26: Chapter 26 I've Got You, Immortal Emperor

Xiao Shitou also took action.

With Xiao Shitou's help, Chu Tianjiao ultimately fought to the death against nine Supremes—or rather, he stalled until their Ultimate Sublimation ended. They already had little lifespan remaining, and after reaching Ultimate Sublimation, death was inevitable.

After everything concluded, Chu Tianjiao collapsed into Xiao Shitou's arms. In his heart, Chu Tianjiao instructed Xiao Shitou to follow the plan and take him back to Xiao Nannan's side.

Xiao Shitou nodded, but he asked his teacher why he hadn't struck back when the Immortal Emperor had just made a move.

“He was merely testing me, using the undying heavenly blade to confirm my state. Since that's the case, I'll play along. Take me back; afterward, I will undergo Dao-dissolution in front of Xiao Nannan to fake my death. I have already sensed the Immortal Emperor. I'll go meet him in a moment to see what his current cultivation level is.”

“Yes, Teacher.” Xiao Shitou agreed in his heart. Then, he picked up his broken teacher and returned to the Big Dipper Astral Region.

Emperor Burial Star.

Xiao Nannan had watched with her own eyes as her teacher was cut in half at the waist and then ambushed by Emperor Yuhua. After seeing her teacher finally erupt to slay the nine Supremes, she waited at the door in a panic for her brother and teacher to return.

Soon, she saw her brother and teacher return. One of her brother's arms was broken, and his body was covered in severe injuries, but her teacher was in an even worse state.

Xiao Shitou held his teacher as he returned to Xiao Nannan's side. “I'm sorry, I failed to protect Teacher.” Xiao Shitou lowered his head.

“No... need... to say that... it's my fault, I didn't... expect Yuhua to... cough cough cough... Nannan, I'm sorry... I couldn't fulfill... our... promise...” Chu Tianjiao didn't say another word before he stopped breathing in front of Xiao Nannan.

Watching her teacher die in her arms, tears of blood flowed from Xiao Nannan's eyes.

“No! Teacher! Teacher! TEACHER!!!”

After Chu Tianjiao stopped breathing in front of Xiao Nannan, his Divine Soul left his Imperial Body. Looking at Xiao Nannan crying inconsolably while holding his body, Chu Tianjiao felt a bitter pang in his heart, but he understood that all of this was to trigger Xiao Nannan's Awakening.

This was the first and most important step for Xiao Nannan to become the Ruthless Emperor.

“I hope you won't hate me in the future...” Chu Tianjiao looked at Xiao Nannan, then at Xiao Shitou. Seeing his teacher's Divine Soul, Xiao Shitou gave a slight nod.

Chu Tianjiao nodded back and then contacted the human emperor banner. The human emperor banner quietly flew out of the courtyard.

Chu Tianjiao's Divine Soul then entered the interior of the human emperor banner.

“Go.” Chu Tianjiao directed the human emperor banner toward a certain direction. Without hesitation, the banner vanished with its master's Divine Soul.

After seeing his teacher leave, Xiao Shitou looked at his heartbroken sister and comforted her, saying:

“We have to go. Emperor Yuhua ambushed Teacher, and next he will come for me. I can't protect you right now, sister. We need to leave this place.”

Enduring the pain, Xiao Shitou helped his sister up, sealed his teacher's Imperial Body in ice, and then vanished from the Emperor Burial Star taking the Tyrant Blade and the undying peach with him.

...

Controlling the human banner, Chu Tianjiao quickly arrived at the Star Domain where the Immortal Emperor had previously ambushed him.

“Hmph, trying to run? Now that you've made your move, do you really think you can still hide?” Chu Tianjiao's Divine Soul emerged from the human emperor banner and then produced a Physical Body; this body was his true original self.

He had long anticipated that the Immortal Emperor would definitely ambush him.

Therefore, before setting out, he had already hidden his true body. The Physical Body seen outside was merely a decoy to mislead the Supremes and the Immortal Emperor.

The Immortal Emperor had struck him, even using the undying heavenly blade to cut him, but that body had been prepared with his own countermeasures.

“This time, you definitely won't escape.” Chu Tianjiao's Divine Soul returned to his true Physical Body.

He then continued forward in a specific direction.

...

“Not good! Emperor Jiaoheng really is feigning death!” The Immortal Emperor sensed a powerful aura chasing him from behind and immediately realized that Chu Tianjiao was faking his demise!

“As expected, he's coming for me!” The Immortal Emperor's expression grew solemn as he continuously traversed through Star Domains, trying to shake off Chu Tianjiao.

