Chapter 1231: Displaying Various Arts
The strength of the Shura Rain of Blood lay not just within
its brute power, but also its lethal aura and ability to erode the
consciousness. Emperor Shura had reached great perfection with the technique,
and it was the first time he was showing it in front of so many. The
connoisseur could recognize the artistry within, while the layman simply
enjoyed the show.
Emperor Pillzenith’s impression of Emperor Shura improved
greatly after the blade technique was performed. It seems Emperor Shura isn’t a
good-for-nothing after all. He may lack charisma and wit, but he makes up for
it with his cultivation. Even I would have a hard time fighting against this
technique. Emperor Pillzenith simulated the fight multiple times in his mind,
but realized he didn’t have a good answer to Emperor Shura’s blade technique.
Emperor Pillzenith was one of the strongest great emperors
in the Upper Eight Regions. Like Emperor Peafowl, he was at the very top of the
hierarchy. But even though the technique had startled Emperor Pillzenith, it
failed to break through the youth’s defenses.
Emperor Pillzenith was even more shocked. Young lord Zhen
isn’t even thirty yet! When did he become such a monster? Countless thoughts
flooded into the great emperor’s head.
As time marched on, Emperor Shura gradually brought the
technique to its limits. His inability to break Jiang Chen’s defenses
increasingly irked. How could someone like young Lord Zhen possibly exist??
Other than Emperor Peafowl, his technique was capable of dominating everyone in
Veluriyam Capital. And yet, he was having trouble against the defenses of a
brat who was still wet behind his ears? Impossible!
Time was being wasted. It didn’t matter how well he
manipulated his sword once the limit was up. He clearly had the advantage, yet
couldn’t harm a single hair on his opponent. If this were to continue, the duel
would end in a draw.
A draw? Emperor Shura nearly burst a blood vessel when the
idea crossed his mind. Eyes red with fury, he glared at the young lord within
the formation. Veins on his neck bulged as red rimmed his eyes. “Brat! I don’t
care where you learned your detestable trickery! I will slice your defenses in
half! All obstacles before me will be pulverized!”
His voice was filled with madness. The purple-red glow
surrounding him suddenly spiked in intensity. Pop! Pop! Pop! His joints cracked
in quick succession. Emperor Shura’s body grew larger and larger as the glow
surrounding him intensified. This continued until he was nine meters tall.
His body was covered with purple-red plate armor, only his
arms exposed. Explosive muscles glistened like they’d been carved out of bronze
and metal. His eyes were the size of bells and a bloodthirsty red. His features
were sharply chiseled with distinction, shocking and aweing with their terrible
might.
Hmm? Emperor Shura has a body refining technique similar to
my golden body?
Gao Zhan had summoned an image of a demon god during his
fight with Jiang Chen, but the image had easily been defeated with the help of
the Lord of the Golden Seal. However, Jiang Chen didn’t dare to take the great
emperor’s body refining technique lightly. This was most certainly Emperor
Shura’s trump card.
Without any hesitation, he brought forth the golden magnetic
mountain and muttered an incantation, enlarging the mountain by thirty meters.
The Lord of the Golden Seal charged out from within the golden brilliance,
revealing his imposing body.
“Lord of the Golden Seal, that man is a berserker great
emperor. Spar with him.”
The Lord’s strength was determined by the golden magnetic
mountain, which was in turn affected by how much potential Jiang Chen could
unearth. Its potential was almost limitless, but Jiang Chen was too young to
make use of it.
The Lord was clearly no match for Emperor Shura’s berserker
form, but he had nothing to fear as his home was right behind him. That was his
greatest advantage. He transformed into a streak of golden light and charged
madly at Emperor Shura without any hesitation. A blade and a sword of energy
materialized along the way and hacked towards Emperor Shura’s waist.
The Lord was much larger than Emperor Shura. The great
emperor snorted coldy when he saw a new enemy launching at him.
“Scram!” The emperor growled as he swung his sword
nonchalantly. A sharp light sliced through the air and struck the Lord of the
Golden Seal.
The purple light pierced through the Lord’s body, slicing
him in half. He faded into weak golden brilliance and was absorbed back into
the magnetic golden mountain.
The Lord’s body was different from a human’s as he was made
up of an amalgamation of metallic essences. Even though he’d been sliced in
half, it was just his materialization that’d been destroyed. He could simply
just re-form. He would never be killed as long as the magnetic golden mountain
wasn’t destroyed. It was the greatest advantage that spirits like him had.
“Brat, why did you provoke such a fearsome opponent? I’ll
need at least seventy percent of my total strength back to have a chance
against him!” The Lord complained when recalled back into the mountain.
Jiang Chen had only wanted to check how powerful a berserk
Emperor Shura was in his berserker state. Unfortunately, his trump card had
been sliced in half with just one strike. Even though the Lord wouldn’t die
from something like this, it would take some time before he could materialize
again.
He was immune from death, but that didn’t mean that he was
unsusceptible to injury. It wouldn’t be possible for him to recover in such a
short time. Even if he materialized again, he’d be nowhere near his previous state.
When the Lord of the Golden Seal went silent, Jiang Chen
knew this was a lost cause. Instead of giving up, he left the golden magnetic
mountain hovering high in the air while quickly shuffling through hand seals.
One… two… three… Beams of golden light shot out from the
mountain, revealing themselves as the weapon-shaped golden monsters.
Jiang Chen was showing his hand. These golden monsters were
also an amalgamation of metallic essences. They would continue to spawn and
materialize as long as the mountain still existed. They were weeds that grew
after a wildfire, tenacious and relentless.
These monsters didn’t even possess a hundredth of the Lord
of the Golden Seal’s strength, but their strength was in numbers. They attacked
like an ant swarm, overwhelming their enemies and were extremely annoying to
fight against.
There was simply no end to them. No matter how many Emperor
Shura killed, Jiang Chen only needed to make a few hand signs to summon a few
dozen more. Even an elephant could be taken down by a horde of ants.
Jiang Chen didn’t expect them to kill Emperor Shura, but by
summoning them in the dozens, he hoped that they could at least stall for time
and hinder the great emperor’s movements.
It was a very shameless tactic, but desperate times called
for desperate measures. Whenever Emperor Shura cleared a wave of the monsters
and tried to commit to an all-out attack on Jiang Chen, another huge swarm
would lay siege on him. One or two of these monsters couldn’t possibly harm the
great emperor. But that was no longer the case when their numbers were in the
hundreds. Emperor Shura abhorred Jiang Chen’s battle tactics greatly, but he
had no choice but to deal with them.
Jiang Chen also understood that the tactic wouldn’t work
forever. These monsters would lose their effectiveness once Emperor Shura
grasped how to deal with them. Emperor Shura’s berserk attack power is truly
alarming. If the Eight Trigram Boulder Formation hadn’t been bolstered by the
Earth Bodhisattva Orb, the amount of energy I’ve infused into them via the
spirit stones would probably be insufficient to take the full brunt of his
attacks.
Jiang Chen was incredibly glad that he’d somehow gotten his
hands on the earth attribute treasure. Without it, the formation would only
have one third of its current power. With that defense, he might be able to
take on Emperor Shura in his normal state, but against a berserk Emperor Shura?
Not in a million years.
Jiang Chen meticulously scoured through his list of trump
cards. He did possess something that could kill Emperor Shura, the abode
heritage he’d inherited from mid rank empyrean cultivator Guo Ran in the
Paramount Realm. There were two more uses to the restrictions within. Once
triggered, even a great emperor would instantly perish.
However, it wasn’t something that Jiang Chen could use in
broad daylight. If he killed Emperor Shura, the situation in Veluriyam Capital
would turn sour very quickly. He wanted to kill the great emperor more than
anyone else and put an end to things once and for all, but this wasn’t the
right time or place.
If the abode was ever revealed, the entire Upper Eight
Regions would set their sights on him like a pig for slaughter. But other than
the abode’s restriction, Jiang Chen didn’t possess any trump card that could
possibly kill Emperor Shura.
Chapter 1232: The Violet Rings
Jiang Chen wasn’t someone easily dealt with, but Emperor
Shura likewise wasn’t about to resign himself to fate halfway through. After a
while of golden monster harrassment, Emperor Shura finally understood Jiang
Chen’s strategic intent. In his fury, he completely ignored them and poured all
of his energy in crazed offense against the formation instead.
Emperor Shura knew that Jiang Chen wanted to maintain this
impasse. To end up in a draw was in itself a victory for Sacred Peafowl
Mountain. Conversely, it would mean that all of his effort over the few years
was for nothing.
The great emperor was absolutely unwilling to accept such an
outcome. He needed to attack and break the formation apart. Howling in anger,
he spurred himself to new heights. His offensive power flared in strength once
more. Bloody aura creeped out menacingly from the demon blade; it roiled
crazily towards the formation to reap the living. Once the formation was done,
so was his opponent!
“I must break apart this stupid formation. I must kill that
kid! I must become the ruler of Veluriyam Capital! Anyone who stands in my way
will fall by my blade! Die, die, DIE!” The ambitious emperor was drunk with
bloodlust.
But Jiang Chen fought with the same recklessness. Emperor
Shura may have gone berserk to enhance his body and offensive strength, but the
young lord of Veluriyam had no qualms about tapping into every reserve of
strength he had to counter. He drained all he could from the Earth Bodhisattva
Orb in order to reinforce his Eight Trigram Boulder Formation and his eight
statues.
Both sides having increased their power, the battle’s scales
remained rather balanced.
“How is this possible?” Emperor Shura wanted to cough up
blood. The prospect of his opponent increasing the defense’s effectiveness had
been wholly unexpected. How could he win if things went on like this? “Does
that kid have no limit?”
Frankly, the emperor didn’t believe it. He redoubled his
efforts with grit teeth. Each saber swing was quicker and more furious than the
last. The statues were assailed with with a tempestuous storm of increasing
ferocity. He knew that as long as just one statue was shattered, he would have
a way past the outer layer of the formation. Such a breach would enable him to
exploit the weakness in a much more important way.
A formation was one entity. Damaging part of it typically
meant that the rest would also follow. Emperor Shura knew very well that a
single crack was enough for his blade to sneak in and find his target. Given
that his opponent was a young cultivator, he was unlikely to be able to dodge
the attack. The astoundingly potent formation was the entire basis for young
lord Zhen’s gambit against him. The young man would be worthless without it!
But though he had a plan in mind, it wasn’t one easy to
accomplish. No matter how fiercely he attacked, the regenerative powers of the
eight stone statues far surpassed his understanding. A forceful strike that had
left a deep scar a while ago was now only a faint mark.
Actually, were the eight statues becoming stronger?
What’s going here? Such a strange situation was
incomprehensible for Emperor Shura. It was one thing if the statues were made
of an exceptionally durable material. But how could unliving things
intelligently improve themselves like this? Were they sentient somehow and adapting
to his attacks?
Emperor Shura didn’t want to go on. He felt that any further
consideration would push him over the brink into insanity. He could not
continue such a fruitless attack. His mind ran at top speed. Much of the time
limit had already elapsed. Perhaps an hour or so remained, but that was still a
reasonable duration to get something done in.
Still, there was no time to waste. If Emperor Shura expended
much more energy without seeing returns, he would lose too much momentum. Four
hours of continuous strenuous battle was too much even for the hardiest of men.
More importantly, much of it had also gone to waste. Great emperor cultivators
had limits to their strength, just like everyone else. No mortal expert could
possibly have infinite energy.
