"What's going on with those Human Emperors? Why is it so lively?"
In Nether City, Lord Hades stood in front of the Hall of King Qin, gazing out over the city. He saw swathes of houses and palaces collapsing and asked in confusion, "Are they having the disciple beat the master again? This time it looks especially brutal..."
A giant bird swooped down and landed, transforming into Red Plume the Underworld Divine, bird-headed and human-bodied. He tidied his feathers, shook his head, and said, "Lord Hades, you guessed wrong. This time it's not the disciple beating the master—it's the master, together with the grand-master and patriarch, beating the disciple. The Su-line Human Emperor came back, and then his master, grand-master, and patriarch all ganged up on him. He got beaten so badly, he couldn't even die if he wanted to."
Lord Hades was surprised. "They've changed the rules?"
"I don't know either. It seems to be because of the Overlord Body business. The Su-line Human Emperor brought a rubbing, said to be a legend about the Overlord Body from forty thousand years ago. At first, the grand-master and patriarch listened with smiles, all courteous and pleasant. Then they surrounded him and started beating him."
Red Plume paused and continued, "Then the Su-line Human Emperor fought back, and they beat him even harder, shouting things like 'betraying your master and ancestors,' 'plotting against us,' and 'letting the little Human Emperor hit us,' and so on. I barely understood any of it, but the Su-line Human Emperor was beaten horribly. The other gods and demons didn't dare step in, and the Cult Master of the Heavenly Saint Cult was cheering from the side, shouting 'Good job!' and hoping for more chaos. Should we stop them?"
Lord Hades was silent for a moment before saying, "No need. If you try to stop them, they'll just gang up and beat you instead."
Late at night, the Great Ruins remained lively in the darkness. Countless monsters roamed about. Aiden Starr walked through the dark, the divine radiance from his body pushing back the encroaching dark substance, as he made his way to the spot marked on Lynn Ling's map.
Suddenly, his mind trembled. He saw a vast sealed space, with forests spreading across every surface of a colossal cube. In the center of this sealed domain, a gigantic ship appeared—so much larger than the Solar or Lunar Arks that its size was unimaginable!
This was the colossal ark built by the Heaven-Craft Clan of the Pioneer Emperor's Heavenly Court, meant to reach Carefree Haven—the Other Shore Ark.
But this ship was now battered and broken, clearly having gone through a bloody battle that left it shattered and unable to move forward.
Aiden Starr could see the danger here and hesitated for a moment, but in the end, he stepped inside.
After all, he was the most powerful existence in the world today. Even sensing the danger, he was confident he could leave at any time.
Soon, he arrived at a small village in the forest. Aiden Starr's heart stirred—sure enough, he saw the same pattern as the Jade Pendant. "The Ling family's little princess didn't lie to me!"
Just then, he sensed that he wasn't alone here.
A door to a woodpile courtyard opened, and inside, a figure stood with his back to him.
"Is this the person I'm looking for?"
Aiden Starr couldn't help but grow excited. He took out his mirror and, with his back to the man, used it to peek. In the reflection, the man turned around, revealing a face full of wrinkles and gave him a smile: "Ah ah!"
Aiden Starr was momentarily stunned. It was an old man, not the person he was searching for. But the old man also carried a chest, and beside him sat a blacksmith's furnace.
"You're very strong."
Aiden Starr turned around, his expression calm. "You've made me feel the thrill of the hunt. I can sense the tremendous power within you—truly terrifying! You might be the most formidable opponent I've encountered in years."
"Ah ah!" The old man’s face wrinkled like orange peel as he laughed heartily, gesturing with his hands.
Starr couldn’t understand the gestures and simply said, "I’d love to add you to my collection. Show me your strongest techniques—let me see what you’re truly capable of."
Boom—
The furnace beside the old man roared to life, flames spearing ten miles into the sky. Starr immediately felt as if space itself was about to be scorched, but the real threat wasn’t the furnace—it came from the unremarkable old man himself.
Suddenly, dazzling divine light burst from the old man’s dantian, like a miniature sun exploding in his core, radiating an overwhelming energy!
Starr grew excited. Next, he saw a blazing Divine Bridge appear behind the old man, and atop it, his Primordial Spirit—bird-headed, human-bodied—radiated fierce heat. With a leap, it strode across the bridge, entering the Heavenly Court on the far side.
Rumble!
The old man’s mana surged violently, the blazing heat warping space itself. Suddenly, his chest opened on its own, and countless silver pellets spilled out, flowing like water over his body. In an instant, he was clad head to toe in living silver armor, two massive silver hammers forming in his hands as he smashed one down at Starr!
