MTLNOVEL Chapter 634: Getting banished
Seated within were the members of the Divine Council, a kaleidoscope of immortals: wizened elders with beards like flowing clouds, youthful figures radiant with fresh power, all draped in robes woven from celestial silk and adorned with jewels that pulsed with divine energy.
Yet despite their majesty, decorum had long fled the chamber. Voices clashed like thunder. Immortals shouted over one another, accusations flying, insults hurled like weapons. One particularly short council member, barely four feet tall, slammed a divine axe onto the table with a deafening crack, then leapt onto the polished surface, charging toward a towering immortal three times his size. The hall erupted in chaos.
And what was the argument about? Xue Wuheng's death.
Half the council insisted Han Xin had followed the Heavenly Mandate to the letter. The other half claimed he acted out of selfishness, that he could have subdued Wuheng without execution. They demanded punishment. Suddenly, the hall fell silent like they had sensed something.
The grand doors swung open, and Han Jun entered. His divine aura rolled through the hall like a tidal wave, oppressive and menacing. The air thickened. Lanterns dimmed. Every immortal fell quiet, straightening in their seats like unruly students caught mid-rebellion.
Han Jun walked to the central seat, his gaze sweeping the room with imperial authority.
He settled into the main seat of the council chamber, his robes cascading like rivers of light, the sigil of the Divine Emperor glowing faintly on his forehead. The hall, though grand and gilded, still buzzed with tension. He let the silence stretch just long enough to command attention before speaking.
"What have you discussed?" he asked, calm but edged with authority.
One of the immortals rose, a tall figure with silver eyes and a crown of flame. "We believe Han Xin's actions were selfish. He could have restrained Xue Wuheng. He is, after all, the previous Divine Emperor."
A chorus of hums followed from that faction, nodding in solemn agreement.
Then the short immortal from earlier, barely four feet tall but brimming with fury, stood and pointed his axe toward the others. "Yes, a banished Divine Emperor. He murdered immortals like you and me. He should have been executed and his soul scattered ages ago!"
His supporters hummed louder, some pounding their fists on the table.
The tension thickened, voices rising again, until Han Jun turned his gaze to the eldest among them, a grand immortal with a beard like falling snow, who had remained silent throughout.
"What are your thoughts?" Han Jun asked.
The old man stroked his beard slowly. "To me… he did what had to be done," he said, voice trembling with age but firm in conviction.
The hall fell silent as they all respected him this ancient fossil.
"Xue Wuheng was a menace. Even in the Realm of Annihilation, he found ways to cause chaos. It was our fault, as the council... for not considering all variables. We failed to account for divine weapons capable of bypassing the realm's seals."
His words hung heavy in the air, shifting the tide of judgment. He cleared his throat, his voice weathered but firm. "Even so, Han Xin acted with selfish motives. It is only right to punish him for this."
The council held its breath. Everyone knew Han Jun's reputation. He would fight gods and laws alike to protect his son. Han Xin was his bottom line, the one thing he never compromised on.
But to their astonishment, Han Jun nodded. "Yes, I agree."
Gasps rippled through the hall. Even the short immortal with the divine axe blinked in disbelief.
Han Jun's voice remained steady. "What sort of punishment do you suggest?"
His unexpected cooperation made it awkward to propose anything severe. After a tense exchange, the council settled on a moderate sentence, symbolic, but enough to appease the law.
Immediately after, he left the hall like he was running away from something. It was... suspicious. Just then he ran straight into his wife her eyes blazing with fury.
"A whole freaking year?" she snapped. "Han Jun, are you trying to kill me?"
Before she could unleash her wrath, Han Jun grabbed her hand. "Don't touch me," she said under her breath only for them to vanish, reappearing in their private palace.
He held her hand tighter, like he feared she might slip away. "Baby. this... this is the best outcome. Trust me. When they find out about the Divine Seed in Xiang Yu, they will demand something far worse if I hadn't acted now."
She froze. "Divine Seed? What are you talking about?"
Her voice trembled, not with anger, but with shock. What a way to discover that she was going to be a grandmother. The air shifted, and for a moment, even the stars outside seemed to pause.
***
The Divine Council chamber pulsed with tension. Gold-veined marble stretched beneath their feet, and the air was thick with divine aura—majestic, suffocating. Han Xin stood at the center, his robes torn from kneeling, his spirit still raw from the Lantern Sea.
Before him sat the Council. Ancient immortals cloaked in celestial silk, radiant youths crowned in starlight, and one short elder still gripping the divine axe he had slammed on the table earlier. They had argued for hours, but now the hall was silent.
Han Jun sighed internally as he rose from his seat. His gaze swept the chamber, then settled on his son.
"Han Xin," he said, voice steady but cold, "you followed the law. But you did so to satisfy your self desires... You executed Xue Wuheng not as a servant of the mandate, but as a lover seeking vengeance."
Han Xin didn't flinch. He was ready to accept the consequences just as long as he could be with Xiang Yu.
"Because your actions were lawful, we cannot strip your title. But because your heart was impure, we must strip your presence." A murmur rippled through the chamber.
"You are hereby banished from the Divine Realm," Han Jun continued, "for one mortal year. You will walk among the lowborn, stripped of divine aura, forbidden from invoking your true name. You will live, eat, and suffer as they do. And you will return only when the year has passed... and your soul has learned what your pride refused to see."
Han Xin's breath caught.To be cast down was not just punishment it was humiliation. The mortal realm was loud, chaotic, and painfully finite. Time moved differently there. Emotion cut deeper. And immortals, when stripped of their aura, felt everything.
"Do you understand your sentence?" Han Jun asked.
Han Xin bowed his head. "I do."
Han Jun hesitated. For a moment, his eyes softened. But then he turned away.
"Then go," he said. "And do not return until the stars mark your redemption."