The Human Emperor c1-2382

by Huangfu Qi (皇甫奇)

  With this thought, Wang Chong immediately sensed that an even greater danger was approaching. But in the little time available to him, not even he could think of a very good solution.

  “Aaaah!”

  As he was fleeing, he suddenly felt a sharp stab of pain in his belly. At the same time, his Stellar Energy flow fell into disarray.

  Not good! I’ve used too much Stellar Energy and my meridians are falling into disorder!

  Wang Chong staggered and almost fell. Wang Chong had still not been cured of his cultivation defect. The Energy Condensation Pearl had only slowed down and pacified his injuries, but it had not healed them.

  The numerous battles and flights, particularly his use of the Great Yin Yang Art and Great Destruction Art in the battle with the Black Yin Ancestor, had placed a heavy burden on Wang Chong’s disorderly meridians.

  Although Wang Chong had long ago known that he would never be able to solve his cultivation problem until he found the Origin Immortal Art, that his cultivation defect would only worsen at a faster and faster pace, he had never imagined that it would trigger so quickly.

  Or that it would flare up at such a lethal time as this.

  “Damn it! Why did it have to be now!?”

  Wang Chong’s face paled as cold sweat beaded out of his forehead. Unconsciously, he began to slow down.

  However, after just a few moments, the sharp pain in his belly only intensified, and even worse was that as disorderly Stellar Energy flowed through them, two of Wang Chong’s important meridians were beginning to twitch and writhe.

  But this was only the start of his problems. As Wang Chong slowed down, a savage roar came from right above him.

  At some point, a massive creature had gone around the other martial artists and rushed out of another cave, appearing some twenty meters in front of Wang Chong.

  Those dazzling crimson eyes stared at the weak figure of Wang Chong.

  Wang Chong grimaced while his heart dropped like a stone.

  Fortune did not come in pairs and disaster never came alone. Wang Chong had never imagined that a Dragonbeast would start eyeing him at a time like this.

  Swish!

  Time seemed to stop for a moment, and the world seemed to only contain Wang Chong and the seven-meter-tall Dragonbeast. That vicious beast from an ancient era stared at Wang Chong, and Wang Chong could even hear it huff, two hot trails of smoke emerging from its nostrils.

  Buzz!

  At this moment, Wang Chong saw the Dragonbeast slightly raise one of its feet, its loose muscles tensing. The danger level in Wang Chong’s mind shot upward until it could rise no higher.

  Life or death would be decided at this moment!

  Bang!

  The earth quaked as the Dragonbeast’s foot slammed down, and then it disappeared like it had just been an illusion.

  But it was also at this moment that the choking and dreadful stench of death assailed Wang Chong’s nostrils.

  Given the strength displayed by the Dragonbeast and his own internal flare-up, he would be dead if that attack so much as scratched him.

  Chapter 1452 - The Power of Rebirth!

  Chapter 1452: The Power of Rebirth!

  Translated by: Hypersheep325

  Edited by: Michyrr

  “Warning! User has encountered an ancient Dragonbeast, a powerful creature left behind from the era of the Yellow Emperor1. These ancient beings are hidden within the obscure riddle of the world. If user escapes the Dragonbeast’s attack, user will be rewarded with 10000 points of Destiny Energy. If user kills a Dragonbeast, user will be rewarded with 100000 points of Destiny Energy. If user tames a Dragonbeast, user will be rewarded with 500000 points of Destiny Energy!”

  There was a brilliant light in Wang Chong’s mind as the Stone of Destiny caught Wang Chong off guard with a mission.

  “What? The era of the Yellow Emperor?”

  Wang Chong was shocked by these words. He could tell that the beast had an unusual background, but he had never expected it to be connected to the Yellow Emperor.

  A beast that could survive for so long was far beyond his imagination.

  Wang Chong had no time for deep thoughts, as death was imminent. Although he couldn’t see the Dragonbeast, he was well aware that, given its speed, it was probably right in front of him already.

  Just as Wang Chong was about to die to the Dragonbeast’s foot, in an explosion of debris, Wang Chong vanished like a ghost.

