Chapter 398: The Law of the Present World and the Regicide! (Requesting Monthly Votes)

Inside the imperial palace, as Emperor Gan'an's spiritual essence was obliterated into nothingness, Xu Jin finally let out a long breath.

Instantly, Xu Jin turned his head toward the blood-red dragon shadow trapping the Nine Sheng Bells and the main tower of Zhaixing Tower above Wanyi.

The blood-red dragon shadow above the Nine Sheng Bells and the main tower of Zhaixing Tower began to crumble piece by piece.

The next instant, Xu Jin saw the Nine Sheng Bells return to the Grand Master's hand, and the main tower of Zhaixing Tower once again shimmered with brilliant starlight.

Xu Jin fully relaxed.

His mission was complete.

With these two supreme treasures in hand, the Grand Master was surely now invincible.

As for joining the battle?

Xu Jin wasn't foolish!

Combat between eighth-rank cultivators was far beyond his current capacity to join, let alone combat between top-tier eighth-rank cultivators.

In a battle between top-tier eighth-rank cultivators, ordinary cultivators would merely become pulp in the flesh-grinding mill.

Now, Xu Jin could safely gather the spoils—Emperor Gan'an's belongings must be plentiful.

And he had to move quickly.

The eighth-rank elder attendant had surely noticed the disturbance in the palace and was likely entangled by the Grand Master's arrangements, but could return at any moment, so Xu Jin had to hurry.

As Xu Jin turned back, he sensed an eighth-rank aura surging out from the main tower of Zhaixing Tower.

Seeing this, Xu Jin grew even more at ease.

This must be Peng Lao breaking through.

In an instant, Xu Jin's vast spiritual soul force had already woven a dense net, enveloping the entire area of dozens of meters around where Emperor Gan'an had been obliterated.

Emperor Gan'an's body must have contained valuable items.

The next instant, Xu Jin detected several familiar auras—the largest being a dull yellow glow.

Celestial and Terrestrial Star Will.

There were eleven fragments of Earth-element Celestial and Terrestrial Star Will, plus two to five fragments each of Fire, Wood, Water, and Wind elements.

Emperor Gan'an was the ruler of Chen Guo, and all generals dispatched to the Star River Battlefield were his subjects.

Such a quantity of Celestial and Terrestrial Star Will was entirely normal.

But for Xu Jin now, the harvest wasn't significant—he barely glanced over them, realizing at least half of these fragments duplicated those already in his possession.

Suddenly, Xu Jin's Zhaixing Token trembled slightly, and a faintly yellow-glowing Zhaixing Token surfaced from the spot where Emperor Gan'an had been slain.

On this faintly yellow-glowing Zhaixing Token rested a swirling mass of bright yellow energy.

Xu Jin's heart leapt—he instantly suspected its nature.

This was almost certainly the Authority of the Present World—or a fusion of Present World Law and Authority.

It was not unusual for an emperor to possess the Authority of the Present World.

When Xu Jin tried to retrieve it with his spiritual soul net, he couldn't pull it back?

Xu Jin was startled.

He exerted all his spiritual soul power—and still couldn't move it!

This thing was rooted in place, utterly immovable.

After a brief pause, Xu Jin activated his own Zhaixing Token.

Precisely, he activated the Silver-Rank Authority within his Zhaixing Token.

Instantly, the faintly yellow-glowing Zhaixing Token was drawn as if by invisible threads, flying straight into Xu Jin's hand.

But the suspected Present World Law Authority—the starlight—remained unmoved.

Soon, Xu Jin realized the truth: it wasn't that he couldn't retrieve it.

It required cultivation and assimilation.

His spiritual soul force could slowly seep into it.

He guessed it needed full assimilation before it could be drawn into his body.

But the eighth-rank elder attendant could return at any moment.

Assimilating Celestial and Terrestrial Star Will took about fifteen minutes—this higher-tier Law Authority would be far more demanding.

Suddenly, Xu Jin had an idea—he directly activated the seven Law Stars on the Can Dou Platform.

He projected their power outward, and in an instant, the Present World Law Authority was jolted loose, snatched back by his spiritual soul force.

Without hesitation, Xu Jin sealed it into his Numinous Space—this was not the time for assimilation.

He gestured, and Lei Guang shot out, retrieving the Seven-Star Spirit Artifact, the Yellow Dragon Sword, he had previously severed.

As for the State Seal, it had fallen farther away.

Just as he moved to retrieve it, unidentifiable palace guards and eunuchs rushed toward him.

These were either fools or fanatical loyalists; the sharp-eyed had already fled, avoiding the scene entirely.

Xu Jin casually obliterated a few, scattering the rest in terror.

Just as he prepared to claim the State Seal, he sensed the spiritual imprint of Emperor Gan'an's Numinous Space.

It lay just ahead, not far.

