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Chapter 1466: Not Giving a Hundred Will Result in a Beatdown

An incredibly old black dog, its fur almost entirely fallen out, had dim tears in its ancient eyes. It carried an emperor's corpse on its back, striving to hold its hunched posture straight.

"My life... is short. I want to bring you back."

This was its heartfelt wish. How could such a powerful Celestial Emperor die? It wanted him to live again.

However, its time was running out. If it didn't make one final attempt, it might never have another chance.

Old wounds were hard to heal, and with its vitality already depleted, only a very short journey remained in its decaying life.

Time, like a knife, would eventually cut everything away.

It was already weakening, yet it truly yearned to see his invincible, formidable self return—to see him sever the Soul River with a roar, to see him shatter the Four-Pole Floating Earth with a punch... to witness the glorious years reappear.

As it set off, something broke through the void, appearing before it and blocking its path.

"Huh?!" The black dog stopped, its pupils constricting slightly.

A decaying hand, weak and powerless, passed through space, bringing a beast-skin scroll before its eyes.

"As long as you're alive, there's hope. As long as you exist and haven't turned to dust, there might be a turning point in the future... Struggle on; both you and I must live."

There weren't many words, but they conveyed profound worry and care amidst ancient weariness, as well as a reluctance to abandon this world, urging the black dog not to act rashly.

The hand looked somewhat plump, perhaps swollen, gray-black and putrid, a sight that was unbearable. What immense suffering must it have endured to still be alive and resilient?

The large black dog stared blankly at the hand for a moment, then began to bare its fangs in a fierce display, but in the end, only sadness remained.

In the chaos, a person missing their right hand sat weakly, sighing, "If you choose to go, I will go with you. We'll fight again in the ultimate depths of the Soul River. But, you old dog, you must strive to live."

The people of that era... had all died out. Few remained. Battle after battle concerning the survival of the realms had exhausted the vitality of their generation, leaving them covered in grievous wounds.

Their sacrifices were unimaginable, yet now, few knew of them.

So many heroes had withered away, leaving behind only desolation.

The black dog's eyes turned red. The beast-skin scroll brought by the decaying hand documented the past years and a reluctance to abandon this world. Their very existence was the last proof and trace left by that generation. If they, too, were to die, then nothing would remain; even their very presence would be completely erased.

What could be said of past glories when even their existence would be buried by the dust of history, forgotten by future generations?

"But I still want to go... to fight one more battle! I refuse to give up!" the black dog roared, its head held high despite its gaunt frame.

Carrying the emperor's corpse, it looked back at the decaying hand and the beast-skin scroll, then took a difficult step forward.

At the end of the Soul River, in the world beyond the gate.

The man in the black light, after activating the bell fragments and bronze piece, grew quiet. Whether he was spreading news or finding someone to take the blame, he didn't actually intend to harm anyone.

What did he want to do? He wanted to cause a major disturbance, to threaten the Soul River. If they didn't offer concessions, he would fight to the bitter end and cripple this place!

At this stage, the Soul River seemed very reluctant to go to war.

He sought scapegoats, or rather, powerful allies, aiming to subdue the creatures of the Soul River without fighting, purely through intimidation.

"That dog... that Emperor, won't live much longer," he sighed softly.

If he could find the medicine that dog desired, many things might change. The fate of the departed might even be reshaped, with far-reaching and immense consequences, potentially shaking the very foundations of past and present.

He had heard of those people and events, being one of the few who knew the truth. In his youth, he had yearned for that magnificent era with fervent passion, making it his goal.

At this moment, he sighed.

The White Raven transmitted a message, speaking with him, slightly lowering its stance. It offered him two Ancestral Talismans, urging him to leave immediately.

"Are you trying to send a beggar away? I want a hundred, and you give me two? You dead duck!"

The man in the black light's eyebrows shot up, divine light burst from his pupils, and he raised the long metal strip that had fallen from the bronze coffin, ready to strike.

The White Raven's face darkened. How many years, how many epochs had passed? Where could it possibly find a hundred of those talismans now?

