Strongest War Emperor

His heart frozen with terror, he converted all his Spiritual Power into Thunder Power, wrapped it around the two small spheres, and then, with every ounce of his strength, flung them toward the distant mountains...

A streak of light flashed by in an instant, smashing violently toward a high mountain peak!

Collapsed on the ground, Shen Lang stared intently at the fading light. A moment later, a brilliant flash erupted in the sky.

"BOOM!"

Then, a massive roar resounded throughout all of Celestial Phoenix City!

In that instant, everyone in Celestial Phoenix City looked on in horror toward Qixia Mountain, just outside the city...

In a stone chamber beneath the City Lord’s Mansion, City Lord Ye Xiao Zheng and the man in the black cloak shot to their feet at the exact same moment.

"What’s going on? Why is there such a massive energy fluctuation from Qixia Mountain to the east? Isn’t that where you hid your Demon Corpses...?" Ye Xiao Zheng said in disbelief.

The man in the black cloak began to tremble violently, as if in the throes of a fever. He threw his head back and roared, "I don’t know what the hell is going on! All I know is that all my remaining Demon Corpses, plus the new batch I spent countless hours and Spirit Medicines refining over the past few days... They’re gone, all gone... Damn it, who the hell did this!"

"Who did this!"

His voice was filled with resentment, fury, and... fear!

...

Even someone as preternaturally cunning as Shen Lang, whose plans were supposedly flawless, could never have guessed that he had once again ruined the plans of Ye Xiao Zheng and the black-robed man, twisting the knife in their hearts.

The mess he’d made sent Celestial Phoenix City into an uproar. Experts and spies from every major power rushed toward Qixia Mountain, wanting to get to the bottom of it.

But the culprit himself, Shen Lang, felt his body go limp as he returned to his room, sat cross-legged, and began to recover.

Although he hadn’t completed the final step in his Cultivation tonight, Shen Lang had still gained a great deal.

The final step, the fusion, wasn’t impossible. It was just that his Cultivation was currently too low to control such immense Energy.

Now that he had thoroughly comprehended the process, it would all fall into place naturally once his Cultivation became stronger in the future.

For now, he could only give up on it.

Still, in doing so, Shen Lang had luckily taken the first step toward creating his own Cultivation Technique.

And what surprised him most was that the space within the Tai Chi Diagram was incomparably vast and could absorb and store Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi!

It could absorb and purify everything, whether it was Spiritual Qi, Death Qi, or Killing Intent!

Nothing could have made Shen Lang happier.

A Martial Artist’s talent was often judged by the speed at which they could absorb Spiritual Qi. Shen Lang’s absorption speed using the Tai Chi Diagram already far surpassed that of ordinary Martial Artists, and now, not only could it absorb Spiritual Qi, it could absorb all kinds of Primordial Qi!

What did this mean?

It meant he didn’t need to find a place rich in Spiritual Qi to practice his Cultivation. Anywhere, as long as there was Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi, Shen Lang could convert it into his own Energy!

If his previous absorption speed was ten or twenty times faster than other Martial Artists, his current speed was nearly unimaginable!

Although Shen Lang couldn’t control the Yin Yang Fusion move yet and hadn’t successfully cultivated it, he could directly absorb and store the two clusters of Energy within the Tai Chi Diagram before they merged!

He could even feel that as the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi was absorbed into the Tai Chi Diagram, the seed at its center seemed to grow more solid!

This meant that by absorbing the world’s Primordial Power, that seed might one day take root, sprout, and grow into a colossal, sky-reaching tree!

Though all of this was still unknown, and Shen Lang didn’t even understand the benefits of the seed growing into a great tree, he had a faint feeling that when it did, that would be the day he reached the absolute pinnacle of power!

’This Profound Skill came from comprehending life and death and understanding Yin and Yang, so let’s call it the "Nine Revolutions of Life and Death Mysterious Technique." This first form, the Yin Yang Infinite Life and Death Tribulation, is like a trip down the Netherworld Road... I’ll call it "Netherworld Demon Tribulation."’

And just like that, the first form of the "Nine Revolutions of Life and Death Mysterious Technique"—"Netherworld Demon Tribulation"—was born!

