Chapter 881: Seizing the Treasure
Within the inner hall, the light blazed even more brilliantly, all of it golden. A sovereign aura permeated every corner of the hall, making the entire space feel like a sacred realm of emperors.
On the surrounding stone walls, golden light shimmered, engraved with complex scriptures that seemed to be peerless cultivation techniques. In the center of the hall stood a figure—not a statue, but a real human form. This person’s countenance was majestic beyond compare, wearing an imperial crown, his entire body bathed in sovereign aura—noble, dazzling.
“Jade Emperor!” Huangfu Long’s body trembled slightly. He knew this was the true Jade Emperor Hall. He had arrived at the Jade Emperor’s bedchamber, and before him was the Jade Emperor’s physical body.
“I’ve finally made it… I’ve finally made it…” Huangfu Long clenched his fists tightly, veins bulging across his body, trembling with excitement. The Jade Emperor’s inheritance—from now on, he would be the sovereign of the Jade Heaven Royal Clan. In the future, he would surely unify the clan, dominate the Qian Domain, step into the Holy City, and achieve true emperorship.
All of this would belong to him.
With steps that felt as heavy as a thousand pounds, Huangfu Long slowly walked forward, approaching the Jade Emperor to gaze upon his glory.
With a thud, Huangfu Long knelt on both knees. A wisp of sovereign aura emanated from him, resonating with the sovereign aura of the Jade Emperor, causing Huangfu Long to tremble with excitement once more. Just as the ancestors’ legacy had foretold, he was destined to receive the Jade Emperor’s inheritance.
Forming seals with his hands, Huangfu Long’s face bore an expression of reverence and devotion. Prostrating himself on the ground, he kowtowed once, twice, thrice.
He rose, then knelt again, kowtowing once more…
Meeting the Jade Emperor, releasing sovereign aura, forming the sovereign seal, performing the three kneels and nine prostrations—the Jade Emperor would manifest and bestow the inheritance.
After the three kneels and nine prostrations, Huangfu Long’s body could no longer be controlled, trembling incessantly. The inheritance was descending; he was about to receive the Jade Emperor’s legacy!
With fervent eyes, Huangfu Long prostrated himself respectfully, not daring to lift his head.
One breath, ten breaths, a hundred breaths… Time passed drop by drop, yet the inheritance still did not appear. This stirred a faint unease in Huangfu Long’s excited heart. This was the long-established method of obtaining the inheritance passed down by the Jade Heaven Royal Clan. Even if others entered, they could never obtain the Jade Emperor’s inheritance. How could there be no reaction?
Prostrate on the ground, Huangfu Long’s eyes flickered, revealing a hint of panic. But he still dared not move recklessly, as if afraid of angering the divine spirit.
“Boom!” A loud sound rang out. The door of the inner hall trembled, as if it were about to be shattered. This made Huangfu Long even more unsettled. No reaction—how could there be no reaction?
Finally unable to control his restless heart, Huangfu Long stood up, bowed to the Jade Emperor’s body, and said, “Ancestor Jade Emperor, you must have left the inheritance method here. I firmly believe it.”
With that, Huangfu Long walked toward the surrounding stone walls to see if he could find any clues. They were engraved with many powerful sacred marks or inscriptions, but none left any leads.
Until Huangfu Long reached the golden stone wall behind the Jade Emperor. It too was engraved with some patterns, but Huangfu Long could not understand them. They seemed like words, yet also like sacred marks.
“Could the secret lie in these mysterious patterns?” Huangfu Long stared at the patterns, unable to comprehend them. He simply could not understand. Huangfu Long was nearly going mad. These mysterious patterns or words were different from the others—vigorous and powerful, majestic and unrestrained, with a spirit that defied the heavens and disregarded all. They did not carry the noble, sovereign intent of the Jade Emperor’s brushwork, as if they were the work of two entirely different hands.
“Crack!”
The crashing sounds grew more intense, making Huangfu Long’s expression even uglier. Finally, with a rumbling tremor, the great door of the hall was shattered. Many figures rushed directly inside—members of the Jade Heaven Royal Clan, people from the East Sea Dragon Palace, and Lin Feng’s group. This time, they maintained a tacit understanding, not slaughtering each other, because they all knew that battle was inevitable. The urgent task was to break open the door and find the Jade Emperor’s treasures. Then they could fight. How could they let Huangfu Long take the Jade Emperor’s treasures alone?
Seeing the Jade Emperor’s body, the Jade Heaven Royal Clan members all showed reverence in their eyes. Even after a thousand years, the Jade Emperor’s body remained so perfectly preserved, bathed in supreme sovereign aura.
The East Sea Dragon Palace people also looked at the Jade Emperor’s true form with awe. This was an emperor—a sovereign who laughed at heaven and earth, lofty and exalted. Even though he was the emperor of the Jade Heaven Royal Clan, they still preserved a trace of reverence in their hearts, not daring to blaspheme. Some even bowed slightly to the Jade Emperor’s honored body, showing respect for the sovereign.