Even if all the reincarnation pits—those existing, broken, buried, or vanished—were searched, it was unlikely a hundred could be gathered!

"You're asking the impossible! Where am I supposed to find them for you? I've already shown sincerity. Are you sure... you want to fight?!"

The White Raven's face turned utterly cold, and its two wings emitted dazzling white light, like a pale sun burning and releasing destructive matter.

"Dare to speak to me disrespectfully again?!" The man in the black light was overwhelmingly forceful, issuing a direct threat and immediately acting on it.

The long bronze piece he held began to emit runes, using energy to construct a blurry bronze coffin, with the coffin lid forming first.

With a boom, he swung the coffin lid, directly smashing it towards the powerful and intimidating White Raven.

The White Raven was furious. For how many years had so few dared to attack it like this? Today, it was being repeatedly provoked.

"Don't mistake my patience and focus on important matters for weakness! When I was slaughtering the various heavens and realms back then, your master didn't even know where he was!"

As it spoke, the White Raven's body remained unchanged, still over a foot long, but its wings glowed, and their feathers surged, numbering like a hundred thousand celestial swords, clanging sharply.

Then, all the white feathers transformed into rainbows, each as thick as a mountain, piercing through the void and thrusting forward. They were like sky-breaking spears, incomparably sharp.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Piercing sounds erupted as the white feathers, now dazzling sky-breaking spears, completely pierced through the space before them. The Soul River itself boiled and burned.

Each spear formed from a feather carried an ocean of soul power, surging and turbulent, like a fluctuating sea of stars, truly awe-inspiring!

However, all the feathers were... blocked by the coffin lid!

The coffin lid, constructed from bronze pieces, descended like a demonic mountain suppressing the world, blocking all things, obscuring heaven and earth, and resisting the hundred thousand dazzling flying feathers.

Dong! Dong! Dong!

Grand Dao flames splattered, order shattered, and the area descended into chaos, with both space and time collapsing.

"Dead duck, your condition isn't right!"

The man in the black light, holding the coffin lid, pressed forward directly, stepping closer and closer to the high ground ahead, looking down at the White Raven.

From the White Raven's tail, a special feather glowed and surged, becoming as brilliant as a phoenix feather, extending towards the end of the Soul River and connecting to some ultimate realm!

At this moment, its aura changed, as if it had suddenly risen significantly.

With a cold expression, it said, "Don't push me. If you truly force my complete form to appear, the consequences will be unimaginable. Until all the heavens are stained with blood, I will not return!"

Then, it softened its expression, saying, "What exactly do you want?"

"What do I want?" The man in the black light, his black hair fluttering, his face fair, his eyes incredibly sharp and commanding, his powerful aura surging, replied, "From a long-term perspective, I want to wipe you all out, overturn the old Four-Pole Floating Earth, bury the Heaven-and-Earth Burial Pits, straighten out the ancient reincarnation path from before the Era of Emperors' Fall, and... well, never mind. I don't want to talk about things too far off."

In the distance, the White Raven was stunned. Even a creature like it felt that the man in the black light was insane. What was he even thinking?! Had he lost his mind?!

With a sigh, the man in the black light's demeanor became less aggressive, somewhat subdued. He said, "But for now, I just want her to live!"

He lowered his head, looking at a faded flower petal, already withered, with only a faint lingering fragrance.

What good was talking about the future or grand trends if he couldn't protect those close to him, couldn't even safeguard a cherished confidante who tried so hard to keep up with him? What right did he have to speak of breaking the deadlock or overturning the world?

Thinking of this, the man in the black light, like a towering mountain, pressed forward, saying, "I just want her to live. I've said it many times: give me a hundred more Ancestral Talismans! Are you going to give them or not?!"

The negotiation... could not continue.

Meeting a lunatic—this was the rhythm of forcing a raven to its death. The White Raven was so furious it wanted to curse.

However, out of some consideration, it did not want the ultimate realm deep within the Soul River to be disturbed. For now, it prioritized calm, seeking to stabilize all restless elements.

