Strongest War Emperor

The entire world fell silent.

Everyone was in a daze.

Even Shangguan Yunmeng was stunned...

Shen Lang emerging unscathed from the explosion of such a Profound Artifact was already unbelievable.

But to then casually snap Helian Qingshan’s neck—that was a shock beyond all measure.

Killing an ordinary Xuanwu Realm Powerhouse from the White Bone Hall was one thing, but killing the Young Hall Master was something else entirely.

What Shangguan Yunmeng had said before wasn’t just a simple threat.

It was a fact.

If someone dared to kill the Young Hall Master, Helian Qingshan, the White Bone Hall would absolutely not let the matter rest.

Demonic Cultivators were the most vengeful. By offending a Spirit Copper Level Influence of the Demon Dao like the White Bone Hall, no matter how powerful he was, no matter if he fled to the ends of the earth...

...the only outcome was death!

But he had done it anyway.

Without hesitation, as calm and composed as when he had first arrived.

Then with a light, gentle movement of his palm...

The arrogant, ruthless, and powerful Helian Qingshan—Young Hall Master of the White Bone Hall, a Demonic Dao Sect from the Celestial Defying Demon Realm—had followed in the footsteps of his subordinates and died on the spot...

Just a minute ago, Helian Qingshan had been laughing wildly, full of himself and triumphant, cursing with glee.

Now, he was a breathless corpse, tossed aside onto the ground like a dead dog by the black-robed youth.

"The Young Hall Master... is he really dead?"

Shangguan Yunmeng’s body swayed, looking as if she could collapse at any moment.

At that moment, her mind was a complete blank.

She didn’t even know what she was supposed to do next.

’Should I run, or charge forward to avenge the Young Hall Master...?’

Just then, under everyone’s stunned gazes, Shen Lang bent down and began to do something completely at odds with his previous demeanor...

He pulled the Sumeru Ring from Helian Qingshan’s hand, wiped it on his clothes a couple of times, and put it away.

He then patted down Helian Qingshan’s chest, took out a small Storage Pouch, and after inspecting it briefly, put that away as well.

Afterward, he stood up and waved toward the Jifeng Mercenary Corps. "Lend me a hand. Help me clean up the battlefield. I’m in a hurry."

Over with the Jifeng Mercenary Corps, Ling Shaoyi and the others were completely stupefied.

’Damn it, this is between you and the White Bone Hall! Why are you dragging us into it?’

’You’re in a hurry? What the hell does that have to do with us?’

Although the Jifeng Mercenary Corps was one of the three major Mercenary Corps in the Imperial Capital, a Mercenary Corps was still just a Mercenary Corps. How could they dare to provoke a power as formidable and terrifying as the White Bone Hall?

’If we piss off the White Bone Hall, even if we hide in the Imperial Capital and never come out, we’d be wiped out in a matter of minutes!’

’This kid really is a damn Demon!’

’He refused to help when we were surrounded by Demon Beasts, and now he wants to drag us down with him!’

’He must have heard us badmouthing him just now!’

’That’s right, that’s got to be it. This kid is definitely the type to hold a grudge over the smallest thing!’

The members of the Jifeng Mercenary Corps felt like crying...

But they didn’t dare to disobey Shen Lang’s words.

Only a fool would disobey.

Of the White Bone Hall’s fifty-plus powerful members, only a half-dead woman was still on her feet. The rest were as dead as they could be.

How could the members of the Jifeng Mercenary Corps possibly fight against someone like that?

’But the White Bone Hall is no pushover either! If we anger them by looting bodies for him, we could end up as corpses in the wilderness in minutes!’

"Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid. Ten of you, go out and do the work. I’ll immediately expel you from the Mercenary Corps. That way, you won’t have to be afraid."

Ling Shaoyi thought he had come up with a brilliant idea.

The ten men he pushed forward almost cursed his mother.

’If we’re expelled from the Mercenary Corps, won’t we be the only ones who suffer? You’ll be fine, but where are we supposed to hide?’

With long faces, they ran out and began to clean up the battlefield.

Meanwhile, the Armor on Shen Lang’s body suddenly flew off piece by piece like flower petals, and was completely stored away in his Sumeru Ring.

He stood before the cave entrance and announced loudly, "I have killed everyone from the White Bone Hall. The villagers have been safely moved. Prophet and villagers, please come out."

There was no sound from within the stone cave.

Shen Lang said no more, simply waiting in silence.

After a short while, a group of villagers emerged slowly from the cave, surrounding a strange woman.

This woman was about the same height as an ordinary person, with a slender figure and eyes like sapphires. But her skin was a startling green, and even her hair was completely green. She wore clothes made of leaves and flower petals.

She stood out conspicuously among the group of villagers.

The Feather Wood Race. They were a very rare, special race—plant-based lifeforms with a human-like appearance.

They lived in the Barbaric lands.

According to legend, they possessed the strange ability to communicate with plants. They were the Elves of nature, children of the earth.

They roamed the jungles and rarely appeared in the territory of the Human Race.

"Honorable Prophet?" Shen Lang asked softly.

Shen Lang was a little surprised. In his imagination, he had pictured the Prophet as an elderly senior.

