Heaven-Surpassing Divine Emperor

As soon as Jiang Chen approached the Water Mirror Lotus Platform, he felt an aura of Qingling wash over him.

The sensation went straight to his soul.

It felt like a miraculous Spiritual Spring, a sudden enlightenment that entered his body and nourished his soul.

Jiang Chen’s gaze immediately fell upon the Water Mirror Lotus Platform. In the center of its nine petals was a peculiar scene, like the surface of a mirror.

At this very moment, in the center of the Water Mirror Lotus Platform, transparent Spiritual Snakes were darting back and forth.

Sometimes they would connect head to tail, forming circles that swam endlessly around a central point; other times they would scatter, darting and weaving so chaotically that it was impossible for the eye to follow their trails.

Each transparent Spiritual Snake was incredibly fast.

Even when Jiang Chen stared with intense focus, he could only count a small fraction before his vision blurred.

The Spiritual Snakes were especially difficult to count because they moved without any pattern—sometimes fast, sometimes slow; sometimes scattering, sometimes gathering in a group.

Often, just as he finished counting one group, another would rush in and mix with them, making it impossible to tell them apart again.

"Damn, how am I supposed to count all these?" Jiang Chen rubbed the bridge of his nose, a headache building.

The Black Emperor watched from the side with a smug look, a triumphant grin spreading across his face. "Hahaha, Jiang Chen, you’re about to fail, aren’t you? Do you feel like there’s no hope of succeeding? A lot of time has already passed. If you really can’t figure it out, why don’t you kneel and beg me? I could give you a few pointers, you know!"

Seeing the Black Emperor’s smug expression, Jiang Chen gritted his teeth in anger, shook his fist, and snarled, "If you don’t shut your mouth, I’ll beat you up!"

"..."

The Black Emperor’s face stiffened, and he awkwardly shut his mouth.

’To think that I, the magnificent Lord Black Emperor, supreme throughout the Eight Desolates and Six Harmonies, have fallen to such a state, being bullied like this by a mere boy in the True Martial Realm.’

Dejected, the Black Emperor squatted down and began silently drawing circles on the ground with a resentful look. "He can’t count them. Jiang Chen definitely can’t count them..."

Jiang Chen’s eye twitched as he listened to the Black Emperor’s muttering beside him. ’Damn it, this isn’t going to work. It’s impossible to count them with just my eyes. And the souls of these Void Spirit Snakes are completely uncontrollable; I can’t just make them stop so I can get a headcount. Wait...’

Jiang Chen’s eyes suddenly lit up. ’With my naked eye, they’re just a blur, and they all look identical, so I can’t tell them apart. But if I could find a way to differentiate them, wouldn’t it be simple? These are souls. The only way to distinguish between them is to lock onto them with Divine Thought Power...’

At this thought, an azure-gold light bloomed in Jiang Chen’s eyes. He pushed his Ten Thousand Laws Golden Pupil to its limit, his pupils turning the color of azure-gold, as bright as stars and clearer than amber.

His Divine Thought Power probed into the Water Mirror Lotus Platform.

He locked onto the souls of the Void Spirit Snakes one by one. In his eyes, the Water Mirror Lotus Platform became like a night sky, and each Void Spirit Snake soul transformed into a brilliant star.

Each one possessed a unique soul aura!

"This is working!" Jiang Chen clenched his fists in excitement.

One, two, three...

Time slowly trickled by.

Two double-hours passed quietly. The Black Emperor glanced at Jiang Chen. ’He hasn’t moved in so long, he probably couldn’t count them, right? Sigh, looks like Jiang Chen isn’t good enough after all...’

Just then, Jiang Chen suddenly burst out laughing and, in a flash, appeared beside the Black Emperor.

He grabbed the Black Emperor and laughed, "I counted them! Hahaha... Little Black, it’s thirteen thousand, six hundred and twenty-five, isn’t it?"

"You counted them? Th-That’s impossible... Wait, what did you just say?" The Black Emperor’s struggling body suddenly froze. He stared intently at Jiang Chen. "Thirteen thousand, six hundred and twenty-five? H-Holy shit, how did you count them? That’s exactly the right answer!"

"Hahaha, so I was right!"

Jiang Chen said excitedly, "It’s impossible to count them with the naked eye, so I used my Divine Thought Power to lock onto each individual soul and tallied them up that way!"

"Divine Thought Power? Holy shit, you know how to use Divine Thought Power? Are you a Divine Thought Master?" the Black Emperor asked, eyes wide in astonishment.

Jiang Chen paused. "I do know how to use Divine Thought Power, but I’m not sure if I’m a Divine Thought Master."

"What do you mean?"

The Black Emperor looked confused. Jiang Chen hesitated for a moment, deciding not to mention his Ten Thousand Laws Golden Pupil or the God-slaying Sword. "I can use Divine Thought Power, but only the most basic Divine Thought Shock. My Divine Thought Shock can probably affect an expert around the True Martial Realm Fourth Stage, but I don’t know the grade of my Divine Thought Power or if it meets the standard for a Divine Thought Master!"

"I see!"