However, there was a despondency that tugged at his
heartstrings. I’m tired after attacking so long. Shouldn’t that kid be tired
too? His defense should cost him more force of will and vigor, shouldn’t it? Is
he an actual machine?
Emperor Shura had many questions. Presumably, such a potent
defense was as taxing to the defender as it was on the attacker. But then… why
did it seem like the kid wasn’t tired at all? The emperor absolutely couldn’t
understand it. Those from the Shura Retreat were just as perplexed.
“How can this be? What monstrosity is that kid, really? Does
his accursed formation truly not have a weakness? Daoist Shura’s Rain of Blood
didn’t manage much of a scratch.” Emperor Vastsea was the most dissatisfied
among the rest. If he had to deal with that technique in an arena, he would
have a very hard time. Why then could Sacred Peafowl Mountain’s young lord
answer it with such ease?
Li Jiancheng’s eyes were full of hate. “Master, you have to
kill that kid. You just have to! You can’t let him rule Veluriyam Capital! Once
he does, will there be any room for us to survive?”
Shura Retreat’s young lord was a proud man. There was a
common saying that two tigers couldn’t share the same hunting ground. Li
Jiancheng had observed firsthand his master’s helplessness against Sacred
Peafowl Mountain’s young lord.
Such stalwart fortitude from a potential rival drove him to
despair. He was a peak that Li Jiancheng could not possibly hope to cross,
regardless of the size of his ego. He would not suffer someone like that to
remain at Veluriyam Capital. He desperately wanted to avoid having to live with
such a nightmarish situation for the rest of his life.
Finally, Emperor Shura stopped his barrage and calmed down.
Leaning on his blade, he looked seriously into the distance. His eyes regarded
the Eight Trigram Boulder Formation and the eight stone statues with a
pondering look. His furious expression faded away, giving way to
thoughtfulness. The emperor had regained his composure at last.
The limited amount of remaining time forced him to
reconsider his situation. He knew that a berserk status could increase his will
to fight and give him additional energy, but he would have to trade away his
rationality in exchange. Against someone as clever as young lord Zhen, doing so
was extremely unwise.
If he could not break through the defense system by brute
force, then he had to apply his mind to the task instead. Emperor Shura wasn’t
a complete fool. After calming down, he immediately began to brew up ideas.
“That kid’s defense system is composed of interlocking rings
and layers. The eight statues are only the vanguard. If I can destroy one of
them, then the outside would be imperfect, creating a flaw in the formation.
Thus, I must start with those eight statues. But my strength isn’t enough right
now, hmm…”
If I can’t do it with raw strength, why not do something to
occupy them or shift them aside? If destroying them was too hard, he could
temporarily control them, couldn’t he?
A flash of inspiration struck Emperor Shura’s mind.
“Yes, let’s try that!” The ambitious emperor was cheered up
for the first time in three hours. He finally had a potential path to a
solution. Leaning on his blade, he drew across the air with his other hand.
Violet rings appeared out of that nothingness, wrapping themselves around Emperor
Shura’s arm.
“Are those… the Shura Rings of Life and Death?”
On Sacred Peafowl Mountain’s side, Emperor Void couldn’t
help but call out with an ashen face, “This is bad! It seems that Shura has
found a way to deal with young lord Zhen.”
Emperor Shura snarled without much decorum, sweeping his
ringed arm forward. The violet circles flew into the air, forming trails of
light behind them. A number of colorful, magical comets tore across the sky.
The rings began to grow and grow, each becoming three meters
wide. They headed straight for the eight stone statues.
“Hmm? What’s he planning to do?” Jiang Chen was unsettled by
this strange sight. Was Emperor Shura attempting to hold his statues in place?
The Eight Trigram Boulder Formation was formidable on its
own, but without the statues’ deterrence of the majority of incoming attacks,
it wasn’t going to be enough to stop a berserk Emperor Shura.
The violet rings had a terrifying restrictiveness imbued. If
they were allowed to latch onto the statues, any amount of restriction on the
statues’ mobility would break the link between them and formation. The statues
would no longer be able to draw power from the Earth Bodhisattva Orb then.
Without the formation and the Orb’s spirit energy to support
them, the statues would be significantly weaker. Emperor Shura would very
likely be able to destroy them. But it was even more likely that the emperor
wouldn’t have any interest in them whatsoever. Instead, he would attack the
Eight Trigram Boulder Formation directly. As soon as his formation fell, he
would be vulnerable to a direct assault.
Despite knowing all of this, Jiang Chen didn’t have a
solution. He felt only anxiety at his inability to come up with an imminent
strategy. The violet rings pulsed with increasing magnitude of restraint. It
wouldn’t be long now before the statues were taken from his control. Gritting
his teeth, Sacred Peafowl Mountain’s young lord executed a series of hand seals
that recalled the eight statues back into his formation disk.
Having removed a significant obstacle, Emperor Shura beamed
delightedly.
Chapter 1233: The Final Trump Card
There wasn’t much time left. The violet rings Emperor Shura
had deployed were his final trump card. If he still couldn’t destroy the eight
stone sculptures with this technique, then he really would be scraping the
bottom of the barrel.
Thus, he was seized with joy when Jiang Chen recalled the
eight stone sculptures. He had finally broken through the first line of
defense! Sneering inwardly, the great emperor charged Jiang Chen’s formation
and swung his demonic blade. He could attack the Eight Trigram Boulder
Formation now given the absence of the eight stone sculptures running interference.
Jiang Chen’s heart sank. He urged the Earth Bodhisattva Orb
to channel energy into the formation with everything he had. Now that the eight
stone sculptures were gone, this was his only defense against Emperor Shura’s
attacks.
The situation was critically disadvantageous to Jiang Chen.
He inspected the Imperial Advent Defense Talisman without hesitation. Luckily,
the talisman hadn’t been consumed much because Jiang Chen hadn’t been fighting
all this time. It would be able to hold out until the end of the fight.
He knew that he should expect the Eight Trigram Boulder
Formation to be destroyed at any moment. Once the formation was gone, he would
have to engage Emperor Shura in hand-to-hand combat. But he wasn’t completely
helpless, thanks to the talisman. Though it temporarily increased his defenses
to that of a great emperor, he had plenty of other means that could help him
hold out for a short while.
But that was his last resort. Jiang Chen didn’t want to
fight Emperor Shura head-on unless absolutely necessary. Emperor Shura had been
a great emperor for three thousand years, and Jiang Chen was just initial
emperor realm. Fighting his opponent directly was the worst thing he could do.
The light flaring from the blade seemed to be a reverse Milky Way, slamming
viciously into the formation.
The edges of the formation shook in response.
The Eight Trigram Boulder Formation was indeed very
impressive. If Jiang Chen had been able to establish it with proper foundations
and formation flags, delaying Emperor Shura long enough until the round ended
wouldn’t be impossible. However, he had no choice but to manifest the formation
with a disk. A disk allowed a cultivator to manifest a formation very quickly
without fuss, but the downside was that the manifested formation’s foundations
and power were severely lacking.Emperor Shura had first thought that breaking
the formation would be a piece of cake after the eight stone sculptures were
gone. However, the error of his thinking was quickly discovered. His powerful
strokes cut through the etchings and made the formation shudder and shake, but
they recovered before his next stroke could arrive. Such self-healing speed was
utterly shocking.“How is this possible? There are a lot of formations in this
world, but there shouldn’t be one that can heal itself so quickly after being
breached! It should be the other way around!” Emperor Shura was highly
perplexed. Pill King Zhen oozed bizarre strangeness.
Meanwhile, Jiang Chen was doing everything he could to
maintain the formation. The Eight Trigram Boulder Formation was recovering so
swiftly because of the Earth Bodhisattva Orb. Spirit stones couldn’t have
reformed the formation so quickly, and the formation would’ve immediately
collapsed after an opening was made. No wonder the ancient Earth Bodhisattva
Sect made the Orb their sect treasure. Jiang Chen finally realized just how
powerful the Orb truly was after witnessing the sheer amount of power within.
Even better was that this were just scratching the surface. Once he made the
Earth Bodhisattva Orb completely his own and excavated all of its potential,
Jiang Chen was certain that it could reach unimaginable heights of power.
It looks like I accidentally came across an ultimate
treasure! The power of the orb made Jiang Chen more confident. The formation
should be able to hold out for some time even without the eight stone
sculptures running interference.
As time passed, the round entered the final, most critical
stage.
The members of Shura Retreat were on their feet as they
watched sand trickling down the hourglass. They looked worriedly at the battle
happening on the arena. No one had anticipated that Emperor Shura would still
fail to breach young lord Zhen’s defenses despite deploying all kinds of
methods and trump cards. No one could define young lord Zhen’s limits. Is his
defense truly indestructible? It was a tormenting battle to spectate.
Emperor Shura himself knew that there wasn’t much time left.
He was discouraged to see the formation reform itself again and again despite
his many attacks. It was like scaling a mountain peak, only to find a higher
one in front of him.
“Zhen, you brat! I’ll break through your cowardly, scummy
defenses!” Emperor Shura roared madly when his frustration reached its peak.
The bulky body crashed into the formation again and again.
His bloodshot eyes spoke to his maddened bloodlust. Emperor Shura murmured a
few incantations that covered his body with a surging purplish-red halo. It
looked like a ball of angry hellfire wanted to consume the great emperor’s
body. “This is bad!” Emperor Void’s heart sank as his face turned ugly.
“Emperor Shura… he’s willing to go this far? Has he gone insane?”
Emperor Coiling Dragon’s heart also skipped a beat. Shock
and fear marred his face as he exclaimed, “Is… is he burning his own bloodline
power?”
“Precisely.” Emperor Void responded quickly, looking like
he’d heard the most terrible of tidings. “Crazy, he’s gone completely crazy!
The demonic slaughter dao’s most terrifying technique is the summoning of
hellfire and activating of Shura fire in one’s body. The terrifying hell energy
makes a cultivator several times stronger than before, but they have to pay a
huge price in return as well!”
Emperor Peerless didn’t know Emperor Shura that well, but
his expression also turned ugly when he heard that Shura’s power would increase
several magnitudes over.
“This fellow sure is willing to sacrifice anything to seize
power. Does he really think that his methods and ruthlessness will impress even
if he does win the round?” Emperor Peerless frowned.
“Hmph, to go this far for an internal conflict! Emperor
Shura is a failure indeed. No wonder Daoist Peafowl didn’t pass the throne to
him back then. He doesn’t have the heart or composure to carry Veluriyam
Capital on his back at all.” Emperor Void agreed. “Even if he does win the
round, Sacred Peafowl Mountain and Shura Retreat are still evenly matched. Who
will support him after doing something like this?”
Emperor Void’s words weren’t unreasonable. Emperor Shura was
an important figure in the capital, second to only Emperor Peafowl. However, he
was bringing out questionable methods to defeat a young genius. No matter how
he tried to justify it later, it left a dreadful impression. It was the
desperation of a cornered animal, not the bearing and performance a great
emperor with three thousand years of experience should possess.
Emperor Coiling Dragon cursed hatefully, “He’s destroying
his own reputation. I’ll gather every righteous man and woman there is and
object to his ascension if he wins this!”
Emperor Shura truly did lose a lot of supporters because of
his current actions. Even Emperor Petalpluck’s forehead were creased with deep
dissatisfaction when he saw this.