Even though it was just an embryonic, half-finished product, Shen Lang had already witnessed its power... as had the people of Celestial Phoenix City.

Looking a little drained, Shen Lang took out a Low Grade Spirit Stone.

The Spirit Stone was pale blue, oval-shaped like a kiwi, and in the darkness, one could clearly see faint currents of electricity flowing across its surface.

Shen Lang aimed a single palm at the Spirit Stone. The Tai Chi Diagram emerged from his body, covered the stone, and began to flow like mercury.

"ZZZT..."

Before Shen Lang could even activate his Cultivation Technique, the vast Spiritual Qi within the Spirit Stone, as if guided by an unseen force, began to converge through the Tai Chi Diagram into his palm. It then flowed up his arm, through his meridians, and down into his body, gathering in his Pill Sea like a stream flowing into the ocean.

The Pill Sea, located in the abdomen, is the core where a Martial Artist stores Spiritual Power. It is akin to a Demon Beast’s Demon Crystal—the very source of their strength.

The Cultivation of a Martial Artist involves absorbing nature’s spiritual energy, channeling it into the Pill Sea, tempering the body, and continuously expanding the Pill Sea’s limits to store more Spiritual Power, thus granting the Martial Artist greater strength to wield.

As this stream of Spiritual Power entered him, a pleasant sensation spread from his palm throughout his entire body.

’No way!’

Shen Lang was astonished!

A Martial Soul was something primarily used to aid a Martial Artist in Cultivation or for attack and defense.

In Cultivation, a Martial Artist would use their Martial Soul to sense the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy, and then, with the Martial Soul’s help, use various Cultivation Techniques to absorb that Spiritual Qi into their body. 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

Without a Martial Soul, one couldn’t sense the world’s Spiritual Qi. Even with a powerful Cultivation Technique, it would be difficult to absorb any external Spiritual Qi.

That was why, back when Shen Lang didn’t have a Martial Soul, his Spiritual Qi absorption speed was almost negligible. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t accumulate much Spiritual Power in his body.

Conversely, having a Martial Soul but no Cultivation Technique also made Cultivation impossible.

The Martial Soul is the bridge connecting the Martial Artist’s body to the external Spiritual Qi, while the Cultivation Technique is the true engine—the driving force that absorbs it!

But just now, Shen Lang hadn’t even begun to recite the Spell, yet the Spiritual Qi from the Spirit Stone was automatically pouring into his body!

This was simply unheard of!

’Stop!’

Startled, Shen Lang issued a mental command, and the Tai Chi Diagram stopped moving.

The moment the Tai Chi Diagram stopped flowing, the Spiritual Qi from the Spirit Stone ceased to enter his body.

’It can rapidly absorb the Spiritual Qi from a Spirit Stone without me activating any Cultivation Technique... Could it be that this Tai Chi Diagram has the legendary "Devour" ability? Is it a mutated Martial Soul? But then again, I’ve never heard of a Martial Soul that contains its own space.’

Though Shen Lang was filled with suspicion, his actions were swift. He urged the Tai Chi Diagram to continuously absorb the Spiritual Qi from the Spirit Stone. Half an hour later, all the Spiritual Qi in the Low Grade Spirit Stone was completely drained.

"CRACK!"

Its Energy depleted, a few cracks appeared on the Spirit Stone in his palm, and it turned into a plain, unremarkable rock.

With the Tai Chi Diagram, Shen Lang’s Spiritual Qi absorption speed was more than ten times that of an ordinary Martial Artist. So, without holding back, he took out several more Spirit Stones and absorbed the Spiritual Qi from each one.

Although the Tai Chi Diagram could absorb Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi, his apprehension about this unknown power led Shen Lang to continue with the world’s conventional method of Cultivation centered on the Pill Sea.

He now intended to practice both types of Cultivation simultaneously, treating the Tai Chi Diagram as a second Pill Sea.

After he finished absorbing the Spiritual Qi from the fourth Spirit Stone, Shen Lang was about to continue when he suddenly made a soft sound of surprise and stopped.

He closed his eyes to inspect his body and discovered that his Pill Sea had formed at some unknown point. Azure waves of Spiritual Power rippled and surged within it!

Not only that, but dozens of his meridians had also been cleared at some point, and his Cultivation had actually reached the Qi Martial Realm Second Heaven!

