Chapter 42: The Fall of the Azure Emperor

Chapter 42: Chapter 42: The Fall of the Azure Emperor

Mocked by the Sword Emperor, the War King couldn’t help but turn his head and glare fiercely at him, his handsome face filled with anger.

Glared at, the Sword Emperor suddenly fell silent.

With the War King’s mental fortitude and shrewdness, he naturally wouldn’t be angered by such sarcasm. He was simply furious that the Sword Emperor was still working against him at a time like this.

These two had been rivals since their youth, for over two hundred years. Even their wives had changed one after another over the long years, yet only the rivalry between them remained, with neither willing to be the first to give up on the Great Dao. Although they were rivals, this bond of advancing together far exceeded that of ordinary people.

Shen Yun noticed the surroundings had suddenly grown quiet. He turned his head and saw the Sword Emperor and the War King staring at each other.

After a moment of thought, Shen Yun suddenly understood.

He had overdone it just now. While formidable strength could increase one’s say and create a deterrent effect, if one were so powerful that they could easily threaten the safety of others, it would easily force everyone else to unite against the strongest.

He thought, "This is not good..."

Shen Yun pondered for a moment before furrowing his brows and saying, "My move just now, although immensely powerful, is difficult to control in terms of accuracy. Now that the Azure Emperor is actively dodging, I’m afraid it will be hard to hit him."

Given the caliber of the Sword Emperor and the War King, they understood Shen Yun’s intention the moment they heard this. Joy rose in both of their hearts.

The mystery and power of the Jiuzhou Sect were already unquestionable. However, if they were still unwilling to confront the wariness of others head-on, it meant they weren’t yet powerful enough to recklessly usurp control.

"This matter started because of me. As long as the Thunder Emperor is willing to take over the fiefdoms and citizens under the Azure Emperor’s name, I can assist in ending this matter," the War King said, cutting straight to the chase as he looked Shen Yun in the eyes.

Taking over the Azure Emperor’s fiefdoms meant joining the Empire and replacing the Azure Emperor as one of the Empire’s Emperor Venerables.

"I have already told the Sword Emperor that the Jiuzhou Sect has emerged for the sake of the common people." Shen Yun nodded solemnly.

This had also been discussed with Wei Er long ago.

Among all the nations in the world, the Empire had the most abundant resources, territory, and population. How could they refuse a free colony?

The Red Emperor, Insect Emperor, and Beast Emperor, who were following behind, caught up and heard this sentence. They exchanged glances, all seeing the deep wariness in each other’s eyes. This newly emerged Emperor with extraordinary strength seemed to have decided to join the Empire. If so... they might end up meeting on the battlefield someday in the future.

"Heh heh, to think you didn’t even ask about the terms of our two nations," the old woman known as the Insect Emperor chuckled grimly. "Does the Thunder Emperor really look down on us so much? If that’s the case, I don’t think this Azure Emperor can be killed today after all."

As she spoke, wisps of black mist surged from her body. Upon closer inspection, they were actually dense swarms of tiny insects.

No wonder her title was the Insect Emperor.

However, Shen Yun did not panic at all. Instead, he chuckled lightly, "Why don’t you look behind you before making a decision?"

"Behind me?"

Even the Divine Thought of a peak Grandmaster could only reach a thousand meters. The old woman cautiously turned around.

In the sky several thousand meters to the side, several black dots trailing long tails of flame roared through the air, chasing after the fleeing Azure Emperor ahead. Their speed was astonishing! Hidden weapons? No! These artifacts were clearly different from the previous hidden weapons—they were actually accelerating!

"My Jiuzhou Sect’s emergence is not to fight for power and profit, but for this world," Shen Yun said, a faint smile remaining on his face. "But that doesn’t mean we are afraid of trouble. Anyone who wants to forge an enmity with my Jiuzhou Sect had better look at the Azure Emperor’s fate before making a decision!"

Almost the instant his voice fell, those black dots caught up to the Azure Emperor. Then, they violently exploded into balls of scorching seas of fire.

It was only a few seconds later that a massive BOOM swept over, carrying astonishing waves of heat. Even the entire horizon was illuminated by the fiery light, looking like the setting sun. Such might far surpassed the power of heaven and earth!

All the Emperor Venerables stopped before the sea of fire. Watching the Red Flame rolling and the shockwaves surging before them, they didn’t even need to use their Divine Thought to investigate to know the Azure Emperor’s fate.

He was buried in the sea of fire, dying without leaving a whole corpse behind!

The War King waved his hand, and a longsword that had been scorched red-hot shot out of the sea of fire. It was none other than Xingyue.

A generation’s Emperor Venerable had thus fallen.

He remained silent for a long moment before suddenly shouting loudly, "My Empire hereby crowns Grandmaster Shen Yun of the Jiuzhou Sect as an Emperor! He is granted the land of one province and the people of one province, with the title of Thunder!"

His booming voice resounded for miles.

The expressions of both the Insect Emperor and the Beast Emperor stiffened slightly.

The Empire had gained another sect from the Ancient Times, and a Refining Grand Sect at that. Incredibly tyrannical and with a mysterious foundation, the balance maintained among the three nations for centuries might be broken right here and now.

"Since the crowning is complete, we shall take our leave." After the old woman said this, she didn’t even wait for Shen Yun’s reply before directly turning around and flying away with the Beast Emperor.

The conflict between the Empire and the Hundred Barbarians seemed even more intense than imagined.

Shen Yun furrowed his brows and thought for a moment before quickly putting these matters aside. He had done what he needed to do. As for the remaining political maneuvering and calculations, there was a whole think tank back home to consider and arrange them.

Instead, the Red Emperor flew over with his hands raised, a smile on his face. "Congratulations, Thunder Emperor. The Empire’s vast lands and abundant resources are indeed beyond what our nations can compare to. However, I wonder, is the viewing ceremony over?"

"Of course not," Shen Yun also smiled. "Please."

Eliminating the Azure Emperor was merely the most important step in today’s plan, but there were still many things left to do.

After Shen Yun and the others returned to the branch base, he naturally gave a brief introduction to the Jiuzhou Sect’s "artifacts," explained the Jiuzhou Sect’s "philosophy," and repeated what he had told the Sword Emperor that day.

"Since the Ancient Times, this world has been plagued by constant warfare. In the end, the various factions suffered heavy losses," Shen Yun said, letting out a long sigh. "We mere Grandmasters are already at the peak of this world. If we still don’t think about how to save ourselves, in another thousand years, we might reach an era where even ordinary Grandmasters can be crowned as Emperors."

"..."

The three people in front of him remained silent.

The Sword Emperor already knew this, while the others were digesting the information in Shen Yun’s words.

Regardless, the growing decline of the Cultivation Realm was a fact, and everyone wanted to advance further.

"For three hundred years, the Emperor of our Empire has also been cautious and diligent in governmental affairs," the War King furrowed his brows. "Yet the population of the common people continues to decrease again and again."

"It’s just that you haven’t grasped the right methods," Shen Yun shook his head. "Once my Jiuzhou Sect completely takes over the fiefdom, you can send people over to learn."

"That would be excellent!" Not only the War King, but the Red Emperor was also overjoyed, even sighing with some emotion.

If this Jiuzhou Sect could truly bring prosperity to mortals, it meant they were indeed wholeheartedly dedicated to this world.

Shen Yun was also secretly laughing.

Once these natives began to value mortal prosperity and enjoyed the benefits it brought, they would truly fall into Huaxia’s rhythm. When that time came, let alone supporting Luo Ying to become an Emperor and obtaining the Grand Array, even controlling all the resources, inheritances, and demographic dividends of the entire world might not be impossible.