Strongest War Emperor

Xue Jingyuan stood perfectly still, not making a move, yet an aura from his body instantly enveloped Shen Lang.

The moment Nangong Yan and the other Three Sect Ancestors saw it, they recognized it as the "Death Realm," and their faces paled in shock!

Although the people of Celestial Phoenix City did not have high Cultivation, they could at least read the room.

Anything that could make the Three Sect Ancestors’ expressions change so drastically was clearly no small matter, and they all began to sweat for Shen Lang.

And now, in their eyes, Shen Lang, whose Battle Intent had been surging just moments before, was suddenly frozen in place after being enveloped by that aura.

The crowd could clearly see Shen Lang standing within the twenty-zhang-wide shadow.

But from that moment on, his aura was completely gone!

It was as if something had cut Shen Lang off from the outside world...

Not only had Shen Lang’s aura vanished, but his eyes were turning blood-red as he clenched his fists and swung them repeatedly at the air in front of him.

He seemed to be fighting something!

But to the onlookers, there was nothing in front of or around him—only that faint, almost imperceptible shadow...

"So this is the legendary Death Realm... This is serious trouble. It’s the kind of thing that kills without leaving a trace..."

At the front of the crowd, a pale Ling Chen stammered, his eyes filled with anxiety.

With Shen Lang’s Cultivation, if it were a straightforward fight, Ling Chen and the others would have no doubt that he could defeat Xue Jingyuan.

But the Death Realm was extraordinary, practically equivalent to a powerful Seal.

To break this Seal, a Martial Artist couldn’t rely on abundant Spiritual Power or a powerful Cultivation Technique...

Even someone with Ling Chen’s Cultivation would face almost certain death if they were carelessly trapped by Xue Jingyuan’s Death Realm!

Either Shen Lang had comprehended an even more powerful Realm and could use it to clash directly and force a breakthrough,

or he would have to rely on an indestructible will and powerful Divine Thought to escape.

But while Shen Lang’s Sword Intent was strong, it was completely different from the Death Realm.

Furthermore, his Sword Intent didn’t seem powerful enough to shatter the Death Realm in a single blow; otherwise, he would not have failed to break through Yuwen Huaji’s defenses back then.

As for Divine Thought, no matter how strong Shen Lang was, he was still only a sixteen-year-old boy.

’Even if he’d started his Cultivation in the womb, how strong could his Divine Thought possibly be?’

’In that case, he can only rely on his will to fight back...’

Ling Chen and his companions exchanged a look, seeing the shared horror and anxiety in each other’s eyes.

The Four’s palms were slick with sweat, but they feigned indifference and shot a meaningful look at Zeng Wuming and the others behind them.

Zeng Wuming and his four companions immediately understood, and he let out a laugh to comfort Shen Haotian and his wife. "Brother Haotian, don’t you worry. That little punk from the Xue Family and his pathetic Realm can’t do a thing to Shen Lang. You can relax."

"That’s right! My money’s on Shen Lang! He cut down that old monster Yuwen Huaji with a single blow. This Xue Jingyuan is just a snot-nosed kid. What’s there to be scared of!" Drunken Thousand Cups chimed in, but since no one around him paid him any attention, he found it rather dull.

"Uncle Tian, Auntie Die, please don’t worry," Shui Qingwu said firmly, holding Luo Dieqi’s arm. "This Death Realm may be formidable, but Xiaolang’s will is indestructible. It can’t hurt him. I have no doubt about that! Besides, the seniors from the Buddhist Sect are here. If things get truly dangerous, they’ll surely step in!"

Shen Haotian and his wife exchanged a glance. Though their hearts were pounding with anxiety, they still nodded firmly.

’That master in the sky has such immense Cultivation,’ Shen Haotian thought, trying to comfort himself. ’He was able to deter eight King Martial Realm experts. He surely won’t let Lang’Er fall into any real danger.’

Meanwhile, seeing his Death Realm so easily envelop Shen Lang, Xue Jingyuan burst into wild laughter.

"HAHAHA! You bastard! Who do you think you are, daring to curse me? Now I’ll show you the true power of an Ancient Noble Family! I’ll make you understand the vast gulf that separates you from disciples of the Great Noble Families like us!"

"If you can’t escape my Death Realm, you’re as good as dead! You want to fight me? You’re not even close!"

Xue Jingyuan was no fool. Despite his earlier rage, he had taken note of everything that had happened up in the sky.

And having witnessed Shen Lang’s battle against Yuwen Huaji, he still felt a considerable sense of dread deep down, even if he acted disdainful.

Yuwen Huaji was at the Peak of Xuanwu Realm Ninth Heaven, yet Shen Lang had still cut him down with a single blow. He, Xue Jingyuan, was merely at the Xuanwu Realm First Heaven. That wasn’t a small gap.

’Even if Shen Lang doesn’t use that ultimate move, killing me probably won’t be much trouble for him.’

’The Celestial Purity Sect’s formidable Sword Skills aren’t limited to just the Demon Blade Technique!’

’And the deadliest part is that the Celestial Purity Sect’s Sword Skills are all the kind of damn techniques that let you kill opponents far above your own level!’

The only reason he had dared to swagger down here was because he had a retinue of powerful followers: eight King Martial Realm experts, with his own aunt for backup.

A lineup of eight King Martial Realm experts was enough to wipe out an entire Profound Iron Level Influence in a matter of minutes!

But now, they had been blocked by that bald-headed bastard, Chaos. That old monk was famous for living up to his name, and even his aunt was wary of him.