It took a deep breath and said, "To bring someone back through reincarnation, one talisman is enough. Why do you need so many?"

"The person is gone, the corpse is dust, the soul has become a shower of light. Who are these talismans for? How can one be enough?" the man in the black light said, his voice low. "I need more. With the supreme power remaining in the Ancestral Talismans, I can re-condense a wisp of her ethereal soul. Perhaps, I can create something from nothing and bring her back!"

The White Raven's gaze was unfriendly, and deep within its eyes was coldness. A person who was thoroughly dead, whose soul was gone—and he still wanted to mess around, still wanted to talk about reincarnation?

No wonder he wanted a hundred Ancestral Talismans. He wanted to use the supreme power of that legendary figure to create something from nothing. This was no longer a matter of Dao or creation; it was unspeakable, incomprehensible.

The White Raven gritted its teeth. This was unrealistic. Even the Soul River couldn't provide them. The Ancestral Talismans left by that figure back then were almost all consumed. So many years had passed; how could there still be so many?

Even if some unimaginable old recluses in the various heavens and realms had some in their possession, it was unlikely that all of them combined would be enough to meet this number.

Besides, who would hand them over?

The White Raven said, "You must understand, we truly have very few in our possession. Back then, we were at odds with that individual and didn't wish to have contact with him. These were obtained from later generations and cannot satisfy your demand."

"That sounds so good, 'at odds'? 'Didn't wish to have contact'? You just hid, didn't you, afraid to show yourselves!" the man in the black light scoffed.

The White Raven was enraged. That was an unspeakable era. The Soul River had been isolated from the outside due to certain factors and fallen into crisis. Coupled with that person's appearance, the Soul River had indeed become even more quiescent.

It said coldly, "We admit that person was strong, but not invincible or unbeatable. We had our own problems; there was a change in the source of the Soul River back then."

Its words were cold and indifferent. It said, "Anyone's growth requires time. If the Soul River hadn't undergone changes back then, you should believe, whose advances could the Soul River's power not have obstructed?!"

"But that person did rise! What could you do? Later, he was even seeking you out, looking for the end of the Underworld, and wanted to burn the Four-Pole Floating Earth! If it weren't for a more urgent reason that made him leave in a hurry, I estimate even your father would be a dead duck by now, and the beings behind your clan would have long since breathed their last!"

"You can be arrogant, you can be disrespectful to me, but there are some existences you cannot slander, cannot insult. They are invincible, truly overlooking all eternity, watching epoch after epoch change. Even if that person returns, he wouldn't be able to subdue them!"

"A joke! Do you dare to use the special altar of the Soul River's ultimate realm, burn the Dao with it, burn Ancestral Talismans, recite that person's name, provoke that person, and see if he returns to annihilate you?!"

"Celestial Emperor-level beings are very strong, but no matter how great an individual is, even if they defy heaven and earth, or disrupt the river of time, they cannot change the true grand trend. It's not as if such beings haven't appeared before. Before the Era of Emperors' Fall, hey, it was truly brilliant, but also tragically bloody. Incredibly powerful experts were still... killed!" the White Raven said coldly.

"Stop talking nonsense! I'll just ask one question: Do you dare to use your altar to summon that person back?!" the man in the black light said.

"He disappeared long ago. There's been no news of him for many years. Many have searched for him, but all have failed. He's been unreachable for a long time," the White Raven said blandly.

"Alright, then. He's disappeared, so no more searching for him. Do you dare to awaken the Celestial Emperor who fought here back then and bring him back? Fight another battle!" the man in the black light said.

"You seem to know some things?" The White Raven showed surprise, and at the same time, some apprehension. Some secrets were probably not fully known even to the surviving participants of that era.

"I also know that it wasn't just your Soul River's ultimate realm that acted back then. There were other things: entities emerged from the ancient Underworld, and monsters crawled out of the Celestial Emperor Burial Pit!" the man in the black light said chillingly.

"Who exactly are you? Given your status and age, it's impossible for you to have access to this information!" The White Raven was genuinely apprehensive.

