Chapter 259: Transcendence (Part 15)
Who was the Undying Nether Emperor?
Ning Changqing did not know. Yet this forbidden land was manifesting traces of that supreme expert's past. Fragments emerged from the long river of time.
"This was actually a supreme Emperor-level being!" Ning Changqing was shocked.
Even in the glorious Mythical Era, supreme Emperors had been extremely rare. The indelible imprint left in the world called itself the Undying Nether Emperor. From that distant age, an undying hymn resounded, praising the greatest sovereign of the Emperor Dao Era.
The hymn spoke of great achievements, then turned into a mournful lament. The one who had ended the Dark Era and founded the Emperor Dao Era—the First Emperor—had lived far too long. A single being had represented the rise and fall of an entire era.
Great Emperors and those supreme experts who had severed themselves and retreated into forbidden zones were nothing more than food accumulated by this supreme sovereign in his attempt to achieve transcendence.
Ning Changqing sighed as he watched the traces manifesting between heaven and earth. "So in later eras, there was still such a powerhouse—one who ended one epoch and opened another, treating even Great Emperors as mere sustenance in his pursuit of transcendence."
Such talent would have ranked among the very best even before the Mythical Era. Unfortunately, he had still failed in the end. It was both expected and unexpected. Achieving transcendence was never easy.
Ning Changqing had personally witnessed battles for transcendence. The founder of the Jade Pool Sacred Land had possessed astonishing talent that even he admired, yet she too had failed.
He had lived through countless ages and seen innumerable geniuses perish on the path to transcendence. Not a single one had succeeded. But this life would be different.
Ning Changqing was confident that in this era, he would surpass all prodigies throughout history. This time, he would achieve transcendence!
Before that, however, he had one great enemy he needed to eliminate. Di Chen would be his greatest obstacle on the road to transcendence. It did not matter if he failed once, twice, three times… or even countless times. He possessed the Wheel of Time and therefore had endless opportunities. Di Chen could defeat him countless times, but he only needed to win once. In the end, he would be the victor.
"I hope that guy doesn't show up this time," Ning Changqing muttered as he inspected the arrays he had set up. There were no flaws. The heavenly secrets of the Undying Nether Emperor's place of death were completely sealed. Even if the ancestors of the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion revived, they would not be able to probe this location.
Still, the moment he had opened the ancient land, a trace of aura had leaked out. Ning Changqing shook his head. With his cautious methods, he had quickly erased that wisp of aura. Unless the Undying Nether Emperor—the First Emperor of the Emperor Dao Era—was still alive, no one could possibly detect it.
But was that even possible? The Undying Nether Emperor had failed to achieve transcendence, and the remnant world formed from his fall was right here.
Ning Changqing shook his head again. This time, there would be no problems.
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Inside the Myriad Laws Emperor Sect, Su Chen's cultivation had reached the peak of the Quasi-Emperor realm. He was only one step away from triggering his Emperor tribulation.
Suddenly, he stopped cultivating. He had sensed a familiar aura.
Su Chen's expression turned strange. "Ning Changqing… He actually found the Undying Nether Emperor's place of death."
Truly worthy of being called a treasure-hunting rat.
Su Chen had been racking his brains over how to locate his previous life's place of death. Now he no longer needed to worry. Although the aura had only appeared for an instant, he was certain—it was his own aura from his previous life.
Ning Changqing had found the small world left behind after the Undying Nether Emperor's death.
"What a pity…"
A wisp of immortal mist spread outward. As it drifted past, Su Chen's figure vanished, leaving behind only a soft sigh.
"You have touched something you should not have."
The deeper Ning Changqing ventured, the more he realized how wrong he had been. He had still underestimated the First Emperor of the Emperor Dao Era.
That terrifying corpse remained perfectly intact even after countless millions of years. It had become its own world, rejected by heaven and earth. Its power had already exceeded the limits this universe could contain.
Half of the body had been annihilated by a terrifying force that did not belong to this world, causing Ning Changqing's scalp to tingle with dread.
"This is undoubtedly the taboo power from beyond the cosmos—the same forbidden force that stopped countless supreme experts of the Mythical Era in their tracks!"
"He… actually broke through that taboo power. Half of his body had already transcended, witnessing the truth beyond this realm!"
Ning Changqing's heart surged with shock. Even as the reincarnation of the Mythical Era's foremost Heavenly Venerate, he felt a wave of terror in this moment.
This being had nearly succeeded. He had punched his way out of this world, lacking only a sliver of destiny.
Even the founder of the Jade Pool Sacred Land, whose talent had awed Ning Changqing himself, had never managed to take half a step toward transcendence.
Ning Changqing began searching for opportunities, his heart burning with excitement. After gathering more equipment and raising his level here, he would leave this place strong enough to defeat Di Chen and wash away all previous humiliations.
Ning Changqing truly lived up to his status as a Child of Destiny—no, the Child of this entire era. The Undying Nether Emperor's blade had shattered during his transcendence attempt, yet a tiny fragment of its terrifying core remained. Even as a broken weapon, it surpassed any Emperor artifact in history and willingly submitted to Ning Changqing. He also found the remaining three-quarters of the Death Book fragments.
"What a shame. The final quarter is still missing," Ning Changqing thought. If not for Su Chen's sudden appearance in that forbidden zone within the Chaos Sea, he would now possess three Innate Supreme Treasures.
"Di Chen, I will personally take back that final quarter of the Death Book sooner or later," he vowed inwardly.
After collecting all the available fortunes, Ning Changqing decided to comprehend the Undying Nether Emperor's corpse. This was the remains of a half-step transcendent being. If he could obtain the final quarter of the Death Book, that "half-step" might be removed entirely.
...
While Ning Changqing was immersed in comprehending the Undying Nether Emperor's corpse, he remained completely unaware that a figure had already arrived at his location.
Powerful arrays hidden in the void concealed everything.
"This treasure-hunting rat has actually become so cautious," Su Chen thought.
Ning Changqing had set up numerous formations. Even a Great Emperor would find it difficult to break in by force, and any intrusion would immediately alert Ning Changqing, who would flee without hesitation.
Ning Changqing was indeed very cautious. However, Su Chen also had considerable knowledge of arrays.
Su Chen was in no hurry. He began silently dismantling the formations Ning Changqing had left behind.
...
Ning Changqing had no idea that someone had followed the scent straight to him. He remained fully immersed in comprehending the Undying Nether Emperor's Great Dao.
"Nine revolutions, nine nirvanas… The foundation of the Undying Nether Emperor was actually just an ordinary crow?"
While uncovering the hidden secrets within the Undying Nether Emperor's body, Ning Changqing discovered a heaven-shaking truth.
That existence who had taken half a step toward transcendence had actually begun his journey as nothing more than an ordinary crow.