The Shenxiao Emperor's mind had been clouded by the Calamity Aura. He was no longer thinking clearly.
That was Great Emperor Huangtian's judgment of him.
After taking the throne of the Southern Shenxiao Purple Thunder Emperor, he was no longer the spirited, ambitious prodigy of the Divine Path he had once been. He had become a god called the Shenxiao Emperor.
For twelve thousand years, he had sat high in his imperial palace. Invisible shackles bound him—shackles called authority, self-interest, rules, heavenly duty, and more. They fettered not only his body and Dao Heart but clouded his soul as well.
Now, the Shenxiao Emperor could not bear to relinquish his former authority or his imposing grandeur. His mind was fixed on the rank of Judicial Heavenly Monarch. He wanted to restore the majesty of his power...
Yet he had completely forgotten that he was the Southern Shenxiao Purple Thunder Emperor not because the position could belong to no one else, but because he had the cultivation of the Five Calamities and was a prodigy of the Divine Path.
Without cultivation as his foundation, what use were heavenly duties and a Fruition Rank?
But the Shenxiao Emperor had his eyes fixed on that rank and refused to let go.
Great Emperor Huangtian could already foresee that being slain by Jiang Sheng at the ninth trial would be the Shenxiao Emperor's best possible end.
If he lost but survived, His Majesty the Heavenly Emperor, smiling atop his throne, would never spare him lightly.
As for winning?
After thousands of years seated high on his throne, the Shenxiao Emperor had fought only a handful of times outside of wielding his authority. With so little combat experience, how could he defeat Jiang Sheng, who had fought his way through battle after battle and even