Heaven-Surpassing Divine Emperor

「On this day...」

All living beings in the Sixteenth State felt despair and helplessness.

Because on this day, a crazed young man had appeared in the lands of the Sixteenth State, flying rapidly across its domain.

Wherever he passed, he scoured the land.

Not even a blade of grass was left behind.

Mountains were blasted apart!

Rivers were boiled dry!

The earth itself was ripped asunder...

"There’s Cyan Radiance Stone here!"

Jiang Chen flew over a relentlessly flowing river. It was enormous, stretching for hundreds of kilometers. Its narrowest point was a full hundred meters wide, while its widest spanned up to ten kilometers. It was one of the most prominent rivers in the entire Sixteenth State.

"Celestial Flame Cross Slash!"

Jiang Chen stood in midair. The Spirit-Slaying Sword, pulsing with black light, landed in his palm as he fiercely slashed down at the river.

A brilliant Sword Aura stretched for thousands of feet. Wherever it passed, the river’s water churned violently, letting out a series of SIZZLING sounds before finally evaporating into a white mist that rose into the sky.

The dry riverbed was exposed.

The Sword Aura did not dissipate. As if slicing through tofu, it cut the riverbed clean open.

The riverbed, originally dozens of meters deep, was instantly transformed into a narrow gorge hundreds of meters deep.

Hundreds of meters underground, Cyan Radiance Stones glinted with a cyan light.

"Come to me!"

He activated his Storage Ring, and his Divine Thought Power enveloped all the Cyan Radiance Stones beneath the riverbed. One by one, they flew into the sky and directly into his Storage Ring.

Jiang Chen continued his search...

He had twenty days to find four hundred million points worth of Cyan Radiance Stone. The task was incredibly difficult and immense. Jiang Chen could only give it his all. Fortunately, after his Ten Thousand Laws Golden Pupil evolved into the Eyes of the Heavens, using his Divine Thought Power to search for Cyan Radiance Stones had become much easier.

Previously, his Divine Thought could only cover a hundred-zhang radius.

But now...

He could easily envelop a five-hundred-zhang radius. Within the range of his Divine Thought, even Cyan Radiance Stones buried hundreds of meters underground shone like starlight in the night sky.

Incredibly brilliant, dazzling, and eye-catching.

One day...

Two days...

Three days...

Time flowed by.

In the blink of an eye, fifteen days had passed. Jiang Chen had just finished leveling a five-hundred-kilometer mountain range, scouring it completely.

He was disheveled and unkempt, his face covered in stubble, looking like a wild man. But his eyes glinted with excitement. ’This is great! I never thought this mountain range would contain so many Cyan Radiance Stones. The stones from this range alone are worth a full three hundred million points. Adding that to what I’ve scavenged over the past few days, my total points have now surpassed five hundred million!’

Five hundred million points!

This was an absolutely enormous fortune!

It was enough to redeem half of the *Five Thunder Secret Technique*. ’If I could cultivate even half of the *Five Thunder Secret Technique*, my strength would definitely see another major boost.’

However...

Jiang Chen knew what these five hundred million points were truly for.

’My progress is faster than I expected. But I’ve pretty much cleaned out all the Cyan Radiance Stones in the eastern, western, and southern parts of the Sixteenth State. With the two hundred million-plus points I had before, I’m still about one hundred million short of the eight hundred million I need to challenge for a spot on the Venerable List and redeem the Great Void Transmission Talisman. I’ll have to head north and see if I missed any spots.’

It might seem that Jiang Chen had only spent fifteen days to excavate five hundred million points’ worth of Cyan Radiance Stone.

But the difficulty and hardship involved were beyond what an outsider could comprehend.

First, there was no one left in the entire Sixteenth State to compete with Jiang Chen for Cyan Radiance Stones.

Second, his Ten Thousand Laws Golden Pupil had evolved into the Eyes of the Heavens, greatly expanding his search range.

And last was Jiang Chen’s cultivation. After reaching the Heavenly Destiny Realm Sixth Stage, and with the aid of the Spirit-Slaying Sword, he could effortlessly slice through the hardest ground, shatter formidable mountains, and even rend raging rivers. If any other expert had attempted this, mining a single mountain range would have taken months.

’I hope I find something in the northern region!’

Jiang Chen rushed toward the northern part of the Sixteenth State at top speed.

「On the twentieth day.」

Jiang Chen finally returned to Celestial Relief City. By this time, the experts from the Three Major Sects had already dispersed to search for Cyan Radiance Stones.

However, after Jiang Chen’s systematic, thorough excavation, it would be far more difficult for anyone else to find any Cyan Radiance Stones.

In front of the City Lord’s Mansion.

Jiang Chen called out loudly, "Senior, Senior..."

"Heh heh, young man. You’re in such a hurry to return. Could it be that you’ve already gathered enough Cyan Radiance Stones?" The Celestial Fate Daoist appeared before Jiang Chen with a smile.

Jiang Chen nodded. His face was covered in stubble, but it also bore an excited expression as he handed over a Storage Ring. "Senior, please help this junior calculate my points!"

"Alright!"

