Chapter 2983: Emperor's Peak

Boom! Rumble!

The dimly lit Tai Gu Road was shrouded in dark clouds the moment Jian Zun and Jian Shen awakened. Lightning flashed and thunder roared through the clouds, and the overwhelming pressure caused heaven and earth to tremble. Even the thunder alone shook the hearts of all the gods and generals.

This was the prelude to the ultimate emperor tribulation.

Jian Zun and Jian Shen stood side by side, looking up at the vast sky. Their expressions held a hint of daze, and ancient weariness flickered in their eyes. Perhaps they were reminiscing about their glorious past. Back in Zhu Tian, neither had found the opportunity to become an emperor; the vast chasm to the emperor's throne was an insurmountable gulf.

Now, on Tai Gu Road, the chance for enlightenment had arrived.

After a long moment, the two lowered their gazes and exchanged a smile. Then, they each stepped into the heavens. Jian Zun headed toward the eastern void, while Jian Shen went to the western mist. At the same instant, they both triggered their ultimate emperor tribulations.

Boom! Rumble!

The thunder intensified, weaving into streams that formed a galactic waterfall, cascading down from the sky with world-ending power. It sought to annihilate those undergoing the tribulation, and visions of the emperor path emerged, each colored with apocalyptic hues.

Fight!

Jian Zun and Jian Shen roared resonantly, their voices piercing the nine heavens. Both cultivated the sword path and had mastered it to perfection, like peerless divine swords charging against the world-ending thunder. They had sacrificed all their lifespan, leaving no room for retreat. This battle would either end in their complete destruction or lead to enlightenment as emperors.

"A small matter."

Hou Yi glanced over and sat down on the spot. The tribulation itself wasn't frightening; what was terrifying were the law bodies that might follow. With one Jian Zun and one Jian Shen, their emperor tribulations would likely include law bodies.

Xing Tian took a deep breath and smiled as he sat down cross-legged to heal.

Di Huang's smile was full of satisfaction. The younger generation of Zhu Tian was astonishing; two new emperors might soon emerge.

"Come on, open your mouth."

Ye Da Di was particularly affectionate, prying open Hong Yan's mouth and stuffing it with healing divine pills. That was fine, but the way he did it was so rough – it looked more like feeding a pig.

"Get lost."

Hong Yan glared at him fiercely, her beautiful eyes blazing with anger, and kicked him over on the spot.

"Women! It's no good if they're too fierce."

Ye Chen shrugged it off, casually brushing the dust from his clothes as if nothing had happened.

Pfft! Pfft!

Amid the tribulation, blood sprayed spectacularly as Jian Shen and Jian Zun both coughed up blood, struck down from the sky by lightning. Their radiant immortal bodies were now mangled and drenched in blood. The world-shattering ultimate emperor thunder was far more terrifying than they had imagined.

"So many seniors are optimistic about those two."

Ye Chen chuckled, but his hand was already wandering, draping an arm over the Nu Di's jade shoulder. The gesture felt completely natural, as if he were treating her like one of his buddies rather than a woman.

The Nu Di turned her head, saying nothing, just staring at Ye Chen.

That look made Ye Da Di's heart race, and a chill ran through his entire body.

"Tai Gu Road is truly a magical place."

Ye Chen took a deep breath, his words laden with meaning, and quickly withdrew his hand. He wasn't afraid of Hong Yan losing her temper, but if the Nu Di of Tian Ting flared up, it could be fatal – that woman was no ordinary fighter.

Only then did the Nu Di look away.

How to put it? If that person dared to act improperly again, she wouldn't mind sending him back to the womb.

Ye Chen gave an awkward laugh and kept a safe distance.

In the distance, Hou Yi and Xing Tian watched with sighs and tuts of amazement. This was only possible for Ye Da Di; if it were them who had draped an arm over the Nu Di's shoulder, they'd probably be sipping Meng Po soup by now.

The way they looked at Ye Chen was filled with reverence.

How many talents throughout history could compare? Ye Chen was undoubtedly the most outstanding among them. The Nu Di of ancient Tian Ting was an existence beyond compare – yet he had courted her reincarnations, Chu Xuan and Chu Ling. Other legendary myths paled in comparison; this was a story that could be bragged about until the end of time.

This pot, I won't carry.

Ye Chen stood straight and proper, though he didn't say a word, his expression clearly conveyed that sentiment. Back in his naive days, who could have known they were the Nu Di's reincarnations? No one had told him.

So, fate was a strange thing.

His inner thoughts seemed readable to the Nu Di, and the look in her eyes now sparked with flames.

Ye Chen felt uncomfortable under her gaze and turned to walk away.

After a couple of steps, he turned back and handed the Tian Mo consciousness body to the Nu Di.

The Nu Di took it and immediately broke it down in her palm.

The Tian Mo consciousness body wailed as it was destroyed, leaving only a faint light that the Nu Di absorbed into her body.

Boom! Rumble!

The ultimate emperor tribulations in the east and west grew even more ferocious, with more lightning pouring down in various colors.

The fluctuations from the tribulations were immense.

The entire Tai Gu Road shook because of them, and some residual force even reached the Zhu Tian.

"In this era, enlightenments come in pairs!"

Ming Di clasped his hands behind his back, gazing at the sky with a sigh. First it was Di Huang and Hong Yan; now there were two more. He wondered which experts they were – perhaps the strongest of the older generation, or maybe from the younger one.

"In the future, there will be even more."

Dao Zu stroked his beard. Tai Gu Road was quite magical, a perfect place to forge myths.

Boom! Rumble!

Under the ultimate emperor tribulations, thunder rampaged across the sky, engulfing both the east and west.

