262: Human Emperor Sword
"Do you mean to say, Fellow Daoist, that the Immortal Kings who ascended to the heavens died in an unknown place and fell into the Black Sea? And the reason they died is the same reason they haven't returned, as well as the reason they ascended in the first place?"
Qin Jiang spoke, a look of contemplation appearing in his eyes.
Since Immortal Kings could die, it meant that battles at the Immortal King level must have broken out.
Was it internal strife among the Immortal Kings, or a struggle against something external?
If it were internal, it shouldn't be that no one ever returned. But if it were external, were they fighting living beings or the environment itself?
Or could it be that an Immortal King's ascension is actually a one-way trip? Once they ascend, even without the world's rejection, they simply cannot return?
"Correct. My guess leans more toward some kind of extraterrestrial existence," the Human Emperor said.
"Extraterrestrial existence? Do you mean beings from outside this world?" Qin Jiang asked.
He had once observed the celestial phenomena at night and knew well that this world was part of a vast, boundless Universe, and the planet where the Zhongyuan Continent was located could be considered the center of the Universe.
There was no other reason than that since ancient times, Immortal Kings who attained the Dao would come to the Zhongyuan Continent to leave behind their legacies.
Even those who didn't leave a legacy would ultimately choose to ascend to the heavens from this place.
But beyond that, there were almost no records regarding the space outside the Universe because, aside from Immortal Kings, almost no one could reach the edge of the Universe.
And even for an Immortal King, reaching the end of the Universe was not something that could be done overnight.
From the fragmented records, beyond the cosmic starry sky lay an endless void. Let alone source qi, it was a place where even light could not reach.
In such an environment, an Immortal King could certainly survive, but they could only do so by consuming their own Immortal King Origin.
If their Immortal King Origin was exhausted, they would no longer be able to survive in that environment.
Of course, wanting to exhaust that Origin would take an extremely long time, even for an Immortal King.
The Immortal King Grand Dao was almost a self-contained system, independent of the world.
The Law of Time and their own Immortal King Dao principles achieved a circular rotation. If they didn't fight with others, the consumption of the Immortal King Origin could be said to be almost negligible.
However, what he found strange was whether living beings could truly be bred within that void environment.
What would their life forms be like? How would they differ from the creatures of this world?
"Indeed. Within this world, source qi is nearly infinite, and there is almost no power capable of killing an Immortal King—not even me. Unless one spends millions of years to slowly wear an Immortal King down.
But the void beyond the boundaries is different. In that environment, an Immortal King loses the nearly infinite source qi of this realm, which means they lose their indestructible body.
In this state, killing an Immortal King becomes much simpler.
However, I still haven't been able to explore the source of that Black Sea. Perhaps it can only be found after ascending to the heavens."
The Human Emperor spoke with a hint of regret. If possible, he hoped to resolve all hidden dangers himself.
But clearly, his capabilities were still somewhat lacking.
Qin Jiang's brows twitched slightly upon hearing this. He could sense two completely different states of mind from the Human Emperor's words.
One was the confidence of slaughtering an Immortal King at will, and the other was the helplessness faced with the unknown.
"Haha, let's not talk about that. I invited you here today just to give you something to deal with that Evil Incarnation of mine," the Human Emperor laughed.
As he spoke, he raised his hand slightly. A small golden sword hovered in his palm; one side was inscribed with profound characters, while the other depicted fish, birds, and beasts.
Qin Jiang's eyes showed surprise. "Is this the human emperor sword?"
There were no records of the human emperor sword in the history books of the current era, and even the name 'Human Emperor' had barely appeared.
But before the Yellow Sky Divine Mother triggered the influx of Devilish Qi into the mortal world, the Human Emperor's influence on future generations was immense.
The reason she wanted to erase the Yu Country from history was to eliminate the Human Emperor's influence on posterity.
Because she herself wielded a portion of the Devilish Qi Origin belonging to the Earthly Dao, she wanted to seize the portion of the Human Dao Devilish Qi Origin that belonged to the Human Emperor's Evil Incarnation. This way, with both the Earthly Dao and Human Dao added to her person, she could break through the shackles of the Innate Sacred Being and charge toward a higher level.
Furthermore, the Human Emperor had immense influence in the mortal world and was once regarded as the Human Ancestor. This terrifying Power Of Faith accumulated over millions of years would provide a massive boost to the Evil Incarnation.
When the time came, she might not necessarily be a match for the revived Evil Incarnation of the Human Emperor.
