He knew full well that everyone in the hall was a core disciple of the Exposition Sect, and a renowned member of its Twelve Golden Immortals.
"Junior Brother Yun Zhongzi, did you gain anything from your trip to Chaoge City?"
As soon as Yun Zhongzi entered the hall, a voice rang out, and every gaze turned toward him.
"King Zhou really is different from before. I suspect the Interception Sect used some kind of method..."
Yun Zhongzi recounted his trip to Chaoge City, how he had met King Zhou, and how he had presented him with the Pine Wood Sword.
"So it seems King Zhou shows no signs of being a fool. Could he actually be a wise ruler?" Taiyi Zhenren asked in surprise.
It was easy enough to judge. They only needed to hear what the people of Chaoge City had to say to get some idea.
"That's right. Ever since King Zhou executed the Spirit of the Qi Water River and the Mountain God of Taihang Mountain, he's completely changed!" Yun Zhongzi said.
That was only part of it. Everything that had happened after he met King Zhou had left him with the persistent impression that the king was no ordinary man.
He had managed to shock Yun Zhongzi three times, and even said those words at the end. By no measure did he seem like a ruler destined to lose his kingdom.
"Whether he's a foolish ruler or a wise one, the Canonization of the Gods is already set. Why pay any attention to this?" said the Daoist seated at the very top.
This Daoist was Guang Chengzi, the foremost of the Twelve Golden Immortals of the Exposition Sect and the disciple most favored by Yuanshi Tianzun.
"Senior Brother is right. The Canonization of the Gods is already set. It doesn't really matter what happens to Great Shang or King Zhou!" said Chijingzi.
The other members of the Twelve Golden Immortals nodded. They had never paid much attention to the matter in the first place.
But when Yun Zhongzi heard that King Zhou had executed the gods, he had volunteered to go and test him. They hadn't felt they could refuse.
But what did one mere mortal amount to, even if he had changed a little and done a few things?
It wasn't just King Zhou. They had even met the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors of old. Nothing about this could surprise them.
"The important thing to watch is the Canonization of the Gods. Its central figures are emerging one after another!" Guang Chengzi said.
They couldn't afford to be careless about the Canonization of the Gods. Their master had told them long ago that they were already caught up in the Great Calamity.
Whether they could survive this calamity depended on the central figures of the Canonization of the Gods. They couldn't afford the slightest negligence.
"Rest assured, Senior Brother. This matter will go off without a hitch! By my reckoning, my disciple should be emerging soon!" Taiyi Zhenren said.
The Twelve Golden Immortals nodded. By their reckoning, their own disciples should be emerging soon as well.
"Then let's leave King Zhou alone for now. Executing gods is the Heavenly Court's concern, not ours!" Guang Chengzi said.
How could they not know someone had done this deliberately? The culprit was probably trying to divert trouble toward them.
But they were completely disdainful of the attempt. Thinking it could affect them was laughable.
On second thought, it was only natural. The Heavenly Court had little reputation, and the Jade Emperor probably had little experience. How could they compare to the Exposition Sect?
Yun Zhongzi had still wanted to say something. For some reason, he remained wary of King Zhou.
Thinking of the things King Zhou had said, he had a feeling the king would do something unexpected again.
But seeing the Twelve Golden Immortals act this way, he didn't feel he could say more.
Then again, so what if King Zhou really did something unexpected?
The Canonization of the Gods was set. What could a mere mortal do, defy Heaven? It would be like an ant trying to topple a tree. There was no chance.
Leaving aside the plans of the Twelve Golden Immortals, Zi Shou had reached a critical moment in the Hall of Heroes of the Human Emperors.
Several months had passed since he entered the Immortal Platform Secret Realm, and at last he had accumulated enough power.
He had cultivated from the Immortal Platform First Heaven all the way to the Sixth Heaven of Immortal Platform, becoming a Great Saint, yet his cultivation speed had not slowed in the slightest.
He had entered the Quasi-Emperor realm, advanced from the first to the ninth heaven, and cultivated the Five Great Secret Realms all over again until each was complete.
At last, he had reached the absolute limit of the Quasi-Emperor realm. Only one realm remained before him.
He would enter the Extreme Dao Domain, stand at the pinnacle of the Human Dao Domain, and prove the Dao to become Emperor!
He had originally needed more time to build up his strength, but meeting Yun Zhongzi today had shown him an opportunity to break through.
To prove the Dao and become Emperor was to forge one's own Dao and rise to the pinnacle of the Human Dao Domain, becoming invincible in the current age!
Taking this step was difficult. Countless prodigies and peerless geniuses had been stopped at the threshold.
At that moment, Zi Shou's body was crystal-clear. His old primordial spirit had shed away, and a new one was forming, on the verge of emerging.
The great dragon of his spine rose while the Immortal Platform primordial spirit descended. The two joined forces, seeming to melt together.
The Five Great Secret Realms had long since reached perfection, yet now they were merging into one, forming a Dao Cocoon that nurtured Extreme Dao laws.
He was drawing closer and closer to his breakthrough. It seemed that if he could only advance a little farther, he would break through his limits and enter a whole new world.
Just then, lightning flickered in the void inside the Hall of Heroes of the Human Emperors, and a boundless sea of thunder appeared.