Back in the arena, Jiang Chen felt as calm as still water.
He could clearly see every move Emperor Shura was making. He knew that his
opponent would do everything in his power to win at this stage. He too was
likewise prepared for the final showdown. The Earth Bodhisattva Orb still fully
powering the formation, Jiang Chen called upon the Ancient Crimson Heavens
formation disk once more and deployed a new formation, inside the currently
operating one.
The Major Artifice Formation!
Jiang Chen wasn’t expecting the illusory formation to
actually do anything against Emperor Shura. Its only purpose was to buy him a
bit of time after his opponent broke through the Eight Trigram Boulder
Formation.
At the same time, Jiang Chen activated his tempered body,
heralded by an explosion of golden light. The magnetic mountain floated over
his head and shone rays of metallic light towards Jiang Chen, forming a
magnetic armor. The Bewitching Lotus of Fire and Ice was also hiding nearby,
ready to ambush and restrain with Emperor Shura on a moment’s notice. He was
activating every trump card that might be useful.
Jiang Chen didn’t care anymore if his identity was exposed
to the Eternal Celestial Capital emperor watching from the guest area. His only
objective in this fight was to hold out until it was over. It wouldn’t be long
now. A bit longer, and Sacred Peafowl Mountain would become the ultimate victor
of this match.
Shura hellfire burned wildly on Emperor Shura’s body. Many
strange and savage-looking patterns were crawling across his skin.
“Break!” Emperor Shura swung crazily at the Eight Trigram
Boulder Formation. A horrific cracking noise later, the etchings of the
formation was finally destroyed by the unprecedented attack.
Chapter 1234: A Bottomless Bag of Tricks
Emperor Shura put everything he had into that feverish
strike. He’d cut through the lines of the Eight Trigram Boulder Formation,
utterly destroying its framework. It was time to attack at last! There was no
way that Jiang Chen could instantly restore his defenses. The formation disk
needed to be set up once more.
The emperor’s murderous gaze locked onto the youth in front
of him. He was through. He was through! Coming face to face with one’s mortal
enemy was an occasion to be red-eyed. Snorting derisively, Emperor Shura rushed
in close and delivered a horizontal slice. A flash of steel was drawn across
Jiang Chen’s torso. The audience collectively screamed in horror.
There was a burst of radiance. In the next moment, Jiang
Chen’s body flew into the air, cleanly sliced in half. The halves thudded onto
the ground, severed with a neat, forceful stroke.
The shocked cries of the audience grew louder. Some closed
or averted their eyes in revulsion. They couldn’t bear to look at such a
gruesome sight. Emperors Void and Coiling Dragon both made for the arena, but
Emperor Peerless stopped them.
“Control yourselves.” The wandering cultivator emperor shook
his head, frowning.
All four monarchs were pale in the face. Their bodies
shivered uncontrollably. The grisly scene shattered their nerves and destroyed
their mindsets.
Young lord Zhen... dead??
Had Emperor Shura just… cleave the amazing genius into two?
In the vassals’ section, Sacred Peafowl Mountain’s
supporters began to agitate. “Outrageous. A great emperor displaying such
cruelty to a young genius!”
“How can a man as violent and tyrannical as him rule over
Veluriyam Capital?”
The great emperors in the guest section were just as
surprised as anyone else. Emperor Pillzenith’s Adam’s apple bobbed, but he
seemed rather suspicious of what had just taken place.
The Han brothers from the Great Yu Skysword Sect scrutinized
the arena with ferocious gazes.
Though her body trembled for a moment as well, Su Huanzhen
was the first to see through the ruse. “Impossible. Young lord Zhen is too
clever to die like that.” She shook her head. “It’s just an illusion!”
Hearing those words helped Emperor Pillzenith pick up on
something. His eyes were fixated on the arena once more, interested on what
would happen next. Truthfully, he didn’t want young lord Zhen to die like this,
either. He didn’t have the Pinecrane Pill yet. If the young lord fell here, how
was he going to get his hands on that mythical pill?
He didn’t believe that young lord Zhen would teach it to
Sacred Peafowl Mountain’s pill masters. Even if he had, Emperor Pillzenith
would have a very hard time getting his hands on it nevertheless.
However, there was an eruption of cheering from Shura
Retreat’s side. Li Jiancheng waved a hand with particular vehemence; all his
pent-up grief and fury was released in that slice.
Emperor Shura was pleased by the turn of events, but he
quickly noticed that something was off. No blood had spurted from either half
of the body left behind. That didn’t make any sense.
Closer examination revealed no crimson liquid on the ground.
The body that had been sliced in half was also gone. Replacing it was an indistinct
gray mist, as if he had been dropped into an unformed world.
“Hmm? What is it this time?” The swings in mood that the
emperor was feeling perplexed him. Calming down just a little, he suddenly
discovered that he was trapped in yet another formation.
“A formation? Again?” Emperor Shura laughed despite his
anger. He was at his wit’s end. Formations upon formations upon formations…
where were they going to end? How many tricks did this kid have up his sleeve,
really?
“Let all be reduced to nothingness. Die! I’ll cut through
everything you throw at me!” Roaring loudly and repetitively, the emperor swung
his blade about like a madman.
The gray mist dispersed to make way for a brightened world
once more. However, Emperor Shura found the young lord that he’d cleaved
earlier standing on the other side of the arena once more, a sneer upon his
face. The ambitious emperor felt that he’d been played for a fool.
With a sweep of his sleeves, Jiang Chen produced a few more
odd-looking plants.
“Shura, your exasperation and frustration only causes harm
to yourself. You can’t accomplish anything like this. I’ve set up another
formation for your enjoyment. Are you man enough to brave it?”
Golden light flared all over Jiang Chen’s body. Plates of
armor formed from magnetic energy glittered all about him, almost blinding in
their brilliance. His tempered body grew to more than nine meters tall, in
direct comparison to the emperor’s own.
It now looked as if two giants were competing in the arena.
Thankfully, arenas for competitions at this level were built to be extremely
large. Despite both combatants’ bodies expanding several times, there was still
room available for their bout.
The strange plants were formed from tendrils of the
Bewitching Lotus of Fire and Ice. Jiang Chen’s control over them had improved
with maturity. The ‘Bewitching’ part in the Lotus’s name referred to their
transformative properties. They could simulate various different forms via
mimicry.
The Lotus was one of his fail-safes. He wouldn’t have
brought it out without the situation being truly dire. Though the Lotus was
strong, it would last only an instant against an opponent at Emperor Shura’s
level. It was a momentary hindrance at best.
Jiang Chen couldn’t rely on the Bewitching Lotus because his
own cultivation wasn’t at an appropriate level. In actuality, they were a
distraction for what would come next. Jiang Chen secretly activated another
formation through his disk.
The Ancient Slaughter Formation of Seven!
This formation had three ranks. He was naturally using the
highest. The formation was more than sufficient to handle half-step great
emperors at its current level of strength. It could also hold up great emperors
to a certain extent.
Hand seals at the ready, Jiang Chen waited for Emperor
Shura’s approach. As long as he could delay Shura a single moment, he would be
able to execute the next step in his plan. His goal wasn’t to defeat Emperor
Shura, but to waste the remainder of the time limit. The battle looked
deceptively grim, but everything was completely safe and proceeding according
to plan.
But what did Emperor Shura care about the formations before
him? His red-eyed murderous rampage left him with only one thought: he wanted
to kill Jiang Chen.
“Just die!” he roared angrily. The motion with which he
swung his blade had a momentum that threatened to rend the heavens and split
the earth.
Smiling easily, Jiang Chen disappeared into thin air. As if
on cue, the Ancient Slaughter Formation of Seven whirred into motion,
entrapping the emperor within. The formation could simulate seven situations of
mortal danger.
The particular one that Jiang Chen was using was death by
lightning. Lesser elements would simply not do. Perhaps lightning was the only
thing that could postpone him temporarily.
The amount of electricity snaking through the air made it a
sight to behold. Lightning rained down upon Emperor Shura relentlessly. All
attacks in the world of martial dao were unique in some way, according to their
characteristics or attribute. Lightning in particular was an extremely potent
kind.
Inside the Ancient Slaughter Formation of Seven, a storm of
bolts raged. Most emperor realm cultivators wouldn’t hope to make it out alive
under such conditions. The density and potency of the attacks meant that they
couldn’t possibly weather such strikes.
Fortunately for Emperor Shura, the formation was only
simulated. If it had been set up properly with flags, even the likes of him
would have a lot of trouble emerging unscathed.
A defensive glowing aura flared up around Emperor Shura.
Whenever a lightning snake came close, the aura swallowed it up. The emperor
had no intention of being trapped for long here. He looked upward with a keen
gaze.
“Break!” he shouted, flourishing his blade.
When one reached the pinnacle of martial dao, it was
possible to break through formations with pure strength. There was no
impenetrable defense in the world. Of course, there was no all-conquering
attack either.
There was only relative comparison when power and power
clashed. Whichever won in the end would be the superior. In this case, Emperor
Shura’s blade swing surpassed the Ancient Slaughter Formation of Seven. The
formation was destroyed in one fell swoop.
“Let’s see how many more formations you’ve got, kid!” The
emperor strode out from the formation’s remnants, ready to cut down Jiang Chen
with his next slash. However, something was awry when he came out of the
formation. He saw countless streaks of golden light heading for his face. They
heralded sword-images, violently launching themselves at him.
“The Divine Five Thunderclap Sword Technique?” Emperor Shura
felt faint. He raised his head to catch the onslaught of swords coming at him
with an uncountable number of sword auras, flooding in his direction in a
deluge of steel.
“What kind of sword technique is this?” Though he’d seen it
be used a few times before, he only noticed now that it bore no resemblance to
any of Emperor Peafowl’s techniques.
Emperor Shura was no stranger to Emperor Peafowl’s methods.
He had studied all of Peafowl’s martial techniques thoroughly, including sword
related ones. Emperor Peafowl’s sword techniques were elegant and refined. This
technique, on the other hand, was grander and more torrential. It had a rather
different feeling from Peafowl’s usual techniques.
The Torrent of Ten Thousand Swords was an attack that even
Emperor Shura didn’t dare treat lightly. He furiously glared at the tempestuous
sword storm before him with gritted teeth.
“Peafowl! You’re doubling down hard. You’ve given the kid an
Imperial Advent Onslaught Talisman, too?” Emperor Shura was filled with hatred.
He knew that a young genius who was at the initial stages of emperor realm
wouldn’t be able to unleash such a terrifying attack. The young lord had be
using the Imperial Advent Onslaught Talisman. Such an increase to great
emperor-level offensive power made the force behind the blow more plausible.
“Is his body made of iron or something? He’s using two
Imperial talismans at the same time. How can he endure such a thing?” The
emperor reacted with shocked outrage.
Chapter 1235: Times Up
Emperor Shura had once been a young man himself. At the
time, his sect had gifted him protective treasures like the Imperial Advent
Defense Talisman because his development was still incomplete.
Although he’d used such treasures before, his body had
always felt overburdened every time the talismans were in use. Generally
speaking, a cultivator’s physical body was pushed to their limits during use.
One seemed to teeter between the boundary of life and death, or having their
body threaten to fall to utter pieces at every second. That was why Emperor
Shura was puzzled to see Jiang Chen using both the Imperial Advent Defense
Talisman and Imperial Advent Onslaught Talisman at the same time, but still
cackled sinisterly. “Brat, you’re truly suicidal. But do you really think that
two talismans are enough to stop me?”
