Sage Monarch (Sage Emperor)

Yang Qi had been hit so unexpectedly that he didn’t even have time to throw Empress Joyflower into the Myriad Worlds Monarch Chart. In the blink of an eye, he was on the verge of collapsing.

This was an intensely powerful stream of sword energy that completely smashed the power of twenty-four tribulations and instantly damaged his meridians. Thankfully, he had the support of the Strength of the Hell-Crushing Godmammoth, so his energy arts immediately began to recover.

Obviously, this opponent was no one to take lightly. Yang Qi’s physical body was so strong that few people in existence could harm him. Yet this stream of sword energy had already put him in a very bad position. Who could this newcomer possibly be?

As the sword energy continued sweeping toward him, he threw Empress Joyflower out in front of him toward it. In response, the sword energy split apart into numerous strands, becoming a net that wrapped her up. Then she vanished, apparently having been teleported away to some unknown location.

After saving Empress Joyflower, the sword energy once again shot toward Yang Qi. However, at this point, he had landed on his feet and was unleashing his own energy arts. Three streams of energy swirled between his hands as he shifted back and forth between elements of the Strength of the Hell-Crushing Godmammoth, the True-Devil Unspoiled-by-Myriad-Kalpas-and-Tribulations Body, and the Seventy-Two Monarchs Energy Art.

The energy of the three arts combined, smashing into the sword energy with destructive force. Yang Qi peered forward hoping to catch a glimpse of whatever expert had released this sword energy.

However, nobody appeared. Apparently, this expert was so almighty that he could attack across multiple planes of existence without revealing himself.

Not even Yang Qi could do that.

Meanwhile, the sword energy spiraled like a writhing snake, twisting and turning around before slashing toward Yang Qi again.

RIP!

Yang Qi threw up a defensive barrier, but the sword energy bored into it like a drill, slamming into him again and sending him flying.

Ting-ting-ting. Ting-ting-ting.

As he tumbled back, the sword energy split apart into a host of smaller swords which dropped into him like rain, leaving him covered with cuts.

Yang Qi spun like a dragon, unleashing his imperial-heaven pre-beginning powers to wrestle the sword energy under control. He forced out the sword energy that had entered his meridians, then summoned sheets of burning fire around himself to prevent it from piercing him again.

WHOOSH!

A second stream of sword energy shot toward him from beyond the heavens, and before he could react, it was right there trying to burrow through the flames.

This attack was even stronger than the one before, much to Yang Qi’s shock. Launching his two fists out in front of him, he sent streams of blackish violet strands of fur out to wrap around the sword energy.

Of course, this wasn’t his power, but rather, that of the Wretch God Apostle, who could summon the boundless godpower of Wretch God Ultimate's Obsidian Flame.

Popping sounds rang out as the hair was shattered by the sword. However, that brief moment of time was all that Yang Qi needed. Without any hesitation, he shrank down until he was the size of a mote of dust, then vanished completely.

The sword energy slashed into the space he had just occupied, carving out a huge rift in the space there.

“The Myriad Worlds Monarch Chart,” a voice said from within the shimmering sword light. “Well, that chart isn’t completely impossible to deal with. If I can get the last of King Immortal-Slayer's legacy medallions, I could use it to get inside. Then he won't be able to escape from me....”

Empress Joyflower felt like she was dreaming. She had experienced a meteoric rise, only to be crushed by Yang Qi. And right when it seemed that her fate was sealed and she was about to experience psychic enslavement, a stream of sword energy had forced Yang Qi to retreat. When she opened her eyes, she found herself on an enormous mountain overlooking a vast plain, upon which living beings scurried about like ants.

Shocked, she leaped up into the air to fly away, only to find that the magical laws quickly forced her back down. She slammed onto the ground with a thump, then struggled back to her feet.

Fear flickered on her face as the magical laws suddenly reminded her of the god world. Even her energy arts were under immense pressure.

She suddenly felt completely powerless.

“What is this place?” she muttered. “Who saved me? Don’t tell me I'm in the god world? Why are the magical laws so strong? I'm a Terrifying expert!”

“This is an immortal world that ranks three thousand,” a voice answered. “It’s not the god world. The true depths of the Great Necropolis are where the highest-ranked worlds exist. You see, three thousand is truly the highest rank, so of course you’re feeling pressure. The magical laws here are so strong that you won't be able to release your energy outside of your body. You’re like someone from the mortal world who hasn't reached the Energy Eruption phase. If this was the god world, you wouldn’t even be able to move, let alone speak. Your energy would be forced out of your body, drop by drop, until you couldn't breathe, then you would die and eventually rot away into a shiny white skeleton.”

