Celestial Peaks.
Tian Qiang, a handsome middle-aged man, stood above the clouds at the top of the mountain peak, his face with a beaming smile as if he was having the best moment of his life.
Today was the day his only son, Tian Yi, would be taking over his position as the Celestial Emperor.
Tian Qiang was delighted not because he was proud of his son, but because he will finally be relieved of the stressful position of Celestial Emperor, ruler of the universe, and be free.
'After today, I will finally be able to get away from that stressful seat and roam the world just like my father did when he gave me the position of the Celestial Emperor!' Tian Qiang laughed in his heart.
Beneath Tian Qiang was a sea of people— people here to witness the grand ceremony and the upcoming of a new emperor.
And within the crowd were ancient cultivators that have lived millions of years, famous Gods such as Pangu and the Dragon King, powerful sect and clans that could easily wipe out a whole world, and of course, countless beautiful young maidens.
"Ahhh… I have been living in regret ever since I missed the chance to see his Highness's face a few years ago. Today will be the day I finally get rid of that regret and engrave that face onto my soul!" A beautiful young maiden said in a voice full of excitement as her gaze stared at the peak of the mountain.
"I hope you bought an extra pair or two of undergarments with you today…"
"Eh? Why would I need extra undergarments?"
The young maidens around her started giggling at her confused face, sounding like a dozen heavenly bells ringing all at once.
"Why are you all being so silent all of a sudden? Tell me!" The beautiful young maiden frowned.
"That'd ruin the fun!"
Her friends looked at her with playful eyes, expecting to see some wonderful scenes.
"His Highness is only 18 years old, right? Isn't it a bit too early for him to replace His Majesty, the Celestial Emperor?" Asked someone from the crowd.
"I found that a bit weird, too. But this is His Majesty's choice. His Majesty must have something in mind that common people like us cannot understand."
"Common people…"
The people around gave weird looks towards the man who spoke just a second ago. Everybody here is either gods or from a high-standing. To address themselves as common people… was not as far-fetched as they'd thought after comparing themselves with the Celestial Emperor who can make even the strongest of Gods look like an ant.
Besides Tian Qiang stood a middle-aged lady with extremely beautiful features and a supple figure, like a goddess. Her facial expression was gentle like a calm ripple, her complexion fair and pale like white-jade; she was Tian Qiang's wife and Tian Yi's mother, Feng Li.
"Dear, isn't it about Yi'er to show up? Why hasn't the servants return yet?" She asked him, her eyes showing signs of worry.
It has been nearly an hour since the servants went to fetch Tian Yi, and as servants of the Tian Family, they were obviously the best in the universe when it came to proficiency. So when it's taking these servants so long to find their son, there was obviously something wrong.
"That brat is definitely taking his time on purpose. He was crying to me just the other day about not wanting to replace me as the next Celestial Emperor." Tian Qiang said.
"I still do not understand why you'd want him to replace you at such a young age. He still has a lot to learn, and if you put him in your position so early, I'm afraid that he'd…" Feng Li frowned, making Tian Qiang starting to feel sweaty.
"It'll be fine. Even though he's replacing me, I will still be doing most of the work until he gets a hang of it. And you'll be there to help him, too, won't you?"
"Of course, I will be there to support my son! How dare you ask me such an obvious question!"
Feng Li was clearly irritated at Tian Qiang for pushing so much responsibility towards Tian Yi at such a young age.
"Then there's nothing to worry about…" Tian Qiang forced a smile on his face upon feeling the intense aura around Feng Li.
After another hour of waiting, even Tian Qiang began to feel like there was something wrong.
'Why haven't they return yet? Even if that brat is giving them a hard time, it shouldn't take them this long to bring him here!'
Tian Qiang looked at the people beneath him. Everybody here is supreme existences, people who have lived for millions of years, some even since the beginning of time. They are not people he can keep waiting, as it is a sign of disrespect.
