YuTiandi (Heavenly Father's) POV

I am invincible, always have been, and always will be. To think that there would come a time when I was not all that I had presumed myself to be, was unimaginable.

Looking back, I can see where I had gone wrong. Pride and Wrath, those were the poisons that had consumed me and distanced me from reality, from what was precious, from what was mine, to protect: my children, both celestial and human.

Now, standing with Qūzhújiàn
facing Hei Chi, I realized that I had become unworthy of it. What made it worse was that my first creation had seen it before I had. Unlike YiJun, who till his last breath was ready to serve me, Hei Chi had come to seize the opportunity. He wanted to end both me and humans.

"Father, you have had my wings for far too long. It's time you give them back to me, don't you think?"

My mind clouds as his request...no, not request, his command, sinks in.
I nod without wanting to, and Hei Chi smiles, content.

What is happening?

The fragrance of cinnamon settles between us, around us, and everything that I am, I have been, dissolves.

"Father," Hei Chi steps closer unafraid and lays his hand on my shoulder, "summon my wings." He commands like not me, but he is the ruler of heaven.

Once again, despite not wanting to, I open my palm, letting go of my sword. It hits the marble floor with a clang. I close my eyes and call for the holy weapon that allowed celestial beings to enter and exit my realm at will: wings.

A pair of jet-black wings materialize mid-air, and I hear a gasp. I glace at the abomination who kept referring to me as Grandfather and watch fear and panic dance in his almond eyes.
Zhen's eyes.

Our eyes meet for a moment, and he shakes his head. "Please, do as he says," He mouths. His lips quiver as if scared for what Hei Chi might do to me.

"Father," My son's voice drags my attention to him. "I never doubted that you still had them," his face lights up like the grace of a thousand suns was shining upon him.

However, the lights turn off not a moment later when he tries to touch it. His dark mono-lids snap up. He cradles his palm to his chest, "How dare you! They are mine."

"No, they are not yours; they are mine." I reply, and instead of choosing silence, I continue, "Unless I give them to you, you can't possess them."

Hei Chi chuckles, "Father, you are a crafty one, aren't you?" Then, shaking his head in glee, he commands, "Give them to me, father, so that I may use them to cleanse the world of your beloved humans and wield your sword. Give them to me so that I may enter and leave as I please."

"No." I bite out. I try to hang on to my will, my freedom of choice but fail.
With my will crushed, my mouth acts on its own accord, "I give you back what I took. They serve you from this day forward." I mutter and watch the wings I had summoned moments before as they turn to ash and soak into Hei Chi's palm.

I knew that this rebirth would make him vulnerable for a few moments. I take this chance to strike at his heart. Alas, my blade stops inches from him and vanishes.

"I told you, father. You don't have it in you to command it anymore." Hei Chi reminds me. Taking a step towards me, he stands with his wings furled, swaying and ready to do his bidding.
My sword materializes in his open palm an instant later, and wrapping his fingers around its hilt, he whispers. "Mine!"

With a look of triumph adorning his handsome countenance, he points it at me, "Father, your time has come to an end. Any last words before I take over officially?"

I sneak a peek at where I had seen the boy last, but the child is not around. He must have taken the chance to escape. He probably wanted to see Xuan. A part of me, the selfish one, hopes that perhaps the boy had gone to seek help on my behalf and that maybe, just maybe, Xuan and Jian would come to my aid. However, the other, the part that loved and cared for them, wished that they didn't. I knew they didn't stand a chance in front of Hei Chi, and it would be futile to confront him now.

"You can do what you want to me, but let the humans be. They never hurt you." I try to reason, try to bargain for my precious creation, but it falls on deaf ears.

"Even now, all you care about is them; are you aware that outside these walls, your angels are sacrificing their lives to protect the gateway? Your mighty army is leaderless at the moment, father. They are nothing but fodder for fire with which I will burn heaven." Hei Chi scoffs; he steps closer, and the blade digs into my chest and breaks skin. "You created YiJun to lead them, but you never made a backup plan. And now, your precious first is no more. Father, it's time you wise up. Command them to stop. Let me give the humans a fitting end. Then, I will let you retire. You can pick a place, any place you like. I won't discard you the way you did me."

