Chapter 2259: Who's Your Mother

Chapter 2259: Who is That Woman?

Not just Long Wu, but even Xie Mo and the other quasi-emperors were stunned.

The Yong Sheng Ti bloodline was incredibly heaven-defying, appearing once in a million years. In a certain sense, it was rarer than the Huang Gu Sheng Ti and could rival the Hun Luan Ti. For two Yong Sheng Ti to exist in the same era—one male and one female—who would dare to believe it? This was far too coincidental.

"You bastard, are you trying to fool me?" Long Wu stared straight at Sheng Zun without glancing away. As the remnant soul of Tai Xu Long Di, he possessed fragments of the Dragon Emperor's memories and knew that the Yong Sheng Contract was a pact that only Yong Sheng Ti could form.

Legend had it that once the Yong Sheng Contract was signed, it could never be undone. The two Yong Sheng Ti involved would truly gain eternal life, though whether this was true remained unverified.

The level of this contract was unimaginably high. The chances of two Yong Sheng Ti existing in the same era were almost zero, especially one male and one female. Just considering these strict conditions revealed the contract's extraordinary nature.

"Do I look like I'm joking?" Sheng Zun glanced at Long Wu.

At that, Long Wu's face turned extremely grim in an instant. He had finally found Dongfang Yuling's reincarnation, only to discover she had signed a Yong Sheng Contract. She was his wife, so what did this mean if she had made such a pact with someone else? It made him feel like the third wheel.

What frustrated him even more was that he had no idea when Dongfang Yuling had signed the contract.

Meanwhile, Donghuang Tai Xin and the others narrowed their eyes, their gazes flickering with uncertainty as they exchanged looks. They recalled what Ye Chen had said that night—about a mysterious expert who had visited Long Wu's mountain peak, someone incredibly powerful who had defeated Ye Chen in a single move.

"Now it seems that mysterious expert must be the male Yong Sheng Ti," Di Lao said gravely.

"Since they are both Yong Sheng Ti, they would naturally sense each other and find their way to Da Chu. It's not surprising."

"That male Yong Sheng Ti might end up outlasting Tai Xu Long Di himself," Sheng Zun stroked his chin. "He couldn't have really lived for millions of years, could he?"

"It's just a rumor. He's probably self-sealed until this era."

"To sneak into Da Chu without being detected by imperial artifacts and sign the Yong Sheng Contract in secret—he's quite the talent." Di Lao smirked.

The quasi-emperors chatted back and forth, piecing together the whole story.

But Long Wu's expression grew even more serious. He knew there was no way to break the Yong Sheng Contract. This was a mess—he had finally found his wife, only for her to become someone else's.

"Train harder! If you want to win back your wife and break the Yong Sheng Contract, you'll have to fight that male Yong Sheng Ti." Sheng Zun patted Long Wu on the shoulder. "You should know all too well how powerful that male Yong Sheng Ti is if he could outlast Tai Xu Long Di."

"Gods will be slain, Buddhas will be slaughtered." Long Wu declared resolutely, then took Dongfang Yuling and left the small bamboo grove. His back was full of unyielding determination.

From him, the quasi-emperors seemed to see the shadow of the Dragon Emperor. The pressure from the male Yong Sheng Ti would push this big bald man to give it his all, or he wouldn't live up to the Dragon Emperor's reputation. Love would ignite the remnant soul of the Dragon Emperor with an invincible will to fight.

Although he had left, the quasi-emperors' hearts remained unsettled.

Two Yong Sheng Ti—it was hard to believe.

And this era was indeed extraordinary. It had three Huang Gu Sheng Ti, two Yao Chi Xian Ti, one Hun Luan Ti, plus the Tian Qian Zhi Ti, Tian Sha Gu Xing, Zao Hua Shen Ti, Tai Shang Xian Ti, Xian Shen Zhi Ti, and so many other dominant bloodlines. Now, with two more Yong Sheng Ti, all these heaven-defying bloodlines gathered in the same era—if nothing major happened, no one would believe it.

