Chapter 1637

Boom! Crash!

Amidst a series of roars, the four of them raced past ancient stars, crossing tens of thousands of celestial bodies.

"This is too close to the Emperor's Weapon Tomb—slow down." The Kui Ox growled; though scolding, he did not halt. Though the Emperor Dao formation was powerful, the Emperor Dao suppression was too severe—even with the formation diagram's aid, it still could not sustain them until the Emperor's Weapon Tomb. Fortunately, this confrontation was merely an evolution, not involving killing.

No wonder the Kui Ox has a sharp mind.

If anyone else had been in his place, they might truly have been fooled, but he faced Situ Nan and Zhao Yun—these two were no ordinary sharp minds; the Kui Ox's tricks were spotted at a glance.

"Don't forget you're from Great Chu," the Kui Ox glared at the two.

"Great Chu?" Situ Nan and Zhao Yun both raised an eyebrow. "Elder, which elder's retainer are you?"

"I am..." The Kui Ox froze, uttered a few words, then fell silent. He was an imperial offspring of the Kui Ox clan—not subject to Great Chu—and shouldn't tell them.

"Since you're an elder's retainer, we'll grant you a small favor." Situ Nan and Zhao Yun coughed. "Elder, hurry to the Emperor's Weapon Tomb and rescue your master."

As they spoke, the two subtly turned their heads, glancing at the void.

They urged the Kui Ox to hurry not because they were truly afraid, but because Ming Jue was watching the show, grinning and clucking his tongue more than once.

"You two are quite clever!" Ming Jue sighed, yet he didn't idle—he casually stepped into the Netherworld, not seeking merit, only hoping to mooch meals.

At some point, the three finally stopped.

Far to the north, a crimson star came into view, its interior crackling with lightning and thunder, surging like a sea of bolts.

That crimson star, needless to say, was the ancient star where the Nether Emperor resided, bearing an Emperor Dao altar and Emperor Dao divine punishment.

This sight chilled the hearts of the Kui Ox and the others.

Now, the three were trapped like turtles in a jar. The Emperor's Weapon Tomb lay just across—if they drew within a hundred zhang, they'd be obliterated by Emperor Dao lightning. A single thread of Emperor Dao divine light, a single drop of Emperor blood, was enough to shatter their bodies and souls. This battle was already lost. Even with imperial offspring-level combat power, even if they barely escaped, it would be a pyrrhic victory.

"Gentlemen, my ancestral elder invites you," Ming Jue spoke, smiling lazily as he stroked his beard.

"What?"

"Your ancestral elder invites us?"

The Kui Ox and Ximen Wudi turned their heads in unison, both stunned—not just confused, but eyes wide open. The Netherworld's ancestral elder was inviting them to visit?

This...!

On the other side, Situ Nan and Zhao Yun wore even stranger expressions. They knew Ming Jue was a fool, but not this stupid—to treat an imperial offspring like a monkey?

My ancestral elder invites you? What the hell!

This remark was heard not only by Ximen Wudi and the Kui Ox, but also by Ming Jue himself. His smiling face twitched instantly. Which ear did you hear me say "invite"?

"I've never met you," the Kui Ox said coolly, certain he didn't recognize this fool.

"Doesn't matter—you're going to die anyway," Ming Jue shrugged.

"You seek death." The Kui Ox erupted in fury, slapping Ming Jue aside—but before he could strike, his chest exploded in agony. He'd taken a punch from Ximen Wudi, spewing blood uncontrollably. Only then did he notice: Ming Jue's cultivation had reached the peak of Kongming Realm—fully one rank above him. And that punch's power? Catastrophic.

Puff!

Ximen Wudi thrust out a finger, piercing the Kui Ox's dantian.

Wah!

The Kui Ox groaned, staggered, and stumbled backward.

Puff! Puff! Puff!

What followed was a particularly beautiful scene: Ming Jue and Ximen Wudi attacked in tandem; the Kui Ox had no defense, beaten into a bloody mess. Every wound brought a gush of blood; he could barely stand.

Puff! Puff! Puff!

This was a one-sided massacre—the Kui Ox simply couldn't withstand it.

"I... refuse to accept this!" the Kui Ox roared. A Kui Ox imperial offspring, beaten by two Kongming cultivators—not only was his face lost, he was wounded. If this spread, the world would laugh at him.

"I have a technique specifically for those who refuse," Ming Jue murmured with a sinister smile, slicing off the Kui Ox's left leg.

"I refuse! I refuse!"

"I don't believe it! I don't believe it!"

The Kui Ox's roars echoed across the eight directions, hair wild, face bloodied, his condition utterly horrific. Already covered in deep wounds, he now looked monstrous—sacred bone-blood streamed across his radiant meridians.

Puff! Puff! Puff!

Ximen Wudi's iron rod radiated an overwhelming aura, smashing the Kui Ox's spine—nearly splitting him apart.

Aaah...!

The Kui Ox roared, frantically casting spells, attempting to unleash a forbidden technique—but he failed utterly, unable to even activate it.

"Don't believe it? So what? Why get so angry?" Ming Jue chuckled, swinging his staff. The Kui Ox flew sideways, half his face exploding, his yuan-shen shattered, his origin collapsing along with it.