Emperor Shura raised his arm and sent the Shura Rings into
dance again. They spun rapidly around him like dazzling stars, completely
nullifying the Torrent of Ten Thousand Swords with the rapid oscillation of
their defense. Jiang Chen wasn’t surprised by the scene. He hadn’t expected the
Torrent of Ten Thousand Swords to kill Emperor Shura because of the power gap
between the two of them. Jiang Chen’s golden body glowed brightly once more as
a powerful jet of air rose into the sky and transformed into an enormous fire
bird.
“Is that the divine vermillion bird?” Spectators were
greatly excited by the vermillion bird image. A fireball from heaven itself was
blotting out the skies.
“It has to be!”
“Young lord Zhen is so extraordinary! We saw him unleashing
the true dragon image earlier, but now he’s unleashing the vermillion bird
image as well! Just how many terrifying images does he have in his body?”
The members of Sacred Peafowl Mountain were also surprised.
They all knew that young lord Zhen was powerful and a genius. However, it was
only now that they realized that they’d underestimated him still.
The image shrieked piercingly before swooping down on
Emperor Shura. The great emperor was caught off guard as he hadn’t expected
young lord Zhen to attack him successively. The young lord had always been on
defense, so the sudden initiative was surprising indeed.
Still, he was a veteran great emperor. The vermillion bird
image might look like fierce and deadly, but it was a threat to his life. As he
thought about this, Emperor Shura jumped into the air to face the image
head-on. He raised his blade with both hands with an angry roar and threw a
fearsome slash forwards with all his strength.
The strong attack slammed into the image and sheared it in
half. As the image crumbled, strong air currents scattered in all directions in
a fiery imitation of a furnace. Luckily for the spectators, the explosion had
taken place quite far away from them, or there would’ve been many accidental
casualties.
“What else do you have, Brat Zhen? Show me everything you’ve
got!” Emperor Shura cackling sinisterly. He was feeling pretty good after
successfully destroying the image. He leapt into the air again and once more
charged towards Jiang Chen with blade upraised.
Jiang Chen raised both hands and summoned turbulence in the
air in front of him. Strong air currents surged to push a true dragon image
into the sky. It brandished claws and leered threateningly as it rushed Emperor
Shura.
The great emperor snorted coldly. “Well met!”
He swung his weapon. Although the dragon image was
extraordinarily impressive, the edge of the blade was even keener. The dragon
image was torn apart just like the vermillion bird image had been.
Emperor Shura was about to threaten closer when an ominous
feeling suddenly arose. A hunch compelled him to raise and protect his vitals.
Sparks scattered and energy dispersed.
A claw had stretched out of thin air and crashed into
Emperor Shura’s weapon. A dragon soared into the skies in the next second. It
was naturally Long Xiaoxuan. The dragon image moments earlier had just been a
distraction so that he would have time to sneak in an attack from his position
cloaked, high up in the sky. Even a momentary lapse of concentration would
result in injury for the great emperor.Long Xiaoxuan didn’t try to attack
Emperor Shura after his ambush had failed. Instead, he disappeared into the
clouds. Invisibility was one of the talents of the true dragons.
Emperor Shura narrowed his eyes, expanding his consciousness
to the utmost with a tight grip on his longsword. He was trying to sense Long
Xiaoxuan’s position. Jiang Chen’s attacks might be negligible, but he dared not
underestimate a true dragon. This particular dragon was peak emperor realm.
Though the great emperor didn’t fear direct combat, hidden ambushes were much
more difficult to defend against.“Are you running out of tricks, Brat Zhen? You
think an immature dragon is enough to impede my steps?” Emperor Shura sneered
before light flashed again from the blade, hurtling towards Jiang Chen. He was
going to slaughter Jiang Chen even at the risk of being ambushed!
Jiang Chen smiled and moved like lightning, vanishing an
instant later into the distance. Emperor Shura’s attack hit nothing but an
afterimage. Jiang Chen was fast enough to outrun his attacks!
The great emperor’s heart sank. “He’s really fast!”
Refusing to believe that he couldn’t keep up with Jiang
Chen, Emperor Shura thrust forward in another attempt. Jiang Chen instantly
activated his escape art and vanished into thin air yet again. Emperor Shura’s
attacks couldn’t keep up at all.
One stroke was followed by another, and another… until more
than a dozen attacks were fired off in short order. Although the great
emperor’s attacks were speedy, Jiang Chen was always just a bit faster and
remained elusively out of reach.“How can this be?” Emperor Shura’s fighting
spirit took a severe hit when his ultimate attacks weren’t hitting his enemy at
all.
He’d called upon Shura hellfire to forcefully bring out his
potential. This was his strongest form, and it was one that hurt him just as
much as it threatened his enemy. It wasn’t a situation that could drag on.
Although he’d definitely made some sacrifices, he’d failed
to touch even a hair on Jiang Chen’s body. The tremendous failure further
widened the crack in Emperor Shura’s dao heart.
Jiang Chen’s speed had already rivaled Emperor Peerless’
when the young man was mere sage realm. Speed was the attribute that the great
emperor was most proud of. After Jiang Chen had ascended to emperor realm, his
understanding of the Kunpeng Meteoric Escape deepened further and made him even
faster than before.
As expected, Emperor Shura was completely caught off guard
by the unbelievable speed. The great emperor couldn’t think of any way to stop
him. No matter how angry or powerful he was, he couldn’t land a hit onto Jiang
Chen.
“Do you only know how to run, brat?” Emperor Shura roared
angrily. He’d completely lost the dignity of a great emperor and the genteel
demeanor of the second greatest man in Veluriyam Capital. He seemed more like
an infuriated, vulgar commoner who was a disappointment to even the vassals
spectating this fight.
Their shock at young lord Zhen’s extraordinary performance
was proportional to their disappointment at Emperor Shura’s poor performance.
Emperor Peafowl wasn’t around, so Emperor Shura was technically the greatest
man in Veluriyam Capital. However, he looked nothing like the great leader he
should be.
It was already bad enough that Emperor Shura wasn’t able to
take down young lord Zhen immediately. Young lord Zhen simply had too many
trump cards and was performing too well. However, the great emperor’s inability
to let go only disappointed them further.
If Emperor Shura gave up the round and admitted defeat at an
opportune time, he would’ve appeared magnanimous at the very least. There was
nothing wrong with giving up if a matter couldn’t be forced. In fact, it would
be a wise decision to do so.
But instead, he’d completely lost his cool and was chasing
after young lord Zhen like some gangster on the street. Worse, he was doing
everything he could, but still unable to touch young lord Zhen. Now, he
couldn’t even catch up to the young lord’s shadow. How could this sorry-looking
man possibly be their great emperor?
Even Emperor Skysplitter was silently sighing sadly. He too
knew that Emperor Shura had already lost.
Meanwhile, everyone in the Sacred Peafowl Mountain camp was
staring intently at the battle. As Jiang Chen deftly avoided Emperor Shura’s
attacks again and again, they saw the rise of immense hope and the light of
victory dawn before their eyes.
“Unbelievable, unbelievable… to think that young lord Zhen’s
martial dao talent is this impressive. I’ve truly underestimated him.” Wildfox
Monarch sighed quietly.
“Fate is with Sacred Peafowl Mountain. Young lord Zhen is
without a doubt the best successor Emperor Peafowl could have! He’s won me over
completely today.” Chronobalance Monarch exclaimed.
“Me too,” Cloudsoar Monarch stated simply.
“I’m in full agreement. From hereon, anyone who disagrees
with young lord Zhen will have to go through me first.” Plumscore Monarch
voiced her thoughts as well.
The battle on the arena didn’t continue for too long. When
all the sand had trickled to the bottom part of the hourglass, the fight that’d
run for four hours long was finally over.
A loud gong strike signalled the end of the round and the
utter destruction of Emperor Shura’s fighting spirit. Wearing a cool smile on
his face, Jiang Chen abruptly stopped his motions and landed on the opposite
side of the arena.
“Time is up. This round is a draw.” Emperor Petalpluck
declared expressionlessly.
A tidal wave of cheers crescendoed from Sacred Peafowl
Mountain’s side. A draw meant that they had taken the overall victory! The
competition that’d lasted a whole thirteen rounds was finally over. Everyone
had thought that defeat was inevitable before the final two rounds. But in the
end, their side had held fast and claimed the final victory.
A murderous gleam exploded in Emperor Shura’s eyes. He
abruptly raised his weapon and, without forewarning, flung a mighty slash
towards Jiang Chen on the other side.
Chapter 1236: Withdrawing From Veluriyam Capital
Emperor Shura’s sudden move overturned everyone’s
expectations. No one had thought that the likes of a titled emperor would sneak
attack young lord Zhen after the battle was over.
“Careful!”
“Young lord Zhen, watch out!”
“That shameless bastard!”
There was instant chaos in the crowd. Everyone cried out in
warning and astonishment, absolutely appalled at the newfound development.
Emperor Peerless shot out as a streak of light from his seat
with the rest of Sacred Peafowl Mountain. Emperors Void and Coiling Dragon
followed.
Emperors Petalpluck and Mountaincrush headed right for the
stage as well. All five of the emperors wanted to block the attack for the
young man. But they were too far. The lethal blade was already at Jiang Chen’s
throat before they could reach the edge of the arena.
The swing seemed unblockable.
In that crucial moment, the earth before Jiang Chen split
open. Numerous vines burst forth, each one thick as a muscled arm. They headed
for Emperor Shura without delay.
As if he’d foreseen such a move from Emperor Shura, Jiang
Chen produced several dozen duplicate images of himself in the blink of an eye.
Each one was identical. It was impossible to tell which one was the real one.
The vines that’d erupted belonged to the Bewitching Lotus of
Fire and Ice. Though they couldn’t bind Emperor Shura for long, they did
succeed in hindering his advance. After he struggled free, he was faced with
countless mirrored forms of the young lord. Emperor Shura looked agape at the
sight before him.
In the next moment, the five emperors reached the stage.
“Daoist Shura, you mustn’t be rash!” Emperor Petalpluck
called out.
Emperor Peerless, on the other hand, had only a cold eye for
Veluriyam’s third-in-command. He released his great emperor aura in a show of
open opposition.
“I’ve always heard there was a notable character in
Veluriyam Capital called Emperor Shura. I didn’t expect someone like that to be
you. You disappoint me, Shura.” Emperor Peerless sounded positively frosty.
“Young lord Zhen isn’t even thirty. Fighting with him already puts you in an
ignoble position. If you like to fight so much, why not fight with me?”
Emperor Shura’s expression was dark, but his heart bled red.
He didn’t want to accept this outcome! His long-term schemes had utterly failed
at the last minute. It couldn’t be true! He couldn’t bear to think about it.
But no matter how arrogant he was in private, he didn’t want to risk drawing
the collective ire of five great emperors at once.
“Everyone, Daoist Shura must have lost himself in the heat
of the moment. Please forgive his unfortunate actions.” Emperor Vastsea
interjected, having caught up with the group.
Shura’s ally was a slippery eel. As soon as he understood
the original plan had failed, he immediately switched to seeking a diplomatic
conclusion to things. Since Emperors Petalpluck and Mountaincrush had stepped
up, they were undoubtedly leaning towards Sacred Peafowl Mountain.