The Celestial Fate Daoist gave Jiang Chen a deep look, then began to count. "25,685,124 Low-grade Cyan Radiance Stones, worth 256,851,240 points. 4,532,130 Middle-grade Cyan Radiance Stones, worth 226,606,500 points. 1,352,232 Upper Grade Cyan Radiance Stones, worth 135,223,200 points. Added to your original 211,972,510 points, your grand total is 830,653,450 points. Young man, congratulations. You have reached eight hundred million points and ascended to the Venerable List!"

The Celestial Fate Daoist flicked his finger.

A strand of white light flew into the golden Coiling Dragon Jade Pillar in the very center.

HUM—

The entire Coiling Dragon Jade Pillar erupted in a brilliant glow. Then, specks of cold light gathered to form two large, gilded words: Jiang Chen!

「At the same time.」

Throughout the Celestial Fate Ancient Realm, in the sixteen major cities of the Sixteen States, the supreme Coiling Dragon Jade Pillars in their centers, which represented the Ten Great Venerables, all erupted with a dazzling golden light, attracting the attention of every expert.

"Look! There’s movement on the Venerable List!"

"Could a new Venerable have been born?"

"That’s right, a new Venerable really has appeared! Who is it?"

"The tenth place on the Venerable List was previously Beast Nine of the Divine Wind Dynasty, but he’s been replaced. It’s... Jiang Chen from the Saint Martial Dynasty? With over eight hundred million points? My god, who is this Jiang Chen? How have I never heard of him before?"

"I know of him. He was a top-ten expert on the Hundred Kings List. I never thought he’d actually ascend to the Venerable List!"

"He’s an absolute dark horse!"

Across the Sixteen States, the experts of the Ten Great Dynasties were all in shock.

A new Venerable had been born!

At the same time, this also meant that an expert on the Venerable List had been forcefully pushed off.

Beast Nine of the Divine Wind Dynasty had an incredibly ugly expression. His gaze flickered unstably as he stared at the tenth name on the Venerable List. His fists clenched tightly, a cold, sharp light erupting in his eyes. "Jiang Chen, is it? I hope you can last until we enter Celestial Fate Island. How dare you take my spot on the Venerable List? I will cut you down with my own hands!"

This news naturally reached Jiang Ziyou, Lan Haichen, and the others.

Jiang Ziyou’s face was filled with disbelief. "He... he... he became a Venerable? How is that possible?"

Lan Haichen had just finished plundering the experts of another state to help Jiang Ziyou ascend to the Hundred Kings List, but his mood was now foul. With an incredibly gloomy expression, he glanced at Jiang Ziyou. "Ziyou, from now on, have Xuan Cangming accompany you. I am heading to the next state!"

"Yes, Senior Brother Lan!"

Jiang Ziyou nodded repeatedly. She knew Lan Haichen had been provoked by Jiang Chen and was about to go on a rampage for points. She clenched her fists, her eyes filled with overwhelming hatred.

Jiang Chen!

The name was like a nightmare. She had thought that with Lan Haichen’s Killing Order, Jiang Chen would be unable to move a single step in the Celestial Fate Ancient Realm.

Who would have thought he would only grow more formidable, reaching a level she could no longer hope to match?

Jiang Ziyou clenched her fists, a cold hatred erupting in her eyes. "Jiang Chen, I will never let you go! I will make you wish you were dead!"

Her eyes swept over the list of treasures, landing on an item that made countless people’s faces change at its mere mention...

「Meanwhile...」

Just as everyone was reeling in shock over Jiang Chen, the newly ascended Venerable, he himself merely clenched his fists. His cold gaze fell upon the man at the very top of the Venerable List, Lan Haichen, as the flames of battle flickered in his eyes. ’Lan Haichen, I’m getting closer and closer to you!’

Jiang Chen’s blood burned hot within him.

He thought back to over a year ago, when he had been utterly powerless before a mere projection of Lan Haichen.

And now...

...he, like him, had ascended to become a young Venerable.

Before long, he would be able to fulfill the promise he made back then—to crush Lan Haichen under his heel!

"Hooo..."

Jiang Chen let out a long breath. He then redeemed the Great Void Transmission Talisman, a Holy Infant Celestial Spirit Fruit, and a Longevity Fruit before finding Sima Qingling and the others.

When they learned that Jiang Chen had actually spent four hundred million points to redeem treasures for them, all four were moved.

They looked at Jiang Chen as if he were a Divine Spirit they worshipped in their hearts.

Jiang Chen smiled. "If you consume these Spirit Fruits, you should be able to make a full recovery."

"Master, are you leaving?" Sima Qingling asked, blinking.

Jiang Chen grinned. "Yes. I got a Great Void Transmission Talisman that will let me travel to the other states. I have to secure my position on the Venerable List, so I can’t just stay in one state. You all should focus on your cultivation here. I’m going to go plunder enough points, and when the time comes, I’ll help you all get onto the Hundred Kings List!"

"Okay!"

"Have a safe journey!"

all four of them said.

Jiang Chen nodded, then took out the Great Void Transmission Talisman, tore through the void, and vanished from the Sixteenth State...