The Human Emperor

The Eastern Region of the Spirit Sword Continent.

This was the eastern battlefield where the Great Thousand World fought the Outer Realm Evil Clan. Countless ancient cities stood here, their walls covered in sword scars and blood.

Futu Yijing landed on the walls of the easternmost ancient city.

Even after spending two hundred years on the Saint Abyss Continent, Futu Yijing could not help feeling alarmed by the murderous air lingering in the ancient city.

The Great Thousand Palace guarded the western reaches of the Great Thousand World, and the Saint Abyss Continent was really only one section of its frontier.

Yet the place where Futu Yijing now stood was the foremost battlefield in the Sword Domain's war against the Outer Realm Evil Clan. A razor-sharp aura and a sinister chill filled heaven and earth.

Futu Yijing was no stranger to this chill. It was the aura of the Outer Realm Evil Clan.

That sinister chill clung to the body like maggots burrowing into bone, filling people with unease.

As a Heavenly Sovereign capable of drawing upon the world's spiritual energy, Futu Yijing also discovered that nearly half the spiritual energy here had already been tainted. It could not be refined or absorbed at all.

Not far from the city, an army was actually assembling.

They all carried longswords, and their spiritual energy fluctuations varied in strength. The strongest had reached Heavenly Sovereign, while even the weakest had reached Upper Earth Sovereign.

Futu Yijing made a rough count. There were actually as many as three hundred of them.

Three Heavenly Sovereigns, and all the rest were Earthly Sovereigns!

What were they going to do?!

Seeing this army's astonishingly powerful lineup, Futu Yijing was puzzled for a moment.

A short while later, he understood exactly what they intended to do.

The three Heavenly Sovereigns at the head of the army joined forces to pierce through space, forcibly opening a Spatial Passage. Then shouts rang out one after another.

Boom!

War drums shook heaven and earth, their thunder reverberating throughout the region.

The war drums thundered, and heaven and earth trembled!

Everyone in the army transformed into streaks of light and hurtled toward the distant Spatial Passage.

This was already the eastern frontier of the Great Thousand World. Where that Spatial Passage led went without saying.

The Outer Realm Evil Clan!

Even Futu Yijing could not help drawing a sharp breath.

They were actually launching an expedition against the Outer Realm Evil Clan!!

More than two hundred Earthly Sovereigns swept forth, their momentum truly spectacular.

For the first time, he was stunned by a faction. After all, in territories occupied by the Outer Realm Evil Clan, cultivators could neither absorb nor refine the tainted spiritual energy.

He had spent a considerable amount of time in the Outer Realm Evil Clan's territory, so he knew that feeling all too well.

It was like someone without a job spending lavishly, their savings constantly dwindling without any money coming in.

The coordinates Qing Yanjing had provided for the place where the Dragon Phoenix had fallen were right here. Yet as Futu Yijing watched those madmen, he transformed into a streak of light without a second thought and flew toward the Spatial Passage.

That was our Great Thousand World's land to begin with! The land we failed to reclaim in ancient times-we would start taking it back now!

When personal interests conflicted with the interests of the whole, the interests of the whole came first!

You bunch of madmen, I was joining you!

Within the Human Emperor Seal, the Heavenly Emperor watched Futu Yijing sweep toward the Spatial Passage without hesitation, his eyes brimming with satisfaction.

He already knew why Futu Yijing had come here, but what his disciple was doing now had begun to stray from his original purpose.

Even so, the Heavenly Emperor was all the happier.

He had not misjudged this disciple who had inherited his legacy!

"Master, help me with something," Futu Yijing said as he flew toward the Spatial Passage.

"How can I help?" The Heavenly Emperor did not ask what the favor was, but directly asked how to help. Clearly, he already supported his disciple unconditionally.

"I want to expand the space within the Human Emperor Seal so I can absorb spiritual energy and store it inside. That way, even if the expedition fails, I'll have enough spiritual energy left to bring them back!" Futu Yijing said.

Since ancient times, supplies had always gone ahead before an army marched.

But on this expedition, the army had moved first. As the supplies arriving late, Futu Yijing had to ensure there was enough to sustain them!

"Very well. I'll help you expand the space," the Heavenly Emperor said.

As he spoke, the Heavenly Emperor began performing hand seals, preparing to break the restrictions on the Human Emperor Seal and expand its space.

Futu Yijing was not skilled in this field, but as one of the ancient Nine Emperors, the Heavenly Emperor had been fairly well acquainted with the Human Emperor. Thus, he had experience in undoing the Human Emperor Seal's restrictions.

Futu Yijing had never previously asked the Heavenly Emperor to help unlock the Human Emperor Seal's restrictions, and the Heavenly Emperor would not bring it up himself.

He believed his disciple would surely be able to unlock the Human Emperor Seal's restrictions on his own.

Now that Futu Yijing had asked, however, he would simply unlock them for him.

Besides, the Heavenly Emperor understood that Futu Yijing was not seeking the Human Emperor's inheritance now. He wanted the Human Emperor Seal to absorb enough spiritual energy to support his expedition beyond their realm.

If he coveted an inheritance, Futu Yijing could simply have stayed behind to search for the hidden realm containing the Dragon Phoenix's inheritance.

The Heavenly Emperor drove his hand seals with all his strength. A vast power surged from the Human Emperor Seal, and a towering phantom manifested within its space. Its Saint Grade aura stirred the mighty power of heaven and earth.

Restrictions, release!

The enormous phantom within the Human Emperor Seal looked at the Heavenly Emperor's soul, which was also inside that space, with some surprise.

"Heavenly Emperor?"

"Human Emperor, it's been a long time," the Heavenly Emperor said with a smile.

"Why are you here, and why did you undo my restrictions?" The Human Emperor's phantom rapidly shrank until it was the same size as the Heavenly Emperor's soul.

"My disciple asked something of me. As his master, how could I refuse to help?"

The Human Emperor frowned slightly at this and was about to speak, but the Heavenly Emperor spoke first.

"Don't overthink it. My disciple didn't ask me to undo the restrictions to obtain your inheritance." The Heavenly Emperor understood why the Human Emperor had frowned.

Had he been the Human Emperor, he might have had the same suspicions.

The Heavenly Emperor then explained the circumstances to the Human Emperor, and only then did the latter's furrowed brow relax.

If someone had asked the Heavenly Emperor to undo the restrictions for the sake of the inheritance, the Human Emperor would rather let his legacy die out.

Watching Futu Yijing frantically gather spiritual energy from heaven and earth, the Human Emperor also understood that the Heavenly Emperor had spoken the truth.

Once he learned the reason and confirmed it was true, the Human Emperor looked at Futu Yijing like a mother-in-law admiring her son-in-law-the longer he looked, the more he liked him.

"Boy, let this emperor lend you a hand!" The Human Emperor swiftly performed hand seals, and the spiritual energy between heaven and earth poured madly into the Human Emperor Seal. All the tainted spiritual energy was barred outside.

In just a few breaths, almost half the spiritual energy on this battlefield had been drawn inside.

This battlefield stretched for tens of thousands of miles. The amount of spiritual energy absorbed into the Human Emperor Seal was easy to imagine.

"It's full?!" Futu Yijing froze. That quickly?

He soon recovered, then increased his speed and plunged straight into the Spatial Passage.

Meanwhile, inside the Human Emperor Seal, the Heavenly Emperor looked at the Human Emperor and discovered that he, too, was a soul!

Two powerhouses of comparable Late Saint Grade strength, both of whom should have fallen, had survived.

Then, while Futu Yijing was traveling, the two old friends who had reunited as souls within the Human Emperor Seal actually began chatting.