Imperial Pass

On a life-bearing ancient land along the Human Race Ancient Trial Path, countless beings looked up and watched the enormous spaceship leave, finally breathing a sigh of relief.

They looked down at the land and found that the lush plain had long since vanished. Ten-thousand-foot columns of magma erupted endlessly, like the end of the world.

They also saw the starry sky go dark, stripped of all light. The entire world was bathed only in a dim crimson glow cast by the magma.

"Our world... it almost got destroyed..." one being said fearfully. Those two were the most terrifying members of the younger generation they had ever seen.

Even the younger generation who had arrived from other star domains back then had been slaughtered until they fled in panic, yet those two had been frightened out of their wits by a Female Demon.

There was no helping it. Their home was on the Human Race Ancient Trial Path, one of the few life-bearing ancient lands, and natural resources were somewhat scarce.

"That white-haired man looks a little like that Divine Body who escaped thirty years ago."

As soon as those words were spoken, everyone nodded. Thirty years ago, the Imperial Pass had opened, and the various members of the younger generation had embarked upon the Starry Sky Ancient Road, heading for the Imperial Pass.

"This time, we suffered grievous losses hunting that woman. Let's hide. The younger generation is nearly wiped out, and the Saints have all been exterminated. Only old, weak, sick, and crippled people like us remain. If we run into another ruthless monster like that, we'll be wiped out completely..."

Time passed, and in the blink of an eye, three years went by.

During that time, Xu Changqing and the Woman in White occasionally went into the starry sky to spar, but neither fought at full strength. Instead, they used the gains from their secluded cultivation to verify each other's progress.

Xu Changqing was using her to refine his cultivation methods and Healing Cultivation Method.

He had obtained far too many cultivation methods. The Eternal Star Domain alone had provided hundreds of millions, including methods from every star domain and era. He had studied every kind of Healing Cultivation Method.

Ever since their great battle, the two had not exchanged a single word in three years. Whenever they wanted to fight, they would head into the starry sky and wait for the other to arrive.

Over those three years, Xu Changqing's movement technique and healing secret techniques had basically matured.

Since they possessed precise coordinates, they naturally did not roam the Ancient Trial Path slaughtering others and seizing Five-Colored Altars to cross the starry sky.

However, whenever they sensed the aura of a Saint King, they would descend and battle Saint King experts. They were not Half-Saints, but Saints—Saints capable of entering Divine Prohibition—so naturally, they did not fear Saint Kings.

Over the three years, Xu Changqing and the Woman in White fought no fewer than a thousand times. Nearly every year, they had to battle several hundred times before they were willing to stop.

That day, they arrived on a dead star. The coordinates on the spaceship were also close, so they decided to walk the rest of the way.

This was a dim ancient star. A scarlet crescent moon hung overhead, and the ground was blackened as though it had endured countless battles. Various ghostly forms wandered across the land.

They explored the ancient star and occasionally came across a grave.

Before those burial mounds stood Stone Tablets, each inscribed with several lines of vigorous, forceful writing.

"What exactly have I been pursuing? The illusory realm of the Great Emperor? I could not even reach the entrance to the Emperor's Road, so how could I possibly stand at its peak? Then what have I been chasing all these years?"

The scarlet writing on the Stone Tablet was painfully striking, filled with unwillingness and endless regret.

Xu Changqing saw several more lines on the Stone Tablet. In order to set foot on the Emperor's Road, this person had severed all ties to the Mortal World and embarked upon the Emperor's Road alone, only to die miserably here in the end.

"Saint Demon—Ye Ming."

At the bottom of the Stone Tablet was the name of this outstanding figure. Xu Changqing did not know why he was called Saint Demon, nor could he be bothered to find out.

Nearby, the Woman in White stood quietly atop a crystal-clear Stone Tablet. Her deep autumn eyes gazed at those lines of writing, her white robes fluttering as her glossy black hair swayed gently.

"I knew you would surely come. I'll be waiting for you further ahead!"

—Tian Youqing.

"So it was her," the Woman in White said softly. Tian Youqing was a powerhouse from their homeland. She had never fought them, yet she was unfathomably deep.

She possessed a special physique, the Innate Dao Embryo, and was hailed as the number one beauty of the Big Dipper.

She wore a veil all year round, and no one had seen her true appearance. She was ethereal, as though an immortal fairy from the Immortal Realm had descended into the mortal world. Her bearing was even more ethereal and transcendent than the Woman in White's.

Xu Changqing continued deeper in and saw a gleaming golden Stone Tablet. Several lines of writing were vigorous and powerful, while his deep eyes were as calm as a stagnant pool.

"I lost to my father. My mother was not strong enough to embark upon the Emperor's Road, so I came!!"

"The next time we meet, I absolutely will not lose to him!"

—Xu An.

Xu Changqing watched for a while, then a cold smile appeared on his lips. With his hands clasped behind his back, he stopped looking at the Stone Tablets. Without waiting for the Woman in White, he turned into a streak of light and rushed into the depths of the dead star.

If Xu An lost to him again next time, perhaps he would die!

Xu Changqing was no longer the person he had been back then. He would not show mercy simply because Xu An was his blood relative.

Boom!

In the depths of the dead star, blazing saber light scattered the misty sky, and countless wails rang out.

They were transparent spirit forms, all members of the younger generation who had died here. Who among those capable of reaching this place could possibly be ordinary?

Unfortunately, even when they were alive, they could not last ten moves against Xu Changqing, much less now that they were spirit forms, little more than ghosts.

