Chapter 740: Just in This Life, the Hidden Dragon Ascends to Heaven

Xu Zhi was only slightly surprised for a moment. He quickly regained his composure, as these matters had never truly concerned him. His "incognito visits" had always been impulsive.

Still, he felt a certain curiosity. Lord You Shan was a formidable schemer with brilliant methods, and his arrival now was certainly not without purpose. Back then, even with his relatively low cultivation, he had manipulated the entire Heavenly Human Path as a mastermind, stirring up events, creating incredible miracles, and almost posing a fatal threat to Xu Zhi. He had incited all the Heavenly Emperors of the Heavenly Human Path to launch a full-scale assault against Xu Zhi.

"Finally, found me, have you?" A deep male voice echoed as he strode forward.

Lord You Shan's expression was unexpectedly calm and composed, his tone as if stating a well-known fact. "To find an ancient Emperor residing deep within the Underworld, beyond the Six Paths of Reincarnation, is quite simple. I have avatars in every era and every significant location. All it takes is to stake out every possible place where an incognito visit might occur, calculating every potential spot. Eventually, the miracle will arrive... And the so-called miracle is about betting on all possible paths, turning low-probability events into high-probability ones."

"Lord You Shan," Xu Zhi said, looking up. After many years, he was still the same miracle-seeker, the same philosopher of probability. Lord You Shan believed in incredible miracles, yet he never gambled his fate on mere luck.

Honestly, Xu Zhi had never encountered a villain who talked so much, defying the common trope that "villains who talk too much die." He loved to speak, his mouth never still; in fact, language was his true weapon. Back then, he had single-handedly incited the entire Heavenly Human Path into a desperate last stand with his words. He was a master of persuasion. It was unknown how many devoted followers he had rallied with "dreams," inspiring them to risk their lives for him. However, back then, his cultivation couldn't keep pace with the times, which was why he relied on language as a weapon. Now, his cultivation should be among the world's absolute best.

"Lord of Reincarnation, I have been waiting for you for a long time." He stood quietly before the forest, fanning himself with a feather fan. "In the Path of Beasts, there are only two so-called nodal points in this era: one is that extraterrestrial octopus, and the other is this place where the Asura Path cultivates its bloodline techniques. So, I waited at both locations." It seemed like an impossible feat of miracle-making. Once again, amidst countless people, he had intercepted the Lord of Reincarnation, who had descended from who-knew-where and when. It was both unimaginable and yet perfectly logical.

"Oh, and what do you intend to do this time?" Xu Zhi's expression remained calm, as if he were casually chatting with an ordinary friend.

"It's not about what I intend to do. Back then, the Heavenly Human Path was utterly decimated. Even now, though the era is developing rapidly, gathering all the unparalleled geniuses of this age might still not be enough to contend with you." Lord You Shan was extremely calm, slowly shaking his head with a smile. "According to the intelligence Cloud Emperor valiantly sacrificed his life for, an Emperor has cultivated at least seven or eight different cultivation methods!"

Pan Yuxian, standing nearby, wore an expression of admiration. She simply enjoyed villains who spouted nonsense with a straight face. Cloud Emperor didn't nobly sacrifice himself for all beings; it was clearly you who stirred him up back then, forcing him to brave the fight after awakening from his dormant divine source. It was evident that Pan Yuxian was currently providing some form of assistance to Lord You Shan. After all, her personality had always been unconventional; she enjoyed helping ambitious villains initiate rebellions and then dominate the world.

Lord You Shan continued, looking down as he casually expounded, "And to reach your level with seven or eight cultivation methods is ultimately very difficult. While each additional method multiplies combat power, the cultivation difficulty also increases geometrically. The further one goes, the harder it becomes, because stacking multiple cultivation methods within one body is inherently not easy. An ordinary person cultivating two or three methods would already be white-haired with age. Even an unparalleled genius might only master five or six methods in a lifetime... As for me, with my countless avatars and Bodhi Wisdom Fruit—my innate talent—I would likely need most of my life to fully master seven or eight methods, only then having a chance to stand on par with you."

Xu Zhi smiled, but said nothing.

Lord You Shan paused. "Without a longevity bloodline, a normal Heavenly Emperor could never reach such heights and would eventually grow old and infirm... Therefore, the chance of an ordinary Heavenly Emperor surpassing you in their entire lifetime is less than one in ten thousand. This is also why you've become one of the masterminds who monopolize the entire immortal path. Your long lifespan has allowed you to reach terrifying heights and imbued you with boundless ambition, driving you to refine heaven-defying combat power without rushing to become a god."

