Chapter 118: Witness of the Era (15) |
Su Chen returned to the Wang family and informed them of everything concerning Wang Yunfei and the God-Slaying Hall.
With the Wang family's influence, it did not take long to gather intelligence from across the stars. The God-Slaying Hall was a supreme power that had long since set foot on the Path of Ascension. It had been founded by a group of prodigies with grand ambitions, and in its history, two Emperors who once reigned over the cosmos had emerged from its ranks.
The hall had five hall masters in total, each a renowned top-tier prodigy on the Path of Ascension. Some were invincible figures of the current era; others were ancient existences who had once contended with Great Emperors of old, only to be defeated and seal themselves away for generation after generation. These were no mere regional hegemons like those who claimed invincibility within the Heavenly Profound Domain. The monsters of the God-Slaying Hall had truly clashed with Great Emperors on the Dao.
Su Chen narrowed his eyes. According to the intelligence, one of the Hall's hall masters bore the name Lin Zhan. Although Wang Yunfei had not killed Lin Zhan, he had slain another ancient monster who had revived in this great era—one who, with a sacred body, had defied a Saint King. Amid the hall's encirclement and pursuit, Wang Yunfei had escaped unscathed.
Still, the Wang family felt no real concern.
The Emperor Palace had already begun to move against the God-Slaying Hall. Prodigies who had once walked the Path of Ascension were taking action. A power that had given birth to Emperors possessed depths far beyond ordinary understanding, and that road held its own share of monsters who had contended with Great Emperors.
"So they want to use my life to force Wang Yunfei out… Lin Zhan's doing?"
Su Chen had never imagined that the once open-hearted, fortune-favored Lin Zhan—unable to hide even the smallest thought—would one day grow so ruthless. Yet he felt no regret. Facing this cold, merciless, anything-goes version of Lin Zhan, Su Chen felt like he was regarding a piece of artwork he had meticulously carved himself. He had utterly destroyed everything Lin Zhan once possessed. In this contest against a child of destiny that had stretched across millennia, neither had truly lost, and neither had truly won.
Su Chen returned to seclusion. In other eras, the Nirvana realm would mark one as a true powerhouse, but in this golden great era, anyone short of a Saint was nothing more than an ant.
Even the hall's second hall master—Lin Zhan himself—personally took action, only to be blocked by a formidable enemy.
Three hundred years passed in the blink of an eye.
Su Chen's cultivation reached its absolute peak. Both his vital blood and true essence had been tempered to perfection; seated in meditation, his body resembled an unshakable Mount Tai.
"It's time to become a Saint."
Sensing that the moment had arrived, Su Chen no longer restrained his aura. The clear sky for thousands of miles around darkened instantly. Thunder roared as saintly tribulations descended from above, as though intent on cleaving the world apart and returning it to primal chaos. The entire region spanning over a thousand miles turned into a sea of lightning.
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High above, two figures appeared, their auras profound and unfathomable—the hidden foundations of the Wang family, two Saint Kings.
Only after the two ancestors revealed themselves did the covetous presences lurking in every direction finally vanish completely.
"Our Wang family will soon gain another Saint."
"Indeed. Though Wang Chen lacks the dazzling brilliance of his brother Wang Yunfei, he possesses the qualifications of a Saint King. Once he matures, even after we old fellows pass on, he will be able to ensure the Wang family prospers for thousands of years."
"A pair of brothers—truly the greatest gift bestowed upon our Wang family for rising in this great era."
"…"
Su Chen bathed in the thunder tribulation. Bolt after bolt hammered his body until his flesh turned to charred black coal. As the heavenly tribulation gradually faded, that blackened form began its transformation.
One year later, Su Chen emerged from seclusion. Dao rhythms swirled around him; with every gesture, heaven and earth rose and fell in response. In this life, his breakthrough to Saint came without fanfare or storm—everything flowed naturally. Five hundred years, and he had become a Saint.
A Saint enjoyed five thousand years of lifespan. Su Chen had used less than a tenth of that span to reach the Saint realm, establishing himself as one of the foremost figures across the five domains of the Heavenly Profound. He assumed the position of the current patriarch of the Wang family.
In this great era, who would rise to command the tides?
Su Chen gazed toward the distant heavens beyond. He could feel it—that terrifying suppression growing looser by the day. When it finally vanished entirely, the most dreadful event would descend.
An event recorded in history with only the briefest stroke, yet soaked in the blood of countless beings, forged from the tears and agony of innumerable lives.
Dark Turmoil.
Only after assuming the role of Wang family patriarch did Su Chen learn of such a horrifying truth. Some of the ancient "Emperors" had never truly died. They severed their own dao paths, erased every trace of themselves from the imprint of heaven and earth, and willingly fell from that supreme realm—all for the faint hope of continued existence. While a reigning Great Emperor lived, they remained hidden from the world. But once that Emperor aged or perished, those once-revered figures—former objects of universal awe—would turn into executioners of all living things.
Nor were these horrors limited to the legendary fallen Emperors. There were also decayed Saints who refused to accept death. Though they could no longer endure in the world for long, they would resort to any means necessary to cling to life.
Confronted with this brutal reality, Su Chen felt both bewilderment and rage. If more and more "Emperors" refused to die and kept prolonging their wretched existence, this heaven and earth would inevitably slide toward decline and eventual annihilation.
"Why would those once-invincible Emperors fail to see through even life and death? Or is there some temptation so great that it drives them to persist, age after age?"
Confusion settled in Su Chen's heart. Upon becoming a Saint, he suddenly realized the world was far more complex and merciless than he had ever imagined.
Another three hundred years slipped by.
Su Chen often turned his eyes to the starry sky. At times, he longed to set foot on that path himself.
Yet in this great era, the Wang family's new generation of prodigies had fared poorly. The prodigies who once clashed with Wang Yunfei gradually stepped into the Saint realm. Saints appeared one after another across the Heavenly Profound Domain, carving up the era's fortune. But the qi of fortune gathered overwhelmingly in the Central Continent; the other four domains grew thin. For the next generation of prodigies outside the Central Continent, breaking through to Saint became exceptionally difficult.
The other four domains soon noticed the imbalance. An ancient Great Saint from the Northern Domain joined forces with powerhouses from the four domains to pressure the Central Continent, demanding that the Emperor Palace and its many forces redistribute the qi of fortune.
All the major powers of the Central Continent attended the gathering. As the Wang family patriarch, Su Chen was naturally present.
"Today, the pattern of the five domains must be leveled! You in Central Continent monopolize ninety percent of the world's dao opportunities. Where does that leave the cultivators of the other four domains?"
The Northern Domain's ancient Great Saint spoke with iron force, his face twisted in murderous intent. "If not, then even if it means igniting an Emperor War and shattering the Central Continent, we will pay the price without hesitation!"
Su Chen's heart sank.
That day had finally arrived. No one was willing to sit and wait for death.