He cautiously extended his spiritual soul force to gently draw out Emperor Gan'an's Numinous Space.

The State Seal could wait a moment longer.

It wasn't that Xu Jin had no interest in the State Seal.

On the contrary, he had been deeply eager before.

But now, the State Seal had been struck twice by massive waves of Nine Heaven Thunder Rhythm's Bing Fire Thunder—its starlight was gone, its surface riddled with fine cracks.

It was barely holding together.

Xu Jin felt he had nearly destroyed half of it himself.

So he wasn't in a hurry anymore.

Instead, Emperor Gan'an's personal Numinous Space filled him with anticipation—it was the private collection of a nation's sovereign!

As he slowly drew it out, his spiritual sense swept over Emperor Gan'an's corpse—the Seven-Star Spirit Armor that had blocked his attack was now mostly destroyed.

Around Emperor Gan'an's chest hung a jade pendant—likely a Star Artifact—but it had already shattered, somehow.

Probably a defensive item.

Two breaths later, Emperor Gan'an's Numinous Space was slowly drawn out by Xu Jin.

It was small—only two or three cubic meters, much smaller than Xu Jin's own.

Yet the moment his spiritual sense penetrated it, his eyes lit up with delight.

Seven-Star Spirit Artifact.

A single scan revealed one Seven-Star Spirit Artifact.

But in that very moment of Xu Jin's elation, a terrifying aura suddenly appeared on the square before the imperial palace's main hall.

As if materializing from thin air.

The instant it appeared, Xu Jin sensed it.

Since slaying Emperor Gan'an, Xu Jin had kept his Mingji Star Pattern fully activated.

Every movement within two kilometers escaped his perception.

Even beyond two kilometers, he could sense disturbances.

The moment this aura appeared, every hair on Xu Jin's body stood on end.

Eighth-rank!

And a peak eighth-rank aura.

Stronger than the elder attendant, stronger even than the Grand Master.

Xu Jin had no time to wonder who it was—he had only one path now.

Flee!

He must escape the palace immediately.

An eighth-rank, especially a peak eighth-rank, was beyond his capacity to resist.

The next instant, Xu Jin unleashed all his spiritual soul force, swiftly pulling out Emperor Gan'an's Numinous Space.

But the moment he fully activated his spiritual soul power, the newly arrived eighth-rank cultivator noticed him—and instantly lunged toward Xu Jin.

In the Wanyi Patrol Star Guard camp, the elder attendant, sensing Emperor Gan'an's death, collapsed to the ground, weeping uncontrollably.

But the next instant, his star power erupted violently—he sought to flee.

Yet Grand Commander Pei Ze, having witnessed too many schemes and deceptions, would not be fooled by this trick.

His left hand channeled his own power, his right hand channeled the combined force of the Patrol Star Guard generals through the formation—and he thrust upward instantly.

The elder attendant, who had just surged upward, was crushed again by Grand Commander Pei Ze!

"Pei Ze! Are you forcing me to take you down with me?!" the elder attendant roared.

"Perhaps outside the Patrol Star Guard camp—but inside this camp, you cannot!"

Pei Ze sneered, "Elder Attendant, it was you who delivered the imperial decree: play three games of Go!"

Though the elder attendant was furious beyond measure, he had no recourse.

The next instant, a terrifying eighth-rank aura suddenly rose from the distant imperial palace.

It drew the attention of both the elder attendant and Grand Commander Pei Ze.

"Pei Ze! The Emperor has met disaster, and now an unknown eighth-rank has breached the palace! If you don't release me now, you will become Chen Guo's greatest traitor!" the elder attendant bellowed.

Pei Ze hesitated—the Grand Master's orders were still in effect.

Suddenly, Pei Ze saw the Nine Sheng Bells, the national artifact previously trapped by the blood-colored dragon's phantom, and the main tower of Zhaixing Tower both break free, returning under the Grand Master's control and activating at once.

Was there an unknown top-tier eighth-rank cultivator inside the palace?

This was truly an unexpected twist.

There was no time to consult the Grand Master, and what of the battle situation on his end?

As commander of the Star Patrol, Pei Ze had no shortage of ability to make battlefield decisions.

In an instant, Grand Marshal Pei Ze made his decision.

Release them!

We cannot let this unknown eighth-rank ravage the palace.

The Great Chen Imperial Palace is not merely the imperial family's.

It belongs to Great Chen!

In the next instant, as the star energy retracted, the old patron seemed to spring from the ground like a shrimp, instantly transforming into a streak of celestial rainbow that shot toward Wan Yi Imperial Palace.

Grand Marshal Pei Ze hesitated for an instant and did not follow.

Pei Ze had his own thoughts.

If he followed, certain matters might become difficult to handle.

For instance, if he encountered the emperor's assassin, he could not arrest him, nor could he let him go.

And that unknown eighth-rank? His identity was still unclear!

