“ guǒ rán suǒ wèi tóng zú de shēn fèn jiù shì hǎo yòng a ， wǒ yě méi xiǎng dào yě jiù suí kǒu zhè me yī shuō ， tā jiù dāng chǎng dā yìng le 。”
“果然所谓同族的身份就是好用啊，我也没想到也就随口这么一说，它就当场答应了。”
Indeed, the Yellow-Ember Realm had transformed into this state, merely hidden in this secret place and struggling to survive...
“ shén me ？” tīng dào lín líng gěi chū de dá àn ， wáng xuán bà miàn sè yī biàn 。
“什么？”听到林灵给出的答案，王玄霸面色一变。
What use are you to me!
“ gēn nà ge lǎo dōng xī jié méng ？ shī mèi nǐ shuō de shì zhēn de me ？”
“跟那个老东西结盟？师妹你说的是真的么？”
A sense of solemnity emerged from Emperor Lingping's body. He forced back the surrounding death energy with his own presence.
dì mài gǔ shù qián jù ér hòu gōng ， shí zài ràng wáng xuán bà gǎn dào yǒu xiē bù xiè 。
地脉古树前据而后恭，实在让王玄霸感到有些不屑。
"Step aside!"
“ bù guò shì hǒng piàn tā de shuō cí bà le 。 jié méng ……”
“不过是哄骗它的说辞罢了。结盟……”
With a low voice, the layers of death energy beneath him truly split open into a passage. The space no longer extended as Emperor Lingping's figure floated through it instantly. Abundant vitality rushed towards him, and black death clouds hovered above his head, lingering for a long time.
“ tā yě pèi ？” lín líng yǔ qì píng dàn ， dàn què huà zhōng nà gǔ shēn shēn de mò shì què shì xiǎn lù wú yí 。
“它也配？”林灵语气平淡，但却话中那股深深的漠视却是显露无疑。
Despite the overwhelming vitality, Emperor Lingping felt some heaviness. Compared to pure death energy, excessive useless vitality was more like a deadly poison. After all, vitality in essence was beneficial.
“ rú jīn tā yǐ jiā rù shèng cháo ， nán bù chéng hái néng fǎn huǐ bù chéng ？ ruò shì dǎn gǎn zài wǒ miàn qián tí qǐ zhè huà ……” lín líng lěng hēng yī shēng 。
“如今它已加入圣朝，难不成还能反悔不成？若是胆敢在我面前提起这话……”林灵冷哼一声。
As an incarnation of the Yellow-Ember Heavenly Dao, he naturally enjoyed this divine favor from heaven and earth. He didn't know how many years it had been since there were no rejected cultivators coming here. The accumulated vitality over thousands of years beside the black and white flowers finally found a way to release itself, flooding towards Emperor Lingping.
wáng xuán bà dùn shí è rán 。
王玄霸顿时愕然。
Even though he tried to block it, the abundance of vitality was too overwhelming, and some inevitably entered his body.
xiàng lái jiāng nuò yán yǒu xiē kàn zhòng de huà ， duì lín líng rú cǐ guāng míng zhèng dà de shí yán ， yǒu xiē nán yǐ jiē shòu 。
向来将诺言有些看重的话，对林灵如此光明正大的食言，有些难以接受。
Vitality did bring certain benefits, but Emperor Lingping wasn't just an immortal realm cultivator relying solely on his cultivation. The essence source, the Holy Dynasty's fate, and the Heavenly Dao's blessing... all these combined forces had created his current strength comparable to that of an immortal realm cultivator.
lín líng jiàn zhuàng ， bù yóu biǎo qíng pò bīng 、 xiào le xiào ：“ shī xiōng ， suǒ wèi bīng bù yàn zhà 。”
林灵见状，不由表情破冰、笑了笑：“师兄，所谓兵不厌诈。”
Now, he was already in a state of balance after his promotion. However, with the continuous influx of endless vitality, this balance began to be disrupted.
