The intense rejection and weakness filled Yan Xu with great fear.
She had a premonition that she might truly be in trouble. Although her opponent was not the Human Emperor, his strength had already surpassed hers.
Though Li Qingyun was still far from Blue Star, the power of human destiny suddenly began to point towards him, converging upon him.
He heard the calls of his fellow countrymen from Blue Star.
"Go, kill that alien god!"
"The future of Blue Star depends on you!"
"Let her taste the might of humanity!"
"......"
This vast power of belief directly targeted him.
Li Qingyun paused for a moment, then felt a pang of sadness.
He recalled Yan Xu's words when her defenses were broken, how she claimed humans had betrayed their Human Emperor.
The people of Blue Star would never betray Senior Brother Xian. Thus, there was only one truth, which he could guess.
"Do only I remember Senior Brother Xian...?"
This bleak emotion quickly transformed into extreme rage. It was all because of this scoundrel before him that everything had become this way.
Before Yan Xu could recover from the previous blow, she was subjected to Li Qingyun's onslaught.
"No... this can't be..."
Her vision was constantly blurred, and the feeling of weakness had not receded.
She had completely lost the authority of the Human Emperor; this supreme Dao had been returned to this universe.
The Human Emperor's Dao had been split in two by Chu Yang, one half within her and the other within the Human Emperor's Cauldron.
Now that the Human Emperor was gone, and people had forgotten Chu Yang's existence, this power had temporarily transferred to Li Qingyun.
Li Qingyun felt his strength growing stronger and stronger, as if he were touching the ceiling of his potential.
Currently, merely possessing this temporary Human Emperor power allowed him to crush Yan Xu, leaving her with no ability to retaliate.
In a word, he was dominating the fight.
This somewhat explained why Yan Xu and Shi Tian were so obsessed with this power.
Yan Xu cried out in terror, begging, "Stop! Stop! I surrender!"
"Surrender your mother!"
Li Qingyun grabbed Yan Xu's head and smashed it onto a planet.
The newly formed planet was shattered the moment it was impacted.
In the time that followed, Yan Xu had never felt death so close.
Her vitality dwindled with each of Li Qingyun's attacks, and everything about her seemed to be reaching its end.
Before her lay endless darkness; she did not want to die.
However, the enraged Li Qingyun did not accept her surrender and didn't even give her a chance to speak.
This was all Chu Yang's fault!
This human who had plotted against her even unto death!
She had only intended to use him as a vessel to cultivate the Human Emperor's Dao, yet in the end, she was outmaneuvered and left with nothing!
Shi Tian was right; I should have killed him long ago...
As she was being beaten, Yan Xu harbored resentment and curses towards Chu Yang.
But then, a flash of inspiration struck her, and she shouted, "Don't you want to save Chu Yang? This body and the soul I've corrupted belong to him! If you kill me, he will have no possibility of awakening..."
"Crack..."
Li Qingyun had already appeared before her, gripping her neck and lifting her.
Yan Xu had never felt such humiliation, appearing as pathetic as a stray dog.
"Speak!"
Facing Li Qingyun, whose eyes were red with fury, Yan Xu began to laugh.
She had found her lifeline.
Humans, with their complex emotions, were truly...
Even as a Creator, Li Qingyun could not escape this emotional vulnerability.
"Cough... let me go, and I will return this body to you..."
As she spoke, Yan Xu's face contorted, and then slowly transformed into a face Li Qingyun was intimately familiar with.
She had become Chu Yang.
Or rather, this had been the body's original appearance, but Yan Xu had deliberately distorted it into her own image earlier.
After all, she hadn't wanted to inherit the position of Human Emperor as Chu Yang.
"Senior Brother Xian..."
Li Qingyun was momentarily stunned, but Yan Xu dared not make any significant moves.
She didn't dare to ask for too much now; she only wanted to leave. Humans were a complex race, and she had already tasted the consequences of trying to manipulate them.
When one acknowledges another's strength, one must put away all greed.
However, Li Qingyun did not loosen his grip. His immense power enveloped Yan Xu.
"I admit my failure. I want none of this universe; I will return his body to you, and you spare my life. Isn't this a fair trade?"
Fair?
Fair for what!
"You killed many people on Blue Star. If you don't die, how can I explain myself to them?"
Li Qingyun's killing intent did not wane in the slightest.
Yan Xu panicked and quickly explained, "Those I killed were just cultivators below the Great Ascension stage, only tens of thousands. Blue Star still has many cultivators..."
Li Qingyun's brows furrowed deeply.
Sensing the change in Li Qingyun's expression, Yan Xu continued to intensify her explanation, "Those tens of thousands were all obvious troublemakers! Killing some people appropriately can help you establish authority! After you become the Human Emperor, you can better control Blue Star..."
Yan Xu still hadn't grasped the severity of the situation.
Every word she spoke now seemed to land like a perfectly placed mine.
"Shut up! I will not forgive you for my fellow countrymen, not even for Senior Brother Xian alone! Die!"
Vast power converged into Li Qingyun's palm from all directions of the universe. Under Yan Xu's terrified gaze, he crushed her.
"Boom!"
The deafening explosion echoed like a brilliant red firework blooming in the universe.
The light was as dazzling as the sun, causing this universe to tremble.
Piercing screams resounded throughout the starry sky, and then everything dissipated into the cosmos.
Yan Xu was dead, but a wisp of her remnant soul remained.
This wisp of soul desperately tried to escape.
But before Li Qingyun, escape was impossible.
Li Qingyun watched with his own eyes as Chu Yang's body was shattered by his attack.
Tears welled up in his eyes. Did this mean that the last sliver of possibility for Chu Yang's revival was gone?
And was all of this his doing?
Yan Xu's final remnant soul was held in Li Qingyun's hand.
"Why? Why kill me again? Why!! You personally killed your Senior Brother Xian!"
Yan Xu roared, questioning like a madwoman.
But Li Qingyun felt no regret.
"You don't understand us humans. We can fight amongst ourselves, and however many die is our own fault. But... why should you, an outsider, kill people to vent your anger and then leave?"
"Also, Senior Brother Xian once said something: humans don't need a Human Emperor, especially not a supreme dictator like you who treats life as worthless!"
"Except for ourselves, no other race can dictate to us. The lives of my compatriots are equally precious. You don't understand because you have never empathized with those below you, which is also why you failed. I heard the calls of my countrymen; they all told me to kill you, and I cannot go against their will, so you must die!"
"This is not a battle between Senior Brother Xian and me, but a victory belonging to all humanity!"
Yan Xu was utterly stunned, as if she suddenly began to understand why she had failed.
She had never truly considered humans her own children, while Chu Yang had treated all humans as his countrymen, placing himself in the same position as everyone else to lead humanity forward.
"Heh heh... humans..."
After saying this, Li Qingyun finally wiped away Yan Xu's last remnant soul.
He turned around and looked at the newly born universe, now ravaged and scarred. A complex mix of emotions washed over him.
"Senior Brother Xian, I did it..."