The Ancient Saint Emperor of the Heaven-shading

Chapter 175 The Ninth Imperial Pass (Free Chapter)

The third tribulation star rises amidst turmoil, and the Imperial Pass Crystal Stele is re-ranked.

After the Holy Spirit Emperor was killed by Wang Hongwu and the artifact spirit took over, subtle changes occurred on the crystal tablet. It seemed to think that the Holy Spirit Emperor had not perished, and it still retained its name, only its luster dimmed.

"The Holy Spirit was defeated, but not dead?"

"You've got some skill. You're probably the first one to fight a Saintly Venerable to the death and survive, right? No wonder you're a being with the power of Immortal Metal."

"Upon careful consideration, even if it suffers a defeat and is unable to attain enlightenment, achieving the Great Perfection should not be difficult. At that time, it will be an existence that can stand alongside the Great Perfection Golden Body and the Overlord Blood."

Outside the True Path, a group of important figures discussed the matter, all feeling amazed by it and deeply impressed by the Holy Venerable's rapid progress and terrifying methods. Now, even the Immortal Golden Saint Spirit could not stop his progress.

When the news was relayed back to Beidou through the eyes and ears of the Heavenly God Mountain Range, the two Great Accomplished Holy Spirit Ancestors fell silent for a moment.

Earlier, they thought this time it would be a sure thing, and they could sweep away the only true path, but now it seems that they underestimated the horror of this world.

"It's alright. As long as it doesn't perish, anything is still possible. Its path to mastery is solid, and it will surely be achieved if it continues step by step."

"In the future, this Heavenly God Mountain Range will be handed over to it. We are old and it will be difficult for us to do anything more for it. When it returns, we will send it to the Divine Ruins to communicate with other fellow Daoists."

Gradually, the Heavenly God Mountain Range fell silent, with only wisps of wind echoing, like the unwilling roar of the Holy Spirit Lord, whose sacrifice of the rest of his life had come to naught, trampled underfoot.

Within the Third Tribulation Star, the final five nominees of the Crystal Tablet dispersed and each descended into the divine realm constructed by the power of will.

Wang Hongwu arrived at a stone mountain. The entire mountain was shrouded in mist and darkness, and there were ghostly figures and all kinds of creatures there.

In the darkness and gloom, they growled and howled, and some powerful creatures with extreme yin energy sat cross-legged, chanting scriptures and cultivating themselves, drawing on the power of incense and prayers.

"Those are all battle spirits, the trial participants who died in battle in the past," the Emperor explained. This was the work of the Boundless Heavenly Venerable, who used the remnant souls to generate incense and vow power, and then used the vow power to nourish the remnant souls, giving birth to so many battle spirits before us, densely packed together.

From the mythological era to the present, the beings who embarked on the one true path and died in battle in this region, their obsessions lingering, absorbed the power of incense offerings and vows, and transformed into these beings. They are all in the realm of Great Sages and possess the scriptures and power from their previous lives. Although they are not as powerful as they were in their previous lives, they are still beings that cannot be ignored.

"So, the entire planet is filled with these things? What is the test? Kill these war spirits to strengthen your primordial spirit, and then obtain their remains from their previous lives?" Prince of Light was surprised; that test was indeed quite brutal and direct.

Wang Hongwu did not speak, but looked at the other side of the stone mountain, where a piece of yellow paper was pasted, with an ancient character engraved on it: Seal!
It was just an old piece of paper, weathered and decayed by wind and rain, yet it still possessed such great power, preventing the countless battle spirits inside from acting rashly. He sensed a familiar aura on it, left behind by the Boundless Heavenly Venerable.

The hill was shrouded in darkness and black mist, making it impossible to discern what was about to happen. But on the other side, the Boundless Taoist arrived. With a smile on his face, he peeled off the old, yellowed talisman. With a loud bang, the ground trembled violently, and hundreds of thousands of battle spirits howled, shaking the heavens and the earth.

Visible to the naked eye, hills crumbled, soil and rocks flew everywhere, the entire land was sinking and collapsing, millions of war spirits were born, all of them were orbs of light, some transformed into human form, some into giant beasts and divine birds, all kinds of races.

The trial participants who died in battle back then were all buried here, along with other great saints from different eras who came to witness and seek opportunities. It can be said that it brings together all kinds of bloodlines, both those that have been heard of and those that have never been seen.

The appearance of so many great sages at once was truly earth-shattering.

"Hunt, plunder bodies to revive, and embark once more on the path of truth to dominate!" With a wave of his hand, the scene erupted in chaos. Ten thousand souls emerged and rushed toward the other four trial participants, seeking to possess their bodies and reclaim the path of truth.

