Bombarding Cultivators with Cluster Artillery

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The sound of footsteps was hollow and far-reaching, carrying an echo.

The Human Emperor’s palace was deep and deathly quiet. In the shadows, maidservants with longswords at their waists stood silently, their gazes unwavering, almost fused with the palace itself, so unmoved that even the arrival of this twisted, eerie black shadow could not affect them in the slightest.

The twisted black shadow seemed not unfamiliar with this ancient Human Race palace, and walked step by step toward the deepest part of the hall, the silken curtains retreating again and again along its path.

There was none of the imagined clanging Sword Qi, no Sword Intent stabbing at the senses.

Even the air seemed to carry a deep, tranquil bookish aura, like the Sutra Pavilion of a Sect; it resembled more the study of a scholar than the palace of a Sword Cultivator, with little sense of oppression.

The gate of the final hall swung open, and the twisted black shadow took a deep breath and walked inside.

It strictly observed etiquette, adopting an incomparably humble posture as it used the corner of its eye to glance toward the very center of the hall, and could not help but be slightly stunned in its heart.

This was the very core of Dubhe.

In its memory, this place was awe-inspiring, magnificent, filled with suffocating pressure like the imperial steps above the Nine Heavens, the dwelling of the Heavenly Palace Immortals.

Yet what appeared before its eyes was extremely simple.

A green-clothed youth sat upon a Crystal Divine Throne. This Crystal Divine Throne differed from the one in the inherited memories; its form was simple, placed so ordinarily upon the ground, without ninety-nine steps, without clouds and mist, just like an ordinary chair placed here.

Around the Crystal Divine Throne, low tables and futons were casually arranged. Upon the low tables lay some Jade Slips, books, teacups, and the like that had not yet been put away, as if people often came here.

Casual.

Far too casual.

This was the twisted black shadow’s first impression.

This place was like the main hall of a village household, with many seats laid out, always ready to welcome villagers and friends to come chat; coming was ordinary, leaving was ordinary, with no rules at all.

Here, under a deliberately crafted atmosphere, the severe hierarchy was diluted to the point of almost vanishing.

Every being who entered this place would subconsciously give rise in their hearts to a thought: this is just a place for idle chatting, and that green-clothed youth, whose entire body carried little of any heavy aura, is simply someone you can chat with at will—no need to fear saying the wrong thing, no need for your words to carry weight, anything casual will do.

’This generation’s Human Emperor is very special.’

A thought surfaced in the twisted black shadow’s heart.

”I pay my respects!”

”I pay my respects to Your Majesty!”

”May Our Emperor’s immortal fortune endure forever, may his lifespan equal the heavens, may he attain the Dao and become Immortal!”

The twisted black shadow threw itself to the ground in full prostration before that green-clothed youth, performing the three kneelings and nine kowtows with meticulous precision, its forehead knocking against the floor again and again.

”I pay my respects,”

”I pay my respects to Her Highness the Empress of Fusang!”

The twisted black shadow rose again, turned, and once more performed three kneelings and nine kowtows toward the Fusang Empress beside the green-clothed youth.

Its ritual was extremely exquisite; from body to Divine Soul to spoken words, the three kneelings and nine kowtows were filled with a special ancient rhythm, the difficulty of those few brief movements nearly equal to that of a profound scripture.

This was an extremely standard audience ritual for meeting the Human Emperor.

In certain Immortal Dynasty eras, only beings of extremely exalted status were qualified to study and inherit it; it was a symbol of rank and of one’s future Dao-path.

An inheritance with no practical productive value.

It held only symbolic meaning, used to distinguish whether a person was noble or not.

Jiang Ding silently came to this judgment.

From this small glimpse, many of his predecessor Human Emperors must have attached exceptional importance to hierarchy, their order exceedingly strict, not beings easy to get along with.

”Fellow Daoist, rise.”

Jiang Ding spoke mildly.

He had his own habits, and at the same time he did not believe that the strict order constructed by other Human Emperors throughout history was wrong. All is freedom; seeking common ground while reserving differences is the Righteous Dao.

