The Eternal God Emperor and the Demon Ancestor

Chapter 37 Slaying the God Venerable

Western Universe Taiwei Realm Starfield Battlefield

The Taiwei Realm Starfield is no longer the dazzling constellation it once was. The powerful forces of the Heavenly Court and the Hell Realm are locked in a fierce battle, with endless divine flames scorching the star sea. The aftershocks of the collapsing laws have shattered billions of stars, turning the entire starfield into a desolate ruin. Only the sounds of battle reverberate throughout the universe, reaching all the heavens and myriad realms.

At the center of the battlefield, the strongest of the undead race, Qing Cang of the Southern Life and Death Ruins, possessed the strongest spiritual power in the universe, and his death psychic power was unparalleled. At this moment, he was facing off against Shang Zu of the Heavenly Realm. Qing Cang's face was calm, and a point of death light suddenly appeared between his brows. With a single thought, thousands of stars with diameters of over a million miles were forcibly drawn from the depths of the star sea. The stars were wrapped in scorching death energy and crashed towards Shang Zu like meteors chasing the moon. Wherever they passed, space was compressed into nothingness.

Clad in a crimson imperial robe, the Shang Ancestor stood tall and imposing. Seeing the approaching stars, he neither dodged nor evaded, but instead unleashed the Great Dao Heavenly Desolation Seal, one of his self-created Eight Forms of Heavenly Desolation. A palm print, obscuring the sky and sun, materialized from his palm. The Heavenly Desolation Dao principles flowed upon it, as if an ancient world were pressing down. With a deafening roar, thousands of stars were crushed into dust by the palm print, stardust scattering across the sky. Before the stardust could even settle, the Shang Ancestor channeled his divine power, unleashing a second palm print. Its force was enough to shift stars and change constellations, carrying the destructive power to strike directly at Qing Cang's face.

"Old Ghost Shang, your Heavenly Desolation Eight Forms are even more formidable than they were tens of thousands of years ago." Qing Cang's voice was indifferent. He raised his hand and waved, a deathly mental force condensed to its extreme forming a barrier that directly erased the palm print of the Great Realm Destruction. His gaze met Shang Zu's, and there was a hint of mutual respect in his eyes. The two were both top-tier supreme beings in the universe. Although they belonged to two different camps, they were both existences standing at the top of the pyramid. Qing Cang considered Shang Zu to be the same kind of person as him, so he respected him greatly.

The Shang Ancestor's imperial robes fluttered, and his voice shook the starry sea: "Qing Cang, this time the Taiwei Realm allowed your Hell Realm to take advantage of the situation. That bastard Xiong Taiwei was so stupid that he was betrayed by the people around him. He didn't even know he was raising a ghost in his house. He deserved to die."

Xiong Taiwei, the Taiwei Divine Venerable, a top-tier powerhouse in the Western Universe, had already self-destructed his divine source, perishing along with the Taiwei Realm. Although he died from the combined attack of the venerables of the Hell Realm, in the eyes of the Shang Ancestor, this act was ultimately incredibly foolish. A wise man does not stand under a crumbling wall; with Xiong Taiwei's cultivation, even if surrounded, escaping would not have been difficult. However, he couldn't let go of the Taiwei Realm, ultimately ending up with his own demise and the destruction of the realm.

In Shang Zu's view, the same was true of Wen Tianjun and Xumi Shengseng from the Kunlun Realm 50,000 years ago. They were willing to sacrifice themselves for those mortal ants in the Kunlun Realm. In his eyes, this was the ultimate folly. Only by living could one protect everything one wanted to protect. Once one dies, everything is empty.

"However, Xiong Taiwei was quite decisive. His self-destruction caused Gong Xuanzang and the others to suffer serious injuries, so his death was somewhat worthwhile." Shang Zu changed the subject, his tone carrying a hint of approval.

Upon hearing this, Qing Cang smiled slightly and said, "Only fools like Xumi and Taiwei can use such a self-sacrificing move. If all the strong people in the world were like you, old man Shang, seeking advantage and avoiding harm, then I would really have a headache."

On the other side of the battlefield, the battle between the Three Fiends Emperor and the Lord of the Hall of Truth also paused for a moment. The Three Fiends Emperor's body surged with corpse energy as he looked at the Lord of the Hall of Truth opposite him and said with a sigh, "Lord of the Azure Hall, tens of thousands of years have passed, and I never thought that you would also reach such a realm. It seems that I have fallen behind."

The Lord of the Temple of Truth manifested a divine body spanning millions of miles, standing proudly in the center of the star sea, his divine might vast and boundless, surrounded by the principles of truth, his divine voice like a resounding bell, echoing throughout the entire star field: "Three Fiend Emperors, if it weren't for Biluozi severing your two avatars and cutting off your cultivation foundation back then, you would probably have already stepped into the realm of indestructible immeasurable. All things in the world have causes and effects."

