Covering the Sky: The Years I Was the Empress's Strictest Master

In the eyes of the heroes,

The holy artifact activated by Guangyuan was as fragile as paper before that pitch-black divine banner, instantly crumbling inch by inch and finally dissipating into a rain of light.

"puff!!"

In an instant, Guangyuan's body trembled violently as if struck by lightning, and he coughed up a mouthful of blood. Cracks instantly appeared on his body, which was shrouded in holy light and mist.

The mist dissipated, revealing his square face.

His breath was rapidly fading, and his eyes were filled with boundless fear and disbelief.

The jet-black divine banner, after thwarting all attempts to attack Suiren Lianlei, continued its relentless advance.

Carrying earth-shattering power, it crashed down on the ground in front of Suiren Lianlei!

Boom!!!

Despite the scattered fragments of the field suppressing it, the nearby earth still shook violently for a long time, as if an earth dragon had turned over, and a bottomless giant crater exploded.

hum...

But that wasn't the end of it; the Emperor's Banner fell to the ground...

Centered on its landing point, a terrifying shockwave, mixed with the imperial might inherent in the Emperor's Banner, erupted with a powerful force that drew in the primordial spirit, spreading out suddenly in a ring!

"Ah!! What... what is this suction force?!"

"Do not!!!"

"Retreat immediately!!"

The pursuers included the two high-level Great Saints, as well as some nearby observing cultivators.

Before they could even scream, the souls within the Sendai were pulled out and absorbed into the Emperor's Banner by the terrifying shockwave.

Their bodies, their blood still warm, but devoid of soul and consciousness, fell to the ground one by one.

Splash...

Those cultivators who were a little further away were also blown away like straws before they could escape. They coughed up blood and barely survived. Then, in a state of extreme fear, they retreated frantically.

Just one strike,

Or rather, it was merely the aura emanating from the Emperor's Banner falling on its own that instantly killed dozens of treacherous cultivators who were scattered around, including many Great Saints!

It completely cleared out a large area around Suiren Lianlei!

Without exception, their primordial spirits entered the Emperor's Banner. As for whether they lived or died, or what they faced, no one knew.

However, Guangyuan, who was initially severely injured, was protected by the revived quasi-emperor artifact at a critical moment and managed to escape to the distant sky on the verge of death, whereabouts of whom are temporarily unknown.

The smoke and dust slowly dissipated.

Suiren Lianlei stood there, stunned.

Her beautiful eyes were fixed on the jet-black divine banner that was deeply embedded in the ground in front of her, its flag fluttering in the wind, exuding a familiar yet strange aura that made her heart tremble. She was so shocked that she couldn't help but be lost in thought for a moment.

…………

Chapter 200 You...you are His Majesty the Human Emperor?! (6K-word chapter, please subscribe!)

Outside the forbidden land of gods and demons, an ancient and supreme battle banner shot down from the distant sky, silencing all sound and leaving all heroes speechless.

In the distance, all the surviving cultivators, whether they had participated in the chase or were merely observing from afar,

They all stared in disbelief at the jet-black divine banner planted in the ground.

As they gazed at the faintly visible, grotesque, wailing soul shadows on the banner, which had absorbed the primordial spirits of numerous cultivators, they felt a chill run from their feet straight to the top of their heads.

This Emperor's Banner can actually use a cultivator's primordial spirit as "nourishment" to power its divine energy?!

This is unheard of!

Splash...

A series of domain winds swept across the forbidden land of gods and demons.

At this moment, within a radius of ten thousand miles where the Human Emperor Banner is located, only Suiren Lianlei is still standing.

She stared at the precious weapon bestowed upon her by the Emperor, now "lost and returned," and for a moment, an expression of disbelief and blankness appeared in her eyes.

Immediately, unparalleled excitement and ecstasy erupted like a volcano!

This object, which she once regarded as a symbol of faith recognized by His Majesty the Emperor, had accompanied her as a sacred treasure for decades. However, it flew away one day, catching her completely off guard, and she suffered more than ten years of baptism by blood and fire.

But just when she was at her most desperate and powerless, the Emperor's Banner returned in such an unexpected way!

“I know… 'you' have never abandoned me…”

Her voice trembled, and she reached out her slender, jade-like hand, wanting to gently caress the flag fluttering in the wind.

But right now, she couldn't help but fear that this precious treasure would once again fly away abruptly, just like it had more than ten years ago.

However, perhaps it is the trials and tribulations of these past few days that have led to this improvement.

At that moment, her thoughts were racing, and in a flash, she suddenly understood. Her fingers then calmly touched the flag and gently stroked it.

Having survived this ordeal, and enduring over a decade of baptism by blood and fire, it was undoubtedly worthwhile.

This was a major transformation in her life.

Perhaps the struggle to move forward without anything to rely on is what makes the experience truly unforgettable.

She had to admit that whether or not there was a human emperor's banner, her mindset in dealing with various obstacles would be different.

rustling... rustling...

With a gentle touch of her fingers, Suiren Lianlei took a deep breath and consumed a elixir crafted by the Medicine King, quickly recovering her condition.

Just then, the Emperor's Banner trembled slightly.

hum...

She immediately noticed this unusual sign; it was a fluctuation of thought from one of the gods, as if it were telling her something.

Seeing this, Suiren Lianlei abandoned her plan to immediately adjust her breathing. She channeled a wisp of her divine sense into the banner to listen to the sacred object's instructions.

hum...

In truth, this was the first time she had "communicated" with the deity within the Emperor's Banner.

Previously, she was the one who took the initiative to contact them, while the deities inside were either "silent" or never really paid any attention to her.

