Chapter 492 - 490:'Nothing more, Nothing Less.'

Chapter 492: Chapter 490:“Nothing more, Nothing Less.”

The moment the elder had sent out his orders to pay homage and greet this so-called emperor, amusement churned through my entire being.

Forget about the fact that he was asking me to pay homage to some ant, but even the thought of Malachi and the others acknowledging this man was nothing more than a joke.

These bastards weren’t even at the point of acknowledging me properly yet, and here you were expecting them to acknowledge some weakling that didn’t know his place in the bigger picture?

Naturally, his orders were met with nothing but indifference.

The others were definitely not going to do it, let alone myself. And if I wasn’t doing it, then there was no way the little man that had finally woken up and perched himself atop my head was doing it, and neither was Nyssara, as I don’t even have to do anything because the woman was extraordinarily stubborn when it comes to situations like these.

So there we stood, like a bunch of sore thumbs as everyone else bowed in greeting, the sounds of weapons being drawn reaching my ears, as my eyes caught sight of the hundred strong men pulling out their swords and pointing them at me and the others.

Once again, I could feel shulvan already getting ready to wipe them out but I held him back.

The leader of the army, the one with the aura almost spilling out of the Law Manifestation stage, had already locked us down with his presence as the elder’s voice thundered through the air,

"IMPUDENCE!!!!" His aura exploded outwards as he shot me and the others a glaring look.

"YOU DARE DISRESPECT HIS MAJESTY IN SUCH A MANNER?"

His presence grew heavier and heavier as he seemed just about ready to attack, but first,

"GIVE ME ONE GOOD REASON NOT TO EXTERMINATE YOUR AUDACIOUS SELVES THIS INSTANT." He had to posture like a true elder.

"Other than the fact that you’re only alive becaue im holding back the murderous apostle?"

I thought in amusement as a slow smile tugged the edges of my lips as I stood straighter, hands folding behind my back, giving off the image of a man unbothered by the eaves of life and its troubles. Ignoring the groaning and grumbling voices of the women in my head, my mouth opened as I addressed the raging figure before Shulvan got fed up,

"Allow me..." My voice wasn’t loud, but in the oppressive silence of the old man’s presence, it resonated loudly.

"We do not wish to disrespect His Majesty, elder. Your claims are misguided."

"MISGUIDED!!!!? YOU DARE—"

"Elder, your spirit is too agitated. You might cause yourself harm and deviate from the Dao. For what is the Dao without a calm spirit and tranquil mind? The journey to enlightenment is not one where we must rush, elder, for haste makes waste." I cut in like a man who knew what he was actually saying.

Did I know what I was spitting out? Fuck no!

Did it make for an excellent posturing act? Fuck yes!

"Like I was saying, elder, we do not intend to disrespect His Majesty, the Emperor." My eyes looked around, taking in the faces of everyone currently paying attention.

The white-haired elder had turned red as a tomato as the man seemed only a hair’s breadth away from losing it.

Other elders around him were split. Some wore amused expressions. Others wore intrigued expressions like they truly bought my bullshit, while others were livid like the white-haired elder at our perceived disrespect.

Luo Yao herself was one of those that had on an intrigued expression, as it seems the woman had bought into my bullshit.

I adjusted my posture even more as I continued my speech,

"This, dear elders, is merely us sticking true to our principles. To our Dao hearts. To our paths."

"Your paths, you say. And how does your path involve disrespecting your emperor?" The voice was a magnetic one, filled with majesty and utter regality. Of course it would, after all, the speaker was none other than—

"Emperor Lin, I have to disagree with your words." Yes. The emperor himself had taken the bait, as I replied with a soft smile whilst forcing down the killing intent boiling within me as the man had dared to call himself MY emperor.

"Oh? Then please, enlighten me." The man seemed more intrigued than insulted. Quite the character for a dead man.

"Gladly..." I took a step forward, my own aura bursting out as it clashed with that of the elder that was trying to suppress us, sparks flying all around.

Of course this wasn’t my true aura, but merely one I used for the sake of my dramatic appearance.

"Tell me, O Emperor Lin, what is our nature as cultivators? What does it mean to be a cultivator in essence?" I asked, feet not stopping as I kept walking toward the man.

The guards tried to make a move, but—

"Halt." A single command from the emperor stopped them cold. "To be a cultivator, you say? Well, to be a cultivator is to go against Heaven’s mandate. The natural order of the world is for man to remain mortal and die, but the moment one begins to cultivate, we become a distinction in that order, a wrench in Heaven’s plans, hence why it is such an arduous task," the man answered.

"Right. We fight against Heaven and nature as cultivators, all in an attempt to attain that ever-elusive ascension. All in an attempt to attain the ever-elusive dream of immortality, where death shall know man no more." My feet had already brought me right before the emperor as I looked down at the man, my 8’5 frame dwarfing everyone before me.

"So tell me, O Emperor,"

WOOOOOSHHHHHHH!!!!

A pitch-black aura erupted out of me as a heavy pressure fell upon the entire place, the emperor’s smiling expression being wiped off his face the moment he felt the aura I was releasing, an equally powerful aura bursting out of him as well as—

BOOOOOOMMMMM!!!!

The whole place shook from the clash of our presences.

"Tell me, O Emperor. If we ultimately battle against Heaven and nature itself, does that not mean we should be staunch? Unyielding in nature? Never bowing to anything below and above the heavens?"

BOOOOOOMMMMM!!!!

My aura intensified as the whole place began shaking, the emperor’s expression turning increasingly grim the more he felt the oppression from my aura.

"Tell me, O Emperor! Of what use would it be to fight against Heaven when I am to bow before man? With what heart would I dare to call myself a cultivator!?"

BOOOOOMMMMM!!!!

"Tell me, O Emperor!" I asked once more as the man went silent.

In fact, the entire place had fallen dead silent the moment they saw the clash of auras that was happening between me and the emperor, disbelief running through their very beings as they stood rooted.

The angry elder had long ago dispelled his aura as he too stood stunned at the ongoing clash.

"So, like I said, we do not mean any disrespect, O Emperor." I finally stepped back, giving the man some room as I made my way back to my friends within a few steps, eyes locking onto the emperor as I concluded my grand spectacle,

"We are merely staying true to our Dao. Staying true to our path. And staying true to ourselves, for at the end of the day, we are simply..."

"Cultivators."

"Nothing more and nothing less, O Emperor."

The silence that followed after my declaration was one so loud it was deafening.

Nobody knew what to say as they just stared in dumbfounded shock as once again, I had successfully outcultured the cultivation world.

"Heh! Light work as always."

I may not have any idea what I was talking about, but one thing was for sure.

When it came to posturing and acting cool, nobody—and I mean NO ONE—does it better than me...

...

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A/N: Can’t say I disagree with him. Anyways, those tropes, y’all should think about them and let me know, we’ll put the most funny and stupid ones in before calling this arc a wrap, it’s been a fun one to write but the show must go on, hehehehe... as always,

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Thanks for reading...