In the next instant, Grand Marshal Pei Ze surged skyward, heading for the battlefield above Wan Yi.

At this moment, aiding the Grand Master was the most appropriate course.

Inside the palace.

Star Lord Tianyang had just appeared within the palace using a directional teleportation seal when he sensed a massive surge of spiritual power fluctuating in one direction.

In an instant, he moved, transforming into a streak of starlight and shooting toward it.

Two to three thousand meters vanished in a single breath.

The moment he arrived, Star Lord Tianyang froze, his expression jolting.

For he saw the corpse of Emperor Gan'an.

The Great Chen emperor's death was horrific.

He had been skewered like a kebab.

A soil spear had pierced through his perineum and drilled straight through his skull.

He died standing upright.

Yet his death pose was utterly gruesome!

At the same time, Star Lord Tianyang saw Xu Jin's back—the back of a man who had just pulled out a Nirmāṇakāya space and was stuffing it full.

Star Lord Tianyang's mind flashed like lightning—he instantly understood.

The emperor's assassin is here!

It is this man!

And this assassin was already collecting Emperor Gan'an's Nirmāṇakāya space.

Emperor Gan'an's Nirmāṇakāya space must contain precious treasures—this assassin must not be allowed to take them.

Moreover, if he captured this assassin, he would hold ironclad evidence—but he could then alter that evidence as he pleased.

Without hesitation, Star Lord Tianyang charged toward the assassin's back, unleashing a torrent of starlight.

He intended to capture this assassin alive!

At this moment, Xu Jin was utterly terrified.

The instant Star Lord Tianyang charged toward him, Xu Jin noticed.

And Xu Jin had only just transferred everything from Emperor Gan'an's Nirmāṇakāya space into his own.

He had barely finished when the top-tier eighth-rank arrived!

Every hair on Xu Jin's body stood on end as his mind raced.

In an instant, he activated one of his contingency plans.

Xu Jin had prepared for the worst-case scenario.

How should he respond if he faced the old patron directly?

Now, he was using the contingency plan for direct confrontation with an eighth-rank old patron.

Facing an eighth-rank cultivator head-on, escape was impossible.

Even using the Chaos Star technique would not work.

Without hesitation, Xu Jin enacted the first step of his plan.

Blood Puppet!

And he activated the Blood Puppet.

In the next instant, Star Lord Tianyang's attack struck Xu Jin.

Though meant to capture alive, the power of this attack—by the world's strongest known eighth-rank—was evident.

Xu Jin's Fish-Screen Golden Bell shattered instantly.

The moment the Fish-Screen Golden Bell broke, a layer of bloodlight enveloped Xu Jin's body.

BOOM!

The bloodlight was shattered by the residual force of Star Lord Tianyang's attack.

At the instant the bloodlight shattered, a strange ripple and a spray of blood erupted.

In Star Lord Tianyang's eyes, the assassin was obliterated into fragments by his single strike.

Star Lord Tianyang was utterly bewildered.

This shouldn't be!

He had held back his attack!

At most, he meant to severely wound this fifth-rank assassin—not kill him.

How could this happen?

Star Lord Tianyang instinctively sensed something was wrong and stepped forward, unleashing a tidal wave of spiritual sense toward the corpse conjured by Xu Jin's Blood Puppet technique.

But at that very moment, a streak of starlight radiating astonishing power was hurtling across Wan Yi's sky, heading toward the palace.

Late-stage eighth-rank!

Another eighth-rank was arriving!

This made Star Lord Tianyang frown—he could guess who it was: likely the palace's old patron.

Great Chen had only two late-stage eighth-ranks: the old patron and Grand Master Cheng Yuexiao.

This annoyed Star Lord Tianyang.

If the old patron arrived, his plan to loot the palace in the chaos would surely be ruined.

Emperor Gan'an's Nirmāṇakāya space treasures had already been taken by the assassin; he had just intended to plunder the palace vaults.

But if the assassin's corpse remained here, the Nirmāṇakāya space could not escape.

Suddenly, Star Lord Tianyang caught sight of the shattered National Jade Seal out of the corner of his eye.

In an instant, his eyes lit up.

This was a precious artifact.

He must seize it first.

With a wave of his hand, Star Lord Tianyang snatched the National Jade Seal.

At that same instant, Xu Jin, who had just teleported a thousand meters away using the Blood Puppet, sensed the arrival of another eighth-rank aura.

Instantly switching to invisibility, he darted away in the opposite direction of Star Lord Tianyang, taking advantage of the distraction.

"Tianyang, how dare you murder our Great Chen emperor!"

At that same moment, seeing Star Lord Tianyang holding the National Jade Seal, the old patron flew into a rage, roaring as he charged toward him.

In an instant, they clashed violently.

The old patron's roar spread across the entirety of Wan Yi in that instant.

It shook the hearts of countless souls!

(End of Chapter)