  Even the Dragonbeast, a creature with little intelligence, was startled by this sight. Its feet slammed into the ground to stop its forward inertia, and it swiftly turned around and saw that there was now a human-sized hole in the ground where Wang Chong had been standing, leading deeper into the caves.

  Roooar!

  The Dragonbeast instantly understood what had happened and let out a furious roar.

  The cave network here was incredibly extensive. The moment the Dragonbeast had attacked, Wang Chong had gathered up all his energy and blasted apart the rock beneath him, entering the cave down below.

  It was a simple idea, but it was not that easy to pull off. One would need to have an accurate understanding of how the caves were laid out in order to succeed.

  There were some areas where the rock was so thick that trying to blast through it was suicidal. Attempting to burrow into the ground would just render one motionless.

  With its herculean strength, the enormous Dragonbeast copied Wang Chong and blasted through the rocks to pursue.

  Dragonbeasts were extremely sensitive to Stellar Energy, and anyone being hunted by one was essentially doomed. But just as the Dragonbeast was about to restart its pursuit of Wang Chong…

  Boom! As the Dragonbeast, a creature that weighed six to seven thousand tons, emerged in the cave where Wang Chong was located, it suddenly lost its footing. The ground beneath it collapsed, dropping the Dragonbeast straight into the next level of caves.

  “Go!”

  Wang Chong reacted very quickly and immediately began to flee, at the same time sending one of his clones in another direction to draw the Dragonbeast away. Cold sweat trickled down his forehead. That brief moment of exertion had used almost all of Wang Chong’s strength.

  Wang Chong was constantly adjusting his position in the caves, moving from one to the next to escape the pursuit of the Dragonbeast. But Wang Chong was only treating the symptoms, and a problem would crop up eventually.

  I have to find a way to escape the Dragonbeast! The injuries in my body are only getting worse! I can’t go on much longer! Wang Chong exclaimed to himself.

  The roars, cries of panic, and screams were endless, but it seemed like that Dragonbeast had locked onto his Stellar Energy and had sworn to not rest until it had caught him.

  There was a thunderous explosion from the distance as the Dragonbeast finally caught and pulverized Wang Chong’s clone.

  And Wang Chong sensed that the storm of energy that was the Dragonbeast was now running through the caves and coming at him.

  The Dragonbeast, relying purely on its sense of smell and perception of Stellar Energy, had a much greater understanding of this complicated cave network than the martial artists here.

  Just where should I go?

  Wang Chong’s mind was in turmoil. The injuries in his body were getting worse, and if he didn’t escape the battle and get a chance to rest, his condition would continue to worsen. But as the Dragonbeast and the vast cloud of Stellar-Piercing Beetles were constantly getting closer, Wang Chong could not afford to stop.

  Panicked voices continued to ring out around him, and Wang Chong continued to use these sound waves to fill out the cave network in his mind.

  That’s the place!

  Upon receiving a sound wave, Wang Chong suddenly became elated and began to rush toward an unnoticed side cave.

  “We’re here!”

  A few moments later, Wang Chong saw that the cave around him began to narrow, terminating around twenty meters up ahead in a cave entrance ab
out 1.6 meters tall. Although this was a pitch-black cave like all the rest, it looked like a beacon of hope to Wang Chong.

  The Dragonbeast was simply enormous, standing at six to seven meters in height, but this cave was only 1.6 meters tall. It wasn’t that small, but for the Dragonbeast, it might as well have been a mouse hole.

  The Dragonbeast’s body had no way of squeezing through such a small hole. Wang Chong could use it to immediately escape the Dragonbeast’s pursuit.

  His eyes shining, he rushed into the cave.

  Suddenly, crssssh! Rocks and dirt showered down in front of him, and then a massive figure descended and stood between Wang Chong and the cave.

  Those crimson eyes were ice-cold and radiating a chill that could freeze even the marrow in one’s bones. Wang Chong’s eyes instantly went dark.

  He had been so close to freedom, but then this Dragonbeast had extinguished his hopes.