And with a frown, Tian Qiang turned to look at the servant standing behind him. "Where are the servants and my son?"
"This lowly servant will look into it!"
And like a ghost, the servant disappeared.
A few minutes later, the servant returned, his entire body trembling and his head filled with sweat.
"What happened? Tell me!" Tian Qiang frowned at the nervousness the servant was showing.
"Y-Y-Your M-Majesty… T-This is terrible!" the servant stuttered, something that Tian Qiang has never seen before.
What could have possibly happened to make his servants, basically Gods, to be so horrified? They were existences that wouldn't blink even if the heavens fell on them!
"Speak properly! What has happened to the servants and my son?!" Feng Li nearly grabbed the servant by his shoulders and yelled.
"Y-Your Majesty, nothing has happened to the servants… B-But as for H-His H-H-Highness… H-He's… HE'S NOWHERE TO BE FOUND!" The servant forcefully cried out, his voice echoed all directions, accidentally allowing the people beneath to hear his words.
"Eh? His Highness is nowhere to be found?"
Countless eyes widened with bafflement, their jaws dropping to the ground.
"What do you mean he cannot be found?!?!" Tian Qiang roared, shaking the grand mountain he stood on.
"R-Reporting to His Majesty! The servants had searched high and low, left and right, the entire Celestial Palace twice, even thrice, but His Highness's figure is still nowhere to be found!"
"What did you say?!"
Tian Qiang frowned, and flames started to burn in his eyes.
"TIAN YI! YOU HAVE TEN BREATHS OF TIME TO GET YOUR ASS OVER HERE!" Tian Qiang roared towards the heaven, his ferocious voice echoing in every direction all the way to the end of the world.
The people beneath the mountain clasped their ears, but their soul still shuddered from Tian Qiang's powerful voice.
One breath, two breaths, three breaths…
Ten breathes of time passed within the blink of an eye, but Tian Yi's shadow was still nowhere to be seen.
Tian Qiang's face was fully red by now, his forehead bulging with dragon-like veins.
"T-This brat…" Tian Qiang gnashed his teeth. If he couldn't tell why Tian Yi has not shown up by now, he would not fit to be the Celestial Emperor. "He ran away!"
"Y-Your M-Majesty, what of the ceremony now?" The servant asked, his whole back now soaked in sweat.
"Ceremony? Do you think we can do a ceremony without the main character here?! Canceled! It's canceled!"
Tian Qiang angrily turned around and stared at the dazed people below. "I apologize to each and every single one of you who have shown up here today to witness the grand occasion! But as you can see, we have to, unfortunately, cancel it, wasting your time!" he forced his anger back into his stomach and bowed to the people below.
The people below nearly cried out with shock upon witnessing the Celestial Emperor bow to them.
"Y-Your Majesty hasn't need to worry about our time! Even if this old one is in the middle of life-or-death closed cultivation, this old one will still come out if His Majesty calls!"
"Supreme God Zhang is right, Your Majesty. There is nothing to be wasted if it's for His Majesty!"
Tian Qiang silently nodded at their words.
"Good! Good! Good! Then to make this trip, not a waste, I'll give you all a chance, a chance to change the very core of your life!"
Tian Qiang's words puzzled every soul there, even the most profound and wise ones.
"I have witnessed and remembered all of the faces here!" Tian Qiang continued to speak. "And this only applies to those who are here today! If you or anyone within your bloodline finds my son, Tian Yi, then I will award you with one wish!"
"Whether it be wealth or fame, to become a servant or general of my Tian Family, or even have one of your daughters— even yourself as long as you're pure— to marry my son, I will grant it!"
Countless gasps came from below Tian Qiang.
"Y-Your M-Majesty… C-Can this lowly one request for His Majesty to repeat the last sentence?" A young maiden asked with a trembling voice.
Tian Qiang nodded. "I will repeat myself, again! As long as you or your daughters are pure and found me, my son, I will grant it!"
As if they were dumb chickens, the people below blinked silently, their jaws glued to the ground.
