The messenger slunk away, and Lee Zhi entered the council chamber accompanied by several generals.

Looking at the disheveled cultivators of the Palace of Absolute Beginning, Lee Zhi gave a wry smile and said, “I burned through two substitute puppets in a row before I realized that something major has happened here. So, I brought my troops over to check it out. It seems you’ve all had a rough time under the Great Karmic Curse as well. Worthy Little Brother Wei, he… he….”

Lee Zhi’s words suddenly trailed off.

Standing atop the central peak, he could gradually sense the lifeless stillness within the realm of Qingming. Its domain power had dwindled to less than a-tenth of its former strength.

This meant that the connection between the realm lord and the realm stone had been completely severed, causing it to enter a state of hibernation on its own. In time, its domain would gradually recede and return to its most basic state. For Qingming, its domain would shrink to a radius of about 100 li.

Lee Zhi’s voice suddenly choked with emotion. As a realm lord himself, he naturally understood what this sign meant. Wei Yuan had already perished.

Lee Zhi made no attempt to hide his emotions. He wiped the tears from his face and said through gritted teeth, “My worthy little brother’s passing was sudden, so I reckon he left no final words. But as far as I know, he would rather feed Qingming to the dogs than let it fall into the hands of the Xu Clan! There’s nothing I can do to help him, but one thing for certain, I must at least fight a battle against the Xu Clan!”

The Palace cultivators all responded in unison, “As is only right!”

“Good!”...