The ones who truly feared Locke were few—only the other five Law Sovereigns at his level, along with the Rule Sovereigns who worried that his growth would one day threaten them.
At the Third Sovereign Assembly, Locke had been especially careful. He feared that by protecting Celes, he might unintentionally give the Law Sovereigns dangerous ideas—encouraging them to fabricate excuses to poach the subordinates of Lesser-ranking Sovereigns.
Even when Snowfall Sovereign had tried to take advantage of him, Locke had merely elevated him to the rank of a Intermediate Sovereign—forcing him to experience the dread of possessing status without the strength to match it.
And in truth, even after being elevated, Snowfall Sovereign wasn't in re val danger.
At present, only two Water Sovereigns remained in the Water Divine Plane, barely maintaining the stability of its chaotic laws. No other Sovereign would dare risk the collapse of an entire divine plane just to kill him.
Moreover, from what Wawaya had gleaned of World Freezing, even a flawed version of the technique would be enough to let Snowfall Sovereign dominate among Lesser-ranking Sovereigns.
Looking at it this way, even the Sovereign Pact and the hierarchical classification proposed during the first Sovereign Assembly… might very well have originated from Locke himself.
After all, as her sister had said—only someone who had grown up in fear would truly understand the value of stability.
Netherworld — Mid-slope of Mount Nether
Inside Locke's residence, Lilia was asking him about the intricacies of World Freezing.
Naturally, given her current comprehension of the Water Laws, it was impossible for her to master the complete technique.
But like Snowfall Sovereign, she could at least grasp a weakened version.
Even that would significantly enhance the power of her water divine clone.
Suddenly, Lilia let out a cold snort.
A spatial rift tore open, and the Death Sovereign stepped out from the chaotic spatial currents, instantly recalling Lilia back into her body.
"Back already?" Locke raised an eyebrow in surprise.
He had assumed that after not seeing each other for so long, the Death Sovereign and the Life Sovereign would spend at least tens of thousands of years catching up in the Life Divine Plane.
"Hmph. Lost the mood," she replied curtly.
"What happened?" Locke asked, puzzled. "Did the Life Sovereign upset you?"
"Something like that."
The Death Sovereign then recounted her entire conversation with Wawaya.
"You have no idea," she said, irritation still lingering in her tone. "When she asked me that question, I nearly lost my temper and attacked her on the spot."
"It's fine, Lilia."
Her defensiveness on his behalf warmed Locke's heart.
Still, he shook his head with a faint smile.
"That kind of concern is only natural."
"After all… isn't that how I've lived all this time?"
"As for taking action—there's really no need."
"You see, the Life Sovereign, the Destruction Sovereign, and the Fate Sovereign… they've only acted to prevent me from violating the Sovereign Pact and hunting the Water Intermediate Sovereign. They haven't crossed any real lines."
He paused, then added thoughtfully:
"To be honest, what they've done actually gives me more confidence in what I plan to do next."
"Only those who understand fear… who have experienced it… will truly desire to eliminate it."
"Mm." The Death Sovereign nodded.
She understood that as well, which was why her anger had faded so quickly.
"By the way," she suddenly asked, "how's your cultivation progressing?"
"I might've… exaggerated a bit in front of Wawaya. Said you'd break through within a billion years."
Her tone turned slightly awkward.
After all, her dignity as the "big sister" was at stake.
If Locke failed to deliver, she'd never hear the end of it.
Locke laughed.
"Lilia, you're underestimating me."
"I've already begun integrating a fourth Water Laws profound mystery into the Edicts of Fate. At this pace, I should reach the bottleneck within ten million years."
"And that still leaves over ninety million years before your 'deadline.' Plenty of time."
"That's good." The Death Sovereign visibly relaxed.
At least her pride was safe.
Water Divine Plane
"How is this possible?!"
"What am I missing?!"
Inside his private training chamber, Snowfall Sovereign clutched his hair in frustration, nearly pulling it out.
Eight hundred years had passed since the Sovereign Assembly.
For all eight hundred of those years, he had done nothing but train—fully immersed in mastering World Freezing.
At first, every attempt left him feeling as though he was just one step away from success.
But now, eight centuries later—
he was still one step away.
That final step…
felt like an insurmountable chasm.
It was exactly like his Water Laws.
He had already fused five profound mysteries completely.
And yet—
that final breakthrough to the sixth…
remained forever out of reach.
By now, he had long abandoned any hope of reaching Paragon.
But unlike that distant dream—
World Freezing felt attainable.
