In a beautiful palace whose walls shone with a brilliant golden glow and whose floor displayed an exquisite emerald-green color, blazing fires rose to staggering heights and giant columns of smoke ascended toward the sky.
However, both a large opening in one of the walls and another, even larger one in the ceiling had disrupted the majesty of the place.
The rapid footsteps of a hooded figure could be heard crossing the palace corridors, once filled with joy and delight. As it drew closer to its objective, its steps mixed with incredible sounds of explosions and tremors that shook the ground and the walls.
The hooded figure increased its speed as it approached closer and closer to its goal. Finally, it turned right and found itself facing an immense number of enemy troops fighting against the palace guards and forces.
Each group was gathered under a different banner, wearing different types of armor, making it clear that they belonged to different forces.
Taking advantage of the enemies' distraction caused by the guards, the figure managed to reach the next corridor, where it turned right once again and stopped in front of an imposing golden door bearing the figure of a dragon, whose eyes were inlaid with emeralds.
Before she could even touch the door, a voice from the other side said: "Enter, Mariane". Without hesitation, Mariane, the hooded figure, pushed the door, opening it effortlessly.
As it opened wide, a figure seated upon a throne was revealed. Dressed elegantly, with green hair and a pair of eyes vertically divided into one emerald-colored half and the other amethyst-colored, with a black dragon pupil that seemed to act as a crack separating the two parts.
From that crack, at its center, emerged the golden hands of a clock, rotating as one. There were several golden symbols along the edges of the iris, which could easily be deduced to be numbers. His gaze could captivate even the most beautiful of ladies, and his magnificent aura was capable of subjugating and being worshiped by even the most rebellious.
This was Mariane's master, the supreme dragon sovereign, god of dragons, sovereign of the supreme time clan, god of time and the race of time, sovereign of the supreme space clan, god of space and the race of space in that universe.
His name was Feicui Long, the one who had adopted the humble half-elf Mariane and sheltered her under his protection. To her, he was more than a father and a master; he was the person she adored and loved the most.
When Feicui Long noticed that Mariane was lost in her thoughts, he called her by name. "Tell me, Mariane, have you brought everything I asked for?"
Mariane shook slightly, forced out of her thoughts, and replied hastily: "Yes, master, I have brought everything with me."
Feicui Long continued: "Very well. Once again, I want to ask you: are you sure you wish to renounce your cultivation and be sealed together with the coffin and everything you brought? I do not wish for you to feel obligated to do so by my orders and waste an enormous amount of time sealed within space-time solely due to my whim."
Upon hearing these words, Mariane raised her head and met her lord's gaze. With unbreakable pride, she looked at him and said: "Master, as I have mentioned to you on multiple occasions, I was saved by you and granted something beyond what I ever could have imagined. What benefit would there be in preserving my cultivation and living my life if I cannot even be of use to you? I kindly beg you to allow me to do this and do not doubt my determination."
Feicui Long sighed and, as if he had finally resigned himself, said: "Very well, come with me." Immediately after, he rose from his throne and began walking behind it, with Mariane diligently following him.
…
Mariane and Feicui Long had entered the room behind the throne. Mariane could see a majestic coffin, crystalline, of a light emerald-green color with beautiful golden edges.
On the lid of the coffin was a "master" formation, composed of a rune formation, a talisman formation, a seal formation, a glyph formation, a sigil formation, a formation of lines and drawings, and a mixed formation, creating a unique and sophisticated formation.
At certain points, energy cores had been placed, with a total of 21 of these cores.
Feicui Long opened the coffin, revealing an interior just as beautiful and containing even more master formations. Inside, certain objects had already been placed, and there was barely enough space for one person.
Feicui Long turned and looked at Mariane. As if she could understand what he wished to say, Mariane approached the coffin, but waited for Feicui Long to do something before entering.
Feicui Long looked at her and placed one hand on her lower dantian, that is, near her navel, and the other on her upper dantian, located on her forehead, dispersing two-thirds of Mariane's cultivation.
Then he moved one of his hands to her chest, to the intermediate dantian located precisely where her heart was, and finally dispersed Mariane's cultivation completely.
Once finished, Feicui Long looked at her and bit his tongue, allowing his burning blood to flow into his mouth. He embraced her from behind and joined his lips to hers.
Mariane, shocked by what had just happened, could not process the events. Before she could do so, she felt a boiling liquid pour into her. However, it was evident that Feicui Long controlled the energy of his blood to avoid harming her. When he finished and separated his lips from hers, before Mariane could say anything, Feicui Long touched her forehead and Mariane fell unconscious.
Then, Feicui Long placed her inside the coffin with a delicacy difficult to describe, as if she were the most fragile piece of art in existence.