The Empress frowned. She hadn't expected to find herself on the enemy's home turf with such overwhelming support. This was a real problem.

In the distance, Zhang Bairen and Ye Chunfeng were also harassed by the battle spirits and were caught in a fierce battle where they were surrounded and beaten. Wuliang Daoren also rushed over to eliminate his competitor.

Wang Hongwu's side was naturally the focus of attention. Two terrifying battle spirits rushed in. One was purple-gold in color, without flesh and blood, but only a soul, and was the son of a former Heavenly Venerable. The other humanoid creature was covered in red fur, with black nails, snow-white fangs, and terrifying red eyes. It surrounded and attacked together with the Heavenly Venerable's son.

Wang Hongwu did not make a move. Instead, Shen Chen and Prince Guangming rushed out from behind him, blocking the two and fighting them in the high heavens. He himself carried the golden evil sword and walked forward. Suddenly, many figures appeared around him, all shrouded in gray mist, devouring his holy power and rushing towards him.

These war spirits are bizarre and varied. Some are simply fused together from many remnant souls. There are monkeys with three heads and six arms; there are strange creatures with human bodies but two huge shells growing on their sides like wings; and there are human bodies with the heads of vengeful ghosts, their fangs spewing eerie ghost fire, making them extremely ferocious.

With a single punch, he pierced through the chest of a battle spirit. With his other hand, he spread his fingers and shattered the heads of a row of battle spirits. His killing spree was as fierce as a storm passing through the area, and no one could stop him. With each step, hundreds of battle spirits perished. He quickly cleared a path and headed straight for Wuliang Daoren.

Upon seeing this, several terrifying creatures appeared in the arena to block his path, their eyes emitting an eerie light and spreading gray mist, attempting to stop Wang Hongwu's progress.

In the distance, the Empress and her companions encountered trouble, trapped in the tide of battle spirits. There, the wind howled fiercely, and their battle caused the heavens and earth to lose their color. The Boundless Daoist was still relentlessly attacking Zhang Bairen, determined to eliminate one of his competitors first.

During this time, he also glanced back at Wang Hongwu's direction. The ones blocking him were all extremely terrifying battle spirits. At the peak of the Great Sage Domain, there were nine-headed divine birds, humanoid scorpions, Bifang, and others. They all approached with chilling auras. Without saying a word, Wang Hongwu directly swung his sword and killed the Bifang on the spot, leaving not even a trace.

Then he made a series of attacks, smashing nine heads in succession and killing the nine-headed divine bird. After killing these two particularly powerful battle spirits, he felt a cool breeze and a stream of vital energy that nourished his primordial spirit.

"Since it's useful, then none of you should live." Wang Hongwu raised a hand, grabbed the attacking amethyst scorpion tail, and tore it off. Then, he kicked the humanoid scorpion in mid-air. The battle spirit staggered backward, its chest cracked, and then its whole body exploded.

After slaying three war spirits in succession, he felt his primordial spirit growing stronger and stronger. He immediately revealed a cruel smile, raised the golden evil sword that was aimed at willpower and soul, and charged forward. In a short while, he swept away a corner of the war spirits in the sky and on the ground, tens of thousands of them turned to ashes and then turned into light points and merged into his body.

The army of war spirits was terrified and fled in panic. Their remaining consciousness turned into a thirst for survival, and they dared not approach. However, they could not escape the clutches of the swordsmen behind them and were wiped out in large numbers.

The sight of one person chasing and slaying a million battle spirits was astonishing. Even Wuliang Daodu's face twitched, and he gritted his teeth, saying, "We shouldn't have left that thing behind in the first place!"

It's really like shooting yourself in the foot.

After slaying hundreds of thousands of battle spirits, Wang Hongwu felt a sense of satisfaction. His primordial spirit was greatly nourished, and his old techniques also made breakthroughs. Zhang Bairen had previously demonstrated and shown them to him, so he knew it well. Now that resources were plentiful, it was only natural that he began to break through to the next realm.

The old method of escaping to the One is also known as the Great Cultivator.

This realm is quite special. Its significance lies not so much in the sublimation of combat power, but more importantly in the completely different understanding and application of the Dao principles. From this perspective, one can see that nothing is predetermined, and there is always a glimmer of hope. The "one that escapes" embodies this meaning.

From the perspective of Tao and Law, the Great Derivation Number is fifty, and its use is forty-nine. That is to say, all things are originally in balance, but only forty-nine are truly in effect. This is how all things grow and change. The remaining one is the power that drives the balance and development of all things. The One of Escape is to allow cultivators to cultivate this One, obtain the power of the growth of all things, and transform themselves into the master of the Great Universe.

