Strongest War Emperor

Feng Hai, seemingly oblivious to the look in Cheng Kun’s eyes, continued smugly, ”The City Lord’s Mansion’s Dark Hall, which Cheng Kun leads, is an assassin organization known for its elusiveness. They’ve always withdrawn when a mission becomes impossible. Even when an assassination fails, they rarely suffer heavy losses. But this time, not only were all our top operatives killed, but even Cheng Kun had to self-destruct his Spiritual Artifact just to escape with his life. Hasn’t the young miss realized just how terrifying Shen Lang is?”

Ye Xue’s body trembled even more violently.

Her face pale, she looked at Cheng Kun and said, ”Uncle Kun, is that person... really so frightening?”

”’Frightening’ doesn’t even begin to cover it. I’ve killed countless people and faced innumerable masters, but he’s someone I never want to cross paths with again...” Cheng Kun said, his face etched with terror. ”I know you must be wondering, Young Miss. He didn’t even seriously injure me, and his power was a step below mine, so why am I still so wary of him.”

Cheng Kun continued, a note of lingering fear in his voice, ”Before we made our move, I actually suspected he was being followed by the Treasure Pavilion’s Cyan-clothed Guards. I only dared to strike after investigating for a good while and finding nothing. And he clearly knew that Cyan-clothed Guards were protecting him, yet he never had them intervene. He relied solely on his own strength to defeat us... He didn’t even draw a Spiritual Artifact...”

”His cunning is extraordinary; he calculated every last detail. And in an incredibly short time, he saw through every one of the assassins’ openings with perfect clarity. His true power isn’t much greater than a Martial Artist at the Qi Martial Realm Fifth Heaven, yet with a mere wave of his hand, he gravely wounded several battle-hardened assassins. What’s more, he used impossibly bizarre footwork and movements to dodge my attacks. But the most terrifying thing of all—the reason I was so horrified that I ultimately self-destructed my Spiritual Artifact...”

”He didn’t use much of his power. He simply used that mysterious, exclusive Secret Technique of the Ghost Moon Sect, the ’Ghost Moon Cross Sword,’ to shatter my ultimate move. What terrified me wasn’t how powerful his Ghost Moon Cross Sword was, but that his technique already contained the Intent of the Martial Arts Rules! In other words, he didn’t rely on the Ghost Moon Cross Sword to break my technique. He just casually used a Martial Technique to harness the legendary ’Trend of Heaven and Earth’—something only a few top-tier Martial Arts experts can even begin to grasp!”

As Cheng Kun spoke, he began to gasp for breath, the terror in his eyes impossible to conceal.

”As far as I know, the Ghost Moon Sect is a Profound Iron Level Influence from the Yunfeng Country, over five hundred thousand li away. They are an Evil Dao Sect, known for their vicious methods and countless killings. The Ghost Moon Cross Sword is their exclusive, secret technique... The fact that Shen Lang knows it makes me even more certain of my judgment...” Feng Hai said slowly.

At this, Ye Xue finally calmed down a little. Her voice was hoarse as she said, ”Uncle Feng, are you saying that Xue Dangdang has mysterious origins and is likely from some legendary family? And because she’s so close with Shen Lang, it was probably someone from her family who guided him, which is why his Cultivation is so formidable and he’s even managed to touch upon the edge of the Martial Arts Rules?”

”Yes. That’s the only way any of this makes sense,” Feng Hai said with a nod.

Ye Xue said, still unwilling to accept it, ”If that’s really the case, why hasn’t Xue Dangdang ever displayed a Cultivation as powerful as Shen Lang’s? Besides, in the entire Purple Chu Country, and even among the Eighteen Snow Countries, I’ve never heard of any prominent family with the surname Xue.”

