Chapter 2789: Settling Accounts

In the early morning, the warm sunlight bathed the earth.

A new day had arrived, and more people emerged from their caves, their injuries mostly healed. They gathered together, chattering excitedly, eager to form teams and take on the Hong Huang great clans.

It wasn't just in Da Chu; the same scenes were playing out in Xuan Huang and You Ming continents. After leaning back for a month or two, they had finally recovered their strength and wanted to stretch their limbs—perhaps by wiping out the Hong Huang clans entirely.

However, they were still waiting for the command.

At Yu Nu Feng,

In the kitchen, Ye Chen stood with dark circles under his eyes, listlessly stirring a spoon. He yawned from time to time, clearly longing to crawl back into bed for more sleep.

Last night, while comprehending the Dao of Dreams, he had accidentally slipped into a dream—it happened to be Xiong Er's. That guy was up to no good even in his dreams, so Ye Chen had given him a thorough beating.

Honestly, the Dao of Dreams was truly profound and elusive, a blend of illusion and reality that was hard to grasp. Ye Chen still marveled at how Ji Ningshuang had mastered its essence.

Ji Ningshuang shared a similar state of mind.

As fellow young emperors, they excelled in different domains. Ye Chen couldn't fathom the Dao of Dreams, just as Ji Ningshuang couldn't unravel the Dao of Lun Hui. Such was the strangeness of cultivation.

"Old dad?"

Seeing Ye Chen yawn, Ye Ling waved her little hand.

"Didn't sleep well."

Ye Chen cleared his throat. In truth, he had suffered backlash from the dream; he was lucky not to have been left in a dazed state, or it would have been embarrassing. One couldn't just enter dreams carelessly.

By heaven and earth, he had intended to enter his wife's dream, but perhaps his direction was off, or his understanding of the Dao of Dreams wasn't deep enough—he had ended up in Xiong Er's instead.

Ye Ling was surprised, and so were Chu Ling and the others. This lethargic version of Ye Chen was so different from his usual self; ever since they saw him, he had been yawning nonstop.

Only Ji Ningshuang could see through the issue.

"The dance was beautiful."

Ye Chen said, letting out another yawn.

Yao Chi smiled faintly, placing her jade hand on Ye Chen's back. She channeled some unknown force, clearing away the backlash for him. Making dreams was quite a skill.

That day's breakfast had an unexpected guest.

It was Xiong Er, who arrived making a racket. He insisted that he had dreamed of Ye Chen and even gotten beaten by him. The women just took it as a joke.

In that dream, someone had definitely taken a beating.

After the meal, Long Ye showed up again, trying to coax people into cursing the heavens with him. He was still tinkering with his bloodline limits and even wanted to use Ye Chen as a test subject.

Soon after, he was sent flying out of Yu Nu Feng.

The ones who struck were Chu Ling and the others, fiercely so. Long Ye was already injured, and this hit left him unsteady on his feet. He kept his distance from Yu Nu Feng from then on.

After dealing with Long Ye, it was back to their daily healing routines.

"Attack the Hong Huang."

As time passed, more people emerged from seclusion. Each one who came out let out a string of curses; even with injuries not fully healed, they were itching for a fight.

By the ninth day, the command finally arrived.

The nine emperors of Da Chu emerged, leading a force straight toward the eastern starry sky. They had already pinpointed the location of a Hong Huang clan and could accurately find its ancestral land.

Following them were the nine divine generals, commanding a massive army toward the western starry sky. Each general wielded an ultimate Di Bing, their killing intent and murderous aura overwhelming.

In sync with them, the ten Yama kings of the underworld led another grand army toward the southern starry sky, their eyes flickering with cold light.

This grand spectacle naturally included forces from the Heavenly Realm, led by Tai Shang Laojun, with the Chaos bodies and others in tow, marching majestically toward the north.

Boom! Rumbling!

The starry sky, silent for three months, erupted once more with thunderous roars. The four armies of the various heavens advanced with immense momentum, freezing the space they passed into inches of ice.

The common people were seeking revenge, demanding repayment for their blood debts.

Boom!

