Chapter 1052: Horizontal Strike at the Crown Prince

The Southern Domain was a turbulent place, a hotbed of rumors.

It was no longer a secret, nor the most eye-catching news, that the Heavenly Emperor's Son would battle human experts and also face the Saint Emperor's Son in a decisive fight.

However, today, an even more sensational piece of news emerged, leaving many dumbfounded and incredulous.

"Have you heard? Someone is auctioning an ancient palace in Yunfeng Main City. It's rumored to be one of the palaces of the Undying Heavenly Emperor, magnificent and beautiful. I wonder if it's true."

"That's nothing. Qingxia City's largest auction house accepted a deal: a mysterious individual is selling an Azure Dragon Cup, an ancient artifact from primeval times, said to have been used by a deity revered by all races."

"What you're talking about is old news. Do you know what someone just auctioned? A divine armor set, and even... 'golden underwear,' all belonging to the Heavenly Emperor's Son!"

"Pfft!"

A nearby person, upon hearing this, spluttered tea over two meters, soaking the adjacent table. He quickly apologized, trying to cover up his gaffe.

"I say, brother, you can't just blurt out things like that. How could something so outlandish possibly happen?"

"I swear on my grandfather's name, this news is absolutely true and has already been verified. Everyone in Yunfeng City knows about it now. Ancient races have even used secret techniques to confirm it."

The entire Southern Domain was in an uproar. On this day, all cultivators were discussing the matter. No one had anticipated such sensational news right before the decisive battle.

Many were utterly stunned, feeling completely flabbergasted and incredulous. This seemed like something out of a myth. What had happened? Had the Heavenly Emperor's Son's stronghold been raided?

"Golden underwear, worth millions of catties of source energy... etched with divine patterns personally carved by the Heavenly Emperor's Son... as impenetrable as copper walls and iron ramparts, impervious to blades and swords, truly the ultimate protective artifact!"

Everyone felt the urge to vomit blood. This was utterly malicious, a blatant humiliation of the Heavenly Emperor's Son, truly a taste of his own medicine.

Not long ago, Hou Yu, one of the Eight Divine Generals, was still boasting about killing the Saint Emperor's Son and the mysterious human expert. Yet, in the blink of an eye, this happened—a truly resounding slap in the face.

"You called Ye Fan and the Saint Emperor's Son mere 'dirt chickens and clay dogs'? Now we're selling your underwear to shut you up!" In a certain place, a group of mischievous individuals gathered, leisurely sipping enlightenment tea, almost instantly entering a state of enlightenment.

"Investigate this thoroughly!"

The Heavenly Emperor's Son's veins pulsed on his forehead. He was beyond furious. Since his debut, he had never suffered such humiliation; it nearly made him grind his teeth to dust.

"Let me see who dares to bid on those items. I'll annihilate their entire clan ten times over!"

He was so enraged he nearly vomited blood. His eyes blazed with fierce light, emitting beams that stretched for dozens of miles, piercing the sky like two celestial swords cleaving through the air. A terrifying flame ignited around his body.

A massive storm erupted in the Southern Domain. The Heavenly Emperor's Son was almost insane, wishing he could immediately seize the hidden culprit, extract their soul, strip their bones, and crush them to powder—even that wouldn't extinguish his hatred.

"What should we do, Imperial Son?" a visibly uncomfortable ancient clan commander asked.

Undoubtedly, the Undying Heavenly Emperor's palace had been ransacked, leaving not even a blade of grass for them. This loss was incalculable.

"The stone chessboard and the enlightenment tea tree must be recovered; they absolutely cannot fall into their hands!" The more the Heavenly Emperor's Son thought about it, the more he wanted to vomit blood, trembling with rage.

The audacity of the hidden perpetrators was immense. That palace was surrounded by several ancient Ancestor Kings and was located precisely in the center of eight towering main peaks.

Within the palace, Dao Slayers stood guard. Any disturbance, even a single ripple of divine consciousness, would alert the Ancestor Kings, making escape impossible for invaders!

In this era, who would dare to be so audacious? Any attempt would instantly be met with the Ancestor Kings' overwhelming power. Not even a god could save such a person; death would be certain.

"Unless someone mastered Great Emperor formation patterns, sealing off the palace to deceive the heavens and cross the sea, preventing the Ancestor Kings from sensing anything."

The Heavenly Emperor's Son clenched his fists, his divine light intimidating. While this was a theoretical loophole, with ancient Ancestor Kings surrounding the area, even if possible in theory, no ordinary person would risk their life.