Each refinement improved his understanding.
Each attempt strengthened his technique.
Compared to his first attempt, the power of his current version of World Freezing had increased dramatically.
Eight hundred years ago, he had been confident he could master it within a thousand years.
But now—
even if given billions of years…
he wasn't sure he could ever truly succeed.
"What do I do…?"
Sweat dripped down his face as panic set in.
There were only a little over one hundred years left before he would officially be elevated to Intermediate Sovereign status.
At that point—
he would possess the rank of a Intermediate Sovereign…
but not the strength.
And if that truth were exposed—
he would become prey.
"No… I can't stay in the divine plane."
With that thought, Snowfall Sovereign made his decision.
Fortunately, he had a way out.
He had once risen from a material plane.
That meant—
he could return.
Without informing anyone, Snowfall Sovereign quietly slipped away from his divine palace.
Through the interplanar teleportation array, he returned to his home material plane.
To him—
his home plane was the safest refuge imaginable.
True Sovereigns could not descend into a material plane without risking its collapse.
And destroying a material plane was a grave violation of the rules—one punishable by execution at the hands of the Overgods.
In his home plane—
even the Rule Sovereigns couldn't touch him.
If they wanted to kill him—
they'd have to pay with a Sovereign's life.
The Aftermath
Snowfall Sovereign's escape didn't remain secret for long.
With only two Water Sovereigns left maintaining the divine plane, the sudden absence of one placed immense strain on the other.
Combined with the fact that his "promotion" was only a century away—
his actions were obvious to all.
When Locke heard the news, even he was momentarily stunned.
He had expected Snowfall Sovereign to at least try and bluff his way through.
Instead—
he fled early.
Cowardly beyond expectation.
But his escape had severe consequences.
The Water Divine Plane was now in even greater danger.
According to estimates, the concentration of Water Laws and elemental energy had already dropped below 53%.
Among the Seven Divine Planes and the Four Higher Planes, the elemental alignment of a plane must remain between 50% and 70%.
The higher the concentration, the faster cultivation progressed.
More importantly—
it was the foundation of a plane's stability.
If it fell below 50%—
the laws would destabilize.
The elements would run wild.
The entire plane would begin to collapse.
And if the Water Divine Plane collapsed—
every Water Sovereign would face punishment from the Overgods.
Possibly even annihilation.
With one selfish act—
Snowfall Sovereign had pushed all Water Sovereigns to the brink of disaster.
Infernal Realm — Four Divine Beasts
"Damn it!"
"That useless Snowfall!"
Azure Dragon Sovereign Redding smashed the armrest of his throne, his fury erupting.
As a Water Sovereign himself, he was directly implicated.
"Brother, anger won't solve anything," White Tiger Sovereign Reis said calmly.
"The priority is to stabilize the Water Divine Plane."
"Agreed," Vermilion Bird Sovereign Nimo nodded.
"Since the Fate Sovereign has no intention of releasing the Water Intermediate Sovereign… it falls to you."
"Let's go," Black Tortoise Sovereign Bomen added simply.
"If necessary, we'll relocate to the Water Divine Plane."
Reis and Nimo both nodded.
"If it comes to that, the family's development is secondary."
In truth, relocating would disrupt the balance of the Four Divine Beasts Clan.
In a Water-aligned plane, the Azure Dragon lineage would thrive far beyond the others.
Over time, the balance would collapse.
Redding understood this.
But he also understood something else—
his brothers were willing to sacrifice everything for him.
He shook his head.
"The Infernal Realm is our foundation. That won't change."
"Let's stabilize the plane first."
"Who knows… a new Water Sovereign might emerge before long."
With that, he tore open space—
and led his three brothers toward the Water Divine Plane.
In the Celestial Realm, Fate Sovereign Orloff watched this unfold and gave a slight nod.
Back in the Infernal Realm
"Not bad," Locke said with a faint smile. "Compared to Snowfall, Azure Dragon Sovereign Redding has far more backbone."
As for Snowfall—
Locke simply shook his head.
There was nothing left to say.
"Lilia," he continued, "with Snowfall gone, the Water Divine Plane is in a critical state."
"Even with Redding and Frost Sovereign holding things together, they can only maintain stability for about ten million years."
Indeed—
with so many Water Sovereigns already fallen…
and the Water Chief Sovereign dead…
and the only remaining Intermediate Sovereign effectively confined by Orloff—
The two remaining Lesser Sovereigns could only delay collapse—
not prevent it.
The clock had started ticking.
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