Boom! Rumble!

As they pondered, the rumbling grew even stronger.

More people from Da Chu ascended to the ninth heaven, drawing unprecedented heavenly tribulations. It was as if they had coordinated it, all choosing the same day to undergo their tribulations and see whose thunder was louder.

What Donghuang Tai Xin had said earlier made sense—if you didn't have the ability to evade the imperial path's absolute kill, don't even think about pulling the Hong Huang race into your tribulation, unless you could withstand the imperial path's absolute kill.

Precisely because they understood this, the people of Da Chu were eager to undergo their tribulations. They all wanted to reach their peak strength before the war with the Hong Huang race to face the brutal battle ahead.

It wasn't just Da Chu. The starry skies were filled with waves of rumbling thunder—heavenly tribulations involving vast star domains and ancient stars, as well as Xuan Huang Continent and various realms. Everyone sensed the crisis. Whether they had been suppressing their tribulations or had found opportunities for breakthroughs, they all decided to face their tribulations now.

Once that was done, they could prepare to fight the Hong Huang race.

On this day, the common people showed remarkable tacit understanding, with thunderous rumbles echoing across the myriad domains and heavens. This level of spectacle had no precedent in history—it was utterly unprecedented.

And so, nine days passed quietly.

However, the wave of tribulations didn't end. Every day, more or fewer people underwent their tribulations, making the heavens lively again after a few months of calm.

Peak quasi-emperors with keen insight realized what was happening—the imperial path's suppression was weakening. Breakthroughs in this period would be much easier than before, and new emperors might even emerge.

On the tenth day, Ye Chen, who had been sitting in meditation, finally awoke from his enlightenment.

After several months of comprehension, he had gained some insights. His eyes were even deeper, with Dao essence etched within, evolving principles. His Chaos Dao was more profound than a few months ago.

Unfortunately, he still hadn't found the opportunity to advance to quasi-emperor.

"What's this?"

"What's your problem? Get lost."

"A mere clone daring to act tough with us."

"Boss, someone's beating me up."

Before Ye Chen could even stretch, he heard the noisy commotion below. He could tell it was from those three troublemakers: Situ Nan, Xie Yun, and Xiong Er. They had undergone their tribulations in the past few days and were wandering around here.

Yawning, Ye Chen stepped down from the mountaintop.

At first glance, he saw the three of them pinning down his clone and pummeling it. Since they couldn't beat Ye Chen's true body, they figured they might as well take it out on his clone—or else they'd be ashamed.

Who knew what grudge they held, but they completely obliterated Ye Chen's clone.

Then, the three scoundrels surrounded the Nü Sheng Ti, circling the little girl and eyeing her up and down, fiddling with their fingers. Their expressions were odd.

After being in seclusion for a few months, coming back to Yu Nü Peak and finding an extra little kid was quite a surprise.

Their gazes were strange, as if they were looking at a monkey rather than a person.

The Nü Sheng Ti's little face darkened instantly.

How many times was this? Everywhere she went, people treated her like a monkey to gawk at. She was a Sheng Ti, infinitely close to full attainment—a female Holy Body—not some monkey in their eyes.

"Hey, kid, who's your mother?" Xiong Er poked the Nü Sheng Ti.

The Nü Sheng Ti didn't answer, just shot Xiong Er a sidelong glance. Her eyes seemed to say: Is this even human? What did you eat to get so fat? You're just a lump.

"When was the kid born? This is interesting." Xie Yun stroked his chin, finding it more fascinating the longer he looked.

"Looking at her, she doesn't resemble Ye Chen at all." Situ Nan said meaningfully.

No sooner had he spoken than the two of them were sprawled on the ground, knocked down by someone—along with Xiong Er, who was flattened like a meat patty. The one who struck was, of course, Ye Chen.