But this time the situation is clearly different.

What surprised her even more was that such a powerful deity possessed a hazy and unclear consciousness, as if it were newly born, as innocent and naive as a child!

It turns out that her previous connection with it wasn't because the latter ignored her.

Rather, the deities within it underwent a change approximately one hundred years ago, around the time of the Human Emperor's return.

The original deity of the Human Emperor Banner is no longer there. The current deity is a new consciousness condensed from the heroic spirits of human soldiers and generals who were collected in ancient times. During the time she holds it, it is in the gestation stage.

'Seriously... such a thing happened? It was His Majesty the Emperor's doing...'

As her thoughts drifted, Suiren Lianlei inexplicably recalled what she had seen and heard in the Beidou Human Emperor's Palace years ago.

"Was it 'that person' who sent you back?"

Since she was not the master of the Human Emperor Banner, she could not communicate with him without any obstacles. After a long time, she finally managed to understand the meaning that the Human Emperor Banner deity wanted to convey.

At this, the image of that young man from many years ago came to mind.

At this moment, her doubts and surprise deepened.

She was now almost certain that the change in the deities within the Human Emperor Banner, enabling them to communicate with humans autonomously, had occurred during the more than ten years since she left.

So the question is, why did this sacred object undergo such a tremendous transformation and sublimation in that person's hands?

"Come."

Suddenly, just as she was lost in thought, a faint, clear voice suddenly rang out within the Emperor's Banner, indirectly causing the wisp of divine consciousness that she was immersed in to sense a trace of it.

'Who...who is speaking?!'

Upon hearing the sound, Suiren Lianlei suddenly looked up, only to find that there was still no one around.

The entire desolate Gobi Desert was eerily silent.

And in the very next breath.

wow...

She saw that the Human Emperor Banner had completely digested the many primordial spirits it had just absorbed, and it emitted ripples of black and gold color.

Whoosh!

Immediately afterwards, the divine energy emanating from the Emperor's Banner swept her up and, under the watchful eyes of the heroes in the distance with varying expressions, flew rapidly into the depths of the Forbidden Land of Gods and Demons!

……

Deep within the forbidden area, the scenery is completely different from that on the outside.

Instead of the desolation of the Gobi Desert, this place is a bizarre and fantastical land.

The sky was a dark, leaden gray, like a frozen twilight, and the earth was covered with twisted, grotesque rocks of monstrous shapes.

Some resembled struggling gods and demons, while others were like twisted, vengeful spirits.

An indescribable atmosphere permeated the air; it was neither pure death nor vitality, but rather something frozen in time, or perhaps the lingering "intention" and "thought" after a brutal conflict.

To the southwest of this place lies an inconspicuous pool.

The pool was deep and dark, and to the naked eye, it looked no different from ordinary mountain springs or lakes.

The water is crystal clear, and you can even see the smooth jade stones with strange patterns on the bottom of the pool.

however,

If a cultivator were to probe this pool of water with their divine sense, they would surely be "congratulated" on their impending farewell to this world.

Because this pool is called the Pool of Divine Souls, once a divine sense probes the surface of the body, without the barrier of the physical shell,

Beneath that seemingly calm surface, an irresistible and terrifying suction force targeting the primordial spirit would erupt.

It will forcibly, drag, or peel away the explorer's soul and integrate it into the pool, eventually turning it into part of the water.

The pool water wasn't the color it appeared on the surface; it was a mixture of gold, silver, and transparent colors—the so-called "golden soul and silver spirit." The transparent part was the divine liquid refined within.

Not only that, the water in this pool is far from being as shallow and bottomless as it appears; it seems to connect to an endless abyss, the bottom of which is unfathomable.

Throughout history, few have been able to escape unscathed when caught off guard.

And at this moment,

The Soul Pool, infamous among local indigenous legends and feared by countless cultivators of ancient lineages, is a place of dread.

But there stood two figures, a man and a woman, who seemed to be a perfect match.

Tan Lin, dressed in a Buddhist robe, stood by the pool with his hands behind his back. His eyes were deep and unfathomable, reflecting the strange gold, silver, and transparent luster in the water that was invisible to ordinary people and changed from time to time.

As he gazed, his aura became restrained, and he seemed to blend into his surroundings.

Yet it subtly transcends it, like a statue that has contemplated and comprehended the ages.

Beside him, Gu Qingying stood quietly, her shimmering eyes also fixed on the pool.

Her eyes were incredibly complex, filled with expectation, bewilderment, and a deep-seated weariness and yearning for liberation that had been hidden for hundreds of thousands of years.

This journey is about whether the "hidden danger" that has plagued her and Princess Shencan for hundreds of thousands of years can be resolved.

"Nearly a million years later, the environment here seems to have changed again..."

After a long silence, Tianling spoke softly, her voice carrying a hint of barely perceptible melancholy and reminiscence:

"Given the unique nature of this place and this water, back then, she and I truly never imagined that someone would actually collect the water from this Divine Soul Pool and take it away from here, setting up a series of traps to use against us..."

Upon hearing this, Tan Lin sighed, without turning around, but slowly diverting the other person's thoughts:

"The essence of the pool water is the residue left behind after the Undying Emperor's primordial spirit underwent a rebirth. It has an extremely strong effect on eroding, assimilating, and refining the soul."

It is a miracle that you were able to devise a way to resist this kind of substance and maintain your consciousness from dissipating using special methods.

His words were calm, yet they stirred a few more waves in Tianling's heart, causing her a strange pang of sorrow.

Yes, a miracle...