"When will I get to become an emperor?"

Xiao Yuan Huang scratched his monkey fur; he was already at the peak of the quasi-emperor realm but had no opportunity.

"What emperor titles do you think those two will take?"

"Sword Emperor?"

"Don't joke."

Many old folks gathered again, chattering endlessly. Quite a few of them were fond of the title Sword Emperor – it didn't matter if it sounded off; it just rolled off the tongue so smoothly.

Not everyone was as unserious as them.

For instance, Hun Luan Ti, Sheng Huang, and Xuan Yuan Di Zi had deeper gazes. In certain moments, they had touched the emperor path barrier and needed more time to refine their Dao origins to achieve enlightenment.

Meanwhile, Ye Chen had already sat down cross-legged.

As a mid-tier great emperor, he had reached a bottleneck, brushing against the barrier of peak emperor.

In reality, he had only been a mid-tier emperor for about a hundred years.

But if you counted the years in the illusory realm, it had been thousands. His Dao had transformed, and he had undergone nirvana, gaining a deeper understanding of eternity. This was his chance for advancement, and the timing was now ripe.

Buzz!

His emperor body trembled slightly, and a golden halo spread out. Even Hong Yan, who was nearby, was pushed back half a step, and the gods and generals who had emerged from the great cauldron were all knocked over.

"If we're talking about the most dazzling presence, it's still him."

Ren Wang looked disheveled, sighing in admiration. Ye Chen's advancement speed was like activating a god-level hack.

"The years in the illusory realm weren't wasted."

Long Ye stroked his beard. Even comprehending eternity was no small feat for an ordinary emperor.

"Embarrassing." Hou Yi and Xing Tian both coughed dryly.

As the saying goes, the waves behind drive the ones ahead – truly, each generation outdoes the last!

They felt more than just admiration for Ye Chen; it was outright awe.

The younger generation was formidable; they couldn't catch up. Even Di Huang and Hong Yan shared this sentiment. He walked a heaven-defying path, blazing trails and creating countless immortal legends.

Compared to him, the Nu Di of Tian Ting remained quite composed.

In her view, Ye Chen's advancement was actually a bit slow, perhaps because her expectations for Ye Da Di were so high that she didn't measure him by ordinary standards. After all, he carried a mission beyond what most could bear, needing to grow as quickly as possible to face the variables of eternity.

Buzz! Buzz!

Ye Chen's emperor body continued to tremble, the sound like a resonant bell, deeply stirring. More halos spread, and within a radius of ten thousand zhang, no one except the Nu Di of Tian Ting could stand steady.

His brilliance was indeed dazzling.

That eternal light made people lose themselves, faintly visible and eternally enduring, etching immortal power into his body time and again – it was both laws and Dao laws. Bathed in that radiant glow, he resembled a divine being, his emperor Dao sacred body forged from eternity itself.

"Ye Chen, you're beyond our reach now."

Hun Luan Ti murmured, and Xuan Yuan Di Zi, Dong Zhou Wu Wang, Ri Yue Shen Zi, Chen Yi, and many others shared the same feeling. Once shoulder to shoulder with him, they now only looked up.

"We're all brothers – how can the gap be this big?"

Kui Niu slumped dejectedly, and even Xiao Yuan Huang hung his head.

"What more can we say?"

The old folks' expressions were even more awkward, utterly at a loss for words.

Suddenly, the sound of the emperor Dao heavenly music rang out.

It came from Ye Chen, vast and ethereal, majestic and profound, filled with Dao essence. Accompanied by emperor Dao visions, it wove into a beautiful immortal melody tinged with eternal colors. Not just the gods and generals of Zhu Tian, but even Xing Tian and Hou Yi felt their minds wander, occasionally gaining insights.

"Though the paths differ, they lead to the same end."

The Nu Di of Tian Ting smiled lightly. Ye Chen's eternity was different from hers – whether by taking shortcuts or forging new ways – they shared the same destination: eternal immortality.

Pop!

In the void, a faint sound echoed, audible only to Ye Chen.

He had broken through, advancing to the peak of great emperor.

Then, a beam of eternal immortal light shot from his celestial spirit cover into the sky, piercing a massive hole in the vast void. Eternal visions unfolded, depicting all things, with ultimate emperor aura descending.

"So strong."

Xing Tian whispered, unable to hide his wariness. The current Ye Chen could suppress him with a single palm.

Hou Yi shook his head with a wry smile, left only to look up.

The gods and generals of Zhu Tian were lost in thought, fortunate to witness that eternal moment.

Ye Chen hadn't awakened yet, remaining as still as a rock.

His mind wasn't in the present; he was wandering in eternity. Having advanced to the peak, his comprehension of the Dao had deepened, and he felt the vastness of the great Dao even more. The Dao was boundless; he was still just a small fry.

"This feeling is awesome."

Hun Luan Ding chuckled, jumping around energetically, with Hun Luan Huo and Hun Luan Lei just as lively. Their master had advanced defying the heavens, and they too gained from it, infused with a hint of eternal light.

"One person achieves the Dao, and even the chickens and dogs ascend?"

Ming Jue stroked his chin, muttering this line. He didn't like Ye Chen, and he didn't like Hun Luan Ding and the others either; he often scared them for no reason, and they hadn't had it easy living in the cauldron.

"Behave yourselves; our tempers aren't great."

Sure enough, Hun Luan Ding and the crew started yelling, acting like big bosses. This made the gods and generals of Zhu Tian scowl, and even Xing Tian and Hou Yi shook their heads with smiles. The master was a talent, and his natal weapon was equally exceptional.