Because Anna suddenly realized.

The man she had longed for day and night had already fallen, and the era belonging to the Great Emperor Qingfeng had ended.

Whether in the Quasi-Emperor Realm, the Immortal Venerable Realm, the Celestial Venerable Realm, or even Foundation Establishment cultivators, they all have the opportunity to step into the Emperor Realm and become the new Great Emperor!

Were it not for the sudden appearance of the White Jade Stairway, this Immortal Path and Immortal Fruit, the Immortal Domain would have become completely chaotic by now.

Anna's expression was gloomy, she hadn't thought it through before but now it felt somewhat unreal.

Xu Qingfeng just abandoned them, left countless soldiers of the Heavenly Court willing to die for him, and died in Heaven Beyond Heaven?

"Sister..."

Her younger sister gently held Anna's hand, and Anna forced a smile, nodding to Divine General Baize and various fellow cultivators before the two Domain Masters from the west departed.

The other quasi-emperors felt the change in Anna's mood, their hearts ached in sympathy, and once they had gradually left, Su Qian had yet to leave.

This young man's eyes lacked focus, obviously in a daze.

Baize did not urge him, sitting in place and waiting.

A full quarter of an hour passed before Su Qian suddenly came back to his senses.

Seeing that only he and Baize remained in the main hall of the Heavenly Court, Su Qian smiled a bit shyly.

Baize didn't believe that Su Qian, looking youthful, was truly shy.

A twenty-thousand-year-old quasi-emperor truly is young.

But without a strong hand, he could never have secured the position of the head of Qingqiu, nor could he have become the Southern Domain Master, keeping the major Holy Lands of the Southern Immortal Domain in respectful compliance, at least on the surface.

"Yousu, are you thinking of something?" Baize asked.

"I am unworthy of being called a fellow cultivator by Divine General Bai."

Su Qian was sincerely apprehensive, hurriedly cupping his fists and bowing, showing the etiquette of a junior to Baize.

"I've dealt quite a bit with your senior Yousu, and you do deserve such a courtesy."

Baize did not sidestep, calmly receiving it.

Su Qian stood straight, hesitating to speak: "My family's ancestor has been missing for a long time, even though their life tablet remains whole, there are still rumors within the Yousu Clan that the ancestor has fallen, but before the ancestor disappeared..."

He looked around, cupping his fists and bowing again.

Baize understood Su Qian's meaning, waved a hand, and the soundproof formation of the main hall of the Heavenly Court was activated.

Even an Emperor Realm cultivator would find it difficult to silently cover this place with their divine sense; if they forcefully intrude, the formation would detect it.

"Before my family's ancestor disappeared, they handed me some items."

"What items?"

"Three beads: one orange, one purple, one green."

"Beads?"

Baize's tone was calm, but her heart surged, as she vaguely guessed what those three beads were.

The key to open the Other Shore Realm Gate!

"The ancestor also said, if the Great Emperor Qingfeng died, or if they never returned, to crush the beads and not leave them to anyone."

Upon saying this, Su Qian visibly relaxed a lot.

Having matters buried in the heart for too long can be suffocating, but as long as they are spoken, it feels much better.

"Earlier, had I not asked about Senior Yousu's whereabouts, would you not have told me all this?" Baize asked.

"Yes."

Su Qian did not evade, earnestly continued: "And planned to crush the beads upon returning to the clan."

Since it was spoken.

There was no longer any intent to hide the beads.

Su Qian took out the three beads, stored within a jade box, and the three beads of different colors rotated with one another.

Baize received them and found them identical in every way other than color to the other three beads fused with the No Righteous Sword.

Su Qian said: "Divine General Bai, with your unmatched wisdom, surely you know what these three beads are used for."

"They are the keys to the Other Shore."

"Keys?"

Su Qian was taken aback.

He looked up to the light curtain outside the main hall, fairly close to the White Jade Stairway of the Heavenly Court, and beyond the stairway, besides the rumored Immortal Fruit that could make someone ascend to immortality.

There was a light screen!

Constructed of three Realm Gates.

Could it be that entering this light screen requires a key?

"Of course, it may also be keys to go elsewhere, I can't be certain."

Baize closed her eyes in contemplation: "A total of nine keys, leaving only two outside."

Corpse Emperor Dongfang Youming's past life as Great Emperor Youming once searched for keys within the barrier at the Immortal Domain Mass Burial Mound.

Not only did he fail to find them, but he also fell within; later, the Corpse Emperor, in anger, hauled away the Realm Gate, and its whereabouts remain unclear.

The No Righteous Sword is also a key, fused with three beads.

One sourced from Shang Yuan, the son of Great Emperor Yin Yang, another from Sikong Jiu of the Heavenly Dao, and another from the faceless demon pawn No-Face arranged on Earth by Jing Ke.

In addition to the three found by the monster fox Yousu Qinghuan of Qingqiu, it seems too coincidental no matter how you look at it.

It was so coincidental that Baize found it somewhat absurd.

After all, to obtain seven keys in just two to three years, Baize could not believe no one orchestrated it.

"Very well, let me see what schemes you have."

Baize accepted the three beads, preparing to bring them to the Heavenly Court Sect Gate later.

The Supreme Emperor was buried in the rear mountain.

Few people know about this, only Yu Guiwan and Ruan Lan have gone to pay respects along with Yiyi and Ping'an.

"Then, Divine General Bai, is my family's ancestor safe?" Su Qian anxiously asked.

"No news, is the best news."

"Yes."

Su Qian smiled shyly, once again cupping his fists and bowing to Baize before leaving the main hall of the Heavenly Court.

"You oaf, come here."

Baize thought for a moment, transmitting her voice through divine sense to Divine General Taotie.

"What is it!"

Divine General Taotie was quite annoyed, visibly dissatisfied.

Though Baize was the chief strategist of the Heavenly Court, diligently managing its internal and external affairs, he was not idle either, was he?

While there were no feats of greatness, there was definitely hard work, even the Supreme Emperor never called him an oaf!

"I'm going to pay respects to the Supreme Emperor, do you want to come?"

"I want to!"

"Tch."

Baize's lips curled barely noticeably, Taotie was truly easy to understand.

On the way to the Heavenly Court Sect Gate, Baize casually asked: "Why not bring Liu Wan to the Heavenly Court?"

"Afraid she won't get used to it."

"Just as well, you go to Earth and guard it."

"Guard who? Liu Wan? The Supreme Emperor's death is related to her? Is she a cultivator from the Other Shore?"

"..."

Baize took a deep breath: "Guard Sikong Jiu, don't let outside disturbances affect his rebuilding of the body."

"Oh oh oh."

No more words were exchanged the whole way.

When they arrived at the rear mountain of the Heavenly Court.

Baize saw the fifth tomb immediately, first burning incense at the other three tombs before finally paying respects to the Supreme Emperor.

"Supreme Emperor, take me with you, how could you just leave like this…" 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

Taotie, the steel soldier, couldn't hold back, knelt before the tomb and wailed, which directly alarmed the person in the wooden house.

"Baize."

Ruan Lan beckoned: "Eaten yet? The senior sister herself cooked; it will be ready soon, come and sit down."

"Yeah."

Baize kicked Taotie: "Get up, don't disgrace the Supreme Emperor."

"I'm not eating, I'm not hungry, I want to stay with the Supreme Emperor."

"..."

Baize turned and walked away.

She suddenly regretted bringing Taotie along.