As the hammer fell, Starr felt as if he’d become a stubborn lump of iron on an anvil, about to be forged into whatever shape the old man desired!
"So strong! Even stronger than the divine-realm dantians I’ve collected before!"
Starr was thrilled. He raised his hand, water ripples swirling as the illusion of a vast ocean surged behind him, waves roaring. He took the blow head-on and was blasted out of the small village.
The old man charged after him, swinging his twin hammers with wild abandon. The two fought through the mountain forest, battling nonstop. Starr laughed aloud, "What a body! What a dantian! I have to make you my collection! Pure yin cannot grow, pure yang cannot thrive—you walk the pure-yang path, fierce and domineering, but it’s unsustainable! Your ferocity puts too much strain on your flesh, making you look so aged. Unless you temper your body to the divine realm, you’ll never withstand your dantian’s furnace. If the fight drags on, you’ll exceed your limits and lose for sure!"
Just then, the old man reached his limit. He suddenly withdrew his hammers, and the silver armor flowed down to his feet, transforming into a silver horse. He mounted and rode off.
Starr hurried after him, but suddenly the ground vanished beneath his feet—they’d entered the spatial zone of the Other Shore Ark, surrounded by colossal fragments of the shattered divine ship.
Starr saw the old man’s silver horse gradually slow. He knew the man’s dantian was too strong for his body to handle and couldn’t keep up the pace, so he pressed his pursuit.
Moments later, sweat beaded on Starr’s forehead. He’d lost sight of the old man and realized he was now the one trapped. All around him, intricate restriction runes floated in the air, making each step a struggle.
(This chapter isn’t finished yet~.~ Click next page to continue reading!)
Suddenly, the old man appeared again, seated at the prow of a silver skiff, wearing a newly acquired bamboo hat.
Starr steadied himself, his eye twitching, and tried to rush forward—only to be blocked by a drifting seal-glyph floating through the air.
The old man grinned, his mouth tongueless, and drew a finger mockingly across his own throat. The silver skiff drifted away.
Starr flared with anger—then suddenly realized the old man’s smile looked oddly familiar, as if he’d seen it somewhere before.
"That smile... I’ve definitely seen it before, definitely…"
He forced himself to calm down, trying to banish the image of the old man’s grin and focus on finding an exit. Just as he was about to crack the first seal-glyph, Quinn Shepherd’s goofy smile flashed in his mind, perfectly overlaying the mute old man’s sly grin. Distracted, Starr lost control, and the seal exploded, blasting him away.
Quinn’s smile and the mute old man’s grin were nearly identical—the only difference was Quinn’s was honest, while the old man’s was full of cunning!
"I…"
Divine blood surged up Starr’s throat, but he forced it down. "I’m not angry, I’m not angry, I absolutely won’t let him ruin my Dao-heart, I—wah—"
He couldn’t hold back; a mouthful of divine blood sprayed out. His face turned ashen as he roared in fury, "Divine Physician Quinn, I’ll never forgive you!"
Quinn followed the guiding beam of light, walking out of the Great Ruins. Step by step, he traveled from the Great Ruins to the southern frontier of Everpeace, where snakes and insects abounded and people were few. The further he walked, the more desolate the land became.
At sunrise, the guiding light condensed atop a hill into a small radiant doorway, appearing before him.
The hilltop held only this doorway of pure light. Quinn looked around—nothing but barren mountains, not a soul in sight.
Bruno the Dragon-Qilin lifted his head, glancing around. Seeing the sun rise, he cheered, "Cult Master, it’s morning—breakfast…"
Quinn pushed open the door. The lonely portal swung wide, flooding with light. He stepped inside, walking toward the brilliance.
Bruno hurried after him, riding atop the taotie chest. Their figures vanished, and the door of light faded, disappearing altogether.
After a moment, Quinn emerged into a bleak, silent wasteland. Compared to this, the wild mountains outside were nothing.
Before him stretched collapsed divine palaces, swirling fog, and countless gravestones and mounds. Ruined walls, tombstones, and burial mounds assaulted his senses.
In the distance, only one palace stood mostly intact, lonely amid the mist.
Quinn walked closer, surveying the vast space. In the fog, countless gravestones formed the landscape of the Human Emperor Hall.
He approached the first grave, reading the stele: "Tomb of Wei Ming, West Supreme General of the Heavenly Court." A blood-stained shield rested beneath the stone.
At the second grave, the stele read: "Tomb of Ding Yunhe, Battalion Commander of the Tiger Guard of the Heavenly Court." A helmet lay beneath it.