While many emperors had perished during the Human Emperor-selecting Ceremony, a considerable number had survived. It was crucial to persevere so that those who had died did not do so in vain.
What had just transpired made it obvious that Emperor Xuan was Yu Taixu’s favorite. Yu Taixu would be unable to find a replacement for the recently deceased Emperor Xuan in such a short time. Continuing with the Human Emperor-selecting Ceremony would benefit Senior Grand Tutor Hong as he had a higher chance of winning without Emperor Xuan in the picture. Senior Grand Tutor firmly believed that he could make Emperor Yang the next Human Emperor.
“No. This isn’t a trivial issue. We need to discuss this immediately. With the Golden Throne, demolished, we cannot proceed with the Human Emperor-selecting Ceremony. I suggest postponing it!”
The first person who voiced his concerns was not Yu Taixu but Chen Jinzhong. As the head of Chen Ancestral Temple, he was in charge of all the procedures of the Human Emperor-selecting Ceremony. He felt ashamed that such an accident had happened and he did not think that the Human Emperor-selecting Ceremony was able to continue.
“Hehe, it’s not that simple. Put it off? Then when will it be held? 500 years later? Don’t forget the effort that went into choosing suitable candidates. If we postpone the ceremony, we have to find another group of candidates. Even if we succeed in finding new candidates, they’re unlikely to be better than these four. They survived that battle, which demonstrates that they have outstanding power and loyal subordinates. Is that not enough to prove their mettle?” Senior Grand Tutor Hong stared at Chen Jinzhong as he rebutted him.
“Furthermore, it was the Eight Grand Demon who initiated the conflict during the ceremony. Regardless of their reasons for causing trouble here, they can’t do so anymore as they’ve died. If we delay the Ceremony, we’re giving those who want to sabotage the ceremony time to prepare. The dignity of our five biggest sects will be at stake!”
“That makes sense!” Child-endowing Buddha responded abruptly after receiving a suggestion from Zhou Bao.
“Lord Yu, Senior Grand Tutor Hong and Mr. Chen. We have no reasons to delay the Human Emperor-selecting Ceremony since the earlier disruptions have been resolved. We should select the right person to be the Human Emperor as soon as possible, in case something unexpected happens again!”
“That makes sense. You saw what happened just now. This ceremony is important. And we may not have time for such a huge ceremony in the future. Why don’t we just finish it today? It may become more and more troublesome as time goes by!” said Elder Qing.
Two of the four sects had taken a stand. Though Dragon Thunder Palace and Jade Pool didn’t declare themselves, they agreed with this idea inwardly. They were clearly on the side of Immortal Palace and Bigwheel Temple. Dark Sect, despite its enormous power, was not recognized by the five biggest sects. As such, they could not comment on the incident. Instead they gloated at the disagreement among the five sects.
Yu Taixu looked even paler now.
Chen Jinzhong was speechless. He reconsidered the issue and found that the points raised were valid. Because of the accident, the five biggest sects would not have time for the Human Emperor-selecting Ceremony if it were postponed. They would also not be able to find better candidates than the current selection. Why not finish the ceremony today? Though things would not be as perfect as they expected, at least, they could take a great weight off their minds.
He reluctantly nodded and glanced at Yu Taixu. Yu Taixu glared at Senior Grand Tutor Hong, who returned his look boldly with sarcasm in his eyes.
“Yu Taixu, this time, you racked your brains and colluded with the Eight Grand Demons to disrupt the Human Emperor-selecting Ceremony so that your illegitimate son can take hold of the Golden Throne and become the next Human Emperor. As the old saying goes, ‘Man proposes but God disposes’. You could never have foreseen that such an accident would happen in the ceremony. That someone would break in here with a Supreme Fairy Weapon, kill your son and destroy the Golden Throne. And you almost died. Hehe, you lost a lot this time. I’m afraid that your power of discourse in Divine Wind Palace will ebb! ” Senior Grand Tutor Hong grinned from ear to ear as he looked at Yu Taixu’s furious face.
“Well, since everyone agrees, we will proceed with the Human Emperor-selecting Ceremony.” Yu Taixu clenched his teeth, thought for a while, nodded and said, “The candidates of the next Human Emperor are crucial. There are only four emperors left and they have proven themselves to be the best candidates. Then we will choose the best one out of these four emperors!” Having said his piece, Yu Taixu returned to his seat and closed his eyes.
“It makes things easier now. Yu Taixu will never let Emperor Yang be the next Human Emperor. A battle is inevitable. I just need to be that sparrow which can easily win everything. In terms of Ashoka and Emperor Wolf,” thinking of these two people, Zhou Bao looked vicious, “Atu Sage and the King Liuli? I don’t mind sending them back to their home!”
