Chapter 1651: Heavenly Emperor's Demons

Endless thunderous booms filled the air as the towering stalk of Heavenly Thunder Bamboo swayed in the sky above. The aura that it emanated gradually intensified until it felt absolutely magnificent.

The aura continued to grow until crisp cracking sounds could be heard. It was as though a spring bamboo shoot was finally emerging from the shackles of the soil, witnessing the joy of the sun.

Everyone watched in awe as an explosive sea of golden lightning gushed out from the tip of the Heavenly Thunder Bamboo, raging between the heavens and the earth.

An elderly man gradually appeared in the midst of the lightning, emanating a majestic and terrifying aura.

The wizened man seemed a little unaccustomed to his body, so he stretched his arms and legs. Feeling a little more comfortable, he turned to Li Luo and Jiang Qing'e with a smile.

"You've had a rough time, you little brats."

That familiar face belonged to none other than Li Jingzhe, who hadn’t been seen for years.

The Dragon's Scale Lineage’s Lineage Chief Li Qingying stared at the man with eyes as wide as saucers, her mouth agape. She couldn't believe what she was seeing.

"Lineage Chief Jingzhe? He... didn't he meet his downfall in the World's End River Region?"

However, she came to her senses a moment later. Judging by Li Luo's actions, he had clearly been cultivating that shoot of Heavenly Thunder Bamboo.

"Li Jingzhe didn't die that day. A strand of his consciousness was hidden away within the Heavenly Thunder Bamboo. Li Luo managed to bring him back to life!"

she realized.

This wasn't just a simple rebirth, though. He was only a Quasi-Triple Crown King before his fall, but now the fellow was on the cusp of ascending to the Heavenly Emperor Stage! This was a metamorphosis of unbelievable proportions.

Li Qingying instantly understood the crux of the matter.

"That old man must have encountered a wondrous opportunity."

Although this entire situation was a disaster, it also served as an opportunity. If that final strand of consciousness had not desperately clung to life and sought to survive, he might never have reached this state.

"This kid Li Luo... he's not just the Absolute Resonance Seed, he's actually Li Jingzhe's greatest blessing!"

Even the usually composed Li Qingying couldn't help but feel a hint of sourness. Ever since Li Luo came to the Dragon's Fang Lineage, Li Jingzhe's strength had increased dramatically time and time again.

He used to be the same as most of the other Lineage Chiefs, merely a Single Crowned King. The old man had always kept his strength very well hidden, so no one had ever expected that he would pull ahead.

But now? She wasn't even close to the Dual Crowned King Stage, yet Li Jingzhe was almost a Heavenly Emperor! If he broke through, Li Jingzhe would become the second Heavenly Emperor of the Bloodline of Heavenly Emperor Li after Li Jun himself.

How was she so unlucky not to have a grandson who literally showered his family with luck?

As Li Qingying enviously watched the situation, Li Qingpeng's eyes had reddened upon witnessing his father emerge from the golden thunder. Even so, he was still relatively calm as he was already aware of the secret that Li Jingzhe had not completely perished. As a result, he felt much happier than he was surprised.

Li Fengyi and Li Jingtao were left in the dark about this, and thus, they looked on in a daze, constantly rubbing their eyes, unsure if they were hallucinating.

"What is going on? I think I see Grandpa up there."

"I seem to be seeing the same thing too."

The two glanced at each other, seeing tears welling up in each other's eyes.

Li Fengyi wiped away her tears. "Little Brother is too cruel. He didn't even give us so much as a squeak when it came to this important matter. If he had, we wouldn't have felt so aggrieved for the past few years."

Li Jingtao scratched his head and gave a silly smile. "There must be a lot of secrets behind this, making it hard to share this information. Look, even Lineage Chief Qingying seems mindblown by all this. Third Brother must have done this to protect himself and Grandpa."

Li Fengyi's nose was red as she glumly nodded in agreement. She naturally understood all of this. The two of them were weak, and knowing such a colossal secret would not only be useless, but it would also place a lot of pressure on them.

