Immortal Black Hand

"Now you should understand that sometimes, even if you don’t provoke others, they will still come after you. Do you think that by not defying the heavens and merely pursuing the path of immortality, the Heavenly Dao would spare you?

The endless years of imprisonment seem to have sobered you up—otherwise, you wouldn’t have lured the Heavenly Demons here.

Entrusting your fate to others will never grant you true transcendence!"

A peculiar gleam flashed across the old ghost’s face, and for a fleeting moment, an abyssal, terrifying aura radiated from him.

Gu Qingfeng: ???

Lure the Heavenly Demons?

"What do you mean by ‘lure the Heavenly Demons’?"

"There’s no need to feign ignorance. I can sense the power of the Heavenly Demons within you. Who would’ve thought that after drawing inspiration from the Heavenly Demons to create the Sin of Ultimate Defiance and being imprisoned, you’d gain such profound insight into them—even mastering their power and summoning them here.

It seems you’ve fully embraced my Heaven-Destroying Plan. By inciting the Heavenly Demons to attack the Cangming Realm, you’ve provoked the Heavenly Dao’s retaliation, providing the perfect opportunity for my grand scheme!

So, welcome, Renegade Heavenly Emperor, to the war against the heavens!"

Gu Qingfeng was utterly dumbfounded. He couldn’t comprehend how a few curses had somehow branded him as the Renegade Heavenly Emperor, a title now impossible to shake off. Every word he spoke, every action he took, seemed to further cement his identity.

If the Renegade Heavenly Emperor hadn’t recently been slain by the System, he might’ve actually believed he was the reincarnation of a Heavenly Emperor.

So, was this old ghost just senile from living too long?

Or was he so shrewd that he’d mastered the art of self-persuasion?

After a moment of stunned silence, Gu Qingfeng decided to roll with it. Renegade Heavenly Emperor it was, then. The priority now was figuring out whether this mysterious old ghost was human or demon—and how to piss him off.

Once provoked into action, his true nature would be revealed.

When it came to infuriating others, Gu Qingfeng considered it an innate talent.

As for that nonsense about a war against the heavens? He had zero interest. The heavens nurtured all life, yet humanity offered nothing in return. And here they were, scheming to defy or destroy the heavens—utter ingratitude.

Of course, this was assuming the Heavenly Dao wasn’t a demon.

If it was...

The Heavenly Dao is merciless, treating all as straw dogs! My fate is mine to command, not the heavens’!

"Old ghost, why won’t you let me seize the Qilin Child’s Solar Immortal Body?"

Gu Qingfeng’s logic was simple: to provoke someone, you had to target what they cherished most.

Instead of answering, the old ghost smirked mysteriously. "Why do you think the Qilin Child, after slumbering for millions of years through countless epochs, chose to awaken in this era?"

"I heard it was arranged by his father, Emperor Qilin."

"And who do you think told Emperor Qilin?"

Gu Qingfeng froze, staring at the old ghost’s eerie grin before blurting out, "You?"

The old ghost nodded approvingly. "Exactly."

"What grudge do you hold against Emperor Qilin to screw him over like this?"

Now it was the old ghost’s turn to be confused. "What do you mean? How did I screw him over?"

"You didn’t? Awakening his son now, of all times—right when I, the Heavenly Emperor, am around? What chance does the Qilin Child have to ascend? Poor Emperor Qilin, hoping his son would become a dragon, only to see him reduced to a mount."

"I awakened him now because you lured the Heavenly Demons!"

"What’s that supposed to mean?" Gu Qingfeng frowned. "Are you saying you foresaw millions of years ago that I’d summon the Heavenly Demons?"

If true, this old ghost’s abilities were downright terrifying.

The old ghost straightened his hunched back, brimming with pride. "Damn right!"

Seeing his demeanor, Gu Qingfeng instantly understood.

"Oh, so you probably didn’t foresee anything. My guess is you told Emperor Qilin to keep his son in eternal slumber until you gave the signal.

Now that I’ve ‘summoned’ the Heavenly Demons, you decided the time was right and woke the Qilin Child." Gu Qingfeng said flatly.

The old ghost’s face fell. "You really are as insufferable as ever."

"You still haven’t explained why I can’t take the Solar Immortal Body."

"Because Emperor Qilin needs it to restore his strength."

Gu Qingfeng’s mind reeled, though his expression remained calm. "Emperor Qilin isn’t dead either?"

First, the Hundred Refinements Heavenly Emperor, now Emperor Qilin—were none of these Heavenly Emperors truly gone?

"He’s both dead and not dead. You’ll understand once you visit the Burial Grounds. For now, just know this: don’t take the Solar Immortal Body. It was passed to the Qilin Child to be nurtured.

Emperor Qilin is part of the Heaven-Destroying War. Stealing the Solar Immortal Body would not only anger him but weaken our side."

Hearing this, Gu Qingfeng thought, Consider it done!

Originally, he hadn’t planned to seize the Solar Immortal Body—partial essence was enough to enhance his Chaos Body. Leaving it with the Qilin Child made sense; the stronger the mount, the more impressive the master.

But now, the benefits of taking it were too great: earning Emperor Qilin’s gratitude and weakening the Heaven-Destroying faction while pissing off the old ghost—two birds with one stone.

Still, this Heaven-Destroying group seemed downright sinister. From the old ghost’s words, the Qilin Child was merely a tool, nurturing the Solar Immortal Body for his father until it could be extracted.

Extracting an Immortal Body would cripple or kill the host. What kind of father would do that?

Wait—Gu Qingfeng suddenly remembered something.

Speaking of Immortal Bodies, he had another one: the Samsara Immortal Body—Luo Li, daughter of the Netherworld’s Lord.

He’d captured her and handed her over to the little corpse spirit for ‘training,’ but then got distracted by the pleasures of the Heavenly Court and the Queen Mother’s peaches, completely forgetting about her. Who knew how her ‘training’ was going?

If the Qilin Child was nurturing the Solar Immortal Body for Emperor Qilin, was Luo Li doing the same for Zang Tiandi?

After all, if the Hundred Refinements Heavenly Emperor and Emperor Qilin were alive, Zang Tiandi might be too.

Gu Qingfeng then recalled the Sword Heavenly Emperor, who had hidden his Indestructible Sword Body essence in the Sword Tower, waiting for future geniuses to claim it.

The more he thought about it, the more chilling it became.

It felt as though an invisible net had been cast over the Cangming Realm, with hidden Heavenly Emperors stirring in the shadows.

And behind it all loomed the shadow of one man—the old ghost!

He was the ultimate puppet master, pulling strings across eternity.

Having lived through countless ages, witnessing—even aiding—the rise of emperors, he had woven them into a grand conspiracy, linking them across time for a scheme of unimaginable scale.