Azure Mysterious Domain, Immortal Sacrifice Ceremony Square.
The deathly silence between heaven and earth had yet to fade. Reverence and fear from the depths of the soul clung to every cultivator's heart like the most viscous ice.
The dark sea of people all knelt prostrate, their heads deeply bowed, not daring even to breathe too heavily. The sect masters of the seven holy lands, the ancestors of thirty-six sects, and the leaders of over a hundred top factions-towering figures who normally stood far above others, looking down upon an entire domain-now all lay prostrate, trembling like the most devout believers before a supreme being who stood above All Heavens.
Lin Chen stood at the center of the square with his hands behind his back, his blue robes snapping in the wind, his figure as straight and imposing as an eternal divine mountain.
Not a trace of spiritual power leaked from him, nor did he radiate any imperial might or holy Qi. Yet the supreme Dao resonance accumulated through a hundred thousand years of signing in within the Chaos Forbidden Land had long since become one with heaven and earth, transcending the Principles of All Heavens.
Merely by standing there quietly, he made the laws of heaven and earth throughout the Azure Mysterious Domain bow before him and made cultivation traditions stretching back through the ages tremble.
His earlier words, "With a raise of my hand, I could erase the Azure Mysterious Domain from existence," had not been a threat, but a fact this supreme being had casually uttered.
In Lin Chen's eyes, the Azure Mysterious Domain was nothing more than an insignificant speck of dust in All Heavens and Myriad Worlds. So-called holy lands, sects, Great Emperors, and emperor weapons were merely ants and toys he could destroy with a flick of his fingers.
After signing in for a hundred thousand years in the Chaos Forbidden Land, what he had gained was no longer mere cultivation and Divine Abilities, but chaos origin, the Principles of All Heavens, the Dao fruits of Myriad Worlds, and eternal truths.
A casual point of his finger could shatter an Emperor; a quiet word could injure a Great Emperor; the faintest breath could crush All Heavens.
Such was the supreme power of signing in for a hundred thousand years and emerging invincible!
"Su... Supreme One, please quell your anger."
Xiao Potian, sect master of the High Heavens Holy Land and one of the Azure Mysterious Domain's few Great Emperor Realm experts, was drenched in cold sweat. His golden imperial blood had yet to dry. He lay prostrate with difficulty, his voice shaking beyond recognition, lacking even the courage to raise his head and look directly at Lin Chen.
"Our High Heavens Holy Land had eyes but failed to see! Our disciples were arrogant and ignorant, our elders unruly and defiant, and we offended your heavenly might! Please be magnanimous, Supreme One, and spare everyone in our holy land!"
Xiao Potian's regret had already reached its limit.
Never in his dreams had he imagined that his holy land's Holy Son would dare provoke a supreme existence beyond Great Emperors. Still less had he imagined that this seemingly ordinary young man in blue was an eternal supreme being who had emerged after signing in for a hundred thousand years in the Chaos Forbidden Land!
The Chaos Forbidden Land was a death zone whose very name made people in the Azure Mysterious Domain and even several surrounding domains turn pale!
Throughout the ages, countless Great Emperors and Immortal Emperor-level figures had entered it, never to return, unable to preserve even a wisp of their souls. Legend held that it was a forbidden land left over from the dawn of chaos, harboring world-destroying might. Even the highest existences of All Heavens dared not venture into it lightly.
Yet this Supreme Lin Chen before him had actually signed in there for an entire hundred thousand years?!
A hundred thousand years!
What a terrifying span of time was that?
Only a few million years had passed since the Azure Mysterious Domain's birth, and a Great Emperor's lifespan was no more than a million years at most.
A hundred thousand years of accumulated sign-in rewards was enough to place this supreme being at the very pinnacle of All Heavens and Myriad Worlds, looking down upon all living beings!
Zhao Wushuang provoking him was no different from a firefly challenging the sun, moon, and stars, or an ant trying to shake an eternal divine mountain. He had simply courted death!
"Spare your lives?"
Lin Chen lowered his eyes slightly, his gaze falling upon the prostrate Xiao Potian. His tone was calm and unruffled, yet carried a majesty that could make All Heavens and Myriad Worlds tremble.
