Five Divine Emperors had not come.
These five were ancient Divine Emperors from the Three Thousand Divine Palaces, each a supreme Divine Emperor who had achieved perfection in nine Great Daos many years ago.
Their cultivation had long since reached the pinnacle of the Emperor Realm. They were only one step away from becoming immortals, yet they had never taken that step.
Every one of them feared perishing beneath the Immortal Ascension Tribulation, so they had clung to life all this time.
The Immortal Ascension Tribulation was far too terrifying. Countless Emperor Realm cultivators in the Origin World had fallen beneath that heavenly tribulation, their bodies destroyed and their Daos extinguished.
They had lived for countless ages and witnessed far too many fellow cultivators reduced to ash beneath the heavenly tribulation. That fear had long since branded itself deep into their Dao hearts, impossible to dispel.
These five could well be called the patriarchs of the Three Thousand Divine Palaces.
They were ancient—so ancient that many younger Divine Emperors did not even know they existed.
Even within the Three Thousand Divine Palaces, not everyone knew of these five old fogies.
They remained behind the scenes and seldom intervened in the Origin World's affairs, only occasionally appearing when something truly threatened the world's survival.
"Are those five not coming?"
Chen Xuan spoke his first words since the Divine Emperors had entered the great hall.
His voice was calm, yet it carried an unmistakable insight.
It was as though he had long known of those five and had already expected that they would not come readily.
He addressed the few standing at the head of the hundreds of Divine Emperors.
These were also supreme Divine Emperors who had perfected nine Great Daos. Their auras were as deep as an abyss, and they