Chapter 457: Sealing Heaven and Earth, The Heavenly King Descends

When Chen Chu walked over eight thousand meters on the path to divinity, it seemed as though something had been triggered. At the far end, a massive black gate, towering hundreds of meters high, began to materialize in a hazy, ghostly form.

The gate appeared like a mirage, ethereal and dreamlike, standing tall in the void ahead.

"What is that gate?" Fu Jiangtao asked in astonishment.

Below, the hundred or so geniuses who had failed the trial and were ejected early all stared in confusion and fear at the strange phenomenon appearing within the Eye of the Sky.

Watching the solitary figure steadily walking along the path of clouds, Li Hao, who stood nearby, slowly remarked, "It must be related to Chen Chu. He’s gone too far now."

Compared to Li Daoyi and the others, who had only covered three thousand meters and were still at the beginning of the path of heavenly kings, Chen Chu was nearly at the end of the path to divinity.

The gap between them was staggering, especially when considering that Li Hao had only managed to pass the path of the pinnacle. The difference between him and Chen Chu now was even more pronounced.

Thinking about this, a wave of emotion stirred in Li Hao’s eyes.

Who could have imagined that, just six months ago, during the freshman ranked competition at Nantian High School, this guy was merely an average genius, ranked forty-ninth?

After his journey to Kyrola, whether it was due to tempering himself on the battlefield of slaughter or something else, he had soared like a phoenix, unstoppable.

He had effortlessly surpassed everyone, becoming the first student in their year to break through to the Fourth Heavenly Realm. Then, upon entering the mutated beast battlefield, he had remained dormant for only a month before emerging invincible, sweeping across the southern region.

Thinking of this, even Li Hao couldn’t help but grumble, "Damn, it’s like this guy’s using cheat codes."

Ji Changkong, standing beside him, chuckled lightly. "Relax, Li Hao. Everyone has their own path. There’s no need to compare yourself to Chen Chu."

Li Hao, rugged in appearance and as burly as a giant, sighed deeply. "I’m not jealous of Chen Chu’s achievements. There are just some things you wouldn’t understand."

Recalling the duel he had promised Chen Chu, Li Hao felt a headache coming on.

How am I supposed to fight him...? Forget it, I’ll delay the match until I break through to the king level.

But by then, that guy might have already become a heavenly king. At least as a king, I should be able to take two hits from that monster... right?

Though he had only walked about 1,500 meters on the path to divinity, Li Hao remained confident in himself.

He had survived twenty-nine near-death experiences, breaking through his limits time and time again, and he possessed Innate Divine Power. He was destined to ascend the throne in this lifetime.

Moreover, his harvest this time had been immense—two strands of world origin, and an ancient demonic bronze statue from a lost civilization.

As long as he could cultivate the Heavenly Demonic Scripture, forge the Demonic Spirit Battle Body, and complete his third physical transformation to break through to the Seventh Heavenly Realm, becoming a king was not out of reach.

While everyone’s attention was on the Eye of the Sky, a terrifying aura erupted from the direction of Passage One in the distance.

Gales howled, and thunder roared as the silver vortex, towering a thousand meters high, trembled violently. It felt as though a colossal being was pushing its way through.

The sudden change drew everyone’s attention. When they turned to look, they saw the horizon consumed by an endless darkness, transforming into rolling black clouds surging toward them.

In the blink of an eye, the black clouds, like a tidal wave, rushed forward, blotting out the sky. Immediately following this, an overwhelming pressure, far beyond the realm of a king, descended.

Boom!

In an instant, the earth quaked, and cracks snaked across the ground. Everyone involuntarily released their auras in a desperate attempt to resist.

Under that pressure, however, these geniuses, who hadn’t even broken through the high ranks, stood no chance. The auras they had condensed were instantly shattered.

Just as the weight of the world seemed to be pressing down on them, the pressure suddenly vanished.

Above, the swirling black clouds parted, forming a hundred-meter-wide hole, and a golden beam of sunlight pierced through, within which two figures appeared.

One of them was Ji Yongning, the king who had left earlier, while the other was a middle-aged man, his hair streaked with gray, radiating an aura of profound experience and hardship.

Looking down at the crowd, Ji Yongning spoke calmly, "Do not panic. This is Heavenly King Youming. Upon hearing of the many geniuses with the potential to become kings among our people, he has come to observe."

Damn it, you guys come blasting in with such terrifying pressure, looking like you’re about to destroy the heavens and the earth. How are we not supposed to panic?

Of course, despite their complaints, no one dared to voice them. They could only murmur silently in their hearts, while outwardly showing utmost respect. "Greetings, Lord Heavenly King Youming."

