Chapter 138

Chapter 138: Ye Xu Attains the Dao and Becomes an Emperor, Lian Jiuyou Revisits Heaven’s Secret Pavilion

Yuan Realm, the Southern Wilderness.

In the blink of an eye, another month passed.

During this period, the Southern Wilderness had been in a state of tumultuous upheaval. First, the seal at Godfall Ridge loosened, followed by the simultaneous outward spread of both spiritual energy and the eerie influences, affecting the very fabric of the Yuan Realm.

Led by Lin Qianmo, with the Red Dust Demon Sect and the Unsurpassed Sacred Ground as the main forces, an area spanning over one hundred thousand li around Godfall Ridge was blockaded. However, as time passed, the seal struggled to contain the spread of the eerie influences.

By this point, even factions like the Tianxin Sect, Qi Xian Sect, and Dan Ding Sect, observing the changes at Godfall Ridge, guessed that a great change was imminent in the Southern Wilderness.

Heaven’s Secret Pavilion.

For a full month, Heaven’s Secret Pavilion remained closed.

Lin Qianmo, Ao Bing, Yue Ruyi, Lian Jiuyou, and others had all come to visit. But Ye Xu was in secluded cultivation, refusing all guests. Every visitor left having achieved nothing.

When will Master emerge from seclusion? Yang Xuanzhan thought anxiously.

The situation in the Southern Wilderness was growing increasingly tense.

Many unfamiliar faces began appearing within Linglong City, and shifts occurred in the rankings of the Talents List in the Southern Wilderness.

The only solace for Yang Xuanzhan was that Lu Shaojun, after obtaining the Heaven’s Ultimate Four Symbols Scripture, had broken into the top ten of the Talents List in the Southern Wilderness, truly becoming a dark horse.

Ye Xian’er sat listlessly within the pavilion, utterly bored.

She had emerged from her own secluded cultivation the previous day; her cultivation had reached the Dao Palace stage peak, placing her absolutely among the top geniuses of the younger generation in the Southern Wilderness.

However, her strength remained too low; she wasn’t yet qualified to be listed on the Talents List in the Southern Wilderness.

Deep within the depths of Time and Space of Heaven’s Secret Pavilion.

Radiant divine light of creation encased Ye Xu like a tremendous embryo. The aura of the Great Dao of creation gathered within, sharpening like a divine sword in constant gestation.

It seemed that the moment this embryonic shell shattered, a truly world-shaking existence would be born.

Boom!

Another day passed. A crack appeared on the surface of the embryonic shell. Then, with the appearance of the first fissure, the shell shattered at a visible pace.

Several hours later, a completely naked Ye Xu floated in mid-air.

Divine radiance shone within his eyes; the Great Dao of creation flowed through his very being. Every single one of his movements seemed capable of resonating with the power of Heaven and Earth, influencing the rules of the universe.

With a mere thought, he conjured a set of cyan robes and clothed himself.

"Finally… success," Ye Xu murmured, sensing the profound transformation within himself before letting out a long, triumphant laugh.

He had expended nearly one million heavenly secrets points solely to attain the Dao and become an emperor. After a month, the effort and dedication had finally borne fruit.

Having become a Great Emperor, Ye Xu now fully comprehended the profound mysteries of the emperor realm.

Reaching this realm meant achieving the Dao, grasping the power of the Great Dao. Once one faced and passed the heavenly tribulation, one could imbed their Great Dao imprint within the Heavenly Dao itself, borrowing the power of the heavens and the earth.

Moreover, simply reaching the emperor realm bestowed a lifespan of approximately three million years.

"I didn’t face the tribulation. I wonder if that will affect my strength?" Ye Xu mused quietly.

He had attained the Dao within Heaven’s Secret Pavilion. The pavilion shielded him from the Heavenly Dao, preventing him from undergoing the tribulation. Consequently, he had no direct measure of his current true power.

Of course, Ye Xu currently dared not face a tribulation.

The heavenly tribulation was a minor issue. He had leaked too many heavenly secrets and carried too many heavenly punishments. Even if he became a Great Emperor, within the vast cosmos, he was nothing but a speck of dust, incapable of opposing Nature’s Dao.

"However, this isn’t a major problem either."

Ye Xu was thrilled. Once achieving the Great Emperor rank, he could master the Great Dao of Creation. This would allow him to shield his soul power, preventing detection by the Dao.

This meant that, even without the Concealing Heaven’s Divine Talisman, he could briefly leave Heaven’s Secret Pavilion.

This was something Ye Xu had long dreamed of.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have spent nearly a million heavenly secrets points just to become an emperor.

A great change was approaching. He had no intention of hiding forever within Heaven’s Secret Pavilion, missing grand event after grand event.

Whoosh!

