"In reality, only those who have broken through to the Martial Emperor realm know that Hell's Gate is nothing more than a pile of broken bricks and rotten tiles!" Chu Long said leisurely while waving his folding fan.
"Moreover, Hell's Gate is currently too preoccupied with dealing with the Chu family in the Qian Region to care about anything else. Isn't this the perfect opportunity for us to break through to Martial Emperor?"
The eyes of the many visitors lit up at these words.
Indeed!
The Qian Region and surrounding areas had already begun slipping from Hell's Gate's control.
How could they possibly spare more attention to deal with others?
......
Any news related to Hell's Gate or the Chu family of Qian Region spread like wildfire.
The news that someone had quietly broken through to Martial Emperor and slain Hell's Gate Martial Emperors swept through the Mortal Realm like a hurricane.
Almost instantly,Numerous factions dispatched scouts to Nine Saints City to verify the rumors.
"It's true, absolutely true!"
"Someone has indeed broken through to Martial Emperor, and even killed three Hell's Gate Martial Emperors in succession!"
This news made many veteran Martial Saints restless,
And many began making covert preparations.
But some noticed that Hell's Gate Martial Emperors had recently been patrolling frequently - their purpose was obvious to most.
"It seems Hell's Gate is truly losing control of the situation, otherwise they wouldn't have Martial Emperors patrolling the Mortal Realm!"
Such things had never happened before,
Because no one had dared challenge their authority.
"What should we do then?"
"Some have probably already started quietly breaking through to Martial Emperor. Falling behind wouldn't be good!"
"Now isn't the best time for breakthroughs. There will inevitably be more clashes between Hell's Gate and the Chu family. When the next great battle erupts, that will be our moment to break through!"
"The most important thing now is to prepare thoroughly for the Martial Emperor breakthrough!"
Other factions across the Mortal Realm had all received the news,
And many began making their moves.
Hell's Gate,
The main hall was eerily silent.
"Let's hear your thoughts, everyone. How could our Hell's Gate Martial Emperors at the Great Perfection stage be slain by initial-stage Martial Emperors and a group of Martial Saints? Are our Martial Emperors truly paper tigers as the rumors say?"
First Gate Lord Wu Fu's voice was icy cold,
His gaze sweeping across the dozen-plus Martial Emperors seated in the hall.
"In my opinion, the enemy must have used some special method!"
"It wouldn't be surprising if some forbidden techniques from ancient times remain hidden in the Mortal Realm!"
Third Gate Lord Min Xu said solemnly.
It was just that others lacked the insight to recognize this,
Mistakenly thinking initial-stage Martial Emperors could slay Great Perfection ones.
"Well said! They must have used some ancient forbidden technique. But this also proves someone couldn't resist breaking through to Martial Emperor and is inciting other Martial Saints to follow suit!"
"We cannot allow this to continue! We must nip this in the bud!"
This was an unprecedented situation since antiquity,
If they failed to completely suppress this disturbance,
It might soon develop into something truly troublesome.
"Ultimately, all this stems from that Chu family's Beast God. Without him, none of these changes would have occurred!"
"He truly deserves death!"
A Martial Emperor roared angrily.
The Chu family itself wasn't fearsome,
Not even their current Martial Emperor was intimidating.
But the strength of that Beast God made them deeply apprehensive, not daring to act against the regions the Chu family now controlled, fearing to provoke him.
"His arrogance won't last much longer!"
"With such turmoil in the Mortal Realm, the Saint Envoy has already begun summoning Sacred Realm experts. Once they descend, it will be the death of the Chu family's Beast God!"
Wu Fu declared solemnly.
He glanced at Seventh Gate Lord Mu Tuo's usual seat,
Now empty.
With his illegitimate son Xing Qi dead and the imperial artifact missing,
He had personally rushed to Nine Saints City filled with towering rage.
"With Seventh Gate Lord's strength, he should be able to salvage some face for Hell's Gate while intimidating those restless elements!"
But unfortunately,
Or perhaps fortunately for Mu Tuo,
By the time he arrived at Nine Saints City seething with rage,
Chu Long and others had already returned to their family.
Otherwise, he might have only met his death there!
"Ah! You little thief! Villain! Don't let me find out who you are, or I'll hunt you to the ends of the earth, tear you limb from limb, feast on your flesh and drink your blood to avenge my son's death!"
Mu Tuo's white hair flew wildly,
Like an enraged lion.
He had many illegitimate children,
But Xing Qi was undoubtedly the most talented,
The only one among his offspring to break through to Martial Emperor,
And the one he had pinned his greatest hopes on.
Otherwise he wouldn't have gifted him his lifebound imperial artifact, the Chaos Starry Lotus, for protection.
But now,
He couldn't even sense where his own artifact was!
"I will find you! I swear I will find you!"
Mu Tuo's eyes glowed red,
The pale flame between his brows flickering violently,
A terrifying sight!
Suddenly,
He spat out a mouthful of blood,
Exclaiming in shock: "He actually severed my connection to the imperial artifact?"
That was his lifebound spiritual weapon refined over thousands of years!
How could someone forcibly sever his bond with it?
"Ah! Damn you to hell!"
"Don't let me discover your identity!"
Mu Tuo's rage now erupted like a volcano,
The energy within him teetering on the brink of explosion.
If a Martial Emperor appeared before him now, he'd likely punch them to pieces.
Long Yuan erased all traces from the Chaos Starry Lotus,
And placed it in the Heart Refining Pagoda as a trial reward.
"A fine imperial artifact, excellent for both offense and defense!"
Though it worked best for those cultivating the Chaos Path,
Others would struggle to unleash its Chaos power.
With nothing pressing to attend to,
Long Yuan continued observing the Chu family's situation.
"Other aspects are developing well - we have Martial Emperors, many Martial Saints, and the population is steadily increasing!"
Especially in population, which had grown significantly compared to years past,
Now reaching an astonishing seventy thousand.
Between marriages, concubines, and those joining through marriage,
Under the generous fertility incentive system,
The Chu family had welcomed thousands of newborns in the past year alone.
"The development time is still too short!"
"Given about ten years, the Chu family population would surely exceed a hundred thousand!"
This was something Long Yuan paid special attention to,
Because the Chu family now had many Emperor-tier experts,
And the gap between Emperor-tier and God-tier was vast.
There might be additional missions appearing,
Like nurturing Emperor-tier alchemists or artifact forgers,
Or reaching certain population milestones!
So if possible,
Long Yuan would spare no effort to complete them early.
After all, the feeling of continuously receiving rewards was simply too satisfying!
"Progress with alchemists, artifact forgers and formation masters is still somewhat slow though."
Long Yuan closed his eyes in contemplation,
Pondering feasible solutions.
But just then,
The system's voice suddenly rang out.
[Congratulations Host for nurturing nine Emperor-tier experts for your guardian family]
[Rewards: 30,000 years of cultivation, Supreme Divine Technique "World Within Palm", Supreme Physique "Eyes of Providence", God-tier cultivation technique "Celestial Dragon Art", 50 Emperor-tier physique origins, 50 Emperor-tier martial soul origins, three divine artifacts]
Hmm?
"Who broke through to Martial Emperor?"
Long Yuan asked in surprise.