Chapter 529: Two Strongest Warriors of Two Worlds

Winter, heavy snow.

On Yuanchu Mountain, Li Guan, Qin Wu, Luo Tang, and Meng Chuan, the four of them, arrived at the desolate grotto-heaven.

"In the blink of an eye, this life is nearing its end," Li Guan said with a smile, looking at the Millennium Hall ahead.

Meng Chuan, Qin Wu, and Luo Tang all looked at Li Guan.

At this moment, Li Guan was incredibly old, with snow-white hair and a face full of wrinkles. He was clearly nearing the end of his lifespan, showing all the signs of old age.

"Senior Brother, for so many years, you have sacrificed so much for Yuanchu Mountain and for humanity," Qin Wu said solemnly.

"I was born in an era of human prosperity," Li Guan said with a sigh. "Godfiend sects fought and killed each other. I once killed enemy Godfiends, shaking all sides. After becoming a Venerable, I thought of cultivating to Grotto-Heaven perfection and then venturing outside our realm. Who would have thought that the Demon Realm and my Cangyuan Realm would draw closer and closer, even to the point of world passages appearing? So, the latter half of my life has been spent fighting demons."

Meng Chuan listened.

"To guard the many world entrances, groups of Godfiends fought desperately," Li Guan said with a complex expression. "Over nine hundred years, far too many Godfiends have died. There are so, so many names left on Crimson Blood Cliff."

Meng Chuan, Qin Wu, and Luo Tang also fell silent.

Indeed, too many Godfiends had died, many of whom were their former companions.

"The situation had grown steadily worse. I was even prepared to use the Great Hall of Heaven and Earth for a 'world-ending' act, which, while it would stop the demon race, would also make our generation of Godfiends sinners against humanity. Even to save the world, our sins could not be cleansed," Li Guan said, looking at Meng Chuan. "Fortunately, after nine hundred years, a turning point finally arrived."

Luo Tang also nodded and looked over: "Fortunately, we have Meng Chuan."

"That's why it was very wise of me to let him enter the Cangyuan Grotto-heaven back then," Qin Wu said with a smile.

Hahahaha… Li Guan, Luo Tang, and Meng Chuan, who was beside them, all laughed.

If he hadn't entered the Cangyuan Grotto-heaven and received the body cultivation inheritance from the Starry Sky lineage, Meng Chuan truly wouldn't have been able to sweep away a million demon kings on his own.

Even if he had become powerful enough to turn the tide later, humanity would have suffered many more casualties, and the situation would have been far worse.

"I have no regrets in this life," Li Guan said, his aged face serene. "Now that I'm nearing the end of my lifespan, I have only one strong desire: to witness the ultimate victory of the war. My slumber hasn't reached a thousand years yet, so I can continue to sleep… Wake me when the war is won."

"Once I see the war won and we celebrate properly, I'll have no regrets," Li Guan said with a smile.

"Senior Brother, you will surely see it," Qin Wu said.

"We will definitely win," Meng Chuan said.

Li Guan nodded slightly and walked towards the Millennium Hall…

Grotto-Heaven Pavilion.

Meng Chuan, Qin Wu, and Luo Tang were seated.

"Meng An is also a Venerable; he should have come to see Senior Brother Li off this time," Qin Wu said.

"That boy has become even busier since he became a Venerable," Meng Chuan shook his head. "It must be the Cangyuan Ancestor's inheritance. He received the most core lineage, and the Ancestor had arrangements for each stage. He's gone into seclusion again, and I don't know for how many years."

"Indeed," Luo Tang and Qin Wu both nodded.

Initially, when the demon race dispatched a large number of fifth-heaven demon kings through the world fissures, Meng Chuan wiped them all out. That battle firmly established Meng Chuan's status as the 'foremost person in the world.'

Approximately twenty years after that battle, Meng An became a Venerable.

By estimation…

He had been a Venerable for over ten years.

After becoming a Venerable, Meng An became even more elusive, occasionally disappearing for several years.

"Meng Chuan," Qin Wu said seriously, "are you sure your clan won't assume the position of the imperial family of the Great Zhou Dynasty? By custom, the Li family should abdicate and pass the throne to your Meng clan."

"Senior Brother Li has only about a year left in his lifespan, and the Li family will soon relinquish the throne. Their entire clan will relocate from the imperial capital," Luo Tang said, looking at Meng Chuan.

"No," Meng Chuan shook his head. "I think the Great Zhou Dynasty functions well without an imperial family. The imperial cabinet can manage secular affairs, and the sects can provide supervision. There's no need for an additional imperial clan."

Mainly, Meng Chuan couldn't find anyone suitable to be emperor within the Meng clan.

Both he and Meng An were fully devoted to cultivation.

Meng An had always been solitary. Even the typically cold-natured Yan Jin, after turning a hundred, had surprisingly married and had children, yet his own son, Meng An, remained single, which troubled Meng Chuan.

His daughter Meng You and Yang Cheng also had descendants through generations… but those were Yang family members, not surnamed Meng, so they naturally couldn't be counted.

As for the original Meng family clan? Their connection to Meng Chuan was more distant, and to be emperor, one would at least need to have condensed a primordial spirit and reached Dark Star realm strength.

Furthermore, Meng Chuan preferred his clan's descendants to live simpler lives. Therefore, he felt it was perfectly fine for the Great Zhou Dynasty to not have an 'imperial family.'

"Very well. Yuanchu Mountain is under your command now. By rights, this throne should belong to your Meng clan. Since you're giving it up, it's entirely up to you," Qin Wu said with a smile.

