Chapter 232: The Path to Immortality! Who Is Number One Beneath the Heavenly Monarch?

Arrogant brat!

On the ancient warship, Dou Zhan saw Chen Zheng not only proclaiming that he would let himself go down to accompany his son Dou Xuanjing in burial, but even daring to launch a fierce attack, his palm power surging like a flood, intending to directly suppress and kill him, he couldn't help but glare with wide eyes.

Born to dominate his generation, he had roamed the Three Thousand Great Worlds for 470,000 years, having seen countless heavenly pride figures, yet he had never seen such an arrogant and overconfident lot.

A mere Fourth Level of Longevity dares to strike this immortal? It's nothing but a mayfly trying to shake a tree.

No, it's a delusional attempt to shake the heavens.

Immortals are the heavens of the Three Thousand Great Worlds!

He wanted to see how Chen Zheng would shake the heavens.

Boom—

Dou Zhan moved, his Dou Zhan robe cracking loudly, his stature soaring without limit, pointing to heaven and stepping on earth, like the sole true god between heaven and earth, his massive arm sweeping across the sky, his huge iron fist rising straight to the Nine Heavens, horizontally striking Chen Zheng's descending palm.

As this punch was thrown, a point of light slowly rose from his fist, illuminating the ten directions and five elements, just like the first ray of light that suddenly appeared in the vast chaos before the primordial Hongmeng was divided.

The light that brings vitality to all things.

Light capable of creating worlds!

Once the light appeared, Dou Zhan's fist seemed to turn into a chicken egg nurturing life.

The chicken egg was indeed nurturing life; more precisely, it was nurturing a universe, for within it were born as many suns, moons, and stars as the sands of the Ganges.

Countless stars formed one galaxy after another, identical to the galaxies in the external universe, with nearly the same number, reaching hundreds of millions of billions.

Even within the chicken-egg universe there existed many parallel spaces, inhabited by countless billions of living beings.

"A universe! My heavens, His Majesty Dou Zhan actually punched out a universe with a single strike!"

"Is this the mighty power of an Immortal-level expert? Terrifying, utterly terrifying!"

Many were terrified by Dou Zhan's fearsome means, their scalps going numb as they let out hoarse screams.

Even Taihuang Tian, Yi Yuan Gou, and Yao Wu Ming couldn't help but tremble all over, faces filled with longing.

For Heavenly Immortals like them, their greatest pursuit is to achieve the Immortal Realm of the Second Level of the Immortal's Secret Realm, condensing their own second universe, at which point a mere gesture would wield universal power—who could resist?

It is said that some powerful Immortals can give birth to several, even dozens, of universes with a single thought.

Who in the world could withstand a blow from dozens of universes?

No one.

At least the people of the Taiyi Sect, Da Yi Sect, Yaoshen Valley, and Dou Shen Empire present all thought so.

Thus Chen Zheng was like an egg striking a stone, about to be turned to ash by Dou Zhan's single punch, paying with his life for his overreach.

Good.

Excellent!

The people of the Dou Shen Empire had already prepared to cheer for Dou Zhan.

But they were obviously overthinking.

Dou Zhan was merely an early-stage Immortal, while Chen Zheng had just advanced to the Fourth Level of Longevity, his combat power comparable to that of an Immortal.

The two were actually evenly matched.

But Chen Zheng unleashed the Wanjie Bu Fu technique, which far surpassed Dou Zhan, easily crushing him.

Sure enough, the moment Chen Zheng's palm met Dou Zhan's fist, the various calamity characters in his palm began to spin wildly, like a drill boring fiercely into Dou Zhan's fist.

With a bang, the universe on Dou Zhan's fist instantly shattered, everything within—every star—reduced to nothing.

The great hand fell without cease, five fingers forming a clutch, directly seizing Dou Zhan's heavenly spirit cover, then twisting.

Crack!

Without a doubt, Chen Zheng wrenched Dou Zhan's head off, blood spurting from the severed neck, drenching the starry sky as a torrential blood rain fell across the universe.

Tragic!

This scene was too tragic, shocking everyone.

