Chapter 3030: The Situation of the Common People

Boom!

Soon after, a thunderous rumble resounded as the two segments of the Taigu Road, separated for endless ages, collided violently.

In an instant, the supremes of the Wai Yu and their demon soldiers and generals were shaken off in waves. The supremes fared better, but the demon soldiers and generals suffered terribly—aside from a few Mo Zhu, most were obliterated on the spot. The Taigu Road had forged its way through self-destruction, carrying an inherent aura of ruin; even if they weren't shaken apart by the road itself, they would be killed by that destructive essence.

Ye Chen staggered but was the first to steady himself. He wielded the eternal light, mending the cracks, while his imperial divine sense enveloped the Taigu Road. Fortunately, there were no Tian Di-level Sheng Mo or quasi-Huang Di present.

"Tian Di Sheng Ti?"

The Wai Yu supremes also stabilized their forms, their expressions filled with shock. They saw Ye Chen, as well as Di Huang and Hong Yan. Weren't sacred bodies supposed to be unable to achieve emperorship? So where did this Tian Di Sheng Ti and these imperial sacred bodies come from—and not just one?

"He's in a weakened state. Kill him."

E Mo Tian Di roared hoarsely, too late for further astonishment. Gripping his pitch-black war spear, he was the first to charge.

Kill!

Dozens of Wai Yu great emperors and over a dozen Wai Yu Tian Di surged forward in a horde. They couldn't let Ye Chen recover, or no one would be able to stop him.

"Kill your sister."

The Hun Dun Ding cursed loudly, its massive body buzzing as it charged first. It actually flipped E Mo Tian Di, who had led the assault, with a single strike.

Battle!

The Hun Dun Fire and Hun Dun Thunder roared, both transforming into human forms and attacking from left and right, blocking two great emperors.

Ye Chen didn't hesitate, forcibly summoning his Dharma body.

Di Huang and Hong Yan did the same. The Wai Yu forces were vast, but their own lineup was nothing to underestimate: one Tian Di Sheng Ti Dharma body, two imperial sacred bodies, two imperial sacred war Dharma bodies, plus the assembled emperors, enough to hold the line.

Boom! Rumble!

The great battle erupted in an instant, a chaotic melee of supremes against supremes, shaking the heavens and splitting the earth. The already dim Taigu Road was suddenly filled with flashing lightning and roaring thunder, as destructive visions unfolded.

The forces of Zhutian were at a disadvantage.

Still, they managed to hold their ground, thanks to Ye Chen's Dharma body. Though extremely weakened, he single-handedly routed the Wai Yu Tian Di, scattering them in disarray.

The other emperors fought with unmatched will, bathing in blood as each took on multiple supremes. Every one of them fought like a madman.

The Female Emperor was gone, and of Zhutian's expeditionary army's two great commanders, only Ye Chen remained. They had to uphold Zhutian's honor while he was occupied.

Glancing at the Wai Yu supremes, their expressions showed clear shock—the emperors on the opposite side were incredibly formidable.

Before long, Ye Chen freed up his hands. Gripping the Yong Heng Immortal Sword, he said nothing and dove straight into the battle.

He was truly dominant. In a single clash, he split a Tian Mo Tian Di in half, stomped a E Mo great emperor to death underfoot, and grabbed a fully developed Sheng Mo trying to flee, devouring it on the spot and reducing it to ashes to replenish his own depletion.

The battle was decisive.

All the Wai Yu supremes on this segment of the Taigu Road—whether fighting or hiding in the shadows—were wiped out by Ye Chen and the emperors in a complete rout.

After the battle, including Ye Chen, everyone swayed unsteadily, whether from exhaustion or the severe toll of reconnecting the Taigu Road.

But they had won.

Ye Chen said nothing, sword dripping with blood in hand, as he strode alone through the void toward the end of the Taigu Road.

Behind him, the emperors and divine generals watched with sighs. Ever since Ye Chen emerged from the Wuwu Xuwang, he hadn't uttered a single word. He was like a different person from his former self.