“ duì dài dí rén ， ruò shì yán bì xíng 、 xíng bì guǒ ， bù fǎn dào shì fàn bìng me ？”
“对待敌人，若是言必行、行必果，不反倒是犯病么？”
His hair grew wildly like it was alive, spreading down to his ankles within an instant. His body also swelled up simultaneously. In just a few breaths, he transformed into a three-meter giant.
wáng xuán bà wú yán yǐ duì 。
王玄霸无言以对。
Though more imposing, for Emperor Lingping, it wasn't good.
“ kuàng qiě ， shī xiōng nǐ hái jì de wǒ men qù jiàn dì mài gǔ shù zhī qián ， shī zūn de jiāo dài me ？” lín líng yòu wèn dào 。
“况且，师兄你还记得我们去见地脉古树之前，师尊的交代么？”林灵又问道。
He frowned slightly and tried to absorb the surging vitality as much as possible. However, the rate of shrinkage was far less than the rate of growth.
“ zì shì jì de de 。 shī zūn shuō ， ruò shì gǔ shù míng wán bù líng 、 shī mèi kě qǔ ér dài zhī 。” wáng xuán bà huí yì le xià ， shuō dào 。
“自是记得的。师尊说，若是古树冥顽不灵、师妹可取而代之。”王玄霸回忆了下，说道。
While maintaining the balance within his body, Emperor Lingping observed the surroundings, searching for a way into Ruo Mu's hiding place. After devouring the Yellow-Ember evil thoughts, almost nothing could escape his eyes in the Yellow-Ember Realm anymore. Even if some memories were blurry, he would quickly sense them once he saw them.
“ dì mài gǔ shù ， míng zì dǎo shì bà qì de hěn 。 yuán běn wǒ hái yǒu xiē qī dài ， dàn shì qīn yǎn jiàn dào tā nà fù mú yàng zhī hòu ， jiù zhǐ shèng xià shī wàng le 。” lín líng de dá àn ràng wáng xuán bà yǒu xiē cuò è 。
“地脉古树，名字倒是霸气的很。原本我还有些期待，但是亲眼见到它那副模样之后，就只剩下失望了。”林灵的答案让王玄霸有些错愕。
As his figure flickered, Emperor Lingping vanished from the bottom of the black abyss. The unwanted vitality became disoriented without an injection target and returned to the white flowers.
“ ruò ， tài ruò le 。 dì mài gǔ shù ， zuì qiáng dà de yì diǎn ， jiù shì shēn yǔ xuán huáng dì mài hé yī 、 néng gòu diào yòng biàn jí xuán huáng gè dì de dì mài bēn liú zhī lì 。 zhè shì tè xìng 、 yì shì yōu shì ， dàn tóng yàng yě jué dìng le dì mài zhī shù de shàng xiàn 。 ér qiě ， dì mài gǔ shù de shēn qū tài dà le ， zài zhēn zhèng de gāo shǒu yǎn zhōng 、 fǎn dào mǎn shì pò zhàn 。” lín líng wēi wēi yáo tóu 。
“弱，太弱了。地脉古树，最强大的一点，就是身与玄黄地脉合一、能够调用遍及玄黄各地的地脉奔流之力。这是特性、亦是优势，但同样也决定了地脉之树的上限。而且，地脉古树的身躯太大了，在真正的高手眼中、反倒满是破绽。”林灵微微摇头。
In a world filled with eerie aura, like faded yellow leaves, Emperor Lingping's towering figure suddenly appeared. His infinite vitality spread outwards from his body, but in this strange environment, it couldn't propagate at all. It quickly turned into a withered entity and fell from the sky like fallen autumn leaves.
“ wǒ de mèng xiǎng ， shì yù chéng wéi xiàng shī zūn nà bān de rén wù 。 ruò shì zhēn de chéng wéi le nà shén me dì mài shù ， suī rán duǎn shí jiān nèi shí lì dí què huì dé dào fēi yuè ， dàn qián tú kě jiù chè dǐ duàn jué le 。 wǒ yòu bù shǎ 。”
“我的梦想，是欲成为像师尊那般的人物。若是真的成为了那什么地脉树，虽然短时间内实力的确会得到飞跃，但前途可就彻底断绝了。我又不傻。”
After releasing the source of imbalance, Emperor Lingping gradually expelled it from his body. His size slowly shrank. However, due to the change in balance within him during that short period, some details didn't revert when he returned to normal.
