Chapter 278: Fall

When the Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime said this, everyone present was dumbfounded.

Although Bing Shuangyan was sealed and could neither move nor transmit sound, he could still perceive the outside world.

At this moment, his whole being felt as though plunged into an ice cellar; the excitement and agitation from moments ago had been completely doused, and his heart was utterly cold.

"How could this be?" Bing Shuangyan's heart was full of disbelief. "It was clearly Master who told me to deal with Lin Qing, and now he's actually distancing himself, handing me over to Lin Qing for punishment?"

No matter how stupid he was, he had caught on now—

Master had been using him to probe Lin Qing, and now that the results of the probe were in, he had already been cast aside as a discarded piece!

But… what could he do about it?

Even if Master had not sealed him, he would not dare say a word more. Even if he were killed by Lin Qing next, Master could resurrect him. But if he angered Master, then it would truly be over.

And the Black Hei Zhou Zhen Zhu was also completely baffled.

"What kind of joke is this?" He felt it was utterly absurd. "The Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime is actually taking the initiative to apologize to Xiang Lin? And handing Bing Shuangyan over to Xiang Lin for punishment?"

The Ancestors of the Three Great Holy Lands were supreme experts who had transcended the universe within this Void Sea; even the all-annihilating Great Silence could be evaded by them, which spoke to their unfathomable realm.

If it were the Ancestor of the Celestial Origin Seat or the Ancestor of the Myriad Gods Hall here, he could still understand it.

But… Lin Qing?

Let alone a Chaos Child who had yet to grow up, even His Majesty the Primarch of the Star Fall Civilization—the hidden strongest existence of the Void Sea, who might even hope to transcend—could not possibly receive such treatment from the Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime!

He had once heard His Majesty the Primarch say that, among the Ancestors of the Three Great Holy Lands, the one with the weakest strength was likely this Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime—after all, the Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime did not hold a combat-type divine office—but the most troublesome one was probably also the Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime.

This Ancestor could see far too much and too far ahead; the rise and fall of every faction across the entire Void Sea was also within his calculations.

Whenever a Tier-Three Ruin emerged, the Holy Land of the Island of Spacetime was always the first to be prepared.

All of this was because of this Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime.

And now… this Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime was actually taking the initiative to befriend this Lin Qing?

"There must be a great secret on this Lin Qing… definitely not as simple as merely being a Chaos Child!"

The Black Hei Zhou Zhen Zhu immediately realized this point, and at once contacted the Primarch.

And Lin Qing was also slightly taken aback, then could not help but look at this Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime, feeling something strange in his heart: "Hand him over to me for punishment?"

Naturally, he would not believe the Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime's so-called "failure to properly instruct his disciple."

According to what Princess Su had said, the disguise secret art he had employed could only be seen through by experts who had transcended the universe; Bing Shuangyan could not see through his disguise at all, yet had waited for him on this main star in advance?

Clearly, his movements had been seen through long ago!

Moreover, Bing Shuangyan alone was no match for him, yet he had dared to come deal with him alone; at the start, Bing Shuangyan had not even known of the Black Hei Zhou Zhen Zhu's existence!

To say this killing setup had nothing to do with the Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime?

How could Lin Qing possibly believe that.

However…

Since this Holy Land Ancestor was scheming against him, he must have been watching him for a long time, yet he had not received any reminder of a descending Order.

This showed that the Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime truly bore him no killing intent.

Perhaps… he was probing his special nature?

For a dignified Holy Land Ancestor to humble himself so far as to apologize in person, and even say he would hand over his direct disciple for Lin Qing to deal with?

"Oh?"

Lin Qing glanced at the petrified Bing Shuangyan and said, "What the Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime means is, I can kill him or do whatever I want?"

The Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime smiled and said, "I said, dispose of him as you wish. If you kill him and still feel it's not enough, and don't want him resurrected, I can also not resurrect him. How about it?"

Lin Qing was secretly shocked.

Previously, the Ancestor of the Celestial Origin Seat's attitude toward him had been unnaturally good, and now the Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime was the same?

Could it be… because of the Primordial Realm?

"Of course."

The Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime said with a smile in his eyes, "I see that Young Friend Lin Qing's Authority seems to be of the Tenth Tier, and you don't yet possess the Time Talent? If we simply kill him like this, it would seem a bit of a waste. Young Friend Lin Qing is a Star God—how about transferring his Eleventh-Tier Authority to yourself?"

Lin Qing could not help but be taken aback, and after a moment of silence, asked, "The Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime is willing to part with it?"

As far as he knew, the Eleventh Tier—namely, the Time Talent—could not possibly be born within an ordinary Tier-Two Civilization.

Only within the Three Great Holy Lands that had leapt out of spacetime was there an extremely slim chance of birthing an absolute genius with such a talent, but every one born was a treasure of the Holy Land, and would inevitably be sought out by the Three Ancestors to be taken in as a direct disciple!