Just then, Ye Xiao Zheng, who had remained silent as if resting with his eyes closed, let out a cold snort. ”The Star Continent is divided into the Four Desolates of the East, South, West, and North. The Snow Domain is just one of over a hundred domains in the Western Wilderness. Just because there isn’t one in the Snow Domain, how do you know there isn’t one in the other domains? I spent three whole years and countless Spirit Stones to finally discover that in the most mysterious domain of the Western Wilderness, the Piaomiao Domain, there is an Ancient Family with the surname Xue. They are an absurdly powerful Dark Gold Level Influence! A Dark Gold Level Influence, just one tier below a Legendary Power!”

”A Dark Gold Level...” All the color drained from Ye Xue’s face, and her body went limp as she collapsed to the floor.

It was no wonder Ye Xue was so terrified. The power levels in this world were divided into six tiers: Cyan Wood Level, Profound Iron Level, Spirit Copper Level, Secret Silver Level, Dark Gold Level, and Legendary Level. The Celestial Phoenix City’s City Lord’s Mansion was merely a bottom-tier Cyan Wood Level influence.

If it weren’t for their connections within the Imperial Dragon Sect, Celestial Phoenix City would never have been assigned to someone of Ye Xiao Zheng’s strength.

Even a behemoth like the Imperial Dragon Sect—a power that could shake the entire Purple Chu Empire with a single stomp—was only a Spirit Copper Level Influence.

Above the Spirit Copper Level was the Secret Silver Level, and above that was the Dark Gold Level Influence—a power said to be capable of leaving a million corpses and turning a mighty empire to ash with but a single thought!

If Xue Dangdang, who was so close to Shen Lang, truly came from such a power, then forget about the mere City Lord’s Mansion—even the Imperial Dragon Sect could not afford to offend them!

To have made such an enemy for the City Lord’s Mansion...

Who could guarantee that the Celestial Phoenix City’s City Lord’s Mansion would still exist tomorrow?

A look of agony crossed Ye Xiao Zheng’s face. ”Old Feng, I know your analysis is sound, but in the end, it’s all just speculation...”

”It’s better to be safe than sorry! My Lord, we cannot bear the consequences!” Feng Hai interrupted him audaciously.

”Then... then what should we do?” A look of despair filled Ye Xiao Zheng’s eyes.

’He was still reeling from the fact that his plot to collude with the Demon Dao for the Nine Immortals Lingzhi had been ruined. Now, something even more disastrous had occurred. This unfilial daughter of mine offended such a powerful figure without even consulting me...’

’Have my days come to an end?’

Feng Hai said with some hesitation, ”Although what the young miss did was a bit excessive, she didn’t actually manage to hurt Shen Lang. Moreover, the one we directly offended wasn’t Xue Dangdang, so there might still be a chance to salvage this. I believe it’s not too late to make amends. If I recall correctly, in about half a month, it will be the birthday of Shen Lang’s father, Shen Haotian. My Lord, what do you think...”

Ye Xiao Zheng shot to his feet. ”Throw Tang Sheng and his son into the dungeons and place them under heavy guard! When the time comes, I will take those two with me and personally attend Shen Haoxuan’s birthday celebration!”

One had to admit, this Feng Hai was quite sharp. His analysis was clear and logical.

But no matter how much he analyzed, how could he possibly deduce that Shen Lang had received the War Emperor’s inheritance in a dream?

He and Ye Xiao Zheng had managed to uncover Xue Dangdang’s family background, but the actual truth of the matter was a case of ”miss by an inch, miss by a mile.”

Aside from the people in the City Lord’s Mansion, at almost the exact same time in an inn, the Profound Dao Sect’s palace-garbed woman, Leng Hui, was also questioning Zi Lan about Shen Lang.

”He appeared passive, but he was proactive, completely in control, and turned the situation around. He killed six assassins to resolve the crisis, forced their leader to retreat, and emerged completely unscathed. While dodging the explosion of the Spiritual Artifact, he targeted the people from the Holy Light Sect, instantly killing four experts at the Fifth and Sixth Heaven of the Qi Martial Realm. All of this seemed to be done on a whim, but in reality, it concealed an astonishing intellect. To be so young, yet possess such veteran methods... his actions were meticulous, his strategies as fluid as flowing water, without a single flaw. It’s truly terrifying!”

