Chapter 192: Shaking the Profound Yellow! Eight Lifetimes of Bad Luck!

Hm?

Chen Zheng didn't expect that just after teleporting back from Panlong Star, before he could even step out of the ancient teleportation array, he would be met with someone's verbal provocation.

He followed the voice and saw, outside the ancient teleportation array, two forces clashing—men and mounts exchanging blows, various divine skills and magical treasures booming incessantly, brilliance radiating, making the dim underground world look like daylight.

One side was the Elder Group of the Great Profound Imperial Clan that had been guarding here before he went to Panlong Star.

The other side was a group of Underground Demon Clan, numbering over a hundred, each clad in black robes, all of considerable cultivation, all at the Seventh level of divine skill or higher.

The strength of the Underground Demon Clan was no less than that of the surface humans, ruled by three Great Demon Emperors, each Demon Emperor being as renowned as the six Great Emperors of the Demonic Path.

Under the three Great Demon Emperors were many Immortal Rank‑1, 2, and 3 Demon Emperor Elders, and below them was the Elder Council composed of numerous Shen Tong Mi Jing demon clans.

The demon clan fighting the Great Profound Elders before them were members of that Elder Council.

And the one who called Chen Zheng a fish that slipped through the net, a person who would die even faster upon returning, was an elder of the Underground Demon Clan dressed in a gray robe with a grim visage.

The grim elder's face broke into a ferocious grin as he swung a black chain as thick as an arm, its terrifying momentum lashing toward Chen Zheng, intending to strangle to death the Great Profound Empire's man he thought had fled back from Panlong Star.

But the next moment, he saw Chen Zheng clearly; his grin froze, and he stammered, "How could it be you?"

He recognized Chen Zheng, and the black chain in his hand dared not be flung again, causing him to recoil in terror.

"Old thing, meet death."

Chen Zheng spoke, his tone icy, his gaze piercing, firing a bolt of black divine light that pierced the void, striking the grim elder.

"Listen to my explanation…"

The grim elder shouted frantically, trying to say it was a misunderstanding and that he had mistaken the person.

But it was too late.

With a whoosh, black light pierced the elder's forehead, spraying a spray of blood; even his inner Primordial Spirit was instantly extinguished, leaving a corpse with eyes staring wide, which fell from mid‑air.

This sudden turn startled everyone engaged in the fierce battle; almost instantly the fighting halted, and they all cast bewildered gazes toward the ancient teleportation array side, or at the crumpled corpse of the grim elder on the ground.

"Chen Zheng, our Underground Demon Clan holds no grudge against you; why did you kill our Elder?" a gaunt Elder of the Underground Demon Clan shouted at Chen Zheng in fury.

He was not far from the grim elder, knowing the elder had only mistaken Chen Zheng for a person of the Great Profound and intended to act, but after recognizing his appearance he refrained and tried to resolve the misunderstanding; yet Chen Zheng ignored him entirely and cut the elder down outright.

Is that so?

Is there any law left?

"Still dare to clamor? Then you'll die too."

Chen Zheng's gaze swept, and another bolt of black light, at extreme speed, pierced the forehead of the gaunt elder who had shouted at him.

"Damn it, this kid is too barbaric and unreasonable!"

"We are no match for Chen Zheng; hurry, go report this to His Majesty Chi Lie Demon Emperor, who will personally punish Chen Zheng, making him kneel before the corpses of our own kind and repent!"

The Underground Demon Elders, seeing Chen Zheng slay two of their own in succession, turned ashen with anger, nearly rushing to clash with him.

But reason prevailed; knowing they were no match for Chen Zheng and that charging would only be a needless death, they suppressed their grief and anger, leapt backward, intending to report Chen Zheng's atrocities to Chi Lie Demon Emperor.

Chi Lie Demon Emperor, whose cultivation is unparalleled, was nearby confronting the Profound Emperor; as long as they report the matter, Chen Zheng will not survive without shedding his skin.

"Let Chi Lie Demon Emperor punish me? Are you referring to him?"

Chen Zheng shook his head with a light laugh, raised his right hand and grasped at the air; his arm extended mythically, indestructible, hammering the surrounding void with a series of booming explosions that shook heaven and earth, threatening to shatter the world and turning everyone's minds into mush, nearly making them vomit blood.

The sound came swiftly and faded equally fast.

Their minds instantly cleared, and they all looked at Chen Zheng, wanting to know what he had just done.

But while not looking might have been fine, once they did, everyone's bodies shivered violently, nearly dying of fright.

Because within their sight, Chen Zheng's hand was holding a person, though they didn't know when.

The person, neck pinched, was a middle‑aged man clad in a black‑gold dragon robe, a black jade sash at his waist, a crown on his head, surrounded by swirling black vapors.

It was none other than the Chi Lie Demon Emperor, whom the demon Elders said could punish Chen Zheng!

Their His Majesty Chi Lie Demon Emperor, a great being on par with the supreme masters of the Ten Celestial Dao Sects, had been snatched by Chen Zheng with a single hand from an unknown source, lifted as if a dead dog.