However, Chu Tianjiao stuck to him like a plaster.

“Is it the undying heavenly blade?” The Immortal Emperor took out the undying heavenly blade and immediately understood. The problem must be with this blade. With that thought, the Immortal Emperor threw the undying heavenly blade away.

...

“Changed direction? No, has he realized the issue with the undying heavenly blade? But it's already too late!” Chu Tianjiao erupted with terrifying speed, continuously traversing endless Star Domains, staying locked onto the Immortal Emperor.

The two of them traversed through Star Domains like this, crossing an unknown number of them.

After a month of such pursuit.

Chu Tianjiao finally cornered that old fox, the Immortal Emperor.

It was a void Star Domain.

Dressed in feather-patterned imperial robes, the Immortal Emperor looked at Chu Tianjiao before him with a faint smile on his face. “Fellow Daoist, you have chased me all this way. What is the matter?”

“I've finally caught you, you old fox.” Chu Tianjiao held the human emperor banner as he looked at the Immortal Emperor.

With just a glance, he could see that the Immortal Emperor was definitely stronger than him, perhaps having already lived through a fourth or even fifth life.

However, the gap wasn't completely hopeless; at the very least, he was confident he could retreat.

“How about a bout?” Chu Tianjiao didn't beat around the bush and directly demanded a fight.

“Why bother, Fellow Daoist? At our Realm, if we truly fight, it won't benefit anyone.” The Immortal Emperor shook his head, clearly unwilling to fight Chu Tianjiao.

Although he was stronger than Chu Tianjiao, the fact that Chu Tianjiao dared to chase him and even lure him out meant he must have some cards up his sleeve.

He didn't want to go to war with Chu Tianjiao; it simply wasn't worth it for him.

“You ambushed me first. Do you think you can just say you won't fight and that's it?” Chu Tianjiao snorted coldly.

“I can compensate you, Fellow Daoist.” The Immortal Emperor heard the underlying meaning in Chu Tianjiao's words.

“Fine. Give me the complete True Phoenix Secret Technique, and we'll let this matter drop.” Chu Tianjiao directly demanded the True Phoenix Secret Technique.

Chu Tianjiao knew that the Immortal Emperor before him had fallen from the Immortal Realm into the Nine Heavens.

His true form was an Undying Immortal Phoenix, a branch of the True Phoenix Clan, one of the Ten Great Primordial Beasts.

He definitely possessed the True Phoenix Secret Technique.

This True Phoenix Secret Technique could be called Heaven-Defying, allowing one to continuously undergo Nirvana.

Chu Tianjiao already had some ideas for his fourth life. If he had the True Phoenix Secret Technique as well, he was very confident he could live out a fourth life.

“Fellow Daoist, you've gone too far. Setting aside whether I even have the complete True Phoenix Secret Technique, even if I did, do you think I would give it to you?” Hearing Chu Tianjiao's outrageous demand, the Immortal Emperor realized this person didn't want to negotiate.

“In that case, let's have a bout. I don't want to expose myself, and you don't want to expose yourself either. How about we compete using our respective Daos?” Chu Tianjiao stated his idea.

At this moment, he had just faked his death and it wasn't suitable to reveal the news that he hadn't actually perished.

The Immortal Emperor also didn't want to expose himself; he had always suspected that the Emperor Venerable wasn't dead and might very well be feigning death.

He didn't want to expose himself prematurely.

“Fine.” After some thought, the Immortal Emperor agreed to Chu Tianjiao's method.

Seeing the Immortal Emperor agree, Chu Tianjiao and the Immortal Emperor both sat down cross-legged.

They began their Dao-discussion.

One month later.

The Immortal Emperor vanished with blood at the corner of his mouth.

Watching the Immortal Emperor disappear, Chu Tianjiao wiped the blood from his own lips, his expression solemn. “He is even stronger than I anticipated. Unless I risk my life in a mutual destruction, I might only be able to defeat him. But to kill him... is too difficult.”

Through the Dao-discussion, Chu Tianjiao understood the gap between himself and the Immortal Emperor.

“But I am only in my third life... as long as I live out my fourth life... this gap will narrow... It seems I must hurry with the fourth life... First, I'll go to the Undying Mountain. The Undying Mountain has the Immortal Emperor's Faith Body; perhaps I can find some of his weaknesses from it...”

With that thought, Chu Tianjiao took the human emperor banner and returned to the Big Dipper Astral Region, heading toward the Undying Mountain in the Central Region of the Eastern Wasteland.