Surveying the group below, the middle-aged man’s voice, deep and weathered, said, "There’s no need to be formal. Just act as though I’m not here."

With that, Heavenly King Youming and Ji Yongning flew toward the Eye of the Sky. Xie Chen’s voice, brimming with excitement, echoed, "Brother Chen, the Emperor’s Gate has appeared!"

"So that’s the Emperor’s Gate!" Heavenly King Youming gazed at the shadow of the black gate within the Eye.

Xie Chen nodded. "Yes, when that young man ahead reached over eight thousand meters, the Emperor’s Gate was triggered."

"He’s already walked over eight thousand meters?" Heavenly King Youming remarked. His figure flashed to the front of the Eye, his gaze falling on Chen Chu’s steadily advancing back.

After a long while, Heavenly King Youming exclaimed in awe, "Someone has actually managed to surpass twenty times the base soul strength before reaching the Ninth Heavenly Realm."

As someone who had once entered the ruins and traversed the path to divinity to receive its inheritance, Heavenly King Youming and others were no strangers to this continent.

This included the legendary gate standing at the end of the path—a door that, if pushed open, would grant one the title of an emperor. Within it lay the inheritance of an emperor from an ancient civilization.

However, obtaining this inheritance was exceedingly difficult. Just stepping onto the soul path required a base soul strength of five times the norm, and that was merely the entry requirement.

As one advanced through the four-thousand-meter passage, the pressure on the soul increased with every step. By eight thousand meters, the pressure would reach tenfold.

According to the First Councilor, who had stopped at eight thousand meters during their journey, to reach the end of the path, one's base soul strength would need to exceed twenty times the norm.

Heavenly King Youming turned to Xie Chen. "Old Xie, how long has the path to divinity been open now?"

"Seven and a half hours."

"Seven and a half, huh? There's really hope this time." Heavenly King Youming's expression turned solemn as he surveyed the geniuses below. With a thought, he made his move.

Boom!

The dark clouds that had been covering the sky rolled, trembled, and slowly descended like a shroud, sealing the heavens and the earth and isolating the surrounding kilometers.

In an instant, the world plunged into darkness, with only the Eye of the Sky above radiating a white light, its golden pupil reflecting the scenes of the path to divinity.

Within this range, everything was cut off from the outside world.

The sudden shift caused the geniuses below to stir in confusion, unsure why the Heavenly King had sealed off the area. The three kings had muted their conversation, so no one knew what they had been discussing. However, it seemed likely to be because of Chen Chu.

All gazes turned back to the Eye, falling on Chen Chu's figure. It was highly probable that this descent of the Heavenly King, and the sealing of the area, was because of him.

After all, though the other six who had passed through the path of kings were immensely talented, they only held the potential to become kings; none had the qualifications to attract the attention of a heavenly king.

Only this individual, who was about to reach the end of the path, had such qualifications.

Unaware of the events happening outside, Xia Youhui and the others within the ruins were watching from afar, feeling a mix of excitement.

An Fuqing had already surpassed Li Daoyi. Yet, none of them were surprised that she had made it this far, as she had been a prodigy from the start.

Since entering school, she had left others far behind, and after reaching the Third Heavenly Realm, her progress had been nothing short of astonishing.

Had it not been for Chen Chu, An Fuqing's brilliance would have shone much more brightly. But those who understood her knew just how monstrous her talent was. Possessing both top-level cultivation aptitude and top-level comprehension talent, she was truly fearsome.

In the West Meng camp, a female student exclaimed, "East Xia is really terrifying. Of the seven geniuses who passed the path of kings, four of them are from there!"

Xia Youhui chuckled. "Dear lady, you're looking at it the wrong way. Whether it's East Xia, West Meng, or North Lin, they're all part of the human race. As long as the geniuses come from our race, no matter what country they hail from, we should all be glad.

"When they break through to become kings and open up the mythical world to fight against the Purgatory Demon Clan, the entire Federation will benefit, not just any single country."

The crowd nodded in agreement with his words.

With everyone watching anxiously, time passed quickly. Aside from An Fuqing, the others on the path of heavenly kings were slowing down, including the mysterious Bredos.

By the eight-hour mark, An Fuqing had advanced to over 4,600 meters, while Li Daoyi followed at just over 4,100 meters.

Next was Bredos at over 3,700 meters, followed by Gabriella and Ji Wuji at over 3,500 meters, and Bardas at over 3,300 meters.

