Chapter 131: If He Dies, Who Will Be the Bait?
At that moment, Caelum sensed something.
With a casual wave of his hand, Yin and Yang Qi swept across the lotus pond. Ripples spread gently over the water’s surface before an image from somewhere within the Celestial Arc Realm appeared.
Curious, Wyrmvine and the others gathered around to watch.
Cloudvault rubbed his still-burning backside and asked,
"Master, who are they?"
Caelum replied,
"Prosper of Astral Hall."
"Vaelor of Stormpeak Citadel."
Though Caelum rarely left Skyreach Monastery, very little that happened within the Celestial Arc Realm could escape his notice.
On top of that, he occasionally visited the Sea of Transcendence.
Within the River of Time, few secrets remained hidden.
Ever since Prosper began cultivating the forbidden art from the Eternal Vale, his mind had gradually been corrupted by the baleful influence lurking within the forbidden land. He had become a puppet of the Primordial Kings.
Prosper believed he had concealed it well.
In reality, Caelum knew exactly what he was doing.
The Primordial Kings’ interest in the Celestial Arc Realm stemmed from only one thing.
The Worldbreaker Physique.
Since that was the case, Caelum saw no reason not to play along.
He was already dissatisfied with how few opportunities the Celestial Arc Realm offered.
Prosper made an excellent piece of bait.
Perhaps the Primordial Kings would kindly deliver a few opportunities to his doorstep.
For decades, Caelum had allowed Prosper to scheme in secret.
Having wandered the Sea of Transcendence and gazed upon the River of Time itself, he viewed all conspiracies and hidden plots as little more than jokes.
Very few secrets could escape his sight.
Vaelor was one such example.
Born with the Innate Heavenly Law Physique, he had entered Stormpeak Citadel as a child.
His cultivation far surpassed that of his generation, yet he deliberately kept a low profile.
Lady Moonveil, Torin, and the others had only recently reached the Paragon Realm.
Vaelor, meanwhile, had already reached Immortal Realm Layer Twelve.
He simply refused to undergo the Immortal Tribulation.
Otherwise, he would have become an immortal before Wyatt.
And he would have succeeded.
His strength vastly exceeded Wyatt’s.
There was a reason for his restraint.
Vaelor was an immortal from The Infinite Realms.
Over countless reincarnations across innumerable worlds, he had searched for the source of the Imperial Calamity.
His goal was simple.
To eliminate it.
Otherwise, The Infinite Realms stood on the brink of disaster.
Finding the Celestial Arc Realm had not been luck.
It was the inevitable result of hundreds of lifetimes spent searching.
After glimpsing a fragment of the karmic web surrounding the Imperial Calamity, he became convinced of one thing.
The person destined to push the calamity to its peak existed within the Celestial Arc Realm.
That was why he suppressed his cultivation, refused ascension, and remained in this world investigating.
What he had not expected was that during Wyatt’s attempted ascension, Prosper had taken notice of him.
Which led to their current battle.
Boom!
Mountains and rivers shook across thousands of miles.
Their clash unleashed earthshaking power that stirred the heavens and earth.
Two streaks of light fought from one horizon to the frozen wastelands at the edge of the world.
Neither yielded.
Thunder shook the nine heavens.
Divine radiance illuminated the world.
Vaelor moved through endless storms, commanding heavenly lightning as naturally as his own limbs.
Every bolt carried the destructive force of an Immortal Tribulation.
The lightning split the heavens apart with deafening crashes that left all living things trembling.
Yet every strike was blocked by surging waves of sinister black mist.
"Hahahaha!"
Prosper laughed wildly as baleful energy wrapped around his body.
"Who would have thought that the most deeply hidden genius among the younger generation would be you, little friend Vaelor?"
The sinister energy was extraordinarily dangerous.
Vaelor refused to let even a trace touch him.
Retreating at once, he widened the distance between them.