Feicui Long, while sealing the coffin and, using part of his energy, activating the formations, said: "Sleep, little one, sleep. In all the futures I have seen, only by doing this can I save your life. I am sorry for having lied to you. This is not to protect the greatest treasures of the dragon race, nor of the space clan, nor of the time clan in this universe, but to protect you. You are the most precious thing to me..."
He opened a rift in space and gently pushed the coffin into the rift, only to then turn around and return the way he had come, back to the throne hall, where he sat once again and waited patiently.
…
Moments later, the beautiful door through which Mariane had entered was blown to pieces, launching several guards into the air. They fell among the rubble, bleeding. It was evident that they had died even before touching the ground.
Several footsteps were heard, and soon 21 people entered the hall. Each of them radiated an incredible aura and they were divided into three groups of seven members each. When they finally stopped, Feicui Long, who had kept his eyes closed the entire time while leaning on his arm, opened them and directed his gaze toward them. It was a completely different look from the one he had given Mariane: cold and piercing.
Feicui Long said sarcastically: "Well, well, look who deigned to come visit me. A bunch of pitiful children who think that, because their mother is no longer here, they can do whatever they want."
Soon, the leader of one of the three groups spoke angrily: "Feicui Long, my brother, stop with your sarcasm. The three factions gave you the opportunity, just as they did the other six supreme gods, to join us and even lead one of the three factions. Do not act as if we were selfish children."
In response, Feicui Long replied in a cold voice, barely containing the anger in his tone: "Not act as if you were selfish children? Tell me, my brother, no, tell me Adolf Wilfsmun, supreme god of origin and the race of origin, what was the first thing you did when the war between universes ended and you realized that the divine sovereign had fallen and that the master of the universe possibly had as well? Did you not lead a group of supreme gods to try to conquer the universe, which was left without its owner and without its main guardian?"
Feicui Long then looked at the other two women for a moment and continued: "And not only you. You as well, Yun Hua, goddess of infinity and the race of infinity, acted exactly the same as Adolf. And not forgetting you, Catalina Lancaster, supreme goddess of supremacy and the supreme race. I raised you and Yun Hua with the hope that you would act for the good of this universe, but you both failed me."
He then finished by saying: "Not only did you prove that you do not care about the universe by ignoring all sentient beings and their suffering after the war, but you also increased that suffering by causing another war, bringing about the deaths of trillions of innocents just to conquer it for your own benefit."
Feicui Long continued, saying: "And as if the deaths of 6 of my brothers in the war between universes were not enough, you mercilessly murdered another six of my brothers who refused to follow your game of conquest. So tell me, is that not exactly what a selfish and insensitive child would do?"
Calming his rage, Feicui Long rose from his throne and removed the cloak he always carried with him, placing it upon the throne. Then he said: "Enough words. We all know why you and your armies are here. I will show you why, even while being gravely injured, I am still superior to brats like you."
Shortly after speaking these words, he raised his power to the maximum. Soon, space-time began to tremble before a terrifying aura, creaking as if it were on the verge of collapse at any moment.
The 21 supreme gods accompanying them, with varied expressions on their faces ranging from concern and fear to rage and anger, did the same. And not only them, but also the armies they had brought with them.
…
In a matter of seconds, an intense battle erupted between the 21 gods and their armies against Feicui Long. Every strike from Feicui Long made the hands and weapons of his opponents tremble, sending them flying through the air with each kick.
However, the 21 supreme gods were the ones most affected by his attacks, while their armies suffered even more, with many soldiers being severely injured or dying on the spot.
At a certain moment, Feicui Long extended his arms backward and, with his hands transformed into claws, shouted: "Spatial Rend!" His arms moved, dragging his claws loaded with a great amount of spatial energy, and unleashed a claw-shaped slash that tore apart space itself, massacring thousands of soldiers and causing injuries to several supreme gods who were sent flying.
Adolf Wilfsmum, wielding a sword with multiple master formations, shone to its maximum and shouted: "Ancestral Origin Slash!" His slash collided with Feicui Long's technique, barely managing to stop it, while Yun Hua seized the opportunity and waved her fan, dispersing the enemy technique.
Behind Feicui Long, Catalina Lancaster shouted as she used a technique with her great axe: "Supreme Empress Rupture!" A tearing energy emanated from the axe and rushed at great speed toward Feicui Long.
Feicui Long realized the situation, but it was too late to evade the attack, so he decided to use a technique. Almost whispering, he said: "Chains of Time." Several chains made of energy emerged and attempted to restrain the great axe, but Catalina possessed formidable strength and energy, so her attack would not be stopped easily.
However, Feicui Long knew her power very well, as he had raised her himself. Smiling, he managed to slightly slow the attack, which gave him time to quickly turn and use both hands. Shouting: "Spatial Prison!"
His energy-charged hands firmly grasped the axe, holding it in place. Then he pulled on the axe, dragging its owner toward him, but he soon realized his mistake.
