Ninth on the Powerhouse Ranking, Tang Chen!

Dugu Yan's expression changed.

That was Heaven Dou Royal Academy's most important cultivation ground.

Yet Ning Xian did not stop walking.

Just then.

The golden Sky Screen overhead trembled again.

Tang Chen's figure gradually faded.

The Million-Year Soul Ring, the evolved Clear Sky Hammer, and the Ancestor Tai Tan Right Arm Bone all dissolved into golden motes of light.

[Ninth on the Powerhouse Ranking, Tang Chen.]

[Rewards fully distributed.]

The golden text rearranged itself.

The pressure of the Heavenly Dao blanketed the entire continent.

Dugu Yan could no longer spare Ning Xian any attention and immediately looked up at the Sky Screen.

Across the Douluo Continent, countless Soul Masters and Soul Beasts stopped what they were doing at the same time.

Spirit City.

Bibi Dong raised the Rakshasa Demon Halberd.

The Clear Sky Sect.

Tang Xiao and the elders walked out through the mountain gate.

Beside the Lake of Life.

The golden light filling the sky reflected in Gu Yuena's purple eyes.

Outside Heaven Dou City.

The Shrek group was hurrying toward the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy.

Lines of comments swiftly filled the sky.

[The ninth-place showcase is over!]

[Next is eighth place on the Powerhouse Ranking!]

[Tang Chen already has a divine body and received three Heavenly Dao rewards. Who could be eighth?]

[Qian Daoliu still hasn't appeared on the ranking. Could he be eighth?]

[Sea God Douluo Bo Saixi is also a Level 99 Peerless Douluo!]

[There are powerful Soul Beasts in the Star Dou Great Forest, too. The Powerhouse Ranking never said only humans could make the list!]

[The gap between the rewards for tenth and ninth is already so obvious. The rewards for eighth will only be better!]

[Start the showcase already!]

Golden radiance gathered from the edges of the Sky Screen.

The majestic voice of the Heavenly Dao once again resounded across the continent.

[Douluo Continent Powerhouse Ranking.]

[Eighth place will be revealed shortly.]

Heaven Dou Royal Academy.

At the end of the mountain path.

Ning Xian looked up at the sky, his white robes stirring gently in the night breeze.

Dugu Yan stood behind him, the Xuanhuang light around her wrist still lingering.

She followed Ning Xian's gaze toward the Sky Screen, her green eyes brimming with curiosity.

"Who will be eighth on the Powerhouse Ranking?"

Ning Xian did not answer.

Tang Chen had regained control of his divine body. After receiving three Heavenly Dao rewards, his strength far surpassed that of an ordinary Peerless Douluo.

Anyone ranked above Tang Chen was bound to have something extraordinary about them.

At the center of the Sky Screen, golden radiance began to gather.

The discussions across the continent gradually died down.

In the imperial palaces of the two great empires, Xue Ye and Dai Tianfeng looked up at the same time.

Tenth place was Bibi Dong.

Ninth place was Tang Chen.

Neither of the first two had any direct ties to the empires.

Now they were even more eager to see whether any of the upcoming powerhouses would be on friendly terms with their empires.

If they could establish contact with a supreme powerhouse in advance, it would mean far more to their empires than a precious treasure.

Inside the Heaven Dou Imperial Palace.

Xue Ye stood before the palace, his gaze fixed above the ranking.

"I hope eighth place has some ties of friendship with the Heaven Dou Empire."

The minister beside him lowered his head and said:

"Your Majesty, a powerhouse ranked above Tang Chen is probably not someone the empire can easily befriend."

Xue Ye did not dispute that.

"If we cannot befriend them, we must not make an enemy of them."

The Star Luo Empire.

Dai Tianfeng was also waiting.

After receiving his rewards, Tang Chen was already worthy of serious attention from every faction.

The rewards for eighth place would only be more astonishing.

If that powerhouse came from another, unknown region, the Star Luo Empire would have to reassess the situation on the continent.

Just then.

On the Sky Screen, golden text gradually took shape.

A gigantic eye appeared at the center of the radiance.

That eye measured over three hundred meters across.

Its pitch-black pupil occupied most of the image, with eerie light constantly swirling in its depths.

That single eye alone weighed upon the minds of countless Soul Masters.

