Chapter 66: Protector of the Future Great Emperor

As the Chaos Taoist Tower returned to the hands of the Azure Emperor, this battle finally drew to a close.

To suppress and slay five Great Saints with one's own strength, and to withstand the attack of a Supreme Imperial Weapon with physical flesh alone—such a monumental feat was exceedingly rare since ancient times.

Powerful figures from all factions firmly believed that the Azure Emperor would surely shatter the myths of the Primeval Era and achieve the Dao in this Era of Dharma Ending!

The Azure Emperor walked forward slowly. By now, not a single person dared to underestimate him. His Dao had become manifest, and no one in the world could stop him from attaining the Dao and proclaiming himself Emperor!

"Uncle Luo!" Wan Qing called out excitedly.

Luo Yan sighed with emotion, saying, "You've grown up! You're almost stronger than me now!"

Wan Qing replied shyly, "Not at all! Compared to you, Uncle Luo, I am still far behind! You are someone whose锋芒 (sharp edge) even ancient Supremes must avoid!"

The human race was astonished, and the demon race was shaken.

The figure who had fought across the entire world practically without a match, the one poised to suppress an entire era, turned out to be the junior of this formidable expert!

That made sense. Only such a mighty expert could nurture such an peerless talent!

"You're almost there too! The era is dawning!"

"Senior, regarding the curses of the Red Demon Heavenly Venerable and the crimson marks..." The contemporary Western Queen Mother, after receiving numerous telepathic messages, finally stepped forward to inquire on behalf of all factions.

Luo Yan said with expected insight, "The Chaos Taoist Tower can eradicate the crimson marks. Anyone afflicted with the crimson mark can come find Wan Qing! As for the Red Demon Heavenly Venerable... I cannot locate his whereabouts yet, but the moment he appears in this world, I will sense it!

Before his injuries are fully recovered, he does not dare to slaughter on a massive scale, so rest assured! As for the future..."

At this point, Luo Yan looked at Wan Qing, paused for a moment, and then slowly continued, "Has the future not always been in our own hands?"

The powerful figures from all sides instantly understood. If a Great Emperor achieved the Dao in this era, what Red Demon Heavenly Venerable, what crimson curse, and what dark turmoil could possibly break out?

A single Great Emperor suppressing an entire era, causing the myriad realms of the universe to tremble—this was true confidence!

If anyone in this world could achieve the Dao in this Era of Dharma Ending, it had to be the Azure Emperor!

Thinking of this, the powerful figures looked at the Azure Emperor with altered gazes, each of them smiling warmly. "Little friend Wan Qing, the future is all up to you now!"

"When the sky falls, the tall ones hold it up. From now on, you are our tall one!"

"Senior Luo is right. The future belongs to you. As for the mere Red Demon Heavenly Venerable, you shall suppress him with a flick of your hand!"

The Azure Emperor: "..."

Uncle Luo, this trickster! He used to trick him in the past, and now he was still tricking him! Sooner or later, he would definitely suppress him.

"Alright, I must pay a visit to the secluded cultivation grounds of the Primordial Myriad Clans. I won't participate any further in this council; discuss whatever matters you have at your leisure!"

"Safe journey, Senior!" Human cultivators respectfully and reverently bid farewell to Luo Yan as he departed. This was meant to intimidate the Primordial Myriad Clans!

Before long, a piece of news swept across the entire world.

A human expert nearing the end of his lifespan, a presence capable of rivaling the Supremes of the restricted zones, holding the hand of a little girl and carrying a Supreme Imperial Weapon above his head, appeared right outside the primordial living grounds where the Primordial Myriad Clans dwelt in seclusion.

This news chilled the Primordial Myriad Clans to the bone. They hurriedly dispatched spies to gather intelligence, and upon learning that this powerhouse was standing up for the human race, the Primordial Myriad Clans offered generous gifts of apology that very day.

A human expert at the end of their lifespan was essentially equivalent to an unstable Supreme Imperial Weapon, capable of detonating at any moment and taking a few Primordial Imperial Clans down with them.

In history, the human race had precedent for this. Some experts who had no hope of advancement and whose lifespans were exhausted always liked to carry their imperial weapons down the mountain for a stroll during their final decades, specifically picking the territory of their archenemies.

Even in death, they wanted to drag someone down with them!

Those human experts with only a few days left to live frequently poked around the restricted zones, willing to die right inside the life-restricted zones simply to leave their names for eternity!