Lin Feng entered, swept his gaze over the Jade Emperor’s honored body, and a hint of unrestrained intent flickered in his eyes. Having witnessed the four emperor statues, he had felt the lawless, heaven-defying spirit of Skyless Sword Emperor and the peerless bearing of the Demon Emperor—one who acknowledged only himself in all the world, needing no worship from anyone.
Without such a heaven-defying spirit, how could one, not being an emperor, still slay an emperor? That peerless bearing made Lin Feng’s blood boil every time he thought of it.
Looking down on everything—though he was only a venerable, he dared to slay an emperor. What reverence was there? The Demon Emperor had once slain a living emperor. Influenced by the four emperors, Lin Feng felt little awe for a corpse of an emperor.
“Huangfu Long!” Ao Jiao roared, his gaze fixed on Huangfu Long. He said coldly, “Hand over the goods.”
Hearing Ao Jiao’s roar, Huangfu Long’s face darkened. “I didn’t get anything.”
“Do you think I’ll believe that?” Ao Jiao said coldly. Ao Jiao had been the first to enter, and he had found nothing. Was that possible?
Huangfu Long swept his gaze over the crowd. Everyone was staring at him. Just as he expected, no one believed his words. This made Huangfu Long’s expression extremely ugly. If he had truly obtained something, he would have nothing to say. He could command the Jade Heaven Royal Clan members, and who would dare disobey? But now, because of what had just happened, the Jade Heaven Royal Clan members were looking at him coldly.
Huangfu Long knew very well that this trial was too important for him. Only those below the Heavenly Martial Realm had the chance. Although he was the leader among these people, there were still geniuses in the Jade Heaven Royal Clan who were in no way inferior to him, some even surpassing him. But they had already reached the Heavenly Martial Realm, so he had obtained the Jade Emperor’s inheritance. If he succeeded, the Jade Heaven Royal Clan would be his in the future. If he failed, perhaps he could not compete with others.
The same was true for Ao Jiao. The East Sea Dragon Palace had four great Dragon Kings, and above them were Dragon Venerables and Dragon Lords. Their descendants were all extraordinary. He needed to make achievements in this Jade Emperor Hall, obtain heavy treasures, and then perhaps become a true leader of the East Sea Dragon Palace in the future.
The group pressed toward Huangfu Long, whose face turned pale and ugly.
“Hand it over, or die.” The group surrounded Huangfu Long alone. None of the Jade Heaven Royal Clan members came to his aid, making Huangfu Long’s face ashen.
Lin Feng and the others watched their conflict with interest, letting the dogs bite each other. They would not interfere. When it was time to seize the treasure, they would strike.
“You’re asking for death. If I kill you, I’ll get everything you have anyway.” Ao Jiao sneered. With a roar, flood dragon shadows seemed to appear on his body. Several flood dragon silhouettes howled toward Huangfu Long, trying to tear him apart. At the same time, all the East Sea Dragon Palace members moved, determined to kill Huangfu Long.
Huangfu Long, wearing the fake Jade Emperor Crown, had a pale face as he resisted Ao Jiao’s attacks. For a time, rumbling sounds of shattering made the hall tremble.
As they fought, Duan Wuya quietly moved behind Huangfu Long, causing Lin Feng’s eyes to freeze. “This venomous bastard is going to strike from the shadows again.”
Duan Wuya glanced toward Lin Feng, as if even while making his move, he was still wary of Lin Feng. He knew how much Lin Feng hated him and how much he wanted to tear him apart immediately.
Huangfu Long fought fiercely on all sides. The Jade Emperor Crown transformed into a golden-threaded jade robe, wrapping around his body. The crack that Lin Feng’s sword had blasted open seemed to repair itself automatically, intact. The fake Jade Emperor Crown of the Jade Heaven Royal Clan was no ordinary item.
“Get lost!” Huangfu Long roared. The Jade Emperor Crown turned into spiked gloves, smashing heavily toward Ao Jiao. At that moment, Duan Wuya finally moved. The extreme cold baleful aura from his gourd was silently released, instantly rushing toward Huangfu Long.
“Ah…” Ao Jiao screamed in agony. His back was corroded away. His arm swung violently, and a storage ring was flung from his hand.
“Hmm?”
At that moment, everyone’s eyes locked onto the storage ring. Then, terrifying auras erupted as they all lunged for the ring, each wanting to seize it. No one cared who it belonged to. None of these people were kind-hearted—whether from the East Sea Dragon Palace or the Jade Heaven Royal Clan, who didn’t want the Jade Emperor’s treasures?
Lin Feng also moved, but not toward the ring. Instead, he went for Huangfu Long. A devastating sword pierced directly into Huangfu Long’s body, running him through. Ao Jiao’s body stiffened, and he raised his head slightly, staring at Lin Feng.
“Grabbing your ring so early—whether it has treasures or not, you’ll become the target of everyone. You once wanted to kill us and take our treasures. Now, it’s time to pay it back.” Lin Feng said indifferently, taking the glove-like Jade Emperor Crown from Ao Jiao’s hand. This treasure had delivered itself to his door—why not take it?
PS: Lin Feng angrily demands flowers. If not given, one sword strike kills!