The golden text appeared, stroke by stroke.

[Eighth on the Powerhouse Ranking.]

[Evil Emperor.]

[Race: Evil-Eyed Tyrant Overlord.]

[Cultivation: 780,000 years.]

Across the Douluo Continent, silence briefly fell.

The next moment, comments erupted across the sky.

[Evil Emperor?]

[Evil-Eyed Tyrant Overlord?]

[Is this a Soul Beast?]

[780,000 years of cultivation? How is that possible?]

[Doesn't Di Tian of the Star Dou Great Forest only have a little over 800,000 years of cultivation?]

[Eighth place actually isn't a human, but a Soul Beast!]

[Soul Beasts can make the Powerhouse Ranking too?]

Countless Soul Masters looked up at the Sky Screen.

They had seen Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts.

They had also heard of Soul Beasts several hundred thousand years old.

But this was the first time the entire continent had learned of the Evil-Eyed Tyrant Overlord with 780,000 years of cultivation.

Inside Heaven Dou City.

The Soul Masters in a tavern all stopped what they were doing.

A Soul King looked up at that gigantic eye, his expression turning extremely grim.

"What exactly is that thing?"

The Soul Master beside him swallowed.

"The Sky Screen has already made it very clear."

"That's a Soul Beast."

"A 780,000-year Soul Beast."

As those words fell, the tavern went quiet again.

Once a Soul Beast cultivated for a hundred thousand years, it already possessed strength no weaker than a Titled Douluo's.

No one could imagine just how powerful one with 780,000 years of cultivation would be.

Outside Heaven Dou Royal Academy.

Dugu Yan gazed up at the Sky Screen, her eyes filled with surprise.

Born into a Titled Douluo's family, she naturally knew more secrets than ordinary Soul Masters.

Yet she had never heard Dugu Bo mention the Evil Emperor.

"A Soul Beast with 780,000 years of cultivation is actually ranked eighth."

Dugu Yan turned to Ning Xian.

"Is he even stronger than Tang Chen?"

Ning Xian watched that gigantic eye.

"Since the ranking placed him above Tang Chen, it at least means his current condition is more complete than Tang Chen's."

Dugu Yan nodded gently.

Tang Chen was already powerful.

The Evil Emperor's place above him could not possibly be based on years of cultivation alone.

780,000 years.

Mental attribute.

Evil-Eyed Tyrant Overlord.

Together, those factors were enough to warrant any Soul Master's serious attention.

Ning Xian said nothing more.

He had heard the Evil Emperor's name before, but had never actually met him.

With 780,000 years of cultivation, the Evil-Eyed Tyrant Overlord had already ventured extremely far down the path of Soul Beast cultivation.

One step further, and he would face the tribulation of ascension to godhood.

But crossing that threshold was even harder for Soul Beasts than for human Soul Masters.

The text on the Sky Screen continued to change.

[Evil Emperor, the Sun Moon Empire's strongest Soul Beast.]

[Rules the Evil Demon Forest.]

[A mental-attribute Soul Beast.]

[Cultivation approaching 800,000 years.]

[Possesses formidable strength and rules over the many Soul Beasts of the Evil Demon Forest.]

The comments immediately took a new turn.

[Sun Moon Empire?]

[Evil Demon Forest?]

[There's a Sun Moon Empire on the Douluo Continent?]

[Why have I never heard of this empire?]

[Could the Sun Moon Empire lie beyond the two great empires?]

[Where exactly is that land?]

The expressions of the Heaven Dou Empire's and Star Luo Empire's imperial families changed almost simultaneously.

Xue Ye watched the Sky Screen, his expression gradually growing grave.

Having ruled the Heaven Dou Empire for many years, he was very familiar with the factions throughout the continent.

No Sun Moon Empire had ever appeared on the continent.

Nor had any intelligence mentioned the Evil Demon Forest.

Yet the scenes on the Sky Screen did not look fabricated.

That empire had fully established cities and a Soul Master system.

Its territory also far exceeded the area a single forest could cover.

"Pass down my orders."

Xue Ye turned to the minister beside him.

"Immediately search all the empire's ancient texts for records of the Sun Moon Empire and the Evil Demon Forest."

"As you command, Your Majesty."