Yun Wuhan’s body locked in mid-motion, his sword inches from Nian Shi’s chest. Only his eyes could move, tracking the God of Time as he stepped forward with leisurely grace.
Nian Shi circled his immobilized prey, fingers trailing along the frozen blades of elemental energy.
"Tsk, tsk. Still relying on these toys?" He stopped before Yun Wuhan, smiling like a cat toying with its meal. "Tell me why you’re here, and I’ll make your death quick."
Yun Wuhan’s gaze remained defiant.
Nian Shi’s smile faded. "Stubborn."
A flick of his wrist, and a spatial blade sheared through Yun Wuhan’s right arm. Divine blood crystallized in frozen time.
Still, Yun Wuhan made no sound.
"Fine." Nian Shi’s voice turned glacial. He methodically began dismembering the God of Elements—slicing tendons, flaying divine flesh, peeling back layers of primordial essence. Each cut was precise, calculated to inflict maximum agony.
Through it all, Yun Wuhan’s eyes never wavered.
Nian Shi finally snarled, temporal energy crackling around him. "Enough! It doesn’t matter why you came. You’ve seen too much." He raised a hand, gathering enough power to erase a galaxy. "Die—"
Yun Wuhan’s lips moved.
Before Nian Shi could react, the God of Elements lunged forward—his shattered body pressing against the God of Time in a grotesque embrace. Golden light erupted from his chest as he whispered.
The explosion shattered the frozen timestream.
Stars winked out of existence as the shockwave tore through the cosmos. Reality itself screamed under the strain, timelines twisting like ribbons in a storm. When the cosmic dust settled, nothing remained—no bodies, no residual energy, just absolute void.
The Beyond Heaven King’s Crown floated unscathed amidst the destruction.
After a moment’s pause, it streaked toward the Yun Dynasty—toward its destined wearer.
The snow fell silently over the Yun Dynasty’s palace, blanketing the courtyards in white. Yun Tian, the Second Prince, stood motionless in the cold, his breath misting in the air as he stared at the frozen lake. Behind him, Qing Xuan, his maidservant, bowed her head.
"Your Highness, it’s too cold outside. Please return inside," she urged softly.
Yun Tian did not turn. His gaze remained fixed on the distant mountains, veiled in mist. "Do you think there will be a heavy snow tonight, Xuan’er?"
Qing Xuan tilted her head slightly, studying the heavy clouds. "Perhaps. The wind is strong today."
A moment of silence passed between them. Then, just as Yun Tian turned to leave—
A streak of fire tore through the sky, cutting through the snowfall like a blade.
Yun Tian’s eyes widened. Before he could react, the meteor slammed into the frozen lake with a thunderous BOOM!
Ice shattered. The shockwave rippled outward, sending jagged fractures across the lake’s surface. Instinctively, Yun Tian raised his hand, summoning a barrier of divine energy to shield himself and Qing Xuan from the flying debris.
As the dust settled, his frown deepened.
"Your Highness, we should retreat!" Qing Xuan grabbed his sleeve, her voice urgent. "That was no ordinary meteor!"
But Yun Tian did not move. His instincts screamed at him—something was calling him forward.
Ignoring her protests, he stepped onto the cracked ice, his boots crunching against the fractured surface. Qing Xuan hesitated, then followed, her heart pounding.
At the center of the impact crater lay an object that should not exist.
Not just any crown—this one was wrought of celestial metal, its eight tassels adorned with jewels that shimmered with an otherworldly glow. Each gem pulsed faintly, as if breathing.
Yun Tian’s breath hitched.
This was clearly a divine artifact.
Qing Xuan gasped. "How... how could a crown fall from the heavens?"
Yun Tian did not answer. His fingers twitched, drawn toward it by an inexplicable force.
"Your Highness, don’t!" Qing Xuan reached out to stop him, but it was too late.
His fingertips brushed the cold metal.
Yun Tian’s fingers lingered on the crown’s cold surface. There was no explosion of power, no flood of memories—just a quiet certainty settling in his chest.
The thought came unbidden, yet undeniable. The eight jeweled tassels shimmered faintly in response, as if acknowledging his touch.
"Your Highness?" Qing Xuan’s voice broke through his thoughts.
Yun Tian didn’t immediately respond. He turned the crown in his hands, studying its intricate craftsmanship. The metal was unlike anything in the mortal realm—cool to the touch yet radiating a subtle warmth beneath. The jewels pulsed rhythmically, almost like...
"Xuan’er," he said at last, his voice low. "Do you think this is a sign?"
Qing Xuan pursed her lips. As his personal maid, she knew better than most the precarious position the Second Prince occupied. With Crown Prince Yun Xing consolidating power and the Emperor’s health declining, every omen carried weight.
But this? A celestial crown crashing into their courtyard? This went beyond palace intrigues.
Yun Tian exhaled, his breath misting in the cold air. The weight of recent events pressed upon him—Yun Xing’s growing influence, the northern provinces rebelling, and now this. He raised his head to the sky, as if searching for answers in the heavy clouds.
The crown remained silent in his hands...
The memory ended here as the surroundings returned to the original white space.
Long Xi and the others exhaled a long breath. They finally knew how Yun Wuhan died and how Yun Tian "luckily" found the crown.
"You actually managed to kill Nian Shi in that timeline?" Nantian Fengyu spoke up as she looked at the spectral Yun Wuhan.
Yun Wuhan chuckled and said. "It was success because I caught him off guard. He didn’t expect me to be able to move under his power. His death did not only allow Yun Tian to receive the crown perfectly but also delayed the true Nian Shi from knowing what happened here."
Nantian Fengyu nodded slowly. From then on, Yun Tian went through countless cycles of life and death until he finally arrived at the Prime Origin timeline as the Beyond Heaven King in the Divine Realm... It was where Yun Lintian’s journey began.
Yun Wuhan looked at everyone and said. "My time is up. This is truly the final message I left for everyone because I want all of you to know the truth on what exactly happened and how it begun."
He paused for a moment to take a breath and said solemnly. "Again, thank you for your sacrifice. If there’s next life, we, husband and wife, would definitely repay this debt of gratitude."
As he spoke, Yun Wuhan’s spectral figure began to fade...