The Shura coalition no longer had any advantage in Veluriyam
Capital. Though Emperor Skysplitter had agreed beforehand to support them,
Shura Retreat hadn’t lived up to any expectations. Losing hadn’t been an
option, but it had slowly become one over the course of the gauntlet. His absence
onstage revealed his attitude perfectly. He wasn’t interested in associating
himself any further with this mess.
With Emperors Shura and Vastsea alone, the plan was all but
sunk. Emperor Vastsea was no fool. He was going to cut his losses when he
could.
However, Coiling Dragon wouldn’t let up. “Hmph. If we’re
looking at this from a serious perspective, Shura Retreat has just failed at
both usurping the throne and attempted murder. If he behaves like his openly,
who knows what he’ll be up to behind closed doors?”
Emperor Shura affixed a malevolent glare upon his newest
peer. “And what are you going to do about it?”
This exacerbated Emperor Coiling Dragon’s displeasure.
“You’re the one misbehaving and you don’t want others to talk about it? Do you
want to laugh all of this off? Do you really think that you’re invincible in
Daoist Peafowl’s absence?”
Emperor Shura roared with laughter. “History is written by
the winners. What else is there to talk about? Coiling Dragon, you have no room
to talk. You’re just Sacred Peafowl Mountain’s dog. Act like their pet all you
like, but I tolerated it for three thousand years. I’ve waited three millennia
for this! And what did I get?! The throne is Emperor Peafowl’s to do as he
wishes. He doesn’t care about what I think. Is Veluriyam Capital always going
to belong to Sacred Peafowl Mountain?”
Emperor Vastsea was agitated by this. “Fellow daoist,” he
urged, “please, say no more. We’re all family here. There’s no need to get so
worked up about internal disagreements.”
Emperor Shura slammed Vastsea’s arm aside. “I’m not getting
worked up at all. Since I lost today, I’m not going to stay here any more. I’m
formally announcing my departure from Veluriyam Capital. From today onwards, I
will always be an enemy to this city!”
Emperor Vastsea was completely poleaxed. He couldn’t begin
to imagine the words that had been just uttered. Wasn’t he being forced into
making a stand? Given their close relationship, there was no way Vastsea could
stay after Shura left.
Sneering, Jiang Chen looked intently at Emperor Shura.
“Seems that you’ve found your next home already.”
The person whom Emperor Shura hated the most right now
wasn’t Emperor Peafowl, but Jiang Chen.
“Don’t get too full of yourself, kid. Without the four-hour
limit on the rounds, your puny methods would’ve amounted to nothing. I would’ve
kill you like any other common dog.” Now that they were officially on bad
relations, Emperor Shura had nothing to lose.
Jiang Chen took a deep breath. His face revealed no emotions
whatsoever as he gazed at Emperor Shura pensively. “You’re right. In fact, if I
hadn’t been prepared just now, your backstabbing attack would have worked. But
that was the last chance you had to kill me. You won’t have that opportunity
ever again. I have one last question for you: is Emperor Peafowl’s
disappearance related to you or not?”
Before the emperor had chance to answer, the young lord
quickly added, “There’s no need to try to cover it up. I have a good hunch even
if you deny it outright. This debt will be on your head.”
Everyone paled at those words.
Naturally, Emperor Shura was never going to admit to such a
thing. “You know where to find me. I’ll be waiting anytime,” he snorted. “I’m
more concerned that you’re too scared to come. Still, I’d advise you to refrain
from running your mouth about me in the future.”
“As I thought,” snickered Jiang Chen, “you have the guts to
do the deed, but none to admit to it. No wonder Emperor Peafowl always told me
that ambition is the only thing you have. What an irresponsible man. Even if
you lay low for ten thousand years, you’ll remain a rat in the shadows. You
won’t have the chance to make anything of yourself. If you leave Veluriyam
Capital, your next step will no doubt be joining up with some faction. Remember
what I’m saying today: at least you were second-best here. Once you leave,
you’re just someone’s dog. That’s what you’re fit to be, for the rest of your
days.”
He glanced thoughtfully at the guest area as he said this,
and Emperor Pillzenith in particular.
The leader of Pillfire City was quite upset. He hadn’t
expected Emperor Shura to be so useless. Losing was one thing, but a sneak
attack?! Doing so completely ruined any chance of a future here in the city!
Pillzenith had wanted Emperor Shura to stay in Veluriyam
Capital as an undercover informant. Unfortunately, that plan had gone down the
drain rather quickly.
“Daoist Shura. I suppose this will be the last time I call
you ‘fellow daoist’.” Emperor Void sighed softly. “You’ve made a grave mistake
today. Go, take your followers with you. Leave now. All who remain in the city
after three days will be branded traitors!”
“What about you?” Emperor Coiling Dragon glared at Vastsea
coldly.
Emperor Vastsea was ashen. All eyes were on him, pressuring
him to proclaim his allegiance. At last, he sighed with dejection. “I will go
wherever Daoist Shura goes.”
Vastsea knew that as the Shura Retreat’s vanguard, he had
made too many enemies in Veluriyam Capital. It was highly doubtful that he
would meet a pleasant end if he didn’t abscond when he still could.
Emperor Void saluted Emperor Petalpluck with cupped fist.
“Daoist Petalpluck, my faction and I are willing to support young lord Zhen as
the future lord of Veluriyam Capital. What say you?”
“As am I and mine,” concurred Emperor Coiling Dragon.
“I, too, agree that young lord Zhen is the best choice,”
remarked Emperor Mountaincrush.
Emperor Petalpluck nodded. “Young lord Zhen is a genius
gifted to us by heaven. A blessing not only upon Sacred Peafowl Mountain, but
upon our entire city. A brilliant youth like him will surely turn our fortunes
for the better, given some time. I would be going against heaven’s will by not
supporting him.”
Four great emperors had made their stances known. Since
Shura and Vastsea no longer belonged to Veluriyam Capital, only Emperor
Skysplitter remained.
Emperor Void peered at his silent peer nonchalantly. He knew
that although Skysplitter had supported Emperor Shura, Skysplitter was
fundamentally different from Emperor Vastsea. Perhaps he had only done so out
of forced necessity. Someone like him was worth convincing. There was no wisdom
in demanding Skysplitter to leave, too. It would be too great of a hit to
Veluriyam Capital’s overall strength.
Emperor Skysplitter bowed when he saw the rest of the
emperors speak. “Since my fellow daoists have all expressed their support for
young lord Zhen, how can I not follow your graceful lead? Moreover, I will not
toss aside your charitable tolerance so easily.”
“Emperor Skysplitter,” Jiang Chen cut in. “When Emperor
Peafowl and Emperor Shura left the city, I recall you did as well. If I may,
did you or did you not participate in Emperor Peafowl’s disappearance?”
A flash of dissatisfaction flickered across Emperor
Skysplitter’s face. However, his expression remained honest and forthright.
“I’m not trying to give any excuses here. Still, I feel that someone played me
regarding that affair.”
“How so?”
“During the period of Emperor Peafowl’s absence,” said Emperor
Skysplitter, “I received news that a treasure had appeared very recently
somewhere. Of course I went to investigate, but found out in the end that it
was fake news. By the time I returned, rumors about Emperor Peafowl’s
disappearances had already spread. My guess is that someone planted that piece
of news especially for me, forcing my participation in the ensuing matters.”
Although Emperor Skysplitter didn’t directly name Emperor
Shura, his meaning was more than clear. He was hinting that the ambitious
emperor had fabricated the news, creating the false perception that Skysplitter
and Shura were on the same side. All eyes involuntarily focused on Emperor
Shura once more.
Chapter 1237: Roping In Peoples Hearts
Emperor Shura smiled apathetically. “The fence-sitter is
truly easily swayed. History is written by the victors. Say whatever you want,
I’ll not participate in your nonsense.” He brandished his sleeves and headed
back to his own camp.
“I am cutting ties with Veluriyam Capital from henceforth!
Those who wish to follow me are free to do so. As for those who are unwilling…
heh. Let’s just say that Veluriyam Capital will not take your betrayal kindly.”
Emperor Shura was extremely persuasive.
The factions directly under Shura Retreat were quick to show
their loyalty. “Your Majesty, we shall follow you!”
“We will remain loyal unto death!”
The unwavering loyalists consisted of mostly factions
directly under Shura Retreat and a few clans and vassals that had close
relationships. The vassals that’d recently been persuaded to side with Emperor
Shura were desperately trying to draw a clear line between them and the
emperor. They naturally weren’t going to leave.
Emperor Petalpluck frowned when he saw how influential
Emperor Shura was. Emperor Coiling Dragon immediately warned Jiang Chen. “Young
lord Zhen, Veluriyam Capital will be torn apart if this continues!”
Jiang Chen smiled nonchalantly. “Those who decide to follow
him are either loyalists or people who can’t think clearly. Veluriyam Capital
has little use for them. I’d rather have them leave.”
Emperor Void nodded in agreement. “Young lord Zhen makes a
good point. If their hearts are not with Veluriyam Capital, their departure
might actually benefit both sides. It’s a good opportunity for us to clean
house.”
Emperor Petalpluck was about to voice his concerns, but
ultimately chose not to as Jiang Chen already seemed to have his own plans. In
the end, Emperor Shura convinced roughly twenty vassals to leave with him.
While twenty might seem like a lot, but there were a total
of nine hundred vassals in Veluriyam Capital. This number wasn’t really
something to write home about. But though they’d made their decision to follow
Emperor Shura, they were worried that a certain someone wouldn’t let them go.
“I won’t stop anyone who wishes to leave with Emperor Shura.
However, once you step out of the capital gates, you will be a traitor who has
cut all ties with the capital! You are not allowed to use Veluriyam Capital’s
name from this day forth, nor will you ever be allowed back into these walls!”
Jiang Chen announced sternly after a majority of them had made up their minds.
“We will also launch a thorough investigation into Emperor Peafowl’s
disappearance. If we find out that any of you are withholding any information,
you’ll be marked a public enemy and hunted down!”
Other than Emperor Shura and Emperor Vastsea, it was
unlikely that anyone else would know about the details of Emperor Peafowl’s
disappearance. Jiang Chen’s words instilled some fear into them, but it was too
late for any hesitation. They’d always maintained a close relationship with
Emperor Shura and were practically sworn to Shura Retreat. There would be no
future for them if they stayed at Veluriyam Capital.
Jiang Chen glared menacingly at Emperor Shura. “You may take
your people and leave. Mark my words, if I ever find out that you had something
to do with Emperor Peafowl’s disappearance, you’ll not be able to escape my
wrath even if you hide nine thousand meters underground.”
He spoke with sway and dominance, his influence multitudes
greater than Emperor Shura’s after he’d gained the public’s trust.
Emperor Shura was proud and arrogant, but even he dared not
fire anything back. He snickered coldly and gestured. “Let’s go!”
Emperor Shura’s loyalists followed and disappeared into the
horizon in a blink of an eye.
“Young lord Zhen, you’re letting them go just like that?”
Emperor Coiling Dragon was a little dissatisfied.
Jiang Chen responded with a faint smile. “No matter. One
day, I'll make them pay for all that they’ve done.”
He hadn’t let them off willingly. It was just that Veluriyam
Capital simply couldn’t handle any conflict right now. An enormous internal
conflict would be detrimental to the well-being of the capital. There’d be a
huge price to pay if Emperors Shura and Vastsea joined hands during a brawl.
