As the first golden rays of sunlight glimpsed through the mist covering Jade Eclipse Star.


    The once-peaceful star, known for its vast empires, and ancient sects, now found itself trembling beneath the weight of unsettling rumors.


    At first, the rumors seemed too outlandish...


    The Emperor of the Jade Eclipse Empire had been assassinated overnight.


    His once-mighty reign, which has been upheld by centuries of absolute control, had crumbled in mere moments, and when the imperial gates finally reopened at the break of dawn, it was not the emperor who sat upon the golden throne.


    Instead, his younger brother had taken his place.


    The common folk spoke of it in frantic whispers as their voices trembling with fear.


    "Did you hear? The Emperor is dead... In his own palace."


    "Impossible! Who could kill someone of his power?"


    "They say his own brother orchestrated it... That Zhou Shan did not even let the body grow cold before claiming the throne!"


    "Hush! Do you want to be executed? The new emperor has eyes everywhere!"


    The noble families and imperial ministers scrambled to make sense of the chaos.


    Some denounced the new ruler, calling him a usurper who had betrayed the very bloodline he was meant to serve.


    Others were more cautious and cunning, quickly swearing allegiance, unwilling to challenge the man who had toppled an empire overnight without a single battle.


    But the whispers did not end there.


    Far from the imperial palace, another catastrophe had shaken Jade Eclipse Sect, the most revered and powerful sect on the star.


    The vampires have attacked the Jade Eclipse Star overnight in both the Sect and the Palace.


    Yet the most terrifying thing was not the attack itself, but the rumors surrounding it.


    "The vampires didn’t attack randomly."


    "They were searching for something... or someone."


    "Are the vampires trying to become an apex high star?"


    Fear crept into the hearts of even the strongest cultivators.


    If an ancient sect like Jade Eclipse was not safe, then who was?


    The taverns overflowed with speculation, and the brothels hummed with frantic conversations.


    And amidst it all, one name rose above the rest.


    Zhou Shan.


    The man who had claimed an empire without lifting a single blade.


    The man who now held the fate of Jade Eclipse Star in the palm of his hand.


    ...


    "If you are asking whether I would erase an empire for defiance..." he gestured lazily toward the headless corpse of the Skyfall Sect Master, "then you already have your answer."


    One by one, they collapsed.


    "The Radiant Moon Sect swears allegiance!"


    "The Eternal Star Empire submits!"


    "The Jade Fire Pavilion obeys your will!"


    Their pride was worthless before absolute power.


    As the last of the dissenters bowed, Zhou Shan finally smiled but a soft voice cut through the silence.


    "But... this is not good."


    It belonged to a woman clad in deep green robes, a representative of the scholarly council, a faction that had once advised the now-deceased emperor.


    Even as she spoke, there was hesitation in her voice, as though she knew she was treading the edge of a blade.


    "Jade Eclipse Star has a peace treaty with the other apex high stars."


    "Ebon Luohe Star, Qinghua Veil, Stygian Halo, and Longqing Ridge."


    At the mention of those names, murmurs rippled through the court.


    Each of them stood at the pinnacle of power, holding dominion over the High Star cluster, supreme sects, and immeasurable resources.


    To defy one of them was a risk; to provoke all of them at once was a death sentence.


    Even though Elven Star is considered an Apex Star, it doesn’t have much connection with the outer world, so no one knows what is going on there.


    The woman continued "And... according to that, if any of the apex stars gets attacked, all other apex stars will come for aid. And if they see that the Jade Emperor is dead..."


    With a nod, Zhou Shan spoke "That’s true... but this time, the apex stars won’t do anything..."


    "Because the attack on the previous Jade Emperor was not by external forces."


    "It is a coup."


    The Apex Stars, powerful as they were, had one unbreakable rule:


    They never interfered in the internal affairs of another Apex Star.


    For centuries, this rule had ensured stability.


    Apex Stars had risen and fallen, emperors had been assassinated, dynasties had collapsed, but as long as the conflict remained internal, the treaty dictated that the other Apex Stars must not intervene.


    "The Apex Stars cannot interfere, because this matter is not an invasion. It is an internal conflict within Jade Eclipse Star itself."


    "They will not put their noses into this matter because it does not concern them."


    "As for the vampires... well."


    "I would simply say that they attacked the sect... but never touched the palace."


    -----------------------------------------------


    I hope you guys liked this chapter!