Becoming an Emperor in the Flesh

The art of weapon control possessed endless wondrous depths.

Zhang Huan observed and pondered it repeatedly, grasping its essentials.

To master the method of weapon control, one had to possess a weapon of their own, forging their own foundation.

He usually relied on the demonic jar, and with no shortage of saint weapons, Zhang Huan had focused entirely on elevating his cultivation and had never crafted his own vessel.

Now he had some ideas. If enough immortal gold was available, Zhang Huan might attempt to forge an embryonic weapon of his own imperial path.

Having digested his insights, Zhang Huan thought over methods to deal with the quasi-emperor corpse, rising and flying toward the main hall of the Underworld.

The Underworld specialized in this path and understood communicating corpses most thoroughly, making it most appropriate to gain an in-depth understanding of the details of that quasi-emperor corpse.

If he could trade for one or two wicked techniques to restrain corpses and control ghosts, the threat of that quasi-emperor corpse would plummet when he devoured its origin.

With over twenty years remaining to plan, Zhang Huan was confident he could make full preparations within this time. A peerless quasi-emperor corpse contained such a massive origin within it—just thinking about it stirred a craving in his heart.

It was the same sexy and spirited female saint who had received him last time, dressed in professional attire that set off her figure to perfection. She was like a fragrant, gorgeous millet, exuding an enticing charm with every slight expression and smile.

"Hello, Great Saint. I wonder how your injuries are recovering. There are still a few burial pits here, available at any time for you to extract origins and recuperate."

The female saint offered a polite greeting, her professional smile instantly winning a measure of favorable impression.

"Ah, I have only partially recovered. In fact, I was just about to speak to you about this, so I will not decline."

Zhang Huan accepted the map from her hands with a smiling expression and put it away.

Since they were voluntarily delivering origins to his doorstep, Zhang Huan naturally turned none away.

"There is also a private matter on this trip that I must discuss with you."

Zhang Huan feigned a sigh, a hint of worry hanging on his face.

The two arrived at a side chamber, and Zhang Huan took a deep breath, seemingly psyching himself up before speaking with difficulty.

"Actually, I once had a sworn enemy with a deep and irreconcilable grudge, and he has already reached the quasi-emperor realm."

"That is a communicating ancient corpse."

A helpless expression appeared on Zhang Huan's face as he detailed the fabricated background and events, acting as though he had been driven to a dead end and forced to enter the Underworld seeking shelter.

The female saint listened with utmost focus, never interrupting.

A figure of this quasi-emperor grade was already among the supreme powerhouses of the universe, and every move of theirs was far-reaching. Any related information was worth noting; one never knew when it might come in handy.

Moreover, this was intimately connected to Zhang Huan, who had entered the Underworld, so it required even more attentive treatment.

Zhang Huan portrayed the ancient corpse as a great enemy, bluntly stating that his mind had been unsettled lately, he sensed an impending calamity, and divination through dowsing pointed squarely to that ancient corpse.

He also stated that he was soon going to stake everything on a single battle to charge into the quasi-emperor realm, at which point he had the confidence to fight to the death with that enemy.

The injuries he had suffered earlier were precisely caused by his excessive haste in making a breakthrough.

He shared his speculation with the female saint that they might meet on the battlefield in the future. The ancient corpse was formidable, and a death match would likely pose a mortal threat. He hoped the Underworld could issue some targeted, powerful talismans or treasures with similar utility.

At the very least, he needed items that could restrain corpse entities, or Zhang Huan would feel uneasy in his heart.

He spoke with complete conviction, making a solemn request that left even the female saint speechless and embarrassed to refuse.

"If the Great Saint insists on this, then this junior can try to investigate some treasures with corpse-restraining effects."

"However, anything capable of dealing with the great saint tier is naturally priceless and cannot be given away casually. If superiors permit, I am afraid the Great Saint will have to trade other items for them."

The female saint described the ins and outs, and Zhang Huan's eyes lit up. He agreed repeatedly, stating that it was only right, and produced the benefits he had previously received within the Underworld, such as quasi-emperor insights and Nine Heavens Jade.

Zhang Huan dared not use these items, suspecting the Underworld's heart was black and that they had secretly added ingredients to them. Now he was returning them directly in full, saving himself the trouble of carrying them around.

The female saint sent the materials off for approval, handing them to her superiors for a final decision.

The time required was not short, leaving him with no choice but to wait as it was submitted level by level to the hands of the most core individuals for review.

Zhang Huan drank tea alone, his fingers rubbing back and forth over the teacup, absent-minded.

He thought about the connection between his words and his true purpose, secretly calling himself overly paranoid.

The universe was vast and full of wonders; the Underworld was not the only place in this world with communicating ancient corpses.

