506: Tell us the truth!

As soon as these words were spoken.

The Grand Elder was first stunned, then, as if he had heard some utterly absurd joke, he actually let out a sneer.

"Ridiculous!"

He violently flicked his sleeve, his tone filled with disdain.

"Our Sect Master is a dignified Quasi-Immortal Emperor, only a step away from that supreme position of Immortal Emperor."

"In a one-on-one fight, the Nine Heavens Immortal Emperor might not necessarily be able to suppress our Sect Master."

"No matter how arrogant the Nine Heavens Immortal Sect is, how would they dare to risk mutual destruction by dealing a lethal blow?"

In his view, although the Sect's overall strength was inferior to the Nine Heavens Immortal Sect,

the deterrent power of their top-tier combatant was enough to make the other side hesitate to act lightly.

Meng Ling did not laugh, but the disbelief in her eyes was also plain to see.

She shook her head gently, her tone certain.

"Impossible!"

"The Saint Heaven Immortal Emperor is the one chosen for support by the Three Great Sects; he is the key person to deal with the Catastrophe nine years from now."

"As long as the Nine Heavens Immortal Sect isn't insane, they wouldn't dare to move against someone the Three Great Sects intend to protect at this critical juncture."

She stared at Su Ming, her voice turning a few degrees colder.

"Su Ming, you should understand that strangling the Saint Heaven Immortal Emperor is the same as strangling the hope of the Vast Immortal Domain."

"The Three Great Sects will never sit idly by; this is the bottom line."

Facing the doubts and rebuttals of the two, Su Ming's expression remained as usual, and his eyes didn't even flicker in the slightest.

"The logic you've stated isn't wrong, but you've overlooked a most basic fact."

Su Ming met Meng Ling's oppressive gaze and said in a calm tone,

"Whether the Saint Heaven Immortal Emperor can achieve a Breakthrough is, after all, an unknown."

"This so-called hope is nothing more than a high-stakes gamble with uncertain odds."

Meng Ling frowned and was about to speak, but Su Ming raised his hand to interrupt her.

"What if the Nine Heavens Immortal Sect has found someone who can one hundred percent break through to the Immortal Emperor Realm?"

A faint, almost imperceptible curve appeared at the corner of Su Ming's mouth, his eyes deep.

"Tell me, under these circumstances, would the Three Great Sects still offend a future true Immortal Emperor for the sake of a Quasi-Immortal Emperor whose blood and Qi are withered and whose future is uncertain?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the air in the great hall seemed to freeze instantly.

Meng Ling's pupils suddenly contracted, and her originally calm state of mind was hit by stormy waves.

She instinctively wanted to argue back, but the words got stuck in her throat.

"Impossible... in this world, how could anyone guarantee a one hundred percent Breakthrough to Immortal Emperor?"

Meng Ling spoke with a certain tone.

The position of Immortal Emperor is a creation that requires talent, Luck, and resources—all are indispensable.

Since ancient times, who has dared to say they would surely succeed?

Su Ming casually brushed some dust off his sleeve and said indifferently,

"Just because you don't know of it doesn't mean it doesn't exist."

"Faced with a crisis of survival, would the Three Great Sects choose an ethereal possibility or a rock-solid certainty?"

"You know the answer to this better than anyone else in your heart."

The Saint Heaven Immortal Emperor had been listening in silence; at this moment, his withered palms had already squeezed deep finger marks into the armrests of his chair.

The Grand Elder opened his mouth but found his throat too dry to make a sound.

If what Su Ming said was true, then the Sacred Heaven Sect hadn't picked up a treasure; instead, they had been pushed to the edge of a cliff.

Meng Ling stared intently at Su Ming, trying to find a flaw or a sign of lying on his face, but all she saw was a near-indifferent certainty.

"Who is that person?"

Meng Ling pressed her question, emphasizing every word.

"As far as I know, within the Nine Heavens Immortal Sect, besides the Nine Heavens Immortal Emperor himself, there is no second Quasi-Immortal Emperor."