"What... how could His Majesty Dou Zhan possibly have his head twisted off by Chen Zheng?!" The people of Tai Xu Tian, Tai He Tian, and the three great forces instantly had their eyes bulge, their eyeballs almost popping out.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty!" The people of the Dou Shen Empire who had just prepared to cheer stared at the headless Dou Zhan and cried out in shock, unable to accept this result.

"How could this be? Dou Zhan is an Immortal, an Immortal! What strength does Chen Zheng possess?!" Taihuang Tian, Yi Yuan Gou, and Yao Wu Ming all let out incredulous howls.

At the same time they all felt a chill on their necks, retreating repeatedly in fear, lest Chen Zheng also twist off their heads.

"He has actually reached such a point, even immortals can be defeated, I… I…" Linglong Xianzun gazed upon Chen Zheng's demonic god-like figure in the heavens, her beautiful eyes losing focus.

This remarkable woman, who had attained Heavenly Immortality in just four thousand years, was always proud and lofty, yet suddenly felt a deep sense of helplessness.

Although Chen Zheng had once defied heaven, in her view he was still quite weak; back in the Qun Xing Men, she had even thrown back a strand of hair from the Zu Ma Great World to help Chen Zheng repel the Tai Hun Tian.

Later Chen Zheng caught up to her and possessed the miraculous means to make Taihuang Tian kneel, even covering and destroying the Wuji Star Palace with a single hand, faintly surpassing her; yet at that time she also obtained a Wuji Sharira, entered the Hunyuan Wuji Diagram to accelerate her seclusion, and in a short time attained the Heavenly Immortal Realm, her strength likewise undergoing an earth-shaking change.

Upon leaving seclusion, she brimmed with confidence, believing she was not inferior to Chen Zheng, even wanting to surpass him considerably, which prompted her to declare she would single-handedly fight the Three Great Heavenly Immortals.

Who would have known that before her battle with the Three Great Heavenly Immortals even ended, Chen Zheng gave her a tremendous "surprise".

Her combat power had actually reached the Immortal level.

Moreover, it completely crushed Immortals.

In a single encounter, he severed Dou Zhan's head.

How ferocious!

How tyrannical!

Utterly chaotic.

Can such a heaven-defying existence truly be caught up to?

I fear there will never be a chance, even for eternity…

If this continues, she will only be flung farther and farther by Chen Zheng until she can no longer be seen in the distance.

No, impossible! This Emperor has hacked through thorns and brambles to reach today; the annals of ten thousand ages cannot record this Emperor's glorious deeds! This Emperor will still defeat the Central Great Emperor, and will never be defeated by a hairbrat like you! Battle spear, kill!

From the headless body of Dou Zhan came a heaven-shaking roar, deafening, and a new head sprouted from the severed neck; a pair of tiger eyes stared fixedly at Chen Zheng, shooting out ten quadrillion strands of battle intent that transformed into weapons, advancing irresistibly, shattering heaven and earth, fiercely slashing toward Chen Zheng.

He launched an unparalleled counterattack, hoping to reverse the situation in one fell swoop and kill Chen Zheng.

"It's useless; you're pitifully weak before me. However, your cultivation is not bad—you can become my nourishment."

Chen Zheng showed no reaction, utterly indifferent to Dou Zhan's any counterattack; after refining Dou Zhan's head, he slapped his palm and unleashed Myriad Calamities Irreversible again, like a calamity mountain striking the ancient heavens, scattering Dou Zhan's offensive into smoke, then seized the whole person in his hand, crushing him until his body crackled and exploded, blood spurting wildly.

Even the laws within Dou Zhan's body were crushed, leaving the spectators feeling chilled to the bone.

"I am the pinnacle of existence in all heavens and myriad worlds; my laws and power are exceedingly tough—how could you possibly break them, how could I possibly lose? I never admit defeat!" Dou Zhan roared, struggling madly.

"Losing is losing; where does all this nonsense come from?" Chen Zheng shook his head, rolling true fire into Dou Zhan's body, burning his flesh, mana, and shattered laws, turning them into essence that flowed out and was absorbed by him, boosting his cultivation.

"Chen Zheng, you'll never make me submit; if you have the guts, release me and let us fight another three thousand rounds, otherwise I won't yield even in death! And if you dare kill me, the War God Clan of the Immortal Realm will sense it and send immortal envoys down to kill you—wise ones, release me quickly!" Dou Zhan held his neck high, sneering, his will terrifyingly tenacious.

