Chapter 2196: The Emperor's Destruction

In the dim world of the Mo Zhu, chaos reigned supreme, with no laws or order left, everything reduced to utter primordial chaos. Lightning flashed and thunder roared as chaotic light rampaged everywhere.

Pfft!

High in the ethereal void, Mo Tian Di spat blood again, his demonic body exploding apart.

Before he could reshape his form, Ye Chen was already upon him, delivering a palm strike that sent Mo Tian Di hurtling eighty thousand li away.

The scene was eerily similar to before—Ye Chen struck palm after palm, each one more ferocious than the last, sending Mo Tian Di flying eighty thousand li each time, his blood splattering across the Mo Zhu world.

Ah!

Mo Tian Di roared in frenzied rage, his mind so unstable he could barely stand.

At this point, even his most powerful imperial divine abilities were useless, none could match the hardness of Ye Chen's palms. His demonic body was repeatedly shattered, reformed, and shattered again.

It had to be said, he was incredibly tough, and the remnant soul of a Tian Di was no joke. Defeating him was easy, but utterly exterminating him was difficult—he had far too many ways to preserve his life.

Ye Chen, from his first life, knew this all too well. Looking back to ancient times, the battle where he slew Mo Tian Di's true form had lasted nine days and nine nights before barely succeeding.

However, difficult as it was, it wasn't impossible. Compared to slaying Mo Tian Di's true form, destroying this remnant Tian Di soul was only a matter of time.

Pfft! Pfft!

His palm prints grew even stronger, driving Mo Tian Di all the way to the edge of the chaos. The remnant soul of the heavenly demon was disintegrating, its soul power collapsing, unable to withstand Ye Chen's world-shaking assaults.

"How is this possible?" Nu Sheng Ti murmured, staring in a daze. She had vastly underestimated Ye Chen's first life—it was overwhelmingly powerful, beyond all reason.

After all, in the Mo Zhu world, Ye Chen's first life was suppressed, yet even under such conditions, he could still overpower Mo Tian Di. Just how terrifying was that emperor?

While she watched intently, the cultivators of Zhu Tian were glancing around nervously, their eyes darting left and right.

It was because the Qing Tian Mo Zhu, amid its rumbling, had started to sway side to side, as if on the verge of toppling over. It shook for over a dozen times but didn't fall, leaving those with obsessive tendencies itching to step up and give it a kick. How long was it going to keep wobbling?

"You think, if someone were to undergo a heavenly tribulation under the Qing Tian Mo Zhu, what would that look like?" Xiao Yuan Huang shouldered his Wujin iron staff and scratched his monkey fur.

This remark set many old-timers pondering. No one had ever tried it, so who knew what it would be like? But it would certainly be quite the spectacle.

Curious as they were, no one dared to attempt it. One wrong move, and they'd be wiped out by the annihilating halo emanating from the Mo Zhu. Better to keep their distance from that ominous black pillar.

Under the watchful eyes of all, the swaying Qing Tian Mo Zhu finally steadied itself, standing tall and vibrating with a hum.

Then, a beam of seven-colored immortal light shot out from the Mo Zhu—it was the Zhu Xian Jian, seemingly fleeing.

Almost simultaneously, the Xianwu Di Jian, Lingxiao Iron Stick, damaged Di Jian, and Chaos Shen Ding followed suit, bursting out as well.

"Suppress it!" Shen Jiang Tian Jiu shouted, and the numerous Zhun Di mobilized their imperial artifacts in unison.

However, before the imperial artifacts could unleash their immortal light, the Zhu Xian Jian shattered the void and escaped into a spatial black hole. Its ability to flee was unmatched in the world.

In the instant the black hole began to close, the Xianwu Di Jian, Lingxiao Iron Stick, damaged Di Jian, and Chaos Ding charged in after it.

Everything happened in a flash, too fast for the Zhu Tian cultivators to react. The imperial artifacts that wanted to join the fight arrived too late and couldn't enter the black hole.

Boom! Bang! Boom!