’Getting them to help me kill this kid is obviously impossible now.’

’Since I can’t beat him in a fight, I’ll just kill him with my Realm! I am a genius of the Xue Family who has already grasped the Death Realm! Forget one Shen Lang—if I wanted to slaughter everyone in Celestial Phoenix City, it wouldn’t even be difficult!’

’Even if that old ghost Yuwen Huaji were trapped in my Realm, he’d have a hard time getting out! You little brat, you’re dead!’

Be it Sword Intent or the Death Realm, all such Realms were incredibly powerful.

To fully comprehend such a Realm required not only extraordinary talent but also a heaven-defying stroke of luck.

For example, Ling Chen had obtained the Sword Lotus, which allowed him to comprehend Sword Intent.

Without a massive stroke of luck, Ling Chen would have never come across something like the Sword Lotus.

In the Xue Family, however, such treasures were nothing special.

And so, under the guidance of his elders, Xue Jingyuan had used the unique environment of the Xue Family’s forbidden land, Death Valley, to comprehend the Death Realm!

Among all the disciples of his generation in the Xue Family, the number who had comprehended the Death Realm could be counted on one hand—and Xue Jingyuan was one of them.

Once the Death Realm was unleashed, anyone caught within would be instantly overwhelmed by a suffocating Death Qi. Their mind would be eroded, trapping them in an inescapable Illusion Realm where they would soon perish!

The Illusion Realm within the Death Realm was terrifyingly realistic. If a person inside believed they were dead, they would truly die, and no one would be able to save them.

Legend had it that a Demon Path Powerhouse once enveloped an entire city with a Death Realm. In less than three hours, the city descended into utter madness. People turned on each other in a chaotic slaughter, and everyone lost their minds.

Amid the bloody carnage, hundreds of thousands died. Not a single person survived.

Just like that, an entire city became a Land of Death.

This just went to show how terrifying the Death Realm was.

This was why even experts like Nangong Yan and the Three Sect Ancestors had paled.

And now, Shen Lang was trapped inside it.

"Xue Jingyuan, if a single hair on Brother Lang’s head is harmed, I’ll tear you to shreds!"

Xue Dangdang cursed through gritted teeth. She turned to ask Master Kong Jing for help, but he simply gave her a faint smile.

Master Kong Jing’s ancient voice immediately echoed in her mind. ’Do not be anxious. He only comprehended this Death Realm a short time ago. It cannot harm Shen Lang, who is protected by the Star Moon Bodhi Prayer Beads within him. What’s more, if this old monk is not mistaken, Shen Lang can likely walk out of this Death Realm safely even without relying on the beads.’

’Master Kong Jing wouldn’t lie to me. I’ll wait and see for now.’

Xue Dangdang gritted her teeth, shot a hateful glare at Xue Jingyuan, and turned her gaze back to Shen Lang.

By now, everyone except for a few powerhouses like Kong Jing had retreated to a safe distance.

Shen Lang seemed to have gone berserk, wildly lashing out as if he were fighting an entire army.

His attacks sent sand and stones flying, and a fierce wind blasted outwards...

Those who had never experienced the Death Realm could not possibly understand its terror.

Most of the onlookers couldn’t comprehend it, but Shen Lang, who was inside the Death Realm, was quite familiar with it.

Shen Lang’s momentum had been surging as he prepared to fight Xue Jingyuan, but he never imagined that this man, only five or six years older than Dingdang, had already comprehended something as terrifying as the Death Realm.

Before he could dodge, he was silently swallowed by it.

The instant he entered the Death Realm, Shen Lang found himself in a boundless, barren wasteland. The surroundings were completely alien. Countless skeletons clawed their way out of the ground, swarming toward him from all directions.

A boundless Death Qi, overwhelming and incomparably sinister, saturated the air.

The bright moon was almost completely blotted out by thick clouds of Death Qi...

A great river of blood churned before Shen Lang, its crimson tide overflowing to spread across the land.

The stench of blood was suffocating.

’The Death Realm... Quite interesting...’ Shen Lang murmured, then lashed out with both fists, blasting away the swarming skeletons.

But the skeletons were numberless. Many were enormous, like ancient Giants, and possessed immense strength.

The skeletons of unidentifiable Demon Beasts also charged madly toward Shen Lang, as if to trample him into dust.

Even as Shen Lang blasted one Skeleton Monster after another into the air, the endless horde beyond swarmed in like moths to a flame.

Then, the blood on the ground began to rise, as if the great river was starting to flood.

The torrent of blood converged around Shen Lang, forming a Sea of Blood that suddenly began to boil furiously. Countless bubbles erupted from its surface.

From within those bubbles, innumerable blood-soaked Demon Corpses began to crawl out, shambling toward Shen Lang.

The endless skeletons seemed to fear these Demon Corpses, and they actually parted to let them through.

Unlike ordinary Demon Corpses, their eyes were not empty sockets.

They held the gazes of living people!

However, the eyes of these Demon Corpses were filled with fear, rage, grief, confusion, despair, resentment... and savagery!

A single one of those gazes would be enough to shatter the spirit of an ordinary Martial Artist.

Even with a mind as strong as Shen Lang’s, the sudden contact made his body tremble violently. It felt as if a heavy hammer had smashed into his chest, causing his blood to flow in reverse and his breathing to become ragged.

A rain of blood and a foul wind, boundless and unending!

The wild wind howled, sharp as a blade against the skin.