One had to know that once an Epoch ended, beneath the Great Silence, even all living beings of the Holy Lands would return to oblivion; only the Three Ancestors could evade this calamity.

Logically speaking, the Three Ancestors taking disciples was meaningless, but an absolute prodigy possessing the Time Talent was the sole exception!

Because… such a talent held the hope of transcending the universe.

Even if that hope was so small it could be ignored, it was still not zero.

In these 8.6 billion years, the Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime had only had seventeen direct disciples, which meant the Holy Land of the Island of Spacetime had only birthed seventeen absolute geniuses with the Time Talent.

For a Holy Land Ancestor, seventeen direct disciples were treasures; even if a direct disciple committed a grave error, before killing him, one should rely on a Star God to strip away his Time Talent.

Therefore, he had never even thought of seizing Bing Shuangyan's Eleventh-Tier Authority.

First, when transferring Authority, the other party could not offer the slightest resistance, but with his strength, he could not make Bing Shuangyan willingly give it up.

Second, the key point was that Bing Shuangyan was a direct disciple of the Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime.

Killing him was acceptable.

In any case, the Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime could also resurrect him.

But seizing the Time Talent would be seizing a treasure the Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime valued, and the Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime would inevitably descend to stop him!

And now, the Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime was actually willing to give up one of them, and hand the Time Talent over to him?

"Just a useless disciple." The Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime said lightly, "With his talent, the probability of transcending the universe is so small it can be ignored. It would be better to grant Young Friend Lin Qing's wish, so that you may understand that I am a friend, not an enemy. How about it?"

Lin Qing fell silent.

He understood that the Ancestor of the Island of Spacetime was showing goodwill, and also expressing his stance.

An enemy? Or a friend?

Having witnessed the techniques just revealed by the Ancestor of the Space-Time Island, he understood how absurd the gap truly was.

Space and time froze.

Even the Mist Pigeon Secret Art could not break free; this was not because the Mist Pigeon Secret Art was weak, but because he was not strong enough.

After all, the Mist Pigeon Secret Art had only been cultivated to the limit of the Dominator stage.

If he could become an existence that transcended the universe like the Ancestor, and then cultivate the Mist Pigeon Secret Art to its limit, he would be able to completely merge with the boundary membrane of the universe; by then, the Ancestor of the Space-Time Island would not even be able to catch a glimpse of his shadow!

But at this moment, his skills were inferior, and the other party was an ancient monster who had lived for billions of years, so naturally, he would not choose to make an enemy of him.

Otherwise...

Even if he could preserve his life, he would likely lose his status as a Star God.

So, Lin Qing fell silent for a moment, then spoke: "In that case, I thank the Ancestor of the Space-Time Island for your kindness."

"Just a small apology." A hint of a smile appeared in the Ancestor of the Space-Time Island's eyes; he then suddenly spoke with a half-smile: "There was one other person who besieged young friend today along with my rebellious disciple. Speaking of which, my rebellious disciple cannot escape responsibility, and I too must take responsibility."

As he spoke, his peripheral vision glanced at the avatar of the True Lord of Black Day.

The True Lord of Black Day felt a chill in his heart and was about to speak, but he felt the space and time around him completely locked, fully imprisoning him.

He did not even possess the ability to actively annihilate this avatar.

Immediately, silently, the avatar of the True Lord of Black Day vanished like thin smoke.

In the void, only a strange sixteen-faced crystal resembling a star remained, within which seemed hidden a vast world, emitting a dim, unclear chaotic aura.

"Star Rain World?" Lin Qing reacted instantly; this was the Domain Chaos Divine Artifact of that Yuan Emperor from the Starfall Civilization!

In the next moment, this Domain-type Chaos Divine Artifact transformed into a beam of starlight, traversed the void on its own, and began flying toward the outside of the Main Star, seemingly intending to return to its true master.

As a Chaos Divine Artifact, even if the master controlled it from a distance, its power was extremely formidable; once it traversed the void, many Void Divine Officials could not stop it!

"This little Yuan Emperor is quite willing to part with it."

A trace of mockery appeared in the eyes of the Ancestor of the Space-Time Island. "However, do you think such a trick can escape before me?"

Without any visible movement, the space and time around the Chaos Divine Artifact traversing the void began to change; the Chaos Divine Artifact shook violently, as if sinking into a swamp, its power continuously leaking away, until it finally stopped in its original place.

The Ancestor of the Space-Time Island waved his hand, causing the Chaos Divine Artifact to float toward Lin Qing. "Young friend, the Star Rain World is also a Life-type Chaos Divine Artifact. Once you create a Domain Divine Technique using complete Spatial Rules, you can activate it. Take it."

Lin Qing was slightly stunned, then said: "This is too precious; I cannot accept it."

"It is merely an apology." The Ancestor of the Space-Time Island said casually: "If you are willing, simply return one to me in the future."

Lin Qing pondered for a moment, then accepted it.

Since the decision had already been made, deliberately creating distance would likely only produce the opposite effect.

