Chapter 206: Bizarre! Kneel! Even the Great Emperor of Heaven Kneels! Over 80,000

A deep, resonant laugh boomed from outside Linglong Blessed Land, drowning the world, shaking the plaza so that millions felt their eardrums about to burst; everyone, having snapped out of the earlier shock and confusion of "kneeling at Chen Zheng's sight," hurriedly covered their ears with both hands or blocked their senses, fearing deafness.

"Finally, it's here, huh?"

At the Sumeru Golden Summit, Chen Zheng's expression remained calm; with a casual wave he dispelled the sound that had entered Linglong Blessed Land, then lifted his gaze toward its source.

Seeing the sound cleared and no longer affecting them, everyone rose from their kneeling positions, also looking out beyond the mountain gate, their expressions either solemn or uneasy.

The matter that Tai Hun Tian and Chen Zheng will settle a life‑or‑death battle today was set by Linglong Immortal Patriarch himself, and it has spread like wildfire throughout the cultivation world, becoming one of the focal topics among countless cultivators.

After more than a month of fermenting, the affair is now known throughout the Xuanhuang Great World and among the extraterrestrials beyond the stars.

The reason the crowd of millions has gathered to pay respects this time is, first, to curry favor with Linglong Immortal Patriarch, and second, to witness Chen Zheng's true nature.

Watching the battle is another reason.

All because the stakes of this battle are huge.

If Chen Zheng dies, the Xuanhuang configuration remains unchanged, with the Taiyi Sect still dominant, while Linglong Blessed Land only slightly restrains the Taiyi Sect, maintaining a delicate balance that prevents the major powers from being swallowed or annihilated by the Taiyi Sect.

But if Tai Hun Tian is defeated, the balance will shatter, and the Taiyi Sect will lose its status as the world's foremost sect, becoming like a dog with a broken spine, no longer able to suppress the other factions.

Moreover, Chen Zheng acts tyrannically and ruthlessly; once his combat power surpasses the Longevity Secret Realm, it could very well mark the day the Taiyi Sect faces extinction.

At that point, every sect will have to live by his breath.

Therefore, this battle will play a decisive role in the future situation and direction of the Xuanhuang Great World, directly affecting the vital interests and fate of the major sects and the countless Free Cultivators.

Everyone, of course, places great importance on it.

Of course, aside from a few scheming individuals, everyone in Linglong Blessed Land, the Star Lords and members of the Star Gate, as well as Prince Zi Yi—who has been brought to Linglong Blessed Land to become the true‑line Xuan Emperor—Xiao Gangzi of the Heaven Dao Hall, Fang Han, Long Xuan and others, all hope Chen Zheng wins.

*Sizzle! *

Under the gaze of ten‑thousands, the sky above Linglong Blessed Land is torn open by an invisible giant hand, revealing a bottomless, abyss‑like black fissure.

*Swish swish swish! *

Twelve towering human silhouettes stride out together from the fissure, hovering at the Linglong Blessed Land mountain gate; each exudes world‑shaking aura, deep as an ocean, as tall as a deity, coldly gazing down upon everyone inside Linglong Blessed Land.

These twelve are all Seventh‑Level Realm Kings of Longevity, equivalent to Nine Tripod Immortal Patriarchs, clearly the Supreme Elders of the Taiyi Sect.

Deploying twelve realm kings at once showcases the Taiyi Sect's depth, far surpassing any other faction.

Such a spectacular display also silences the arena, creating a heavy, pre‑storm atmosphere.

Numerous lower‑rank cultivators can barely catch their breath.

"Please, Supreme Master…"

Upon their entrance, the twelve instantly subdued everyone; a gleam of triumph flashed in their eyes before they all turned toward the fissure and shouted, as if to welcome the Xuanhuang Co‑Lord.

Yet, midway through their chant, an ill‑timed angry rebuke cut them off: "Who just howled like a mad dog, claiming we're kneeling to welcome your Taiyi Sect Master?"

The one scolding was Prince Zi Yi.

His hair bristling in fury, he strode out of the crowd, glaring at the twelve Taiyi Sect realm kings above as if viewing a group of ten‑times‑unforgivable criminals.

Many were startled, not expecting Prince Zi Yi to dare step forward and rebuke the Taiyi Sect.

How could a mere prince of the Great Xuan Empire muster the courage to scold a band of realm kings?

Aren't you afraid of death?

The Xuan Emperor was also taken aback.