"Our Heng Yue folks sure are enthusiastic, aren't they?" Ye Chen said with a smile, looking at the Nü Sheng Ti.

The Nü Sheng Ti didn't speak—or rather, she didn't want to bother with Ye Chen.

Ye Chen didn't mind. With a wave of his hand, he tossed Situ Nan, Xie Yun, and the others out of Yu Nü Peak. Then, he headed straight to the various chambers, checking each one.

He had to make sure his wives hadn't gone missing. Good, they were all still there.

After his inspection, he gazed toward the mountains outside. Through the haze, he could see patches of thunderclouds—plenty of people were undergoing tribulations. He had woken up because the thunder had startled him.

Watching all those heavenly tribulations, he felt a pang of envy. If all that tribulation energy were his, he could take on the Hong Huang race single-handedly and beat them into submission. Who needed Di Huang to return? He could handle it alone. The more, the merrier—he loved a crowd.

As he withdrew his gaze, a frown creased his brow. He could sense the crisis approaching, meaning the war with the Hong Huang race wasn't far off. It would be a catastrophe.

Bathed in starlight, he sat under an old tree, took out his carving knife, and quietly carved a wooden figure.

The Nü Sheng Ti was there too. While Ye Chen carved, she munched on spirit fruits. Though she was short, she had a huge appetite—that was typical of the Sheng Ti lineage: they all ate a lot.

"Do you think that if I reach quasi-emperor, I could summon Di Huang through the underworld?" After a long silence, Ye Chen broke it with a casual remark.

"Even if you become a quasi-emperor, you still couldn't summon Di Huang." The Nü Sheng Ti replied indifferently, actually responding. Ye Chen had asked casually, and so had she. "You don't have his blood."

"You don't really think the blood of Di Huang's predecessor that I took was all of it, do you?"

"You still have some left?" The Nü Sheng Ti glanced at him.

"I've got that much sense." Ye Chen laughed.

At that, the Nü Sheng Ti fell silent, even forgetting to eat her spirit fruit. Her clear, bright eyes flashed with uncertainty. If Ye Chen hadn't mentioned it, she truly wouldn't have known.

"So, you really don't want Di Huang to return. Are you afraid of him, or do you hate him?" Ye Chen continued carving while speaking leisurely. He paused to examine the wooden figure, then kept going. "You and I are a bit different. You can eat your fill and not worry about anyone else, but I have a family and children. I need to hold up the sky for them. Even the smallest hope, I'll fight for. I'm not afraid of death, but that doesn't mean I don't want to live. Only after crossing mountains of corpses and seas of blood do I truly appreciate a peaceful world."

"Are you showing off your grand righteousness to me?" The Nü Sheng Ti said coldly.

"You, up on your high horse—have you ever looked down at the world? Have you ever experienced despair? If you don't taste the smoke and fire of the human world, how would you know its dust and troubles?" Ye Chen smiled, focusing on his carving. "Whether it's grand righteousness or hypocrisy, after seeing so much darkness, you learn to cherish the light."

"One day, you'll realize that all your so-called hope, obsession, light, peaceful world, and everything else is just a massive joke."

"That day is too far off. I only strive for the present." Ye Chen smiled, set down his carving knife, and then ascended into the sky, grabbing his Ling Xiao Iron Rod and charging toward the mountains outside.

Boom! Bang! Boom!

Immediately, deafening booms erupted, shaking the heavens and earth. Clearly, a great battle was raging outside the mountains.

The Nü Sheng Ti didn't go to see. She just stared silently at the unfinished wooden figure Ye Chen had been carving. From its shape, it was a woman—undoubtedly her. Her face was already carved, vivid and lifelike.

As she watched, she reached out unconsciously to touch the wooden figure.

But before her hand could reach it, she turned her head. Then, almost instinctively, she stood up and looked through the countless mountains into the distant haze, murmuring, "Bu Mie Xian Ti."