"Wu Long... just admit your mistake! Don't be so stubborn... you still have a long life ahead of you! You can even become the Emperor of Heavenly Nirvana once you've married the Princess!" advised the palace troops commander.
Wu Long was indeed so handsome and charming that it had made him somewhat proud and arrogant. His expression suggested he was deep in thought, leaving the Emperor and the palace troops commander waiting to see what this Immortal would do.
"As I said before, I'll admit my mistake if the Princess also admits hers for persuading me to have this illicit affair!" Wu Long declared. "I wouldn't have committed this forbidden act if the Princess hadn't persuaded me and forced her will upon me!"
"Insolent! How dare you insult my daughter!"
The Emperor of Heavenly Nirvana flew into a rage at Wu Long's words. This incredibly stubborn Immortal seemed to have dug his own grave by rejecting the Emperor's offered forgiveness—even though the Emperor had been willing to make him a royal son-in-law. Now he had indirectly insulted the Emperor's daughter right in front of the Emperor of Heavenly Nirvana.
"You truly are an ungrateful Immortal! I've shown you kindness, and this is how you repay me? You've humiliated me in front of the royal officials!" the Emperor of Heavenly Nirvana shouted furiously. "How dare you insult my daughter!"
"I never asked Your Majesty for forgiveness... I haven't done anything wrong, so why should I ask for forgiveness? I'd rather be executed than admit to a mistake I never made!" Wu Long insisted. His complete lack of remorse only caused the Emperor's fury to intensify.
"Very well! If that's truly what you want... then I'll grant your wish! You may choose the execution method you'll undergo yourself, considering your service to the empire!" replied the Emperor of Heavenly Nirvana.
The palace troops commander's hope of saving Wu Long from execution was gone, because Wu Long still refused to admit his mistake.
"Hmph! A tyrannical Emperor who always thinks he's right! Remember my words... I, Wu Long, will return to this Heavenly Nirvana and prove that I was never guilty. I refuse to accept the death sentence Your Majesty has imposed on me, because in my opinion, the punishment you've given me violates the law! I'm not rebelling against the Emperor. I'm trying to make the Emperor realize that he should rule with fairness and wisdom!"
The Emperor fell silent at Wu Long's firm, yet somewhat frightening, words. It was the first time he had ever felt such a powerful aura of darkness emanating from Wu Long's body.
"Insolent! You're about to die, and you're still rebelling and making threats!"
Wu Long strode forward proudly, without the slightest trace of fear. "I choose the Well of Life for this execution!"
Wu Long's choice shocked all the palace officials present at his trial, including the Emperor of Heavenly Nirvana.
The Well of Life was a well whose bottom opened into a limitless chamber below. An Immortal who leaped into the Well of Life would reincarnate into the body of another young man who had just died or was suffering from a severe illness, as long as he was still in the Upper Realm. This allowed the Immortal to retain his cultivation abilities even while inhabiting another body.
Wu Long hoped he could reincarnate into another young man's body and begin a new life as an Immortal unknown to the Emperor and his daughter, while remaining in the Upper Realm of Heavenly Nirvana. He intended to show the Emperor who had sentenced him that he was completely innocent. Even as death approached, he still refused to admit guilt or regret his actions.
"Are you sure about your decision, Wu Long?" asked the palace troops commander sadly. Losing Wu Long felt to him like losing his own son.
This palace troops commander had found Wu Long while visiting a village that had been burned to the ground by bandits. The sound of a baby's crying among the charred ruins had shocked him.
Wu Long turned out to be extraordinarily talented and a descendant of the White Dragon. Yet the young man had always insisted that he would never use his ability to summon the White Dragon to rule Heavenly Nirvana. Instead, he relied on his own abilities to cultivate into a great cultivator, eventually reaching the Immortal level at a very young age. It was a miracle in the cultivation world, as hardly anyone was capable of achieving such a feat.
"I know I've caused you trouble and made you sad, Uncle! Thank you for raising me all these years and giving me a job at the palace. I've let you down!" Wu Long said sincerely. "I'll come see you again soon! Just wait... I'll return even stronger than I am now!"
It was a tragic farewell—one the Emperor of Heavenly Nirvana had actually been unwilling to carry out. But Wu Long had violated the imperial law forbidding adultery, and he had done so with the only daughter and heir of the Heavenly Nirvana Empire. If she were allowed to get away with it, the palace officials would no longer respect the Emperor's daughter as the future female Emperor of the Heavenly Nirvana Empire, succeeding her father. Wu Long had also refused to marry the Emperor's daughter, which would have brought shame upon the palace if the rebellious Wu Long were not executed.
"It's not too late to admit your mistake, Wu Long! What a shame that a great talent like you must die so tragically by entering the Well of Life! One last chance... admit your mistake and marry my daughter, and I'll erase all your transgressions! I won't bring up anything else you've done within the Heavenly Nirvana Empire palace!" said the Emperor of Heavenly Nirvana.
The palace troops commander looked at Wu Long hopefully, praying that the Immortal would accept the Emperor of Heavenly Nirvana's offer.
Wu Long did not answer. He merely nodded, then leaped into the Well of Life with a smile.