Chapter 1012: Fair Trade

The Ancient Spirit Race! They were the ones who unified the races of Wanggu before the Dark Ancient Emperor.

Standing in this world permeated by death, Old Nine calmly spoke, gazing at the dim sky. "This race excelled in combat. Their young were serpents, transforming into human form only later, with dragon-serpents then accompanying them, thus achieving the Ancient Spirit Battle Body! During their rule over Wanggu, they suppressed all other races, forcing them to submit! Even humanity at that time was once weak and fragmented!"

As Old Nine spoke, he walked forward. With every step, the sky churned, the earth rumbled, countless lost souls scattered, and skeletons in the mud trembled! The aura emanating from Old Nine also intensified with his progress, subtly revealing a hint of an energy that didn't belong to Wanggu, seemingly rising from within him, guiding something from the outside!

Xu Qing and Second Bull followed behind. Second Bull looked left and right, extremely curious about the place. He occasionally squatted to dig up some mud, then reached out to grab some lost souls. The light in his eyes grew increasingly intense, showing clear deep interest in the location. As for Xu Qing, he listened intently to Granduncle Nine’s words.

Although he had some knowledge about the Ancient Spirit Race, it was clearly insufficient compared to Granduncle Nine, a living history who had lived since the Dark Ancient Emperor's era. What concerned him even more was the aura emanating from Granduncle Nine that did not belong to Wanggu. The previous Xu Qing might have been oblivious to this, but now, with the authority of erasure in his right eye, he could see causality. Thus, in his eyes, the aura emanating from Granduncle Nine was causality linked to outside the heavens.

"Senior Brother once said that Senior Li Zihua is returning. Looking at Granduncle Nine’s aura, it seems to be the guide!" Xu Qing mused, as Old Nine’s words continued to echo.

"Though the Ancient Spirit Race was powerful, their reign over Wanggu was fleeting, like a flash in the pan! After reaching their peak in a short period, their Spirit Emperor undertook a mad endeavor! He gathered the strength of his entire race, converged their luck, and schemed against the Heavenly Dao! He attempted to usurp all Heavenly Dao for himself, unifying them into one, making himself the strongest and only Heavenly Dao of Wanggu! Should he succeed, his will would be Wanggu’s will, and his path would be Wanggu’s path! He would also, by doing so, surpass the Xia Immortal who once created Wanggu and gave rise to numerous Heavenly Daos, thus consolidating the fate of Wanggu under one person’s destiny! This would also allow the Ancient Spirit Race to eternally rule Wanggu, with all other races forever suppressed, and he himself would break through the Xia Immortal’s bottleneck, forging his own path to immortality!"

As Old Nine spoke, a hint of admiration appeared on his face. What he admired was not the Ancient Spirit Emperor’s actions, but the ambition and choices of a powerful individual! "Such a figure…" Old Nine paused, looking up at the distant void. A flicker of fighting intent appeared in his eyes as he slowly raised his right hand, as if gripping the sky.

Meanwhile, Second Bull, who was following behind Xu Qing and Old Nine, dug out a skeleton from the ground. After putting it away, seeing Xu Qing listening intently, Second Bull deliberately coughed, preparing to display his broad knowledge as the Senior Brother! He then spoke in a casual tone, mimicking Old Nine’s manner!

"But this was a grave transgression. Thus, the possibility of success was naturally extremely slim. Ultimately, the Spirit Emperor failed, suffering the backlash of all the Heavenly Daos of Wanggu, and his race’s bloodline was cursed! In a critical moment, the Spirit Emperor, relying on his terrifying cultivation, brought most of his clansmen into his grand world, attempting to evade the catastrophe that would befall his entire race under the backlash of Wanggu’s Heavenly Dao. But even so, they ultimately could not escape the curse! Consequently, the Spirit Emperor perished, and his grand world withered, turning into a death realm. All the Ancient Spirit Race within it instantly died, yet the horror of this curse was not simply about eradication! After all, it was a curse jointly imposed by all Heavenly Daos of Wanggu. Under that curse, the deceased Ancient Spirit Race transformed into wailing, suffering souls day and night! This withered death realm thus became the Ancient Spirit Lost Kingdom, forever enduring the torment of the curse, forever buried deep beneath the Wanggu Continent! Furthermore…"