“ zhǐ néng hū yōu nà ge lǎo dōng xī ， jì xù dāng zhí le 。”
“只能忽悠那个老东西，继续当值了。”
For instance, his height remained at three and a half meters, with black hair reaching down to his waist. His physique became fuller, and beneath his golden yellow robe, explosive strength lay hidden.
lín líng bái le yǎn wáng xuán bà ：“ shī xiōng nǐ yǐ wéi wǒ shì shén me rén ne ？”
林灵白了眼王玄霸：“师兄你以为我是什么人呢？”
Emperor Lingping wasn't particularly concerned about these changes; they were just external appearances that could be reverted whenever he wished.
wáng xuán bà zhú jiàn yǒu xiē huí wèi guò lái ， yǒu xiē bù hǎo yì sī de mō le mō tóu ， dāng chǎng péi lǐ dào qiàn dào ：“ shì wǒ xiǎo kàn shī mèi le 。”
王玄霸逐渐有些回味过来，有些不好意思的摸了摸头，当场赔礼道歉道：“是我小看师妹了。”
His attention was now focused on this eerie place. The decayed smell made him feel uncomfortable. More importantly, the center of this area held a towering tree covered in withered leaves and spots. Emperor Lingping's three-meter giant figure seemed insignificant beneath it.
tā huí shǒu kàn xiàng shèng huáng zuò zhōng de dì mài gǔ shù ， diǎn tóu tóng yì dào ：“ xuán huáng gǔ wù ， qiáng zé qiáng yǐ 。 què zhǐ shì jiè zhù de xuán huáng tiān dào fǎ zé zhī lì 。 ruò shì xuán huáng tiān dào qiáng shèng ， tā men zì rán shuǐ zhǎng chuán gāo 。 dàn ruò shì xiàng jīn rì zhè bān ， xuán huáng tiān dào bèi chuán fǎ nà yàng de rén wù tà zài jiǎo xià ， tā men yě zhǐ néng gǒu yán cán chuǎn 、 duǒ zài yīn àn de jiǎo luò lǐ huí yì guò wǎng róng guāng le 。”
他回首看向圣皇座中的地脉古树，点头同意道：“玄黄古物，强则强矣。却只是借助的玄黄天道法则之力。若是玄黄天道强盛，它们自然水涨船高。但若是像今日这般，玄黄天道被传法那样的人物踏在脚下，它们也只能苟延残喘、躲在阴暗的角落里回忆过往荣光了。”
Many cultivators hung from the withered branches like fruits, their faces showing strange satisfaction as they closed their eyes. Emperor Lingping's gaze swept over them, but he didn't find any other figures besides this withered ancient tree.
“ méi xiǎng dào shī xiōng nǐ hái shì wén huà rén 。 shuō de yī tào yī tào de 。” lín líng yě bù zhī shì zhēn xīn kuā zàn ， hái shì xiǎo xiǎo de bào fù 、 fěng cì wā kǔ 。
“没想到师兄你还是文化人。说的一套一套的。”林灵也不知是真心夸赞，还是小小的报复、讽刺挖苦。
"Is only the main body here..."
“ wǒ dǎo shì méi xiǎng dào zhè me duō ， zhǐ néng dān chún de xiǎng biàn qiáng bà le 。”
“我倒是没想到这么多，只能单纯的想变强罢了。”
Emperor Lingping knew that Ruo Mu had an avatar that often lured cultivators to this place, turning them into golden dan fruits to vent its inner resentment. He guessed it was out now.