The Three Fiends Emperor threw his head back and laughed, his voice shaking the surrounding land: "In that battle back then, although I was severely injured, in the end, it was my Hell Realm that prevailed! Azure Sky City, all were once powerful and ruthless figures, but in the end, didn't they still die at our hands?"

Back then, Biluozi and Kongchengzi were both peak experts of the Great Freedom and Boundless Realm in Kunlun Realm. They were from the same school and, when they joined forces, they could even challenge the Heavenly Venerable. However, in the end, they still perished in the combined attack of the powerful forces of the Hell Realm.

The Lord of the Temple of Truth shook his head slightly, his eyes filled with sorrow: "If the Three Fiends hadn't used the billions of lives in the Kunlun Realm as leverage back then, how could Biluozi and his companion have been so easily defeated and killed? They didn't die at your hands; they died because of their sense of righteousness, because they couldn't bear to see the lives of the Kunlun Realm suffer!"

"No poison, no hero!" The Three Fiends Emperor's expression was cold and stern, unconvinced. "This is a war of life and death; what is there to talk about morality? If anyone is to blame, blame them for being indecisive and having a soft spot!"

Back then, he led his army into the Kunlun Realm, staining the starry sea with blood. Countless lives in the Kunlun Realm died at his hands. But in his eyes, hell and heaven were destined to fight to the death, and it was only natural to stop at nothing to achieve victory.

"Lord Qing, there's no need to reminisce about old friends here." The Three Fiends Emperor's eyes flashed with a fierce light, unwilling to engage in further verbal sparring. "Once I've captured you, you can reminisce on the road to the Yellow Springs!"

Before he finished speaking, the Three Fiends Emperor activated his divine power, and a vast expanse of dark purple mist surged from his body—his ultimate technique, the Three Fiends Corpse Poison. This poison was formed by the fusion of three extremely powerful corpse poisons: Yin Sorrow, Yang Calamity, and Huang'e. It was transformed from the primordial evil power of the world. Wherever the mist passed, even space itself was eroded and dissolved. Ordinary true gods who came into contact with it would have their souls and bodies melted away, beyond any cure.

The Lord of the Temple of Truth's expression hardened, not daring to be careless in the slightest. Endless divine light radiated from his body, and behind him, a vast blue universe unfolded. Within this universe, countless great stars rose and fell, and the principles of truth intertwined. This universe of truth, carrying the force of creation, crashed directly into the dark purple corpse poison mist. The two collided and remained locked in a stalemate in the center of the starry sea, the aftershocks causing surrounding stars to explode one after another.

Seeing this, the Three Fiends Emperor took a step forward, traversing countless star fields. His divine power merged with the corpse poison, transforming the endless corpse poison into a rolling black tide. He unleashed a punch, the force of which shook the entire Taiwei Realm star field. The Lord of the Truth Palace's hands flashed with hand seals, and from the Truth Universe behind him, billions of blue beams of light burst forth. The power of the universe's origin was fully enhanced upon him. He pointed a finger, and the beam pierced through the void, directly striking the Three Fiends Emperor.

The principles of truth and the poison of the Three Fiends collided and neutralized each other in the sea of ​​stars, unleashing a world-destroying power. In an instant, the Lord of the Temple of Truth moved his divine body, his fist imprint forming the shape of the universe, and directly engaged the Three Fiends Emperor in close combat. The two exchanged blows, their laws clashed, the sea of ​​stars surged, and they fought each other again, their battle cries shaking the heavens.

On the other side of the Starfield Battlefield, Mingde sat atop a scroll stretching ten thousand miles, his body enveloped in Confucian and Taoist divine light. Beside him stood the Heavenly Dragon Realm's Azure God Venerable. Azure was the sixth son of the Dragon Clan and the younger brother of the Five Dragon God Emperor, the ruler of the Heavenly Dragon Realm. His cultivation had reached the mid-stage of the Boundless Universe realm. At this moment, he gazed solemnly at the army of the Hell Realm.

Within the ranks of the Hell Realm, True Gods stood in formation, as numerous as hemp seeds, while Boundless Realm Gods concealed themselves behind the array. Their divine might was so overwhelming that even the starry sea trembled slightly. Heavenly Azure God sighed softly, "Mingde, look at this army of the Hell Realm, how magnificent it is."

Mingde, his expression arrogant, swept his gaze over the Hell Realm's forces, his tone disdainful: "In my opinion, they are nothing but chickens and dogs!"

