Chapter 1361: I Am the Heavenly Emperor

"Ah…"

A human tragedy! In this region, screams rose and fell, countless evolvers struggling in a bloody scene of severed limbs and shattered remains, like a hellish slaughterhouse that made one shudder.

The entire land was stained crimson. Evolvers from various races, many of whom were prodigies, were now meeting a horrific end.

In this instant, much transpired on the battlefield. The Soul River, Primordial Qi, and crimson eyes, among other phenomena, were all beginning to emerge.

However, the most critical situation was undoubtedly the massive explosion of the secret realm, as if the entire Great Yang World itself had collapsed, threatening to annihilate all life.

Even the Celestial Venerables trapped within were being torn asunder. This gave a glimpse into the incredibly high level of the secret realm in ancient times and the immense amount of high-tier energy it had accumulated.

Now, among the surrounding creatures, let alone ordinary evolvers, even Divine Kings were perishing miserably one after another, their wails filling the air.

Arm-Stretching Divine Apes, Golden-Winged Yakshas, and Sky-Splitting Bronze Sparrows—all powerful races capable of swift flight—were present. Yet, they could not escape; anyone too close plummeted to the ground, covered in blood and utterly wretched.

The secret realm's disintegration, compounded by the collapse of the two Celestial Venerables within, utterly detonated the small world. Billions of years of accumulated high-tier energy were thus activated and unleashed.

Divine Kings from various races were experiencing horrific fates: some had their bodies torn in half, others had their heads split open, some were devoured by massive spatial rifts, and still others were reduced to bloody pulp after being thoroughly ravaged.

The scene was unbearable, a true purgatory on earth, with countless lives lost.

Of course, the most terrifying aspect was the call of the Soul River, which was now beginning to reveal its uncanny and unpredictable nature. Any sentient being within a certain range found themselves unable to resist or control their own bodies, compelled to rush towards it.

That area, still gripped by massive explosions, became a convergence of burning blood and souls, a mass sacrifice!

Amidst the blood and fire, some souls tumbled into a special passage, hurrying towards the Soul River.

Some Divine Kings, who were very close, managed to forcefully stabilize themselves for a moment, but ultimately succumbed, losing consciousness and becoming like walking corpses.

"Come back!" a Celestial Venerable roared, quickly taking action.

Standing at a safe distance, he attempted to rescue his descendant. Yet, upon restraining the Divine King's body and trying to forcefully pull it back, he inadvertently tore the Divine King apart, retrieving only half a bloody torso from the passage outside the Soul River.

Such horrific events were not isolated. When other powerful individuals intervened, attempting to reclaim their kin, they too inadvertently severed their descendants' bodies.

"Come, let this place be a blood sacrifice! The more, the better! The greater the chaos, the greater my opportunity! I shall finally see the light of day again!" Deep underground, one of the ancient monsters from the forbidden land, its pupils blood-red and eyes seemingly piercing the very stars, burning with blinding light, spoke with fervent longing.

However, at that moment, it also involuntarily trembled, for it had once again discovered that artifact, from which Primordial Qi flowed.

In ancient times, this very artifact had inexplicably fallen from beyond the realm, slaying one of their clan's ancestral-level peerless experts, leaving him unable to rest in peace.

At that time, they had been in a fierce confrontation with the First Mountain, which had brought a divine mountain crashing into this very location.

At that critical juncture, a fragment imbued with Primordial Qi fell, leading to the tragic demise of their clan's supreme progenitor and thus accelerating the forbidden land's destruction.

"It's still here, just as expected! You're still here!" In the depths of the underground palace, a terrifying entity from an unknown space growled, filled with both reverence and covetousness, desperate to possess it.

Naturally, at this moment, the other surviving members of the Yuan family were equally inflamed with excitement, as everyone from the highest echelons to the lowest ranks was aware of the legends surrounding that artifact.

Now, to actually witness the flow of Primordial Qi here was enough to drive them to madness.

"Contact the ancestors! Call forth all nine generations of our clan's retired elder patriarchs from their seclusion! The supreme secret artifact has appeared, and it is right here!" The Yuan family members were frantic. Despite the perilous circumstances and the terrifying backdrop, they continued to covet the legendary ancient artifact.

"Burn incense and offer prayers! Request the return of our progenitor! Let him seize this artifact, complete the most powerful scripture he created, and thereby truly become invincible throughout heaven and earth, undefeated across all ages!"

The three battlefields were in utter chaos, blood flowed like rivers, and the number of dead or maddened was beyond counting.

The envoy race from the heavens, though astonished, also cast covetous glances at the artifact flowing with Primordial Qi.

Just then, a magnificent, immense, yet sinister aura emerged, as if a creature was stirring, awakening from ancient slumber.