The leader of Yuanchu Mountain, the foremost person in the world, an Emperor-level mighty one…

These were Meng Chuan's current identities.

Although Meng Chuan only acted through his primordial spirit avatars in the outer realms and never admitted to becoming an Emperor, his ability to instantly reach various parts of the Cangyuan Realm and capture so many fifth-heaven demon kings, moving tens of thousands of li in a flash, could only be achieved by someone with Heavenly Realm strength, capable of resisting 'heaven and earth suppression,' unless it was an 'ultimate absolute art' that broke the rules of heaven and earth. Combined with 'Primordial Spirit Seventh Layer,' Heavenly Realm and Primordial Spirit Seventh Layer… that naturally indicated Emperor-level strength.

Regardless of whether Meng Chuan had truly broken through, his Emperor-level strength was undeniable.

Meng Chuan's strength, status, and his role in resisting the demon race made all the Godfiends in the world utterly convinced of his capabilities. He was, without a doubt, the strongest Godfiend in the world and the supreme leader of Godfiends.

"You've been adventuring in the outer realms for over forty years now," Luo Tang said with concern. "There are now nine super-large fortresses, and the world entrances are still slowly expanding. I wonder if Demon Saint-level passages will appear."

"Even if there were no guards at the super-large fortresses, would the demon race dare to enter?" Qin Wu countered with a laugh. "The demons have long been terrified."

Meng Chuan could instantly reach any part of the Cangyuan Realm.

This caused the demon invasion to completely stagnate.

Even through unstable world entrances, few demons dared to enter anymore.

No fifth-heaven demon kings were willing to attack the super-large fortresses either! Because anyone who dared to show their face… might be slain or captured by Meng Chuan.

"Meng Chuan, do you have confidence regarding Demon Saint-level passages?" Luo Tang couldn't help but ask.

"Don't worry, leave it to me," Meng Chuan replied with a slight smile.

Meng Chuan didn't say much. After broadening his horizons in the outer realms, he understood that if the Demon Realm truly cultivated 'Heavenly Realm Venerables' without regard for cost, it could indeed cause some trouble.

Of course, it would only be some trouble. Meng Chuan mused to himself… at the Venerable level, he was capable of sweeping all before him. The only issue was that his primordial spirit avatar in his home realm was significantly weaker than his true body in the outer realms.

'If eight primordial spirit avatars act together, and it becomes truly urgent, my true body in the Great Hall of Heaven and Earth will also intervene,' Meng Chuan thought to himself.

This war must be won.

As Li Guan entered his aged slumber, Emperor Peng's two true bodies, his true body in the outer realms and his true body in his home realm, simultaneously welcomed their second tribulation of the flesh.

The 'Heavenly Tribulation' of the Tribulation Realm was inescapable.

No matter where one hid, there was no escaping it. Although life-bearing worlds offered special protection to the weak, the Heavenly Tribulation would still descend upon a Tribulation Realm mighty one hiding in their home realm.

"Hmph."

Inside the quiet chamber, a golden-winged great roc lowered its wings, its sharp talons gripping the ground. The golden light on its wings was dazzling. Yet, amidst the dazzling golden light, many 'black threads' intertwined. Innumerable black threads continuously permeated the roc's flesh, causing its body to tremble slightly in pain. Its wings instinctively wrapped tightly around itself.

Emperor Peng possessed the bloodline of the 'golden-winged great roc,' making its flesh extremely powerful. Upon first reaching the Tribulation Realm, it already had the strength to contend with a 'three-tribulation mighty one.'

However, precisely because of its powerful flesh, its first three tribulations passed extremely quickly.

According to the demon race's experience, those with the golden-winged great roc bloodline generally pass three tribulations within a century of reaching the Tribulation Realm! But because it was not a true 'golden-winged great roc,' there was a possibility of failure during the tribulation.

Suddenly—

The golden-winged great roc let out a low growl, its wings suddenly spread open, and countless black threads were forcibly expelled from its body. After being expelled, the black threads all turned into nothingness, vanishing into the heavens and earth.

The golden-winged great roc transformed back into Emperor Peng's appearance.

"It succeeded," Emperor Peng said, somewhat weary, as he felt the slow transformation of his flesh and the evolution of his Tribulation Realm demonic power within him. "In just over two years, I've passed two tribulations. However, I estimate the third tribulation will occur several decades from now." This was also based on the experience of demon ancestors who possessed the golden-winged great roc bloodline.

'It's almost time; I must seize the moment and deal with Meng Chuan as quickly as possible,' Emperor Peng thought to himself.

Meanwhile.

In the outer void, on a desolate star in the Three-Bay River System, Emperor Peng's true body in the outer realms also quietly passed its second tribulation.

Whoosh.

A golden light shot up from the desolate star into the sky.

As one's cultivation realm advanced, one would naturally grasp many methods, such as 'karma.' Meng Chuan could already sense some relatively clear karmic ties. As for Tribulation Realm mighty ones… they could clearly sense the karmic lines entangled with themselves.

Emperor Peng and Meng Chuan.

One was the strongest in the Demon Realm, and the other was currently the strongest in the Cangyuan Realm.

As the war between the two races continued for so many years, the karmic ties between them grew increasingly stronger. Although it was difficult to pinpoint Meng Chuan's exact location, he could follow the direction of the karmic lines and pursue him. The closer he got… the clearer the sensation would become.

"Meng Chuan."

Emperor Peng's true body in the outer realms had already journeyed through the River of Time, heading straight towards the Wugu River System.