Second Bull was about to show off his knowledge, but before he could finish speaking, Old Nine, ahead, raised his hand and grasped towards the sky. Immediately, the heavens roared, and countless muffled thunders exploded across the sky! Tens of thousands of lightning bolts converged from the sky, surging directly towards Old Nine, illuminating the world as they struck his raised right hand! With a single grip, this boundless lightning transformed directly into a long sword of electrical light! As this sword appeared, the world changed color! A powerful aura and terrifying fluctuations surged forth from Old Nine, and then... he swung his sword down towards the sky!

The sword energy was earth-shattering! A roar seemed to come from the void, and in the next instant, as the terrifying sword sliced through, a massive rift was directly torn open in the sky! A storm spread from within the rift, sweeping across all directions, and simultaneously, a familiar scene for Xu Qing was revealed through the crack! There, was an imperial palace! Deep within the palace, there was a mountain of flesh and blood, with a gigantic eye floating atop its peak! At this moment, this eye opened, emitting a golden light, and stared furiously through the rift at their location! It saw Xu Qing, whom it hadn't seen for a long time, but what concerned it most at that moment was the figure whose single sword had ripped open the heavens, filled with earth-shattering murderous intent! It recognized him. During its battle with the Crimson Mother, it had taken notice of this ninth son of Li Zihua, for the sword strike he had brandished after accumulating power before the Crimson Mother had indeed made its heart tremble!

Xu Qing was about to speak, but Old Nine, ahead, had already stepped into the rift and appeared above the Ancient Spirit Emperor’s gigantic eye! "How dare you!" A low roar, imbued with the rules of this death realm, boomed forth from the Ancient Spirit Emperor! Instantly, the sky of the world where the Ancient Spirit Emperor resided grew even dimmer, the earth continuously churned, and countless lost souls, countless skeletons, all surged forth! Even the River of Yellow Springs arrived! That was the will of the entire world, moving with the Ancient Spirit Emperor’s divine thought! Moreover, an ability resembling authority and divine power shimmered within the Ancient Spirit Emperor’s giant eye—a unique power belonging to him! Under its gaze, any adversary's minor injuries would become severe, and severe injuries would turn into fatal death! At the same time, within this Ancient Spirit Realm, another ninety-eight imperial palaces and giant eyes also opened at this moment, all staring at Old Nine, poised for action!

Old Nine’s expression remained unchanged, though his indifference was now laced with an even greater fighting spirit, as if he truly intended to engage in battle! The situation immediately escalated to an extreme, on the verge of erupting!

Xu Qing emerged from the rift, standing beside Old Nine, and respectfully spoke! "Granduncle Nine, may I mediate this matter? His Majesty the Spirit Emperor is not an outsider; we needn’t resort to conflict!"

Old Nine glanced at Xu Qing, frowned, and finally reluctantly agreed! After appeasing Granduncle Nine, Xu Qing turned and bowed deeply to the Ancient Spirit Emperor! "This junior greets Your Majesty!"

The Ancient Spirit Emperor’s heart churned, countless curses erupting within him, about to roar out. But when its gaze fell upon Xu Qing, all curses turned into shock! "Your physical body…" All of the Ancient Spirit Emperor’s giant eyes simultaneously constricted! Its attention had previously been drawn to Old Nine, but now, focusing on Xu Qing, it immediately sensed the terrifying nature of Xu Qing’s physical body! "This junior had some fortuitous encounters, hence the change in my physical body. I shall explain this to Your Majesty later. My purpose in coming here today is for the imperial energy!" Xu Qing gazed at the thirteen dragon-like manifestations of Ancient Spirit Race's luck surrounding the Ancient Spirit Emperor’s giant eye, and slowly spoke!

