Nine Clans United Execution

Nine rifts suddenly split open in the sky over the Central Plains, each like a wound in heaven and earth, fathomless and seeping ancient, decaying imperial might. These were no ordinary spatial fissures, but *Law Rift*s—the "Emperor Road Seal" forcibly torn open by the Nine Clans through secret arts.

An ancient Emperor Corpse slowly rose from each rift, clad in ruined imperial armor and bearing broken Emperor Weapons. Though they had fallen tens of thousands of years ago, their lingering imperial might still made heaven and earth tremble and mountains and rivers crumble. These nine Emperor Corpses were the Dou Di remains enshrined by the Nine Clans—Nine Emperors Return, Execute the Rebel Together! They had once been this continent's supreme sovereigns, incarnations of its laws, gods whom mortals gazed up at. Now, their descendants had awakened them through blood sacrifices and reduced them to instruments of slaughter.

"Xiao Yan! You have plunged the world into chaos with Emperor Flame, tampered with the Heavenly Dao, bewitched the mighty, and sought to overthrow the order of the Nine Clans!" The Ancient Clan Chief stood at the pinnacle of the sky, holding the Nine Emperors Decree. His voice shook the eight directions, as though he were passing judgment on heaven's behalf. "Today, in the name of the Nine Clans, we unleash the Nine Clans United Execution Formation to slay an emperor!"

"BOOM—!!!"

The nine Emperor Corpses opened their eyes at once, pitch-black flames igniting in their hollow sockets. This was Vengeful Soulfire, born of obsessions that endured beyond death. Nine streams of imperial might wove into a net, an inescapable snare spanning the entire Central Plains. The laws of heaven and earth were forcibly rewritten—space froze, time slowed, Dou Qi stagnated, and only Emperor Flame remained undying.

Xiao Yan stood atop the Nine Flames Emperor Stele, the Emperor Fire Seal slowly turning in his palm. His crimson-gold robes snapped in the wind like dancing flames. He gazed at the sky, a mocking smile curling his lips. "Nine Clans United Execution? Heh... you keep accusing me of throwing the world into chaos, but the true culprits are you rotten Old Clans, who determine rank by bloodline and life or death by birth! What you fear isn't me, Xiao Yan. It's the possibility that everyone can become an emperor!"

He raised his eyes, his gaze piercing the nine heavens like a flaming sword, his voice thundering. "Today, I shall wield Emperor Flame as my brush and rewrite the laws of this world—"

"Nine Heirs of Emperor Flame, heed my command!"

"Here!"

Gu Ling, Yao Lao, Thunder Venerable, Venerable Feng, Medusa, Xiao Yi Xian, Yan Jin, Han Feng, and Zi Yan—the nine Heirs of Emperor Flame stepped forward together. Crimson-gold Emperor Flame blazed around them, and nine fire seals shone upon their brows, resonating with the Nine Flames Emperor Stele as though nine stars had awakened at once. Though they were only in the Dou Zun and Dou Sheng realms, their souls had transformed into emperor flame bodies through the Nine Flames Trial, allowing them to briefly bear imperial might and even defy and slay Emperor Corpses!

"With my flame, I shall kindle your souls!" Xiao Yan shouted in a low voice. The Emperor Fire Seal shuddered violently, and the power of nine flames returning to origin swept over the nine like rivers surging backward. In an instant, their auras climbed higher and higher—Peak Dou Sheng, Half-Step Dou Di, even brushing the Dou Di Realm!

"What?! He's forcibly raising others' cultivation with Emperor Flame?!" The High Priest of the Hall of Souls staggered backward in horror, his face deathly pale. "Such defiance of heaven will surely bring a Heavenly Dao Backlash. Has he gone mad?"

"A backlash?" Xiao Yan sneered, Emperor Flame roiling in his eyes. "I already defied the Heavenly Dao back on Heaven-Burning Peak. Today, I'll show you—the true power of Emperor Flame!"

"Ninefold Windfire Transformation—Nine Flames Burn Heaven!"

Nine waves of flame shot skyward like nine fire dragons taking flight, hurtling straight toward the nine Emperor Corpses. Heaven and earth cracked apart, space shattered like glass, primordial chaos surged, and fragments of law fell like rain. Gu Ling formed wings of thunderfire and slashed out with twin swords, charging straight at the Lei Clan's Emperor Corpse; Yao Lao wielded the Medicine Cauldron as a weapon to suppress the Soul Clan's Emperor Corpse, his remnant soul roaring as he refined its resentment; Thunder Venerable summoned thunderfire and battled the Feng Clan's Emperor Corpse, lightning and flame crashing together and blasting the Firmament apart...

Nine against nine—Nine Emperor Battles erupted at once!

