Dominator Emperor

Once Li Qiye escaped, he immediately used his mastery of Demon’s Back Ridge to set a trap for the 300,000-year-old Longevity Spirit. Unfortunately, the creature was just as cunning. After being ambushed and injured twice by Li Qiye, it grew cautious and refused to attack rashly. But it didn’t flee either, instead staring fixedly at him.

This was what Li Qiye found so tiresome about Longevity Spirits. A Celestial Beast would fight until the heavens collapsed, a battle to the death. Longevity Spirits were different. They preferred to hide in the shadows and wait for the perfect moment to land a fatal blow. And once one locked onto you, it would never give up!

AOOO—! A bloodcurdling scream erupted. Suddenly, the Longevity Spirit, trapped in the mire, suffered a fatal blow. A hand shot out from the bog. With the Prison Suppressing Divine Body, a single hand carried the weight of Wanyue. No matter how powerful its Dao Patterns were, the Longevity Spirit couldn’t withstand such heaviness. The hand pierced straight through its chest. Nothing could stop that single fist!

”Damn it, you persistent pest. No matter how clever you are, you still fell right into my trap!” Li Qiye cursed as he finally climbed out of the mire.

He had spent a great deal of effort plotting against this Longevity Spirit, specifically designing a trap that exploited its weakness. In the end, he had successfully snared it and delivered the killing blow!

’Scheming? Ambushes?’ The Longevity Spirit was proficient in such arts, but it was no match for Li Qiye. Back in the day, as the Yin Ya, he had plotted against the entire world!

After collecting the Longevity Blood and the Annual Ring, Li Qiye’s body suddenly went rigid. He slowly turned around, his eyes fixed coldly on a certain direction. He had just caught the scent of an aura.

’A million-year-old Longevity Spirit!’ Li Qiye understood at once. He was being watched. The creature was likely thousands of miles away, yet it had locked onto him from that vast distance. He had become its prey.

A million-year-old Longevity Spirit... Forget someone with Li Qiye’s shallow Dao Practice; even an Ancient Saint would probably piss their pants if they came across one.

”It’s treating me as prey,” Li Qiye murmured, a smile creeping onto his face. ”Back in the day, that Blood Seal Kid left plenty of tricks here that never got used. Today, I’ll show you what your ancestor is capable of. We’ll see who ends up trapping whom...”

Finally, Li Qiye set off on his westward journey. A Longevity Spirit was stalking him, but wasn’t he also plotting against it?

Many believed Longevity Spirits to be more intelligent than Celestial Beasts, and a million-year-old one was especially terrifying. It had locked onto Li Qiye but hadn’t attacked. It sensed a dangerous aura from this weak member of the Human Race who dared to travel alone through the Uninhabited Area. So, it stalked Li Qiye the entire way, patiently holding back its attack.

He cultivated as he traveled, and his route became mysterious. He started taking detours instead of heading straight west. The Longevity Spirit stalked him patiently for a long time. Seeing that Li Qiye still hadn’t revealed any trump cards, it finally lost its patience and attacked.

PFFFT— A Longevity Spirit’s strike was always fatal. An attack from a million-year-old specimen would mean certain death not just for Li Qiye, but even for an Ancient Saint.

However, at the very moment the Longevity Spirit struck, Li Qiye vanished from the world. No one could fathom how he’d done it. After all, once targeted by a million-year-old Longevity Spirit, it should have been impossible to escape its Divine Sense. And yet, Li Qiye was gone.

OMMMM— In that instant, a Blood Light Array Gate suddenly opened in the Celestial Vault. From within it, a Blood Spear thrust downward.

The spear soared through the air with a power that would make even a Great Sage tremble, let alone a million-year-old Longevity Spirit!

”ROAR—!” The million-year-old Longevity Spirit shrieked in agony. As the spear descended, it was pinned to the earth. The strike was instantly fatal. Before this spear, despite its million years of power, it could only await death.

And yet, as the Longevity Spirit was pinned to the ground, Li Qiye was still standing in the exact same spot, not having moved an inch. He had never left.

”Trying to scheme against me? You should know, this is my turf,” Li Qiye said with a smile. He then sighed with emotion and murmured, ”Back then, that Blood Seal Kid and I spent countless years of effort leaving behind numerous contingencies throughout Demon’s Back Ridge. We originally intended to slay that demonic creature, but we ended up using only a fraction of them. I never thought I’d get to use one of these measures today.”

The ”Blood Seal Kid” Li Qiye mentioned was none other than the Blood Seal Immortal Emperor from the Ancient Nether Era.

In that era, Demon’s Back Ridge was not yet the private property of the Xiyan Ancient Sect. It was its own Little World, a Holy Land. However, a terrifying demonic creature resided there.

Back then, the Blood Seal Immortal Emperor had not yet shouldered the Celestial Mandate. Li Qiye brought him to Demon’s Back Ridge to help him comprehend the Mandate as part of his training. Their plan was to slay that demonic creature. Even though the Blood Seal Immortal Emperor was already considered invincible at the time, for someone who had yet to carry the Celestial Mandate, the creature was still a formidable challenge.