When Ye Chen reappeared, he was at the end of the Taigu Road.

Peering through the void, he couldn't see the opposite segment of the Taigu Road, only destructive vortices, and he could hear the thunder. The chaotic illusions brought more trials and dangers than ever.

"How much farther is the Taigu Road?"

The divine generals murmured, more silent than usual.

The emperors asked the same question.

This road had buried not only blood and bones but also deep wounds. The Female Emperor's death made their path ahead feel utterly bleak. It wasn't just Ye Chen who was weary in body and spirit—they all were.

Yet, no one lost courage. Even in death, they would press on. The hope the Female Emperor had fought for with her life would be carried forward by Zhutian's expeditionary army. In this era, if they didn't fight all the way to the Taigu Hong Huang, how could they honor her spirit in the heavens?

Buzz!

After a brief rest of half a day, the Taigu Road hummed to life again.

As always, Ye Chen led the way, bearing nine-tenths of the pressure alone, like an unyielding monument.

This segment of the Taigu Road was incredibly long.

It took two full days for the two segments to connect. Aside from Ye Chen, nearly everyone had collapsed from utter exhaustion.

Fortunately, that segment only had two Wai Yu great emperors, whom the Dharma body dispatched alone without the emperors needing to act.

Time passed, and three months slipped by quietly.

In those three months, they connected over a dozen segments of the Taigu Road, enduring countless hardships and dangers. The trials came not only from the Wai Yu but also from the illusions. Once, destruction raged wildly; if Ye Chen hadn't evaded in time, Zhutian's expeditionary army might have been wiped out. That time, the emperors took nine days to recover, navigating endless voids before reconnecting to the other side, followed by a brutal battle.

At the end of the Taigu Road, Ye Chen stood quietly.

He didn't know what the Female Emperor had meant by "near." After all the trials, all he saw was misty void. When would they finally reach the Taigu Hong Huang?

Hong Yan approached silently, saying nothing, only glancing sideways at the Tenth Emperor of Da Chu when no one was looking.

Perhaps it should have been Ye Chen who died that day, but he couldn't die. No matter who fell, he couldn't. He had become the key player in this grand game. If needed, any piece—including the Female Emperor, including her—would willingly shatter to pieces.

In the previous epoch, all living beings had lost, not due to a lack of power, but to the hidden laws of fate. In this epoch, it required a Huang Gu Sheng Ti to reverse the heavens, and Ye Chen was the perfect choice.

That was why even the Female Emperor was willing to be a pawn. She hadn't succeeded, but Ye Chen could.

"Lao Qi, wine."

From the Hun Dun Ding, the Little Ape Emperor handed over a jug of wine.

Ye Chen took it casually.

The turbid wine was bitterly unpalatable. He drank half and poured out the rest, as an offering to the Female Emperor and to the countless predecessors buried on this road.

After downing half the jug, he activated the formation again.

The emperors steadied themselves as the Taigu Road hummed once more.

During this, a rumble came from behind.

It was the Wai Yu forces, persistent as ghosts, sneaking into the Taigu Road and unleashing demonic chaos across the heavens.

Xing Tian and Hou Yi turned back, one wielding a battle axe, the other a war spear, to face the Wai Yu supremes.

When they returned, both were drenched in fresh blood.

Such incidents happened frequently. The path of opening and connecting the road was already grueling, and these repeated setbacks only made it worse. Without the Female Emperor as a great commander, it was different. Ye Chen bore an unbearable burden, and the emperors fought covered in wounds. The divine generals, though lively and energetic, couldn't offer much help.

The Taigu Road was difficult, and Zhutian fared no better. Since the Female Emperor's self-destruction in the second wave, wars had raged incessantly.

Fortunately, with the Yong Heng blessing from Ye Chen, plus the Heaven, Earth, and Human Emperors, they barely held the line, repelling Wai Yu invasions one after another, each battle more brutal than the last.

