Chapter 119: The Emperor of Peng City?

Out here in the world, one false step can lead to eternal damnation. The territory under the Lord of the Li Sea is much like the land beneath the Emperor’s feet in the imperial capital; how could it tolerate the trampling of its authority?

The two men were fleeing for their lives, their minds stretched to the breaking point like a taut wire. The pressure and terror were beyond measure.

"Stop!" the giant head roared, and the surrounding clouds dissipated like foam.

An expert at the Division of Spirit stage can anchor their primordial spirit to any object or project their consciousness across the heavens, traversing ten thousand miles in an instant. It is almost as if they were present in the flesh, a speed far beyond the reach of any Nascent Soul cultivator.

Le Zhengqing was drenched in cold sweat. He had exhausted his strength, yet he could not shake off his pursuer. His heart was filled with anxiety. This was merely a split soul of a hermit from the Li Sea. If the enraged Shark King were to arrive in person, could they truly escape with their lives and lure him to the shores of the Dan Sea?

The answer was: absolutely not.

One must understand that while a Nascent Soul expert can teleport short distances—within ten thousand miles—the divine sense of a Division of Spirit expert can scan thousands, even ten thousand miles at a glance. No matter which direction one teleports, if they encounter the true incarnation of such a master, there is no escaping their precise gaze.

Perhaps the two hermits of the Dan Sea could contend with the Shark King, but for Le Zhengqing and Lin Feng, escape was impossible.

After fleeing for hundreds of thousands of miles, Le Zhengqing’s physical strength and spiritual energy were depleted. Unable to continue, they turned back to face their enemy, resolved to fight to the death without holding anything back.

"Unyielding Through a Hundred Battles! Cycle of Thought Awl!" The rolling air currents coalesced into a massive silver awl, flashing with lightning. It was a hundred feet long and as thick as a water barrel, thrusting directly toward the phantom head.

"Awoo!" The head opened its mouth wide, exhaling endless sword energy. The dark blue current collided with the silver awl. *Sizz!* Sparks burst forth, lightning snaked through the air, and for hundreds of feet, fire and sword energy wove into a terrifying web, forming a natural barrier between them.

"Le Zhengqing, you slaughtered our Young Master of the Li Sea! Do you think the Li Sea has no one left? Today, Ancestor Kui shall act on behalf of the Shark King to eliminate you two whelps!"

As the head spoke, it lunged forward, swallowing the electric sword energy and sparks in one gulp. Its face then contorted with savage lightning, its eyes burning like flames. Like a demon god incarnate, it surged toward the pair, billowing with ferocious demonic energy.

"Take this! And this!" Lin Feng frantically waved the Purgatory Fire Wind-Chasing Fan, unleashing waves of crimson lotus hellfire that crashed against the massive demonic face.

Hidden within the red flames, a shimmering silver light suddenly emerged. The space froze, and icy energy rippled outward, striking the demonic face with lethal precision. It was the Silver Needle of the Ice Stamen!

At the same moment, Le Zhengqing unleashed his final trump card. His hand seals shifted rapidly, and red, white, and blue brilliance shot from his fingertips. A golden lock suddenly appeared in the void, inscribed with mysterious runes. Eight chains extended from it in all directions, interlocking endlessly, their ends disappearing into the void. Each chain was a different color, glowing with intense, blinding light.

"Eight Gates Golden Lock Formation!"

The hellfire and the purple flames spewed by the head collided, creating an explosion that reached the heavens. The resulting shockwave struck the sea, triggering a massive tidal wave from thin air.

Amidst the explosion, the Silver Needle of the Ice Stamen pierced the demonic face like a needle through a balloon. A faint *ping* was barely audible amidst the thunderous roar, yet it struck true, piercing the split soul. *Crack-crack!* Like a collapsing mountain, the giant demonic head disintegrated into formless golden fluorescence. Ancestor Kui’s terrifying scream continued unabated, whipping up a tempest. The Eight Gates Golden Lock Formation trembled violently, the dispersing fluorescent light slamming against the chains with a deafening clatter, but it could not break free.

"You destroyed my split soul! Don't you dare run!" The trapped fluorescent light erupted in a furious roar. "Impossible! How could a mere whelp like you possess such a treasure!"

"Run!" Le Zhengqing grabbed Lin Feng, and they fled for their lives. Le Zhengqing, who usually never used artifacts for travel, was forced to ride the Cycle of Thought Awl to conserve his spiritual energy.

"Let’s see where you can run!"

With a thunderous boom, a giant hand pursued them from a thousand miles away, accompanied by the roar of Ancestor Kui.

The sky-shaking explosion, the churning air, and the colossal, peerless palm were reflected in Lin Feng’s horrified eyes. The sheer presence was like a god’s—irresistible and inescapable.

"Yinque Palace!" Just as he flipped his palm to grasp the Water Mirror Plate and looked into it, the giant hand suddenly halted a hundred miles away. At the same time, a high, bright, and clear bird cry from the horizon scattered the chaotic clouds, arriving in an instant.

"Emperor Pengcheng?" Le Zhengqing’s face lit up with joy. It was actually Emperor Pengcheng! One of the top three combatants among the twelve Demon Kings!

"Old Kui, isn't it a bit beneath you to chase two juniors like this?"

In the void, within a sphere of golden light, a young man with golden robes and golden hair stood quietly. Yet, he felt as deep and unfathomable as a surging ocean. His unique aura was royal, majestic, and filled with a domineering disdain for all things.

Emperor Pengcheng! A super-expert on par with Emperor Minglong of the Nine Dragon Hall. Every cultivator in the world, whether demonic or Daoist, spoke his name with reverence. The common saying "a journey of ten thousand miles" actually referred to Pengcheng Emperor Ao Hongchen! In terms of speed, none in the world could surpass him. It was said that his true form, the Golden-Winged Great Peng, had a wingspan of ten thousand miles—though none knew if this was true.