On the other hand, the balance of the origin of heaven and earth was broken by the "one that has escaped," giving rise to endless changes. Great cultivators in the Escape One Realm need to comprehend the essence of this law. They are both the maintainers of the order of heaven and earth and the embodiment of variables. With the power of hundreds of thousands of battle spirits, Wang Hongwu transcended and completed the breakthrough of his realm, ascending to the Escape One Realm. He immediately felt that the world before him was different. The various energies were arranged in distinct layers, and the order and laws were also inlaid and blended together in a regular way. He could perceive the foundation of it. He transformed into the one that had escaped and easily leveraged the remaining power of the Four Nine Heavens. Every move he made was accompanied by the great power of heaven and earth, making it even more terrifying.

In an instant, nine stars aligned in the sky. Wang Hongwu grabbed nine stars, their flames blazing, and inscribed them with the secret characters of the Formation Formation Formation to form array patterns, suppressing the area and pressing down on the four trial participants who were fighting.

Rumble!
Everyone else moved as well. In an instant, countless enormous celestial structures appeared in all directions, pushed over by four massive figures. They all manifested their Dharma forms, reaching the height of heaven and earth, towering into the depths of the cosmos. They all formed hand seals to propel the celestial structures forward, sweeping across hundreds of thousands of light-years, to clash here.

In an instant, the scene became terrifying. Vast stretches of starry sky rumbled in, all of which were engraved with magic array patterns, forming a grand array of celestial stars that enveloped the area.

Amidst the starry sea, Wang Hongwu made a domineering move, his palm striking down with purplish-red flames. A roc circled around him, and a Kun fish swam around, forming a Dao diagram. This diagram collided repeatedly with the fist of the Boundless Daoist, which was enveloped in chaotic energy. Then, it joined forces with Ye Chunfeng's sword embryo and the Heavenly Empress's Heavenly Blade, causing all the surrounding stars to shatter into dust under this intense fluctuation, burning and turning into blazing light.

*Pfft!* Later, he directly swung the golden evil sword, leaving bloody marks on the Boundless Daoist, forcing him to retreat continuously. His willpower was shattered into pieces, and the original battle became more intense after his intervention.

In the end, the third tribulation star was completely destroyed by them, and the passage reappeared, leading straight into the fourth imperial pass. However, without stopping, they continued to charge forward and fought their way into the fourth tribulation star.

This is the battlefield left behind by the Heavenly Venerable of the Fighting Character Secret. Originally, it was based on the Fighting Character Secret, which manifested the 'battle body' corresponding to each person. However, the four people fought so fiercely that they tore all these battle bodies apart. They even achieved a breakthrough during the battle, with thunderous tribulations and four seas of lightning intertwining together.

Unexpectedly, they fought a fierce battle directly in the sea of ​​tribulation, each attracting the tribulation lightning that broke through them, surging upwards and shattering the entire battlefield. In the end, it even triggered the riotous movement of the Dao traces left by the Heavenly Venerable of Fighting, which manifested their fighting spirit to conquer them.

"Are these people crazy? Fighting fiercely in the lightning tribulation, their heavenly tribulations have all mixed together, even activating the Dao traces of the ancient Heavenly Venerable!" The surrounding Great Saints kept retreating, not daring to participate, much less daring to provoke them.

Then, something even more terrifying happened: the Dao traces of the Douzi Celestial Venerable were dismembered by their combined efforts! They were directly destroyed on the spot.

This left all the Great Sages speechless; it was too brutal.

Soon, the battle results wheel turned to the outside world, the crystal tablet lit up, Zhang Bairen's name dimmed, while Wuliang Daoren rose and shone, having also defeated an opponent.

In the end, the tribulation lightning was dispersed by their combined efforts, and they all broke through. They then broke through the Imperial Pass and directly reached the Fifth Tribulation Star. This place was a test left by the Heavenly Venerable of the Military Arts. Here, they needed to forge their weapons, sublimate their artifacts, and achieve godhood through a hundred battles. This was also a great fortune.

Wang Hongwu left his weapon in front, transforming it into a Holy Spirit Emperor through the weapon's spirit. Thus, he fought bare-handed, yet he still made everyone's Dao hearts tremble. His physical strength was in no way inferior to that of a Celestial Gold Spirit, shattering a host of legendary sacred artifacts. He even caused the mountain of weapons piled up by many previous trial participants to collapse. He even broke the Heavenly Blade with his bare hands, tore apart the Boundless Daoist's whisk, and then shattered Ye Chunfeng's sword embryo with a single punch. It was truly terrifying.

In this challenge, everyone was rendered speechless by his attacks. Their weapons were all half-destroyed, and the weapon spirits were rendered dazed and confused by his domineering fists, turning into idiots. They had no choice but to temporarily stop and search for materials on this planet to reforge and nurture them.