He spoke voluminously, as if pouring out the countless emotions he had suppressed during centuries of waiting and staking out various locations, finally having caught the Emperor.

"What then?" Xu Zhi's expression gradually grew cold.

"What then? Lord of Reincarnation, you are a tyrannical, authoritarian, and indifferent overlord. You are very proud." Lord You Shan took a step forward, his voice growing colder with each word. "You have severed era after era! You have disregarded the golden ages of every generation's prodigies! For the sake of continuing your cultivation in the Heavenly Emperor realm, you could clearly break through to godhood... yet you refuse to, blocking others from ascending! You have let others grow old and die—the prodigies and great figures of countless eras, stumbling and weeping along the path... When I was not yet a god, there were no gods in the world."

Lord You Shan spoke each word distinctly, his voice like a resounding bell, pounding against the listener's heart, profoundly shocking. Beside them, Shangguan Man trembled. She gazed at the young man with both reverence and dread, as if seeing a tyrannical, ancient overlord who had observed all of history. Although he usually appeared gentle, he was in fact such a terrifying ancient colossus. While she had suspected as much before, hearing it clearly stated by Lord You Shan now brought a profound shock.

In a daze, she envisioned chaotic and tragic dark ages, the entire world wailing, all beings crying out in sorrow. The overwhelmingly powerful Emperor of Reincarnation alone blocked the immortal path for all, the earth stained with blood, battles shaking heaven and earth, countless Great Sages falling, blood flowing incessantly.

"And over the long ages, only my talent could contend with yours... I possess the potential to rival you. In ancient times, I indeed vied with you for reincarnation, and it's even possible I nearly won," Lord You Shan continued. "Otherwise, I wouldn't have been called... a Lord."

"Continue," Xu Zhi said calmly. Lord You Shan's analysis was simply flawless. Normally speaking, based on all available information, he had indeed deduced the truth: that the Lord of Reincarnation's exaggerated combat power came from accumulating strength over a vast lifespan. At the same time, it was due to this long lifespan that he developed terrifying ambition, continuously cultivating new methods, refining his foundation, and not rushing to break through to godhood.

But that was the normal explanation, which didn't quite fit Xu Zhi... Because the Lord of Reincarnation was not the true Lord of Reincarnation, but merely one of Xu Zhi's avatars. They were simply figures within the bottle of the era, figures within his Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art. The immortal path was severed only because his own body had not yet broken through to godhood. However, this analysis inadvertently covered a "loophole" for Xu Zhi.

"Very good, Lord You Shan. In this life, you are still astonishing, having uncovered many truths," Xu Zhi said indifferently, his gaze as calm as an ancient well, as if a timeless azure sky hung above.

"We are not without hope. At the very least, my talent holds the unique potential to surpass you," Lord You Shan continued his analysis, his expression growing colder. "But clearly, with each passing era, our chances diminish. You continuously grow stronger with time, while today, we are still starting from scratch in our cultivation. Can we truly defeat you again? I don't know. I can't help but feel lost."

Lord You Shan lowered his head, his expression hesitant and bewildered. He seemed to be a man of true emotions, revealing his unease without reservation during his ongoing analysis. Or rather, this was what a true person was like. If someone tells you that a hero who defies an era is never afraid, is naturally proud, always forges ahead, ultimately creates miracles, and defeats unimaginable enemies—that's just a joke. Only a reckless fool, a simpleton, would know no fear. A true hero in reality is, first and foremost, a person. And as a person, they will experience fear and confusion. Cloud Emperor, when facing the incredible Emperor and such exaggerated combat power back then, also felt lost, fearful, and trembled. Yet, he still chose to stand up and let out a passionate roar for his era.

"You are lost, you are afraid, you are truly confronting the great terror of life, yet you still wish to defeat me," Xu Zhi said lightly. "If you were truly lost, truly escaping, you would not have come to see me, to seek me out, to face me directly, to face the fear in your heart."

"Yes... the way to conquer fear is not to flee, but to confront it directly." Lord You Shan's worried expression suddenly faded. He looked at the ancient, forbidden existence with a calm face. "I only have one question, Emperor: when will you achieve immortality?"

"What is the meaning behind that question?" Xu Zhi suddenly smiled gently, his expression openly curious.

Lord You Shan paused, then slowly said, "Over the long ages, the immortal path has been severed in era after era, forbidding godhood. Ultimately, this is because you have not yet broken through, allowing no gods to exist. So, now that countless ages have passed and the path has been severed for so long, I wonder: when will you break through? Is your accumulation sufficient? It should be... not far off, right?"

