fate foretold—the True Lord of Original Sin would massacre the Three Thousand Great Daos, the heavens and earth would be reborn from this, and the Era of No Dao would descend.
The second: if the Heaven-Equal General Dugu Qizhan, the Heaven-Shielding Martial Sage Xuanyuan Wuji, the Great Sun Yao Emperor, and the many other Great Dao Overlords joined forces to eliminate the True Lord of Original Sin, then the Great Sun Yao Emperor would inevitably eradicate the Profound Mystery Grotto-Heaven and seize the position of Immortal Path Lord.
Neither possibility was one the Old Seniors of the Profound Mystery Grotto-Heaven wished to see.
Fortunately, after the current era began, they discovered the twin brothers of great fortune, Emperor Wuzang and the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor.
Originally, the Old Seniors of the Profound Mystery Grotto-Heaven intended to cultivate only Emperor Wuzang.
Emperor Wuzang possessed the Radiant Bloodline, the Heavenly Dragon Tyrant Body, and was a Heaven-Appointed Calamity-Bearer. It was no exaggeration to say he was the prodigious talent the Old Seniors had dreamt of.
If anyone in the future could rival or even suppress the Great Sun Yao Emperor, that person would undoubtedly be Emperor Wuzang.
As for the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor, although his fortune was also considerable, he unfortunately possessed the Dark Bloodline.
Such an existence was unsuited for cultivating immortality, and was even unfit to remain within the Profound Mystery Grotto-Heaven.
One must understand that the Profound Mystery Grotto-Heaven represented the Immortal Path, while the Dark Bloodline contradicted the very tenets of that path.
In other words, the Dark Bloodline was more suited to the Demonic Path, the Devil Path, or the Ghost Path.
Most importantly, the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor was also an Anomaly.
The existence of an Anomaly did not merely contradict the tenets of the Immortal Path; it contradicted the tenets of the Heavenly Dao and Fate itself.
Being both a Dark Bloodline and an Anomaly, such an existence often represented disaster in a cataclysm.
He was a calamity, and no small one at that. If not eliminated, the True Lord of Original Sin recorded in the Book of Fate might very well become the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor.
Cultivate Emperor Wuzang, and eliminate the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor.
This was the plan of the Old Seniors of the Profound Mystery Grotto-Heaven.
However, they did not ultimately eliminate the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor. Legend has it that the lives of the twin brothers, the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor and Emperor Wuzang, were intrinsically linked. If one died, the other simply could not survive alone.
Therefore, the Profound Mystery Grotto-Heaven refrained from acting against the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor.
Yet, they did not cast him out either.
Firstly, since their lives were linked, if the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor were harmed outside, wouldn't Emperor Wuzang also perish?
Secondly, as both a Dark Bloodline and an Anomaly, if left unchecked, the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor would inevitably become a calamity in the future, potentially even threatening the Immortal Path.
Thus, the Old Seniors of the Profound Mystery Grotto-Heaven kept the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor, instructing him diligently in the hopes of reforming him.
At first, all was well.
The Heavenly Dragon True Emperor showed nothing unusual, proceeding step-by-step, no different from other disciples of the Profound Mystery Grotto-Heaven.
Then, during a routine training expedition, the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor vanished. No one knew where he went.
He never returned. When he reappeared, the worst fears of the Profound Mystery Grotto-Heaven were realized. The Heavenly Dragon True Emperor had not only become a demon, but also an Original Sin Person, sinking deeper and deeper into Original Sin until he finally became an Original Sin Manifestation Body. His cultivation and power became terrifyingly formidable; even some of the highly cultivated Old Seniors of the Profound Mystery Grotto-Heaven were no match for him.
After that, the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor rarely appeared in the Great Wasteland. It was only known that each time he did, he would be followed by some Original Sin Persons.
Legend says the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor possessed extremely high Comprehension. After cultivating the Original Sin Manifestation Body, he even comprehended the mysteries of Original Sin. If one pledged allegiance to him, he would help them seize an Original Sin Manifestation Body.
The twenty-odd Original Sin Manifestation Bodies following him, including the few Original Sin Manifestation Bodies of the Destiny Star Monarch Thrones beside him, were all seized by his hand.
Boom! Rumble!
Within the scene, the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor and the other few Original Sin Manifestation Bodies still stood quietly, while the twenty-odd Original Sin Manifestation Bodies continued to ferociously unleash streams of divine abilities and wondrous techniques, bombarding that formation.
Rather than a formation, it was more like a sword.
Yes.
The formation was like a sword, the sword like a pagoda, or even more like a solitary peak, standing erect upon the Primordial Ruins. This sword formation radiated dazzling light, its brilliance like a rainbow shooting straight into the heavens. Within it contained an ancient and majestic power, flowing through the sword formation like rolling river waves.
Upon the sword body flickered profoundly mysterious and wondrous runes. The runes shimmered, transforming endlessly, each seemingly containing a vast and mighty power.
Those twenty-odd Original Sin Manifestation Bodies relentlessly unleashed their divine abilities and wondrous techniques. It was unknown how long they had been bombarding it, but even with their utmost efforts, they had failed to shake the sword formation in the slightest.
At this moment, within the sword formation were seven or eight people.
These seven or eight individuals looked increasingly wretched, their faces growing paler. Some had blood trickling from the corners of their mouths. It was clear each bore significant injuries, great or small. Yet despite this, every face was etched with resolute determination as they poured their all into sustaining the sword formation.
They were all senior experts of the Taixu Grotto. Though they bore no Heaven's Mandate, each possessed unfathomable cultivation after years of practice.
But ever since entering the Primordial Nine Palaces—more precisely, since coming to the Primordial Black Hole—they had lost count of how many times they had been pushed to the brink.
Because from the very start, this Primordial Black Hole was not a place they should have come to.
This was neither a place for training, nor for treasure hunting, nor for adventure.
This was the place that would decide the Three Thousand Great Daos, decide the Myriad Heavens and Worlds, decide all living beings, decide the fate of this heaven and earth throughout the ages.
Not just any existence had the qualification to decide the fate of the heavens, the earth, the Great Dao, and all living beings.
Only those who bore Heaven's Mandate, only those Heaven-Appointed Calamity-Bearers who bore True Destiny, were qualified.
If one bore neither Heaven's Mandate nor True Destiny, coming here to join the spectacle was no different from seeking death.
Of course, if you were like the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor, the Western Heaven Buddha Emperor Miao Rulai, Lord Black Mountain, and others—all coveting the position of True Lord of Original Sin—you could also come to contend for it. Provided you possessed strength as formidable as theirs.