Upon hearing this, the Azure Celestial God's expression calmed slightly, his gaze sharpening as he looked into the depths of the Death Clan army. There, a towering divine palace slowly rose, and from within emerged a blue-faced middle-aged man. This man wore a dark blue battle robe and a black-gold crown, his divine might as a blazing sun overwhelming all the gods. He was none other than Qing Shou, the Grand Elder of the Death God Palace, a cousin of Qing Cang of the Southern Heaven, whose cultivation had reached the late stage of the Boundless Universe realm.

"Mingde, look at that man wearing a crown and a dark blue battle robe, that is Qing Shou, the Grand Elder of the Temple of Death."

Mingde looked over with his divine gaze, still smiling arrogantly, and said, "In my opinion, Qing Shou is nothing more than a man who sells his head by bidding."

The Azure Celestial Venerable's expression turned serious, and he solemnly reminded him, "He is the younger brother of the Qingcang clan. He has cultivated for nearly a million years and survived seven eons of tribulation. He has profound foundations and you must not underestimate him."

Mingde, brimming with heroic spirit, slightly raised his divine eyes, still disdainful: "Ambition knows no age. Although Qingshou has cultivated for hundreds of thousands of years longer than me, what is there to fear? Today, I will use my pen as a sword and paper as a knife to take his head and present it to Sixth Brother!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the long scroll beneath Mingde suddenly swung, and he poured all his divine power into it. The scroll, wrapped in Confucian and Taoist divine light, flew across layers of space like a meteor and went straight towards Qing Shou.

"Mingde, don't be impulsive!" Celestial Azure God tried to stop him, but it was too late. Seeing Mingde break through the defenses of the Hell Realm and head straight for the main camp, Celestial Azure God had no choice but to immediately send a message to all the Boundless Realm experts in the Heavenly Court Realm to launch an attack together and draw fire for Mingde.

Mingde, who had just entered the Hell Realm's territory, raised his hand and took out a platinum-colored divine pen. The pen was surrounded by ancient Daoist charm. This was the "Talking Heaven Pen," a treasure once used by the three ancestors of the Kunlun Realm.

Holding the Heavenly Writing Brush, he casually flicked his wrist, unleashing a condensed divine light of Confucianism and Taoism. The defensive array set up by the Hell Realm shattered instantly, leaving behind a star field remnant stretching for hundreds of thousands of miles. Countless Hell cultivators within the array perished.

After breaking through the defenses, the scroll beneath Mingde's feet transformed into a massive, imposing barrier, rampaging through everything in its path. Hellish cultivators were thrown about, their souls annihilated. His objective was clear: he marched straight towards Qing Shou in front of the Hellish camp without the slightest hesitation.

Upon seeing this, several Boundless Realm Gods from the Hell Realm were enraged and tried to intercept them, but Mingde summoned a blank celestial book. The celestial book unfolded, transforming into an endless sea of ​​books, with Confucian and Taoist divine light blotting out the sky, trapping all the Gods within the sea of ​​books, unable to escape. In the blink of an eye, Mingde had already stepped in front of Qing Shou.

Despite being a powerful figure among the Death Clan, Qing Shou showed no panic upon seeing Ming De storm the camp alone. He raised his hand, summoning his natal weapon, and a blinding aura of death emanated from his brow as he channeled boundless deathly power, manifesting a massive, black palace, a million miles in size, before him—the Death God's Palace of the Death Clan. A terrifying aura of the Death God's Heavenly Dao swirled around the phantom, threatening to crush the starry sea.

"You brat, you're courting death!" Qing Shou shouted coldly. From the phantom of the Temple of Death, a giant white bone claw that blotted out the sky suddenly emerged. The profound meaning of the Heavenly Dao of Death flowed on the giant claw, tearing through space and grabbing straight at Ming De's head.

Seeing this, Mingde advanced instead of retreating. Holding the Heavenly Writing Brush, he made a large stroke, and countless divine patterns lit up on the brush, actually drawing an endless rift in space. Inside the rift was pitch-black nothingness, which directly devoured the giant white bone claw.

"Sleepy!"

Mingde let out a low shout, raised his hand and took out a scroll, infusing it with boundless divine energy. The scroll instantly unfurled, like a surging river, and coiled towards Qingshou. This was the Ailao Map painted by the Fourth Ancestor, a supreme treasure of Confucianism and Taoism, whose power was no less than that of ordinary sub-god level supreme artifacts.

Qing Shou's expression changed, and he immediately manifested a divine body a million miles long. The top-level Heavenly Dao mysteries of the Hell Realm, such as the Death God Heavenly Dao and the Corruption Heavenly Dao, intertwined around him, and he unleashed a Heaven-level divine power, the Death God Corruption Heavenly Hand. A dark red giant hand condensed from his palm and slammed towards the Ailao Diagram. The two collided and exploded with a deafening roar, shaking the starry sea. However, the Ailao Diagram was not shattered and continued to coil towards Qing Shou like a giant dragon.