"Are you insane?! How can you possibly allow something like that to happen?!" Feng Li, who had been quiet from shock this entire time said to him in a low voice, her eyes spewing fire hotter than hell itself.
Tian Qiang forcefully swallowed a mouthful of saliva, but he was not willing to give in. "I have already made up my mind and spoken to the people! I will not go back on my words!"
"What about his feelings?!"
"What about my feelings?! Do you know how I am feeling right now?! He brought this upon himself! If he is going to complain, he can only blame himself for running away today!"
Feng Li gnashed her pure, white teeth. "You will regret this decision!" she said before angrily turning away.
"Where are you going?"
"To find my son!" Feng Li turned into a beam of light and disappeared into the distance before Tian Qiang could even open his mouth.
Tian Qiang looked at the people below; in their eyes were motivation and desire, especially the females. Some of them even had fire spewing out of their eyes.
Tian Qiang started to doubt his decision after seeing those flaming eyes that gave him the chills.
'W-Will I really regret this decision?' He started to wonder.
After Tian Qiang had officially left, the people under the mountain all dispersed in every direction possible like ants, returning home at the fastest rate possible to pass on the news.
"What?! You are telling me that His Majesty, the Celestial Emperor, is allowing anyone who finds his son to marry his son?! How preposterous!"
"If you are going to fart, at least make it less obvious! There is a limit to how ridiculous your fart can get!"
"Do you not believe I will beat you for that nonsense?!"
Countless people did not believe in the news at first. It was only when the supreme figures confirmed it did people start going wild with excitement.
"Only pure maidens are allowed to marry him? Fuck! If only I had waited a few more days to marry off my daughter!"
"Ahhhh! Why did I give in to Senior Brother's courting?! I had missed a lifetime chance because of that!"
People were already talking as if they have already found Tian Yi and ready to have their wish granted.
Inside the Celestial Palace, Tian Qiang paced back and forth, in front of him are more than one hundred servants waiting for his command.
He suddenly stopped walking, and clearing his throat, he opened his mouth with a grim expression. "I don't care if you have to dig holes in the backyard of every house, offend every Sect, tear down everything and find him!"
"As His Majesty commands!"
The over hundred figures all disappeared simultaneously, leaving Tian Qiang alone in the Celestial Palace.
Tian Qiang silently stood there, his aura suddenly dimmed. "All this brat is good at is causing trouble…" he sighed, his gaze filled with uncertainty.
"Where have I gone wrong? Was it because I was too stubborn?" He sat on the throne behind him, slouching, an unfitting behavior of a supreme being such as himself.
"Maybe I was too hasty in forcing him to become the next Celestial Emperor, but I really had no choice… This brat, his talent is so great it's terrifying even for me… And he's already surpassed me in every way possible. If I continue to sit on this throne, what face would I have left as the 'strongest being in the Universe,' the Celestial Emperor, when I have already been surpassed?"
Knowing that he'll be alone for quite some time, he closed his eyes to rest, unknowingly falling asleep a few minutes later.
Three days passed in the blink of an eye since the universe began searching for Tian Yi.
Somewhere in a city named Qing Shan City, named after the Empress of the Ninth Heaven, one of the Nine Heavens in the Celestial Universe, a tall and slim figured young man with ordinary features and long black hair casually walked around, his eyes sparkling with excitement and happiness.
This young man was, without saying, Tian Yi, son of Tian Qiang, and the person nearly everybody in the universe was looking for.
"What a large city! I have walked for three days without rest and I have only experienced half of this place! It was the correct choice for me to leave that boring house! What Celestial Emperor? Who wants to do such a boring job?! I want to explore the Universe, make friends, and experience an exciting adventure!"
Tian Yi nearly burst out laughing from pure happiness that he was able to run away successfully.
"Until I traverse all Nine Heavens in the Celestial Universe, I will not return!" he made a firm decision, his steps widening as his heart pounded with excitement.