The Black Emperor nodded, a feverish glint flashing in his large, bright eyes. "Quick, follow me! I’ll take you to the third trial!"

"Uh... what’s the rush?"

"How can I not be in a rush? If you can pass the third trial, I won’t have to stay in this godforsaken place anymore! I can be free again! Of course I’m in a rush!" The Black Emperor dragged Jiang Chen along, rushing toward the location of the third trial at top speed.

The location of the third trial was an ancient castle.

The castle stood majestically upon the land. Outside, the sun was shining brightly, but the area around the castle itself was shrouded in a dim twilight, giving it a particularly sinister air.

The Black Emperor brought Jiang Chen to the castle gate. There was a palm-shaped indentation on its surface. The Black Emperor said anxiously, "This is the third trial. Place your hand on it and channel your Divine Thought Power into the gate. As long as your Divine Thought Power is strong enough to open it, you’ll pass the third trial and can receive the Venerable Emperor’s inheritance. Quick, try it!"

As he spoke, the Black Emperor anxiously pushed at Jiang Chen’s back.

"Don’t push me, I’m going!" Jiang Chen said irritably.

He glanced at the palm-shaped mark on the gate, then at his own hand, before placing it on the indentation.

The gate felt like metal, cool to the touch. Jiang Chen closed his eyes, activated his Ten Thousand Laws Golden Pupil, and unleashed a Divine Thought Shock. A surging tide of Divine Thought Power gushed out and poured into the gate. In an instant, a brilliant light erupted, and the entire castle seemed to come alive.

Watching from the side, the Black Emperor was overcome with excitement. "Go, Jiang Chen... It’s working, it’s working..."

"Still not enough!"

Jiang Chen’s expression hardened. A blood-red light appeared in his eyes as he let out a low roar, "Break!"

BOOM—

He pushed the Divine Thought Shock to its absolute limit.

CLANG!

The gate was blasted open, swinging wide on both sides, and the entire Celestial Demon Ancient Castle shuddered slightly. A terrifying radiance shot out from within the castle, soaring straight to the heavens. It formed a pillar of light that connected heaven and earth, scattering the dark clouds that had been pressing down on the castle and allowing bright sunlight to spill down.

The Black Emperor jumped up and down in excitement. "It’s open! The Celestial Demon Ancient Castle is open! Hahaha, Jiang Chen, you did it!"

PANT, PANT...

Jiang Chen’s face was pale. Forcibly unleashing that Divine Thought Shock had consumed nearly all of his Divine Thought Power, leaving him incredibly weak. Seeing the Black Emperor jumping around, Jiang Chen waved a hand dismissively. "Stop making so much noise. Let me rest for a bit!"

"Fine, you rest first!"

The Black Emperor had no choice but to suppress his excitement and stand guard for Jiang Chen.

A full three double-hours passed before Jiang Chen recovered. Seeing the Black Emperor standing guard with a serious expression, he couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow and tease, "I thought you might try to ambush me. How come you’re being so well-behaved?"

"Hey, what are you talking about? We’re buddies! How could I possibly ambush you?" the Black Emperor said, flapping his wings.

Jiang Chen paused, then said teasingly, "Is there something you need to ask me for?"

"Of course not! Ahem, let’s not get hung up on such trivial matters. Hurry up and enter the castle, I’ll take you to claim the inheritance!" The Black Emperor flew onto Jiang Chen’s shoulder, puffing out his chest with a heroic air. What a sight!

Jiang Chen shrugged and entered the Celestial Demon Ancient Castle with the Black Emperor.

The inside of the castle was solemn and elegant, imbued with an ancient and primal aura that spoke of the passage of ages.

They walked all the way to the Central Hall.

On both sides of the hall stood nine massive warriors forged from black iron, guarding the path. Their presence exuded an oppressive feeling that pressed down on the soul.

Jiang Chen’s gaze was involuntarily drawn to the front of the hall.

There sat a throne of white bone, and upon it, a towering figure sat cross-legged. He wore a suit of violet-black battle armor, each shoulder adorned with a ferocious black dragon head. A belt covered in black Scale Armor was wrapped around his waist. Just by sitting there, he seemed to be the very center of the universe.

The aura radiating from him alone far surpassed that of Bai Changsheng!

This was, at the very least, a terrifying existence at the Union Palace Realm, or perhaps even higher!

Even the Black Emperor stopped his joking around and said, "This is the Celestial Demon Emperor Venerable..." He looked at Jiang Chen. "Jiang Chen, go forward, pay your respects, and accept the inheritance!"

"Right."

Jiang Chen nodded, straightened his clothes, and stepped into the hall. He bowed respectfully before the Celestial Demon Emperor Venerable. "This junior, Jiang Chen, pays his respects to Senior Celestial Demon Emperor Venerable!"

SHWISH—

The Celestial Demon Emperor Venerable, seated upon his throne, suddenly opened his eyes. On his face, whose features were obscured, only his two eyes could be seen, erupting with an incomparably brilliant, divine light. As if corporeal, this divine light formed two beams that shot directly into Jiang Chen’s eyes. Jiang Chen’s entire body shuddered as he found himself plunged into a wondrous world...