Even though Emperors Skysplitter, Petalpluck, and
Mountaincrush had acknowledged his status as young lord Zhen, it was unknown
how much they’d actually contribute to a fight. If they abstained, Sacred
Peafowl Mountain would be the only ones to suffer tremendous losses in the
fight.
So for sake of the greater good, Jiang Chen had no choice
but to be patient. What Veluriyam Capital needed was stability, not slaughter.
Moreover, he had no evidence to prove that Emperor Shura was behind Emperor
Peafowl’s disappearance. He was dead certain that Emperor Shura was guilty, but
he couldn’t convince the public with only a public interrogation.
The citizens were distraught. In order to calm the vassals
and stifle speculations, he had to stabilize the situation first before he
could proceed further.
Emperor Petalpluck nodded reassuringly when he saw how Jiang
Chen had handled the matter. His opinion of the young lord grew even higher. It
wasn’t easy for a young man to not be consumed by victory.
Jiang Chen swept a tranquil, yet stern glance at the
remaining vassals. “I don’t care which faction you used to be with, nor do I
care what plans you have in store. Since you’ve decided to stay, I only wish to
remind you that as one of us, you must always focus on the betterment of our
capital. I’ll not forgive anyone who intends to betray or harm our capital! Our
unity and trust in each other is the only reason why we have always been the
strongest in the Upper Eight Regions!”
Emperor Petalpluck nodded. “Young lord Zhen has shown great
magnanimity and chosen to leave matters in the past. You needn’t worry about
the consequences for your actions today. Your position will not be threatened
if you set your mind on the correct path and show complete loyalty to our
capital!”
“That’s correct. Dear vassals, you’d best keep these words
firmly in mind.”
“Understood!” The vassals shouted in response.
Jiang Chen made a sweeping gesture. “It’s not everyday that
we assemble a Vassal Gathering. Since you’ve already come all the way the
capital, do stay a few more days. I’ll personally give some lectures to share
some pill dao insights. Also, I’ve decided to establish a school in the capital
to foster and train those highly talented in pill dao. If there are any such
geniuses among your children, do consider signing up.”
It was only natural to offer a carrot after a smack with the
stick. After beating fear into the vassals, it was time to offer some
incentives and rope them in. Indeed, everyone was elated to hear this. There
was at least one pill dao genius in every vassal household.
“T-that’s wonderful! Long live young lord Zhen!”
“As expected of young lord Zhen! From now on, I’ll only
support the young lord! I’ll oppose anyone who tries to oppose him!”
“That’s right! Young lord Zhen is truly a capable person. He
may be young, but he’s contributed so much to our capital already!”
“The pill dao school will be an enduring accomplishment that
will benefit thousands of generations! Veluriyam Capital has some pill dao
heritage, but there was never a systematic way to pass it down! The pill dao
school will surely reignite the capital’s passion for pill dao!”
“Mm! This is definitely something to look forward to!” The
vassals were all smiles.
Emperor Petalpluck and Emperor Mountaincrush exchanged
glances. Their admiration for the young lord was growing by the minute.
“As expected of young lord Zhen! You’ve gained the loyalty
of the vassals just from one simple decision!” Emperor Void praised with a
smile.
Emperor Coiling Dragon laughed heartily. “I’ve said it once
and I’ll say it again! Young lord Zhen is the bearer of great fortune! Why
would Emperor Peafowl make him heir if otherwise?”
“Everyone, I trust that everyone has already seen how great
young lord Zhen is in pill dao! I’ve travelled all over the world and met
countless titans of the pill dao world, but I’ve yet to come across anyone as
talented in pill dao as him! I don’t know who’s the best pill dao master in the
world, but young lord Zhen is definitely the best in my heart!” Emperor
Peerless yelled.
“That’s right! I can attest to the fact that young lord Zhen
is number one in pill dao!” Emperor Coiling Dragon flashed a grin. “When I was
still the clan lord of the Coiling Dragon faction, my lifespan had nearly
reached its end. Almost everyone was certain of my death, me included. But why
didn’t I die?”
This was the second time that Emperor Coiling Dragon had
brought up the matter. He’d previously only told the story to a small group of
people and felt a need to reiterate the story now.
“I wasn’t in a position to say this before, but now I can
finally let the truth out! That's right, it's all thanks to young lord Zhen! If
he hadn't extended my lifespan by a few more years and refined the Pinecrane
Pill for me, there'd be no Emperor Coiling Dragon today!”
Emperor Coiling Dragon grew increasingly agitated, and his
story was very persuasive since he was telling it himself.
“Remember when faction fought over the Longevity Pill, the
pill that can extend lifespans for sage realm cultivators? The Pinecrane Pill
can do the same for emperor realm cultivators! I’d like to ask you all, had any
of you ever heard of life-extending pills before young lord Zhen appeared on
the scene?”
“No!” came the unanimous answer.
“I had, but an increase of three to five years was the limit
for these supposed miracle pills. One that could extend life by eight hundred
to a thousand years was unheard of in the Divine Abyss continent! This is a
milestone for pill dao! I am filled with conviction that young lord Zhen’s
appearance will cause great changes in pill dao. Veluriyam Capital will
certainly be the hub of pill dao for the Upper Eight Regions in the future, a
sanctuary for pill dao!”
Emperor Coiling Dragon’s words weren’t just to boost morale.
They were also a pointed jab at Emperor Pillzenith in the guest section.
Chapter 1238: A New Official Works Hard to Show Efficiency
The world of martial dao was a wondrous place. When passion
was kindled in people’s hearts, they tended to be easily persuaded by others.
That didn’t mean they were brainless sheep without opinions of their own, but
that the world was a place with the strongest at the top. When it came to pill
dao, young lord Zhen’s exploits over the past few years were nothing less than
legendary.
After his exploits were dug up, many noticed that he was
already a monument to others, despite his youth. The Longevity Pill and the
Pinecrane Pill. These two alone were enough to immortalize his name. Moreover,
young lord Zhen had also defeated the ‘invincible’ Pill King Ji Lan–and more
than once, to boot.
Under the people’s intentional embellishments, his stories
spread in a frenzied wave, his exceptional performance at the Vassal Meeting
naturally included. He’d faced Emperor Shura for five rounds and crushed his
opponent utterly in pill dao, beast taming, and formations, with a draw in
talismans and martial dao.
A decisive score of three wins and two losses against the
arrogant Emperor Shura was very impressive indeed. Some said that it was blind
luck, that the young lord had looked a bit frayed in the final round. But so
what?
Young lord Zhen wasn’t even thirty. He’d made a name for
himself only in the last decade. It was amazing for a thirty-year-old youth to
tie with a three-thousand-year great emperor, no matter how that result had
come about. Anyone else in his situation wouldn’t have been able to take one
hit, much less survive four hours.
There were plenty of young geniuses in Veluriyam Capital,
but none of them could say they could weather a punch from Emperor Shura at the
peak of his powers. That was too preposterous a statement to make!
But young lord Zhen had accomplished the impossible. More
impressively, he had come out unscathed! The battle itself was already
legendary. There were plenty of examples on the Divine Abyss Continent of the
weak defeating the strong, but doing so with such a large strength differential
was absolutely unheard of. Young lord Zhen’s achievement was more than stellar.
It would be the talk of the town for the next long while.
Storytellers favored tales that bordered on the fabulous.
Even those who didn’t like young lord Zhen were forced to
admit that if he was allowed enough time to grow, he would rise to truly great
heights. Emperor Peafowl had ruled essentially perfectly for the last three
millennia, and his chosen successor displayed even greater potential!
Though Emperor Peafowl was no slouch in his youth, neither
he nor Emperor Shura were competent enough to achieve the independence that
Jiang Chen could boast of. Not all the vassals would turn and worship the young
lord immediately, but his incentive provided at least a start.
He firmly believed that once the school was established, the
relationship between ruler and vassal would be much improved. The sense of
unity with Veluriyam Capital would be greatly enhanced.
It had been many years since Jiang Chen’s arrival in the
city. He’d pondered all this time why Veluriyam Capital was inferior to
Pillfire City in pill dao. Lack of knowledge and resources was the most
important reason, but there was another similarly key one—a deficiency with
Emperor Peafowl.
In most respects, there was a negligible difference between
Pillfire and Veluriyam’s rulers. In terms of charisma, Emperor Peafowl could
even be hailed the clear victor. The serene ruler of Veluriyam Capital adopted
compassion in his rule most of the time. Emperor Pillzenith stood in harsh
contrast, acting with ruthless ambition and imperiousness. But the latter’s
stance was much more effective at consolidating and controlling a faction.
Though Emperor Peafowl cared about his people and ruled
wisely, he had certain moral quandaries. He and Emperor Pillzenith were
complete opposites in this regard.
The atmosphere that Jiang Chen had experienced upon his
visit to Pillfire City was that of absolute internal cohesion. Moreover, the
satellite cities around it respected its absolute sovereignty. The system stuck
out because of how natural it had been.
Pillfire City was rather attractive because of its
advancement in pills. Most factions couldn’t resist its allure, much less consider
leaving. But Emperor Pillzenith’s personal actions on the city’s behalf also
contributed to this. The foremost goal of Pillfire City has always been to
increase its influence.
Emperor Peafowl had no desires to do such a thing with
Veluriyam Capital. He had a tremendously large heart to accommodate countless
more subjects, but not the nature to conquer them in the first place. Recently,
he’d been largely focused on repelling the future demonic invasion. Meanwhile,
expanding Pillfire constantly hovered at the front of Emperor Pillzenith’s
mind. That was the fundamental difference between the two.
From an objective point of view, Emperor Peafowl was the
more respectable man. Subordinates, however, often preferred a more
authoritarian and ambitious leader. Activities such as the Temple of Cleansing
Fire’s Bounty Arena were common in Pillfire City. Not so for Veluriyam Capital,
at which similar events rarely took place.
Affairs of that variety were exceptionally attractive to the
wider public. They created commotion and bustle, drawing experts from all over.
Once the population base was there, the place naturally became a hub of
activity.
It was precisely this perception that’d led Jiang Chen to
institute a pill dao school. It was his first decision as the ruler of
Veluriyam Capital. The excitement from the vassals told the young man that his
decision was a wise one. Regardless of how much manpower and capital it
required, it was a worthwhile investment for the long term.
Emperor Mountaincrush slapped his thigh admiringly. “Your
boldness and resolution is remarkable, young lord Zhen, and not unwelcome. You
have my unquestioned support! Whether you need men or money, I won’t refuse
whatever I can provide.”
“It’s a very charitable gesture,” chuckled Emperor
Petalpluck. “My faction and I cannot shirk our duties to it.”
No one would oppose the foundation of a new pill dao school.
Everyone had seen that young lord Zhen and his Sacred Peafowl Mountain were the
best at the craft in the entire city. Generosity from the rising star was too
benevolent to ignore. They couldn’t oppose such unselfish sharing.
Over in the guest area, the Han brothers from the Great Yu
Skysword Sect roared with laughter. “Congratulations, young lord Zhen.
Congratulations! You turned the tides through your efforts alone, and the dust
has finally settled. I think we can all look forward to Veluriyam Capital’s
bright future ahead. We admire the young lord’s mastery over pill dao from the
bottom of our hearts. After all, you are our guest pill emperor! We are willing
to sponsor part of your pill dao school.”
