CHAPTER 570: CHAPTER 570: THE GHOST FAMILY

"Cough... No harm! The Emperor is also acting on behalf of the Ghost Emperor!"

The Elder Gui Ku waved his hand dismissively and continued, "The power of the ’Sect’ of the Divine Sword must be made clear to the masters and elders present here." The three elders of Heavenly Person and the principal figure of the Ye clan are at an impasse.

"The three elders of Heavenly Person had just intercepted the Heavenly Tribulation, and the most powerful master in the Heavenly Realm is trapped in the Lower Realm, so there’s no need to discuss further. As for Sect Leader Ye, although it’s said that he possesses a prototype of the Jianxin (Sword Heart), he became the strongest sect leader after the founding ancestor of the Divine Dragon Taoist Sect, but his cultivation is still young. His ascension during the late tribulation phase was too brief. It can be reasonably said that Bai Mei should have been able to withstand it!"

The moment these words finished, everyone nodded slightly in agreement.

As one of the Four Sects, the ’Sect’ of the Holy Sword is one of the four super clans within the realm of the Dao, yet it remains just one of the Four Sects. The gap between the ’Sect’ of the top clans and the ’Ghost King Clan’ of the Three Clans is vast, not something that a mere 1.5-point margin could describe.

He nodded towards Tianxing and said, "What Elder Gui Ku says is true, but why did Elder Bai Mei... why did he fall?"

At this, Tianhang glanced again at the shattered Soul Token on the ground, and a surge of an impending storm seemed to emanate from him.

Gui Ku sighed, and the elder shook his head, saying, "As I mentioned earlier, even if Ye Wudao had undergone a breakthrough, he could not have killed Bai Mei." He lacked the courage, nor did he have the power." Even if the return of the Heavenly Sword meant the three Heavenly Person elders joined forces with Ye Wudao, we must not forget that Bai Mei was not alone. The two elders, Gui Yao and Gui La, were still by his side!"

"Therefore, in my view, unless something happened in between, the root cause must still be traced back to that so-called Guiyuan Heavenly Venerate!"

As he spoke, Elder Gui Ku cast a faint, probing gaze towards the shadowy figure of the Elder Ghost.

When the Elder Ghost realized Gui Ku was looking at him, he wept bitterly.

"Look to the heavens!"

There was still one final week before Zong Dabai.

That day, Yang Tian visited the recently recovered Chen Xue, then returned with Di Hai and Elder Ling Jian to the sect’s main hall.

At this moment, the figure of Su Youu quietly appeared before the three of them.

In the chaotic Capital, aside from Di Hai, Su Youu, the Left Emissary of Di Hai, was the only one who followed Yang Tian into the boundless seas.

It was only because Yang Tian sensed some trouble befalling Chen Xue that he had returned early with Di Hai and the elder priests of the Sword King Sect. This prevented his appearance in the previous battle against Elder Bai Mei of the Ghost King Sect.

But even so, having learned that Yang Tian had effortlessly eliminated three Ghost King Sect elders, Su Youu was now visibly anxious in Yang Tian’s presence, unsure of what Yang Tian wanted from him.

In truth, not only did Su Youu not know, even Di Hai and the High Priest accompanying Yang Tian couldn’t comprehend.

Seeing this, Di Hai asked curiously, "Lord Tian, surely you’re not speaking of Su E? What do you have to communicate?"

"There’s nothing to say!"

Yang Tian cast a brief glance at Di Hai. Although Chen Xue’s injuries had recovered, utilizing genuine spiritual energy in short order was unlikely. "You and Elder Ling Jian must both realize this!"

"This is true!"

Elder Ling Jian nodded slightly, saying, "After all, Master Chen’s cultivation time is still short." In the short term, it’s indeed difficult for him to act again.

As Ling Jian spoke, he couldn’t help but feel troubled.

After all, Zong Qinghou’s ’Sect’ lies ahead, and according to the rules of the Three Territories—whether in the Three Regions, the Four ’Gates,’ a mountain valley, or other second- and third-tier domains—if one wants to participate in Zong Qinghou’s Dabie Mountain’s ’Great Sect Contest,’ three combatants in the tribulation phase are required!