"You surely don't mean to say it's their Grand Elder, do you?"

As Meng Ling said this, her expression carried a hint of absurdity.

"In terms of Realm, he is only comparable to me, both being at the Immortal Emperor Ninth Heaven."

"If he can skip the Quasi-Immortal Emperor stage and directly attain the Dao within these nine years, then I can do it too."

Her words were not arrogant but based on her understanding of the iron laws of cultivation.

From Immortal Emperor to true Immortal Emperor, there is a natural chasm in between that cannot be crossed simply by piling up resources.

Meeting her questioning gaze, Su Ming spat out three words without any hesitation.

"It is him."

"Just as you said, by taking the regular path, he would never have a chance in his life."

Su Ming changed his tone, which now carried a bone-chilling coldness.

"But what if he uses an Ancient Taboo?"

The temperature in the great hall seemed to drop to freezing point in an instant.

Su Ming's gaze bypassed Meng Ling and fell directly on the Saint Heaven Immortal Emperor on the jade platform.

The Saint Heaven Immortal Emperor's complexion, which had been flushed from excitement, turned completely pale when he heard the words 'Ancient Taboo'.

"You mean..."

"They want to seize this Emperor's Dao Fruit and forcibly devour it, using it as a springboard for a Breakthrough?"

As a Quasi-Immortal Emperor who had lived for tens of thousands of years, he had naturally heard of such a sinister secret technique.

Using a Quasi-Immortal Emperor's lifelong cultivation and Dao Fruit as a catalyst could indeed forcibly break through the Realm barrier.

But this method goes against the heavens and has enormous side effects.

Even if one eventually reaches the Immortal Emperor Realm, they would permanently endure unimaginable pain.

"Impossible, such a secret technique has been lost for a long time. Where would the Nine Heavens Immortal Sect get it from?"

The Grand Elder's face was pale, still struggling to believe it.

"Lost doesn't mean extinct."

Su Ming's expression was indifferent; he didn't have much of an emotional reaction to this cruel truth.

"You underestimate the temptation of breaking through to Immortal Emperor!"

"To achieve the Emperor position, many people would choose to use any means necessary."

Su Ming looked at the Saint Heaven Immortal Emperor and continued,

"Your blood and Qi are withered, yet your Dao foundation is deep; you are the perfect vessel."

"As long as they kill you and take your Dao Fruit, the Nine Heavens Immortal Sect can give birth to a true Immortal Emperor in the shortest possible time."

"When that time comes, not only will the Three Great Sects not punish them, but they will instead treat the Nine Heavens Immortal Sect as honored guests in order to fight against the Weirdness."

Meng Ling fell silent.

She knew very well that the possibility Su Ming had deduced was extremely consistent with the code of conduct of their Sects.

In the face of the survival of the race, the life of an elderly Quasi-Immortal Emperor was indeed not as valuable as a newly ascended Immortal Emperor.

The Saint Heaven Immortal Emperor leaned back dejectedly in his chair, the flame of ambition that had just ignited now replaced by a thick sense of crisis.

The great hall fell into a deathly silence.

The Saint Heaven Immortal Emperor sat at the head, his originally straight spine seeming to bend a bit more.

He knew in his heart that Su Ming had torn open the most cruel truth.

Under the premise that the Three Great Sects chose to stand by and watch, the Sacred Heaven Sect had no chance of winning at all.

The so-called foundation and deterrence from before were all built on the basis that the other side was wary of casualties and unwilling to risk everything.

But once the other side targeted his Dao Fruit, it would be a fight to the death.

This remnant body of his could hold out for a while, but it couldn't withstand a long-term war of attrition.

The moment his blood and Qi were exhausted would be the time for the Nine Heavens Immortal Sect to harvest.

This feeling of powerlessness, of waiting for death, made this Quasi-Immortal Emperor feel a long-lost chill.

"However, Senior doesn't need to be so pessimistic."

...