The real threat, however, was the Taigu Hong Huang.

With the Female Emperor's death and the dissipation of her dao, the seals she had placed in the Taigu Hong Huang were gradually losing their power over time. The demons she had sealed constantly battered against their confines, nearly breaking free several times.

The supremes of past generations were all at their limits.

Ye Chen was risking his life to extend the Taigu Road, and they were risking theirs to hold the Taigu Hong Huang.

This was the situation of all living beings.

If any side—Zhutian, the Taigu Road, or the Taigu Hong Huang—fell, it would mean a world-ending catastrophe.

Boom! Rumble!

The dim Taigu Road rumbled again.

More Wai Yu forces had sneaked in.

"Dammit, they've got some nerve."

The Fourth Divine General cursed loudly and spun around, dragging his blood-soaked imperial body and gripping his dripping imperial sword. His temper was flaring.

In recent days, battles erupted every few days, and even their imperial recovery couldn't keep up. Wounds from the last fight hadn't healed before the next one hit. The Wai Yu kept showing up to stir trouble for no reason—it was infuriating.

Turning with him were the Son of the Plane, Jian Shen, and Jian Zun, all brimming with battle intent. Having fought so many battles and slain so many emperors, a certain imperial killing aura had etched itself into their bones.

"Come back."

Ye Chen said calmly, then withdrew the connecting formation. The emperors, already stepping into the void, were pulled back by him and sent into the Hun Dun Ding, including Di Huang and Hong Yan.

It was because the Wai Yu supremes this time were beyond their ability to handle—Tian Di-level Sheng Mo, and not just one.

That's why he dismantled the formation.

As expected, two Tian Di-level Sheng Mo arrived: one at the peak and one at the mid-level, sweeping in with demonic aura. Through the dark mist, their eyes like black holes could be seen, flashing with demonic light that embodied destruction. Their terrifying pressure made the Taigu heavens tremble.

Ye Chen said nothing, retreating into the illusions.

No sooner had he moved than the two Tian Di-level Sheng Mo arrived, landing with two booms that shook the Taigu Road.

"Little Sheng Ti, you run pretty fast."

The first peak-level Sheng Mo chuckled eerily, peering through the void at Ye Chen with a playful expression, though his eyes held surprise. If he hadn't seen it himself, he wouldn't have known that Zhutian had produced an emperor-achieving Sheng Ti, already advancing to the mid-level Tian Di.

"This must be a supreme of the Sheng Ti lineage."

The first Sheng Mo laughed, his tone growing more savage.

A Tian Di at the peak level had keen insight and could see Ye Chen's significance. He had blazed a trail for achieving emperorship—a historic first for Sheng Ti in Zhutian, unmatched by others.

But it didn't matter. To him, anything short of quasi-Huang Di was meaningless. A mid-level wasn't enough.

"Interesting."

The second mid-level Sheng Mo laughed mockingly, his eyes gleaming with greed and desire. A Tian Di Sheng Ti and a Tian Di Sheng Ti—both at his level. If he slaughtered Ye Chen in the same realm, it would bring otherworldly fortune and surely let him break through to the peak.

Ye Chen remained silent, focusing on restoring his divine power.

However, the two Tian Di-level Sheng Mo wouldn't give him the chance. One after the other, they charged into the illusions, ganging up on him in a two-against-one formation. There was no reason they should lose.

Ye Chen met them head-on, fighting one against two.

But his divine power was depleted, and he was beaten bloody through the illusions. The second Sheng Mo was manageable, but the first was terrifying, repeatedly shattering his Sheng Ti body.

The blood of the Sheng Ti was striking.

The emperors and divine generals watched with eyes nearly splitting in rage, but they were powerless. Even Di Huang and Hong Yan looked pale with despair.

Beyond that, there was profound sorrow.

When the Female Emperor was alive, she could stand beside Ye Chen.

Without her, he fought alone.