"I am one of those who will toll your death knell!" the man in the black light replied chillingly.

"Then there's nothing more to say. Let's fight!" the White Raven said icily.

It retreated, a special feather on its tail shining brilliantly like a phoenix's plume, no longer pure white, but emitting an eerie glow.

Simultaneously, it resembled a chain of nine-colored mother gold, binding and pulling it, flying backward, about to merge into the ultimate realm of the Soul River.

However, it did not completely disappear. It only retreated a sufficient distance and then commanded, "Kill him!"

In fact, the moment it made the slightest move and began to retreat, the man in the black light acted first, sending the great bell soaring with a resonant hum, smashing it forward.

The White Raven trembled violently, its entire body enveloped in radiant light, confronting the attack.

At the same moment, in just a brief instant, many creatures appeared!

The banks of the Soul River were no longer sandy ground, but low-lying caverns, from which swarms of dense insects surged forth, pouncing towards the black light.

These insects closely resembled those previously seen crawling in and out of the rotting flesh of Grand Universe-level beings.

Each insect was over an inch long, tearing through space, leaving long trails of light behind it. They carried dense ominous matter, like ten thousand arrows firing simultaneously, exploding space!

"Kill!"

The great bell instantly blotted out the sky!

It covered and drew in all the insects, and then the man vibrated the bell!

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Inside, divine particles boiled, and Dao Ancestor matter surged. All the insects wailed, struggling ceaselessly. Each one overflowed with endless divine energy, incredibly strong to an absurd degree.

However, what did they encounter this time? The Emperor Bell!

Even though it was incomplete, merely a palm-sized piece, they could not withstand its vibrations. With a crash, all the insects ultimately shattered.

"Heavenly Worm Nine Transformations, breaking the cocoon and being reborn!"

In the distance, the White Raven shouted, controlling the swarm of insects.

Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!

The void trembled, then shattered. Many even more powerful insects flew out from the caverns, each carrying a luminous cocoon. These were ancestral worms of a higher level.

There weren't as many as before, but they were definitely several times stronger. They actually disturbed time, and despite being mere insects, fragments of time entangled them.

What level of creature was this? If the outside world knew, they would surely gasp in cold air.

"Are these the initial forms of World-Slaughtering Blightworms?" the man in the black light murmured.

However, he ignored these, attacked again, and violently vibrated the bell. The bell waves, like a hundred and eight thousand sword lights, swept out, instantly causing a massive explosion in the void.

Not far away, the Soul River also exploded, revealing the soul lights of many powerful beings, screaming and wailing there. A single wave contained a powerful soul fragment.

Hiss! Hiss!

Many cocoons trembled slightly, then emitted eerie insect chirps.

Now, the souls that were burning began to evaporate from the Soul River, transforming into pure soul substance, which was then drawn over and absorbed by the heavy cocoons.

"Do you still wish to break free from your cocoons and become butterflies? Die!" the man in the black light shouted.

With a soft shout, his glabella glowed, and he activated the two weapons in his hands, blasting apart the area ahead. Various cocoons shattered, wailing, and endless ancestral worms died.

However, a few individual ancestral worms that clung to the immortal caverns survived. They were silvery-white and intimidating, and they were not transforming into butterflies.

"Maggots! Not all insects can become butterflies, because some are just maggots! Truly filthy things nurtured at the end of the Soul River," the man in the black light scoffed.

"Shut up!"

The White Raven said coldly, its gaze intimidating. That man was too insulting. How could they be maggots? These were the initial forms of Blightworms, in the process of evolution.

Indeed, some insects had not died. Their auras surged in an instant, frantically absorbing the power of the Soul River and devouring the energetic nutrients of their fallen comrades who had exploded around them.

The few remaining insects were exceptionally powerful, with various terrifying phenomena swirling around their bodies, such as star rivers splitting, suns exploding, and universes sinking.

They were evolving towards the ultimate form of the Blightworm!

Legend has it that there are ten types of Blightworms in the world, all possessing world-slaughtering power. Once they fully transform, they become unfathomable, capable of fighting and devouring dragons for food, and consuming suns and moons for sustenance.

