Chapter 1851: Sixteen Emperors

Immediately, dark storm clouds gathered like a vast black curtain, shrouding the vast starry sky. Bolts of lightning tore through the darkness, twisting like serpents and weaving together within the clouds.

Soon after, countless lightning bolts descended like a thunderous waterfall, pouring from the nine heavens and forming a massive sea of thunder.

Ye Chen activated his Overlord Body, healing his wounds as he charged straight into the heavens. One after another, the towering thunderbolts were blasted apart by him.

Though gravely injured and suffering from backlash, this guy remained terrifyingly fierce, fighting his way upward relentlessly.

The billions of thunderbolts could not destroy his body; instead, they refined his sacred physique into something indestructible, radiating brilliant golden light.

Zhun Di, the old man, stroked his beard and muttered, "I don't know why, but I just feel like something's missing."

Chi Yangzi said meaningfully, "Great minds think alike. In past heavenly tribulations, he always dragged hundreds of thousands along with him. This time, it's just him alone—it's really not what we're used to."

It's a good thing Ye Chen didn't hear that; otherwise, he might have come over and complained about the lack of company, saying something like, "Not enough people? Let me pull you in for some fun."

"The sacred body’s heavenly tribulation is truly domineering," Ming Jue said with a tsk, rubbing his hands. "It's probably not that simple."

Bai Zhi added, "It's likely to summon the emperor's dao principles." Having been in the various heavens for so long, she had heard some legends.

Not just them—everyone present thought the same, especially those from the emperor's dao lineages, who harbored a vague sense of anticipation.

Amid the discussions, Ye Chen fell from the void of the starry sky, struck down by a bolt of pitch-black lightning.

His immense power had provoked the fury of the heavens, making the thunder tribulation even stronger. All sorts of lightning appeared, painting a dazzling scene.

Though the scene was dazzling, it was also devastating. Even Ye Chen was struck so hard that blood and bones flew everywhere, nearly perishing in the starry sky. The cultivators from all directions trembled—the heavenly tribulation was overwhelmingly domineering.

The heavens were enraged, and so was Ye Chen. He grew fiercer with each battle, charging through the onslaught of thunderbolts while launching attacks.

His hatred for the heavens had reached its peak when he saw Ye Fan suffer heavenly punishment. If not for this heartless heaven, his child wouldn't have endured such terrible suffering.

Driven by that hatred, his assaults became even more frenzied, regardless of the cost, swinging his fists with reckless abandon.

As the tribulation refined his sacred body, every wound became a dao mark, aiding his transformation and rebirth.

At some point, the torrents of thunder in the sky weakened significantly, the bolts no longer as ferocious as before.

As time passed, the thunder diminished until it vanished completely into the starry sky, with not a single bolt left.

Ye Chen stood tall in the starry sky like an unyielding monument, impervious to any force. His sacred body was covered in scars, with lingering electricity around the wounds.

His aura of killing intent and malice not only persisted but grew thicker, causing the starry sky to tremble.

With the lightning gone, everyone in the starry sky straightened up, their eyes sharpening with focus.

They all knew the heavenly tribulation wasn't over—or rather, for the desolate ancient sacred body, it was only just beginning.

Sure enough, in that shattered expanse of starry sky, besides Ye Chen, another figure appeared, formed from the gathering of silent, destructive lightning.

It was a young man with a majestic back, as sturdy as a mountain, radiating ultimate emperor's might, with emperor's dao principles dancing around him.

Jiang Taixu’s body trembled violently, his immortal eyes flashing with divine light, his voice shaking with excitement, "Xian Yu Great Emperor."

Indeed, it was the emperor's dao manifestation of Xian Yu Great Emperor. As a member of the immortal clan, how could Jiang Taixu not recognize it?

The era ruled by Xian Yu Great Emperor was the most prosperous in the various heavens, a time when the myriad domains were almost free of war.

In terms of seniority, Jiang Taixu ranked higher than Xian Yu Great Emperor by many generations, since Jiang Taixu came from the primordial era, while Xian Yu Great Emperor was from ancient times.

But he was still a great emperor, an existence on par with the dao, and even Jiang Taixu couldn't hide his reverence.

"The second one has manifested," said the old Zhun Di, drawing everyone's gaze to the east.

Once again, silent lightning gathered under the watchful eyes of all, forming a human shape, though the features were indistinct.

It was undoubtedly a woman, with red hair like rippling waves, her divine form graceful and ethereal, like a dream, untouched by the mortal world, akin to a banished immortal from the nine heavens.

"Hong Lian." This time, it was Mo Yuan who was stirred, tears in his eyes, his voice hoarse and choked with sobs.

With that one word, "Hong Lian," everyone present understood.

She was Hong Lian Great Empress, the supreme beloved of Tun Tian Demon Venerable.

She was also the first female emperor in the history of the various heavens.

In ancient times, when Tun Tian Demon Venerable fell, Hong Lian Great Empress was enraged, sacrificing the red lotus karmic fire to burn the gods of the eight desolations.

Mo Yuan was already in tears. He might never have expected that their reunion after eternity would take this form. He was still Mo Yuan, but she was no longer Hong Lian Great Empress.

A missed opportunity meant eternity apart; on the other shore of the star river, he could never again see his Hong Lian with her world-shaking smile.

"Is the third one also a female emperor?" As Mo Yuan grieved, Jiu Xiao Zhenren exclaimed in surprise, his expression odd.

Yes, the third emperor's dao manifestation was another female emperor, her divine form no less than Hong Lian Great Empress's, untouched by worldly dust, her peerless beauty eclipsing all flowers.

