The night sky over the Heaven Defying Academy was no longer serene. What once shimmered with constellations now trembled with fractures of purple light—like cracks in the fabric of existence. Through those tears, eyes peered. Void Hunters had arrived.
The first battle cry came from the North Tower, where an elder unleashed a fire dragon shaped by pure Yang essence, engulfing a swirling shadow creature. But the hunter didn't burn—it absorbed the fire, howled, and returned stronger.
"They evolve!" shouted an elder. "Don't use single-element Dao! Adapt!"
The academy's Hidden Division, long sealed beneath the earth, emerged. Men and women clad in black armor lined with celestial jade silently joined the battlefield. Their leader, a one-armed giant named Wu Zhen, nodded to Dev across the pavilion.
"You called us back, Ancestor."
"The world needs defiance again," Dev replied calmly.
Wu Zhen smirked, drew his bone-forged greatsword, and leapt into battle.
Inside the Void Rift...
The Void Monarch hovered, not yet crossing the barrier. Nine wings folded behind him like an eclipse, and with each breath, universes withered.
"His aura is everywhere in this realm," the monarch said. "Even after ten millennia."
Behind him, more Void Hunters emerged—each made from the regrets, mistakes, and deaths of countless past civilizations.
"Erase everything connected to the Heaven Defying Name."
In the Central Battlefield…
Lin Feng stood among the disciples, sword drawn, legs trembling. His heart thundered.
He wasn't the strongest. Not even close. But his soul resonated with something larger—the memory of a time before time, the will of someone who had once stood alone against the heavens.
Dev Yadav walked through the battlefield slowly, calmly, like a man on a morning stroll.
Hunters lunged at him.
He didn't move. Instead, space moved for him. The attacks simply missed—as if the universe itself refused to let him be harmed.
He raised his finger and pointed skyward.
"Let the Heavenly Arrays awaken."
Far above, six hidden constellations rearranged themselves. A massive glowing formation formed, wrapping the academy in a celestial armor.
"He's... using the Star Seal Formation! That hasn't been used since the Ancient War!"
"I thought it was lost!"
A Void Hunter broke through the sky and rushed straight for Lin Feng.
Time slowed.
Fear froze his blood.
Then—CLANG!
A shimmering golden spear stabbed the creature midair, sending it crashing backward.
A girl in azure robes descended from the sky, her long braid flowing behind her. Her eyes shone with starlight.
"Are you Lin Feng?"
"Y-Yes!"
"Ancestor Dev asked me to guard you. Try not to die."
"Who are you?!"
"Your senior sister."
She turned, drawing a second spear of light.
"Name's Ye Qingxue. Welcome to the real world."
Meanwhile…
Dev stood beneath the sky, his eyes finally serious.
"I tried to stay out of it. I really did," he muttered. "But you dared send a Monarch."
He exhaled.
"Heaven and Earth, bear witness."
The clouds parted.
The stars dimmed.
From Dev's body erupted a column of light that pierced into the Void Rift—directly into the chest of the Monarch.
The Void Monarch froze.
"That aura… it's—"
"—The First Law," Dev whispered.
The world shook.