“ bù shuō le ， wǒ qù xiū xíng le 。 zhè cì tūn le nà lǎo dōng xī yī xiē shēn qū ， guǒ rán yǒu xiē shōu huò 。 zǎo zhī dào ， dāng shí jiù gāi hěn xīn yì diǎn 、 duō tūn xiē 。” lín líng yǒu xiē yí hàn de shēng yīn huí dàng zài wáng xuán bà ěr biān 。
“不说了，我去修行了。这次吞了那老东西一些身躯，果然有些收获。早知道，当时就该狠心一点、多吞些。”林灵有些遗憾的声音回荡在王玄霸耳边。
Not in a hurry, Emperor Lingping continued observing the space. Deep grooves could be faintly seen on the giant tree's trunk, as if it had suffered some fatal injury. Emperor Lingping squinted his eyes and tried to awaken the connection between this natural object and the Yellow-Ember Heavenly Dao.
piàn kè zhī hòu ， tā de shēn yǐng màn màn biàn dàn ， qì xī yě suí zhī xiāo shī bú jiàn 。
片刻之后，她的身影慢慢变淡，气息也随之消失不见。
However, perhaps due to being infected by withered energy, his call received no response. Instead, the ancient tree spontaneously defended itself. Tiny patches of withered energy spread from the ground beneath him along the tree's veins.
wáng xuán bà shěn rán yī xiào ， zì cháo zì jǐ duō lǜ le 。
王玄霸哂然一笑，自嘲自己多虑了。
Intentionally relaxing his defenses, Emperor Lingping absorbed a small amount of withered energy into his body and wrapped it in golden essence source to prevent its spread before carefully observing it. The withered energy was indeed strange but couldn't break through the essence source barrier.
……
……
From this withered energy, Emperor Lingping not only sensed ordinary aging but also felt the decay of the entire world. It seemed like the sky was collapsing, and there was no way to salvage the situation.
xuán huáng jiè ， tiān yǔ zhōu 。
玄黄界，天禹州。
"This is..."
yī chù xiān méng wén míng de qí jǐng suǒ zài 。
一处仙盟闻名的奇景所在。
"The world is heading towards ruin."
zhǎng dá shù bǎi lǐ de liè xì zài dà dì shàng wǎn zhuǎn yán shēn 、 hǎo sì hēi sè de shāng bā 。
长达数百里的裂隙在大地上婉转延伸、好似黑色的伤疤。
In his mind, countless scenes unfolded—scenes from various states in the Yellow-Ember Realm where countless disasters struck due to the decline of heaven and earth. But Emperor Lingping knew that these events had not actually occurred in reality.
shàng wèi kào jìn ， biàn kě yǐn yǐn gǎn jué dào liè xì zhōng chuán lái de wú jìn bīng hán zhī yì 。
尚未靠近，便可隐隐感觉到裂隙中传来的无尽冰寒之意。
"Ruo Mu is the source of all life in the Yellow-Ember Realm. To some extent, it does reflect the vitality status of the realm."
lí liè xì yuè jìn 、 wēn dù jiù jí sù xià jiàng 。
离裂隙越近、温度就急速下降。
"Even though Ruo Mu has taken on this appearance, the Yellow-Ember Realm still appears vibrant..."
nǎ pà shì jīn dān xiū shì ， yě nán yǐ zhǎng shí jiān chéng shòu cǐ dì dī wēn 、 bù néng cháng jiǔ dòu liú 。
哪怕是金丹修士，也难以长时间承受此地低温、不能长久逗留。
Emperor Lingping frowned slightly. Soon he knew the answer.
liè xì shēn yuān dǐ bù ， bù shí huì pēn shè chū yōu lán de guāng máng 。
裂隙深渊底部，不时会喷射出幽蓝的光芒。
"If there were no external vitality injection, the Yellow-Ember Realm would inevitably follow Ruo Mu's path and decay simultaneously."
nà shì bīng hán de dòng qì 。
那是冰寒的冻气。
"The source of these vitalities is..."
dàn ruò shì zhàn zài liè xì páng biān ， cháo xià wàng qù 。
但若是站在裂隙旁边，朝下望去。
"Other fragments of cultivation realms that have been devoured."
jiù kě yǐ kàn dào ， zhèng shì zài zhè hán bīng shēn yuān zhōng ， jìng rán yǒu wú shù huǒ yàn zǔ chéng de lián huā zhàn fàng 。
就可以看到，正是在这寒冰深渊中，竟然有无数火焰组成的莲花绽放。
"Although they are dismembered, during the fusion process, some vitality was extracted from those cultivation realm remnants."
bìng bú shì lěng yàn ， ér dí què shì chì rè de huǒ yàn lián huā 。
并不是冷焰，而的确是炽热的火焰莲花。
"Therefore, the Yellow-Ember Realm has been reborn..."
