A cold sweat covered the Vile-Prince's body, born of humiliation and rage. Suddenly, he clapped his hands.
In response, a beam of light approached from off in the distance, within which was an old man with a demigod cultivation base. And he wasn’t alone! He was dragging someone else along with him!
Shockingly, the person being dragged toward them wore imperial robes, although his head hung down, making it impossible to make out his facial features. He did not wear a crown, and yet his robes alone made him spectacularly eye-catching!!
“Arch-Emperor!” Bai Xiaochun said hoarsely, stopping in place.
For many years, only two people in the Eternal Immortal Domains had qualified to wear imperial robes. One was the Vile-Emperor, and the other was the Saint-Emperor. But now… another person existed who held such qualifications!
He was a direct descendent of the Arch-Sovereign, the true and rightful ruler of the imperial dynasty from the Heavenspan Realm… the Arch-Emperor!!
Back when Bai Xiaochun fought with Daoist Heavenspan, the good fortune from the gravekeeper bestowed him with the bloodline of the Arch-Sovereign, and turned him into the new Arch-Ancestor. In addition to the fact that he had a celestial cultivation base, he was very much like an emperor to the current Heavenspan Realm cultivators. However, the Arch-Emperor… was the true paragon entity from the Heavenspan Realm!
The Heavenspan Realm had been destroyed, but the Arch-Emperor hadn’t perished. He had been captured by the Vile-Emperor Dynasty, tortured for information… and then locked up like an animal in the imperial palace. Now… he was being paraded out for Bai Xiaochun to see!
Upon hearing his title being spoken out loud, the dazed Arch-Emperor slowly looked up, and his gaze fell on Bai Xiaochun. And then…
He smiled.
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Chapter
1176: Succession
The way the Arch-Emperor smiled made him seem very different from before. His left eye had been dug out, seemingly by himself. Normally speaking, he shouldn’t have aged so dramatically, but because of his years of imprisonment, and the brutal ways the Vile-Prince had used him for research purposes, he had.
He was the magnificent reigning Arch-Emperor. Back in the Wildlands, the Grand Heavenmaster had turned him into a puppet ruler, but formally, he was still the most respected ruler in the world, a person toward who innumerable citizens offered worship!
But now… his bleak and battered state caused Bai Xiaochun to tremble. He opened his mouth as if to speak, but his words stuck in his throat as he thought back to what the Arch-Emperor had been like back in the Wildlands. Right now… he looked like a completely different person.
Never could Bai Xiaochun have guessed that he might see the Arch-Emperor right here and now!
When the Vile-Prince sensed the fluctuations of Bai Xiaochun’s divine sense, his eyes glittered, and a feeling of immense pride rose up in his heart. He had racked his brains to come up with ideas to deal with Bai Xiaochun, to force him to commit some mistake or crime. After all, he was an ambassador, in a sensitive position. But if the Vile-Prince could get him to do something bad enough, then it would make things much easier.
The truth was that the Vile-Prince truly did want to get his hands on Bai Xiaochun’s physical body, and most specifically, all of his blood. He was confident that, with his blood, he could unlock the secrets of the Arch-Sovereign’s bloodline, his goal being to learn about both spirit enhancement and hereditary cultivation techniques.
By now, it was no secret in the Eternal Immortal Domains that Bai Xiaochun had cultivated the Undying Live Forever Technique. And his heaven-defying powers of regeneration had left many opponents shaken. The Vile-Prince had already acquired the necessary manuals describing the technique.
However, he was unable to cultivate them. Only people with the blood of the Heavenspan Realm could do so. That was the most fundamental requirement for the technique.
And thus, the Vile-Prince passionately wanted to take Bai Xiaochun’s body!
Now that he had finally found a way to get under Bai Xiaochun’s skin, he began to chuckle loudly.
“Ambassador Bai, I'm very interested in spirit enhancement. And as you know, I pursue perfection in all things. Part by part, I’ve even replaced my own body inside and out.
“Listen, I won’t lie to you. I already have a bit of Heavenspan Realm blood in me, and have begun to acquire a basic understanding of spirit enhancement. But the blood I have just isn’t enough….
“My father the emperor has already approved my request to refine the Arch-Emperor, and use his flesh and blood to create a new arm for myself!
“It will be an arm completely imbued with the blood of the Heavenspan Realm. With that… I am confident that I’ll unlock the secrets of the Arch-Sovereign’s bloodline!” As of this point, the Vile-Prince seemed completely crazed, as if he were truly insane.
And yet, most of the people bearing witness to what was playing out, even the demigods, seemed envious of him.
At this point, the Vile-Prince lifted his left hand and then slashed it down, instantly chopping off his right arm. Even as blood sprayed out everywhere, he reached out, grabbed the Arch-Emperor, and began to drag him toward the open wound!
Tendrils of muscle and flesh then snaked out in bizarre and sinister fashion, boring into the Arch-Emperor's body. Although he trembled and spasmed, he continued to smile as he looked at Bai Xiaochun. And then, he managed to speak.
“My left eye contained all of the secrets of the Arch-Sovereign’s bloodline! No one will ever get them!
“From the first day I began to suffer this humiliation, and came to learn of their thirst for such secrets, I dug that eye out and destroyed it. The secrets of the Arch-Sovereign’s bloodline are the foundation of the Heavenspan Realm. They are everything, and… no one will ever take them away!” It took the last scraps of energy the Arch-Emperor had to be able to speak such words in front of all the officials of the Vile-Emperor Dynasty, and even the Vile-Emperor himself.
Furthermore, it was clear that his words were directed toward one person: Bai Xiaochun!
He knew that although Bai Xiaochun’s blood was not the most true and orthodox, in some ways, it surpassed his own!
He also knew that he was the emperor of the Heavenspan Realm. Perhaps he was the last emperor, but that was his fault, and he had to bear the responsibility. Even if he couldn’t be the emperor anymore, he still could not let the secrets of his bloodline fall into the hands of an enemy!
Instead… he would trust Bai Xiaochun!
“From the moment I dug out my left eye, I ceased to be the Arch-Emperor. Today I die, but not as an emperor! I am only an ordinary demigod from the Heavenspan Realm!” He threw his head back and laughed uproariously, at the same time trembling as the tendrils of flesh and muscle from the Vile-Prince dug into him. He was already withering up physically, almost like melting wax!
And yet, his voice thrummed with excitement, and despite his weakened state, echoed out in all directions.
“I am no longer the Arch-Emperor. The true Arch-Emperor… appeared in the moment that the Heavenspan Realm was destroyed!” Even as his laughter began to fade, his left eye socket began to glow with bright light!
And that light shone on one person…. Bai Xiaochun!
He hadn’t yet finished speaking, and yet everyone in the imperial palace knew exactly what he meant when he said that a new Arch-Emperor had appeared. That person was obviously… Bai Xiaochun!
The Vile-Prince was not absorbing the Arch-Emperor. Instead… he was giving the old Arch-Emperor a chance to formally chose his successor, with the officials of the Vile-Emperor Dynasty present to bear witness!!