"How could this happen? How could His Majesty Chi Lie Demon Emperor possibly be seized by Chen Zheng? No… absolutely impossible!"

Seeing this terrifying sight, the demon Elders let out heart‑rending roars, unable to believe the brutal reality.

Chi Lie Demon Emperor himself wore a bewildered expression, as if he did not understand what had happened.

He was confronting the Profound Emperor; why was he, in perfect condition, being held aloft, unable to break free?

The one holding him seemed to be the recently famed Chen Zheng?

But why could Chen Zheng be so powerful?

Even setting aside any hatred, there is no connection at all; why would the other side seize him?

Although he did not know the specifics, Chi Lie Demon Emperor, after all the emperor who commands countless Underground Demons, quickly gathered his thoughts and roughly guessed some reasons why Chen Zheng had seized him.

He inhaled deeply, looked at Chen Zheng sincerely and said, "Brother Chen, perhaps an elder of my Underground Demons has offended you? On their behalf I offer an apology, hoping you'll release me; thereafter I will severely punish them and present a top‑grade Dao instrument as compensation. What do you think?"

"I don't think so," Chen Zheng shook his head.

"I…" Chi Lie Demon Emperor's heart sank, about to speak further.

But before he could finish, he felt a terrifying flame descend upon him.

"Ah! I, the emperor who has roamed the Profound Yellow Great World for thirty‑six thousand years, have been buried by you damned beings…"

After a howl of unwillingness mixed with anger and despair, Chi Lie Demon Emperor was melted by the towering flames engulfing him, completely vanishing from the world.

Seeing this, all the Great Profound Imperial Elders were stunned; their Great Profound Empire's war with the Underground Demon Clan over Panlong Star was won without further fighting.

The demon Elders turned ashen, collapsing one after another.

The mighty Demon Emperor was thus slain by their reckless maneuvering.

How innocent!

Simply cursed with bad luck!

And they, too, are doomed.

Just as expected.

Chen Zheng refined and absorbed the Chilie Demon Empress, drawing her essence and divine abilities into his body; the high-grade Dao artifact Slay Immortal Demon Blade left behind was also taken away.

At the same time, divine light burst from his eyes; with a single sweep, he turned all the underground demon Elders present into nothingness.

Having done all that, he moved his form and vanished within the ancient teleportation array, leaving the underground world.

What he did not know was that, shortly after he left, a dignified man wearing a myriad-dragon robe appeared before the great Xuan Elders, his expression astonished, and he asked everyone what had just happened here.

This man was none other than the Xuan Emperor.

The Elders came to their senses, and one after another they recounted how Chen Zheng had appeared, captured, and slain the Chilie Demon Emperor, leaving the Xuan Emperor utterly shocked.

Moreover, as Prince Yi and Prince Wu of Panlong Star and others returned via the ancient teleportation array, bringing back news that Chen Zheng had casually slain the Blood-Old Fiend, the Nine Yin Demon God, the Supreme Overlord, suppressed the Taiyan Heaven, and used his true demon primordial spirit to slay the Nine Cauldron Immortal Venerable, the Xuan Emperor and company were even more stunned, standing there dazed.

Moreover, this news spread like a plague in all directions; within just a few days it swept through every major and minor power, stirring up tremendous waves across the boundless expanse of the Xuanhuang Great World, shaking the endless mountains and rivers, causing countless beings to tremble.

Even the many well-informed figures on the various great stars beyond the realm, and all the ancient giants, were stunned by this astonishing news, left dizzy and unable to speak for a long time.

No one expected that the long-declined Xuanhuang Great World would produce an existence as heaven-defying as Chen Zheng, capable of slaying a World King by crossing eight major realms.

Moreover, Chen Zheng's past glorious exploits—leaving the Feather Ascension Sect, joining the Linglong Blessed Land, becoming a Supreme Elder, and so on—spread without delay, shining like the sun across many star fields, shocking and delighting countless beings.

Upon hearing the news, countless beings, besides being startled, either ordered their trusted subordinates or personally took action, sparing no expense to prepare lavish gifts in order to attend the Linglong Immortal Venerable's four-thousand-year birthday celebration at the Linglong Blessed Land soon to come.

The Linglong Blessed Land, having the Linglong Immortal Venerable as its founder and also possessing a fearsome existence like Chen Zheng, will surely rise like the midday sun; in the future it will surpass the Supreme Unity Sect, dominate the Xuanhuang Great World, and even shake the three thousand great worlds—this is imminent.

At the birthday banquet they presented lavish gifts; whether they could win the favor of the Linglong Immortal Venerable and Chen Zheng remains uncertain, but at least they would gain an acquaintance, so that should they later meet disciples of the Linglong Blessed Land, they could also speak.

In the future, should they encounter hardship, perhaps they could even seek refuge from the Linglong Blessed Land—no guarantee.