At that moment, Yun Hua had positioned herself behind him and, with the blades of her fan, slashed while shouting: "Infinite River Division!" The attack immediately cut Feicui Long, causing a large bleeding wound on his exposed back.
Yun Hua smiled triumphantly, since both she and Feicui Long knew each other very well in the art of combat, and she had been able to identify the perfect moment to launch an effective attack. However, her smile would not last long, because...
Immediately afterward, Feicui Long kicked Catalina with all his strength in the stomach, sending her flying at an astonishing speed. Then, he turned around at an equally astonishing speed and grabbed Yun Hua's smiling face, smashing it against the floor in the throne hall. With almost millimetric precision, he managed to evade Adolf's slash by leaning to the side.
Feicui Long, with a mocking voice, while shaking his head, said: "It is still not enough, it is still not enough, you lack far too much to reach my level." Shortly afterward, in the blink of an eye, he appeared behind Adolf and, with a kick charged with emerald energy to the face, sent him flying.
The other Supreme Gods quickly joined the battle, using several of their most powerful techniques. They launched slashes, energy spears, claws, explosions, and all kinds of attacks, but none managed to hit Feicui Long. It was almost as if the attacks deliberately avoided his body, as if they did not want to harm him or were afraid of him.
Feicui Long did not remain still. Gathering emerald and golden energy in his fist, he pulled back and then, while saying: "I am my master's weapon, a weapon of destruction and death, I swear before the absolute heaven that there will never be anything capable of stopping me, that before me walls, fortresses, and formations will be pierced through and all my enemies will perish with a devastating blow!, Emerald-Golden Dragon Impact!"
This impact sent everyone flying, and they were only able to recover their position after several minutes. Feicui Long saw this and sighed. He was weak, too weak, but moreover, he could feel how 'that' was close to being released from its containment seal.
…
After hours of intense battle, the battlefield was destroyed and filled with remains of flesh and blood. Only Feicui Long, the other 21 Supreme Gods, and a few Superior Gods who were part of the army remained. Most of the soldiers had died or had withdrawn under the orders of the 21 gods. Feicui Long had several wounds, some superficial and others deeper, but fortunately they had not struck vital points. However, his celestial seal was still unable to regenerate due to the war between universes.
The celestial seal was a seal obtained upon reaching the true immortal realm. Initially, when it was first obtained, it was called the immortal seal. As the realms advanced, it changed its name because it fused with the laws of that level and granted the bearer true immortality. As long as the seal remained intact, Feicui Long could not die in any way.
However, the seal could be damaged, which made him vulnerable to being killed. In the original universe, also called the absolute universe, a way was discovered to prevent its regeneration by launching "corrosive" attacks that continuously damaged the seal, preventing its recovery and, ultimately, causing the death of the bearer.
Feicui Long reflected to himself: "It is inevitable to fall on this battlefield. Although I already knew it, I wanted to think for a moment that I could avoid it, but it seems impossible."
Feicui Long could not help but sigh heavily: "I was too arrogant, I underestimated too much the combined attack along with that absolute emperor-level artifact of the divine sovereigns of the enemy universes, which is still too strong to dissipate, not to mention that annoying poison, especially in the middle of a battle. There will come a time when I will not have enough energy to contain it, nor will the seal be sufficient."
Feicui Long then smiled ironically and finished his internal monologue: "I wonder if I will die first at the hands of my old enemies or my former brothers. In any case, it does not matter. My main reason for facing this impossible battle was not to die in a great battle for honor or something like that, but to allow Mariane to escape safely and for the dragon race living in this mini plane to also escape. There are still many who have not managed to do so. So I have no other option but to give it my all..."
Adolf, with several serious wounds but smiling, said: "Have you run out of energy, Feicui Long? Where is that arrogance with which you claimed you would prove your superiority over us?"
Feicui Long replied sarcastically: "Do you think that because I have been injured, this is a victory for you? It seems that you are ready for a real fight, aren't you?" As he said this, his aura rose again. However, this time it was not only his aura that was growing, but his form was changing rapidly.
First, large wings emerged from his back, followed by scales that covered his entire body. His arms and legs transformed into sharp claws, and from the lower part of his back emerged a long tail with golden scales.
Four pairs of sharp horns also grew on his forehead, one pair golden and the other emerald green, accompanied by three beautiful jewels: an amethyst on the right, a topaz on the left, and a beautiful emerald in the center.
When the transformation ended, he was revealed as a majestic western dragon covered mostly in emerald-green scales, with some golden ones on the belly and the front of the neck and in some other areas. This was his true form: an emerald-golden dragon of space and time.
The remaining gods no longer had time to hide their emotions; their faces showed seriousness. If what had happened moments ago was a warm-up, now they were immersed in a battle to the death.