"Just now, your High Heavens Holy Land's three elders joined forces to kill me, and your Holy Son wanted to slap me to death. Now you know to beg for mercy?"
As his words fell, an almost imperceptible supreme pressure silently locked onto Xiao Potian.
Boom!!!
Xiao Potian shuddered violently. The Great Emperor Origin within him churned wildly, as though it would shatter completely at any moment. He spat golden imperial blood, his body shaking like chaff in a sieve, his terror already at its utmost limit.
"Spare me, Supreme One! Please spare me!"
"It was all Zhao Wushuang's fault, all the fault of Wang Cang and those other two old bastards! It had nothing to do with our High Heavens Holy Land, nothing to do with me, Xiao Potian!"
"I am willing to offer every treasure, every secret realm, and every inheritance of the High Heavens Holy Land as tribute to you! I ask only that you spare everyone in our holy land!"
Xiao Potian begged at the top of his lungs, no trace of a Great Emperor's dignity or pride remaining.
Before a true supreme being, a Great Emperor's exalted status was mere grass, and Emperor Realm cultivation could not withstand a single blow.
To preserve the High Heavens Holy Land, he was willing to pay any price!
Around him, all the leaders of the seven holy lands and thirty-six sects remained silent as cicadas in winter, not daring to breathe loudly.
They knew full well that Xiao Potian's pleas could not win him even the slightest chance of survival.
Having offended this eternal supreme being, even offering all the resources of the Azure Mysterious Domain would hardly make amends in the slightest!
Lin Chen's gaze remained indifferent, without the slightest ripple.
He utterly disdained the High Heavens Holy Land's so-called treasures, secret realms, and inheritances.
Through a hundred thousand years of signing in within the Chaos Forbidden Land, he had gained countless supreme chaos treasures, divine artifacts of All Heavens, supreme Cultivation Methods, and eternal Dao fruits. Any single one he casually produced could send all of All Heavens and Myriad Worlds into a frenzied scramble.
In his eyes, the High Heavens Holy Land's meager assets did not even amount to dust.
"Noisy."
Lin Chen softly uttered the word.
His voice was quiet, yet like the august voice of the Great Dao, it branded itself directly into the depths of Xiao Potian's soul.
Boom!!!
Xiao Potian felt as though a supreme heavenly sword had viciously pierced his soul. His Great Emperor Realm soul origin instantly cracked apart. A series of piercing cracks erupted from every bone in his body, golden imperial blood gushed from his mouth, and he slammed into the ground like a kite with its string cut, unable to move again.
His Great Emperor Realm cultivation was utterly crippled!
His imperial foundation shattered and his Dao fruit extinguished, he was reduced to a cripple from that moment on!
Gasp!!!
Every kneeling cultivator sucked in a cold breath in unison, the blood in their bodies nearly freezing.
Instantly killing Emperors, crippling a Great Emperor with a single word!
Such power simply exceeded the limits of everyone's understanding!
Great Emperors were the pinnacle of the Azure Mysterious Domain, a supreme realm countless cultivators could never reach in their entire lives, supreme existences capable of suppressing a domain and living for ten thousand years.
Yet before Lin Chen, Great Emperors were ants he could crush at will!
Was this power beyond that of Great Emperors?
Terrifying! Utterly terrifying!
The Azure Profound Sect's elders and disciples were already dumbstruck with fear, their bodies rigid.
They had only brought Lin Chen, this "servant disciple," along to join the excitement. Never had they imagined that such a terrifying eternal supreme being had been accompanying them!
Defeating a Holy Son with one finger, instantly dispatching three Emperors with one move, crippling a Great Emperor with one word!
Invincible upon emerging, overpowering all ages, past and present!
Towering waves surged through the Azure Profound Sect elders' hearts, along with boundless joy and relief.
They were thankful they had not looked down on Lin Chen, thankful they had maintained the most basic respect toward him, thankful they had become the only faction close to this supreme being!
With Supreme Lin Chen here, the Azure Profound Sect would surely soar into the heavens from this day forward, rise above the seven holy lands, and become a supreme Dao tradition of the Azure Mysterious Domain and even All Heavens and Myriad Worlds!