Is my own son truly this brave, reaching the Tian‑Ren realm… no, daring, as an ancient titan, to rebuke beings whose cultivation surpasses him by several levels?

Moreover, strictly speaking, the Great Xuan Empire is merely a nominal vassal of the Taiyi Sect, so Prince Zi Yi's act is tantamount to a servant rebuking his master.

What audacity!

"Among my more than eighty‑thousand offspring, only Yi‑Er resembles me in my youth, and he is the son I am most proud of in my entire life."

After the initial shock, the Xuan Emperor's gaze toward Prince Zi Yi softened, showing both satisfaction and emotion.

"This child is the lifelong enemy of both my father and me!"

In the crowd on the other side, Jin Rilie also stared at Prince Zi Yi from afar, his aged eyes revealing unprecedented gravity.

He still recalled that back on the Five Elements Land, when Chen Zheng slew over four hundred true‑line disciples of the Taiyi Sect, both he and Prince Zi Yi flattered Chen Zheng at the same time, but the latter gained the upper hand.

At that time he already feared Prince Zi Yi, believing he could become a formidable foe to himself and his son.

In hindsight, he still underestimated Prince Zi Yi back then.

This is a terrifying figure that even the two of them together might not be able to suppress.

"Damn it! You detestable Ji Meng Yi, you're already under Immortal Patriarch Chen, so why still contend with me?"

In the crowd on the other side, Ling Xiao's eyes were blood‑shot as he stared fiercely at Prince Zi Yi, his steel teeth clenched so hard they were about to shatter, spitting blood.

He had originally mustered his courage to step forward and rebuke the Taiyi Sect members, hoping to flatter Chen Zheng and secure a chance to rise above others.

Yet, lingering fear of the Taiyi Sect and the fact that those twelve were beings akin to the three Ascended Saints made him hesitate.

Little did he know that his hesitation gave Prince Zi Yi—the damned scoundrel—a chance to seize the initiative.

This left him both jealous and resentful toward Prince Zi Yi.

He also cursed himself for hesitating; had he known, he should have leapt out and fiercely berated the twelve Taiyi Sect realm kings.

Perhaps he could have outshone Prince Zi Yi, becoming the brightest focus of the arena, even drawing Chen Zheng's gaze down from the Sumeru Golden Summit for a lingering glance.

Then he would truly have ascended effortlessly.

Sigh.

Too bad it's too late now; the opportunity is lost.

As the Xuan Emperor, Jin Rilie, Ling Xiao and others watched Prince Zi Yi's varying thoughts, one towering, whiskered elder among the twelve realm kings above the mountain gate suddenly turned, his fierce gaze locking onto Prince Zi Yi.

As everyone knows, after a Taiyi Sect true‑line disciple reaches the Longevity Secret Realm, the character after their name changes to "Tian," signifying parity with the heavens, e. g., Chi Rong Tian.

Upon attaining the Third Level of Longevity and becoming a Supreme Elder, the character before their name changes to "Tai," such as Tai Yan Tian.

It's no exaggeration to say that a Taiyi Sect member spends their whole life changing names.

As an aside, if Chen Zheng had joined the Taiyi Sect, who knows what his name would be now?

Back to the main topic.

The bearded old man possessed both 'Tai' and 'Heaven', with a 'Zhong' character placed centrally; tens of thousands of years ago he already shocked the three paths of immortals, demons, and monsters, having sent who knows how many demon chiefs and great monsters to their end, making him a figure even more ruthless than the Demon-Slaying Great Immortal Deng Ao.

However, seeing that Prince Yi was merely a lowly fish of the first level of Longevity, he did not immediately flare up, but gave a contemptuous smile: 'I am the Tai Zhongtian. How come, could it be that you are not kneeling to welcome the Supreme Patriarch of my Taiyi Sect? Besides him, who in the world is worthy of your kneeling?'

'I'm disappointing you; we are not kneeling to Tai Huntian, but to the supremely exalted Chen Xianzun.' Prince Yi's expression was respectful as he clasped his hands toward the Sumeru Golden Summit.

Immediately his respectful expression turned to contempt as he glanced sideways at Tai Zhongtian: 'You may lack a mirror, but you surely have urine—why not splash a bit on Tai Huntian to see whether that dog‑like thing is worthy of our kneeling?'

Ha……

On the square, many people wore strange expressions, as if they wanted to laugh but were straining to hold it back.

Even more people were dumbfounded, mouths agape.

Who could have imagined that Prince Yi's gall was so fat, daring to insult the Supreme Patriarch of the number one sect in the world as worse than a pig and dog in front of hundreds of thousands of cultivators?

