Chapter 1673: Yama's Decree

Qin Guang Wang raised an eyebrow, his expression as astonished as the judge and the Wuchang had been that day, filled with surprise and wonder.

"Wife?" he said.

As the ruler of the first hall, he oversaw all matters in the Yin Cao underworld, yet he had never heard of the Nai He Bridge god getting married. It was truly unprecedented.

"I humbly request your approval, Yan Luo," Ye Chen said, bowing deeply once more.

"The Nai He Bridge god was appointed by me personally. If I revoke it so easily, where would my authority stand?" Qin Guang Wang snorted coldly, his face fierce and intimidating.

Ye Chen fell silent, lowering his head slightly, his eyes dropping with it.

His request was simple, but it indeed undermined Yan Luo's dignity.

Had he not been the Desolate Ancient Sacred Body with a faint connection to the emperor, Qin Guang Wang would have already struck him down with a single palm.

As he had anticipated, this matter would not go as smoothly as imagined. Taking Chu Ling away would not be easy.

"Considering your ties to the emperor, I will give you a chance," Qin Guang Wang said lightly, his words echoing with ethereal authority.

At these words, Ye Chen's downcast eyes instantly brightened.

If Qin Guang Wang was willing to relent, there was hope—anything was possible.

Qin Guang Wang waved his hand, summoning a massive cloud ladder.

The ladder had nine layers, each one a step leading upward.

Every step was pitch black, engraved with divine patterns.

Lightning tore across it, raining down in torrents, while dark yin flames surged wildly, intertwining with the lightning in a frenzied dance.

Ye Chen narrowed his eyes, observing the cloud ladder. It bore some resemblance to the Tongtian Road from the three sects' grand competition.

The pressure on these nine layers would grow stronger with each level, and since it was set by Yan Luo, it was undoubtedly extraordinarily terrifying.

"If you can reach the ninth layer, I will give you the Yan Luo Ling," Qin Guang Wang said calmly, suspending a token on the ninth layer's platform. Obtaining it would allow Ye Chen to take Chu Ling away.

"You are the Yan Luo of the first hall. Your word must be your bond," Ye Chen said, looking up at Qin Guang Wang. Though he knew the nine-layer cloud ladder was formidable, he felt no fear—his resolve was harder than iron or stone.

"My words are as firm as nine tripods," Qin Guang Wang stroked his beard. "Think carefully. Stepping onto the cloud ladder might mean death."

"I will live to claim the Yan Luo Ling," Ye Chen replied resolutely, then stepped forward onto the first layer.

Immediately, an invisible pressure descended upon him with a thunderous force.

Even though Ye Chen had mentally prepared himself, it still made his body stagger, his legs bend, and his bones ache intensely.

"First layer," Ye Chen gritted his teeth and straightened his legs, then lifted his foot to step onto the second layer.

Perhaps due to the immense weight on his body or the overwhelming pressure, his foot landed with a loud bang on the cloud ladder.

"Third layer." With a cold hum, Ye Chen took another step, advancing to the third layer with fierce determination.

The pressure here was even greater than on the second layer. Terrifying lightning tore at his sacred body, carving deep gashes into it.

His sacred body's recovery was powerful, healing the wounds rapidly, but the pressure still scattered his golden vital energy.

"Fourth layer." Ye Chen roared, stepping forward again.

As soon as his foot touched down, his legs burst open, revealing bloody gashes that exposed his sinews and bones.

"Fifth layer." Ye Chen shouted, taking another step.

He was breathing heavily, blood surging from his mouth. The pressure on this layer was extremely formidable, nearing the level of a great saint.

Additionally, a mysterious and terrifying force was at play.

For the first time, he paused, his sacred bones cracking under the pressure, and his divine light nearly extinguished.

It felt as if he were carrying a massive mountain on his back, bending him over. Any moment of relaxation could grind him to dust.

Qin Guang Wang sat watching from above, his face showing surprise.

He knew better than anyone how terrifying the nine-layer cloud ladder was.

In the past, when selecting underworld generals, he had used this as a test.

Even the strongest, like Yan Ming Jiang, had only managed three layers, taking three full days, and hadn't dared attempt the fourth.

Yet this man had reached the fifth layer in one breath, without even pausing.

