Chapter 959: Grand Emperor!
In the imperial capital, inside the Swordsage Division, was a private chamber. Inside was Grand Emperor Swordsage, who had remained with humankind to defend it. He sighed.
A blurry soul shadow emerged from his withered frame and took a step forward. He was middle-aged, not burly and tall, not bold and powerful. But there was something unshakable about him, as if he had accepted the responsibility of supporting all heaven and earth, thus earning him the ultimate level of respect. He took one step, which took him outside of the Swordsage Division and all the way to Xu Qing’s side on Planet Ancient Emperor.
As of this moment, wild colors flashed in heaven and earth! As of this moment, humankind was shaken. For the first time, emotions flickered across the empress’ face. All gods in the area were paying very close attention. In that instant, the sky and the lands... became a mere backdrop for the voice which spoke and the sword will that emerged.
“Young friend,” he said, “let me use your body this once. And I need to borrow your sword.”
Xu Qing’s mind spun as The Emperor’s Sword within him emitted a sword resonance that resounded to the highest heaven. Then, he shivered as a warm sensation spread through him. He sensed a will as majestic as the starry sky fusing with him. It wasn’t domineering, and it didn’t harm him in any way. It was just temporarily making use of his body. He didn’t resist, and in fact, just let the will spread through him.
As all gods and all people looked on, Xu Qing... slowly looked up. His eyes were profoundly ancient.
There was also something boundlessly majestic about him. As the wind blew and the cosmos shook, the canopy of heaven seemed to list, and mountains and rivers shook. The heroes prostrated, and the sages all bowed.
A majestic stream of human destiny aura converged around Xu Qing, becoming like a dragon that coiled around him endlessly.
As the dragon converged, it formed a 3,000-meter body around him! He had mountains for bones, rivers for blood, the lands as skin, sprawling forests as hair, and the canopy of heaven as armor. Flesh of destiny aura formed the ultimate Grand Emperor body, with all living things bolstering it as the soul.
The Grand Emperor was back in the mortal world.
Facial features formed. They were like an ancient bronze statue, with eyes that sparkled with life, almost as if the brightest heavenly bodies on the night sky were shining. As he stood there, the dome of heaven went dim, and all the gods present faded. He was the only Quasi-Immortal to ever appear in Revered Ancient!
And after Dark Serenity left, he was the only Grand Emperor to stay behind!
He had protected humankind for tens of thousands of years. He had slaughtered countless gods. And though he was only a clone with a bit of life left, he was still the same Swordsage who had carved out generations of peace for humans. He was fully deserving of the title Grand Emperor of humankind! This was a level of majesty unsurpassed!
Grand Emperor Swordsage had come to the mortal world!
“Grand Emperor!” the empress said with unprecedented reverence as she bowed her head. However, her eyes were full of sorrow, as she knew that for the Grand Emperor to appear like this meant that he was about to perish.
With his last breath, he would serve as the dao protector to safeguard humanity.
The government officials could hardly breathe, and their hearts raced as they dropped to their knees. The scene playing out in front of them was almost unbelievable, and every single one of them felt deep respect for the Grand Emperor.
The commoners in the imperial capital reacted similarly, calling out, “Grand Emperor!” as they kowtowed with utmost piety.
Seeing what was happening, the three gods chose to bow thēir heads.
The gods from the Netherworld Chasmcorpses, Northfate Kings, and Redland Nobleplexuses didn’t dare to do anything rash. Thēy were gods, but the might of Grand Emperor Swordsage was something all of thēm were familiar with. And thēy had all witnessed him killing gods in the past.
As Grand Emperor Swordsage received respect from everyone, he glanced over the humans he had safeguarded for tens of thousands of years. Then he lifted his right hand. His hand closed, and The Emperor’s Sword rumbled out. He grasped the hilt.
Sword energy severed space. The sword light shone through all time. The thrum of the sword contained longing, grief, and a reluctance to depart....
“Time for one last journey, old friend,” Grand Emperor Swordsage said with a smile. He took a step up into the dome of heaven, and the sky shattered. However, there was no thunder. It was almost as if thunder didn’t dare to show up.
The Grand Emperor strode forth alone toward the 500,000-kilometer saber projection. His every step contained profound power that could shake the cosmos. The might of his gait caused all humans to suddenly feel a profound sense of peace and respect.
With the Grand Emperor around, humans were safe. He looked like heaven itself, with the setting sun framing him against the dark of night. To humans, he seemed like an expression of radiance and light.
Countless people were shaken to the core. Almost all of them had grown up hearing stories of Grand Emperor Swordsage, and had looked to him as an example. To them, Grand Emperor Swordsage was the greatest human imaginable. An eternal legend.
As everyone looked on, Grand Emperor Swordsage reached the peak of heaven and the destructive heavenly saber, which represented the punishment of the holy lands.
There he stood, with sword in hand. With that sword, he severed heaven!
The sword light raged, the heavens cracked. The sword glow flickered, and illuminated the ancient past! The sword projection could shock gods. The sharpness of the sword astonished the heavenly saber!
The heavenly saber and The Emperor’s Sword clashed high above Revered Ancient. Infinite sparks exploded. Magical laws were destroyed. A force that surpassed the universe erupted, like predestination itself. It created a dazzling field of light. A majestic rainbow spread across all of the regions of Revered Ancient, unstoppable, full of ancient might, never-ending, capable of overlooking all obstacles.
That light united Revered Ancient. In the blink of an eye, the sky above Revered Ancient was as bright as day. Dazzling light was even visible outside of Revered Ancient. It illuminated the surrounding starry sky, and even shone around the broken face.
From a distance, the rainbow was like a huge dragon shaking the sky, releasing wild energy that caused the heavenly daos to tremble, and resulted in all species in Revered Ancient craning their necks in shock.
In the end, The Emperor’s Sword and the heavenly saber destroyed each other. They became a massive cloud of stars that pulsed in and out of existence. Vortexes appeared everywhere. It was like a huge scroll painting that formed the heaven over Revered Ancient. It remained in place for a long time before fading away. Countless rumbling noises echoed out into the hearts of humans.
Then rain started to fall in many regions. The sight caused numerous individuals in the imperial capital to let loose exclamations of shock.
“That’s peak Altar God power!” numerous gods murmured.
The Grand Emperor hovered in the canopy of heaven, looking at the cloud of stars. He said nothing. Then, after a long moment passed, an ancient voice echoed from the holy land.
“Swordsage, what is your determination?”
The Grand Emperor calmly answered, “The moment you people departed this place, this day was foreordained. I said nothing in East Victory’s time. I also said nothing when Mirrorcloud rose up. And when Dao Life died, I was silent. But I won’t hold my tongue forever. And I hereby permit the empress to become a god!”
There was no response from the holy land except for a fading sigh.