Chapter 3: Jun Family

At the same time, in another direction deep within the Jun family's Ancestral Land.

Council Hall.

An almost primeval ancient aura pervades here.

The massive pillars display a deep dark‑copper hue, as if forged from some Star Core, their surfaces bearing weathered, mottled marks and unfathomable primitive runes.

The lofty dome disappears into the swirling nebular light curtain, specks of stars set like embedded gems, emitting a steady, cold radiance.

Inside, the light is dim, save for a few floating bronze lamps burning pale flames; the flickering Guangying renders the towering figures seated at the Great Hall's center vague, adding mystery and majesty.

Each figure seems merged with this ancient hall, their breath stirring the vast, mighty power of the stars, their aura as deep as a abyss, unfathomable.

They are the Jun family's true ruling core—the Elder Council members.

At this moment, the hall is so quiet one could hear a pin drop, only the pale flame swaying silently.

"The information has been finally confirmed."

A hoarse voice, sounding like metal grinding, broke the silence.

The speaker is the Eighth Elder positioned at the upper left.

His figure appears especially gaunt within the Guangying, yet the Dark Eyes hidden in shadow are as sharp as poisoned daggers, now flashing cold glints and an unmistakable hint of dread.

"Purple Clan… these years have poured the entire clan's foundation, sparing no cost, all their mad actions have a single core purpose…"

He paused; each word struck the cold bronze floor like a heavy hammer.

"Resurrection… Ziyang Shen!"

"Moreover, various signs indicate… they seem… truly on the brink of success! Just… these past few days!"

"What?!"

"Resurrection?!"

"That's impossible!"

The Eighth Elder's words fell like a massive stone cast into still dead water!

The Great Hall's previously stagnant aura was instantly stirred and boiled!

Several voices, filled with shock, horror, and fierce doubt, rang out almost simultaneously.

Opposite the Eighth Elder, a more imposing Elder abruptly sat upright; the Space around him rippled with his intense emotional surge—it was the Sixth Elder.

His voice carried an incredulous astonishment:

"Eighth! Do you even know what you're saying?! Resurrection?! This is nothing short of Reverse Chaos of Yin Yang, a rebellion against Heavenly Dao! The Tie Lu of the cultivation world since antiquity!"

"Even if truly Immortal, once the soul is utterly scattered and the True Spirit extinguished, there is no way to return! This is the cornerstone of the cosmic law! Unshakable! The Purple family… on what grounds?!"

"On what grounds?" The Eighth Elder let out a bone‑chilling low laugh, full of sarcasm and deep dread.

"Just because he is… Ziyang Shen!"

He scanned the other Elders, whose auras were slightly stalled by the three words "Ziyang Shen," his voice suddenly rose, sounding almost a roar of interrogation:

"Have you all forgotten? Forgotten how that little scoundrel once rose against Heaven? Forgotten how he turned the entire Southern Realm of the Constant Universe upside down?!"

"Forgot how, even at a young age, he crushed our Jun family, the Rift‑Heaven Blade Emperor Sect, the Burning Heaven Sect, and even the minor Fate Divine Sect, leaving every young prodigy unable to lift their heads, gasping for breath?!"

"Forgot how he fashioned one terrifying Miracle after another, each seemingly impossible and incomprehensible to all!?"

The Eighth Elder's voice, like icy tide, instantly flooded the Great Hall, forcibly pulling every Elder's thoughts back to the era shrouded by Ziyang Shen's brilliance, a time that left the Jun family unbearably stifled and oppressed.

Inside, a death‑like silence fell again, heavier than before.

Those vague figures showed distinct aura fluctuations—some solemn, some gloomy, some with a barely perceptible… tremor.

Indeed, Ziyang Shen!

The name itself signifies a legend, an unfathomable… monster!

His rise was so swift it left one breathless!

He burst forth, radiant with blinding light!

He seemed a monster born to shatter all rules and create the impossible!

In that brief hundred‑year golden era, the entire Southern Realm of the Constant Universe had all its youthful brilliance seized by him alone!

The Heavenly Pride that the Jun family painstakingly cultivated paled before him!

The Purple family, because of his existence, expanded rapidly from an old‑established strong clan, its momentum soaring, its edge exposed, directly challenging the leader of the Five Great Overlords!

Had it not been for later… that sudden upheaval, that monster would have fallen like a meteor… the entire Southern Realm's configuration would have been rewritten long ago!

Under its leadership, the Purple family became the Southern Realm's sole overlord, no empty words!

"Such a monster… such a variable…" Sixth Elder's voice was extremely hoarse, laden with lingering fear, "If he truly… were resurrected by the Purple Clan using some method we cannot comprehend…"

He said no more, but everyone in the hall understood what that meant!

That means the Purple family will again possess a sky‑splitting colossus capable of crushing an era!

An ultimate power that can shatter the balance of the Five Great Overlords!