"BOOM—BOOM—BOOM!"

Every collision could have annihilated an entire province. The land of the Central Plains sank a thousand zhang beneath the aftershocks of the Emperor Battles. Mountain ranges turned to dust, rivers flowed backward, and countless ancient cities collapsed. Only the Nine Flames Emperor Stele remained standing, the bloody light from its surface forming a barrier that sheltered the Emperor Ruins Plains and preserved a thread of hope for countless spectators.

"Xiao Yan! Do you think the nine of you can truly defy heaven?!" the Ancient Clan Chief roared, activating the Nine Emperors Decree. "Nine Clans United Execution—Emperor-Slaying Spear!"

"HUM—!"

The nine Emperor Corpses raised their hands together. Their Emperor Weapons merged, condensing into a pitch-black spear with nine-colored Emperor Flame coiling around its tip. It was the Emperor-Slaying Spear, which had once slain a Rebel Emperor during the Ancient Era! With its appearance, all flames bowed in submission, heaven and earth lost their color, and even Emperor Flame faltered.

"Once this spear appears, even a Dou Di must fall!" The Ancient Clan Chief laughed wildly. "Xiao Yan, today is the day you die!"

"The day I die?" Rather than retreating, Xiao Yan advanced a step. The Emperor Fire Seal exploded with a thunderous blast, becoming nine fiery chains that wrapped around his body like nine coiling fire dragons.

"I've waited a long time for this day."

"Nine Flames Return to Origin Art—ninth level, perfected!"

"Windfire Emperor Body—break through the Dou Zun Realm!"

"Today, with Emperor Flame as my guide, the nine heirs as my formation, and my own body as the sacrifice—"

"Open—the Gate to the Emperor Road!"

"BOOM—!!!"

A pillar of crimson-gold light erupted from Xiao Yan's body and shot skyward, piercing the nine heavens, cutting through primordial chaos, and tearing apart the cycle of reincarnation. Wherever it passed, laws were reforged and heaven and earth began anew. An illusory gateway appeared in the sky—the Gate to the Emperor Road had finally, truly opened! Beyond it lay the path to the Emperor Realm that countless mighty cultivators had dreamed of, the Opportunity to Become an Emperor that had been sealed away for ten thousand years!

"What?! He's using himself as a catalyst to force open the Gate to the Emperor Road?!" The Nine Clans Ancestors were overcome with terror. "Quick! Stop him! If the Emperor Road is reforged, the old order will collapse, and our Nine Clans will lose every privilege!"

"Too late." A cold smile curled Xiao Yan's lips. Emperor Flame engulfed his body, turning him into a fiery silhouette that charged straight at the Emperor-Slaying Spear.

"This battle isn't about killing you—"

"It's about telling heaven and earth—"

"The Emperor Road should never be monopolized; Emperor Flame should never be sealed away; and I, Xiao Yan..."

"—will never bow to fate!"

"RUUUMBLE—!!!"

Emperor Flame collided with the Emperor-Slaying Spear. Heaven and earth fell silent, all flames bowed in submission, and the Nine Clans United Execution Formation shattered!

The nine Emperor Corpses wailed, their imperial armor shattering and their Emperor Weapons snapping as they fell like meteors. The Nine Clans' experts spat blood and were hurled backward. The Nine Emperors Decree broke apart, and the Ancient Clan Chief sank to his knees, watching helplessly as the Gate to the Emperor Road slowly closed. Xiao Yan stood beyond it, like a god descending upon the world.

"No... impossible... we are the clans chosen by heaven..."

"Chosen by heaven?" Xiao Yan's voice came from beyond the gate, indifferent and majestic. "Heaven's mandate has only ever belonged to those who refuse to bow to fate."

Beneath the Nine Flames Emperor Stele, a boy gazed at the sky, his fists clenched so tightly that his nails dug deep into his palms and blood dripped down.

"One day... I'll set foot on the Emperor Road too."

"I'll become... an Heir of Emperor Flame."

A crimson-gold flame mark quietly appeared between his brows, like the first kindling of a spark.

Gu Ling approached from afar and gently stroked the boy's head. "What's your name?"

"Lin... Lin Yan."

"Good." Gu Ling smiled. "From this day forward, you are the Tenth Heir of Emperor Flame."

Next chapter preview: "Emperor Road Reopened"

Xiao Yan shattered the Nine Clans United Execution Formation with Emperor Flame and opened the Gate to the Emperor Road. The Nine Flames Emperor Court welcomed talent from far and wide, and a frenzy of cultivation swept across the Central Plains. Meanwhile, Xiao Yan stood at the end of the Emperor Road, gazing toward the figure within that primordial chaos—the Dou Di Tribulation was approaching!