Others facing such a deadly situation would have long begged for mercy, but he not only refused to yield, he also threatened Chen Zheng, earning the admiration of countless spectators who secretly thought he deserved the title of a generation's War Immortal, an ancient being who has warred across heaven and earth for hundreds of thousands of years.

"Is that so?"

Chen Zheng gave a cold smile, and the character "pain" flew from his hand, instantly entering Dou Zhan's body.

"Ah, it hurts! Ah, I submit, I submit! I'm willing to be your most loyal dog—stop, don't torture me anymore, ah!"

Dou Zhan, who had been incredibly arrogant, instantly had his face twist; he spat white foam and screamed miserably, like a boar being humiliated.

"What did Chen Zheng do? How could this be? That's the Dou Zhan Majesty who fears not even death!" The onlookers gaped.

"Run!"

Tai Huang Tian saw Dou Zhan's miserable state, felt a chill, and shouted at Tai Xu Tian and the others still in a dazed condition, urging everyone to leave and return to the Supreme Unity Gate.

"This person is practically a devil—retreat quickly!"

Yi Yuan Gou, Yao Wu Ming, and the others likewise turned pale with shock, leading their forces in repeated retreats.

The ten True Immortals and two Heavenly Immortals of the War God Empire panicked, scattering like birds and beasts, fleeing outward from the warship.

Chen Zheng was too strong, his methods too strange, with no match in power; the only option was to flee quickly, escaping the Xuan Huang Great World, perhaps still surviving.

Boom—

However, before they had gone far, Chen Zheng's big hand suddenly came down.

"Ah!"

A figure clad in full armor, wearing a white jade belt and a silver shawl—the Heavenly Immortal Dou Zhen She of the War God Empire—was the first to be struck, flattened into a meat patty, instantly turned into essence by the true fire in his palm and sucked in, like a mud cow entering the sea without a bubble.

"Old Imperial Uncle Dou Zhen She is dead; we're done for."

"Chen Zheng, I, Yao Shui, have no grudge against you; I was tricked by Yao Wu Ming—please spare my life…"

"Chen Zheng, if you kill me, you'll offend both the Disaster Heavenly Monarch and the Eternal Heavenly Monarch of the Immortal Realm! Even the Immortal Envoy Yan from the Supreme Unity Gate who came to the mortal world won't let you off!"

"Eternal Divine Furnace, save me!"

Seeing a Heavenly Immortal instantly die miserably, the fleeing crowd was terrified to the point of liver and gall bursting, some begging loudly, others on the verge of collapse.

Tai Huang Tian once again sent a plea for help to the Eternal Divine Furnace, but received no reply.

Bang bang bang!

Chen Zheng's palm struck repeatedly, each hit on a person from the four major forces producing a cracking sound that was a death knell, signifying the fall of a great figure who roamed heaven and earth, his soul utterly annihilated, all glory returning to nothing.

In an instant, the elite of the War God Empire, Supreme Unity Gate, Medicine God Valley, and Great Yi Sect were basically wiped out.

The reason I say 'basically' is that Tai Huang Tian, Tai Xu Tian, Tai He Tian, Yi Yuan Gou, and Yao Wu Ming were not killed by him; like Dou Zhan, they were captured instead.

These five had previously acted offensively outside the Ling Long Blessed Land; killing them outright would be too cheap—they should be kept to suffer harsh torment alongside Dou Zhan and Mu Ye Yuan, who was imprisoned by the main body.

Swish!

Chen Zheng flicked his finger, sending a "pain" character into each of the five persons' bodies.

"Ah…"

Yi Yuan Gou and Yao Wu Ming cried out in pain like calling for their parents, while Tai Xu Tian and Tai He Tian rolled on the ground like mad dogs, completely losing any semblance of the Supreme Unity Gate Patriarch's dignity.

It was truly too painful.

They finally understood Dou Zhan.

Under such pain, even a person with the most resolute Dao heart could not endure a single breath.

"Master Chen Zheng, I was wrong, I confess, I'm willing to do anything for you—please spare me. Immortal Master Ling Long, for the sake of our past teacher-student bond, plead with Master Chen Zheng to spare me this once, and I will gladly take you as my master."