Lin Feng and Le Zhengqing watched the legendary emperor with awe and excitement, while the giant hand conjured by Ancestor Kui appeared visibly intimidated, hesitating to advance.

"Emperor Pengcheng! The private affairs of my Li Sea are none of your concern! These two slaughtered our Young Master; do they not deserve to die?"

"Ancestor Kui, the judgment regarding the Li Sea has already been passed. If you intervene, you will surely fall into eternal ruin. You have cultivated for tens of thousands of years to reach this realm; I suggest you withdraw now while you are still confused. Otherwise, I will have no choice but to erase your soul imprint!"

Emperor Pengcheng’s voice was calm, yet it exerted immense pressure. Both men felt the terrifying and mysterious power contained within his words—an authority that could not be defied.

"Hahahaha... Ao Hongchen, if I retreat now, wouldn't I be no better than that old turtle, the Great Tortoise? Today, I shall see for myself if you are truly as invincible as the rumors claim!"

The giant hand in the sky suddenly struck out, accompanied by an indomitable murderous aura, slapping toward Emperor Pengcheng!

Le Zhengqing grabbed Lin Feng and teleported a hundred miles away, watching the duel between these two super-experts with solemn faces and great excitement.

Two experts at the Division of Spirit stage represented the pinnacle of the cultivation world. Witnessing their battle was a once-in-a-century opportunity.

Suddenly, Emperor Pengcheng vanished. Above the clouds, a purple lightning bolt snaked downward toward the giant hand! Within the lightning, a cyan phoenix claw descended. *BOOM! CRACK!* The lightning-wreathed claw collided with the giant palm, shattering it into dust.

Scales and flesh rained from the sky like a downpour of blood.

Having pierced the hand, the cyan claw, still wreathed in lightning, struck deep into the ten-thousand-foot-deep sea. From a distance, a savage, serpentine bolt of lightning connected the heavens and the sea in a straight line.

The calm ocean suddenly let out a muffled roar from its depths. Waves surged from all sides, and massive whirlpools churned, slamming against each other and throwing up waves dozens of feet high.

"Ao Hongchen! How dare you wound me!" A thunderous roar came from the western sea. In the Li Sea, dark clouds covered the sky, and the water changed color. Whirlpools, like countless gaping maws, roared and lashed out in celebration!

Emperor Pengcheng appeared once more, his golden light radiant. He said dismissively, "Ancestor Kui, do you think you can defeat me just by emerging in your true form? If the old shell-dweller joined you, perhaps you could force a draw. Alas, alone, you can only meet your death!"

"Hahahaha... And what if you are a Demon King? Ao Hongchen, today you shall witness the 'Taichen Sword of Vitality' that I have forged! It took me eight hundred years to temper this blade; I shall use your blood to sacrifice to its spirit!"

Ancestor Kui’s wild laughter rose from the depths of the ocean. Simultaneously, a searing radiance surged from the sea's whirlpool. The black clouds in the sky vanished under this light. A bright, blinding, cold sword light replaced the eclipsed sun, emerging slowly to hover above the sea.

"This sword... it must be at the Supreme Realm, beyond the scope of a Spirit Treasure," Le Zhengqing murmured.

Lin Feng looked at him in shock. Beyond a Spirit Treasure? That would make it an Immortal Treasure! So far, he had only seen the power of the Immortal Treasure, the Wandering Immortal Sword. Normally, Immortal Treasures only existed in the Immortal Realm. No matter how high Ancestor Kui’s power was, he couldn't possibly forge one. If not an Immortal Treasure, then what was it?

"Ancestor Kui’s sword was likely forged from his own horn. This is his Life-Bound Spirit Treasure! Oh, he has appeared, look!" Le Zhengqing’s eyes suddenly shone with intense light.

A horn? Lin Feng recalled his encounter with the Poison-Fire Flood Dragon Chao Tong in the Savage Lands; his magic treasure seemed to be forged from a dragon horn, but it lacked the aura of this sword.

A sound like cracking ice echoed across the ocean. Ancestor Kui, the peerless hermit of the Li Sea, finally revealed his true form!

Dressed in black robes, Ancestor Kui did not look particularly tall, but the phantom circling in the void behind him was hideous: a black, giant-fanged Kui-Horned Shark with a bloodthirsty maw! Indeed, on the bridge of his nose, where a single horn should have been, it was completely smooth.

The Kui-Horned Shark, once the hegemon of the ocean, had long since vanished into the river of time. He was the ancestor of the modern shark tribes of the Li Sea. It was only natural that the Shark King, Xi Bing, had invited him out of seclusion, and the old demon, eager to test the power of his Taichen Sword of Vitality, had happily agreed.

"Ancestor Kui, you have forged such a Life-Bound Spirit Treasure; it is no small feat. Why must you involve yourself in worldly disputes?" Emperor Pengcheng urged him gently.

"Ao Hongchen, if your Golden Peng City were bullied, would your elders sit idly by? Enough talk, let us fight!"

The spark-filled Taichen Sword of Vitality suddenly expanded, releasing a world-destroying aura. The sword light, like a straight plume of smoke, shot upward into the sky and downward into the sea, splitting the world in two! Above, flames surged, and the air boiled; below, hail ravaged the sea, freezing the water, the cracking sound spreading into the infinite distance.

Emperor Pengcheng’s expression remained unreadable behind his ethereal mask. With a flick of his finger, countless golden wheels appeared behind him, and seven-colored rays of light shone like a precious fan, connecting with the wheels and spreading across the void.

"You are not Emperor Pengcheng!" Ancestor Kui shrieked, his face changing instantly.