To ensure the creature was utterly eradicated, leaving no trace behind, the Blood Seal Immortal Emperor laid countless traps throughout this land—a true Heaven and Earth Net.

At the time, neither Li Qiye nor the Blood Seal Immortal Emperor would allow even the smallest part of the creature to escape—not so much as a strand of fur. The monster was simply too evil!

However, just as Li Qiye and the Blood Seal Immortal Emperor were about to move in for the kill, an unexpected incident occurred, leaving most of the contingencies they had prepared across the land unused.

But today, one of those contingencies—one set Above the Nine Heavens—was finally put to use by Li Qiye!

Successfully plotting the death of a million-year-old Longevity Spirit was a massive harvest for Li Qiye. Its Longevity Blood and Annual Ring were treasures sought after by even Saint Venerables and Saint Emperors.

Li Qiye collected the Longevity Blood and took the Annual Ring. He hung the ring on his person and continued his journey west. With the Annual Ring on display, no Celestial Beast or Longevity Spirit dared to approach him.

If even a million-year-old Longevity Spirit could be slaughtered, the other Celestial Beasts and Longevity Spirits were surely terrified. This seemingly unremarkable young boy of the Human Race was likely more horrifying than anyone they could imagine.

After walking for an unknown amount of time, Li Qiye finally reached his destination. It was a vast and boundless land. But the moment he set foot on it, his expression changed drastically, and he rushed forward.

He hadn’t gone far before he saw a stone tablet. On it was a single, large character: ”Pardon.” The calligraphy was flamboyant and majestic, exuding a powerful, invincible aura that shot straight into the Celestial Vault. Below the character was a signature: Mingren Immortal Emperor!

Without a doubt, this stone tablet had been left by the Mingren Immortal Emperor! That single character, ”Pardon,” signified that the living beings of this land were not to be hunted!

Li Qiye charged into the land, only to be met with a scene of utter devastation. The landscape was shattered and broken. The entire landmass had been pierced through, with a terrifying chasm running deep into the earth’s core.

Standing upon this ravaged land, Li Qiye’s expression darkened, growing uglier by the second. If Li Shuangyan had been there, she would have surely felt the terrifying aura emanating from him. At that moment, Li Qiye was radiating a violent killing intent, an aura that would slay gods and slaughter buddhas.

”Little Confusion! Little Confusion...!” Li Qiye shouted as he stepped into the chasm that tore through the earth.

But only his own echo answered from within the massive chasm. No one responded to his call.

”Little Confusion! Little Confusion, are you still here?” Li Qiye yelled. ”Do you remember the Crow from the old land? Do you remember the Crow at the Jade Pool? Little Confusion, the Mingren Kid carried you here himself, don’t you remember?”

Yet no matter how he called, there was no response. Li Qiye’s face turned to ice. He knew what must have happened. This place was protected by his divine power, by his pardon! No one should have dared to defy it.

Thirty thousand years ago, he had trained the Black Dragon King. Though the Black Dragon King never became an Immortal Emperor, he was revered by the Immortal Emperors of three generations. As the master behind the Black Dragon King, Li Qiye’s authority was absolute.

Since he had left Little Confusion in this place, it had remained safe and sound for millions of years. Though he didn’t care for the Mingren Immortal Emperor’s descendants, they had still honored the Mingren Immortal Emperor’s Pardon Order. Little Confusion had always been safe here.

During the era when the Black Dragon King was revered across three generations, this place not only had the Mingren Immortal Emperor’s pardon but also the protection of that supreme authority. It should have been one of the safest places in the world!

But now, something had gone wrong. This incident must have occurred around thirty thousand years ago! It happened while he was in his perilous slumber!

Li Qiye knew who was responsible. His face was ice-cold, but he refused to give up hope. He cried out again, ”Little Confusion! Little Confusion, are you there? The Crow has come to see you!”

But no matter how he shouted, there was still no reply. The place remained deathly silent.

Li Qiye called out again and again, searching every corner of the chasm, but he found no trace of Little Confusion. There was still no response.

In the end, Li Qiye stood there in silence. His face was colder than ice. Anyone who could have seen his expression at that moment would have been terrified to their very soul.

Just then, something fell from the ceiling of the chasm, landing in Li Qiye’s hand. It was a Dao Bone, as clear and smooth as jade.

Li Qiye gripped the Dao Bone tightly. He knew that what he had feared most had come to pass.

Finally, Li Qiye put the Dao Bone away and turned to leave. After exiting the chasm, he gazed northward. A faint but ominous premonition bloomed in his heart.

Li Qiye wanted to head north, but he restrained himself. He had been away from the Holy Land for too long. He had to return, lest Gu Tieshou and the others grew worried and came searching for him.

In the end, Li Qiye left that land and headed south. This time, he didn’t linger, traveling at his fastest possible speed. With the Annual Ring of the million-year-old Longevity Spirit hanging from his person, no Celestial Beast, Longevity Spirit, or even Insect King dared to provoke him. This made his return journey even faster.