157: The Lost Ancient Emperor

Gu Changge stood silently in the depths of the Small World's Void Realm, his gaze calmly fixed on the Lord of Annihilation, sensing the surging, vast Imperial Might around him, as if it could easily tear apart star rivers.

This power, boundless and immense, carried the Concept of Chaos, where life and death cycled. Its mere natural emanation was enough to make the Laws of a Great World tremble and all living beings instinctively submit.

This was the ultimate power that billions of Cultivators on this world's cultivation path dreamed of but could never reach—the Peak of a Great Emperor!

The Lord of Annihilation's current state had undoubtedly returned to this Realm, and even because of the Chaos Mending Stone, his Foundation was even more robust and solid than in ancient times, his Imperial Power purer and more immense. He was already one of the supreme powerhouses standing at the eternal Peak.

However, Gu Changge quietly sensed himself.

Though both were at the Peak of a Great Emperor Realm, when he stood here, it was as if he stood in a completely different dimension.

He could clearly perceive the Lord of Annihilation's power, like a vast sea of stars, boundless and infinite.

Yet, in his eyes, this sea of stars seemed within reach; its trajectories and the tides of its power were all clear in his heart.

A preposterous yet incredibly real thought naturally arose in his mind.

No Divine Ability, no secret art, not even the need to use any power exceeding this world's Laws.

Just the purest, most direct application of power—a single slap—could instantly reduce the Lord of Annihilation, in his current Peak state, along with his proud Imperial Dao Laws and indestructible Imperial Body, to dust and ashes.

This disparity was not a matter of higher or lower Realm, but an absolute chasm of fundamental, life-level difference.

Its root lay in his unique Hongmeng Divine Body.

The Lord of Annihilation's power was the extreme limit attainable within the rules and framework of this world, the culmination of countless legends and myths.

As for Gu Changge's Hongmeng Divine Body, its very existence was almost like the Origin of the Dao, a symbol of Origin that transcended rules.

His power did not originate from the world, but from the infinite Grandmist worlds contained within his own Divine Body.

The Lord of Annihilation's power was real and undeniable.

He could easily destroy star rivers and reshape the cosmos, the culmination of countless legends and myths.

But Gu Changge's power was a normal state that the Lord of Annihilation could not even begin to comprehend or imagine.

His power was condensed to the extreme, returning to its true nature, so much so that even though they were both at the Peak of a Great Emperor, standing opposite him was like a firefly gazing at the unchanging eternal sky—there was simply no comparison.

Gu Changge withdrew his gaze, his heart unperturbed, merely confirming a fact once more: even under the same Realm label, an unbridgeable chasm existed between him and an ordinary Great Emperor at their Peak, a chasm they could never cross in all their lives.

The Lord of Annihilation was already a rare powerhouse in the world, capable of sweeping across all heavens.

But before him, he was still as insignificant as dust.

The Lord of Annihilation slowly reined in the surging Imperial Might around him. That terrifying aura, capable of collapsing star rivers, was perfectly controlled and contained within his body, no longer causing this Small World to tremble.

He carefully savored this brand-new Imperial Body, far more powerful than his Peak in ancient times, feeling the new power of cycling life and death, and the unification of Chaos. His eyes flickered with a complex light, a mix of excitement and reverence.

A moment later, he had fully adapted to his power. He once again faced the vague yet majestic figure in the depths of the Void Realm, bowing respectfully. His voice was much steadier, carrying the ancientness and solemnity of an ancient Great Emperor:

"Your Honor, I have adapted to this body. This recovery has not only reshaped my Imperial Foundation, but many fragmented memories, once chaotic and incomplete due to my slumber and decline, have also been restored with the return of my power."

He pondered slightly, as if organizing distant memories from eons past, and continued:

"After I severed myself and retreated into the life restricted zone to prolong my existence, the outside world was not completely silent during the long years that followed."

"According to my recovered memories, after me, this world still saw exceptionally talented individuals rise against the heavens, attain the Dao of a Great Emperor, and illuminate one era after another."

His tone carried a hint of emotion, a lament for the river of time and the emergence of heroes.

"They were like brilliant meteors, illuminating their respective eras and creating invincible legends... However, they ultimately could not escape their fate, failing to find the method of eternal life. In the end, they either passed away in obscurity, returning to dust."

"Or... perhaps like me, they chose to sever themselves and retreated into various restricted zones, becoming part of the darkness, barely clinging to life."

At this point, his voice paused slightly, and his expression became unprecedentedly serious, as if recalling something extremely terrifying.

"But during a certain period, an earth-shattering event indeed occurred."

"That great battle did not erupt within the continent we inhabit, but in the depths of the boundless starry sky, and even... beyond the World Barrier!"

"The level of that battle was extremely high. Though our cultivation was profound, we vaguely sensed powerful energy fluctuations from extremely far away."

"Although I did not personally participate, that terrifying fluctuation that made even Great Emperors tremble, with Laws breaking and stars perishing in clusters..."

He looked up at Gu Changge, a hint of uncertainty and deep apprehension in his eyes.

"Since then, the world seems to have become even more 'quieter', and becoming an Emperor... seems to have become even more difficult."

Any of these ancient secrets, if leaked, would be enough to shake all heavens, but before this unfathomable Your Honor, he dared not conceal or exaggerate in the slightest.

Gu Changge stood silently in the Void Realm, listening to the Lord of Annihilation's deep and ancient narration. His face remained calm, but a slight ripple stirred in his heart.

During the long years he spent signing in, sleeping, and occasionally waking on this Zizhu Peak, he had, on a whim, once let his Divine Thought roam the heavens, perusing some extremely ancient ruins and lost texts, learning fragments of this world's ancient history.

He knew that in the long years after the Lord of Annihilation retreated into the restricted zone, it was indeed not a period of complete silence, as he had said.

Protagonists of various eras took the stage, and exceptionally talented Great Emperors rose, dominating their times, illuminating eternity, and leaving behind countless legends and myths.

However, the fates of most of these Great Emperors remained a mystery.

Records indicated that some Great Emperors indeed exhausted their Imperial lifespan, eventually passing away in obscurity in unknown corners, their Imperial Bodies dissolving into the Dao and nourishing the world.

But even more, especially those who were in their prime and should have had a long Imperial lifespan, often disappeared without a trace at a certain point, without any warning.

They did not lose in battle, nor did they perish; they simply vanished as if evaporated from the human world, with no further trace to be found.

Their Dao traditions might still exist, their legends might still circulate, but they themselves had completely disappeared into the river of time, leaving no discernible trace of their existence.

I have something on this afternoon, so I'm updating early today!