Accompanied by a tremendous roar, a towering domain gate rose in a desolate region of the western starry sky. Ye Chen was the first to step out, with the nine divine generals at his side. Their landing shook the universe with booming echoes, and the cultivators of the various heavens surged in like a tide.

In just ten breaths, the armies of the various heavens had spread across the starry sky. All were clad in armor, gripping immortal swords, with the war banners of the various heavens flapping fiercely in the stellar winds.

"Taotie, stop hiding."

Ye Chen said coldly, his words icy, desolate, and authoritative.

Yet, the starry sky remained silent.

Ye Chen sneered and formed a seal with one hand.

Immediately, a brilliant golden pillar of divine light descended from the heavens, piercing straight through the starry sky. Centered on the pillar, a wave of annihilating halo spread outward.

The starry sky collapsed, and Hong Huang aura surged wildly. A massive world was forced into view—it was the ancestral land of the Taotie clan. Though people had seen it before, witnessing it again still filled them with awe. It was truly vast and boundless, with towering mountains, winding rivers, swirling immortal mists, and billowing clouds. Numerous palaces floated in the air, radiating glory, and the most striking feature was a colossal statue of the Taotie emperor.

With their ancestral land exposed, the Taotie were all panic-stricken. They had thought they hid it well enough, yet it was uncovered so precisely—this was clearly a well-prepared assault.

"When you caused chaos, you didn't have this look on your faces."

Ye Chen said with a cold smile. Across the vast void, he could see horde after horde of Taotie, their eyes filled with terror. Too many trembled in their divine forms, including the clan emperor himself. Compared to before, their once ferocious and sinister appearances were now completely different, like night and day.

"Our emperor's legacy will never surrender, even in death."

The Taotie clan emperor roared defiantly. He must have seen the inevitable end; death awaited them either way. He needed to show some backbone, so he could face his ancestors and say with pride that under his leadership, the Taotie clan stood firm and unyielding.

"What grand righteousness."

"What noble resolve in the face of death."

The emperors of Da Chu remarked leisurely, "Your emperor's glory has long been tarnished by you all. No amount of backbone can restore your ancestors' honor. This is the greatest 'gift' you've given them. He would be grateful, grateful that his descendants earned him the name of a cowardly turtle. That name will forever accompany his emperor title across the various heavens, and in the distant future, whenever people mention Taotie, they'll remember this joke."

"You lowly ants, how dare you—"

"Where were you when the heavenly demons invaded?"

"Taotie is an emperor's legacy, how could—"

"Where were you when the heavenly demons invaded?"

"Our clan's emperor shook the ancients and illuminated the present, you—"

"Where were you when the heavenly demons invaded?"

This exchange was bizarre. Whenever the Taotie clan emperor tried to speak, Ye Chen interrupted with the same flat, unchanging phrase.

"You—"

The Taotie clan emperor was at a loss for words, his face flushing red with anger.

"No point in talking more—I'm done with the scolding."

Ye Chen said, then stepped forward and vanished in an instant.

He reappeared in the Taotie ancestral land,

And with that step, his foot landed squarely on the head of the Taotie emperor's statue. Like a sovereign ruler, he overlooked the heavens and the entire Taotie clan.

"Damn you."

A supremely powerful Taotie roared in fury, shattering the skies with a single step and thrusting a sword toward him. The emperor's statue embodied their beliefs—how could it be desecrated?

Ye Chen didn't move, simply evading with an ethereal Di Dao step. The supreme Taotie's attack missed, but Ye Chen's palm strike landed perfectly, sending the Taotie flying. Before it could steady itself, a black war spear followed, nailing it to the void on the spot.

Though at the peak of supreme power, it was no match for someone at half-step great accomplishment. The fight ended in one round, with both body and primordial spirit obliterated instantly.

Buzz!

The void hummed as a Taotie Di Qi attacked.

This imperial artifact had considerable spirituality. Seeing Ye Chen standing on the emperor's statue, it awakened its ancient consciousness and transformed into a human-like figure to strike.

Ye Chen didn't even glance at it, simply flipping his hand for a palm strike.