This was not glorious news, yet it spread incredibly fast, disseminating through teleportation gates to all corners. The entire Eastern Barren Lands knew of it, causing widespread astonishment.

"Hey, have you heard? The ancient clan's Heavenly Emperor's Son made a fool of himself in the Southern Domain! They say his stronghold was completely raided. It's truly both hilarious and infuriating."

"He marched south with such arrogance, proclaiming himself supreme throughout the universe, ruling over the Southern Lands. How could something like this happen? It's like he tripped and fell into an outhouse!"

Many mocked him. For years, the Heavenly Emperor's Son had been too overbearing, and countless individuals hated him to the bone, yet no one had dared to provoke him until now.

Even within the ancient clans, many scoffed. Not all great clans sided with him; many observed the situation with cold detachment.

"Hahaha... His own palace was ransacked! This is the so-called 'collapse of the Undying Heavenly Emperor's Son.' And he still dreams of ruling all races? Dream on!"

On this day, the entire world focused on the Eastern Barren Lands. This absurd farce plunged the Heavenly Emperor's Son into an unprecedentedly passive position, dealing an incalculable blow to his prestige.

This incident was so bizarre that many couldn't help but laugh. Even the elders could only say that the instigator was truly unscrupulous. Just a pair of golden underwear had ruined the valiant image of a divine son.

"Ahhhhhh!"

The Heavenly Emperor's Son roared towards the sky, his hair bristling with rage. Entire mountain ranges collapsed, turning into dust with thunderous roars, flattening everything for eight hundred miles. Countless mountain ranges in the Southern Domain's desolate lands were destroyed.

"This is beyond endurance! If I don't kill you all, I swear I'm not human!"

Even if he had to sweep across the Eastern Barren Lands and turn the earth upside down, he would exact his revenge. This was an utterly humiliating disgrace, and for someone as proud as him, he nearly vomited blood several times that day.

His handsome face contorted slightly, his divine poise and sacred bones giving way to an almost demonic state. A pillar of bloody light shot from the top of his head, piercing through the heavens and earth. In the desolate lands, all creatures, flying or walking, trembled with fear, prostrating themselves and bowing towards him.

The Heavenly Emperor's Son stood upon his ancient war chariot, arriving consecutively at various ancient cities. All human cultivators felt a profound terror, no longer daring to underestimate him. The power of that divine lineage was terrifying, shaking the past and present, like a divine ocean raging across the heavens.

"What? No auction house dares to take these items? No problem, we'll sell them ourselves."

The group of mischievous individuals, having finished their enlightenment tea and examined the stone chessboard, burst into laughter again. They were refreshed and composed, showing no haste for the decisive battle.

With the major auction houses in the Southern Domain refusing to participate, someone finally started hawking items like a street vendor, shouting their wares through streets and alleys: "Golden divine-patterned underwear, ten copper coins a piece!"

Not a single person dared to buy them. Aside from everything else, the material and the divine patterns within were priceless, yet no one dared to get involved.

Of course, the mischievous individuals had no intention of actually selling them. They merely wanted to create a stir, openly humiliating the Heavenly Emperor's Son and making it a scandal known throughout the world.

"Into the Central Domain!"

In a mountain range in the Southern Domain, the Heavenly Emperor's Son drew his Undying Heavenly Blade with a clang, instantly cleaving the sky, causing a shower of meteorites to fall upon the earth.

"The Heavenly Emperor's Son's divine powers are becoming increasingly unfathomable," an ancient clan commander exclaimed. "He can easily summon star fragments. One day, he'll surely be able to pluck stars and capture the moon."

A large army grandly entered a massive portal, disappearing into the void and heading north.

The Central Domain was no longer peaceful. The Heavenly Emperor's Son's movements were watched by the entire world; every action concerned the major events of the Eastern Barren Lands. During this sensitive period, all parties were tense.

"Reporting to the Heavenly Emperor's Son, the person selling the golden underwear is in Xuanqiu Ancient City," someone reported, his expression terrified, fearing the Heavenly Emperor's Son would cleave him with a single strike in his fury.

The Heavenly Emperor's Son's eyes were cold. Holding his Undying Heavenly Blade, he pointed it forward. Instantly, all the leaves on the mountains withered and turned yellow, falling to create a desolate atmosphere, as if deep autumn had arrived.

However, by the time they arrived, the person hawking the items had already vanished.

"Reporting to the Heavenly Emperor's Son, that person has appeared in Youyue Ancient City."

