Martial World

“What? You want to enter my people’s forbidden land?”

Hearing Lin Ming’s statement, the Great Elder’s complexion darkened.

Since it was called a forbidden land it was naturally of vital importance to the god race. How could they allow a human to enter as they pleased?

Moreover, entering the forbidden land this time wasn’t for youths to temper themselves, but involved the life or death of their race.

“A limited number of people can enter the forbidden land. Since it concerns the life or death of my race, those that can enter are essentially Empyrean level characters of my people, the powerhouses of the older generation. They enter in order to seek a turning point to bring back our race from the edge of destruction, and it is not for youths to grow and gain experience. There may even be Empyreans of the celestial race joining, so there is no spot for you!”

The Great Elder didn’t want to waste a precious spot. His refusal was clear.

However, as Lin Ming heard these words all he heard were loopholes. “So you are saying that those who can enter the forbidden land are ‘essentially’ Empyrean level characters of your race?” Lin Ming emphasized the word ‘essentially’. He looked at Heaven’s Son Morin and said, “Since you say ‘essentially’, that must mean there are exceptions. Will Heaven’s Son Morin be entering also?”

Lin Ming’s words were needles that drew blood. Heaven’s Son Morin was part of the younger generation so what use could he play in the great calamity? It was clear that he was entering to gain experience.

Lin Ming’s words caused Heaven’s Son Morin to scowl. He angrily said, “Whether I enter or not is an internal matter of my god race, it isn’t something that an outsider like you can be pointing fingers at!”

Lin Ming sneered. “I may be an outsider, but this Chain of Calamity was passed to me by Heavenly Empress Xuanqing. It was I who inherited her request and I who brought this necklace here. If it wasn’t for me, you wouldn’t be able to open the forbidden land to begin with!”

As Lin Ming spoke, energy spontaneously surged from his body. As for the Chain of Calamity in his hands, it faintly echoed with Lin Ming’s energy and emitted waves of blue light. This blue light was similar to the light of endless years, bringing with it a simple and boundless feeling, as if this blue light had flowed from the beginning of time.

Seeing this, the god race martial artists present felt their pulses quicken. They didn’t know whether or not the Chain of Calamity had truly recognized Lin Ming as its master, but they could confirm that it was indeed absolute truth that this human youth had received the will of Heavenly Empress Xuanqing.

“If you really disregard this human and ignore the will of Heavenly Empress Xuanqing, it is hard to imagine what could happen. If an accident occurs when we repair the chain of calamity…”

A god race Elder sent a sound transmission. It had to be known that this Chain of Calamity was a True Divinity spirit treasure. In ordinary circumstances, repairing a True Divinity spirit treasure required a True Divinity to do so. But, their god race lacked True Divinities and thus they could only have several Empyreans join forces and even use a part of the strength from the decrees of the gods to repair the necklace.

“Old Three, your thoughts are overwrought!” The Great Elder shook his head, “The Heavenly Empress once attempted to use the Samsara Road to snatch back our god race’s destiny and rid us of the curse that hinders us from reproducing. But, the result is that the saints stuck their foot in and caused everything to fall into failure. Even the Chain of Calamity was lost in the Divine Realm! In this case, the Empress shouldn’t have been able to find someone appropriate to return the Chain of Calamity to us, thus she was forced to choose this human boy. Heavenly Empress Xuanqing exhausted every method and all of her strength in order to restore our god race, so how could she possibly allow an accident to occur in a matter that concerns the life or death of our people just for a human boy? When we repair the Chain of Calamity, the Empress will surely bless us!”

The Great Elder said with utter confidence. Everyone also felt this was reasonable. But, the Third Elder frowned, “Your words may not be wrong, but the Empress was kind and this human has shown graciousness to our god race. It is unreasonable for us to directly refuse him like this. But… a spot is too precious, and after deducting the spots that we must give the celestials, we just don’t have any left over. How about we establish a qualifying test so that he can give up on his own…”

“Test?” The Great Elder’s fingers rapped against the armrest. He shook his head, “Don’t underestimate this human youth. He is an outstanding individual, and perhaps… he might not be much worse than Morin…”

As the Great Elder spoke, the god race Elders present were astounded. Some people felt incredulous and even Heaven’s Son Morin slightly frowned.

Heaven’s Son Morin acknowledged that Lin Ming was an outstanding young elite, but he wasn’t convinced that the difference between them wasn’t too far.

Lin Ming was a genius, but he was only at the middle Holy Lord Realm. As for Morin, he was a World King!

The difference in age and cultivation would both appear in a qualifications test.

“Great Elder…”

Heaven’s Son Morin spoke with a sound transmission but the Great Elder interrupted him. “I know you aren’t convinced of this, but we will not discuss this matter for now. First, let us consider a test. Old Three’s words have reminded me of something. There is one test that I believe he cannot pass, because… he is not of the god race.”

As the Great Elder spoke to here, he smiled. The other people immediately understood just what the Great Elder was plotting.

Lin Ming’s talent and potential were formidable, but in the end he couldn’t change his race. If a test concerned the god race bloodline, then Lin Ming would have to admit defeat.

“Lin Ming, If you want a spot, it is possible. However, you must pass the assessment of my people. The contents of the assessment are impartial, and if you cannot pass then I am sorry for that.”