Lord You Shan said softly, "From your decisive action in intercepting and slaying that extraterrestrial demon, I deduced that the Lord of Reincarnation, daring to act and lead the world's beings to intercept such a terrifying entity as prey, making an enemy of a world of such powerful beings, must be on the verge of breaking through, possessing the confidence to contend with them. Our world, though weak, has accumulated a deep foundation for a long time, and your foundation has been accumulating even longer... If you were to break through one day, to what exaggerated extent would your combat power reach? How terrifying would you be among gods?"

Lord You Shan's voice was placid, his tone so calm that one might think he was stating a fact rather than his own deduction and speculation. "Even, in your eyes, if those other few weaker Ninth-rank colossal figures are not truly complete Ninth-rank, but merely extremely powerful Eighth-rank, would you, as a god, also be capable of resisting them?"

Beside him, Pan Yuxian's eyes gleamed brightly, greatly astonished. "Lord You Shan is too terrifying! Everything in the Emperor's mind—his descent location, historical background, current thoughts, future plans—you've seen through it all? There are no secrets left hidden?"

What a Lord You Shan! Truly a monstrous talent with wisdom that pierces the heavens! A terrifying psychologist who could see through people's hearts. Previously, he had once besieged the Lord of Reincarnation with an astonishing miracle, and today, he had made another brilliant deduction, seeing through all secrets.

"As expected of a philosopher, a logician, a probabilist!" she exclaimed, utterly impressed. This was the terrifying genius of the supernatural world, something the "foolish Earthlings" could hardly achieve. This was simply a monstrous talent!

When in Rome, do as the Romans do. As a player, Pan Yuxian naturally chose to livestream. This was the Path of Beasts. The flow of time here was equivalent to that in the Wizard Community, so she could open a game livestream and broadcast her gameplay. And how many players were there in the Wizard Community? It was already a massive social community.

The livestream name was directly set as: "Re-Emergence: Miracle-Seeker Lord You Shan Catches the Emperor's True Form Again, Plans Another Great Battle!"

The entire network exploded! This news was simply too sensational, instantly drawing everyone's attention. In the Wizard Community, countless people even emerged from street card rooms, looking up at the large screen in the central square, watching the livestream's footage.

"Holy smokes, the Emperor skipped the Heavenly Human Path and Mortal Path above, and came directly to this low-time-flow online game world? An incognito visit? (So happy)"

"Wait, this Gatling Saint Monk, I've seen this young master and the old lady behind him in the city. I was even trying to sell him products at the time. So, it was the Emperor of Reincarnation, traveling the mortal world with Lady Meng? (Shocked)"

"Holy cow!""Holy cow!"

"You've entered a treasure mountain empty-handed! If it were me, I'd definitely latch onto him, asking about his beautiful daughter and if she could be introduced to me. I'd want to become his son-in-law!"

"To be honest, my ID is 'Cute Little Meng Tian.' I was the maid at that tavern who personally served the Emperor on his incognito visit to the mortal realm, and the legendary Lady Meng!! Now, I'm selling licked plates, licked chopsticks, licked stools online... (Crying tears of joy)"

The livestream instantly became incredibly lively. This was different from before; it was a live broadcast, happening in their online game world. Witnessing the renowned philosopher—the ancient entity Lord You Shan from the Dark Forbidden Zone—catching the Emperor again felt incredibly exciting and stimulating, like a true online game experience!

"Where's the location?""We want to ask him: what's the next step for our 'Grind Emperor' in our world?""Is there a chance we could go out and take action again, perhaps 'steal a chicken' from the Three Pillar Gods, and 'fish in troubled waters' during the three-world war!?"

Countless people sent rockets and gifts. Even some guild leaders and sect elites continuously asked the streamer for the location, planning to join the excitement.

"Witness history, I want to witness history!""Go take pictures, flash on!"

"Folks, send those gifts, or I'm turning off the stream, it costs electricity." Pan Yuxian looked at the livestream screen, immediately satisfied. The most important thing was the gifts; they were all money.

At this moment, she shifted her gaze to the scene before her. Lord You Shan's question: When will you achieve immortality? She was also extremely concerned, and one could even say it was the driving force of the entire online game's main storyline. The entire livestream audience watched with unwavering attention.

Xu Zhi thought seriously, then stopped and chuckled. "As you've said, in this very era, I shall break through, a hidden dragon ascending to the sky, to stand shoulder to shoulder with the colossi of other worlds."

The moment he spoke, Pan Yuxian trembled, Shangguan Man beside her quivered, Lord You Shan was stunned, and the livestream chat online exploded in an instant.