"Everyone in the Azure Profound Sect pays respects to the Supreme One! May you endure through all ages and remain invincible throughout All Heavens!"
The Azure Profound Sect members abruptly kowtowed, their voices respectful to the utmost, filled with heartfelt reverence and worship.
Lin Chen turned his eyes slightly and glanced at the Azure Profound Sect members. There was not the slightest ripple in his gaze, but neither was there any disgust.
Though weak, these people had never arrogantly provoked him like the other factions. They could be considered the only ones who had not offended him.
"Rise."
Lin Chen spoke quietly.
Those simple words made the Azure Profound Sect members feel as though they had received a great pardon, boundless warmth welling up in their hearts.
They knew they had bet correctly!
From this day forward, thanks to Supreme Lin Chen, the Azure Profound Sect's name would remain honored throughout the ages!
Meanwhile, in the square, the High Heavens Holy Land's remaining disciples and elders were already scared out of their wits, their faces ashen.
Their sect master crippled, their Holy Son crippled, their three great elders crippled-the High Heavens Holy Land's entire top fighting force had been wiped out in mere moments!
The High Heavens Holy Land, which had once dominated tens of millions of miles of the Eastern Domain, had now become the Azure Mysterious Domain's laughingstock, reduced to a third-rate faction that could be destroyed at any moment!
"Supreme One! Our High Heavens Holy Land is willing to submit for eternity, to serve as your oxen and horses! We ask only that you leave our holy land a thread of hope!"
The remaining elders of the High Heavens Holy Land begged themselves hoarse, but Lin Chen did not even glance at them.
He had no interest in even lifting a hand against these ants who had provoked him of their own accord.
For them, even death would be a release.
Lin Chen's gaze slowly swept across the square. The kneeling leaders of the seven holy lands and thirty-six sects all shuddered, burying their heads even deeper, terrified of catching this supreme being's attention.
"From this day forward."
Lin Chen's voice rang out once more, calm yet majestic, resounding throughout heaven and earth and branding itself into the depths of everyone's souls.
"All factions within the Azure Mysterious Domain shall submit."
"The Azure Profound Sect shall be the foremost sect of the Azure Mysterious Domain, ruling over ten thousand domains and holding authority over life and death."
"You shall offer sufficient resources to the Azure Profound Sect every month, without the slightest delay or disrespect."
"Any who disobey shall be killed without mercy."
As his words fell, earth-shaking responses instantly erupted throughout the square.
"We humbly obey your decree, Supreme One! We shall submit for eternity and never dare disobey!"
"We are willing to honor the Azure Profound Sect as the foremost sect and offer tribute for eternity, without flinching even before ten thousand deaths!"
"At the Supreme One's decree, ten thousand sects obey and All Heavens bow!"
The seven holy lands, thirty-six sects, and over a hundred top factions all bowed in submission. Not one person dared voice the slightest objection.
Before absolute, invincible power, all resistance was futile, and any pride was merely inviting humiliation.
Lin Chen nodded in satisfaction.
He did not wish to control the Azure Mysterious Domain. He simply could not be bothered with these ants' disputes. Leaving everything to the Azure Profound Sect would save him quite a bit of trouble.
Just then, a sudden change erupted!
Hum!!!
An unimaginably terrifying imperial might suddenly burst from the High Heavens Holy Land's platform!
This imperial might was ten times, a hundred times stronger than the pressure of Xiao Potian's Great Emperor might earlier!
Vast imperial might swept through the nine heavens and ten lands, as though an ancient Great Emperor who had slept through the ages was slowly awakening at this very moment!
The void trembled and the ground cracked. Countless cultivators in the square were pressed flat by this terrifying imperial might, vomiting blood, without even the strength to move a finger.
Even the Azure Profound Sect's elders turned deathly pale and trembled all over, struggling to withstand this terrifying imperial might.
"Hmm?"
Lin Chen raised an eyebrow slightly and looked toward the High Heavens Holy Land's platform.
He could clearly sense a power containing an ancient Great Emperor's Dao resonance slowly awakening upon the platform.