Before the Soul River, beneath the boundless sands of its bank, an eerie voice emanated. A creature had truly awakened, and its words sent shivers down everyone's spines: "The taste of fresh blood... this entire world shall be laid upon the sacrificial altar..."

To blood-sacrifice an entire world?!

What kind of place was this? Ordinary people could not possibly comprehend the Soul River! Yet now, everyone understood.

If a sacrifice were to be made in that place, it would be measured in entire worlds, demanding the offering of all creatures across an entire universe—all life extinguished, the cosmic star sea stained with blood, utterly annihilated.

"What the hell is this Soul River?! Where's my brother?! Brother Chu Feng, where are you? What's happened to you?!" In this chaotic moment, as evolvers of all races succumbed to terror, the reincarnation of the Great Black Ox's eyes turned crimson. He bellowed and searched through the throng, his gaze fixed on the collapsing secret realm.

However, the chaos was too overwhelming; no one noticed what he was shouting. The entire battlefield resembled an apocalyptic landscape.

"Chu Feng, if you are still alive..." At this moment, Ying Zhexian also murmured, her eyes fixed on the point where the secret realm was erupting at the forefront of the battlefield.

Boom! The Soul River pulsed with light, waves crashed upon its banks, and from beneath the endless sands, creatures began to emerge.

"At the soul's end, all is supreme. However, as the portal remains unopened, I shall preside over today's sacrifice. It has been a long time since I reveled in the bloody feast of an entire world. I sense a vibrant life force; this world is vast, prosperous, and excellent. Let the sacrifice commence."

Indeed, a creature crawled out onto the banks of the Soul River. As its decaying wings flapped, colossal grey mist ascended, threatening to envelop all heavens and myriad worlds.

It was not a humanoid creature, though its central head among three was humanoid in form.

However, the grey mist was so dense that people could not discern the details of its true form.

As it appeared, the Primordial Qi surged, and that fragment seemed to activate a latent property, diving down from the tumultuous chaos. Yet, it was merely a broken artifact—or more precisely, just a fragment, not even a true remnant. Furthermore, due to the devastating battle in ancient times, it had retained little of its artifact spirit's will.

Only a trace of lingering obsession, a mere instinct, now propelled it!

"I am the Heavenly Emperor! I shall suppress all enemies in this world!" At this moment, a thunderous cry rang out, not from the Primordial Qi itself, but from the very heart of the secret realm's grand explosion.

At this moment, the stone jar had become crystalline, almost translucent. Chu Feng could see everything outside: the world was a horrific spectacle, blood flowed like rivers, and the earth was stained crimson.

He recalled the scenes shown to him by the Big Black Dog and Number Nine, the astonishing visions revealed in Yu Shang's imprint, and the majestic form of the complete Primordial Qi spanning the heavens. Overwhelmed, he couldn't help but let out that roar.

In that instant, his voice, amplified by the stone jar, spread outwards in unique ripples, carrying an extraordinary distance.

At this moment, the fragment enshrouded in Primordial Qi actually rumbled, erupting with blinding radiance. It began to resonate, as if fully activated. The light of its past glory, when it had vanquished all foes in the world, suddenly resurfaced.

The Primordial Qi resonated, and subsequently, its runes, its aura, the prayers of all beings, and endless sacrificial chants echoed continuously through mountains, rivers, and all creation. "I am the Heavenly Emperor! I shall suppress all enemies in this world!"

At this moment, a faint voice emanated from the fragment, truly shaking the three battlefields. It brought all things in the world to a standstill, causing the waves in the Soul River to subside, still and undisturbed.

Simultaneously, the fragment, enveloped by Primordial Qi, streaked across the sky like a comet, illuminating the entire land of the Yang Realm.

With a whoosh, it plunged completely into that special passage, crashing into the energy reincarnation path composed of ripples, directly suppressing it by the banks of the Soul River.

"Who?!" The terrifying creature presiding over the sacrifice, who intended to offer the lives of an entire great world, was utterly horrified at that moment. It found itself unable to resist, its body bleeding and covered in cracks, overwhelmed by an immense pressure.

"It's you again! You've returned to kill once more?!" Having just revived, it seemed not to have fully grasped the situation. As the cry, "I am the Heavenly Emperor! I shall suppress all enemies in this world!" rang out, the fragment descended, striking the creature that had awakened from beneath the sand.

In an instant, its decaying wings exploded, its spine shattered, and its body then rent into four pieces. Blood splattered three thousand *zhang* high as it shrieked and collapsed.

Then, its soul light erupted; even on the banks of the Soul River, it could not merge with the river. Its entire being disintegrated, utterly destroyed in both form and spirit.

However, as the Primordial Qi flowed and reappeared in this place, the far end of the Soul River also began to change, as if a pair of ancient portals were slowly turning, on the verge of being pushed open!