Too crazy!

This is crazier than a beggar suddenly leaping up to strike the emperor by millions of times, beyond comparison!

It is nothing short of blatant humiliation, rubbing the face of the Taiyi Sect into the ground with vicious force.

One can imagine that the twelve Realm Kings of the Taiyi Sect will surely be thunderously enraged, and will not rest until Prince Yi is slain.

As expected, the eleven Realm Kings abruptly turned their bodies, gazing at Prince Yi with eyes so cold they seemed to want to freeze souls, causing countless people to feel a chill down their spines.

Having long locked onto Prince Yi, Tai Zhongtian exuded a terrifying killing intent that shot straight to the heavens, speaking word by word: 'I have roamed the vast Xuanhuang world for eighty‑four thousand years, and I myself cannot count how many demons and monsters I have slain. Seven thousand years ago I encountered the number one expert of the Demonic Path, the Yellow Springs Great Emperor, and fought him for thirty thousand moves without defeat. Three thousand years ago I led the masses to besiege the traitor Linglong, enduring a strike from Sumeru Golden Mountain and yet not dying! Who would have thought that in just three thousand years, a mere ant newly entered the Longevity Secret Realm would dare to act arrogantly before me? Because of your arrogance, I will personally put an end to you!'

Boom—

Tai Zhongtian reached out with a big hand; between his palm and fingers emanated a vast disaster‑qi that pierced heaven and earth, shattered the void, and bore down on Prince Yi.

'Yi'er!'

The Xuan Emperor's face changed color; he hurriedly stepped forward, though far from being a match for Tai Zhongtian, he still wished to block that terrifying strike for Prince Yi and protect his son.

But someone was faster than him—Chen Zheng standing on the mountain peak, his expression blank, he raised a hand and pointed at Tai Zhongtian, uttering a voice devoid of any emotion: 'Kneel.'

As soon as the words fell, something incomprehensible to everyone happened once again.

All that could be seen was Tai Zhongtian, who was about to seize Prince Yi with a single grasp, kneeling rigidly in midair.

Upon seeing this, the square fell silent, not even a sparrow's chirp.

The Star Sovereign, the Xuan Emperor, the Heavenly Dao Dharma King and everyone else were speechless, also feeling a lingering fear.

Tai Zhongtian's kneeling made them recall the earlier scene when, upon seeing Chen Zheng, they themselves had uncontrollably buckled their knees and knelt, being dominated by him.

Too terrifying.

Also too unbelievable.

Especially Tai Zhongtian himself found it hardest to believe, he roared hoarsely: 'I… I knelt? I am a mighty Realm King expert; how could I ever kneel to someone? No, impossible! Make me stand, stand up!'

He simply did not understand what was happening.

Just now, upon hearing Chen Zheng utter the two words 'kneel,' even before the thought of resistance arose in his mind, his knees acted as if they had independent will and decided for him.

He also saw no divine ability displayed by Chen Zheng, nor any fluctuation of magical power on his person; just those two simple words were spoken, and he knelt.

Even after kneeling, no matter how he howled or exerted all his strength, he could not rise.

So what exactly is this divine ability, or the Three Thousand Great Dao, or perhaps a curse?

It seems like none of those.

The more he thought about it, the stranger it seemed, and he even temporarily forgot the humiliation and anger of kneeling.

Not only him, the eleven Realm Kings beside him also felt it strange, gazing at him with incredulous eyes.

Moreover, two people, one on the left and one on the right, supported Tai Zhongtian, trying to prop him up to stand, but all failed.

They were all antiquities who had lived for tens of thousands of years, with keen insight; they knew virtually any divine ability or curse inside out, and could recognize any means at a glance.

But now, no matter who, they could not see how Chen Zheng had made his move.

And by what means could he make Tai Zhongtian kneel?

Could it be that the two words 'kneel' uttered by Chen Zheng contain the most mysterious and unfathomable truth of 'kneeling' between heaven and earth, such that he can make anyone kneel at will?

'We must leave; Old Demon Chen cannot be matched by force, we need to ask the Supreme Patriarch to act personally!'

The eleven Realm Kings all felt their scalps go numb; they no longer bothered with the kneeling Tai Zhongtian, turning and fleeing one after another into the great rift they had just emerged from.

'Wait for me… huh? It turns out I can move?'

Tai Zhongtian kneeling in the void, seeing himself about to be abandoned, shouted anxiously and struggled desperately, only to discover that besides his legs being immobile, his upper body could still move freely.