Just this feat alone made him superior to Qin Guang Wang's nine underworld generals. Reaching five layers in a row was inconceivable—utterly monstrous.

"Sixth layer." As Qin Guang Wang marveled, he heard Ye Chen's roar. After resting only three to five seconds, Ye Chen lifted his foot again.

With a boom, he stepped onto the sixth layer.

As his feet landed, he dropped to one knee with a thud—not willingly, but forced by the pressure.

His legs shattered into bloody fragments, his spine cracked, and blood overflowed from his mouth, nose, eyes, and ears.

The pressure on the sixth layer had entered the quasi-emperor realm.

If it were an ordinary saint, they would have been pulverized. Even Ye Chen, as strong as he was, was forced to kneel, highlighting the horror.

"Sacred Body, activate." He roared inwardly, unleashing his Sacred Body.

Nine divine patterns etched across his forehead, and runes covered his sacred bones, drawing out his Sacred Body's potential to the extreme.

His fractured sacred bones reformed, his severed meridians reconnected, and his torn sacred body healed.

Qin Guang Wang's eyes gleamed as he scrutinized Ye Chen's origin.

This Sacred Body state was unlike any he had seen, similar to a bloodline limit but not reaching the point of invulnerability.

"Seventh layer." Ye Chen shouted coldly, striding forward.

He lingered on the seventh layer for only a moment before stepping to the eighth.

These two steps left Qin Guang Wang's mouth twitching in shock, and the ghost kings in the hall stared wide-eyed in disbelief.

Once again, Ye Chen stopped. The pressure on the eighth layer was overwhelmingly savage, completely dispersing his Sacred Body state.

His chest bones shattered, fragments flying out, followed by his spine, all exposed.

He looked less like a person and more like a mass of bloody flesh, evoking gasps and chills from onlookers.

For a full ten seconds, he didn't move, his gaze fixed on the ninth layer—or more precisely, on the Yan Luo Ling hovering there.

Only one layer remained, and the Yan Luo Ling was just a step away, yet it felt like an insurmountable chasm.

"If you don't want to die, turn back!" Qin Guang Wang said indifferently, gazing down at Ye Chen, his words echoing endlessly through the hall.

If Ye Chen truly attempted the ninth layer, he might perish, and Qin Guang Wang wouldn't want to explain that to the emperor.

Yan Luo had supreme dignity, but concessions were necessary when due.

Of course, he wouldn't remove the cloud ladder; this was just his way of persuading retreat. After all, such a talent couldn't be allowed to die.

Ye Chen didn't respond—in fact, his calm was almost eerie.

His blood-red eyes were blurred, his divine sea buzzing, his skull on the verge of exploding, and his sacred bones crumbling inch by inch. He burned his vital blood repeatedly to keep going.

His expression was wild, even distorted.

Or perhaps, he was simply a madman through and through.

Just as he had crossed the Nai He Bridge in the City of No Tears years ago, where even quasi-emperor had fallen, he had endured to the end.

The nine-layer cloud ladder was strikingly similar to that ordeal. Having survived the bridge, he feared no such trials.

"Yan Luo Ling, I must have the Yan Luo Ling." Blood poured from his mouth as he roared inwardly, his unyielding will igniting.

With both hands on the ground, he dragged his mangled sacred body, crawling toward the ninth layer like a beast.

His fresh blood trickled down, staining the cloud ladder.

This sight even moved Qin Guang Wang.

Was the power of emotion in the world truly this profound? For one woman, willing to risk everything, even death, to take that final step?

"Ninth layer." Ye Chen let out a long howl, hauling his blood-soaked body onto the ninth layer of the cloud ladder.

His bloodied hand grasped the suspended Yan Luo Ling.

In that instant, his domineering sacred body was crushed into pulp.

The pressure vanished in a flash—he had succeeded. Spitting blood, he laughed wildly, like a deranged madman.

Qin Guang Wang grinned, even his Yan Luo composure shaken. This man, who could outdo the nine hall underworld generals, was indeed a heaven-defying monster.

Throughout the Yin Cao underworld, Ye Chen was the first saint-level being to reach the ninth layer, and perhaps the only one.

With a sigh, Qin Guang Wang waved his hand, dispersing the nine-layer cloud ladder. "Congratulations, you succeeded. You've truly surprised me."