Soon, rumbling echoes resounded from the ethereal void, though the source was unseen. It was clear that the Zhu Xian Jian and the others were duking it out inside the black hole.

It was four against one, relentlessly chasing and striking the Zhu Xian Jian.

The most active was the Chaos Ding, always egging on the other three to charge ahead while it sneaked in attacks at the perfect moments. Getting smashed by it felt painfully satisfying.

As the void continued to rumble, the Zhu Tian cultivators turned their gaze back to the Mo Zhu.

With the Zhu Xian Jian and Xianwu Di Jian out, Ye Chen would likely emerge soon as well.

Unfortunately, there was still no sign of him—just the Mo Zhu humming and trembling, occasionally swaying side to side. Cracks spread across it, and chunks of Mo Zhu fragments broke off and flew away.

Though called fragments, they weren't small at all—each was as massive as a mountain, crashing down and flattening the earth.

Join me in death!

Amid the shaking, a roar echoed from within the Mo Zhu, carrying the might of an emperor's divine power, like ancient thunder that shook the heavens and earth. Weaker cultivators had their bodies explode on the spot.

Hearing this, the Zhu Tian cultivators felt their hearts tighten.

Clearly, the emperor of the Tian Mo Domain had been defeated and was making a final, desperate counterattack, intent on dragging Ye Chen down with him!

As they suspected, Mo Tian Di had lost. In his sinister laughter, he transformed into a mass of chaos, filling every corner of the Mo Zhu world and engulfing Ye Chen. Every strand of chaotic demonic energy carried destructive power and the remnants of the Tian Di's soul.

This was a Tian Di-level Dao technique, sacrificing his origin to become chaos. Once he self-destructed, anyone inside—be it immortal or god—would turn to chaotic dust with him.

Join me in death!

Join me in death!

These words echoed repeatedly through the Mo Zhu world, carrying an irresistible demonic force that disrupted Ye Chen's mind. A massive ghostly face appeared, covering the sky, formed by Mo Tian Di himself, twisting and laughing grotesquely.

Ye Chen stood firm, his brows furrowed. The reincarnation mark on his forehead was nearly completely extinguished, his imperial combat power plummeting once more. Mo Tian Di's technique for dragging others to their death was something he had seen before—it was indeed domineering.

Join me in death!

Mo Tian Di laughed hideously, his teeth bared in a grin. Being able to perish alongside Ye Chen's first life filled him with mad joy. Victory or defeat no longer mattered—what counted was taking the one he hated most with him.

With that, the twisted sky-covering ghostly face exploded violently, and the chaos he had become ignited with chaotic light, powerful enough to destroy all in existence, all directed at Ye Chen. The entire Mo Zhu world crumbled inch by inch, and the Qing Tian Mo Zhu began to fall apart.

Boom!

With a tremendous roar, the vibrating Qing Tian Mo Zhu finally collapsed, its fragments scattering everywhere and turning to flying ash as they fell.

"Ye Chen!" The women cried out, screaming hysterically as they rushed toward it like mad.

But from the collapsing Qing Tian Mo Zhu, an annihilating halo emerged, darker and more intense than any before.

Pfft!

The women were flung back, with those like Shangguan Yu'er and Xuan Nu nearly perishing in it.

Wherever the halo passed, everything turned to ash, even the barrier formed by imperial artifacts nearly shattering from the impact. This was merely the aftermath—if all of Mo Tian Di's self-destruction power had been directed at the Wan Yu, it would have been a catastrophic disaster.

Mo Tian Di met his end, laughing wildly without restraint, fading completely into historical dust.

In his final moment, his roar was one of resentment and fury. Millennia ago, he had been utterly defeated, and in this battle that spanned ages, his defeat was even more devastating, forcing him to self-destruct and pitifully drag his enemy down with him.

Only after some time did the heavens and earth fall silent.

With the Qing Tian Mo Zhu's destruction, another halo spread out like an invisible hand, sweeping over the Ling Yu and Wan Yu. Those transformed by the heavenly demon, including the Zaohua Shen Wang, returned to normal, and the hidden heavenly demon origins within people dissipated as well.