As the cousins consoled each other, Li Jingzhe had left the Heavenly Thunder Bamboo and turned his attention to the vast thunderclouds in the sky. At this point, the clouds parted and a beam of light descended from the heavens.

After which, everyone saw a set of monumental and majestic steps extend downwards from the sky. No one knew how far the steps reached, but at the very end was an almighty throne, capable of overlooking all living creatures in the world.

This was the Heavenly Emperor's Throne. When one ascended the heavenly steps, they would be able to grasp Authority within their hands. However, it was no simple feat to do so.

Roar!

Limitless golden lightning condensed above the steps, transforming into a titanic golden dragon so large that one couldn't see its full body in their field of view. The golden dragon was sprawled across the steps, radiating a terrifying might.

At the same time, a colossal stalk of Heavenly Thunder Bamboo quietly took root on the steps, flickering with devastating golden lightning that danced across its body.

Whoosh!

Finally, a deep azure wind whistled down from the sky. It stung like a thorn in one's flesh. Even if a Triple Crowned King were so much as touched by it, his Crowns would be corroded and his foundation shaken.

This was called the Heavenly Emperor's Demons.

During the Ascension of Heavenly Steps, one's resonances would resonate with the heavens and the earth, transforming into a set of final demons that would obstruct them. Overcoming this calamity would allow them to merge with their resonances, finally grasping the power of Authority and standing at the pinnacle of the world.

All of the experts present watched the scene with awe and respect, especially the Kings like Pang Qianyuan. They looked on with unblinking eyes as the rare event of someone ascending the Heavenly Steps to become a Heavenly Emperor would only happen once every few hundred years.

"Good luck, Grandpa!" Li Luo bellowed confidently at the top of his lungs

However, his hands were clammy and cold, his heart filled with worry. He hadn't realized just how difficult it was to become a Heavenly Emperor. Li Jingzhe had already gone through a life-or-death experience in order to undergo rebirth. However, one last hurdle remained between him and the Heavenly Emperor Stage.

His aged face revealed a slight smile as he took a step forward, appearing atop the Heavenly Steps in the blink of an eye. He then raised his head and focused on the three beasts that blocked his way.

These three resonances were his closest friends and the sources of his strength, but now they were the biggest obstacles on his path.

His body, which was forged from golden lightning, let out a deafening rumble, and cracks appeared on his skin. Golden thunderflame spurted out from the tiny crevices.

He had sacrificially ignited the body that Li Luo had painstakingly cultivated for him over the years. This was a path of no retreat. Failure would lead to permanent death with no further chance for revival.

"Seeking life amidst despair," the Pill Saint said with a sigh.

Li Jingzhe knew exactly how frightening the Heavenly Emperor's Demons were and had acted decisively. If he chose to proceed normally, he might not succeed. Thus, he had chosen to put everything on the line. He would burn away his body for greater strength and cut off any chance to escape, all for the sake of ascension.

If it could be done, he would make sure it was done. After all, failing at the last moment would also mean that everyone's efforts were for naught.

Li Jingzhe, whose entire body was burning away and covered with cracks, shot forward explosively in a flash of golden light. With a single step, he arrived before the titanic Golden Dragon Demon.

The dragon roared, brandishing its claws, which seemed large enough to take hold of the entire world and possessed unparalleled power.

Li Jingzhe punched back without reservation.

Bang!

In the moment of collision, the entire world seemed to collapse, and Li Jingzhe's right arm shattered, turning into a stream of thunderflame. The golden dragon, on the other hand, was sent flying, its prodigious body falling apart piece by piece.

He took another step forward with no hesitation, appearing before the gigantic Heavenly Thunder Bamboo Demon. As the latter swayed, vast amounts of golden lightning condensed into the shape of a halberd that hacked downwards.

He didn't avoid it, choosing to let the thunder halberd sever the left part of his body, including the arm, as he struck without reservation.