The Great Elder leisurely said, already crossing out Lin Ming in his heart. Lin Ming frowned; he had no idea just what they were saying with sound transmissions just now.

As Lin Ming was thinking of what to say, the atmosphere in the entire grand hall suddenly changed.

A vast but gentle sea-like power slowly swelled forth. The pressure released by the Empyreans and the other Elders was completely washed away by this strength.

“Mm? This is…” Lin Ming was shocked. This was a terrifying strength…

He turned his head to see an old god race man slowly walking towards him, holding onto a walking stick made of withered wood.

This elderly man had long silver hair that shimmered with a brilliant luster. In contrast to that, his face appeared aged and his fires of life were fading away, as if on the precipice of death. Even so, he gave off an incomparably horrifying feeling, as if a universe were contained within him.

“Your Majesty God Sovereign!”

Seeing the old man enter, the other Elders all rose up in salute, deeply bowing in respect. As for the stubborn and unruly Heaven’s Son Morin, he knelt down on a knee, showing even deeper courtesy than the Elders. For a time, the only one standing tall and straight was Lin Ming.

This old man was the God Sovereign of the god race?

Lin Ming was amazed. As he looked at this old man he wasn’t able to distinguish his cultivation at all. But according to what Sheng Mei said, the god race shouldn’t have any True Divinities. In other words, this old man was an extreme Empyrean.

But for some reason, the feeling that this old man gave off was even more terrifying than other extreme Empyreans, as if the entirety of the universe had to submit to him!

“Since you’ve seen His Majesty the God Emperor, hurry up and kneel!”

The Great Elder angrily shouted.

Lin Ming bowed. This was the respect one owed to seniors and elders, as it should be.

Lin Ming’s bowing manners were the same as the god race Elders’. This caused Heaven’s Son Morin to feel ill at heart. His cultivation was clearly higher than Lin Ming’s and yet Lin Ming was standing while he was kneeling.

Just as Heaven’s Son Morin was about to say something, the god race God Sovereign heaved a deep sigh. He looked at Lin Ming, a profound sorrow in his eyes as he asked, “You saw Xuanqing?”

“Mm…” Lin Ming nodded. He knew that the god race God Sovereign was asking him whether or not he had seen Heavenly Empress Xuanqing’s corpse. “Heavenly Empress Xuanqing’s remains were calm and at peace. She was beautiful and vibrant, as if she had just fallen asleep…”

Although he already knew Xuanqing had died, as the God Sovereign heard this news from Lin Ming’s lips and that he had even seen her corpse, he felt a stabbing pain in his heart.

“Come with me, I will lead you to a place…”

The god race God Sovereign looked at Lin Ming and then slowly turned around. Lin Ming was startled – a place?

Lin Ming didn’t ask where they were going, and only followed close behind the god race God Sovereign. He could feel from this old God Sovereign’s body a deep compassion and empathy, and even a faintly heavy sorrow. This feeling left Lin Ming’s heart racing. He had never felt this feeling from anyone before.

Lin Ming left the grand hall, leaving the god race Elders staring at him with a look of complete loss in their eyes. Where was the old God Sovereign planning to take this human?

“Senior God Sovereign, you are Heavenly Empress Xuanqing’s…”

“I am her father.”

The God Sovereign calmly said. After this, he no longer spoke.

The god race’s Heavenly Empress was the same as the spiritas’ Soul Empress; both were a title. Without a doubt, if Heavenly Empress Xuanqing still lived, she would be the next God Sovereign.

But what a pity, she perished far too early. As for the current god race, Lin Ming had only seen young elites like A’Gu and Heaven’s Son Morin. If Heaven’s Son Morin was the number one young elite of the god race, then the god race was in a worrying situation!

After all, their numbers were far too small. Even if the god race were extremely talented and everyone was a dragon, without a massive base population it was difficult to give birth to a true peerless character.

As Lin Ming thought this, he followed the God Sovereign through a series of corridors. The further he walked, the more he felt he was headed deep beneath the temple.

The God Sovereign’s pace was slow. Although he was capable of crossing tens of millions of miles with a single step, transferring through the void as he pleased, in this temple he moved a single step at a time. As his footsteps fell on the dark ground, light muffled echoing sounds filled the air.

Lin Ming felt that the deeper he went, the more ancient the surrounding atmosphere became. It seemed that no one had come to this place for a very long time already. The heavy and simple tiles on the ground were like thick history books that recorded the immeasurably long time that this temple had experienced.

At this time, the God Sovereign came to a stop. “We’re here…”

The old God Sovereign stood before a thick, ancient bronze gate. Behind this bronze gate, dreadful roars sounded out, filled with mourning and causing one’s courage to shake. Soon after, there was a loud rumbling sound of crashing metal, as if an unbelievably terrifying existence was locked in chains!

Lin Ming’s steps paused. He took a deep breath. As this horrifying roar fell into his ears, he didn’t know why but it summoned an inexplicable sadness in his heart, an emotion he couldn’t get over.

The old God Sovereign pointed to the bronze gate, “Go and see for yourself.”

Lin Ming took a deep breath and pushed open the bronze gate. In that moment, Lin Ming felt as if he wasn’t opening a gate, but a thick tombstone.

Behind the ancient gate was a dark and isolated world, similar to a pitch black abyss.