Lightning flickered within his eyes.
Calmly, he said,
"Master Prosper, we’ve never had any grievances between us. Why go to such lengths?"
"If I lacked some ability of my own, I might already have fallen into your hands."
"That was indeed my miscalculation."
Prosper sighed.
Then a warm smile appeared on his face.
"Little friend Vaelor, I possess a cultivation method that would suit you perfectly."
"Why not cultivate it alongside me?"
"Senior’s kindness is appreciated."
Vaelor refused without hesitation.
"Hmph!"
Prosper’s expression darkened.
At last, he stopped holding back.
The forbidden art activated.
Boundless black mist surged into the sky.
Drawing upon the power of the Primordial Kings from within the Eternal Vale, he merged that power with his own.
Buzz!
His aura skyrocketed.
The pressure became so overwhelming that even the flow of World Essence seemed to stall.
Vaelor’s pupils contracted.
For the first time, genuine disgust appeared on his normally composed face.
"So it’s you parasites again."
With a sharp shout, Vaelor abandoned all restraint.
Behind him, an ancient and mysterious wheel suddenly appeared.
As it turned, the power he had accumulated through countless reincarnations manifested upon him.
Boom!
The battle ended almost immediately.
Before Prosper could fully unleash the power of the Primordial Kings, Vaelor’s reincarnation force crushed him completely.
"Pff!"
Prosper’s expression changed dramatically.
Blood sprayed from his mouth.
He immediately attempted to flee.
Several heavenly lightning bolts struck in succession.
In an instant, Prosper was blasted into ashes.
Had this not been the Celestial Arc Realm, protected by the lingering power of the First Worldbreaker Physique, Vaelor would have been able to unleash strength far beyond the immortal level.
If that were the case, Prosper would have died from the first blow.
Vaelor’s expression grew increasingly grave.
"The forbidden lands are targeting me?"
"No."
"They’re targeting the Celestial Arc Realm."
If the Primordial Kings truly intended to target him, they would have known exactly who he was.
They would never have sent Prosper alone to die.
This was likely Prosper acting on his own initiative.
That left only one conclusion.
The Primordial Kings were plotting something involving the Celestial Arc Realm.
Yet the Celestial Arc Realm held special significance.
The Primordial Kings could not directly shake its foundations.
And the Worldbreaker Physique of this era had supposedly already ascended to The Infinite Realms.
So why control Prosper?
The answer quickly became obvious.
The Imperial Calamity.
The Primordial Kings were targeting the Imperial Calamity.
Realizing this, Vaelor’s heart tightened.
"I need to find the source of the Imperial Calamity as soon as possible."
If the Primordial Kings reached it first, the consequences for The Infinite Realms would be catastrophic.
A Great Calamity might evolve into an Infinite Calamity.
During a Great Calamity, even an Immortal Emperor retained a sliver of hope.
During an Infinite Calamity, even Immortal Emperors would be reduced to ashes.
The consequences were impossible to imagine.
Skyreach Monastery.
"Hiss!"
Cloudvault sniffed and stared wide-eyed.
"Vaelor is ridiculously strong."
"What kind of Divine Power is that wheel? It’s terrifying."
Wyrmvine had already noticed something.
He said,
"A Fallen Immortal."
"A Fallen Immortal?"
Jadewind frowned.
"What does that mean?"
"A true immortal who abandoned his immortal cultivation and descended from The Infinite Realms into the lower worlds."
Wyrmvine shook his head.
"As for his purpose, I don’t know."
He glanced at the silent Caelum.
Master undoubtedly knew the answer.
Since he chose not to speak, none of the disciples felt it appropriate to ask further.
"Master! Master!"
Moonchaser tugged at her braids as she looked up at Caelum.
"Is Master Prosper really dead?"
Something about it felt wrong to her.
Caelum gently patted her head.
"He won’t die that easily."
If Prosper died...
Who would serve as the bait?