“Young lord Zhen, if we at the Celestial Cicada Court donate
as well, will you open enrollment to us?” Su Huanzhen was not to be outdone.
“If I’m to open a pill dao school, it will recruit students
from the entire human domain. Of course, we will show preference for our people
to a certain extent” Jiang Chen smiled.
Both Su Huanzhen and the Han brothers were pleased by the
declaration.
“You’re a joy to work with, young lord Zhen. I’m pleased to
call us friends,” Han Qianzhan affirmed animatedly.
Su Huanzhen maintained her faint smile. “We at the Celestial
Cicada Court have ever treated Veluriyam Capital as our own. Alas, your master
had far less charisma than you, young lord Zhen.”
The female sect head had loved Emperor Peafowl very dearly
all those years ago. Unfortunately, much of the blame for a lack of a happy
ending was on Veluriyam’s usually-wise lord. She was still melancholic about
it, though she hadn’t allowed it to turn into hatred.
Emperor Pillzenith was in a pickle. If he didn’t have other
plans in mind, he likely would’ve left with Emperor Shura. Jiang Chen at least,
was quite surprised that the ruler of Pillfire had the heart to stay.
Emperor Pillzenith barked a dry laugh. “I must congratulate
you, young lord Zhen. You’ve done great things at such a young age. I don’t
think even Emperor Peafowl in his youth surpassed you.”
This was excessive praise. Jiang Chen didn’t take his words
very seriously.
He looked back at Pillzenith, smiling faintly. “I didn’t
expect Emperor Pillzenith, the lord of Pillfire City, would grace humble
Veluriyam Capital with your presence. But since you were invited here by Shura,
and Shura no longer resides here in the city… I’m afraid I find no excuse to
keep you here any longer.”
Everyone found this statement amusing. Young lord Zhen was
publicly showing Emperor Pillzenith the door!
Regardless of Emperor Pillzenith’s dissimulation, he felt a
surge of anger in his heart. What a despicable kid, to have not shown him the
proper respect he deserved!
His instincts as a great city’s ruler took over at the last
second. He maintained a skin-deep smile despite his fury. “I hear that young
lord Zhen is planning on founding a pill dao school. We at Pillfire City have
some skill in the subject. Perhaps the titans of the north and south can
cooperate as allies in this endeavor?”
Cooperate? The audience felt their faces color. Cooperate
with Pillfire City? Wasn’t that inviting a snake into one’s bosom?
“Veluriyam Capital and Pillfire City are not well-acquainted,”
Jiang Chen smiled coolly. “I don’t think there’s much of a need for us to
cooperate. I don’t think there’s anything worthwhile in that.”
If Emperor Pillzenith hadn’t been mentally prepared for
mockery, he would’ve coughed up blood on the spot. Judging from his tone, he
thinks himself way superior to Pillfire City!
The false smile vanished from the emperor’s face. His face
became dark. “Young lord Zhen, I can understand your youthful pride. That said,
is that disrespect toward Pillfire City I’m hearing in your tone?”
Chapter 1239: Escape
Emperor Pillzenith’s tone was unkind. As an overlord of his
time, he couldn’t bear the spread of news that he’d been humiliated by a young
man. It would damage both his dignity and Pillfire City’s authority.
Emperor Peerless frowned. “We’ve given you face already,
Pillzenith, not to mention you aren’t welcome here in the first place. You’re
only humiliating yourself further with this nonsense.”
While Shura had hated Jiang Chen the most out of those
present, Emperor Peerless topped the list for Pillzenith. When his former love
rival stood up to defend Jiang Chen, Emperor Pillzenith cackled strangely.
“You again. Do you live your life going backwards, Mo
Wushuang? I still remember your pretentious tone when you turned down my offer
to join Pillfire City and when you scrabbled against me for a woman. And look
at you now, the more pathetic the older you get. How does it feel to be
Veluriyam Capital’s dog?”
If it’d been in the past, Emperor Peerless would’ve flown
into a rage. But now, the great emperor merely looked back placidly as he
responded, “I can only say that you’re as naive as ever if you think you can
provoke me with such words. We’re both several thousand years old already,
Pillzenith. I know what you want, where your ambition lies, but you may not
know what I want now. We walk different paths. If you’re smart, you’ll leave
and busy yourself with your own things. If you refuse, well, I’m sure the Upper
Eight Regions will love to hear about your death in Veluriyam Capital.”
Mo Wushuang spoke frostily, his tone tinged threateningly.
The grudge between him and Emperor Pillzenith was insurmountable, and he
wouldn’t mind at all if he killed his rival here and now.
But at the same time, he was aware that his cultivation was
still weaker than Emperor Pillzenith’s. However, since almost all of Veluriyam
Capital’s great emperors were gathered at the moment, they might be able to
eliminate Emperor Pillzenith if they attacked together. But that was a patently
unrealistic daydream.
Emperor Pillzenith laughed heartily. “My death?”
He swept his glance over every great emperor present. “It’s
not that I’m boasting, but I doubt that the likes of Veluriyam Capital are able
to kill me even if Peafowl was around. What do I have to fear from rabble like
you lot, even if you come at me together?”
He really wasn’t afraid of them. He might not be a match if
all of them attacked at once, but he was confident that he could escape their
clutches with flair.
Jiang Chen’s forehead creased as he responded indifferently,
“It sounds like you actually want to give it a try, Pillzenith. Shall I fulfill
your wish then?”
The young man then pointed at the arena around them. “I knew
that there’d be many complications during the Vassal Meeting, so I purposely
set up a sky rank formation beforehand. Since you’re so confident, why don’t
you give it a try?”
What? Emperor Pillzenith lost some of his bravado. A
formation? A sky rank formation?
Emperor Pillzenith had witnessed the battle between Jiang
Chen and Emperor Shura. Even he had to admit that the brat’s foundation in
formation dao paralleled the kid’s mastery over pill dao. If Jiang Chen really
had set up a sky rank formation in this arena, then his safety was precarious
to say the least.
The more Emperor Pillzenith thought about it, the less
confident he grew. Veluriyam Capital and Pillfire City were practically on
opposite sides of the Upper Eight Regions, and he was the one on foreign turf.
As powerful as he might be, he couldn’t truly unleash his full strength here.
That was the reason behind ‘the strong dragon cannot suppress the local snake’.
At this point, Emperor Pillzenith knew that it was
impossible he could somehow get the Pinecrane Pill from Jiang Chen. Not today,
at least. Chuckling, the great emperor abruptly vanished into a streak of black
light. His voice reverberated in the air. “I won’t forget you, young lord Zhen.
I’ll repay ten times over the matters of today!”
He’d bowed out.
Jiang Chen smiled as he eyed a particular spot in the sky
with the God’s Eye and Evil Golden Eye. “Why are you running away if you’re as
bold as you claim, Pillzenith? Cut the ten times, hundred times nonsense. It’s
not like I haven’t been to your Pillfire City. It’s no dragon’s den or tiger’s
lair. Cut the boasting and stop talking as if Pillfire City is invincible.”
He didn’t like shooting his mouth, but this was exactly the
kind of moment when it was necessary. Publicly, Emperor Pillzenith was a top
rate great emperor as famous as Emperor Peafowl. Not only was he Emperor
Peafowl’s match in terms of cultivation, status, reputation and authority, he
even appeared to be gaining momentum. Jiang Chen had no doubt that a threat
from someone like him would leave a black mark on the hearts of Veluriyam
Capital’s people. As young lord, he had to forcefully and confidently respond
to the threat. Young lord Zhen wasn’t afraid of Emperor Pillzenith! Therefore,
Veluriyam Capital shouldn’t be afraid of Pillfire City either, even with
Emperor Peafowl absent.
Jiang Chen’s handling of the minutiae was very effective.
The vassals felt quite vindicated. After all, if Emperor Pillzenith really was
as scary as he pretended to be, why had he fled the moment he heard about a sky
rank formation? He just wasn’t invincible in the end!
Emperor Coiling Dragon chuckled before asking Jiang Chen in
hushed tones, “Young lord, did you actually set up a sky rank formation?”
Jiang Chen broke out in laughter. “Of course not.”
The setup of a sky rank formation wasn’t nearly as easy as
he made it out to be. It wasn’t something that could be completed in a day, and
the amount of spirit stones it would cost was astronomical. He wasn’t nearly so
rich that he could set up a sky rank formation anytime he wanted to, not to
mention that he had better ways to spend his time.
“So, that was just a bluff?” Emperor Mountaincrush rubbed
his nose with a wry smile.
“Not really. He’s just one man and hasn’t reached empyrean
realm yet. He’s also afraid that all of us will charge forward together.
Ambitious folks like him are especially afraid of death, despite the invincible
mask they wear.” Jiang Chen kept tearing Emperor Pillzenith down so he decrease
the shadows and level of wariness in everyone’s hearts.
No matter how powerful Emperor Pillzenith was, he was still
just a great emperor. He remained vulnerable as long as he hadn’t reached
empyrean realm. The power gap between Pillzenith and the great emperors of
Veluriyam Capital wasn’t completely unbridgeable, either. Even if Pillzenith
hadn’t fallen for the bluff, Jiang Chen doubted that the great emperor would
dare erupt in open hostility.
Veluriyam Capital might have lost Emperor Peafowl, Emperor
Shura and Emperor Vastsea, there were still six great emperors present. If
Jiang Chen, deploying strength close to great emperor, the Han brothers from
Skysword Sect, Su Huanzhen and Sect Head Xia from Celestial Cicada Court were
added to that count, then Emperor Pillzenith would be facing ten great emperors
and one pseudo-great emperor. No matter how powerful Pillzenith might be, he
wouldn’t be able to face everyone on his own. It’d be committing suicide.
The Eternal Celestial Capital emperor chuckled drily when
Emperor Pillzenith laughed. “Since the Vassal Meeting is over, I shall be
taking my leave, young lord Zhen. Goodbye.”
Then, he left without a backwards glance.
The emperor of the Eternal Celestial Capital! Jiang Chen
leveled a cool, murderous glare at the departing figure. Neither of them had
broken out in open hostilities just yet, but the emperor of the Eternal
Celestial Capital had to be aware that young lord Zhen was Jiang Chen at this
point.
Earlier, Jiang Chen had been forced to unleash the
Bewitching Lotus of Fire and Ice in his duel against Emperor Shura. That was a
tremendous hint about his identity. The Eternal Celestial Capital had to have
picked up on that. They had an irreconcilable grudge with Jiang Chen and was
sure to have made a thorough study of the young man.Even before the Vassal
Meeting took place, the Eternal Celestial Capital had already suspected that
young lord Zhen was none other than Jiang Chen himself. After the faction
leader saw the Bewitching Lotus of Fire and Ice unleashed, he finally knew that
their suspicions had been right all along. Assailed with emotions, he’d hoped
that Emperor Shura would throw caution to the win and openly attack Sacred
Peafowl Mountain. When both sides were sufficiently injured, he would incite
Emperor Pillzenith into eliminating the hidden threat that was young lord Zhen
once and for all.
But things hadn’t turned out that way. After Emperor
Pillzenith escaped with his tail between his legs, the Eternal Celestial
Capital emperor feared for his own life. He was weaker than Emperor Pillzenith,
and there was nothing he could do if Jiang Chen decided to make use of the
collective strength and kill him here and now.
The Eternal Celestial Capital wouldn’t even be able to
complain if blame for Emperor Peafowl’s disappearance was given as the reason.