”Thank you, Your Majesty!”

The twisted black shadow rose respectfully, not daring to look directly at the Human Emperor, only daring to observe him with the corner of its eye.

The Human Emperor’s courtesy and words ended there.

Boom!

A terrifying pressure suddenly descended within this shadowed palace.

In an instant, space, Rules, Cause and Effect, time, and destiny across unknown light-years all froze; all external disturbances had fallen silent. Under the Human Emperor’s gaze, layers of mist dispersed, and the most primal secrets were laid bare.

Black and white radiance faintly bloomed within Jiang Ding’s eyes as he fixed his stare upon this twisted black shadow.

What it said was not important.

In the current Endless Starry Sky, beings qualified to converse with a Human Emperor were far too few, and the twisted black shadow before him clearly was not one of them.

Its significance lay not in its words, but in its existence.

Jiang Ding stared at this twisted black shadow, stripping away the layers of mist upon it. The Transcendent Sword Soul born of the Soulless Universe was conducting an in-depth and meticulous scan of all that comprised the twisted black shadow—its material existence, Divine Soul, curses, Cause and Effect, destiny, and everything else.

”Your Majesty...”

The twisted black shadow was overwhelmed with terror, its body trembling, yet it could not resist, not even to commit suicide.

After an unknown length of time, the formless terrifying pressure gradually faded. The Human Emperor no longer fixed his gaze upon it; his eyes fell upon the depths of the Endless Starry Sky.

”The wills and powers of the Human Race’s historical Emperors have gathered and taken shape as you.”

”What a beautiful Skill...”

Jiang Ding praised softly, and said, ”What is the intention of the Human Race’s historical Emperors, Fellow Daoist?”

In this moment, his heart tightened slightly; he could not treat this lightly.

The self-sealed historical Human Emperors of the Human Race had once again confirmed their existence, and had come before him; there existed a certain alliance and communication between them!

How could this not send shockwaves through one’s heart?

A single Human Emperor was already invincible in his era, sweeping across heaven and earth without a rival.

And now, the collective will of the Emperors—who could disregard it?

”Your Majesty,”

”The Human Race’s Emperors come bearing goodwill.”

The twisted black shadow kowtowed again and said respectfully, ”To congratulate Your Majesty on attaining the Dao, the Human Race’s Emperors have specially presented four Chapters of scripture!”

”They are the ’Undying Immortal Medicine Chapter,’ the ’Self-sealing Enlightenment Chapter,’ the ’Undying Immortal Source Chapter,’ and the ’Immortal Strategy of the Human Race Emperors,’ to congratulate Your Majesty on attaining the Dao, and to congratulate Your Majesty on the hope of future Immortal ascension.”

It humbly presented three Chapters of scripture, instantly triggering numerous Heavenly Dao phenomena and tremors, with the Great Dao surging.

These were assuredly scriptures whose impact upon the Heavenly Dao was incomparably profound!

Gong Caiyu and the Fusang Empress both rejoiced inwardly.

Undying Immortal Medicine!

Self-sealing in history to attain the Dao!

Undying Immortal Source!

These three Transcendent scriptures were far too precious.

They held extremely great importance for the Human Emperor’s path toward becoming Immortal.

The most fearsome and precious of them all was undoubtedly the ’Immortal Strategy of the Human Race Emperors.’ This Transcendent scripture recorded some non-core reflections of the Human Race’s Emperors on Immortal ascension, and possessed immense referential value!

The Overlord Human Clan of the Endless Starry Sky was just such a terrifying race.

This race excelled at recording history and sharing inheritance; this set them apart from the Emperors of other races.

Though the Nine-leaf Sword Emperor and the other Ancient Twelve Fierce were powerful and unmatched in their eras, they did not possess such racial heritage, and were thus, imperceptibly, left behind once more.

These four Chapters of scripture were too precious, too grand a gesture!

From this, it could be seen that the Human Race’s Emperors came bearing goodwill. After all, they were of the same race, with far greater potential for cooperation; no being could look down upon the current Emperor.