The Sixth Tribulation Star is a test ground left by the Celestial Venerable of the Xingzi Secret. Bloodlines that are good at speed throughout history can be seen here, and various divine birds rise up. However, the greatest danger of this test is the scattered fragments of time and the flowing light of time that cuts off people's lifespan. All of these are products of the Xingzi Secret, and they are terrifying.

Several of the great sages who followed them here perished, all due to the unfortunate contact with the contaminated objects, and subsequently died of old age.

In contrast, Wang Hongwu and others captured some fragments and streams of light, either integrating them into weapons or incorporating them into supernatural powers. He himself used this to develop a unique offensive technique called the "Xingzi Secret".

The Seventh Tribulation Star, left behind by the Heavenly Venerable of the Combination of Characters, was filled with various earth-shattering killing formations, leaving the four of them in a very sorry state. They even accidentally touched a Quasi-Emperor Killing Formation after drawing blood, and were trapped inside for ten years. It wasn't until Wang Hongwu comprehended the essence of the Combination of Characters and gathered the power of everyone's ultimate divine weapons that they finally found a way out.

The Eighth Tribulation Star, left behind by the Celestial Venerable of Numbers, features a colossal Three Lives Stone that seems to connect past and future lives. Upon entering, everyone is plunged into an illusion of three lives and three worlds. Wang Hongwu, who has experienced the Tribulation of Severing the Dao and All Worlds, is the first to awaken. He then discovers that the Boundless Daoist has also been revived. The two are reflected here, revealing their past selves and their Dao selves, and a great battle erupts.

When the trial participants awoke, everyone was in the same situation, and they had to fight their two other incarnations alone. The scene was extremely chaotic for a time. Not only did they have to deal with their own two bodies, but they also had to fight against the attacks of other trial participants. Here, the Heavenly Empress was caught off guard and was blasted back. Only Wang Hongwu was left to fight against Wuliang Daoren and Ye Chunfeng, breaking through the final passage and ascending to the Ninth Imperial Pass. The place left by the Emperor was the real battlefield.

Boom! The Ninth Imperial Pass trembled, revealing a celestial cave amidst the ancient mountains, which the three of them forcefully pierced through.

They fought fiercely all the way, breaking through their limits as they went. Fifty years had passed since the Third Tribulation Star, and Wang Hongwu had already reached the seventh level of the Great Sage Realm, his strength advancing by leaps and bounds.

Their arrival here signifies that the only true path has been reached, and the final hurdle has been overcome. From this point on, the mysterious true path will be fully revealed to the people, and extraordinary phenomena will arise, with endless divine light illuminating the universe.

"In this era, is there anyone who can ascend to the Ninth Heaven and defy the heavens to prove their Dao?"

The words "attaining enlightenment" were breathtaking and stirred the emotions of all the powerful individuals, prompting them to speculate.

Finally, the saints arrived at the Ninth Imperial Pass, where they were about to witness the unfolding of the final battle and establish the sole supreme ruler in this era's struggle for the true path.

Some say that the place not only records the Dao of the Emperor, but also the enlightenment diagrams of other ancient emperors and even celestial beings, making it a place close to immortality.

This naturally caused a huge uproar. Countless powerful clans and numerous powerful figures couldn't sit still and all set off for that place, hoping to reap great rewards.

But when they arrived, they were shocked to find that the cave had been breached, revealing the large battlefield behind it.

There, surrounded by statues of gods, all of whom were victors on this road.

"My God, are those the Nine Celestial Venerables from the mythical era? They seem to be alive!"

"On that mountain is a statue of the Sun Emperor, and on the other mountain is a statue of the Moon Emperor!"

"There is also a golden monkey, which seems to be the Victorious Fighting Emperor, on another great mountain."

People were astonished to see the statues of the mythical Celestial Venerable and the ancient emperors appearing faintly, accompanied by a mysterious fluctuation—the remnants of the Dao principles.

Boom! At that moment, violent fluctuations suddenly emanated from among the statues of gods. Three figures were fiercely fighting, and they had actually emerged from the Chaos Immortal Land. It was so sudden that it shocked everyone.

"What? They broke out from inside? When did they go in? Have they been fighting for years?"

"I understand. This is the final battle, a decisive one!"

"The Holy Venerable One? It really is him! Fighting two opponents alone, his demeanor is unparalleled!"

People looked on in awe, where lightning flashed and thunder roared, sometimes sword light broke the dawn, sometimes divine towers suppressed, and sometimes chaotic energy boiled, as if a true battle was about to be decided.

(End of this chapter)