Chapter 1481: One Versus Four Emperors

"Impossible, this is impossible," Kunpeng and Jinwu roared like mad dogs.

The great emperors of their two clans were within the heavenly tribulation, summoned by the Huanggu Shengti. What bitter irony, what immense humiliation – to encounter their own ancestors in someone else's tribulation, something they had never experienced in their own.

Their pride shattered completely in that instant. Ye Chen no longer saw them as opponents; his true adversaries were their ancestral great emperors, supreme beings who looked down upon all.

"Four great emperors, you truly think highly of this junior." Ye Chen's battle blood surged like fire, his combat power erupting to its absolute peak without any reservation.

Two hundred years ago, his Huangjing Tianjie had summoned the Donghua Nüdi, who alone had beaten him half to death. A hundred years ago, his Zhunsheng Tianjie had brought forth the Dou Zhan Sheng Huang and Taixu Long Di, leaving him with barely nine lives remaining. Now, he faced not just one or two, but four emperor dao law bodies—former supreme rulers of the myriad realms, who had once commanded all spirits and were invincible.

One became two, two became four; he strongly suspected his Zhunsheng Wang Jie would summon eight emperor dao bodies, the Sheng Wang Jie sixteen, the Dasheng Jie thirty-two, and the Zhundi Jie sixty-four. He realized the heavens intended for him to challenge every single one of the Xuanhuang 130 emperors.

It was just a fleeting thought, nothing more. His cultivation would stop at the Sheng Ren realm; he would never advance to Zhunsheng Wang, let alone the later stages of Sheng Wang, Dasheng, or Zhundi.

"Victory means ascending to the Lingxiao Xianque; defeat means descending to the Jiuyou Huangquan." Ye Chen's killing sword trembled in his hand as he stood on the golden sacred sea, the Chaos Shen Ding hovering above his head, unfolding Chaos visions.

Whether it was the Donghua Nüdi from his past Huangjing Jie, the Taixu Long Di and Dou Zhan Sheng Huang from his Zhunsheng Jie, or now the Kunpeng Dadi, Jinwu Dadi, Xuanwu Dadi, and Qilin Dadi—none of them were the true emperors, but emperor dao imprints fused into the heavens countless eons ago.

In essence, these four emperor dao law bodies were at the Sheng Ren realm, on the same level as him.

Ye Chen was resolved: to survive, he had to slay these four emperors of his own level. It was still a battle between the young Shengti and the young great emperors, but this time, it was one against four.

The heavens trembled, unable to bear the pressure of the four emperors. Annihilation spread rampant, plunging everything into chaos.

The four emperors moved, advancing from the east, west, south, and north towards the center. Their bodies were as heavy as mountains, making the earth rumble with each step, while emperor dao laws danced around them, each thread surpassing the Dao itself.

Jinwu Dadi struck first, slashing out a silver river that cleaved through the vast heavens and earth. It was a sword strike to sever the heavens and destroy the earth, infused with imperial laws and forms, elevating countless Dao principles to their utmost. Jinwu Dadi was a marvel, his name still instilling fear across the realms.

Ye Chen dared not slacken, raising his sword to sever the river. He held a grudge against the Jinwu clan, yet he still revered Jinwu Dadi, the ancient supreme who had once guarded all living beings.

He sighed that as descendants of an emperor, the Jinwu clan’s actions today tarnished their ancestor’s glorious legacy, casting a dark shadow on the emperor’s immortal myth.

Kunpeng Dadi arrived next, pressing down with a palm that weighed like a massive mountain range, forcing Ye Chen’s legs to bend and his sacred body to crack, with brilliant sacred blood spurting forth.

Ye Chen’s vital energy surged, flooding his meridians to withstand the heavenly palm.

He revered Kunpeng Dadi just as much, but despised his descendants, who, like the Jinwu clan, disgraced their ancestor’s mighty name. The great emperor who shook history would never have imagined his lineage falling so low.