"Correct. This object is indeed the human emperor sword. Once the Great Tribulation ends, I will Seal this sword here. After you return to the current era, Fellow Daoist, you can retrieve it and use it to sever the connection between my Evil Incarnation and the Devilish Qi Origin," the Human Emperor said.
"Although the Devilish Qi Origin is an extremely ominous thing, if your Evil Incarnation occupies it, it could be completely refined after millions of years. Why give it to me?"
Qin Jiang spoke. The Devilish Qi Origin, even if it was only the portion belonging to the Human Dao, was an exotic treasure at the Immortal King level, enough to allow an Immortal King to make progress.
It wasn't that he thought the Human Emperor would be stingy, but rather that there was simply no necessity to leave it for him.
The Human Emperor shook his head gently. "After the Great Tribulation ends, I will refine my own power and divide it into three incarnations: Good, Evil, and Obsession.
After the Evil Incarnation occupies the Devilish Qi Origin, the Obsession Incarnation will ascend to the heavens. The final Good Incarnation will ascend after striking down the Yellow Sky Divine Mother's Heavenly Heart.
Actually, my reason for having the Evil Incarnation occupy the Devilish Qi Origin is partly to prevent any accidents with the Origin.
On the other hand, it's also because my evil thoughts are too weak to form a balance with my good thoughts and obsession. Only after being nurtured by the Devilish Qi Origin can they reach a state of balance, thereby allowing for the possibility of the three incarnations merging into one.
Once the Evil Incarnation detaches from the Devilish Qi Origin, it will take the human emperor sword and ascend to the heavens."
Qin Jiang nodded slightly, finally understanding the Human Emperor's goal.
After the Great Tribulation, the Human Emperor wanted to go a step further, so he divided himself into three incarnations: Good, Evil, and Obsession.
But because the Human Emperor's evil thoughts were too few, the strength gap between the three incarnations was too large, making the final merger impossible.
So he planned to use the Devilish Qi Origin to nurture the Evil Incarnation and left behind a backup plan.
However, the unexpected revival of the Yellow Sky Divine Mother broke his plans, so out of necessity, he sought him out.
"I see. Rest assured, Fellow Daoist, I will not let the Evil Incarnation bring disaster to the continent," he said.
"Then I shall leave it to you, Fellow Daoist. I have left an ownerless immortal king weapon within the Evil Incarnation, called the Human Dao Cauldron.
This cauldron can help your overlord cauldron go a step further and connect with the Human Dao Luck. Consider it your reward for helping me."
The Human Emperor spoke with a smile, though it felt a bit forced.
It couldn't be helped; the Human Dao Cauldron hadn't even begun to be forged yet, and the materials required were simply astronomical. It could no longer be described as merely 'bleeding' resources.
"An ownerless immortal king weapon? Fellow Daoist Human Emperor is also an Artifact Dao Heavenly Lord?" Qin Jiang was somewhat surprised.
An ownerless immortal king weapon was the ultimate pursuit for Artifact Dao Cultivators, representing the Peak of Artifact Dao craftsmanship.
Not only did the forger need to be an Artifact Dao Heavenly Lord, but more importantly, they needed an Immortal King cultivation level.
Yes, once it touched upon the word 'King', it was not something a Cultivator below the Immortal King level could forge.
Only an Immortal King could forge an ownerless immortal king weapon.
Because it was ownerless, an ownerless immortal king weapon could be fused with any artifact of the same type. After Fusion, it would massively increase the strength of the original artifact.
His overlord cauldron, after devouring the Nine Provinces Cauldron, was already a top-tier middle stage Immortal Artifact. After his own refinement, it had become an ultimate Immortal Lord Dao Weapon, needing only Immortal King Dao principles to transform into a contemporary immortal king weapon.
But that single step of Immortal King Dao principles was enough to keep the overlord cauldron completely trapped below the level of a true immortal king weapon.
However, if he could melt and refine an ownerless immortal king weapon, although the grade of the overlord cauldron would still be limited by the fact that he himself had not become an Immortal King and it lacked the Immortal King Dao principles to fully transform...
...If one were to compare them based on power alone, the overlord cauldron at that time would definitely not be inferior to an immortal king weapon!
Furthermore, when he truly became an Immortal King in the future, the foundation belonging to the ownerless immortal king weapon would also erupt, potentially pushing the overlord cauldron directly to the level of a Peak immortal king weapon comparable to the human emperor sword.