273: Cao Mengxian attained enlightenment and became emperor.

The next moment.

Boom!

The first terrifying Heavenly Tribulation lightning, capable of shattering all things, crashed down.

Cao Bu stood at the center of the heavenly majesty, his robes fluttering wildly as black and white Qi swirled around him, condensing into a life-sustaining Yin and Yang Dao Map.

“With Yin and Yang as my foundation, today, I, Cao Bu, shall attain the Dao and become an Emperor!”

He let out a long cry, and the Yin and Yang Dao Map soared into the sky, proactively meeting the world-destroying tribulation lightning.

The lightning collided with the Dao Map and merged into it, becoming nourishment for the operation of the Yin and Yang Dao Map.

“This is impossible!” Among the Great Emperors observing the tribulation from afar, an old man with white hair and beard cried out in shock, his eyes nearly bulging out of his head. “This Emperor Tribulation is ten thousand times more terrifying than when the Yin Yang Heavenly Emperor attained the Dao!”

He had personally witnessed the Yin Yang Heavenly Emperor undergo the Emperor Tribulation, but compared to the scene before him, it was simply not worth mentioning.

Liu Ruyan, dressed in white, stood silently in the Void Realm. Her beautiful eyes were filled with brilliant light, and her jade-like hands had clenched tightly at some point.

This Cao Bu had given her too great a shock.

So great that it caused her Dao Heart, which had been silent for countless years, to ripple with the slight thought of taking him as a disciple.

It was only a pity that the Laws they cultivated were different, so it could only remain a regret.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Successive waves of even more terrifying tribulation lightning fell one after another.

Nine Serenity Yin Wind, World-Burning Heavenly Fire, Soul-Eroding Weak Water, Void-Rending Astral Gold... each one was a world-destroying tribulation sufficient to annihilate the body and Soul of an ordinary Great Emperor!

Yet before Cao Bu's Yin and Yang Dao Map, they all seemed insignificant.

The black and white Qi flowed endlessly, incorporating all tribulations into that profound Yin and Yang cycle, transforming the tribulation into power to nourish himself.

“Refining the Dao through tribulation, forming Laws through hardship... this lad is extraordinary!” Another War Emperor clad in dark armor murmured, his eyes full of horror and admiration.

The final Heavenly Tribulation finally descended.

It was the Purple Cloud Divine Lightning, which condensed the will of the Heavenly Dao!

Thick as a mountain and surrounded by destructive purple light, it carried the supreme majesty of judging all living beings as it crashed down!

Everywhere it passed, space was annihilated inch by inch, and time froze because of it!

Cao Bu finally moved.

He took a step forward, proactively charging toward that world-destroying pillar of lightning!

Holding his hands as if embracing the void before his chest, the massive Yin and Yang Dao Map rapidly shrank, finally attaching itself to his palms.

“Yin and Yang rotate, void and reality are governed by the heart.”

Divine light erupted from Cao Bu's eyes, and his clear shout resounded through the firmament:

“Open—for me!”

Screech—!

The Purple Cloud Divine Lightning, capable of destroying an entire world, was forcibly torn in half by Cao Bu's hands!

The lightning light scattered across the sky, turning into the purest power of the Heavenly Dao, all of which surged into Cao Bu's body.

The tribulation clouds slowly dispersed.

From above the firmament, ten thousand feet of auspicious golden light spilled down, immortal music faintly played, and phantom images of Dao Lotuses bloomed.

A brand new, vast Emperors Might radiated from Cao Bu's body, instantly enveloping the entire Spirit Realm!

The ten thousand Daos resonated, and billions of living beings felt it in their hearts. No matter where they were, they couldn't help but look toward the direction of the Gu Clan with awe.

A Great Emperor has been born!

“Hahahaha! It’s done! It’s finally done!”

In the crowd observing the tribulation from afar, Lu Chen was shaking with excitement, his face flushed red, and his eyes bloodshot from extreme exhilaration.

No one knew how much humiliation and resentment he had accumulated in his heart over these years!

Those scenes of betrayal gnawed at his heart day and night!

Now, he was finally going to wipe away his former shame!

Several Great Emperors observing the tribulation turned their gazes toward the losing-composure Lu Chen, their faces showing confusion.

Why did this Lu Chen seem even more excited than Cao Bu himself?

“What is Heavenly Emperor Lu doing?” one Great Emperor asked in a low voice.

Beside him, another Great Emperor stroked his beard and sighed: “The bond between brothers is deep! For Clan Chief Cao to attain the Dao, Heavenly Emperor Lu is this joyful; it truly makes others envious.”