A Quasi-Emperor nearing the end of his lifespan was now constantly wandering near the territories of the Primordial Myriad Clans, causing even the Primordial Imperial Clans to break out in a cold sweat. They had awakened their sleeping powerhouses and held ancient imperial weapons at the ready, remaining on high alert at all times.

"This is already the Era of Dharma Ending; where did this monster of a human come from? His strength is unfathomable!" An old figure from the Fire Kirin Cave muttered to himself, holding the Qilin Staff tightly as he stared outside with a grave expression.

A terrifying entity from the Blood-Phoenix Mountain felt the same way, unable to help himself from jumping up and cursing aloud. Which blind fool had gone out to provoke the human race? The legendary era was about to arrive, and at this juncture, they wanted to enrage a peerless expert whose path had reached its end—were they tired of living and trying to rush to their deaths?

If the Primordial Imperial Clans were like this, the Primordial King Clans were even more terrified. Lacking imperial weapons for suppression, they were even more fearful.

Fortunately, however, that human expert only strolled around the periphery of their living grounds a few times and did not actually take any substantive action.

"Starting today, all members of the Primordial Myriad Clans shall keep a low profile and minimize outdoor activities!" On that day, a Primordial Imperial Clan stepped forward to issue commands.

They were genuinely terrified. A true Quasi-Emperor, most likely at the peak of the Quasi-Emperor realm—after all, no one knew just how strong someone capable of exchanging blows with restricted zone Supremes could be!

Perhaps only a true Ancient Emperor could measure up to this person.

Who could fail to be cowed by such a monster?

"What a pity. If I had truly wiped out an imperial clan, certain people wouldn't have been happy about it." Luo Yan stood outside the mountains, murmuring to himself, and after lingering for a long time, he ultimately did not strike.

As for the Primordial King Clans, Luo Yan didn't even spare them a glance.

The Primordial Imperial Clans were horrified; this person had genuinely contemplated annihilating an ancient imperial clan.

...

In the blink of an eye, a century hurried by.

Another year arrived, and the Azure Emperor broke through the Quasi-Emperor barrier, undergoing the Quasi-Emperor tribulation.

This drew powerful figures from all factions to come and watch. Even the Primordial Myriad Clans, who had declared themselves secluded from the world, could not resist coming in secret. That was a Quasi-Emperor tribulation, after all; how many such opportunities to observe existed since ancient times?

If one could gain any insight from the Quasi-Emperor tribulation, it would be a supreme fortune!

Of course, no one in the mortal world dared to make a move against the Azure Emperor anymore.

Who didn't know that this demon prodigy, born from an immortal medicine, had a human elder at the peak of the Quasi-Emperor realm—the kind whose lifespan was running low and who clutched a Supreme Imperial Weapon in his hand?

Those capable of stopping the Azure Emperor's tribulation dared not stop it, while those who dared to stop it couldn't even defeat the elder himself.

The grand momentum of the Quasi-Emperor tribulation drew powerful figures from all races across the universe to observe. Compared to the Primordial Myriad Clans, the myriad races of the universe were the true myriad races! Although the Primordial Myriad Clans claimed to be the myriad races, their actual races were far fewer than ten thousand, whereas the myriad races in the universe were merely a descriptor, their numbers uncountable.

Powerful figures from all sides were deeply moved. Could someone truly become an Emperor in the Era of Dharma Ending?

Even with the facts right before their eyes, and various signs indicating that the Azure Emperor would single-handedly defy the era, carve out his own Dao, merge the five secret realms into one during the Era of Dharma Ending, and sublimate into a Great Emperor, the myriad races of the universe still felt profoundly bitter. How could such a person appear in this era?

He had forged a Dao comparable to that of Void. Might he become a second Emperor Void?

The restricted zone Supremes were also considering whether to intervene and stop him, but the moment they thought of that stubbornly lingering fellow who refused to die, they decisively gave up. Some restricted zone Supremes even suspected whether this person was merely acting, deliberately pretending to be half-dead.

The tribulation ended, and the Azure Emperor successfully crossed it without a hitch. His innate talent was too monstrous—he was an Immortal King reincarnated, a peerless figure who had already attained immortality and true eternal life.

Some powerful figures secretly rejoiced, feeling fortunate that the Azure Emperor hadn't been killed by his own kind back then, otherwise provoking such a terrifying existence would have meant their entire clan being wiped out in minutes!

"Is the Azure Emperor truly going to achieve the Dao and proclaim himself Emperor in the Era of Dharma Ending? Will my demon race truly give birth to a Demon Emperor once again?" A Great Power of the demon race asked with a trembling voice, utterly ecstatic. It felt as though they had already foreseen the unification of the demon race!