"With a master, others cannot claim this Chaos Divine Artifact, right?" Lin Qing inspected the Chaos Divine Artifact and found that although it had lost its power, it still resisted the penetration of his soul power.

"Indeed so."

The Ancestor of the Space-Time Island nodded calmly. "But since I have decided to give it to you, this Chaos Divine Artifact will naturally immediately become masterless."

Lin Qing's heart trembled.

The current master of this Chaos Divine Artifact was the True Lord of Black Day.

Could it be... that the Ancestor of the Space-Time Island intended to kill the True Lord of Black Day?

Starfall Civilization World.

Central Yuan Emperor Hall.

"Your Majesty!"

The True Lord of Black Day stood in the great hall with a grim face, looking at the Yuan Emperor above. "The Star Rain World you bestowed upon me has been taken!"

Standing inside the hall at this moment was his true body.

The nine hundred and ninety-nine avatars he cultivated allowed his true body to transfer to any avatar's location; his actions were extremely convenient and swift, and his ability to preserve his life was extremely strong, which is why the Yuan Emperor had entrusted him with such an important task.

Only because the Main Star prohibited Void Divine Officials from entering could he only use an avatar to go up.

Immediately after discovering the Chaos Divine Artifact had been taken, the True Lord of Black Day had instantly transferred his true body back to the avatar in his home world.

After all, with the Yuan Emperor stationed in the home world, it was even safer.

"The Ancestor of the Space-Time Island actually showing such goodwill toward that Lin Qing?" The Yuan Emperor narrowed his eyes slightly, seemingly not caring about the Chaos Divine Artifact being taken.

What he cared more about was that Lin Qing was definitely not ordinary; he was certainly more than just a Child of Chaos.

Suddenly—

A shadow appeared inside this great hall, then solidified into a strange man wrapped entirely in bandages, with only his cold, dark eyes exposed.

The moment he appeared, whether it was the True Lord of Black Day or the terrifying, lofty aura of the Yuan Emperor, both completely weakened, becoming as inconspicuous as fireflies when the sun rises.

Under the pervasive aura of one who transcends the universe, the entire great hall, which gathered the world's origin, operated and then froze.

"The Ancestor of the Space-Time Island!"

The Yuan Emperor's pupils contracted slightly; he then stood up, walked down from the throne, and respectfully said: "I did not expect the Ancestor of the Space-Time Island to personally descend an avatar here. What is your instruction?"

The True Lord of Black Day was even more terrified, his heart filled with fear.

"Is your true body here?" The Ancestor of the Space-Time Island glanced at the Yuan Emperor and said indifferently: "Speak. Why did you want to kill Lin Qing?"

The Yuan Emperor did not hesitate and said directly: "For the set of Divine Artifacts on his body."

"That is all?" the Ancestor of the Space-Time Island asked.

The Yuan Emperor said: "I only lack a set of Set-type Chaos Divine Artifacts, but they must be forged using a Set of Seven-Colored Divine Artifacts as the vessel embryo. Lin Qing's innate Divine Artifacts are very suitable."

The Ancestor of the Space-Time Island sized up the Yuan Emperor, then said indifferently: "If I want to kill your confidant, you can try to stop me and force my true body to descend."

The True Lord of Black Day's face instantly turned deathly pale; he immediately knelt and begged for mercy: "Ancestor, spare my life! I am willing to pay a price; please spare me!"

As a Void Divine Official, he could live for three hundred and eighty million years, but now less than half had passed; how could he be willing to die?

Yet the Ancestor of the Space-Time Island seemed not to have heard, merely looking at the Yuan Emperor indifferently.

The Yuan Emperor fell silent for a moment, slowly turned around, cast one last glance with the corner of his eye at the Black Hei Zhou Zhen Zhu, and then vanished.

Although many claimed he was the strongest in the Void Sea, he knew very well how vast the gap was between him and the three Progenitors; if he had used his full strength to block and protect the Black Hei Zhou Zhen Zhu, a projection of the Time-Space Island Progenitor indeed could not have killed the Black Hei Zhou Zhen Zhu.

But...

Once the true body of the Time-Space Island Progenitor descended, unless he used his final hidden method, he would not be able to stop it.

If he had refused to show respect, with the true body of the Time-Space Island Progenitor descending, how could his fury not have spread to the entire Star Fall Civilization World?

Even though the Master of the Secret Realm claimed to be invincible, the Progenitors of the Three Great Holy Lands could destroy the Void Secret Realm.

So, he had no choice.

"Your Majesty!" The Black Hei Zhou Zhen Zhu's face was pale, his heart filled with despair.

Above the Main Star.

After the Time-Space Island Progenitor finished speaking, mere seconds later, Lin Qing suddenly discovered that the Chaos Divine Artifact 'Star Rain World' in his hand had already become a masterless Divine Artifact.

He could not help but feel shocked.

The Black Hei Zhou Zhen Zhu, a Void Divine Official of supreme status, had simply perished like that?

(End of this chapter)