It was... an emperor weapon!
Moreover, it was a supreme emperor weapon that had nurtured an ancient Great Emperor's remnant soul!
"Supreme One! You destroyed our High Heavens Holy Land's foundation and crippled our Great Emperor! Today, I shall use our holy land's sect-guarding emperor weapon-the High Heavens Emperor Sword-to slay you at this Immortal Sacrifice Ceremony!"
An aged, venomous roar suddenly exploded from the High Heavens Holy Land's platform!
At the center of the platform, a gilded longsword engraved with countless holy Dao runes from High Antiquity slowly rose into the air!
The sword was ten thousand zhang long, its blade shimmering with flowing colors and vast imperial might. Nine ancient true dragons coiled around its sheath. Their eyes opened, unleashing hundreds of millions of golden divine rays, as though they would tear apart the firmament and cleave All Heavens into oblivion!
The High Heavens Emperor Sword!
The sect-guarding emperor weapon passed down through the High Heavens Holy Land for ten million years!
Personally forged by the High Heavens Holy Land's first Great Emperor, it incorporated Great Emperor Origin, true dragon Essence Blood, and the essence of the stars of All Heavens. It held the remnant soul and supreme Dao resonance of the first High Heavens Great Emperor, possessing boundless power sufficient to shatter Great Emperors and tear apart the firmament!
For ten million years, the High Heavens Emperor Sword had never emerged, remaining sealed in the depths of the holy land as its final trump card!
Now, faced with a disaster that threatened to wipe out the High Heavens Holy Land, its remaining elders had burned their own lifespans and Essence Blood without hesitation to unseal the High Heavens Emperor Sword and awaken the Great Emperor's remnant soul. They intended to use this supreme emperor weapon to kill Lin Chen and wash away their holy land's humiliation!
"The High Heavens Emperor Sword! The High Heavens Emperor Sword has actually emerged!"
"Legend says this emperor weapon holds an ancient Great Emperor's remnant soul and possesses boundless power! Even Great Emperor Realm experts can hardly withstand a single strike from it!"
"This Supreme One is in danger! An emperor weapon emerging is no small matter!"
In the square, towering waves surged through countless cultivators' hearts, their eyes filled with shock and apprehension.
An emperor weapon embodied a Great Emperor's lifetime of painstaking effort and ranked among the greatest treasures in All Heavens and Myriad Worlds!
A single intact emperor weapon was enough to overpower several Great Emperors and suppress all the heavens within a domain!
What was more, this High Heavens Emperor Sword held an ancient Great Emperor's remnant soul, giving it power far beyond ordinary emperor weapons!
In everyone's view, even Lin Chen, a supreme being beyond Great Emperors, would surely face a bitter battle against a supreme emperor weapon containing a Great Emperor's remnant soul, and might even be wounded by its blade!
The Azure Profound Sect members turned deathly pale, boundless worry rising in their hearts.
They feared that Supreme Lin Chen would be injured by this terrifying emperor weapon!
"Heh heh heh..."
The venomous laughter of the first High Heavens Great Emperor's remnant soul came from within the High Heavens Emperor Sword, aged and icy, brimming with killing intent accumulated through the ages.
"Junior, so what if you have transcended the Great Emperor Realm? Before my High Heavens Emperor Sword, you are still an ant, still destined to die beneath its blade!"
"Today, I shall offer your soul and blood to the High Heavens Holy Land's ten-million-year Dao tradition and restore our holy land's mighty name!"
His words fell.
The High Heavens Emperor Sword shook violently. Nine ancient true dragons raised their heads and roared, their voices shaking the nine heavens and ten lands!
Hundreds of millions of golden imperial rays erupted from its blade, condensing into a heaven-shaking sword rainbow a hundred thousand zhang long. Bearing the terrifying power to shatter the firmament and annihilate All Heavens, it slashed viciously down toward Lin Chen's head!
One sword unleashed, heaven and earth crumbled!
One sword descended, ten thousand Emperors trembled!
This strike contained an ancient Great Emperor's supreme Dao resonance and the boundless might of an emperor weapon, enough to annihilate all living beings and suppress all who refused to submit!