As long as he did not actively leak information, no one would ever guess that he had already dug up several ancient tombs in succession, and that the ancient corpse he meant to deal with was right here in the Underworld—truly, things were darkest under the lamp.

Believing there was no major problem, Zhang Huan left the main hall and flew leisurely toward the several burial pits provided by the female saint.

Sometimes he took a detour, using source art to probe for anomalies within the ominous earth. If his spiritual sense was blocked, it indicated that formation restrictions were most likely encountered, with an ancient tomb hidden within.

He searched very carefully. Clearly a place he could have reached in a short while, Zhang Huan deliberately spent several months finding a number of tombs along the way, entering them to foster friendly relations with the tomb owners.

Years passed, and Zhang Huan changed to another burial ground, searching on a large scale. He reaped harvests from time to time, and his demonic art surged crazily.

"Now I have also reached the peak of the great saint realm. I have absorbed too many origins, and I can no longer suppress my cultivation. I am about to step into the quasi-emperor realm."

Zhang Huan sat atop a coffin, harmonizing the internal Qi within his body and exclaiming in admiration.

The utility of this Heaven Swallowing Demonic Art was far too potent. The further one cultivated toward the later stages, the faster cultivation rose under the blessing of devoured origins.

"It is a pity that now is not a suitable time to break through. There is no other way—I shall sever my realm once more."

Steeling his heart, Zhang Huan prepared to vent a breath of blood Qi to beat his realm back to the late stage.

He was still a guest in someone else's home; summoning a lightning tribulation would hardly be ideal.

Moreover, while the quasi-emperor realm was formidable, it acted like a potent poison to Zhang Huan. Once achieved, unknowable bizarre occurrences might descend, causing him to perish and his dao to dissolve.

His mind harbored persistent misgivings, holding a deep avoidance toward the Spirit Absorption Unity Demonic Art.

Seeking the Ruthless Emperor's inheritance and coming to the Underworld to devour origins were all inextricably linked to this; he could not afford to be reckless.

Rather than sublimation of realm, refining his own dao to become a complete quasi-emperor in one go, Zhang Huan intended to temper his physical body first, transforming this flesh into a quasi-emperor body.

Even though his realm had not yet arrived, with a wave of his hand he would still possess quasi-emperor might, which, coupled with his other preparations, would suffice to deal with that communicating quasi-emperor corpse.

The demonic art Zhang Huan had previously cultivated was one that kept him under another's control, and his cultivation derived entirely from it. Its various traits were already deeply rooted and difficult to sever easily.

He was even more deeply trapped than those who cultivated the subsidiary demonic arts, and his cultivation in the end would only benefit that person behind the scenes.

From his perspective, practitioners of these subsidiary demonic arts were linked one by one by invisible threads. Even if some cultivators of the subsidiary art had switched to other methods, that connection had not faded and could still be perceived.

He had also switched cultivation methods decades ago, no longer receiving the cultivation transmitted by the demonic art, yet the subsidiary art practitioners were still being leeched as before. Cultivation was still being transmitted through the invisible threads, only to vanish mysteriously upon reaching Zhang Huan.

Zhang Huan suspected it was going to the master of the demonic art.

Transmitted layer by layer downward, the master of the demonic art sat securely at the apex of the pyramid, constantly having puppet strings manipulated to branch out across the universe and enjoy the offerings of countless individuals.

Just how terrifying must the scheming and strength of such a mastermind behind the scenes be?

In a millennium, the only person Zhang Huan knew of who had escaped was the Innate Dao Embryo who had entered Jade Pool.

Initially unaware as her cultivation was leeched, it was only when the Western Emperor Pagoda made a move that the connection was completely severed in secret while her cultivation was still shallow. All other cultivators could never escape the net Zhang Huan had originally woven.

If cultivators separated by a single layer were like this, then what of someone like himself who had personally stepped into the trap set by the master of the demonic art? Just how profound and far-reaching must the surveillance and secret manipulations directed at him be?

At the very least, that person could strip away a subsidiary art practitioner's cultivation with a single thought, just as Zhang Huan could. Thus, they could similarly reduce him to a lamb ready for slaughter.

Therefore, Zhang Huan had always focused primarily on accumulating origins, suppressing his cultivation whenever possible. He hoped that after the Heaven Swallowing Demonic Art reached completion, he would funnel all supplies into the divine embryo, accumulating strength for a breakthrough to break out of his cocoon in a single morning and soar straight into the nine heavens.

This way, he could simultaneously resolve his predicament of being controlled by others, gain the ability to contend with the mastermind behind the scenes, and achieve transcendence in one stroke, while also making up for his insufficient natural talent to contend for the imperial throne of that era.