Chapter 2853: He's Absolutely an Emperor

In the moonlit forest, all was peaceful and serene. Ye Chen sat cross-legged on the tree trunk, as still as a statue. It took three full days for him to dispel the Emperor Dao killing intent.

Over those three days, the black hole remained eerily quiet, with the group of Quasi-Emperors sticking together and warily scanning their surroundings. They couldn't freely enter or exit the black hole, and even the strongest peaks among them felt awkward and trapped.

On this side, Hei Pao Da Di had already hidden deep in the darkness, quietly licking his wounds. He dreamed of returning to his mid-tier Emperor status, but that opportunity was gone. His Emperor Dao divine power had been depleted too much, and without his Dao roots or life source, he couldn't recover in the short term. In the days ahead, he would remain in a state of extreme weakness.

At his side, the Zhu Xian Jian was there too, in a pitiful state. Once a fine immortal sword, it was now reduced to a broken remnant, with its blade full of gaps. It might have wanted to cause more chaos, but it lacked the strength. After plotting for ten years, it had been utterly defeated, and Hei Pao Da Di's defeat was even more complete.

For a brief moment, Hei Pao Da Di's Emperor body trembled slightly, sending out invisible ripples that spread infinitely into the surrounding darkness.

Before long, groups of figures gathered, including Tian Mo and E Mo. They must have been summoned by Hei Pao Da Di, and their expressions showed surprise, as if they recognized him but couldn't understand why he was in the Zhu Tian realm.

"Come."

Hei Pao Da Di spoke, his breath quite weak.

The Tian Mo and E Mo were confused. From the Mo Jun down to the Mo Bing, they all approached respectfully. Since they knew who Hei Pao Da Di was, they had to show deference. He was a mid-tier Emperor, after all, even if they didn't know why his Emperor might had fallen or why he was so badly injured. Still, he was an Emperor, and his words were absolute commands—they had to obey.

Once they were in position and close enough, Hei Pao Da Di slowly opened his eyes. His pair of blood-red Emperor eyes flashed with a savage light.

Immediately, centered on him, a pitch-black vortex appeared, starting small and growing larger while spinning rapidly. It had the power to devour the heavens and earth, with an incredibly terrifying suction force.

"You..."

The Tian Mo and E Mo all changed color, as if they realized what Hei Pao Da Di intended—he was going to devour them! A primal instinct from their souls made them turn and flee.

But it was too late. The devouring vortex was too powerful; even the Mo Jun couldn't resist. They were instantly torn to pieces and ground into ash. The refined essence and energy from them all merged into Hei Pao Da Di's body.

"Emperor, spare us!"

The screams of the Tian Mo and E Mo were utterly piercing. They never imagined that Hei Pao Da Di had summoned them just to use them as nourishment. They wanted to escape, but they couldn't withstand the vortex's pull, and they were wiped out in droves.

Hei Pao Da Di's face was ice-cold, ignoring their pleas. He was truly ruthless, willing to target his own people to recover. He didn't know how many Tian Mo and E Mo he had devoured.

"Did you hear those screams?"

On the other side of the darkness, Jiang Tai Gong raised an eyebrow.

The Quasi-Emperors said nothing, their eyes narrowing slightly. If Lao Jun could hear it, so could they. They didn't know what was happening deep in the darkness, but those wails were chilling, making their souls tremble.

Right away, many Quasi-Emperors summoned their avatars to trace the source of the sounds, but unfortunately, they found nothing—or rather, Hei Pao Da Di had already left.

That's right, he was hiding—a mighty Emperor, hiding from Quasi-Emperors.

In the darkness, the Emperor's figure staggered along, looking utterly wretched.

It wasn't that he couldn't fight those Quasi-Emperors; it was that he truly couldn't, injured and weakened as he was. He couldn't handle being surrounded by the strongest peaks.

He was probably the most awkward Emperor among them all, like a stray dog, fleeing and hiding without daring to show his head. His ten years of scheming had dug a massive pit, and he had buried himself in it.

"It's an Emperor, absolutely an Emperor."

The strongest peaks furrowed their brows in unison. They could sense the aura of Tian Mo and E Mo, as well as the Emperor Dao. But they didn't know why that Emperor was hiding—was it due to severe injuries or some other purpose?

As they thought this, the Quasi-Emperors exchanged glances: Should we go check it out?

After considering, they decided not to move. They were waiting for Ye Chen. If they split up, it would be hard to regroup, not out of fear of the Emperor, but to avoid causing trouble for Ye Chen.

At least, they needed to figure out what had happened first.

Quietly, the fourth day arrived.

On the sturdy tree trunk, Ye Chen was still unmoving, bathed in starlight, as still as a rock. His damaged sacred body had already healed, but the Dao injury to his primordial spirit hadn't mended. The fresh blood trickling from his mouth hadn't stopped.

"A bunch of old folks, when are they going to get to the black hole?"

The Hun Dun Ding hummed, as if it could peer into the black hole and see Yan Luo and the divine generals forming a tight circle, vigilantly watching their surroundings.

It was a good thing the Hun Dun Ding was an artifact; if it were a person, its face would surely be dark. They were always chatting idly before, never missing a session, but at critical moments, they all dropped the ball. If they had arrived a bit earlier that day, Hei Pao Da Di would have been done for. Now, the battlefield was already cleaned up, and they were just arriving. Not only Ye Chen, but even the cauldron wanted to grab those old guys and give them a proper scolding.

Turning its gaze from the black hole, the Hun Dun Ding fixed on the fragments of the Zhu Xian Jian and hummed excitedly. If it could refine them further, it would gain another great fortune. Even after devouring so many Quasi-Emperor artifacts, it wasn't as valuable as a small fragment of the Zhu Xian Jian. That multicolored divine material was incredibly dominant.