Once the smoke cleared, on the ruined, scorched ground, the women's figures could be seen, collapsed and sprawled out, each clutching a jade tablet, tears streaming down their faces.

It was Ye Chen's yuan shen jade tablet, now shattered, its last flicker of light extinguished. This meant their Ye Chen was dead, buried in the Qing Tian Mo Zhu, forever a shadow in their memories.

The Zhu Tian cultivators trembled, their faces pale as they stood in silence, unmoving, gazing at the spot where the Mo Zhu had exploded. Even an emperor had died—Ye Chen had no chance of survival.

The people of Da Chu were choked with tears, their tenth sovereign having fallen in battle, without even a final glimpse of him.

Ah!

The Zhun Di sighed, turning away, unable to bear the sight any longer.

Nu Sheng Ti's body shuddered, two lines of crystalline tears tracing her exquisite features. The little Sheng Ti who had made her heart bloom was gone, his soul scattered in the Mo Zhu. His death was something she couldn't escape blame for—or rather, it was she who had sent him down that path of no return. Now, the world had no Ye Chen.

In the Yin Cao Di Fu, Di Huang's divine eyes burned intensely, fixed on the cracks in the Ming Realm, hoping that the little Sheng Ti might die into the underworld again. As long as he reached the Ming Realm, there was hope—he had crossed the six paths of reincarnation before, and he could do it again.

But after watching and waiting, there was no sign of Ye Chen's soul.

Meanwhile, Ming Di stared at the Tian Jie. If he didn't die into the Ming Realm, perhaps he could die into the Tian Jie, and from there, return to Zhu Tian, much like the Ming Realm.

Unfortunately, there was nothing.

Ming Di's imperial eyes dimmed slightly, his face turning ashen.

The great war had ended in utter devastation. Da Chu's tenth sovereign had fallen, and countless transformed by the heavenly demon had been sacrificed by Mo Tian Di.

Perhaps the world didn't know, but beyond that, another supreme emperor—Ye Chen's first life—had completely turned to historical dust in this cross-reincarnation battle.

As Ming Di had said, he was dead, and this time, more thoroughly than ever, unable to manifest in the world again. His feats were legendary, fighting across reincarnations and forcing Mo Tian Di to self-destruct.

In the Ling Yu, cries of grief echoed endlessly.

Qing Luan knelt before the ruins of Qing Luan Immortal Mountain, sobbing her heart out.

Like her, many others knelt on the ground, wailing loudly. What had been a prosperous immortal realm was now stained red with blood, piled with corpses and rivers of blood. Anyone who saw it would be horrified.

After the war, the Zhu Tian cultivators set out on their return journey, a somber melancholy enveloping all hearts.

This battle spread throughout Zhu Tian, and upon hearing of Ye Chen's death, whether elders or juniors, all bowed respectfully toward the Ling Yu. The lineage of the Huang Gu Sheng Ti was worthy of admiration.

On the way back, Chu Xuan, Chu Ling, and the others were sealed. Ye Chen's death had struck the women too hard—they could dissipate into the Dao at any moment or follow him in death.

Their faces were heart-wrenchingly beautiful in their sorrow. Heaven had toyed with the mortal world once more, forging romance after romance, only to leave them in ruins.

Once again, Xie Yun, Xiong Er, Xiao Yuan Huang, and their group of lively companions hung their heads, sunk into a deathly silence, no longer in the mood for antics.

Also sealed was the Zaohua Shen Wang, now restored to his original appearance.

As for Nu Sheng Ti, she was sealed most heavily, suppressed by nine imperial artifacts and bound with ninety thousand seals.

Her expression was equally desolate, as if she had lost her soul, her eyes dull and lifeless. She allowed the Zhun Di to seal her without resistance or a word, like a statue carved from ice.

Donghuang Taiyi's face was impassive as she took her directly to Da Chu, with the Zhun Di following. The war was over, the heavenly demon origin crisis resolved—it was time to thoroughly interrogate this Nu Sheng Ti, at least to uncover her origins and why she had sided with the heavenly demon.