"Yao Chi Great Empress." Yao Chi Xian Mu was deeply moved, of course recognizing Yao Chi Great Empress, a predecessor of Yao Chi.

Yao Chi Great Empress was the last great emperor of the desolate ancient period.

Her death plunged the various heavens into great chaos, and Sheng Ti Chen Zhan emerged from that era to end the turmoil, though it also led to the fall of the desolate ancient sacred body.

"Sister." Chen Yi’s eyes brimmed with tears as he stared blankly at Yao Chi Great Empress, his expression dazed and hazy.

In that instant, a long-sealed ancient memory surged into his divine sea: As a child, he and his sister depended on each other, stepping together into cultivation and embarking on a heaven-defying path. It was his sister who had personally sealed him away.

"Next one wouldn't be Xuan Yuan Great Emperor, would it?" Xuan Wu Huang stared at another side, where the fourth manifestation was forming.

It was another young man with an ordinary appearance.

He looked plain and ancient, his emperor's dao principles faintly visible, embodying the return to simplicity. His eyes were calm, yet they encompassed all things in the world.

"Father Emperor." The usually silent Wu Qing teared up—the fourth one was his father emperor, Xuan Yuan Great Emperor.

Xuan Yuan Great Emperor was the 130th emperor of Xuan Huang, recognized as the strongest great emperor in the world, his legends all mythical.

"Father Emperor." Tian Shuo also cried, his eyes full of tears as he stared westward, where the fifth emperor's dao manifestation appeared.

It was still a young man, with eyes like stars and black hair like a waterfall, standing like an ancient monument between heaven and earth.

Since it was Tian Shuo’s father emperor, it was Xuan Gu Great Emperor.

Hearing that title, everyone's hearts grew somber, and they bowed deeply toward the western starry sky.

Xuan Gu Great Emperor had single-handedly guarded the gate of the various heavens for eight hundred years. He was the only great emperor among the 130 of Xuan Huang who died in battle, immortalized forever.

A great emperor like him deserved the reverence of later generations.

One could say that without Xuan Gu Great Emperor, there would be no various heavens today. That great emperor exhausted his origin and fought to his last drop of emperor's blood to protect all living beings.

Now, the star sea surrounding Xuan Huang was the guardian that Xuan Gu Great Emperor had gathered for all living beings before his death.

"Father Emperor." Xiao Lu’s eyes were equally wet as the sixth emperor's dao manifestation coalesced.

It was Yan Emperor, the longest-lived among the 130 emperors of Xuan Huang, who had astonishingly lived a second life against the heavens.

In mere moments, the seventh emperor's dao manifestation emerged.

It was another young man, clad in a dao robe with the eight trigrams etched on his back. His entire form was blurred, his features obscured—perhaps by some force.

"Who is this emperor?" Everyone exchanged glances, then turned to the elders, hoping for an answer.

Just as all sought the truth, a howl like a ghost's wail echoed through the starry sky.

The one crying was no other than that rascal, Ren Wang.

Well then! With his cry, no one asked further.

Clearly, the seventh emperor's dao manifestation was Ren Huang, the second great emperor among the 130 of Xuan Huang, an absolute ancient-level emperor, second only to Pan Gu Great Emperor.

Everyone sighed in admiration. No wonder they couldn't see his true form—Ren Huang was the ancestor of the Zhoutian evolution. If he concealed himself, only another great emperor could see through it.

Besides Ren Wang, another person was crying, rushing from the distant starry sky like he was attending a funeral, his howls shaking heaven and earth.

It was an old daoist with a big beard; most present didn't recognize him, but Ye Chen did.

It was Yan Lao Dao, a distant relative of Ren Huang.

Before that howl faded, another one rose.

This time, it came from Kui Niu, and not just him—the Kui Niu Huang was also staring at the eighth emperor's dao manifestation.

That manifestation was noticeably larger than a normal person, bare-chested with thunder coiling around his body, wielding a battle axe, his frame so heavy that the starry sky trembled.

He was the great emperor of the Kui Niu clan, known as Kui Niu Great Emperor, renowned for his combat prowess.

"Will there be Di Zun?" The Nine Great Divine Generals, Jiu Jian Xian, and the various heavens' sword gods all tensed up, staring intently at the starry sky.

With eight emperors manifesting, who knew if Di Zun might follow.

Di Xuan was the most anxious of all—no one longed for her brother more after nine thousand years.

But they were disappointed. The ninth emperor's dao manifestation appeared, yet it wasn't Di Zun—it was a dragon, a massive azure dragon coiled up, larger than a mountain.

"Cang Long Great Emperor." Cang Long Huang and the Cang Long clan members wept with joy, kneeling the moment the manifestation formed and sobbing loudly.

Crying along with them were the holy emperors of the ancient clan, spirit clan, witch clan, and barbarian clan— their great emperors were manifesting one after another.

Witch Clan Great Emperor, Ancient Clan Great Emperor, Spirit Clan Great Emperor, and Barbarian Clan Great Emperor stood like four massive mountains, propping up the heavens.

After those four, two more manifested simultaneously: one a green dragon and one a vermilion bird, standing side by side.

No need to ask—they were Qing Long Great Emperor and Zhu Que Great Emperor.

Qing Long Huang and Zhu Que Huang were both trembling violently. Their hopes were finally fulfilled; witnessing their ancestral great emperors' dao manifestations was the highest honor.

"Fifteen emperor's dao manifestations now—wonder if there's one more." The cultivators from all directions stared sharply at the starry sky.

That starry sky did not disappoint. Amid everyone's gaze, lightning tore through again, forming another human figure.

His manifestation made Ye Chen’s brow furrow deeply—and not just him; everyone's brows creased.