“Who’s there?” Empress Joyflower said, looking back and forth. Suddenly, she realized that up ahead was a cliff, at the edge of which sat a young man in golden clothing, performing breathing exercises. Every breath he took caused gale-force winds to roll toward him, sucking endless amounts of quintessence energy into him. His breathing even caused the land to wither and bodies of water to dry up. Obviously, he was absorbing the essence of this three thousandth ranked immortal world.

Empress Joyflower was dazzled by the mere sight of it. Here she couldn’t fly, and felt almost like a mortal woman, yet this young man was actually absorbing the essence of this place? How vastly separated must she be from him?

“Who are you?” she asked. A sudden gust of wind hit her from behind, and she dropped onto her belly to prevent herself from being knocked off her feet. Terrifying experts could pierce through countless planes of existence, yet she knew that if she fell off that cliff, she would be finished.

“I'm an enemy of Proud Heaven,” the young man said. Turning, he looked at her with blazing eyes and said, “I saved you to strike a blow at him. The two of you had an ill-fated relationship on the Ancient Road to the Gods, and even had a bastard child together, didn't you?”

“No!” Empress Joyflower shrieked. “Nothing like that ever happened!”

“Calm down,” the young man said. He waved his hand, sending a stream of golden light into her that gave her a bit of clarity. “You only just reached the Terrifying level, and you’re acting a bit too arrogantly. Right now, you’re like a baby that’s learning to walk. You have a long path ahead of you. You’re dead set on killing Proud Heaven, aren’t you? Then why not work with me? I’ll help you. You see, that bastard child you and Proud Heaven created is currently in the future world building his power base. In fact, Proud Heaven is even grooming him to take over as one of the ten magisters. And I need your help to foil their plan.”

“Young Sir, might I ask who exactly you are? And what grudge do you have with Proud Heaven?” Having cleared her head, Empress Joyflower was already starting to come up with new plots and schemes, and was starting by making herself seem weak and pitiful.

“I’m the bearer of the God Legion Seal from the Primeval Age!” The young man rose to his feet, and he was so imposing it seemed like his presence filled the entire sky. At the same time, Empress Joyflower looked around to find that the surrounding immortal world was rapidly shrinking.

Hundredth ranked immortal worlds were immensely huge, and could give birth to first-tier sects. Empress Joyflower had never laid eyes on a world with a rank of five hundred, and she had never even heard of places with a rank of a thousand.

Yet this world ranked three thousand, and the young man was actually destroying it by merely breathing?

No wonder he dared to mention that he bore the God Legion Seal.

“What about Yang Qi...?” she asked.

“I know,” the young man said. “Yang Qi is the bearer of the God Legion Seal from the Immortal Dao Age. He and Proud Heaven hate each other to their guts. For now, I'm not going to kill him. Having the God Legion Seal hidden in the Myriad Worlds Monarch Chart is much safer. And even if I did kill him, I wouldn’t be able to extract the seal. You see, the main reason I attacked him was to save you. Otherwise, he would have had a hard time escaping alive.”

“You’re invincible, Young Sir!” she said, hiding her shock at the fact that this young man was clearly on the border of being a god. “Between you and Proud Heaven, who has the higher cultivation base?”

He chuckled darkly. “We’re on the same level. Unfortunately, he led a campaign of war in the Primeval Age, even leading the other magisters in an ambush against me. Unfortunately for him, I escaped with my life. And considering how strong I am, it’s a given that nobody in this age can kill me. Strangely, though, Yang Qi actually seems to be hiding his God Legion Seal instead of treating it like a true treasure. He’s refusing to use it for his cultivation, and is actually pursuing a different path. It seems to me he wants to free himself from it. Very idealistic, but sadly, cruelly unrealistic. If he does that, the God Legion Seal could eventually just leave him of its own accord and find a new host. And then he would lose his Strength of the Hell-Crushing Godmammoth.”

“What? Can that really happen?”

“Of course. When you get a God Legion Seal, it shows that your fate is tied up with the legion of gods. Do you really think you can just get rid of fate like that? It would be like a man striking it rich, then tossing aside his old wife. How could someone with moral character like that be cared for by the God Legion Seal?” The young man burst into laughter.