The Heavenly Emperor's Son's black hair whipped around, his gaze terrifying. He brought his blade down in a single strike, sending a bloody light hundreds of miles long that completely evaporated a vast, untamed lake ahead. Simultaneously, dozens of broken mountains appeared at the end of the earth.

The Eight Divine Generals consecutively assaulted nine great ancient cities, but all their efforts were in vain; they failed to catch their adversary. Their fury and resentment knew no bounds. This army unleashed a monstrous wave of destruction, causing all living beings in its path to tremble.

They were like a host of celestial soldiers and generals. The winds and clouds of all ten directions surged, mountains and valleys trembled, and even flying beasts and wild creatures prostrated themselves. Their imposing might was unparalleled.

"It has been deduced! They will definitely appear in Zhenxian Ancient City. We can go and ambush them there and eliminate them completely."

There were also those among the ancient clans proficient in divination and calculation, capable of foretelling the future and glimpsing heavenly secrets. Their predictions became especially precise when they expended considerable effort.

"Unless he possesses an Emperor's weapon, or his bloodline power is even more favored by heaven and stronger than a divine son's, he cannot escape my deductions!"

"Good!" The Heavenly Emperor's Son nodded, ordering a portion of his forces to continue the pursuit, while he secretly led another contingent to Zhenxian Ancient City to prepare an ambush for the enemy.

By now, everyone knew that the enemy was doing this on purpose. Hawking the so-called golden underwear was to humiliate him, an alternative response to his insults of "dirt chickens and clay dogs."

Zhenxian City, located in the central region of the Eastern Barren Lands, was a city of sages. It earned its name because more than one sage emerged from it during the ancient era.

At this moment, the atmosphere in the city was extremely oppressive; a pin drop could be heard. Whether in tea houses or taverns, no one dared to speak loudly. The suffocating silence made it hard to breathe.

This was because a person, like a quack hawking remedies, was shouting about selling golden underwear, causing everyone to become silent with dread and walk around him.

"Today, let's see where you can run!"

Suddenly, a fierce shout rang out, almost shattering the entire city. A vast army appeared, a dark, overwhelming mass that filled the sky.

The Heavenly Emperor's Son stood on his ancient war chariot, his face so grim it seemed to drip water. He pointed his demonic blade downwards. His powerful aura radiated like ancient stars, trembling.

A group of ancient clan members charged directly towards the figure in the city. Killing intent permeated the surroundings. They intended to capture this person alive using the most brutal methods and leave him to the divine son's judgment.

Suddenly, above the ancient war chariot, a burst of radiant light bloomed in the void, like a flying immortal from beyond the heavens. It shook the nine heavens, shattered the leaden clouds, and transformed into an immortal divine rainbow, descending.

Ye Fan, holding a divine spear, appeared horizontally, striking towards the Heavenly Emperor's Son's skull. It was an astonishing spear thrust, illuminating past, present, and future, shattering the sky!

Immortal light blazed, auspicious mists swirled thinly. Past, present, and future seemed to be pierced by this spear thrust. Chaos radiated, and the mighty force of creation itself erupted.

"Puff!"

In the sky, the valiant body holding the demonic blade had its skull burst open. A wave of blood spurted several meters high, and the corpse fell onto the war chariot.

"We've been waiting for you! We knew you'd come!" Suddenly, a cold voice echoed from another direction. A Heavenly Emperor's Son appeared, wielding a blazing heavenly blade, slashing horizontally. The one just killed was not the real one.

Simultaneously, a phoenix cried, shaking the skies. An immortal phoenix soared, its wings striking against the nine heavens!

"Roar..."

With a single roar from a Qilin, mountains and rivers shattered. Another valiant man's blood flowed like thunder within him, brimming with explosive power, as he struck forward.

Beside him stood a beautiful, captivating blue-haired woman. Yet, the energy she exuded was like that of a descending deity. With each step, the heavens collapsed and the earth split open!

The four ancient Imperial Sons attacked simultaneously, locking down the area, giving the assassin no chance to escape, intending to trap him.

"Hiss!"

However, the person surrounded instantly transformed into a wisp of clear air, dissipating into the heavens and earth. Their encirclement was futile.

At the horizon's edge, Ye Fan's true body opened his eyes, emitting two torch-like beams of light, and stood up abruptly.

The Saint Emperor's Son, holding a large black Ugin staff, declared, "I have locked onto the Heavenly Emperor's Son. I will surely kill him in the Central Domain!"

One pair of golden divine underwear.