Chapter 1109 Becoming an Emperor
"Don't worry, this seed will grow within your dantian world, but you will not have to feed the tree with your own body, nor will it absorb your nutrients. Instead, this seed will bring you benefits beyond your wildest imagination," the namelessQuasi-emperor explained because he understood Ye Qingyu's concern.
Ye Qingyu breathed a sigh of relief.
"The World Tree has turned into a seed and the Underworld plane will soon drift into the void of Chaos. After the seed sprouts and becomes a towering tree again, you will receive the coordinates to this space. Thereafter, you will be able to come and go as you please, so please protect this seed," the nameless Quasi-emperor could not help reminding him again.
Ye Qingyu nodded and said, "Senior, I will."
The nameless Quasi-emperor let out a long sigh, as though he had been relieved of a heavy burden. There were still many things that he left unsaid, so Ye Qingyu had no idea exactly how important he was… After thousands of years of planning, the final outcome rested on him.
"I will soon enter a period of dead sleep. You don't have to rush off because there will still be large amounts of energy left even after the World Tree has withered, so you may take your time to absorb this energy. These Quasi-emperors' bodies underground in a dead-sleep state also contain supreme Emperor's Dao, so you may stay here to comprehend their Dao and leave only after they have taken root in your dantian world. One month in this place is the equivalent of one day in the outside world," the Quasi-emperor advised him.
Ye Qingyu bowed and said, "Many thanks, Senior."
He paused for a moment before he asked, "Is there anything that you'd like me to do?"
The nameless Quasi-emperor smiled and replied, "I have already cut off my ties with the world before entering this place and I haven't got any descendants but…" he paused and his expression turned sorrowful before he said, "Since you brought it up, I'd like to make two requests. If you happen to meet a woman with an [All Energy-Absorption Body], please take good care of her. I used to know her mother but there was some misunderstanding…"
"Sure," Ye Qingyu nodded, "Please rest assured. What about your second request?"
He was not sure what an [All Energy-Absorption Body] was, but it would not be too difficult to find out more about it once he left this place. This sounded like a rare type of body, and from the way this Quasi-emperor spoke, could this woman be his daughter? Or his illegitimate daughter? In any case, he would not ask such a nosy question.
The nameless Quasi-emperor also knew that Ye Qingyu would come to this conclusion, but he did not attempt to make any further explanations. "As for the second request, when you meet the [Divine Light Emperor], please tell him that I have not disappointed him, and if there is an afterlife, I would still be willing to be his servant."
As his voice died away—
Layers of divine splendor burst out from the nameless Quasi-emperor's body that had almost completely fossilized him. Then, the vibrant colors on his face disappeared and his radiance left him as he turned into a stone statue that was as large as a mountain range. His vitality vanished and all that was left were the faint traces of energy waves in the area.
"Senior?" Ye Qingyu shouted.
The nameless Quasi-emperor did not respond.
He had already entered the so-called dead-sleep state.
Ye Qingyu did not know what kind of state that was and he was unsure if the nameless Quasi-emperor or the three Martial Emperors before him would ever reawaken, but he understood that he would no longer get a response.
He was a little surprised by the nameless Quasi-emperor's final words.
The [Divine Light Emperor]?
He did not recall this name being part of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, but the nameless Quasi-emperor seemed to treat him with extreme reverence, which meant that this [Divine Light Emperor] was definitely very powerful and was probably at least a Martial Emperor. He was even more surprised to find out that the nameless Quasi-emperor was merely a servant under the [Divine Light Emperor].
If he was so powerful that he could become a Quasi-emperor, then exactly how powerful was his master?
The question that required further contemplation was whether the "light" in the [Divine Light Emperor's] name was the same "light" that he had obtained from the Light Palace.
Darkness and light mutually reinforced and neutralized each other.
If an Emperor chose the words "light" to be part of his honorific title, did that mean that he could be more powerful than the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors?
He stood in front of the nameless Quasi-emperor's fossilized figure and quietly mulled over this issue, but gave up after some time.
Then, he sat cross-legged and exerted his nameless breathing technique.
The World Tree had withered and turned into a seed, so all its core strength was concentrated inside that seed, but there were still remnants of this energy in the outside world. This energy was pure and clear and did not belong to any elemental property. It was the most primitive form of energy and would be extremely beneficial to him.
Ye Qingyu quickly discovered that as he exerted his nameless breathing technique, all its remnant energy proactively swarmed toward him like a homing pigeon returning to its nest, then rushed to assimilate into his body.
He could not help wondering, "Is this happening because of the nameless breathing technique, or could it be because the seed of the World Tree is now within my body?"
This energy flooded into his body like a fresh mountain spring and nourished his physical self. It cleansed and scoured his body multiple times and also integrated itself with his yuan qi and continuously increased the purity and strength of his yuan qi.
The power of the World Tree was indeed extremely magical.