With a single thought, Ye Xu emerged from the depths of Time and Space, appearing within Heaven’s Secret Pavilion.

"Master!"

Yang Xuanzhan turned and immediately saw a vigorous-looking Ye Xu. He knelt down on the spot. "This servant congratulates the Master on a successful retreat!"

Though he couldn’t discern Ye Xu’s realm, Yang Xuanzhan knew from Ye Xu’s expression that this retreat had been extremely successful.

"Senior!"

Ye Xian’er’s face also lit up with delight.

The Heaven’s Secret Pavilion felt unfamiliar without Ye Xu present.

"It seems quite a few visitors have come during this time?" Ye Xu laughed.

"Indeed."

Yang Xuanzhan replied: "The master of the Eastern Sea Dragon Palace came, as did the master of the Pure Land. The sect masters of the Red Dust Demon Sect and the Unsurpassed Sacred Ground also visited. That Poison Emperor from the Poisonous Forest came once as well."

"The demon emperor of the Ten Thousand Demon Kingdom came four or five times."

"Just yesterday, he made another trip."

Ye Xu frowned slightly.

Any matter that made Lian Jiuyou so anxious must be related to the Green Lotus Demon Emperor.

At that moment, Ye Xu was still unaware that the Green Lotus Demon Emperor was alive, albeit in an extremely peculiar, crazed state.

The previous time, Lian Jiuyou had asked Ye Xu to divine the Green Lotus Demon Emperor’s life and death. Ye Xu hadn’t performed the divination; instead, he had relayed the "truth" to Lian Jiuyou based on Lin Qianmo’s memories.

"So urgent?"

Ye Xu looked at Yang Xuanzhan. "Did he reveal what the matter was?"

Yang Xuanzhan shook his head.

"No matter."

Ye Xu dismissed it lightly. "He hasn’t seen me yet, so naturally he will return to the Heaven’s Secret Pavilion."

"Master, since your retreat began, Linglong City has seen many unfamiliar faces. In my estimation, the majority of them are not cultivators from the Yuan Realm."

"The Red Dust Demon Sect has also been very lively. Many of the younger generation’s geniuses wish to challenge Nangong Zhandao."

Yang Xuanzhan thought for a moment and said solemnly.

"As long as no one causes trouble, leave them alone," Ye Xu said lightly.

As for challenging Nangong Zhandao?

A hint of disdain flashed in Ye Xu’s eyes.

It was a joke; that man was the child of fortune of the Yuan Realm. The bulk of fortune itself rested with Nangong Zhandao. Not to mention the Yuan Realm, even in the entire Lower Realm universe, few peers could match him.

It was merely asking for humiliation.

"Senior, over this past month, the Talents List in the Southern Wilderness has seen huge changes. Many powerful people have made it onto the list," Ye Xian’er said excitedly, as if it were her own achievement.

Ye Xu’s expression shifted slightly, and information about the Talents List in the Southern Wilderness surfaced immediately.

The number one on the Talents List had already changed hands.

Unmistakably, it was Ji Mingyue.

Long ago, Ye Xu had predicted that Ji Mingyue could get onto the Hidden Dragon List within a year; it was no empty boast.

Ji Mingyue was now at the late stage of the Divine God realm.

The youths from before had all advanced to the divine realm, with the top thirty on the Talents List in the Southern Wilderness almost uniformly being divine realm talents.

"Master, your seclusion lasted too long, so the Talents List hasn’t been updated."

"The rule used to be only accepting geniuses below the divine realm. But now, most of those youths have reached the Divine God realm. Isn’t the old approach outdated?" Yang Xuanzhan proposed.

"I have it handled."

Ye Xu’s gaze flickered. Once the seal on Godfall Ridge lifted and the geniuses of the ancient divine clans emerged from Godfall Ridge, heralding the new era, even the Talents List in the Southern Wilderness might become obsolete. Only the Hidden Dragon List would remain.

Then, the entire Yuan Realm’s geniuses would all be on it.

That time would mark the true competition among the talents of the Hidden Dragon List.

Currently, the Hidden Dragon List was nothing but an empty shell.

After all, the people hadn’t been found, making it impossible to determine who was superior.

Ye Xu could already envision those grand scenes.

"It’s finally open."

A figure landed at that moment in front of the Heaven’s Secret Pavilion. Lian Jiuyou looked travel-worn, clearly having raced here frantically.

"Senior!"

He stepped into the Heaven’s Secret Pavilion and fell to his knees before Ye Xu.

At that instant, Lian Jiuyou abandoned all the authority and pride of the demon emperor. Only the responsibility of a son remained.

Ye Xu’s eyelid twitched briefly.

"Senior, please save my father the emperor."

Lian Jiuyou appeared anguished, his voice choked with withheld sobs.