All of them had witnessed how the dragon had defeated and devoured three divine sovereigns without anyone's help. But now, that same dragon was not their ally, but their mortal enemy.
As if Feicui Long wanted to confirm it, he flew rapidly at such a high speed that only a few were able to raise their defensive barriers in time and withstand the impact of the dragon's tail. Those who could not do so were sent flying at great speed, immediately suffering severe injuries.
Yun Hua acted quickly, unleashing a series of slashes like the waves of a raging river. Little by little, her true form was revealed: that of a beautiful lady covered with what seemed to be a dress, but in reality were the petals of a white flower, with some parts that resembled clouds. Yun Hua was a "cloud flower" of the infinite river, belonging to the "infinite" clan or the race of infinity.
When she completed her transformation, a gorget formed by delicate petals and a cloak similar to clouds could be seen. Yun Hua's skin went from being a bright white to a pale white, similar to the color of clouds, and her eyes shone with an intense yellow color.
But Yun Hua was not the only one who revealed her true form. Catalina also began to transform rapidly: four pairs of horns emerged from her forehead, a long tail similar to that of a dragon extended from the back of her spine, and her body became covered in silver fur.
On the inner part of her neck down to the end of her abdomen, ruby-colored scales appeared. Her beautiful sky-blue eyes adopted the same tone as her scales. In addition, her height increased from 1.65 meters to 2 meters and 10 centimeters.
Curiously, her muscles enhanced her femininity. Catalina belonged to the supreme clan, also known as the supreme race. The species to which Catalina belonged was the "Empress Wolf-Lizard Beast". When her transformation ended, Catalina let out a roar and accelerated to the maximum with her great axe, directing a vertical slash.
Feicui Long snorted and, simply with his enormous wings, rose into the sky while observing both of them. For the first time in the entire fight, he spoke without hostility and with admiration in his eyes and in his voice. "You two have become even more beautiful since the last time I saw you, and your cooperation has improved considerably. You make me proud, but you still lack much to come close to my level."
After finishing speaking, Feicui Long raised his neck and his cheeks swelled. In less than a second, he released a powerful amethyst-colored breath that tore space apart in this tiny plane, affecting everything in its path.
When the breath struck, the power was so great that even Yun Hua and Catalina, joining their forces, barely managed to stop it.
Watching this, Adolf murmured to himself: "I always knew he was an incomparable beast, but never to this level, it almost seems that those three useless divine sovereigns could not do much to him, it is only one of his breaths and he is already able to make Yun Hua and Catalina tremble. If he mixes his four types of breaths, I do not think we will be able to endure for long, I have to use that thing those people from that clan gave me…"
After saying that, Adolf, who was letting out a cold sweat all over his body, took something out of his spatial ring and, without anyone noticing, threw it toward Feicui Long.
That object, which at first was a round sphere of a silver color, soon took on a pointed shape and from its sides sprouted something like wings, and it began to accelerate at a speed that not even he could see, striking Feicui Long near his heart scale.
Feicui Long, who was releasing his breath, suddenly felt as if a needle pierced his chest. He immediately realized that something strange had entered his body, and after a few seconds he felt a burning pain coursing through his entire body, especially from the wound that Yun Hua had inflicted on him in his human form.
Realizing what it was, he roared furiously: "Damn Adolf, you used a dragon-killing poison, I always knew everything was very suspicious, how those other universes discovered the specific location of ours, why I could not see your future and now this artifact, it turns out you sold yourself to the Feilou clan and handed the poison to Yun Hua, did you think I could not recognize this poison, that damn insidious poison from the artifact of that trio of useless ones, even if I die here and now I have to make sure to leave you a wound so that you remember me, I will return and when I do I will come for your damn life you honorless scum!"
Being unable to endure the pain any longer, this time he spread his wings, letting his natural inscriptions shine at their maximum, and with a tilt of his head he released his final attack, a breath that mixed the colors topaz, amethyst, and emerald, combining his three supreme divine authorities, that of time, that of space, and that of dragons.
This breath was so strong that for a moment everything froze, and as if fulfilling his previous declarations, the breath pierced Adolf on one side, leaving a semicircular space on the right side of his abdomen, bleeding, where everything had disappeared. Even Yun Hua and Catalina were gravely injured.
Then the magnificent emerald-green dragon with golden accents fell to the ground. His burning red blood was now a dark black color like oil, and saying a few last words in a very low voice: "Activate, space-time prison formation."
Beneath Feicui Long's body, a master formation began to shine intensely, as if waiting to be activated by his blood. From this formation emerged pillars of intense light and chains from all directions, binding the body whose life was gradually fading away. Soon, the formation tore away a piece of the palace and submerged into a colossal spatial rift, taking with it the now inert body of Feicui Long. That is right, this formation was not an offensive or defensive one, it was a formation prepared to prevent his body from falling into the hands of his former brothers and now hated enemies…