lěng yǔ rè ， wán quán máo dùn 、 què yòu bǐ cǐ jiāo zhī 。 zài zhè hán bīng shēn yuān zhōng hè rán tóng shí chéng xiàn 。
冷与热，完全矛盾、却又彼此交织。在这寒冰深渊中赫然同时呈现。
Emperor Lingping pondered thoughtfully.
dà qǐ wú miàn shèng huáng ， lǐ píng de shēn yǐng ， dǒu rán chū xiàn zài zhè bīng yuān huǒ lián qí jǐng zhī wài 。
大启无面圣皇，李平的身影，陡然出现在这冰渊火莲奇景之外。
"This surgery is indeed incredibly ingenious."
jiù xiàng lái cǐ dì de wú shù yóu kè bān ， jìng jìng chù lì 、 cháo zhe xià fāng tiào wàng 。
就像来此地的无数游客般，静静矗立、朝着下方眺望。
As an incarnation of the Heavenly Dao and a nominal victim, he couldn't help but express genuine admiration after realizing what had happened over these thousands of years.
“ zhōng líng yù xiù ， zào wù xuán qí 。”
“钟灵毓秀，造物玄奇。”
"Life and death are unpredictable. Death and life are unpredictable."
liáng jiǔ zhī hòu ， lǐ píng bù jīn xīn zhōng gǎn tàn dào 。
良久之后，李平不禁心中感叹道。
"I was once in charge of life and death, yet I now find myself in this predicament."
zài tā de yǎn zhōng ， cǐ dì de chǎng jǐng qí shí gēn yì bān xiū shì suǒ kàn dào de bìng bù xiāng tóng 。
在他的眼中，此地的场景其实跟一般修士所看到的并不相同。
"The world is abandoning me, so how can I not resent it..."
lán sè de bīng yuān ， shí zé tòu lù zhe shēn shēn de sǐ qì 。
蓝色的冰渊，实则透露着深深的死气。
Just as Emperor Lingping pondered, a strange voice suddenly sounded from behind him without any sound.
qī hēi yī piàn ， lìng rén zhì xī 。
漆黑一片，令人窒息。
Emperor Lingping knew that the owner of the voice was Ruo Mu. (End of Chapter)
Indeed, the Yellow-Ember Realm had transformed into this state, merely hidden in this secret place and struggling to survive...
What use are you to me!
A sense of solemnity emerged from Emperor Lingping's body. He forced back the surrounding death energy with his own presence.
"Step aside!"
With a low voice, the layers of death energy beneath him truly split open into a passage. The space no longer extended as Emperor Lingping's figure floated through it instantly. Abundant vitality rushed towards him, and black death clouds hovered above his head, lingering for a long time.
Despite the overwhelming vitality, Emperor Lingping felt some heaviness. Compared to pure death energy, excessive useless vitality was more like a deadly poison. After all, vitality in essence was beneficial.
As an incarnation of the Yellow-Ember Heavenly Dao, he naturally enjoyed this divine favor from heaven and earth. He didn't know how many years it had been since there were no rejected cultivators coming here. The accumulated vitality over thousands of years beside the black and white flowers finally found a way to release itself, flooding towards Emperor Lingping.
Even though he tried to block it, the abundance of vitality was too overwhelming, and some inevitably entered his body.
Vitality did bring certain benefits, but Emperor Lingping wasn't just an immortal realm cultivator relying solely on his cultivation. The essence source, the Holy Dynasty's fate, and the Heavenly Dao's blessing... all these combined forces had created his current strength comparable to that of an immortal realm cultivator.
Now, he was already in a state of balance after his promotion. However, with the continuous influx of endless vitality, this balance began to be disrupted.
His hair grew wildly like it was alive, spreading down to his ankles within an instant. His body also swelled up simultaneously. In just a few breaths, he transformed into a three-meter giant.
Though more imposing, for Emperor Lingping, it wasn't good.
He frowned slightly and tried to absorb the surging vitality as much as possible. However, the rate of shrinkage was far less than the rate of growth.