He hadn’t expected it to be such a young woman of the Feather Wood Race.

Although one couldn’t judge the age of a member of the Feather Wood Race by the standards of the Human Race, someone who looked no older than twenty-one or twenty-two couldn’t possibly be that old.

As Shen Lang was sizing up the Feather Wood Race woman, she was also sizing him up.

She stepped out from the crowd, formed a strange Hand Seal, and bowed slightly to Shen Lang. With a respectful gesture, she said, "Youth from the Otherworld, who bears the Blade of Destruction, controls the Wheel of Destiny, grasps Yin Yang Creation, has traversed the Cosmic Primordial Chaos, and descended upon this world..."

"Heaven and earth are in turmoil, and the single thread of hope rests upon you."

"Evil shrouds the Star Continent, but you shall lead us through the darkness... to the dawn!"

"Respected powerhouse, I, Yu Lingfeng, have been waiting here for you for over three hundred years..."

Shen Lang had heard these words before in the village. Hearing them again now, he was much calmer.

But to the ears of the onlookers, it was an absolute sensation.

Shen Lang pondered for a moment before saying, "Prophet, the situation is not good. We can discuss these things later. Please tell me what I need to do now to resolve the crisis here."

The Prophet, Yu Lingfeng, smiled and nodded. With a wave of her right hand, a seven-colored barrier of light enveloped Shen Lang and the dozens of villagers, isolating them from the outside world.

Her expression turned grave. She pressed her palms together and then slowly pulled them apart.

In that instant, a vibrant green, endless gentle light suddenly burst forth from between her palms.

A small tree, just over a foot long, was slowly revealed.

Although they were separated by the Barrier, the moment this small tree appeared, all the flowers, plants, and trees in the entire forest seemed to come alive!

Shen Lang could even feel them cheering, leaping for joy...

And as he stood beside the small tree, the killing intent in his heart completely vanished. He felt only comfort and extraordinary ease as he bathed in this atmosphere.

The feeling was so profound that it almost made him forget the crisis in the Desolate Land...

"The Eternal Tree!"

The name of something from legend appeared in Shen Lang’s mind.

Besides the Eternal Tree, there could be no other tree that would make him feel such an aura.

According to legend, deep in the Barbaric lands, in a place inaccessible to ordinary people, there was an unimaginably gigantic tree called the Eternal Tree.

This Eternal Tree was said to have existed since the formation of this world.

It had existed for countless eons...

The Feather Wood Race was born from this Eternal Tree; the Eternal Tree was their mother.

The Eternal Tree was immeasurably vast, connecting heaven and earth, beyond imagination.

Even a War Emperor had never seen this Eternal Tree, only learning a little about it from some records in the War God Hall.

The tiny tree before him emitted a surging, endless Power of Life. Although its size didn’t match the Eternal Tree of legend, Shen Lang couldn’t imagine any other tree that could possess such a vast and unfathomable Power of Life.

Seeing this small tree, Shen Lang finally understood why the villagers hadn’t been corroded by the Supreme Yin Qi.

With such an Exotic Treasure here, it wouldn’t be too difficult for the Prophet to cover the entire Desolate Land, let alone just that one small mountain village.

The question was, was this really the Eternal Tree?

And why had the Eternal Tree appeared here?

Just then, Yu Lingfeng cradled the small tree and offered it to Shen Lang.

"Mother gave each of us a seed of the Eternal Tree, gave us direction, and I and several hundred of my sisters followed Mother’s will, left the Barbaric lands, and came into the world. We then spent over three hundred years cultivating the Eternal Tree to this state."

"A great catastrophe is about to befall heaven and earth. The Feather Wood Race’s power is too weak to turn the tide, but Mother hoped that we could do something, however small, to help you resolve this crisis that involves all living beings."

"Mother saw many things in her dreams. She hopes that when the time is right, you will make time to visit the territory of the Feather Wood Race..."

Shen Lang’s expression grew serious. He asked in a deep voice, "Honorable Prophet, do you believe I am the legendary ’Emperor Star’?"

Yu Lingfeng shook her head and said, "Mother never mentioned the two words ’Emperor Star’ to us. Whether you are the Emperor Star is not important. What is important is that in her dreams, Mother saw everything you have done, and everything that is about to happen to this world."

"Fissures have begun to appear continuously in the Human Realm. Our Feather Wood Race is too weak, so we could only choose a few of these locations and cultivate the Eternal Tree there, hoping to suppress the fissures and buy this world more time."

"The Eternal Tree can absorb all kinds of Negative Energy between heaven and earth and transform it into pure Power of Life... However, the fissures appeared several hundred years earlier than what Mother saw in her dreams. The Eternal Tree has not yet fully matured..."

"Fortunately, the ’you’ from the dream has appeared. Please take this Eternal Tree to the fissure as soon as possible, plant it by its side, and ask the powerhouses of the Human Race to guard it as it grows."

As Yu Lingfeng spoke, the green hue of her face began to fade, turning pale. She became unsteady on her feet, swaying as if she might fall.

"Prophet!" Shen Lang exclaimed in alarm.