He could clearly feel his yuan qi cultivation skyrocketing wildly as he became stronger and large waves formed in his yuan qi ocean.
His [Yuan Qi True-Self Doppelganger] in the middle of the ocean was now exactly the same size as he was and it looked extremely realistic. His doppelganger also sat cross-legged and looked like it was also cultivating and awakening its true self.
Time ticked by.
He did not care about time as he completely immersed himself in his self-isolation.
A year later—
The sounds of roaring waves that were as loud as dragon growls could be heard from within his body, and the hundred Spirit Springs had transformed into the eye of the ocean. His yuan qi mist circulated and transformed into a mystical vision as it swirled around Ye Qingyu, as though a hundred planets had lined up in a row and slowly revolved around him. It was like an evolution of the Heavenly Dao and an evolution of the mysteries of the universe.
Then, another year passed.
His body became crystalline and translucent like a flawless precious jade, solemn and dignified and devoid of dirt. This was a sign that his body was turning into a god and his physical strength had now almost reached the maximum limits that any living creature could achieve. It was almost comparable to the strength of a primeval fiendgod.
Waves of energy could be seen flowing along his yuan qi veins and meridians from his dantian world before circulating to the various other parts of his body. These waves were like crashing waves that constantly cleansed his body and moved to a mystical rhythm.
Two years passed in this manner.
He suddenly opened his eyes one day and let out a long howl.
This howl startled the entire Underworld.
The wandering white skeletons, the drifting spirits without a body, and the eight great Heaven's prideling souls that roamed the Underworld all heard this howl and trembled uncontrollably.
Ye Qingyu's figure transformed into a ray of flowing light that circulated around the Underworld.
As the flowing light ripped through the air, it let out a soft whistle.
He finished roaming the entire Underworld in less than thirty minutes and took in everything within. His figure moved like a divine dragon in the sky as it moved gracefully through the air and his aura was extremely mysterious, as though it had already transcended the heavens.
"Quasi-emperor realm… Is this the Quasi-emperor realm?" he said as he landed in the exact location where the World Tree had withered. He carefully sensed the mysterious change that his body had undergone and basked in the magical feeling of this energy circulating in his mind. It was as though the vastness of the universe could now be felt within his mind and everything in this universe was within his control.
He had advanced to the Quasi-emperor realm.
After absorbing the remnant energy left behind by the World Tree after it had withered and meditating day and night on the three Martial Emperors' and nameless Quasi-emperor's fossilized bodies in their dead-sleep state, he finally achieved a breakthrough after two years to become a full-fledged Quasi-emperor.
He was still not a true Martial Emperor, but his cultivation realm now contained the word "emperor", which signified an unbelievable power and cultivation stage that was many times stronger than it had been when only his strength was similar to a Quasi-emperor's.
From this day onward, he could also stand at the top and overlook all living creatures.
"I wonder if my combat strength is now comparable to the more-experienced Quasi-emperors," he mused as he carefully felt the energy changes happening within his body.
Before, when his strength was extremely close to a Quasi-emperor's, he had used a secret weapon to kill Quasi-emperors. So now that he was finally a Quasi-emperor himself, what kind of power did he possess? He knew that it was impossible to rely on his secret weapons, whether it was the [Cloud Top Cauldron] or the Geng Metal Pill, to challenge a true Martial Emperor.
He was well-aware of this fact.
"I've already spent four years here, so if one day in the outside world is equivalent to one month in this place, more than six weeks would have passed in the outside world. Spokesperson Li must have already finished settling matters at the Four Stars Sect."
It was time to leave.
He looked inward and discovered that an island had appeared in his dantian world without him noticing.
There had not been any changes to the seed of the World Tree, as though it did not exist.
As long as this seed remained in his body, it functioned like a key, just as the nameless Quasi-emperor had said earlier. And he could vaguely grasp some of the mysteries of this Underworld space. Now that he was a Quasi-emperor, his comprehension of the power of laws had improved greatly, and thus, this space could not hold him captive.
He sensed his surroundings, then lifted his hands and tore at the space.
A crack appeared in the space of the Underworld and a sliver of light flickered on the other end. Sunlight splashed down. It was the main hall of [Guanlan Mountain Manor]. He then strode through the crack.
The crack disappeared.
He returned to the real world.
It was noon and the sun shone brightly, so the main hall was well-lit. From the hall, he could see that the flowers and herbs that he had planted more than a month ago were thriving and had grown a little too wildly.
"I'm finally back. It's time to make preparations for heading to the Dark Realm," he said with a smile.
However, his expression soon changed.
"Wait, there have been some changes at the Alliance of Domains…." He released his divine sense, which then shrouded almost the entire Heaven Connect City so he could see everything that was happening, and he immediately noticed some surprising details. The Human Race headquarters at the Alliance of Domains had been invaded by somebody else.
"The power of a Quasi-emperor… Who could it be?"
He was enraged when he discovered something that made him livid.