The Upper Eight Regions wasn’t a place of reason or sense to begin with. Who
would stand up for him if he was killed? The Eternal Celestial Capital was
inferior to Veluriyam Capital. The faction would fall into disarray if he died,
so what use was any talk of revenge then?There was nothing he could do now but
flee. The killing intent in Jiang Chen’s eyes lasted only for an instant.
Veluriyam Capital was finally safe after Emperor Pillzenith and the Eternal
Celestial Capital’s departure.
“The Vassal Meeting is concluded. Please return to your
accommodations, everyone. Arrangements for the pill dao school must be
discussed further before we can proceed, so please gather here tomorrow so we
that may take in your suggestions. When it’s time, please don’t be shy and
offer as many helpful suggestions as you can.”
The Vassal Meeting was over, but the excitement in Veluriyam
Capital hadn’t abated. Details of the gathering quickly spread to every corner
of Veluriyam Capital. Everyone was taken aback by Emperor Shura’s departure,
but young lord Zhen’s legendary exploits came as an even greater shock.
They were first sad that Emperor Shura was gone, but when
the young lord Zhen’s miraculous feats were mentioned, the continued presence
of the great emperor seemed negligent. Emperor Shura hadn’t contributed much to
Veluriyam Capital despite living there for several thousand years. On the
contrary, young lord Zhen had achieved many great things just a few years after
rising to prominence.
Chapter 1240: First, Be Loyal To Young Lord Zhen
Stability had tentatively returned to Veluriyam Capital, and
the negative effects of the rumors about Emperor Peafowl’s disappearance were
brought to a temporary stop. However, there were still some dissenting pessimism
inside Veluriyam Capital. The fact remained that Emperor Peafowl had gone
missing, and Emperor Shura and Emperor Vastsea had left Veluriyam Capital.
They’d lost three out of eight great emperors in the blink of an eye.
It was no wonder that some people were downcast. However,
the melancholy was quickly drowned out by the opinions of the majority.
“So what if we lost Emperor Shura and Emperor Vastsea? What
exactly have they done for us all these years? They were just a waste of air
and space!”
“Yeah, Veluriyam Capital will be the same with or without
them. Who knows, maybe young lord Zhen can lead us to greater heights now that
these troublemakers are gone.”
“We should support young lord Zhen. He’s a successful and
refreshing young man. It would be a true disaster if Veluriyam Capital fell
into the hands of someone as selfish as Emperor Shura!”
“True enough, Emperor Shura has neither virtue nor ability.
He simply can’t rule Veluriyam Capital. Young lord Zhen is definitely the
better pick of the two.”
“Young lord Zhen is practically perfect aside his martial
dao strength, you know? Even Emperor Peafowl isn’t necessarily better than
young lord Zhen in things other than martial dao. Or maybe his master of
talismans is slightly better than young lord Zhen’s?”
“It’s only natural for the new to replace the old. I think
Emperor Peafowl was paving the way for young lord Zhen. That’s why he gradually
withdrew over the past few years.”
“You’re probably right. Emperor Peafowl is still powerful,
but he hasn’t focused his attention on Veluriyam Capital for quite some time.
He must be planning to pass power down to young lord Zhen as soon as possible.”
“Emperor Peafowl is truly all seeing. I wonder how he
managed to raise a genius like young lord Zhen. With him at our helm, Veluriyam
Capital’s fortunes will hold strong for another ten thousand years, at least!”
At the young lord residence, the eyes and ears of Sacred
Peafowl Mountain continuously fed the voices of the people to Jiang Chen’s
ears.
“Young lord, there are still some who are in doubt regarding
your abilities, but the vast majority supports you and believes you can lead
them to greater glory.”
“Yes, the dissenting minority is drowned out by the
majority.”
The four great monarchs were likely the happiest out of
everyone. For one, Sacred Peafowl Mountain had defeated Shura Retreat and
solidified its rule in Veluriyam Capital. Secondly, young lord Zhen was easily
the equal of a young Emperor Peafowl in both skill and temperament. In fact,
the young lord was more decisive and daring when solving matters, so one might
say that he was even better.Jiang Chen nodded. “I’d like to hear your thoughts.
If anyone has an opinion to offer about the formation of the pill dao academy,
please voice them now. We’re all on the same side here. Let’s make sure we’re
prepared when we discuss with the vassals later.”
“I have no objections, young lord. A pill dao academy is a
good thing that will benefit generations to come. Naturally, I wholeheartedly
support its construction. There’s just one thing that I’d like to emphasize. We
must ensure that the students we enroll are absolutely supportive of Sacred
Peafowl Mountain. They’ll grow up to become the foundation of your rule in the
future, so we must ensure that they are loyal to you, young lord.” Cloudsoar
Monarch gave his opinion.
Mo Wushuang also nodded. “Cloudsoar is right. You may have
proposed the pill dao academy in consideration of Veluriyam Capital’s future,
but there’s no harm solidifying your rule over your own subjects. They must
learn, even if we brainwash them with this fact, that you’re the lord of
Veluriyam Capital and the ruler they are to serve loyally.”
“What do you say, younger sister?” Emperor Peerless asked
Huang’er with a smile.
Ever since Huang’er had defeated Li Jiancheng, everyone in
Sacred Peafowl Mountain was seeing her in a new light. The fight made them
realize that the amiable Miss Huang’er was actually an incredibly skilled
cultivator and they respected her even more. Naturally, her opinion was a lot
more important than before.
Huang’er smiled. “I agree with you, Brother Mo. Selfish
motives aside, there’s definitely a need for young lord Zhen to establish his
authority. Otherwise, a second or third Emperor Shura may attempt to challenge
our young lord’s rule. We don’t need more than one authority in Veluriyam
Capital.”
Jiang Chen laughed. “Won’t that make me a tyrant?”
“Please don’t joke around, young lord. I also think that
they’re right,” Plumscore Monarch also expressed herself.
“I agree as well, young lord. Why had Emperor Shura dared
challenge us this time? Because Emperor Peafowl gave him too much leeway back
in the day. If His Majesty had put a stranglehold on the great emperor from the
start, he would’ve never dared rise against us.” Wildfox Monarch added.
“Yes, please think this through, young lord. Everyone in
Veluriyam Capital currently holds you up as their ruler. Not even Emperor
Petalpluck and Emperor Mountaincrush have any objections. You should seize this
golden opportunity to solidify your rule. Once your reputation takes root in
everyone’s hearts, no one will be able to rebel against you.” Cloadsoar Monarch
advised.
“Don’t worry, Emperor Peafowl entrusted this task to me, so
there’s no way I’ll shirk my duties. However, please don’t misinterpret Emperor
Peafowl’s intentions. He had a reason for indulging Emperor Shura. That being
said, the past is in the past, so we should focus on the present. There are two
things we must do for now. One, we need to form the pill dao academy. Two, we
need to locate Emperor Peafowl. Though I don’t believe His Majesty is dead, I
don’t think Emperor Shura would’ve dared rebel so brazenly if Emperor Peafowl
was perfectly unharmed. He may very well have something to do with His
Majesty’s disappearance. At the very least, Emperor Pillzenith and the Eternal
Celestial Capital’s appearance during the Vassal Meeting was no coincidence.”
Jiang Chen spoke frankly since they were all on the same side.
Cloudsoar Monarch’s forehead creased. “Do you mean to say
that they’ve ambushed His Majesty?”
“Emperor Peafowl’s cultivation is unparalleled. Shura can’t
possibly have the gall to harm His Majesty, right?” Everyone spoke their minds.
Although all they thought that Jiang Chen’s suspicion was reasonable, their
trust in Emperor Peafowl was so deep that it was almost zealotry. None of them
believed that there was anyone who could truly harm Emperor Peafowl.
Jiang Chen sighed quietly. “I sure hope that I’m wrong in
this regard. For now, please pay attention to your surroundings and avoid
making trips out of the capital as much as you can. I’m worried that Emperor
Shura may try something drastic in his desperation.”
“Yes, we should all watch our backs.”
Chronobalance Monarch looked a little puzzled. “Young lord,
we had the upper hand back then, haven’t we? Why didn’t we tried to kill
Emperor Shura and pull out the thorn in our side once and for all?”
Jiang Chen broke into a smile. “Our advantage wasn’t as
great as you think. For example Emperor Pillzenith and the Eternal Celestial
Capital may have interfered. Although we had the advantage of numbers, there’s
no telling if Emperor Petalpluck and Emperor Mountaincrush would exert
themselves to the utmost. It would’ve been a pyrrhic victory even if we won.
That’s absolutely something I didn’t want to see. Our enemies would rise
against us if we were wounded, and that may even lead to a complete collapse.”
“The young lord’s words make sense. A pyrrhic victory isn’t
worth it.” Cloudsoar Monarch nodded.
“Alright, let’s turn our attention back to the academy.
Where should it be built? How big should the scale be? Please speak your minds
freely, everyone.”
“We should establish the academy in a more prestigious part
of Veluriyam Capital. In this subordinate’s eyes, the Luojia Mountain Range is
a good location. Large plains can be found at the foot of the mountain, and
three rivers converge into a lake. It is a wonderful location with excellent
fengshui, and it is very close to Sacred Peafowl Mountain. This makes it
convenient for you to keep an eye on the academy, young lord.”
“I suggest that we erect a sculpture of the young lord in
the academy. The students should always be reminded that young lord Zhen is the
one who founded the academy.”
“You’re right, that’s a good idea.”
“As for the scale, well, it can’t be too small. I suppose we
can split construction into several stages. For now, we’ll focus on enrolling
the youths of Veluriyam Capital. We can consider pill dao geniuses from the
surrounding regions after that.”
“Why must we accept geniuses from other regions?” Plumscore
Monarch was a little reluctant.
Jiang Chen replied with a smile. “I suppose you all want an
explanation. Very well, let me speak of when I visited Pillfire City. The
biggest impression I walked away with was that Pillfire is a lot more active
than Veluriyam. This activity is expressed in the exchange of all areas of
study. In other words, Pillfire City is better at attracting surrounding
experts because they offer a greater degree of freedom and attractive options.
Do any of you know why that’s the case?”
“Please enlighten us, young lord.”
“The answer is very simple, really. Pillfire City is simply
more open than Veluriyam Capital. True their pill dao foundation is deep, but
no one power can grow strong on its own without outside help. That is why
Pillfire puts great emphasis in expanding their influence in their territory,
stretching out to the mid and southern regions of the Upper Eight Regions. Do
any of you know why even areas closer to us prefer Pillfire City instead?”
Jiang Chen’s subordinates fell silent as they considered the
young lord’s words. It wasn’t like they’d never thought about this when Emperor
Peafowl was still in power. They just hadn’t thought about that deeply until
today.
Mo Wushuang also sighed. “As you all know, I loathe Emperor
Pillzenith. You might even call him my lifelong enemy. However, even I admit
that Pillfire City’s operation methods are quite impressive. The surrounding
regions are very loyal to Pillfire not because Emperor Pillzenith is that
impressive, but because Pillfire’s fame and foundation are deeply rooted in
their hearts.”
“Do you mean that the ultimate objective of our pill dao
academy is to attract geniuses from all across the land, young lord? Are we
trying to make Veluriyam Capital everyone’s top choice in the Upper Eight
Regions, and even the entire human domain?”
“That’s exactly what I’m planning. However, I need
everyone’s cooperation to make it come true.” Jiang Chen sighed.