A … that once made the entire Jun family's younger generation

"Our Jun family… does it still have a future?"

Another Elder's voice trembled slightly, voicing the deepest fear in everyone's heart.

If Ziyang Shen remains, the younger generation will forever live under his shadow!

The Jun family's hegemony is as precarious as a pile of broken eggs!

"We can wait no longer!" The Eighth Elder slammed his hand onto the ancient stone throne beneath him, his voice decisive, murderous intent sweeping like a tangible cold current, even the pale flame dimmed for a moment.

"Regardless of the cost! No matter how absurd the news sounds! We must not gamble! We must not give Ziyang Shen… a real chance to return!"

"Ziyang Shen… must not be resurrected!" Sixth Elder inhaled deeply, his murky eyes flashing resolute ferocity, "If this beast lives, for our Jun family it would be nothing less than… a catastrophic ruin! We must, before he truly revives, utterly snuff him out in the cradle!"

"Seconded!"

"Execute!"

At any cost!

The other Elders in the hall each spoke in low voices, their tones filled with unprecedented gravity and lethal decisiveness.

The possibility of Ziyang Shen's revival hung over the Jun family like a sword, chilling them with a fear that rose from the depths of their souls.

To crush this possibility has become the consensus of all Elders!

In the end, all the murderous, wary gazes converged on the deepest part of the Great Hall, upon the figure who had been sitting cross‑legged in silence.

He sat upright on a bronze platform at the highest point; though his figure was not towering, he seemed the very core of the Great Hall and of this vast Star Domain.

His aura was as dense as unfathomable ancient ice, like a dormant primordial star; still, it could topple heaven and earth the moment it moved.

He is the current head of the Jun family, who has wielded this colossal power for countless years—a true pillar who sets the heavens and earth—Jun Linshi!

Feeling the convergence of all gazes, Jun Linshi slowly lifted his eyelids.

What kind of eyes were they?

Deep as an endless sea of stars, calm to the point of no ripple, yet seemingly containing wisdom that sees all and authority that commands all.

His gaze slowly swept over each murderous Elder below, like a cold blade scraping.

The atmosphere in the Great Hall, the instant he opened his eyes, solidified to the freezing point.

Even the flickering pale flames seemed to freeze.

He did not state his position immediately; the invisible pressure he exuded made the air thick and heavy.

The Elders held their breath and focused, awaiting the head's final judgment.

A moment later, Jun Linshi's thin lips barely moved, uttering a cold, brief word that bore endless iron‑blooded murderous will, like a decree from Nine Nether, ringing clearly through the Dead Silence of the Great Hall:

Kill.

Boom!

Though it was only a single word, it exploded within the souls of everyone in the hall!

That cold murderous intent was purer and more resolute than the combined intent of all the Elders before.

"Obey the head's command!" Elder Eight's eyes flashed with bloodlust as he was the first to bow and accept the order.

"Obey!" Elder Six and the other Elders solemnly responded, and the murderous aura boiled over!

Jun Linshi's gaze turned toward the swirling nebula on the dome of the Great Hall, as if piercing endless Space and seeing the direction of the Ziyang family's Ancestral Land.

He spoke again, his voice still steady, yet bearing an unquestionable resolve:

"This matter is of great significance, concerning the Jun family's millennial fortune. It cannot be handled without Lei Dian methods. I... will personally go to the Bronze Giant Gate and then consult the Ancestor!"

"Ancestor?!"

When those three words left Jun Linshi's mouth, the air in the Council Hall seemed to be sucked out in an instant!

All the Elders, even Elder Eight with the strongest murderous aura, instantly displayed unparalleled awe, excitement, and... a tremor that rose from the depths of their souls!

Ancestor‑level existence!

That is the true foundation of the Jun family, the reason they can stand atop the southern realms, overlooking endless ages without waning!

It is a living legend, a terrifying existence beyond the comprehension of ordinary cultivators!

They have long withdrawn from worldly affairs, hidden deep within the Ancestral Land, like the Sea-Calming Divine Needle, guarding the Jun family's river of fortune.

Only truly earth‑shaking events that threaten the family's foundation can rouse them!

The head actually intends to personally consult the Ancestor!

This shows that the possibility of Ziyang Shen's revival, in Jun Linshi's mind, has risen to the highest level of threat—capable of overturning the Jun family's millennial foundation!

"Good! Good! Good!"

Elder Eight was so excited that he uttered three 'good' words, his gaunt body trembling slightly, his eyes now free of any doubt, filled only with fervent anticipation of the impending storm of Destruction.

"Then we shall ready our horses and arms, awaiting the head's return! At your command, we will immediately muster the clan's elite and march straight... to the Ziyang family's Ancestral Land! We will crush that Coffin that dares to defy heaven and fate, along with the entire Ziyang family's hope, completely into ash!"

The cold murderous intent, like a tangible tide, surged violently within this ancient bronze Council Hall.