Despite being chopped off, the hand of the left arm was still overflowing with thunderflame, serving as his sharpest weapon as it pierced unimpeded towards the Heavenly Thunder Bamboo. It repaid the favor by severing it into two as well.

This entire series of attacks had been executed in the blink of an eye, but the brutality and decisiveness demonstrated was so overwhelming that everyone's scalps turned numb.

The ravaged Li Jingzhe's cold expression never changed despite all this. Both his arms had been destroyed and his body was bathed in golden thunderflame after the swift confrontation with the first two demons. Even so, he stood steadfast as he faced the incoming tempest of deep azure winds.

The Wind Demon was the last to arrive, and wherever it passed, holes were drilled into his body as though he was as fragile as a clay sculpture. Even so, he stepped forward resolutely.

Golden bones were revealed with the scourging of his flesh and blood, each resembling the texture of bamboo. In fact, it seemed as though his entire being was crafted from bamboo. With every step he took, his flesh and blood were scattered, grinded away into nothingness by the wind.

The world had turned silent as everyone watched the scene with all sorts of turbulent emotions. The elderly man's iron will was imprinted into their minds.

Li Luo held his breath as he focused on the scene, barely a sound coming from him. He squeezed Jiang Qing'e's hand so tightly that subtle creaks were heard, though he wasn't aware of what his hand was doing.

Jiang Qing'e frowned slightly but did not resist, tempering the force with her gentle grip.

Bang!

At this moment, a loud sound rang out in the distance. A gap that would be difficult to restore had opened up within the sound formation that was keeping Blood Butcher and Asura Arm trapped. It seemed the Grand Devil Kings' hard work had paid off.

The devilish limb that was so humongous it could blot out the sky leapt forward, escaping from the formation. The blood eye in the palm exploded with crimson light, piercing through space as it headed towards Li Luo, Jiang Qing'e, and the Pill Saint.

The Asura Arm Grand Devil King could sense that the time it could spend in this world was reaching its limit. Thus, it had to capture the Pill Saint to bring her along as quickly as possible. At the same time, it would take this opportunity to deal with the Absolute Resonance Seed and a future Heavenly Emperor of Light.

As the massive palm descended towards them, Li Luo acted as though he didn't notice. Instead, his gaze was purely focused on his grandpa's broken body, still making his way up the Heavenly Steps.

The old man had weathered the erosion of the Wind Demon and was barely conscious, but he finally managed to make his way all the way up to stand on the final step.

His whispers echoed throughout the world. "My grandson desperately needs my help. Thus, this Heavenly Emperor's Throne will be mine today."

Li Jingzhe climbed the final step.

As he stood at the top, the heavens and earth turned silent momentarily before worldly natural energy erupted with a howling roar. This roar seemed to originate from the most ancient of times, filled with upright solemnity and sublime harmony. The roar then continued to spread unabated, echoing in every single corner of the ten divine continents.

It was the hymn of the heavens. Every single Heavenly Emperor existence within the ten divine continents raised their heads within their hidden lairs, casting surprised looks through the void towards this location. Another Heavenly Emperor was being born.

Meanwhile, just as the gigantic devil arm was about to seal the entire area and take everyone inside it away, boundless golden light emerged from the void.

Weng!

The void ruptured, and a massive golden dragon claw emerged from the rift, imbued with the Authority of Golden Thunder and Azure Wind, slamming into the arm.

Boom!

Frightening fluctuations scattered across the sky, stretching over tens of thousands of miles.

The countless spectators were shocked to see that the Asura Arm Grand Devil King's arm was slowly being pushed back by the golden dragon claw.

Sheltered under the claw, Li Luo looked ahead. There, a figure who looked old but radiated newfound vitality was standing with his hands behind his back. When he realized that Li Luo was looking at him, he turned his head, and a gentle smile appeared on his face, which he had deliberately chosen not to change.

"You little brats have had a tough time while I was gone."

The day had come.

Li Jingzhe had advanced into the Heavenly Emperor Stage.