’No wonder I felt like I couldn’t absorb any more Spiritual Qi after those four Spirit Stones. I’ve already reached the Qi Martial Realm Second Heaven! It must have happened while I was inside the Tai Chi Diagram’s space, pondering the Nine Revolutions of Life and Death Mysterious Technique. Otherwise, there’s no way I wouldn’t have noticed.’

This was actually quite normal. When a Martial Artist cultivates, their Spiritual Power circulates rapidly through their body, following the predetermined path of the Cultivation Technique along the Eight Extraordinary Meridians. At the same time, external Spiritual Qi is absorbed and slowly refined for their own use.

For an ordinary person, it takes about two hours for their Spiritual Power to complete one full Circulation throughout their body, which is equivalent to one ’shichen’ in Martial Arts timekeeping.

Shen Lang’s Eight Extraordinary Meridians had been scoured by the Black and White Qi until they were like smooth, wide highways. If he were to cultivate intentionally, his Spiritual Power could complete a full Circulation cycle in only about six minutes.

And that was without even using one of the powerful Cultivation Techniques from the War Emperor’s memories.

In one hour, he could complete ten Circulation cycles.

In that same hour, an ordinary person wouldn’t have even finished one...

The higher a Martial Artist’s Cultivation, the faster their Spiritual Power circulates, and the faster they can absorb Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy. Consequently, they can absorb more of it in the same amount of time.

From this point alone, Shen Lang was already a monster.

What was even more frightening was that he also had the Tai Chi Diagram in his body—a possible mutated Martial Soul—which absorbed Spiritual Qi more than ten times faster than the average Martial Artist!

’I’ll have to study this Tai Chi Diagram properly when I have the time...’

Shen Lang chuckled softly, stood up, and walked out the main gate, heading straight for the Treasure Pavilion in Celestial Phoenix City.

Back when he was at the Martial Power Realm Ninth Heaven, he hadn’t even taken those at the Qi Martial Realm Fifth Heaven seriously. Now that his Cultivation was at the Qi Martial Realm Second Heaven, it was more than enough to handle the Shen Family’s grand competition in two days’ time.

It was time to go get some more materials.

Shen Lang walked down the street and beckoned to a young beggar curled up on a corner.

"Young Master Lang, is there anything I can help you with?" The young beggar was twelve or thirteen years old. Though his clothes were ragged, his eyes were exceptionally bright, and he surprisingly recognized Shen Lang.

Shen Lang tossed him a small bag of Gold Coins and said, "You probably recognize Young Master Lin Feng of the Lin Family and Young Master Su Hen of the Su Family, right? Go wait at the city gate near Tayun Academy. If you see them, bring them to find me at Tingfeng Restaurant, across from the Treasure Pavilion. Here are ten Gold Coins for you to spend. When you bring them to me, I’ll give you ten more."

The young beggar was stunned and subconsciously caught the money pouch without a word.

He knew Young Master Shen Lang; after all, he’d been getting by in Celestial Phoenix City for several years. It was precisely because he knew him that he couldn’t believe the young master would be so generous.

Ten Gold Coins!

That was enough for him to eat and drink his fill for several months!

"Yes, yes! Don’t worry, Young Master Lang, Xiaoguizi guarantees he’ll get the job done right!" This Xiaoguizi was quite sharp. Without even counting the money, he patted his chest and readily agreed.

Just as Shen Lang was about to praise him, he suddenly spotted two figures walking ahead and couldn’t help but smile.

Ahead, a woman in a blue silk robe with an elegant air walked through the crowd, her face covered by a veil. She was flanked by a man and a woman. The woman was Cai Ying, the handmaiden of Shui Qingwu whom Shen Lang had saved on Black Wind Mountain, and the man was the black-clothed youth he had rescued along with her.

At the time, Shen Lang had given each of them a Divine Movement Talisman to escape the encirclement of Demon Corpses first. He never expected to run into them here.

Accompanied by those two, wearing a blue silk robe, and with such a devastatingly beautiful air... who else could it be but Shui Qingwu?

Shen Lang trotted over happily and lightly tapped the veiled woman on the shoulder. "Classmate Qingwu, what a coincidence. I was just looking for you, actually."