His statement clears my mind. Why did he need me to call my angels back? Of course, the voice didn't work on celestial beings. It worked only on the tainted! It's a tumble down a path of realizations then on.

Since he can control me, I must be tainted, but humanity still had a chance.

YiJun was right. If he were by my side now, Hei Chi would not have dared to enter heaven.

"If you ever considered me to be your father, just let the sword end my existence. I can't choose between my creations; all are precious to me. If you want to bring humanity down, you will have to go through me. I won't recall my army." I retort stubbornly.

"Fine. If that's what you want, I will not waste any more of my breaths on you. Goodbye, father."

I nod, ready to welcome death, but not a moment later, the sword, my sword, turns into dust and vanishes from Hei Chi's palm.

"No!" My oldest fume. His orbs hold questions and betrayal. "What did you do!? Tell me. Now." He commands, but it doesn't weigh down on me as it had done a moment ago.

"Get away from my father!" The familiar voice reaches me, slicing the darkness that was trying to consume me, and I turn around to see if my ears have deceived me.

They hadn't.

"YiJun! It can't be. I killed you. I killed you right in front of Xian."

YiJun ignores him and walks towards me in long strides. Lifting me to my feet, he stands like a pillar of hope and strength between Hei Chi and me.

"What you killed wasn't me. It was merely a projection that I had given form to. I needed to warn Xian. Did you think that the underworld was the only one capable of trickery?"

Silence.

A range of emotions flutters across Hei Chi's face before settling on glee!?
"Nevermind. I can finish you now. I am the first. I was the one father had intended to lead heaven's armies. And now that I have my wings back-"
Without giving him a chance to draw his sword, YiJun attacks. Bitchen misses its mark by a hair's breadth.

The attack grounds Hei Chi who is quick to draw his sword, and my sons launch at each other with an intent to kill; with both matched in strength and skill, it is a sight to behold.

"Grandfather, I need you to come with me." I hear the boy whisper. I am about to reply with a negative when he adds, "YiJun can't detain him for long. Please, just this once, trust me." The boy pleads. I recall how the boy had taken a hit that had my name on it.

What I had understood as Hei Chi's voice had taken control over me was that I was not above making mistakes.  I had made not one, but several.

You are flawed, imperfect. The boy is on our side just as YiJun had said." The voice of reason that I had ignored for far to long, offers. I give in to his request.

None of my sons notice me as I leave with the boy.

The boy quickens his pace, and I follow him. Falling in step with him, I ask, "Where are we going?"

"To the eternal tree."

"Why?"

"There is something you need to do."

"What?"

"You need to gain what you lost because of my mother's mistake."

With that, silence settles between us, and soon, we find ourselves outside the chamber that holds the ancient tree.

"Where are the guards?" I ask aloud as the boy walks inside the sanctuary without being stopped at the threshold. 'The barriers around the eternal tree have fallen.' I realize, horrified.

"Grandfather, the guards are at the Golden gates. The underworld has released every vile creature caged in the central prison. Heaven is shorthanded. We need you at your best if we are to put an end to this chaos." The boy elaborates, and I can't help but be impressed.

He knew that I wanted him dead, but despite that, I only saw respect in his eyes for me.

Why?

"Jun...YiJun loves you. He has never stopped. He never turned his back on you. He knows that by falling, he hurt you. He misses you, all of you, Grandfather, please don't hate him."

Our eyes meet for a moment before he averts his gaze; he lowers it to the roots of the tree that had started it all.
The tree looked different from the last time I had seen it.

"It's..."

"Don't worry, Grandfather. It is on its way to full recovery. It will be healthy and full of life soon enough. It just needs a little push, is all." The boy explains and smiles radiantly. He reaches for the nearest root and bows, "I am here to offer myself to you in the presence of the Supreme ruler. Please finish what you couldn't earlier. I will bare the punishment for both my mother and me." With that, the boy closes his eyes and glances at me. The air around us buzzes, making the hairs on the back of my neck stand.

Thunder rumbles just over our heads, and a bolt of lightning strikes the boy square in the chest.

A gasp is all I hear before the boy's eyes close, and my sword materializes out of thin air, inviting me to claim it.

{Note:- Keep faith 😅😅😅

That's all.

Please ⭐Vote⭐ to show your support. Only two or three more chapters before this journey ends!}