In a momentary lapse, Xuanwu Dadi attacked, his palm like a divine blade, dominating the heavens and earth.

Ye Chen gritted his teeth and blocked the palm, countering with his Nine Dao Bahuang Fist combined as one, returning a punch to Xuanwu Dadi.

Yet, his fierce punch was like striking iron; it failed to harm Xuanwu Dadi and instead shattered his own hand bones, sending radiant sacred blood flying.

Ye Chen inwardly marveled: Xuanwu Dadi lived up to his reputation as one of the Xuanhuang 130 emperors renowned for defense. His defenses were overwhelmingly powerful, nearly impossible for anyone of the same level to breach.

In that instant, Qilin Dadi charged in, his finger of annihilation pulverizing everything and piercing Ye Chen’s chest.

Sacred blood sprayed in fine strands, each drop dazzling. Though the four emperors were mere law bodies, their coordination was flawless, their emperor dao laws intertwining to weave ancient visions—vast prehistoric lands.

Ye Chen’s expression turned grave; from this brief clash, he understood the emperors’ might. Even as young great emperors at the Sheng Ren level, they had the right to overlook their eras; otherwise, they would not have defied the heavens to attain emperorship.

He dared not underestimate them; those who became emperors were no ordinary figures, standing shoulder to shoulder with the Dao, or even surpassing it. They were the pinnacle of the Dao.

Without hesitation, he waved his hand, sending countless small flying daggers scattering in all directions. They hovered in the sky and embedded in the ground, placed irregularly but in great numbers.

This was preparation for the Yitian Huandi technique—or rather, he had no intention of directly confronting the four emperor dao bodies. Instead, he planned to use the mysteries of Yitian Huandi to buy time.

This was his strategy: to survive, he could either slay the four emperors or endure until the tribulation’s time limit ended. Clearly, the latter was more feasible; facing four at once, he stood no chance.

Qilin Dadi advanced, delivering another heaven-severing sword strike—an emperor dao kill move.

Ye Chen avoided it outright, swapping positions with a flying dagger a thousand zhang away to evade the fatal blow.

Xuanwu Dadi followed like a shadow, stepping through the sky with a dominating palm blade, but his strike met empty air, as Ye Chen had already switched places with another dagger.

Then Jinwu Dadi and Kunpeng Dadi arrived together, unleashing world-shaking divine abilities from afar.

Ye Chen’s movements remained elusive; he refused to engage, simply swapping positions with his daggers. His use of Yitian Huandi was masterful, darting chaotically through the air and ground, leaving no trace to follow.

"Does the Shengti also know the Feilei Shen Jue?" People around exclaimed, their expressions a mix of surprise and bewilderment.

"What Feilei Shen Jue? That’s Yitian Huandi," an astute elder stroked his beard. "Though this secret technique is being used with such fluidity, it rivals the Feilei Shen Jue."

"I thought we’d see an epic battle, but who knew Ye Chen would resort to this tactic?"

"What other tactic would he use?" Another elder glanced at the speaker. "Facing four young great emperors of the same level? Only a fool would fight head-on. Is he tired of living?"

"Shift, shift again." Amid the discussions, Ye Chen in the distant sky was thoroughly enjoying himself, cycling through over ten thousand small flying daggers, creating a dizzying display.

The four emperors pursued fiercely, their emperor dao secret techniques devastating, yet they failed to land a hit.

Ye Chen felt secretly relieved; at this rate, he could easily outlast the tribulation’s limit.

However, the four emperors were no mere figures. Even as law bodies without true intelligence, their combat instincts remained sharp. They struck repeatedly with emperor dao divine abilities, sealing off an eighty-thousand-zhang expanse of heaven and earth.

Jinwu Dadi swept out with a palm, pulverizing Ye Chen’s flying daggers into dust.

Now, Ye Chen’s path for Yitian Huandi was cut off; the emperor dao divine abilities had locked the space of this realm, making even his technique ineffective.