Chen Jinzhong was inwardly relieved when he heard Yu Taixu’s words. Chen Jinzhong could not afford to offend either Yu Taixu or Hong Taihe. Although the Chen’s ancestral temple enjoyed some prestige in Divine Wind Palace, it was inferior to Yu family and Hong Family. It didn’t want to be caught between the two families.
He cleared his throat and looked at Turtle Back Mountain. His heart ached when he thought of the suffering and distress there. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a moment. He calmed his emotions by activating the Dharma power in his body.
“Human Emperor-selecting Ceremony is a grand gathering of our Four Eastern Regions. It is held every 500 years. Although an accident has happened, it helped us identify our four best candidates. We will choose one to be the next Human Emperor to rule the world. Do you have any questions?”
“No!”
“No.”
“That’s fair.”
“No.”
Though it had been perilous just now, the incident had helped them annihilate all their rivals. The four Emperors now seemed quite relaxed and spoke briefly and clearly.
“Alright. Please, four Emperors, show us what you are capable of and prove to us that you are qualified to rule the world!” Chen Jinzhong walked off the field and stood on the east side.
The battlefield stood standing in the middle of Turtle Back Mountain, looking deserted and uninviting.
Senior Grand Tutor Hong was the first to take action. He slowly headed to the battlefield with a confident smile, “Guys, just come to me together!”
Innumerable figures appeared in the hollow behind him. Every figure emitted powerful spirit and possessed the strength of an Individual Immortal.
“These are not living creatures, but puppets I have refined. There are 3780 of them. All of you, as long as you can survive my puppet formation, you win. Otherwise, you die!” Senior Grand Tutor Hong squinted at Zhou Bao and said, “Zhou Bao from Yunzhou, I’ve heard about you and I know you are extraordinarily powerful. But I didn’t expect that you would have such a powerful Pure Yang Celestial Device of Upper Grade. You are the strongest one here other than me. You go first. How about that?”
“Hehe, that’s fine. Let me beat the hell out of you!” Zhou Bao didn’t think twice, activated his Flipping Sky Seal and threw it to Senior Grand Tutor Hong. Meanwhile, Atu Sage also wielded his walking stick. It emitted a subtle golden glow as he pointed it at Senior Grand Tutor Hong.
“Well done!” Senior Grand Tutor Hong complimented them quietly as he saw their moves. Then the puppets behind him moved and surrounded him. Dozens of puppets of Individual Immortal level dashed toward the Flipping Sky Seal.
“Bang!”
With a huge noise, the puppets were smashed by the Flipping Sky Seal, but the power of Flipping Sky Seal was reduced. Senior Grand Tutor Hong had vanished into the puppets, while Atu Sage was engaged by dozens of puppets and couldn’t break free.
At the same time, King Liuli Wu Dynasty, the bareheaded man beside Emperor Wolf, took action. His target was not Senior Grand Tutor Hong but Zhou Bao. King Liuli dashed toward Zhou Bao recklessly with clenched fists.
With an angry yell, King Liuli drew close to Zhou Bao and a huge Dharma Laksana appeared behind him. It was a giant white elephant. Following King Liuli’s movement, it lifted its feet and stamped on Zhou Bao.
“Good job!” Zhou Bao groaned. He raised his hands and black-red Sword Qi poured out from his fingertips. Millions of chopped swords formed a black-red tornado and smashed the feet of the giant elephant.
“Eh.” King Liuli had not expected that Zhou Bao would be that strong. His fists were smashed by the Yin and Yang Heavenly Sword of Zhou Bao. As he retreated with a groan, Zhou Bao suddenly vanished in front of him.
“No!” King Liuli was on his guard as he couldn’t see a trace of Zhou Bao. He turned around to defend himself, anticipating Zhou Bao’s attack. Instead, he suddenly heard the roar of Emperor Wolf.
“Oh shit!”
That was indeed terrible. Zhou Bao did not intend to fight King Liuli. Instead, he wielded the Three Realms Division, moved to Emperor Wolf and punched him.
“How dare you!” Emperor Wolf roared. The necklace around his neck glowed with golden light as 18 jade skulls of the necklace suddenly darted towards Zhou Bao.
“Go to hell!” Zhou Bao smiled and maintained his fist stance. He abruptly broke Emperor Wolf’s attack and sent back the 18 jade skulls. His fists hit hard on Emperor Wolf.
“No!”
The roar was cut off abruptly. Emperor Wolf had been smashed by Zhou Bao’s fist!
Emperor Wolf had been killed by one punch. Zhou Bao flashed and reappeared behind King Liuli.
“Go to hell!” King Liuli had watched helplessly as Emperor Wolf was killed by Zhou Bao. He was roar in fury and leaped toward Zhou Bao.