“Indeed, to have such a brother, Clan Chief Cao is truly blessed.” The various Emperors chimed in one after another, and the gaze they directed toward Lu Chen gained a bit more respect.

Lu Chen couldn't hear any of these discussions at all.

His mind was filled with the image of obtaining True Immortal cultivation and looking down upon the Spirit Realm!

However, another image appeared uncontrollably.

Qin Bingyao lying in Cao Bu's arms with her clothes in disarray, looking at him with undisguised mockery.

“Lu Chen, what kind of man are you? You can't even keep your own woman.”

“Cao Bu is much stronger than you; at least he is a real man.”

“And you... heh!”

Humiliation!

Betrayal!

Rage reached the heavens!

“Cao Bu! You deserve to die! All of you deserve to die!”

Lu Chen's face was twisted and hideous, and the killing intent in his heart almost condensed into substance. His surrounding aura became unstable because of it, causing the nearby Great Emperors to glance over and frown.

Just at the moment when the Emperor's light around Cao Bu's body was slowly receding.

“Now is the time.”

Lu Chen's figure suddenly disappeared from where he stood.

“Big brother! Congratulations on attaining the Dao and becoming an Emperor.” Lu Chen's voice carried a strange intimacy, yet it was bone-chillingly cold: “I, your brother, will send you on your way!”

Liu Ruyan sensed it the moment Lu Chen's killing intent erupted, and her expression changed: “Lu Chen! What are you doing?!”

She wanted to stop him, but it was too late.

Lu Chen had already appeared out of thin air behind Cao Bu, pointing a finger silently.

This finger condensed all of his current power and even contained the strange rules bestowed by the System.

Where the fingertip passed, space was silently annihilated, and time seemed to freeze!

“Heavenly Emperor Lu! He is your big brother!” Several Great Emperors roared in shock. No one had expected that Lu Chen, who seemed so close to his brother just a moment ago, would actually launch a sudden sneak attack at Cao Bu's most relaxed moment!

The finger's edge touched the center of Cao Bu's back.

“Die!”

Lu Chen roared crazily in his heart, a hideous smile appearing on his face.

However.

The expected sound of flesh being pierced did not ring out.

The sight of the Emperor's body shattering and blood staining the sky did not appear either.

Cao Bu's figure, like a reflection in water, rippled slightly and became illusory and uncertain.

That terrifying, sure-kill finger passed directly through his body and struck the endless void behind him, blasting open a massive black hole that could swallow light.

“What?!”

Lu Chen's pupils constricted, and the smile on his face instantly froze, replaced by boundless astonishment and panic.

Cao Bu slowly turned around. There was no shock or anger on his face, only a bone-deep heartache and lack of understanding.

His entire body shifted between reality and illusion, profound and unpredictable.

“Brother.” Cao Bu's voice was hoarse, carrying an unbelievable sadness: “Why strike at your big brother?”

Lu Chen froze in place, his mind a complete blank.

Not dead?

How could he not be dead?!

“System! What exactly is going on?! Didn't you say you could insta-kill any Great Emperor?! He just became an Emperor! Why can't he be killed?!”

Lu Chen roared crazily in his heart, nearly losing his mind.

【Ding! Detected that the target's true strength has already far exceeded a True Immortal; the insta-kill program has failed!】

The System's voice carried a trace of an undetectable tremble.

“Failed?! How could it fail?! Aren't you omnipotent?!” Lu Chen's Soul was trembling.

For this day, he had endured humiliation and paid everything, only for it to turn out that he couldn't kill Cao Bu.

Then what did everything he had done before count for?

A joke?!

Or making a wedding dress for someone else?!

Seeing this, the various Emperors gathered around, their gazes toward Lu Chen filled with shock, suspicion, and wariness.

Liu Ruyan even flashed forward to block in front of Cao Bu, her beautiful eyes filled with frost as she said sternly: “Lu Chen! Are you crazy?! Cao Bu is your sworn brother, and you actually sneak-attacked him?!”

The three women, Su Li, Leng Yue, and Luo Qingcheng, also instantly appeared by Cao Bu's side, their cold gazes locked onto Lu Chen, looking as if they would join forces to suppress and kill him at the slightest provocation.

Lu Chen's body trembled violently. Looking at Cao Bu's pained face, then thinking of Qin Bingyao's betrayal and the System's failure, he completely lost his reason!

“I'm crazy? Hahaha! Yes! I am crazy!”

He pointed at Cao Bu, his face distorted and his voice shrill: “Why don't you ask Cao Bu! When he was sleeping with my woman, did he ever think I was his brother?!”

“A brother's wife should not be touched!”

“But he was just fine; with a brother's wife, he didn't hold back at all!”