The Kui Ox bled into the void, his flesh ruptured, his yuan-shen annihilated. As he died, he stared at Ming Jue in disbelief—how could a pseudo-Emperor fall to a mere Kongming cultivator?

He died with eyes wide open, dying in utter frustration—slain in a single glance.

The Kui Ox was dead. The remaining two Kui Oxes showed fear. They glanced once at Ximen Wudi and Ming Jue, then fled into the void. One imperial offspring slain—they dared not linger, harboring not a shred of hope. That was an Emperor Dao killing array—even with Tongtian-level combat power, annihilation was inevitable.

Puff! Puff!

Two spitting sounds, startlingly clear.

Ming Jue and Ximen Wudi had both been ambushed—one pierced through the shoulder by a golden killing sword; the other stabbed through the throat by a battle spear, his yuan-shen erased.

Neither could dodge, neither could resist. Both were pinned to the forest, drenched in blood, eyes bulging, pupils constricted—as if through infinite void, they could see across to the distant Haoyu Heaven, where a hazy figure stood silently.

He was the Emperor Ming Jue spoke of—or rather, an imperial offspring or descendant, named Di Chen, son of the Nether Emperor and elder brother of Di Jue, who had sealed himself for a thousand years.

His ferocity made even Ming Jue and Ximen Wudi's hearts tremble. His eyes were cold, calm as still water, yet radiating an icy annihilation—like ancient winter winds freezing the soul.

The two were terrified. A pseudo-Emperor had reversed and defeated a Kongming cultivator. What concept was this? Who would believe, if not seen with their own eyes, that a pseudo-Emperor imperial offspring could be defeated by a mere Kongming cultivator?

"Do you wish to submit to me?" Ming Jue spoke calmly, not rushing to attack, radiating authority. Though only at the first level of pseudo-Emperor, his aura was so strong it even made Ming Jue wary.

"I..." The Kui Ox opened his mouth, but Ming Jue waved him off. "Do you wish to follow me, when I conquer the Primordial Chaos?"

"Don't… even think about it." The Kui Niu roared, teeth clenched in fury.

"Do you know how you came to this end?" Ming Jue smiled mockingly, his ancient eyes gleaming with deep light as he fixed them on the Kui Niu's. "My father died in Honghuang. It was you who slaughtered Honghuang."

"Bullshit." The Kui Niu shrieked, "Don't smear us with lies. We never slaughtered Honghuang. That was just the Imperial Sons and Daughters playing around—none of our business."

"Do you know why I came to the Netherworld?" Ming Jue asked again.

Hearing this, the Kui Niu froze, silent, his brows knotted. Ming Jue's words sent a chill through him. Not just him—even Ximen Wudi felt unease. Who was the Ming Emperor? A true monster. Even the two of them had only glimpsed the Emperor's Dao imprint from afar.

"You all believe Honghuang was destroyed. Yet, its natives had entered the Netherworld eons ago," Ming Jue said with a sly smile. "They hide within the Yin and Yang Courts, waiting for the chance to awaken."

At these words, both the Kui Niu and Ximen Wudi were stunned, staring at Ming Jue in disbelief. The once-mighty Honghuang had appeared as nothing but shattered ruins—yet its natives had been hiding within? Then, was Honghuang's fall nothing but a lie?

"You—" The Kui Niu bellowed, stepping forward and shattering the heavens.

"Don't rush off," Ming Jue swept his sleeve, snatching up the Kui Niu's corpse and hurling it toward the eastern void—a range of mountains. As the corpse fell, it had withered to dryness, leaving only a faint trace of life.

"Son of a bitch."

The Kui Niu's furious curses echoed through the nine heavens, a wail of despair like a demon's shriek. A mighty Kui Niu, reduced to mere sustenance—what a bitter, twisted fate. A true Sovereign, buried alive in a tomb, at the mercy of others.

Puff! Puff! Puff!

In that instant, the Kui Niu's screams filled countless Xingchen. His flesh, soul, origin, and immortal power surged en masse toward the western void.

Then he dissolved into blood mist—his soul, too, could not escape doom. Before Ximen Wudi and Ming Jue's eyes, he was devoured entirely, dying without understanding why he met such a humiliating end. He was a Sovereign—how could he be so worthless?

"This…?" Ming Jue and Ximen Wudi, watching the void from afar, froze in shock.

"Where did the Kui Niu go?"

1422 Lei Ting boomed.

"He must be utterly annihilated!"

"No." Ming Jue shook his head, scanning all directions. The Kui Niu was truly gone—not a single drop of blood remained. His life-weapon, the Kui Niu Cauldron, vanished in that same instant.

"You… will die." The Kui Niu's roar erupted suddenly, like Lei Ting thundering across heaven and earth.

In that void, a faint human figure appeared. Listening closely, one could hear his words: "I am Ming Chen, son of the Ming Emperor. By my father's command, I've reclaimed your weapon—and returned it to you."

Ming Jue snapped his gaze upward, fixing it on Ming Chen. The latter casually flicked his right arm, tossing out an object. Black radiance flared, bursting into brilliant divine light.

Stasis!

Ming Jue growled, one word sharp as steel. He stepped forward, blocking Ximen Wudi's front.