During the tribulation period, top cultivators like Xiu Zhen represent the peak of battle power and are the core measure of a ’Sect’s strength.

Originally, after acquiring Di Hai, along with the strength of the Chaotic World and the Chaotic Realm King, plus the existing Divine Sword ’Sect,’ Yang Tian and Chen Xue formed a trio billed as invincible!

But now that Chen Xue has been weakened, this means one man is missing. At this rate, Zong Dawei is likely to lose even the qualification to participate!

Though they have a Flying Sky Pond in reserve, Yang Tian clearly made no mention of it. Evidently, there were no immediate plans to recall the swordsman.

In the chaos of the Chaotic Realm, Di Hai considered the issue even the High Priest Sword might have foreseen. He promptly said, "Lord Tian, surely you don’t mean to have Su E replace Sect Leader Chen?"

"Indeed!"

Yang Tianwei slightly nodded in acknowledgement.

The moment these words fell, the High Priest Sword furrowed his brow and said, "But the emissary Su is merely in the half-step tribulation phase." Even if he replaces Sect Leader Chen, our Priest Sword Sect won’t gain a significant advantage."

"Half-step tribulation is nothing extraordinary; simply raise him directly into the tribulation phase!" Yang Tianwei stated indifferently.

Promotion to the tribulation stage?

Upon hearing those words, anyone familiar with Yang Tian present would think the man had gone mad!

The gap between the half-step tribulation phase and the true tribulation phase is enormous!

It appears to be just half a step apart, but in reality, it’s a divide as vast as heaven and earth!

Every cultivator knows that cultivation defies the natural order of the Heavenly Dao—an act of rebellion against Heaven itself!

Thus, when a Heavenly Tribulation descends, its original intent is to exterminate those cultivators defying the will of Heaven. The power it wields is unimaginable!

In the realm of cultivating the Dao, among all the sects, half-step tribulation cultivators are not uncommon.

But those who survive and emerge as true tribulation-phase warriors are exceedingly rare, for few can withstand the heavenly cataclysm.

Imagine, even a prodigious talent like Yang Tian tempered himself for countless days before traversing Heaven!

Thus, in the cultivation realm, many individuals—aided by century-long patience—remain stagnated in the half-step tribulation phase, simply out of fear of facing Heaven’s wrath.

After all, who can be certain they’ll endure?

Yang Tian’s words sounded nothing short of a nightmare.

Yet Yang Tian offered no explanation. His gaze gradually lowered onto Su Youu as he asked, "Are you willing?"

Willing?

Upon hearing these words, Su Youu forced a bitter smile.

He knew his situation: over a hundred years had yielded only a half-step cultivation advancement. He lacked any confidence in surviving the Heavenly Tribulation.

The most likely outcome would be death!

But at that moment, faced with the terrifying presence of Yang Tian, he found he couldn’t summon a single word of rejection. He could only grit his teeth, nod, and declare, "Disciple is willing!"

"In that case, prepare yourself."

"Wha... What does this mean? Am I to be forced through the Heavenly Tribulation directly?"

In the Chenjian Sect, Su Youu knelt on one knee, his mind in utter turmoil.

The oppressive weight upon his shoulders was gone, disappeared entirely. The once-overwhelming might of Heaven and Earth had faded. Even the surrounding atmosphere had become peculiarly tranquil.

This peculiar sensation caused him to raise his head slowly.

What greeted his sight were expressions of shock: blank, gaping faces that exuded pure disbelief!

His master, Di Hai, wore such a face. So did the High Priest Sword. Likewise, countless disciples of the Divine Sword Sect stood frozen in similar astonishment.

Beyond their shared expression, their gazes were uniformly fixed on some distant point. Su Youu followed their line of sight, and in that moment, he too was stunned.

In the heavens above, a figure stood proudly, bearing the aura of a god and a devil, a figure embodying reverence itself—Yang Tian!

"The heavens"? This is...?"

At that moment, Su Youu wanted to ask.

But suddenly!

An explosion of thunderous gasps burst forth from those who had been silently paralyzed. "Heavenly Venerate! You’ve just... You’ve truly eradicated even the clouds that represented Heaven’s will?! You... You... You really are a demon among mortals!"