Chapter 2: Enduring the Wrath of Heaven

Little did they know, jealousy can utterly distort a person’s nature.

Heavenly Realm—Endless Dream of Water and Sky.

At this very moment, the conversation between the goddess Chaoyan and the demon lord Beiming Yanhu was observed with perfect clarity through the Mirror of Heaven and Earth by Jiuxian Yue, a high god far away in the divine realm.

“Goddess Chaoyan, how dare you betray me and consort with a demon lord.”

“A mere demon lord—you have spent ten thousand years crossing tribulations, while I must endure endless suffering in this vast, drifting celestial palace.”

Consumed by rage, Jiuxian Yue’s anger seemed to burn through her very being, and she swallowed dryly, her throat parched.

“Lord Fenglan, I order you to immediately arrest the goddess Chaoyan, who has thrown the divine realm into chaos by conspiring with a demon and abandoning all living things.”

Standing nearby, Lord Fenglan, not daring to utter a word, took in the entire scene and quickly bowed respectfully.

“This… I fear it may not be appropriate. How could a minor deity like myself dare to apprehend the goddess Chaoyan?”

Jiuxian Yue arched her brow, an unfathomable glint flashing in her deep, obsidian eyes.

“What? Must I personally retrieve her myself?”

At this, Lord Fenglan understood that Jiuxian Yue, blinded by selfish desire and jealousy, was dragging the entire divine realm into peril and perhaps disaster.

In the end, Lord Fenglan could only yield—Jiuxian Yue was an ancient deity, and he dared not disobey.

“Yes, I will bring the goddess Chaoyan back at once.”

Heavenly Realm—Guixu.

During her days in Guixu, the goddess Chaoyan lived a tranquil life, admiring flowers in spring, gazing at the moon in autumn, enjoying cool breezes in summer, and listening to snow in winter.

Her every joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness became the seasons themselves.

Unexpectedly, her peaceful days were shattered—she was accused of colluding with demons and disturbing the order of the divine realm.

Jiuxian Yue, citing the safety of the Endless Dream of Water and Sky, ordered her capture.

Heavenly Realm—Endless Dream of Water and Sky.

On the Spirit Platform.

At the brink of utter collapse, the goddess Chaoyan was tightly bound, hands and feet shackled by six icy chains of soulwoven jade.

Before the assembled gods of the Endless Dream of Water and Sky, she was subjected to public humiliation.

Each chain was as cold as a blade of winter, driven deep into her body, piercing mercilessly through flesh and bone.

Sharpened arrowheads tore through her, gouging six bloody holes that stained the pool below her feet crimson.

Countless strands of dark hair fell over her pale, powerless face, all trace of former grace vanished.

The six soulwoven chains, each a hundred meters long, stretched from the stone pillars flanking the Spirit Platform, making escape impossible as she awaited her sentence.

The Spirit Platform was a place of punishment—where immortals’ bones were wrenched from their bodies, their flesh stripped, their souls scattered. The agony of body and spirit being torn apart was unspeakably cruel.

In an instant, the six chains anchoring her to the pillars ignited with supernatural flame.

Six bolts of heavenly thunder and earthly fire struck the goddess Chaoyan.

Every bone and joint in her body was shattered, one after another, by divine wrath.

Her robe, a garment of ages, was ripped to tatters in a heartbeat, the fragments drifting down in silence with the wind on the Spirit Platform—a scene of tragic beauty that made the heart ache.

Below the platform, Lord Fenglan, who had always served the goddess Chaoyan as her ancient Vermilion Bird, watched in horror as she was tortured into a bloody ruin, her blood never ceasing to stain the earth.

He could hardly bear to see his mistress destroyed by such vicious punishment.

“How can Jiuxian Yue treat the goddess Chaoyan, beloved of all beings, in this way?”

Lord Fenglan bowed deeply to Jiuxian Yue.

“The goddess Chaoyan is the first and greatest of the ancient gods, mistress of all creation. She has not colluded with the demon clan nor sheltered the demon lord Beiming Yanhu. I implore you to stay your hand.”

Jiuxian Yue stood high above upon the altar, a trace of arrogant disdain at her lips as she gazed down upon all.

“Lord Fenglan, you are one of the four ancient spirits, and the goddess Chaoyan’s attendant. It is natural you feel pity, but do not defy the laws of the Endless Dream of Water and Sky.”

Lord Fenglan bowed low, bowing his head. “I dare not.”

The other gods were even more frightened, shivering in terror and not daring to provoke the high god’s wrath.

Jiuxian Yue soared onto the Spirit Platform.

Gazing at the tortured goddess, she forced a mask of calm over her face, hiding any trace of regret.

But the corners of her mouth curled up in a crazed, vicious smile of satisfaction.

“Goddess Chaoyan, do you admit your guilt?”

Chaoyan’s eyes were dim, and she snorted coldly. “I know not what crime I have committed.”

Jiuxian Yue arched a brow, her gaze cruel; she had thought that after this punishment, Chaoyan would beg for mercy. Yet she remained defiant.

“Obstinate to the end—this is the price for your misplaced compassion, for consorting with demons.”

“Now, I will give you a chance to redeem yourself. Kill Beiming Yanhu, and I will pardon your crime and seek no further reckoning for your dereliction.”

“If you refuse, the entire Beiming clan will be exterminated by my hand, and the countless beings of Shanhai Yiguang will perish for your soft heart, buried with Beiming Yanhu.”

“Ha! I would see what the goddess who loves all beings will choose—save a demon lord, or forsake the lives you cherish for his sake.”

Flesh splitting inch by inch, Chaoyan forced herself through the numbing agony, slowly lifting her gaze to meet Jiuxian Yue’s eyes.

A mocking smile flickered at her lips; her eyes were as luminous as the moon, yet utterly devoid of light.

“What fault is there in following one’s heart? I am the master of all living things, guardian of the divine realm for ten thousand years, yet you shatter my immortal bones and strip me of my divinity.”

As she finished, another bolt of thunder and fire struck her down, slamming her to the ground, barely clinging to life.

A muffled groan escaped her lips, and she spat out a mouthful of blood.

Seeing Chaoyan so determined—even at death’s door, still shielding the demon lord Beiming Yanhu—only enraged Jiuxian Yue further.

“Chaoyan, are you set on defying me? Even if you admitted your guilt, I would not—” Jiuxian Yue roared in madness.

At that moment, Beiming Yanhu had already led three hundred thousand demon soldiers to storm the Endless Dream of Water and Sky, breaking into the Spirit Platform.

Beiming Yanhu knew well that Chaoyan’s ordeal at Jiuxian Yue’s hands was all because of him.

Thus, he led his army, breaking the seals and barriers, and bathed the entire divine realm in blood.