Xu Changqing held the Bone Saber and charged forward without hesitation, swiftly approaching a narrow path as densely packed soul bodies surrounded him.

Yet he merely thrust the Bone Saber lightly into the ground. With a boom, countless long blades rose from the earth, then spun outward in every direction, their sharp saber light illuminating the dim world.

Numerous Saint spirit forms turned into motes of light.

Xu Changqing did not use the spaceship. Instead, he continued forward alone. He encountered many ghosts along the way, but killed them all one by one.

The Woman in White also parted ways with Xu Changqing and vanished into the ancient star.

Another two months passed in a flash. Xu Changqing slaughtered countless terrifying ghostlike soul bodies. Since he had a clear direction, after only a week, he gradually began to see human figures.

The sky was dim, as though dark clouds covered the heavens. Only scattered starlight flickered. There was no sun and no moon.

A rough, uneven path lay before him, surrounded by thick fog. Yet it carried the aura of other beings. Using his Martial Dao Heavenly Eye to see through the haze, he found several ancient paths intertwining nearby, with the endpoint of the ancient road ahead.

Roar!

A terrifying roar came from the side. A dragon-like creature soared through the hazy mist, weaving through the clouds. A man dressed in red stood atop its head.

There were also qilin-like beasts racing madly across the ground, kicking up sand and dust along the path. Some possessed Half-Saint cultivation, others Saint cultivation, and there were countless different kinds.

Some breathtakingly beautiful women also walked through the air with smiles on their faces, though their eyes revealed exhaustion.

"Move aside!"

Just as Xu Changqing reached the end of the ancient path, an angry shout came from behind him, accompanied by a thick stench of blood and even more astonishing killing intent.

Hearing this, Xu Changqing immediately stopped and turned around. Suddenly, an enormous blood-filled maw blocked his vision, its densely packed teeth enough to make one's scalp tingle.

The surrounding beings saw this and stopped to watch. This white-haired man had no companions, no intense killing intent around him, no smell of blood, and not even a trace of bloodstains.

He was unlike them. They had fought all the way here from their homelands, a journey that had taken at least ten years.

Xu Changqing stared coldly at the blood-filled maw, raised his right hand, and chopped sideways at it.

Screech!

A flash of light appeared, and the enormous blood-filled maw was instantly split in two. The owner of that voice also revealed himself.

He was an extremely handsome young man with a somewhat thin frame and pale skin, like a vampire. Yet he gave off a dense bloody smell, and a sickly smile hung on his face.

Xu Changqing stood calmly opposite the young man, allowing the fierce wind to whip through his hair.

The young man facing him was also a Saint!

Yet everyone around them stared at Xu Changqing in utter shock. That blood-filled maw belonged to a Primordial Desolate Beast on the verge of extinction. Its combat power was exceptionally formidable, possessing heaven-reaching strength.

At the same realm, it could contend with a Divine Body, yet it had been instantly killed by someone whose realm they did not even know!

The thin young man looked at the ancient beast lying nearby with eyes filled with bitter hatred and pain. Tears streamed from his eyes as he laughed one moment and cried the next.

It seemed that he had gone insane.

"No, how could you kill it? It was so cute! How could you kill it?!"

Cute? Everyone fell silent. The ancient beast looked like a caterpillar, its round body covered in fur and fine blue hairs. It had hundreds of eyes on its face and three blood-filled maws. It was utterly hideous.

"Looks like he went mad after fighting for more than ten years."

Indeed, if they had spent over a decade constantly fighting and being hunted, alone with only a beast, they would have gone mad as well.

Xu Changqing watched the thin young man embrace the grotesque corpse. Without hesitation, he raised his hand and slapped down.

Boom!

The palm strike erupted with ultimate divine light, enveloping both the young man and the ancient beast. Its overwhelming attack power was laid bare, and a Saint's Divine Might blanketed the entire area, making even Heavenly Prides below the Saint realm feel suffocated.

Too powerful.

The young man also returned to his original state, releasing a Saint's aura. Golden lightning wrapped around his body, and a golden Sea of Lightning emerged behind him.

"I'll make you pay with your life!"

The thin young man gritted his teeth. His mind was muddled, for he had already gone completely insane.

Bang!

The thin young man blocked Xu Changqing's palm strike. Just as he was about to charge forward, dizziness overwhelmed him. Then he saw blood gushing from his own body.

At some point, Xu Changqing had suddenly appeared beside him. Xu Changqing grabbed the young man's hair with his right hand and yanked hard, tearing off his entire head. Then he slapped once more, annihilating the thin young man's Nascent Soul.

Those who had just arrived at the Emperor's Road could no longer remain calm. They had originally looked like they were watching a show, but now they all began to question their lives.

Without question, that thin young man had possessed a special physique.

Yet he had been easily killed by that white-haired young man.

Not someone to provoke.

He dared seek revenge without sufficient strength? He dared provoke others without absolute confidence?

Xu Changqing ignored the two corpses on the ground and walked directly to the end of the road, arriving in an open area. An ancient and vast aura emanated from ahead, as though he stood before an Ancient Great Emperor.

It made one not dare to harbor killing intent, leaving only reverence.

Ahead, a black wall blocked everyone's view. The black bricks bore bloodstains that had yet to dry, along with marks from sabers, swords, axes, and cleavers. A Bronze Giant Gate stood tightly shut.

This was the Human Race's First Pass.

However, with Xu Changqing's cultivation, remaining at the Human Race's First Pass was useless. He was already a Saint.

He should have charged directly into the deepest reaches and fought his way through.