  Wang Chong’s Stellar Energy flow was in utter chaos and he could no longer flee with as much strength as before. And that small cave… he wouldn’t even be able to reach it unless he killed the Dragonbeast.

  Rumble! The Dragonbeast squatted down and then blasted off the ground like a cannonball.

  While still in the air, it opened its mouth and unleashed a sea of fire.

  Just when it seemed like he was about to die to the Dragonbeast, Wang Chong’s eyes suddenly hardened with resolve.

  Not only did he not retreat in the face of the Dragonbeast’s flame, he lunged forward, pressing himself against the ground and streaking toward the Dragonbeast like a python.

  Buzz!

  A violet flame suddenly erupted from Wang Chong’s body, transforming into a protective barrier around him. Like a thin sheet of paper, he got under the Dragonbeast’s belly.

  Shwick! Wang Chong had taken something in his hand and cut open the Dragonbeast’s stomach.

  Bang!

  With a boom, Wang Chong harrowingly shot out from beneath the Dragonbeast and slid into the small cave.

  “Success!”

  Wang Chong immediately stood up and looked at the Wootz Steel dagger in his hand. The less-than-one-foot blade was dripping with blood.

  The Dragonbeast’s blood!

  When Wang Chong had fallen unconscious in the estate from his cultivation defect flare-up and had been taken away by his master, he had not been able to take his Wootz Steel armor or weapons. Only this dagger, thrust in its ebony sheath and tied to his thigh, had been able to escape this ‘disaster’.

  But Wang Chong had never liked using daggers, so even though he had it with him, he never used it.

  If the Dragonbeast hadn’t forced him into desperate straits, he might have never used it.

  Kabooom! The Dragonbeast, its stomach cut open, left a thick trail of viscous blood in its wake as it crashed into the cave wall some thirty meters away. Even its head ended up being deeply buried into the rock.

  Wang Chong ecstatically stared at the Dragonbeast’s ‘corpse’. As expected, Wootz Steel weapons lived up to their reputation as the sharpest weapons. Not even the Dragonbeast had been able to stop its edge.

  But Wang Chong’s happiness did not last for long. A second later, the ground trembled as the enormous body of the Dragonbeast slowly stood back up, and intense flames of energy erupted from its body.

  As Wang Chong watched, the Dragonbeast slowly turned around, its savage and dreadful head staring at Wang Chong from a distance of thirty-some meters.

  For the first time, Wang Chong felt an overwhelming hatred from this beast.

  But what Wang Chong paid more attention to was the Dragonbeast’s belly.

  Wang Chong’s move truly had been effective. A wound more than half a foot deep had been cut across the softest part of the Dragonbeast’s belly, and even now, blood was still flowing out from it.

  But Wang Chong could find nothing to be happy about, despite the pungent scent of blood in the air.

  He could see that the deep wound cut out by the Wootz Steel dagger was closing over. A few seconds later, the wound had completely healed, not even leaving a scar.

  “How could this be?!”

  Wang Chong’s mind was reeling.

  The power of Rebirth!

  This massive beast not only possessed astonishing strength and the ability to resist Stellar Energy, it also possessed the heaven-defying power of Rebirth. With this power, no matter what sort of tricks Wang Chong pulled or how much effort he put in, he would never be able to hurt this beast.

  And it wasn’t every day one had a chance to get beneath the belly of a Dragonbeast!

  Chapter 1453 - Awakening!

  Chapter 1453: Awakening!

  Translated by: Hypersheep325

  Edited by: Michyrr

  Roooar!

  The Dragonbeast finally roared as it exerted all its strength into lunging at Wang Chong.

  Boom! The cave entrance collapsed, the Dragonbeast’s massive head thrust into the entrance while the rest of its muscular body writhed and twitched, shaking down large piles of rock. Then the Dragonbeast opened its mouth and unleashed a gout of flame.

  Wang Chong jumped away and immediately fled deeper into the caves, deciding to linger for not a moment longer.

  Behind him, the massive Dragonbeast was still trying to charge at Wang Chong, but the low cave entrance was proving a difficult barrier to overcome.