The sword rainbow tore apart the void, its might crushed the earth, and every trace of Spiritual Qi between heaven and earth was swallowed by it!
Before this strike, even a Great Emperor Realm expert would instantly be reduced to drifting ash, unable to preserve even a wisp of their soul!
Countless cultivators closed their eyes, unable to bear watching the dreadful sight of Lin Chen being cleaved into a mist of blood by the emperor sword.
They sighed inwardly. This eternal supreme being would ultimately fall to an emperor weapon after all!
Yet.
Facing this heaven-shaking strike capable of annihilating All Heavens, Lin Chen still stood quietly where he was, utterly motionless.
He raised his eyes slightly and calmly looked at the descending High Heavens Emperor Sword. His gaze held no fear, no panic, no ripples-not even the slightest unnecessary emotion.
There was only an indifference that reached into the marrow.
As though he were looking at an insignificant toy.
"An emperor weapon?"
Lin Chen spoke softly, a faint trace of disdain in his tone.
"And it dares call itself a sword before me?"
Through a hundred thousand years of signing in within the Chaos Forbidden Land, he had gained countless supreme chaos treasures and divine artifacts of All Heavens.
Among them, there were no fewer than nine Eternal Divine Swords that surpassed the level of emperor weapons alone!
Each one was enough to crush every supreme treasure in the All Heavens and Myriad Worlds. Even the highest beings of all heavens would go mad over them!
In his eyes, this High Heavens Emperor Sword was nothing more than a slightly better piece of scrap iron!
And it dared brandish its blade before him?
It dared claim it could slay him?
What an outrageous joke!
Under countless shocked gazes, Lin Chen slowly raised his right hand.
He activated no cultivation method, stirred no Spiritual Qi, unleashed no Divine Ability, and summoned no supreme treasure.
He simply, casually closed his hand lightly around the heaven-shaking arc of sword light descending toward him.
That grasp was utterly unremarkable, like a mortal gripping a twig.
Yet it was this insignificant grasp.
BOOM-!!!
Heaven and earth stood still!
Time froze!
Space shattered!
The heaven-shaking arc of sword light, powerful enough to shatter a Great Emperor and tear apart the firmament, froze without warning the instant it approached Lin Chen's fingertips!
As though it had struck a chaos pillar that had stood unmoving for eternity, it could not budge!
Within the High Heavens Emperor Sword, the ancient Great Emperor's remnant soul let out a roar of utter terror:
"Impossible! This is absolutely impossible! You actually caught the might of my emperor sword with your bare hand?!"
"What kind of monster are you?! Even someone beyond the Great Emperor realm couldn't possess such terrifying power!"
The Great Emperor's remnant soul went completely mad!
He had cultivated for countless ages, forged emperor weapons, and roamed all heavens, yet he had never seen anyone catch a strike from an emperor weapon containing a Great Emperor's remnant soul with their bare hand!
This had already exceeded the limits of his understanding!
This was no longer power, but truly invincible Dao laws, the true essence of eternity!
Lin Chen's gaze remained indifferent as his five fingers tightened slightly.
CRACK-!!!
A crisp cracking sound suddenly rang out!
The High Heavens Emperor Sword, whose might had awed the Azure Mysterious Domain for ten million years, shattered inch by inch in Lin Chen's hand like glass!
The blade fractured, runes crumbled, true dragons wailed, and imperial might dissipated!
The ancient Great Emperor's remnant soul within the emperor sword let out an agonized scream of utmost anguish. In an instant, the Chaos Qi surging from Lin Chen's palm utterly annihilated him, scattering his soul and wiping out his eternal Dao legacy!
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Cracking sounds rang out incessantly. In mere moments, the ten-thousand-zhang High Heavens Emperor Sword became countless fragments, scattering through the void and reduced to a heap of scrap iron!
The sect's guardian emperor weapon was destroyed, just like that!
The ancient Great Emperor's remnant soul turned to ash, just like that!
GASP-!!!
Every cultivator present gaped, their minds blank, utterly bereft of the ability to think!
Catching an emperor weapon bare-handed!
Crushing an emperor sword with five fingers!