Meanwhile, another group—Chen Zheng's great enemies, such as the Blood Shadow Demon Sect, the Feather Ascension Sect, and Wan Gui Immortal Island—also heard the news that Chen Zheng had slain the Nine Cauldron Immortal Venerable, a World King, and fell into a deathly silence, not a single one able to speak.

Everyone was panicking, an unprecedented panic, they began employing every means, preparing to deal with Chen Zheng, vowing to strangle him.

There was also a sect that experienced an unprecedented joy, the entire sect celebrating, holding a grand feast for three days—this was the Star Cluster Sect.

However, all of this occurred after the news spread.

Chen Zheng was temporarily unaware of all this.

His true self was ruthlessly tormenting Taiyan Heaven, forcing her to reveal each rendezvous spot with Su Xiuyi, and sending word to Su Xiuyi to lure her into coming to rescue her.

Su Xiuyi possessed a supreme treasure, the Earth Emperor's Book of the Three Ancient Sovereigns, which he was determined to obtain.

At the same time, using his mind in two ways, he controlled his clone to race nonstop through the cosmos toward the Cultivation Great World.

Originally, relying on his own flight speed, without yet grasping spatial laws, even possessing the heaven-defying True Demon Illusion Spirit Dao, reaching another great world would still take an unknown amount of time.

However, with the Half-Supreme Dao Artifact, the State Altar Cauldron, he could traverse space at a speed countless times faster than flight; furthermore, by inscribing the character "Speed" upon the cauldron, its spatial-traversal speed increased tens of times, and after three days he finally reached his destination.

Swish!

In a certain mysterious starry expanse, a spatial rift appeared; Chen Zheng stepped out from it, gazing into the distance with vision that pierced infinite distance, looking far away he saw a vast world like an egg, suspended amidst countless nebulae.

That vast world's surroundings differed from the Xuanhuang Great World; there were no nine-heaven gales, no any obstructing forces, it was completely open.

Moreover, countless teleportation arrays were set up on innumerable stars within the nebulae; at all times, cultivators of the Ancient Giant, Eternal Giant, and other realms swarmed through the arrays like locusts toward that vast world.

That place is the Cultivation Great World, the trading hub of the entire three thousand great worlds; each day Void Immortals, True Immortals, and even Heavenly Immortals go there to buy and sell.

It is said that with sufficient Pure Yang Elixir, one can purchase anything in the various guilds of the Cultivation Great World, even supreme-grade Dao artifacts being no problem.

Meanwhile, the Nine Cauldron Pavilion, Six Paths Alliance, and Heavenly Dao Pavilion, which have branches in the Xuanhuang Great World, cannot even rank among the top hundred guilds in the Cultivation Great World.

From this one can see how mighty this realm's power is.

"This realm is indeed prosperous; if I were to plunder it clean, or even obtain that legendary source of all evil, even after ascending to the immortal realm, few could do anything against me."

Chen Zheng sighed in admiration and flew toward the distant Cultivation Great World.

Not long after, he crossed nebula after nebula and landed in the Cultivation Great World at the entrance of a bustling city with constant traffic.

This city was built with great elegance; its walls were made of a kind of hollowed-out strange wood, emitting fragrant aromas.

Chen Zheng glanced and recognized it as Om Fragrant Wood, which is extremely beneficial for cultivation, highly precious; using it for city walls is truly extravagant.

Moreover, this wood's defensive strength is not strong; it seems the people inside possess great confidence, fearing no disturbance.

Above the city gate entrance were written the three large characters "Brocade Mansion".

"Brocade Mansion? It seems to be the twenty-fourth-ranked guild in the Cultivation Great World; although not as prestigious as the Treasure Splitting Rock, it should be enough to consume this batch of my magical treasures. Moreover, Brocade Mansion appears to hold a fragment of the Eternal Divine Blade, which would be useful to me."

Chen Zheng's eyes flickered with thought as he walked toward the city gate, meanwhile using the character "Change" to conceal his true cultivation level, making it unfathomable.

As he just reached the city gate, a guardwoman in embroidered attire stepped forward, clasped her hands and smiled: "Fellow Daoist, to enter my Brocade Mansion you must pay ten thousand grains of Pure Yang Elixir according to the rules."

Chen Zheng said nothing, flicked his sleeve to release primordial energy equivalent to ten thousand grains of Pure Yang Elixir toward the woman, then walked into the city.

Ten thousand Pure Yang Elixir convert to a hundred million White Yang Elixir; in the Xuanhuang Great World few can afford it, and even if they could, they would be reluctant to spend it as an entry fee.

For Chen Zheng, who daily absorbs billions of Pure Yang Elixir, this is merely a drop in the bucket.

"Make way, all make way; none may block my path, otherwise death!"

Chen Zheng had just entered the city when, at the gate, nine divine dragons suddenly pulled a splendid war chariot across the void, rumbling as it crushed space.

On either side of the chariot, four black-armored mighty men of the Fourth Longevity Stage cleared the way, shouting sternly at those ahead, startling countless people to keep retreating.

(End of chapter)