  Ten meters, one hundred meters, one thousand meters… Finally, the roars of the Dragonbeast began to fade into inaudibility. It was clear that the practicality of the situation had forced it to give up on Wang Chong.

  Whoosh!

  Wang Chong leaned against a wall, his chest heaving. For a moment there, Wang Chong felt like he had taken a jaunt through the underworld. His clothes were completely drenched in sweat.

  Now that he had temporarily escaped the menace of death, Wang Chong finally had time to think about other things.

  “Yellow Emperor… Dragonbeasts… What’s going on here? Why would the location of the Origin Immortal Lord’s treasury contain three savage beasts from the Yellow Emperor’s era? What in the world is going on?”

  Wang Chong’s mind was in turmoil.

  The Origin Immortal Art was the world’s number one art, and Wang Chong would not have found any sort of danger or peril to be out of the ordinary. Still, Wang Chong was slowly beginning to realize that there was something fishy going on.

  The other traps, including the metallic storm in the pit and the Stellar-Piercing Beetles, were things that Wang Chong could accept, but Dragonbeasts from the era of the Yellow Emperor… those should have never appeared here. It seemed like the arrangements were not to protect a treasure like the Origin Immortal Art, but some other kind of secret.

  “What is going on here?”

  Wang Chong was pensive, but his ponderings failed to produce any results.

  “It’s better to think about this later!”

  Wang Chong continued forward. After advancing another several thousand meters, he found an isolated area and seated himself on the ground. His injuries were much more serious than he had imagined. The constant fighting and fleeing had taken its toll on his body.

  The situation inside his body was more serious than it had been at any time before.

  Master once said that once the Great Yinyang Heaven Creation Art begins to devolve, the process is irreversible and will begin to accelerate. If I get into another fierce battle or use too much Stellar Energy, I’ll incur all kinds of serious consequences, even death! This was also why Master was forced to keep a low profile in his later years and ended up being betrayed by his disciple.

  I thought I could drag things out until I found Master and the Village Chief, but it seems I can’t put it off any longer. I have to find the Origin Immortal Art as quickly as possible to heal my injuries, Wang Chong quietly said to himself.

  With a thought, he gathered up all the Stellar Energy flowing through his limbs and meridians into his dantian and swiftly began to adjust i
t. Wisps of steam poured out of the top of his head as Wang Chong completely immersed himself in suppressing his rampant Stellar Energy.

  As time slowly passed, the cave remained quiet and still. After some time, Wang Chong’s meridians and insides finally began to stop convulsing.

  Wang Chong’s mind also became as calm as the water at the bottom of an old well.

  The entire world had fallen silent.

  As Wang Chong was focused entirely on treating his injuries, he suddenly had a strange feeling like someone was shaking his shoulder. Wang Chong had barely noticed it at first, but then he heard a shout at his ear like someone was calling him.

  The voice seemed to be coming from very far away initially, but quickly grew closer and clearer.

  “Wang Chong, Wang Chong…”

  The voice was tinged with worry, concern, and even sobs.

  Wang Chong was alarmed and dismayed, completely confused as to what was going on. Ever since he had been split up from his master, it was simply impossible to hear this kind of voice underground, but it seemed so clear and real.

  At this point, Wang Chong finally stopped his cultivation and opened his eyes.

  Suddenly, there was a crack of light, one that was rapidly widening, but everything in this light was a blur.

  What’s going on here? How could there be light underground?

  Wang Chong was flabbergasted.

  But he quickly sensed that something was wrong. It wasn’t just an underground light source. There were a few blurry figures in the light, and one of them appeared to even be crying over him.

  Even though he couldn’t see clearly, Wang Chong sensed that this person was brimming with sorrow.

  Just what in the world happened?

  Wang Chong was getting more and more surprised. No matter how slow he was, he was beginning to sense that this situation was far too different from what he had imagined.

  He struggled to open his eyes so that he could make out those people.

  Gradually, his vision began to clear up, but before this process could complete, a figure rushed at him.