"Hiding in the darkness, what are you if not maggots? All of you, die!" the man in the black light shouted.

The few insects screamed frantically, rushing towards each other, devouring one another, desiring to ascend to the highest peak and become the sole existence!

However, this time, the man in the black light was utterly ruthless. His hands seemed to become transparent as he unleashed boundless power, and the two weapons in his grasp truly revived—one might even say, resurrected!

Slaying gods who stood in the way, and Buddha who blocked the path!

Heaven and earth crumbled, countless wails echoed in the Soul River, time became chaotic, and past and present seemed to invert.

Not to mention these weren't even the ultimate form of the Blightworms; even if the sources of the ten great Blightworms arrived, it would be useless. The two resurrected weapons would obliterate everything.

When the insects had consumed each other until only two remained, they exploded, and the caverns behind them collapsed, turning into nothingness. That place, a nest filled with dense Dao Ancestor matter, still turned to ash.

However, the man in the black light also felt some apprehension. This Soul River was too unusual. The ancestral worms nurtured here could evolve so rapidly.

If he hadn't destroyed them, would a true ultimate Blightworm have emerged in a short time?

Rumble!

The man in the black light did not stop. The two resurrected weapons were constantly activated, forcefully piercing through the front and striking the White Raven.

"Ah..."

The White Raven's wings flapped, dazzling silver light boiling around it, but it was still heavily wounded. White feathers scattered, and its body was stained with blood.

Had it not been for its special tail feather, drawing unique matter and supreme soul light from the ultimate realm to swiftly shield its body, it would most likely have been blasted apart.

"You're pushing me!" The White Raven was enraged.

From the depths of the Soul River, from the Ultimate Blight Lands, terrifying fluctuations emanated. Heaven and earth seemed on the verge of overturning, and strange and ominous substances surged like a dense tide, engulfing the area.

"Are you backing down or not?!" it shouted.

At this point, anyone would understand that there was truly something wrong with the Soul River. It had been enraged to its limit, yet at the last moment, it was still trying to avoid escalating the situation.

"Bring out the Ancestral Talismans!" the man in the black light said coldly.

"Here, only four. Take them all and leave!" the White Raven said through gritted teeth.

In an instant, a few extraordinarily ancient papers flew over, merging into the black light. They were simple and plain, with only a jar carved on them.

What did it resemble? A milk jar? Because, faintly, a pure and childlike smiling face could be seen accompanying it.

The man in the black light's mouth twitched. This kind of thing was drawn on the Ancestral Talismans?! That figure truly was...

However, he quickly grew serious, recalling some legends: how joyful that figure was in youth, so sad they became later.

Perhaps, in that figure's heart, only a carefree childhood was the happiest moment of their life.

Therefore, when carving the Ancestral Talismans, that figure directly depicted that eternally cherished time in their heart, entrusting their emotions to it, forgetting worries.

Thinking of this, and looking at the Ancestral Talismans again, they were not mere doodles or playful antics, but profoundly heavy, suffocating in their weight.

Seemingly childlike smiles, yet they concealed great sorrow, an infinitely heavy aura washing over him.

The loneliness of one person, the distant journey of one person, leaving behind only a final legend, never to be seen again.

"No, you have more! Bring them all out! At least ten!" the man in the black light shouted.

The White Raven had truly had enough. The man in the black light was too dominant, too hateful, even more detestable than that black dog from back then, wanting to seize everything he saw.

It wanted to ask, "What is your relationship?"

"Good, it's been many years. Finally, that dog is gone. It must be dead!" The White Raven let out a long breath.

"Woof!" In the void, a dog was approaching, sneezing furiously along the way.

"Who's showing such intense malice towards me? I'll bite you to death, you'll see!" The black dog ran upright, its large, bell-like eyes gleaming, its bald tail held high.

"Is it a hallucination?!" The White Raven was suspicious. It kept feeling that something bad was about to happen, something deeply ominous.

But this made it feel absurd. Wasn't their own location the greatest source of ill omens? Strange!

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