Thud!

Crash!

Two sounds rang out in succession: one for the Taotie figure exploding, and one for the Taotie Di Qi hurling away, smashing into a mountain and collapsing it.

"Blood debts... must be repaid in blood."

Though Ye Chen's four words were spoken lightly, they shattered the immortal dome.

Boom!

The Taotie defenses weakened, and their barriers shattered on the spot.

"Battle!"

The armies of the various heavens roared, charging in like a tide.

"Kill!"

The Taotie bellowed, their blood-red eyes filled with madness. Today, their clan would be exterminated—this was their final war, and they couldn't shame their emperor's name. Ironically, that glory had already faded completely.

Boom! Bang! Boom!

The battle erupted, with blood mist surging everywhere.

On the statue, Ye Chen had manifested his sacred war form, wielding a golden Dao sword as he descended from the skies. His body moved like a phantom, impossible for anyone to track.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The slaughter began; wherever he and his war form went, swaths of people fell in blood. Countless Taotie quasi-emperors perished by his hand, including many at the supreme level.

This wasn't a war—it was a one-sided massacre.

The armies of the various heavens were overwhelming, their battle spirit burning like fire. They pressed forward relentlessly, routing the Taotie forces, toppling mountains and collapsing palaces, trampling this so-called emperor's legacy underfoot and staining it red with Taotie blood.

Boom! Bang! Boom!

In the eastern starry sky, similar roars echoed.

It was Dong Shen Yao Chi, who had entered a dream spanning eons and infiltrated the Qiong Qi ancestral land. With one sword, she severed the head of the Qiong Qi emperor's statue, breaking their defenses.

As the barriers collapsed, the armies of the various heavens surged in.

At the same time, flames of war ignited in the southern and northern starry skies. The Hong Huang clans under attack weren't emperor legacies and had no resistance; they were swallowed wave after wave by the vast sea of cultivators.

The starry sky, already shrouded in blood, grew even redder. Rolling blood mist poured from the Hong Huang ancestral lands, along with their wails—sacrifices for the heroic spirits.

This battle raged for eight full days.

The armies of the various heavens advanced unstoppable, exterminating over a hundred Hong Huang clans in the flames of war, reducing them to ashes and historical dust.

By the ninth day, the booms gradually faded.

"Search, keep searching."

"To prevent them from causing trouble at a critical moment."

The armies of the various heavens didn't withdraw; each one gripped a blood-dripping immortal sword as they scoured the starry sky, cursing along the way. They wouldn't be satisfied until the entire Hong Huang clan was wiped out.

Unfortunately, they found no more. Without tracking marks, it was nearly impossible to locate them. The first beings of the heavens weren't just powerful in bloodline and origin—their ability to hide was incredibly mysterious. Who knew where they were concealed?

In the vast starry domain, Ye Chen walked through the void.

He was searching too, his killing intent and murderous aura rolling forth. Only by truly making the Hong Huang clans suffer would they behave, and only then could he set off for the black hole with peace of mind to settle scores with the heavenly demons and curse demons.

"Ye Chen."

As he reached a stellar river, someone called out.

Turning to look, it was Xiao Chen, the son of the War King, streaking through the sky like a divine rainbow.

Ye Chen stopped and waited for him.

Xiao Chen landed and waved his hand, revealing Xing Tian's head. Its eyes had opened again, filled with a hazy, chaotic light wreathed in a mysterious force.

Ye Chen focused intently. Through those eyes, he could glimpse a misty realm shrouded in dark fog, where shadowy figures of heavenly demons flickered in and out, and there were quite a few of them.

"I don't know why, but it opened again."

Xiao Chen took a deep breath. These strange occurrences happened every so often, and it was a good thing his mind was strong; anyone more timid might have been scared witless by a suddenly opening head—just the thought was chilling.

Ye Chen didn't reply, narrowing his eyes into slits.

In the previous instant, he had vaguely seen a familiar figure through Xing Tian's eyes: a beauty holding a blood-dripping immortal sword, staggering with each step, her fluttering cloak stained red and strikingly vivid.