A Heavenly Tribulation during the proof of the Dao and rise to Emperor was perfectly normal. But the world he lived in was somewhat different.
According to Grand Tutor Wen, Heavenly Tribulations did exist, but they were summoned only when one accumulated too much Karmic Burden, drawing down the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder.
If one merely cultivated to the level of an immortal, no Heavenly Tribulation would descend. There was no such thing as undergoing a tribulation to become immortal.
However, it was said that once one's cultivation grew profound enough, the Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations, Ten Trials, and even the terrifying Five Decays of Heaven and Man would await.
As he saw it, the Heavenly Court was still crude, and many of its responsibilities had yet to be properly established.
Take Grand Tutor Wen, for example. After the Canonization of the Gods, he would be titled the Universal Thunder Lord of the Nine Heavens, in charge of the Department of Thunder.
But the Heavenly Court probably didn't even have a Department of Thunder yet, much less anyone in charge of thunder. Naturally, there was no such thing as a Heavenly Tribulation.
Yet inside the Hall of Heroes of the Human Emperors, he had been caught in a Heavenly Tribulation, and it had given him no time to react.
The boundless sea of thunder had barely appeared before countless terrifying bolts rained down, crashing onto him from head to toe.
Every bolt was terrifying. They fell together like the end of the world, engulfing him in an instant.
Fortunately, he had spent every day fighting the Human Emperors in the Great Emperor's Arena. His strength was already incomparable to what it had been before.
No matter how the boundless thunder crashed down, he stood firm as a mountain. His breakthrough's rhythm was not disrupted.
If he wanted, he could shatter the thunder with one hand. But he knew this was only the beginning.
After a while, no one knew how many bolts had fallen. His body remained crystal-clear, utterly unharmed—not even a trace of charred skin.
He might not have an Innate Holy Body Dao Fetus, but the fact that he could cultivate the Wushi Scripture proved that his body was no weaker than one.
In fact, with the blood of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors flowing through his veins, his body was far stronger than an Innate Holy Body Dao Fetus.
Everything was as he had expected. The thunderstorm had only been an appetizer. The boundless sea of thunder changed once more.
The lightning took shape, transforming into countless Heavenly Soldiers, Dragons, phoenixes, Qilins, and Extreme Dao Emperor Weapons...
At last, he moved. With the Wushi Bell above his head, he stepped forward and entered the boundless sea of thunder of his own accord.
This was no desperate battle. It was a one-sided slaughter!
He struck with one palm, and countless Heavenly Soldiers vanished into ash. He struck again, and the Dragons, phoenixes, and Qilins disappeared. He reached out and closed his hand, and the Extreme Dao Emperor Weapons shattered at once.
Ever since Emperor Wushi began cultivating, he had swept aside prodigies and defeated all the heroes of the world. No one of the same realm had ever withstood a single blow from him.
Now that he had obtained Emperor Wushi's inheritance, he could hardly allow Emperor Wushi's name to be disgraced.
It was only a Heavenly Tribulation. After months of training in the Great Emperor's Arena, it posed no threat to him at all.
Perhaps realizing this too, the Heavenly Tribulation changed again. Countless bolts took shape once more, and Undying Immortal Herbs appeared one after another.
Behind every Undying Immortal Herb was a face—the face of an immortal from ages past, manifested in the boundless sea of thunder.
Brilliant light swallowed everything. At last, he felt a hint of pressure, but it was only a hint.
He strode forward through the dazzling immortal light, walking across the sea of thunder. His fists shattered the heavens as he chose to meet the Undying Immortal Herbs head-on.
More terrifying still, the rhythm of his breakthrough remained undisturbed. The Five Great Secret Realms gradually merged, and his own Extreme Dao laws ripened.
His primordial spirit glowed. The old one had shed away completely, and the new one had emerged, stronger and purer than before.
He knew full well that once the Five Great Secret Realms fused into one, he would reach true perfection and enter the Sacrifice Dao Realm.
"Now this is getting interesting. Otherwise, it would have been far too boring," Zi Shou muttered.
The Undying Immortal Herbs shattered, but the boundless sea of thunder did not dissipate. Endless bolts converged, and nine figures appeared amid the thunder.
They were still powerful beings manifested by the Heavenly Tribulation, but these nine figures were extraordinary, like immortal monuments standing between heaven and earth.
Emperors! They were all Emperors of ages past, reflected by the Heavenly Tribulation and turned into his opponents.
The true, brutal battle began. He faced nine foes at once, fighting nine Emperors from the past simultaneously.
Every Emperor had been invincible in his age. One Emperor was terrifying enough; nine were far worse.
With nine Emperors joining forces, who could stand against them at the same realm?
Even Emperor Wushi, who had stood with his back to all living beings and remained invincible his entire life, would likely be unable to fight nine at once!
He couldn't help but marvel. Without the Great Emperor's Arena, he would have been defeated long ago instead of barely holding on as he was now.
Anyone would have been stunned by this sight: facing nine opponents and still managing to hold on. What kind of strength did that take?
But this was the result of his months of painstaking cultivation in the Great Emperor's Arena!
After fighting with all his might against countless Human Emperors from the All Heavens and Myriad Realms, his strength had already reached its peak.
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