His magical power was also not restricted.

Overjoyed, he hastily released his magical power, dragging his lower half as he pursued the eleven Realm Kings.

But just then, Chen Zheng standing on the Sumeru Golden Summit spoke again: 'You too, kneel.'

Plop, plop… the sounds of knees striking the void rang out, and the eleven Realm Kings who were about to enter the great rift all knelt down.

Eleven of them were both shocked and angry, yet they also knew they were no match for Chen Zheng; unwilling to lose face, they did not stop flying, still heading toward the great rift.

This is an extraordinarily fantastical sight, rare even throughout all the heavens and myriad worlds; the twelve Realm Kings all flew while kneeling, causing millions within the Linglong Blessed Land to stare wide‑eyed.

Even the Linglong Immortal Sovereign could not help but twitch the corner of his eye, yet he concealed it well, so Chen Zheng did not notice.

'Old Demon Chen, you deserve to die!'

A roar of extreme anger burst from the great rift, like rolling thunderclaps, deafening.

Immediately afterward, a colossal divine throne appeared in the pitch‑black great rift; seated upon it was a middle‑aged man clad in ancient Daoist robes, his bearing stern, like a Nine‑Heavens Immortal Emperor descending to the mortal world, with deep eyes blazing with heavenly‑shaking fury, as if he wished to burn away all existence—this was precisely the Supreme Patriarch of the Taiyi Sect, Tai Huntian.

Above his head hovered a massive black hole that rose and fell unpredictably, exhaling boundless disaster‑qi that shook heaven and earth, causing the stars in the sky to tremble.

'Tai Huntian has advanced to the Chaos Void Realm!'

Many people gasped in horror, recognizing that the black hole above Tai Huntian's head was precisely the Chaos Void that only cultivators of the eighth level of Longevity possess.

'Patriarch, quickly save us and eradicate Old Demon Chen!' Tai Zhongtian and the others, as if grasping a lifeline, shouted loudly for help toward Tai Huntian.

Tai Huntian would surely be able to counter Chen Zheng's strange means and make them stand again.

You are the one who should die, kneel.

At the summit of Sumeru, Chen Zheng raised his hand and pointed at Tai Hun Tian; in an instant Tai Hun Tian fell from the divine throne, crashing and kneeling in the void.

Wha… what?

The momentum of the Twelve Great Realm Kings' flight abruptly halted, and they knelt opposite Tai Hun Tian, frozen in the void.

The people within the Exquisite Blessed Land were also stunned, not expecting that even Tai Hun Tian's ascent to the Mixed Cave Realm was not a match for Chen Zheng, yet he still had to kneel.

"Master, save me!"

Tai Hun Tian shouted for help loudly, his previously domineering bearing gone, like a bereaved dog.

Boom!

As his words fell, heaven and earth seemed to be struck by some terrifying thing, shuddering violently, the boundless void shattering like broken glass.

Even the firmament dimmed, the sun's brilliance vanished, replaced by endless gloom, as if a single hand had covered the radiant great sun in the sky, plunging the Xuanhuang Great World into eternal absolute silence.

Indeed it was a hand, a supergiant hand that dominated the heavens, pressing down the ten directions and the five elements, overturning the yin and yang of the universe, pushing forward like a massive pillar that supports the sky and never collapses, and it seized Tai Hun Tian and the Twelve Realm Kings.

Faintly visible, the owner of that massive hand was a man clad in imperial robes, his age indeterminate between youth and middle age, posture upright and towering, as if he stood upon all universes, the sole deity ruling over the vast earth.

"Tai… Tai Huang Tian!"

Star Lords, the Mysterious Emperor, Heaven Dao Kings and other cultivators of profound attainment were all startled pale at the sight of the man in imperial robes.

Because he was the First Patriarch Tai Huang Tian of the Taiyi Sect, the absolute overlord who has ruled the endless ages of the Xuanhuang Great World, and he had personally descended.

"You are no match for Tai Huang Tian; let me handle it." Sumeru Golden Summit, Linglong Immortal Lord, whose bearing was exquisite, smiled lightly and said.

Chen Zheng whispered, "No, let me."

"Hm?" Linglong Immortal Lord was slightly startled, turned his head toward him, as if he hadn't heard clearly.

Chen Zheng said nothing, merely raised his finger and pointed at Tai Huang Tian, like the supreme Immortal King standing atop the thirty‑three heavens, and issued the command, "You, kneel."

(End of Chapter)