Annihilating a Great Emperor's remnant soul!
Was... was he even human?
This was a true supreme sovereign of all heavens! Truly invincible throughout eternity! A true eternal existence!
Emperor weapons were among the greatest supreme treasures of the All Heavens and Myriad Worlds, the ultimate weapons countless Great Emperors dreamed of obtaining!
Yet in Lin Chen's hand, one had been crushed as casually as a toy!
Such might was simply beyond words!
"No... my emperor sword... my Dao legacy..."
The surviving elders of the High Heavens Holy Land gazed at the shattered High Heavens Emperor Sword and let out a wail of despair. In an instant, they breathed their last, their souls utterly extinguished!
The High Heavens Holy Land, which had dominated the Azure Mysterious Domain for ten million years, was now utterly destroyed, with not even a chicken or dog left alive. Its eternal Dao legacy vanished into nothingness!
With a casual wave of Lin Chen's hand, every fragment of the emperor sword in his palm dissipated into the void, as though he had never done anything earth-shaking.
He brushed his sleeves and looked indifferently at the countless cultivators kneeling before him.
"Does anyone still refuse to submit?"
Those few simple words exploded beside everyone's ears like thunder from the nine heavens!
Dead silence fell over the gathering!
Not a single person dared voice the slightest objection or show the slightest disrespect!
Every cultivator pressed their head to the ground, their reverence, worship, and terror reaching the utmost extremes!
"The Supreme Sovereign is invincible!"
"May the Supreme Sovereign endure for all eternity!"
"The Supreme Sovereign overwhelms all heavens, invincible from the moment he emerges!"
Earth-shaking cries of homage once again resounded through the clouds, shaking heaven and earth and spreading across the Azure Mysterious Domain's vast territory. They even spread to several neighboring domains, startling countless slumbering ancient powerhouses awake and making them tremble!
They knew that a true supreme sovereign for the ages had emerged!
An exalted existence who had signed in for a hundred thousand years and emerged invincible had descended upon all heavens!
From this day forth, throughout the All Heavens and Myriad Worlds, there would be only Lin Chen, only the Supreme Sovereign!
Lin Chen stood between heaven and earth with his hands behind his back, his blue robes snapping in the wind, his figure tall and straight.
He raised his head toward the distant horizon, his gaze indifferent and far-reaching. His eyes pierced the barriers of the Azure Mysterious Domain and looked toward the broader, more mysterious All Heavens and Myriad Worlds.
The Azure Mysterious Domain's submission, the destruction of an emperor weapon, and the homage of ten thousand sects were, to him, nothing more than an insignificant speck of dust on his invincible path.
A hundred thousand years of signing in, invincible upon emerging.
The Azure Mysterious Domain was merely his first stop on the path to invincibility across all heavens.
In the distant All Heavens and Myriad Worlds, there were still countless powerful Dao lineages, countless terrifying powerhouses, countless mysterious forbidden lands, and countless supreme treasures.
And all of these would become stepping stones on his invincible path.
The corners of Lin Chen's mouth rose slightly into an indifferent curve.
"All Heavens and Myriad Worlds, I have come."
"From this day forth, all heavens shall submit, the myriad worlds shall bow, and throughout all ages, past and present, I alone shall be invincible!"
His words fell.
Chaos Qi surged from all around Lin Chen, forming a blue pillar of light that spanned heaven and earth. It shot straight into the clouds, pierced the firmament, shattered the barriers, and connected the All Heavens and Myriad Worlds!
An exalted pressure that overwhelmed all ages and stood invincible throughout the universe swept out from the pillar of light, instantly enveloping the All Heavens and Myriad Worlds!
At this moment, every powerhouse throughout the All Heavens and Myriad Worlds awoke with a start!
At this moment, every Dao lineage throughout the All Heavens and Myriad Worlds trembled!
At this moment, every living being throughout the All Heavens and Myriad Worlds knelt in worship!
Supreme Sovereign Lin Chen, who had signed in for a hundred thousand years and emerged invincible, officially embarked on his invincible path of sweeping through all heavens and imposing his might upon the myriad worlds!
His true legend across all heavens had only just begun!