Opening up new territory was undoubtedly a tremendous benefit. For a Destiny Dynasty, there was nothing more joyous. It meant more land, more Great Yi immortal cities, and a larger population base.
Ten years had passed—ten years of rest and recuperation. Great Yi's blades and spears were already restless, yearning to drink blood.
The dynasty was fully capable of sustaining a large-scale war.
The Great Yi military had long thirsted for battle. In previous expansions, they had barely gotten the chance to do anything; the outcomes had been prearranged, with the new territories practically handed to Great Yi. The only time they had actually fought was in the Undead Realm—and even there, the Lich King was laughably weak, going down after just a few hits.
Now that they heard of a real battlefield, the generals present in the palace hall all had blazing eyes and surging battle intent. If there was war to be fought, not a single one of them would hesitate to rush into the fray.They would earn military merit, titles, rewards for their families—perhaps even dukedoms.
Liu Bowen smiled as he added, "Thirdly, we can eradicate a tumor of Eternal Night that has infected our Eternal World. A realm like the Dark Domain, so deeply invaded by Eternal Night, is extremely rare. If we crush it, it'll inflict massive pain on Eternal Night—and allow Great Yi to make its name ring louder across the Eternal World, attracting even more talent."
This war was entirely necessary. The benefits it could bring to Great Yi were immense.
Of course, that was contingent on victory.
And one could be certain: the war would be brutal.
Think about it—over a hundred Forbidden Zones, each one controlled by a Dao-Proving Realm powerhouse, had fallen into disadvantage. That said everything about how terrifying the enemy was. But that only made the generals' blood boil. A worthy opponent made for a worthy war.
When had Great Yi ever feared war?
Even on the Eternal Night battlefield, they had charged in and out without blinking.
Fear? That word didn't exist in a Great Yi soldier's vocabulary.
At worst, they would be wrapped in horsehide and die gloriously.
Xun Yu frowned slightly and said, "This war may not go so smoothly. We must prepare for long-term conflict and potentially heavy casualties. Should we notify the major sects within our borders to dispatch cultivators to the frontlines?"
"Regardless of the enemy, our army is confident that we can suppress them," Yang Ye declared firmly.
This was the confidence won through slaughter.A belief forged in blood.
Yi Tianxing said calmly, "War is inevitable. The Dark Domain belongs to our Eternal World. The Forbidden Zone powerhouses within it are our own legacy—how can we just sit back and watch them be devoured by demonic creatures? But… the current situation inside the Dark Domain is still unclear. We only know a rough outline. What we need now is more detailed intelligence from our agents embedded inside. Once we know the enemy and ourselves, we'll be invincible in a hundred battles."
He was waiting—waiting for the information from Great Yi's hidden agents in the Dark Domain.
Blindly launching an expedition without full intelligence would be unwise.
Even in the midst of endless warfare and chaos in the Dark Domain, many brave scouts had risked everything to infiltrate it and send back reports. Yet the casualties were staggering.
Out of ten scouts, perhaps only one returned alive. Sometimes, none did. And those were all elite agents with extraordinary survival skills—otherwise, the losses would have been far worse.
Just then, Tong Huang strode into the hall. His expression was unusually heavy. "Holy King, we've received intel from our embedded agents... but you'll need to prepare yourself."
"What's going on?"
Yi Tianxing had never seen Tong Huang with such a grave expression. A trace of confusion flashed in his eyes as he took the message. The moment he did, a wave of information flooded into his mind.
"Dad... Mom..."
His body trembled violently. His face changed color on the spot.
At his level, emotions were rarely shown on his face—yet at this moment, he couldn't suppress the reaction. The shock in his heart was massive.
He had never forgotten his adoptive parents: Zhao Haifeng and Huang Yu.
Back then, they were national-level researchers working in a top-tier facility on confidential projects. Their lab was among the most classified in the entire country.
When the Cataclysm hit, Yi Tianxing had tried to contact them, but the lab was completely sealed off from the outside world. He had lost all communication. In the chaos that followed, he was unable to find any trace of them.
Were it not for a mysterious spiritual sense that told him they were still alive, he might have believed them long dead. Yet no matter where he looked, he could never pinpoint their location.
Each time he conquered a new realm, he would immediately search for any clues—but every time ended in disappointment.
And now, unexpectedly, news of them had come from the Dark Domain.
"703 Underground Research Facility... located in the Dark Domain. Some researchers were captured. Among them were people with the surname Zhao and Huang. That... that was the very research institute my adoptive parents worked in back then." Yi Tianxing took a deep breath. His eyes gleamed as his thoughts raced.
Even amid his excitement, he quickly regained rationality.
"How could it be such a coincidence?"
This timing was too perfect. A crisis erupts in the Dark Domain—and suddenly, intelligence about his parents appears. Either it was a trap aimed directly at him, or his adoptive parents truly had fallen into the hands of Eternal Night.
The key question was: is it real?And... does Eternal Night know of their connection to him?
The court was silent. The ministers had all noticed Yi Tianxing's drastic expression shift.
Liu Bowen finally spoke. "Holy King, may we ask what has happened?"
Yi Tianxing nodded slowly and sent the intel directly into everyone's minds.
They all fell silent as they read it.
The information confirmed the Dark Domain's horrific state—countless dark creatures flooding the land, killing endlessly, even overwhelming Forbidden Zones and killing their masters.
But nothing in the report explained Yi Tianxing's shocked reaction—until:
"703 Research Facility."
Jia Xu's eyes lit up. Yi Tianxing's identity as a Heaven's Chosen was no secret in Great Yi. But no one had ever heard anything about his parents. Could this be why?
Yi Tianxing said heavily, "All of you know that I'm a Heaven's Chosen from before the Cataclysm. I lost contact with my adoptive parents during that time. According to this intel, the 703 Research Facility in question... is almost certainly where they were stationed."
His tone was calm.Too calm.And that meant it wasn't calm at all.
Xun Yu's face darkened. "Holy King, are you suggesting... your parents may have fallen into Eternal Night's hands?"
The Holy King's adoptive parents—within the Holy Court, their status would be second to none. If something happened to them, it would cause a massive upheaval.
Jia Xu frowned. "Could this be a trap? The timing is too coincidental. And judging by the report, someone clearly wanted this information to reach us. I suspect it was deliberately leaked."
Liu Bowen's eyes gleamed with wisdom. "Unusual coincidences must not be ignored. I suspect this is a ploy to lure you into the Dark Domain—perhaps to spring a fatal trap aimed at you."
Zhuge Liang stepped forward. "Holy King, allow me to lead the campaign into the Dark Domain. If the news is true, even if I perish there, I will bring your parents home."
He spoke with unwavering resolve.
Whether or not this was a trap, they had to be prepared. It was their duty as ministers to protect the Holy King—even at the cost of their lives.
"We support this request!"
"Holy King must not take unnecessary risks!"
One official after another stepped forward.
Yi Tianxing's safety concerned the fate of the entire dynasty. A thousand-gold child must not sit beneath a collapsing hall.