Uh...

Suddenly, Ye Chen let out a muffled groan, his face twisting in pain. It was still due to the Dao injury—the crack in his primordial spirit, originally three inches long, had now expanded to five inches, showing no sign of healing and even continuing to widen.

It had struck at the root.

The Hun Dun Ding trembled lightly. It was good at fighting, but healing Dao wounds was beyond its capabilities.

Unless Ye Chen could comprehend some aspects of time and space.

Otherwise, at this rate, forget about breaking through to Da Cheng; he might even fall in rank.

Moreover, if his Dao cultivation didn't heal, using his combat power recklessly would be self-destructive.

Time passed, and five more days slipped by quietly.

In those five days, screams echoed frequently from the black hole. Hei Pao Da Di had gone mad, summoning Tian Mo and E Mo everywhere and devouring them. He was consuming his own forces, which actually helped the Zhu Tian realm by saving them the trouble of hunting.

On the ninth day, Ye Chen finally opened his eyes.

"Old boss."

"It's fine."

Ye Chen smiled and stood up. His wounds had healed, but the Dao injury remained. His face was pale, and the fresh blood at his mouth—he didn't bother wiping it away.

He cast the Tian Dao and re-entered the black hole.

Seeing this, the Quasi-Emperors' eyes all lit up.

Ye Chen took a deep breath, glancing at one and then another. For some reason, he felt an urge to curse. Why didn't you come earlier? Couldn't you move a bit faster? Why always drop the ball at key moments?

"Is there an Emperor in the black hole?"

Chu Jiang Wang asked hurriedly.

"Yes, a mid-tier Emperor."

As Ye Chen spoke, he sent out dozens of divine senses, one for each person, recounting everything that had happened that day—including Hei Pao Da Di, the Zhu Xian Jian, the great battle, and the altar.

Of course, he omitted a few details, such as Hei Pao Da Di's master and his origins.

Upon seeing this, the Quasi-Emperors' expressions changed again, especially Jian Zun's, which was the most unsettled.

Earlier, he had wandered the black hole for many years. If he had encountered that mid-tier Emperor, he would likely have been destroyed. Being a strongest peak was one thing, but he wasn't a sacred body, after all.

"Looks like we should avoid the black hole in the future."

"Phagocytic insects, mid-tier Emperor, tsk tsk tsk."

"The boundless darkness is full of hidden dangers."

"You little brat, you're way too reckless."

"One wrong move, and it's eternal doom!"

The Quasi-Emperors chimed in one after another, their expressions varied—sighs, tongue-clicking, astonishment, and shock. They finally understood why Ye Chen had looked at them so darkly. If they had arrived a bit earlier, they could have killed that mid-tier Emperor.

Ye Chen said nothing more and headed straight into a section of the darkness.

The Quasi-Emperors followed, knowing where he was going.

It wasn't until some time later that Ye Chen stopped.

In the darkness, that massive altar was still there, exuding an ancient aura, cold and majestic.

Ye Chen let out a breath of relief. Thankfully, Hei Pao Da Di hadn't moved it—either because he was too injured or too powerless to do so.

This altar was incredibly significant. The formation on it might truly connect to the Tai Gu Hong Huang. If so, what was the point of an entrance? They could just teleport directly.

"Can this formation really link to the Tai Gu Hong Huang?"

The Fifth Divine General stepped onto the altar and circled the formation. The altar was enormous, and so was the formation, spanning over ten thousand zhang. The array patterns and runes carved on it were all at the Emperor Dao level, far beyond his expectations.

"That's what Hei Pao Da Di said."

Ye Chen also stepped up and examined the formation again. Under those circumstances, Hei Pao Da Di's answers were likely not a bluff.

"Activate the formation, and we'll know."

Tian Lao stroked his beard.

"A formation of this level can't be powered by source stones or magical power. It needs Emperor Dao strength, or a bloodline source on par with it."

Yan Huang pondered, glancing at Ye Chen as he spoke.

The so-called bloodline source on par with Emperor Dao referred to the sacred body. Hei Pao Da Di had lured Ye Chen here as a sacrifice, after all. Unfortunately, he hadn't calculated well and ended up being countered by Ye Chen.

Hei Pao Da Di was an Emperor and could activate it.

But without his Dao roots or life source, the Emperor Dao divine power he would lose activating the formation would be hard to recover. That's why he had settled for bringing Ye Chen as a sacrifice. That decision had backfired on him.

"Using Emperor Dao strength to activate it, or offering a half-step Da Cheng as sacrifice—I believe this formation can truly connect to the Tai Gu Hong Huang."

Zao Hua Shen Wang said with a serious tone, hands clasped behind his back.

"I think we should move it out for research."

"This thing is so massive—who can even budge it?"

As they spoke, the Quasi-Emperors looked at Ye Chen again.

Moving the altar was different from shaking it. Ye Chen might have the ability, but his Lun Hui Yan's pupil power might not suffice. Transporting such a huge altar out of the black hole would require immense power, and given Ye Chen's condition, with his time and space Dao injury, forcing it could harm his foundations further.

Ye Chen didn't respond, just shook his head lightly. He could shake the altar, but not move it—at least not until his Dao injury healed and he could unleash Da Cheng-level power in an instant.

As he thought this, he entered the formation and sat cross-legged. He had sensed it clearly before: the array contained time and space power, which he could use to comprehend time and space. If he could grasp even a bit of it, he might heal his Dao injury.

Seeing Ye Chen in meditation, the Quasi-Emperors didn't disturb him. Each one held their weapons and patrolled around, both inspecting the altar and guarding him. Who knew if Hei Pao Da Di might return to cause trouble?