While maintaining the balance within his body, Emperor Lingping observed the surroundings, searching for a way into Ruo Mu's hiding place. After devouring the Yellow-Ember evil thoughts, almost nothing could escape his eyes in the Yellow-Ember Realm anymore. Even if some memories were blurry, he would quickly sense them once he saw them.
As his figure flickered, Emperor Lingping vanished from the bottom of the black abyss. The unwanted vitality became disoriented without an injection target and returned to the white flowers.
In a world filled with eerie aura, like faded yellow leaves, Emperor Lingping's towering figure suddenly appeared. His infinite vitality spread outwards from his body, but in this strange environment, it couldn't propagate at all. It quickly turned into a withered entity and fell from the sky like fallen autumn leaves.
After releasing the source of imbalance, Emperor Lingping gradually expelled it from his body. His size slowly shrank. However, due to the change in balance within him during that short period, some details didn't revert when he returned to normal.
For instance, his height remained at three and a half meters, with black hair reaching down to his waist. His physique became fuller, and beneath his golden yellow robe, explosive strength lay hidden.
Emperor Lingping wasn't particularly concerned about these changes; they were just external appearances that could be reverted whenever he wished.
His attention was now focused on this eerie place. The decayed smell made him feel uncomfortable. More importantly, the center of this area held a towering tree covered in withered leaves and spots. Emperor Lingping's three-meter giant figure seemed insignificant beneath it.
Many cultivators hung from the withered branches like fruits, their faces showing strange satisfaction as they closed their eyes. Emperor Lingping's gaze swept over them, but he didn't find any other figures besides this withered ancient tree.
"Is only the main body here..."
Emperor Lingping knew that Ruo Mu had an avatar that often lured cultivators to this place, turning them into golden dan fruits to vent its inner resentment. He guessed it was out now.
Not in a hurry, Emperor Lingping continued observing the space. Deep grooves could be faintly seen on the giant tree's trunk, as if it had suffered some fatal injury. Emperor Lingping squinted his eyes and tried to awaken the connection between this natural object and the Yellow-Ember Heavenly Dao.
However, perhaps due to being infected by withered energy, his call received no response. Instead, the ancient tree spontaneously defended itself. Tiny patches of withered energy spread from the ground beneath him along the tree's veins.
Intentionally relaxing his defenses, Emperor Lingping absorbed a small amount of withered energy into his body and wrapped it in golden essence source to prevent its spread before carefully observing it. The withered energy was indeed strange but couldn't break through the essence source barrier.
From this withered energy, Emperor Lingping not only sensed ordinary aging but also felt the decay of the entire world. It seemed like the sky was collapsing, and there was no way to salvage the situation.
"This is..."
"The world is heading towards ruin."
In his mind, countless scenes unfolded—scenes from various states in the Yellow-Ember Realm where countless disasters struck due to the decline of heaven and earth. But Emperor Lingping knew that these events had not actually occurred in reality.
"Ruo Mu is the source of all life in the Yellow-Ember Realm. To some extent, it does reflect the vitality status of the realm."
"Even though Ruo Mu has taken on this appearance, the Yellow-Ember Realm still appears vibrant..."
Emperor Lingping frowned slightly. Soon he knew the answer.
"If there were no external vitality injection, the Yellow-Ember Realm would inevitably follow Ruo Mu's path and decay simultaneously."
"The source of these vitalities is..."
"Other fragments of cultivation realms that have been devoured."
"Although they are dismembered, during the fusion process, some vitality was extracted from those cultivation realm remnants."
"Therefore, the Yellow-Ember Realm has been reborn..."
Emperor Lingping pondered thoughtfully.
"This surgery is indeed incredibly ingenious."
As an incarnation of the Heavenly Dao and a nominal victim, he couldn't help but express genuine admiration after realizing what had happened over these thousands of years.
"Life and death are unpredictable. Death and life are unpredictable."
"I was once in charge of life and death, yet I now find myself in this predicament."
"The world is abandoning me, so how can I not resent it..."
Just as Emperor Lingping pondered, a strange voice suddenly sounded from behind him without any sound.
Emperor Lingping knew that the owner of the voice was Ruo Mu. (End of Chapter)