"No." The Ancient Spirit Emperor suppressed the shock in its heart, its giant eye gleaming eerily, and directly refused! Xu Qing’s expression remained calm. He was not surprised by the Ancient Spirit Emperor’s reply; he had dealt with the entity too many times, and the three of them had already formulated a plan on their way here! So, a smile appeared on his face as he spoke softly! "Your Majesty, this junior is here by the command of our Human Empress! Although Your Majesty is in seclusion here, you must have sensed the fluctuations when our Human Empress ascended to the Divine Platform previously!" As Xu Qing spoke, he released his human race's luck, allowing the power of luck to surround him, and with a lift of his hand, he changed into the official robe of Grand Tutor!

"The one speaking now is the Zhencang King personally conferred by our Human Empress, additionally the Grand Tutor to the Crown Prince, and furthermore, of the Flaming Moon Profound Sky race, one of the three deities who collectively sealed the Great Profound Sky." Second Bull spoke proudly and loudly; he naturally knew how to cooperate with Xu Qing!

Heavy breathing, like wind, whistled through this world of death. All of the Ancient Spirit Emperor’s giant eyes rippled at that moment! Although it hadn't directly witnessed the Human Empress becoming a deity, it had indeed sensed it! To say it wasn't wary would be impossible! Yet, the indignation in its heart still surged. The feeling of being robbed made it feel its prestige was challenged, and it was about to speak!

Xu Qing glanced at Second Bull! Second Bull smiled, gazing down at the Ancient Spirit Emperor’s giant eye, and spoke clearly and authoritatively! "Junior Brother, I know you have a past connection with this Ancient Spirit Emperor and do not wish to bully the small. Otherwise, if we merely informed our revered Master, with his Xia Immortal status, he could reshape your physical body, and naturally, he could also suppress this realm with a single palm."

The Ancient Spirit Emperor was shocked again! At the same time, Old Nine, seeing that communication was proving fruitless, showed a hint of impatience! "Why bother with pleasantries? My father is about to return. If you don’t give me the imperial energy today, I will take it by force. For every bit I am harmed, on the day my father returns, he will destroy all your means of rebirth and resurrection!" After speaking, the aura of celestial guidance emanating from Old Nine became even denser, even forming a vague starry sky, where a blood-red star seemed vaguely to be approaching! The oppressive feeling that emanated made the Ancient Spirit Emperor’s heart churn once more! However, its former prestige made it still somewhat unable to accept the indignity of being blackmailed, and its breathing grew increasingly rapid!

Seeing that the timing was right, Xu Qing took a few steps forward, stood in front of the giant eye, and bowed again! "Your Majesty, this junior had not finished speaking earlier. I did not come here to directly demand the thirteen imperial energies, but to trade!" With that, Xu Qing raised his hand, took out the puppet from the Spirit Sound Forbidden Zone, and presented it before the Ancient Spirit Emperor! "This spirit is the master of a forbidden zone; I hope Your Majesty likes it!" This was giving the Ancient Spirit Emperor a way out!

The Ancient Spirit Emperor fell silent, cursing internally once more. It naturally saw through the trio’s coordinated act, but… neither the Empress, nor Xu Qing’s Master, nor Li Zihua, were figures it could afford to provoke at this moment! Furthermore, it currently had a major undertaking secretly in progress; if a Divine Platform descended, it feared it would be immediately exposed! So, after a long moment, the Ancient Spirit Emperor suppressed the disgust in its heart, glared fiercely at Xu Qing, and its giant eye emitted a suction force, drawing the puppet in instantly! With crunching and chewing sounds, as if all its grievances were being channeled into the biting, after more than ten breaths, the thirteen dragons of luck beside the Ancient Spirit Emperor roared and rushed towards Xu Qing and the other two! Accompanying them was the Ancient Spirit Emperor’s suppressed, gloomy voice! "Leave, and do not return."