Chapter 729

He Pingsheng was truly afraid the White Cloud Demon Emperor would cause trouble!

But trouble still arose.

The White Cloud Demon Emperor paid no heed to any of He Pingsheng's words; she stepped forward and appeared directly before Qiao Huizhu's Dharma Body, a hundred zhang away.

The Dharma Body, which had been gazing upward in meditation, suddenly turned its head toward the White Cloud Demon Emperor.

Without a word, Qiao Huizhu swiftly swept her hand, and a green aura of creation transformed into a divine fist, striking toward the White Cloud Demon Emperor.

"Hey…" The White Cloud Demon Emperor was furious: "You start fighting without even speaking?"

"Young disciple, you are extremely… impolite!"

The White Cloud Demon Emperor felt no contempt; she gave her full strength, drawing forth a thick shield that instantly expanded to a thousand zhang in size.

Qiao Huizhu's strike landed squarely upon the shield.

The shield was instantly flung away.

Enormous force surged outward in all directions, reducing hundreds of surrounding buildings to rubble in an instant.

The White Cloud Demon Emperor herself was blasted into the void.

As the White Cloud Demon Emperor struggled to recover, Qiao Huizhu suddenly drew a sword.

Supreme Heaven-Connecting Magic Treasure: Cun Lan!

As Cun Lan emerged, boundless ice-element sword intent surged forth, coalescing into an invisible colossal sword that slashed toward the White Cloud Demon Emperor.

"You dare…" The White Cloud Demon Emperor was livid.

A mere junior disciple dares attack me repeatedly?

Yet this seemingly overwhelming sword aura was no weak force—it covered half the sky, freezing it as if solid ice.

The White Cloud Demon Emperor had no defensive means; she could only retreat at full speed, yet even as she fled, she was wounded by Qiao Huizhu's sword intent.

Puh…

She spat out a mouthful of blood.

Then her figure fell from the sky, landing beside He Pingsheng.

Fortunately, Qiao Huizhu ceased her assault and turned back to gaze into the void, resuming her meditation.

He Pingsheng looked at the White Cloud Demon Emperor and asked: "Elder, how do you feel?"

The White Cloud Demon Emperor's face was pale; she spat out two more mouthfuls of blood before saying: "Who is this person? What realm is she in?"

"Why does she possess such destructive power?"

He Pingsheng gave a bitter smile: "Honestly, I don't know. Before she entered seclusion, she was only Void Refinement Level One. Now, even I can't tell her true level!"

"Puh… puh puh…" The White Cloud Demon Emperor spat out several more mouthfuls of blood, stunned: "I… my realm… has dropped?"

She had fallen from Mahayana Emperor Realm to Body Integration Level Twelve.

This outcome filled her with both grief and rage.

Yet upon seeing the three-thousand-zhang divine body in the distant void, her anger suddenly shattered without cause.

What use is rage if you can't even fight back?

"Let's go!" The White Cloud Demon Emperor grew tired of further words and immediately returned with He Pingsheng to Nan Qiqi's Dao Hall.

"I apologize—my realm has suddenly dropped. I can no longer take you to Tian Gang Emperor Realm!"

"You must go on your own!"

With that, she waved her hand and vanished in a streak of light.

Everyone present was stunned.

What the hell… she just left?

"Why did our Ancestor leave?" Bai Yuyu paced anxiously: "Without her, how do we reach Tian Gang Emperor Realm?"

"Exactly! Even if we wanted to go now, it's too late—Tian Gang Emperor Realm is extremely far. Even by Immortal Ship, it takes at least half a year!"

Everyone grew frantic.

But He Pingsheng was pondering another issue: realm regression.

That was Mahayana Emperor Realm—could Qiao Huizhu really have knocked her down like that?

Just how strong is my sister now?

Of course, there was no need to worry about the White Cloud Demon Emperor's fallen realm.

She had already walked every path once; rising again would be easy, requiring only several years of cultivation.

First, heal her injuries, then she could restore her realm.

Quickly!

But now, because of her fallen realm, she truly could not open a void passage.

The scene was in chaos.

Nan Qiqi turned her pleading gaze to He Pingsheng: "He Daoist, do you have a solution?"

He Pingsheng nodded: "Yes… Qingmei, you step forward!"

He looked toward Zhou Qingmei beside him.

Zhou Qingmei nodded, closed her eyes slightly, and launched a pink fist into the void.

Instantly, a spatial passage opened.

From Zhu Que Emperor Realm to the surroundings of Tian Gang Divine Mountain in Tian Gang Emperor Realm.

"Good heavens… this is a spatial passage?"

"Isn't only Mahayana Emperor Realm capable of opening spatial passages?"

"How can a Body Integration cultivator pierce the void?"

"This elder is incredibly strong!"

All eyes turned toward Zhou Qingmei!

Many who had previously resented He Pingsheng, even plotting private revenge, now regarded him with solemn respect.

For instance, a Body Integration cultivator from the White Tiger Clan.

"Just hold hands!" Zhou Qingmei said. "We enter together—but only thirty people maximum!"

"Let's go!"

Quickly, thirty people formed a line and stepped into the void passage.

After that, it was simple: Zi Qing opened a void passage.

He Pingsheng opened another.

Three void passages together transported everyone to Tian Gang Emperor Realm.

Tian Gang Emperor Realm was no different from other places.

"Over there—look!"

Zhou Qingmei suddenly raised her hand, pointing north.

Everyone turned their heads to look.

He Pingsheng's pupils contracted slightly; he narrowed his eyes and saw a straight line rising vertically from the ground into the heavens in the northern void.

Its height was immeasurable.

It looked like a sword!

Or a needle.

Someone asked: "What is that?"

Nan Qiqi drew a deep breath: "The Heavenly Ladder."

"That is where the Stone Platform Ladder lies."

"Friends, the Stone Platform Mountain and the Stone Platform Gathering will be held beyond the Ladder."

Prince Hu Tianci of the White Tiger Clan could hardly wait: "Then what are we waiting for? Let's hurry over—I've never seen the Heavenly Ladder before, hahaha! I'll climb to the top first, just watch!"

Nan Qiqi said nothing. He Pingsheng said nothing.

But Bai Yuyu of the White Fox Clan sneered: "First, earn the right to climb the Heavenly Ladder!"

These words instantly crushed Hu Tianci's soaring ambition.

Each Emperor Realm sent ten prodigies to compete.

With over ninety Emperor Realms across the entire Tian Huo Continent,

That meant nearly a thousand competitors—but only the top thirty would advance to the final Ladder Ascent.

Hu Tianci's enthusiasm vanished instantly.

"No rush!" Nan Qiqi looked at everyone and said: "Before we proceed, there's one final matter to settle!"

"We must choose a leader!"

The previous leader was the White Cloud Demon Emperor; now that she was gone, we can't remain without one.