Tai Huang Tian was in such agony he wished for death, weakly trembling as he crawled to Chen Zheng's feet, tears and snot streaming, repenting his past sins.

This ever-defiant Patriarch of the Supreme Unity Gate, under the "pain" character, finally lowered his proud head like a lapdog.

Even he began to implore Immortal Master Ling Long, hoping she would intercede for him with Chen Zheng.

"Dream on." Immortal Master Ling Long replied with a cold smile.

Tai Huang Tian fell into despair.

"Prepare to suffer pain for the rest of your lives." Chen Zheng waved his hand, sealing the five anguished and desperate individuals together with Dou Zhan inside a Dao artifact space on his person, imprisoning them.

After doing all this, he returned to the main hall on Righteous Qi Peak and sat upon the throne.

"My lord, you are so mighty!"

Jia Lan, along with Yan Shui Yi, Yun Yun, and Yun Jin who had already come out of the inner chambers upon hearing the battle's noise, flung themselves onto him like four beautiful serpents, gazing at him with admiration.

"I have something very important to tell you." Immortal Master Ling Long took a deep breath, entered the hall, and said to Chen Zheng:

She frowned again, glancing at the four women clinging to Chen Zheng, feeling that too many people made it awkward to speak.

"You go rest first." Chen Zheng's eyes flashed, seeming to know what she wanted to say, so he gestured for Yun Yun and the other women to withdraw.

The four women nodded obediently and left the hall.

Immortal Master Ling Long waved her hand to conjure a barrier covering the entire hall, then approached Chen Zheng and said solemnly, "Have you heard of the Hong Meng Secret Trove?"

Chen Zheng replied interestedly, "Isn't that the treasure left by the Hong Meng Daoist? Your Great Wish Technique must have been obtained from there."

"Not bad."

The Exquisite Immortal Venerable nodded, as if falling into distant memories: 'Back then, I entered the Primordial Chaos Secret Trove by a fortunate coincidence, but I leaked the news, which became known to the Supreme Imperial Heaven and others, attracting covetousness; they forced me to hand over the treasure to the sect, leading to the subsequent events, including my defection from the Supreme Unity Sect and so on. However, what I entered back then was only the outer periphery of the Primordial Chaos Secret Trove; I did not enter the treasury. Moreover, according to the information I obtained, the treasury likely contains a passage to the Immortal Realm, and the true Primordial Chaos Secret Trove is also in the Immortal Realm.'

Chen Zheng exclaimed in surprise, "This is your biggest secret; aren't you afraid I'll seize it?"

The Hongmeng Secret Treasury is no ordinary thing; it is a treasure left by the Hongmeng Daoist for the Linglong Immortal Venerable, this "daughter." The treasury itself is a divine artifact of the myriad heavens, containing various terrifying immortal implements that even Immortal Realm beings drool over, even the "Heavenly Pulse"—if one absorbs and refines it, they can soar in the Immortal Realm and become the foremost beneath the Heavenly Monarch.

The Linglong Immortal Venerable actually seemed intent on telling him the secret of this treasury, which naturally moved him.

"For you, a Hongmeng Secret Treasury actually amounts to nothing, but I think you surely need it now." The Linglong Immortal Venerable shook her head, gazing quietly into his eyes: "And I tell you this because I want to share the treasury's treasure with you, helping you swiftly reach the pinnacle of the Immortal Path."

Just now Chen Zheng displayed great might; she was deeply shaken yet also came to understand that she need not compare herself to someone like Chen Zheng, nor overthink things—she simply needed to seize this affinity.

Chen Zheng stood up and met her gaze, solemnly saying, "Good, I will surely not let you down in the future."

"Having you say that is enough."

The Linglong Immortal Venerable smiled enchantingly, pointed at the ground, and spoke astonishingly: "Actually, the entrance to the Hongmeng Secret Treasury lies in a certain spacetime underground; I came here years ago to establish the Linglong Blessed Land precisely for this reason. But back then I could not enter the treasury's interior; now, having become a Heavenly Immortal, I should be qualified. Come, I'll take you there." (End of chapter)