In just a few breaths, the Ailao Diagram firmly bound Qing Shou. On the scroll, endless divine light shone, suppressing Qing Shou's divine power and Dao principles.

"Old man Qing Shou, this is the Ailao Map personally drawn by the Fourth Ancestor. I will use it to trap you. You should feel honored." Ming De's voice was icy cold. He poured all his divine energy into the Talking Heaven Brush, and the brush transformed into a guillotine. Not only was the divine light of Confucianism and Taoism swirling around the guillotine, but the half-ancestral divine patterns left by the Third Ancestor also flowed around it, exuding endless Taoist charm.

Around Mingde, nearly 20% of the Confucian and Taoist mysteries and 10% of the time-related mysteries converged, all of which were added to the guillotine, transforming it into a Confucian and Taoist weapon capable of annihilating countless beings. The Boundless Realm God Venerable of the Death Clan, trapped by the Nameless Heavenly Book, was extremely anxious upon seeing this, but he was unable to break through the sea of ​​books and could only watch helplessly.

"Mingde! You dare to harm my Wuliang of the Death Clan! Qingzu is right here on this battlefield, and he will not let you get away with this!" A god of the Death Clan roared loudly, trying to intimidate Mingde.

Upon hearing this, Mingde scoffed, "What is there to fear from a mere Qingcang? Trying to intimidate me by simply raising his name? If you want revenge, let him come." Mingde wasn't a righteous man like the Venerable Monk Sumeru. Qingcang was powerful, but if he couldn't defeat him, could he simply run away? At worst, he could carry the Four Realms of Music, Chess, Calligraphy, and Painting, along with the Primordial Realm, to distant lands, engaging in guerrilla warfare with the Dead Clan. Then they'd see who had the bigger headache.

He was originally a demonic cultivator, with flexible principles, and would never be constrained by so-called righteousness. Today, he killed Qing Shou for two reasons: first, to establish his authority, and second, to avenge his comrades who died in the battle of Kunlun Realm.

"Today, I will sever his blood relative as a sacrifice to all my comrades in the Kunlun Realm!"

As Mingde finished speaking, the guillotine shone brightly. He raised his hand and pressed it against Qingshou's head, his spiritual power transforming into countless chains of divine rules, which, together with the Ailao Diagram, completely locked Qingshou's divine sea and soul. Then, with a swift stroke, a dazzling Confucian-Taoist divine light swept across the starry sea. A piercing scream rang out, and Qingshou's head was severed, blood spurting out and staining the surrounding star field crimson.

However, Mingde's cultivation was not yet sufficient to instantly obliterate a powerful being of immeasurable strength. This beheading only severely injured Qingshou. He acted decisively, raising his hand to cast a spell, dismembering Qingshou's body and sealing it all within the Ailao Diagram to prevent its resurrection.

"Mingde! My Temple of Death will fight you to the death!"

When the gods of the Dead saw Qing Shou beheaded and sealed, their eyes blazed with fury, their hatred so intense they wanted to tear Ming De apart.

Mingde slowly put away the Ailao Map and the Talking Brush, his divine voice melodious and slightly mocking: "I'm not easily intimidated. You trash dare to bare your teeth at me? If you want to fight, let your Death God Temple Master and Death Clan Chief come out and fight me!"

The gods of the Dead gritted their teeth, but dared not utter a word of their anger. The Lord of the Death God's Temple was currently locked in a fierce battle with Zhao Gongming, the Death Clan Chief was also battling the supreme Blade Sovereign of the Western Universe, and all the Great Freedom Limitless Powerhouses of the Hell Realm were also occupied and held back. Only Mingde, this scoundrel, had no bottom line; he ignored the supreme powerhouses of his own rank and single-handedly stormed into the camp, specifically targeting these Limitless Realm experts.

Seeing the ashen faces of the Death Gods, Mingde's smile deepened: "You don't need to look at me like that. My martial arts cultivation is still relatively new; I've only recently become a god, merely an upper-level god. It's you who are bullying me if I fight you."

After saying that, he released his divine pressure, revealing himself to be a high-level god with unparalleled martial arts cultivation.

Upon hearing these words, the Azure Celestial Venerable outside the camp twitched his lips, feeling that Mingde's skin was even thicker than the dragon scales on his body. Everyone could see that although Mingde's martial arts cultivation was at the High God level, his spiritual power cultivation was probably already close to the Perfect Heavenly Realm. Otherwise, how could he have trapped several Boundless Realm Gods of the Underworld with a single blank scroll of heavenly scripture?

As the Azure Celestial looked at the proud figure standing in the sea of ​​stars, he suddenly realized that the key to breaking the deadlock in this battle of the Taiwei Realm might lie in this seemingly unruly Mingde.