A middle-aged man in a gray robe sitting next to Leng Hui said, his face a mixture of shock and uncertainty.

Zi Lan and Mo Ge stood before them, silent.

Leng Hui took a sip of tea before speaking. ”It is all truly incredible. He saw through his opponent’s intentions before they even acted, perceived every opening in their techniques at a glance, and formulated a counter-plan in an instant... Not a single one of his moves felt forced; everything was natural and left no trace. He doesn’t seem like a boy of sixteen or seventeen at all, but more like an all-seeing sage. It’s truly hard to imagine that Celestial Phoenix City has such a person.”

She fell silent for a moment, then suddenly asked, ”Lan’er, you just said that Mo Ge invited him to our Profound Dao Sect, and he agreed?”

Zi Lan nodded slightly. ”He only said a single word, ’Mm,’ but I could feel the commitment in it.”

”Mo Ge, do you think he will come to the Profound Dao Sect?” Leng Hui asked.

”Yes.” Mo Ge uttered a single word.

A smile slowly bloomed on Leng Hui’s face, like a flower opening its petals. ”If our Profound Dao Sect can recruit such a person, it would be our greatest fortune!”

...

By the time Shen Lang returned home, Yin Kuang and the others had already been waiting for a long while with a pile of materials.

But how could Shen Lang possibly be in the mood to craft Profound Artifacts for them right now?

So, without showing them the slightest courtesy, he simply kicked them all out!

’The War Emperor even erased the location of the Elemental Power Fragment... That bastard. Is he treating this like some kind of game, making me solve a riddle? Or is it that he wasn’t actually sure of the fragment’s specific location either?’

After spending some time refining a few Elixir Pills, Shen Lang’s thoughts returned to the ”Elemental Power Fragment” and the still-not-fully-integrated memories of the War Emperor.

When it came to the Elemental Power Fragments, there might be people in this Human Realm who knew more than the War Emperor, but you’d be hard-pressed to find them.

Primordial Qi is the sum total of all Energy within the Cosmos.

It includes not only the Spiritual Qi that most Martial Artists can absorb, but also other forms of Energy.

For example, Death Qi, Slaughter Qi, Demonic Qi, and so on.

Relatively speaking, Spiritual Qi is simply a purer form of Primordial Qi that can be used by all living things.

Although Demonic Qi is abhorred by Righteous Martial Artists, to Demon Martial Artists, it is another delicacy besides Spiritual Qi.

This is because Demon Martial Artists, through the Demon Cultivation Methods they practice, can also absorb Demonic Qi and convert it into their own Energy.

In antiquity, when Chaos was first divided and Yin and Yang were separated, that which was light and clear floated up to become Heaven, its nature being Yang; that which was heavy and turbid sank down to become Earth, its nature being Yin.

The Endless Void surrounding the world of the Star Continent is constructed from this vast Primordial Power. Without this framework of Primordial Power, whether they be men, beasts, or demons, none could absorb the essence between heaven and earth.

In the Ancient Era, the Heaven and Earth Strange Beasts and the Divine Demons born from Chaos all possessed the world-shattering power to move mountains, overturn seas, and tear the very heavens and earth asunder.

Their countless great wars... including the later descent of the Upper Realm Divine Demons to the Lower Realm, who fought for tens of thousands of years to spread their doctrines, seize territory, and plunder resources, all left this world shattered, creating innumerable Elemental Power Fragments that scattered to every corner of the world.

These Elemental Power Fragments not only contain surging and extremely condensed Primordial Power, but they also hold a sliver of this world’s Rules.

If a person were to obtain one of these fragments, ascending to a higher realm in broad daylight might not be impossible, and establishing one’s own sect would be a simple matter...

And according to the War Emperor’s memories, the founding ancestor of the Profound Dao Sect was once one of his generals and a close friend. The War Emperor had personally hidden an ”Elemental Power Fragment” within the Profound Dao Sect!