Bardas, the leading figure of this generation from North Lin, was notably slower in terms of comprehension, likely due to the nature of his cultivation art. After all, gene martial arts didn’t focus on sudden enlightenment, but on refining the body, purifying the bloodline, and following a path of human-beast fusion in evolution.

Chen Chu, under the watchful and excited gazes of Xie Chen and the others, had already reached over nine thousand meters.

As Chen Chu approached, the black gate at the end of the path became clearer, revealing ancient patterns of mountains, rivers, and stars, as it exuded an aura of timelessness.

Even at this point, Chen Chu's pace had not slowed. He continued forward steadily, step by step, closing in on the end of the path. It seemed that in another half hour, he would reach the end.

Xie Chen’s voice trembled slightly. "His base soul strength is terrifying, as if he was born with a soul ability, and it’s an ability that continually grows."

Ji Yongning pondered. "It’s possible that he did awaken a soul ability. If you look at his growth trajectory, it was only after he began cultivating true martial arts that he started to show explosive progress.

"This can only be explained by an innate soul transformation, because the soul rarely affects the body, unless one embarks on the transcendent path of cultivation."

As cultivators who had reached the level of kings, their experiences and insights were at the peak of the human race. Based on the various signs they observed, they had almost pieced together the truth—at least part of it.

"After the Eighth Heavenly Realm, when his body is reforged, we can test his soul strength through the ability awakening process, and we’ll know just how strong his base soul really is."

Heavenly King Youming shook his head slowly. "It’s unnecessary. Once he obtains the emperor’s inheritance, nothing else will matter. In fact, all information regarding him will need to be sealed.

"Even though ancient and modern methods differ slightly, with the emperor’s inheritance, he’s guaranteed to become a heavenly king, and there’s a high chance he’ll ascend to supreme power. As for reaching an even higher realm..."

Youming paused. That level couldn’t be achieved simply through inheritance. Otherwise, the ancient civilization would have had seventy or even seven hundred emperors, not just seven.

Xie Chen and Ji Yongning nodded slowly.

Indeed, once Chen Chu obtained the emperor’s inheritance, everything else would be irrelevant. He would be the human race’s next hope.

On the soul path, Chen Chu could now see the gate ahead. However, unlike the projection seen by those outside, the gate that Chen Chu saw extended deep into the void, its invisible principle power suppressing everything around it.

The crushing pressure from all directions grew even stronger, nearing thirty times his base soul strength, yet Chen Chu felt that it was still manageable.

At the moment, he was a bit surprised, but it also felt natural to him.

His soul’s strength could be inferred from his four attributes. His spirit attribute, which represented his soul, was only a few hundred points lower than his physique, which had over 6,000 points.

Compared to his physical strength, it was clear how strong his base soul strength was.

Under the external pressure, Chen Chu's soul manifested visibly, and with the cultivation of the Taixu Nether Light Scripture, it became increasingly condensed, gradually taking the form of a nearly hundred-meter-tall figure behind him.

However, the soul projection was still somewhat blurry. As the Taixu Scripture continued to operate, the projection was steadily refined, slowly shrinking.

After all, bigger wasn’t necessarily better when it came to souls.

Withstanding the terrifying pressure of the void that nearly crushed his soul, Chen Chu pressed forward, drawing closer and closer to the black gate. He soon reached the ten-thousand-meter limit.

Only nine hours had passed, and outside, Xie Chen and the other two kings had a trace of excitement in their eyes.

Those watching below were equally shocked.

"He did it. He actually completed the path to divinity."

Fu Jiangtao, who had once lost to Chen Chu, was astounded. "Chen Chu’s talent is unbelievable. I feel like he could break through to the Ninth Heavenly Realm before the end of his first year."

"I feel the same way." Lin Mei smiled bitterly.

One year to reach the Ninth Heavenly Realm. Hearing this, Li Hao remained calm.

You’re underestimating him. One year to become a king is more likely.

Even after reaching higher levels, Chen Chu’s cultivation speed hadn’t slowed. He had already broken through to the middle stage of the Seventh Heavenly Realm, and he was about to obtain an ancient inheritance.

That gate standing at the end of the path of heavenly kings—anyone could guess with just a little thought that the inheritance inside was important. It was likely from the ancient emperor the kings had mentioned.

An inheritance from an emperor, an existence that surpassed even that of a heavenly king. Once Chen Chu obtains it...!

Just thinking about it made Li Hao gasp.

Then, he felt a sense of helplessness.

By the time I break through to become a king in a few years, I probably won’t even be able to withstand a single move from Chen Chu.

"Why did he stop?"

Everyone watching from the void fissure was stunned when they saw Chen Chu suddenly stop just short of the gate, unmoving.