The Great Ruler

“So, he’s just a semi-disabled Lower Earthly Sovereign.” Mu Chen’s whispering laughter, though faint, still spread in the silent and dilapidated hall.

The sarcastic smile on Garuda’s face seemed to freeze. He turned to look at Mu Chen, and a sarcastic smile rose at the corners of his mouth. “Are you so frightened that you are spouting nonsense?” Garuda smiled and looked at Mu Chen with pity. Apparently, he treated Mu Chen’s abnormal reaction as a sign of panic. After all, he could not have imagined that in less than half a day, Mu Chen had obtained a terrible trump card powerful enough to counter a Lower Earthly Sovereign.

Next to Garuda, the man dressed in a black and white robe looked up at Mu Chen. With his perception, he naturally saw through Mu Chen’s strength as a Complete Grade Nine. However, this hardly allowed him to have the slightest hint of emotion in his eyes. After all, with his usual status, a Complete Grade Nine was like an ant in his view.

A Lower Earthly Sovereign who wanted to wipe out a Complete Grade Nine could do it effortlessly, even though at this time his strength was less than 50% of what it was in his heyday. The gap between a Complete Grade Nine and a Lower Earthly Sovereign was so huge that it led many to despair.

The man named Elder Zuo glanced at Mu Chen, then turned to Garuda and said slowly, “Garuda, go ahead. Since I have taken orders from the Palace Master, I will not let a fly in here.”

When Garuda heard the remark, he nodded with a smile and said, “In that case, I will go first. Haha, I am going to take the opportunity to look for the Sacred Artifact left behind by the First Hall Master.” When he finished speaking, he walked straight to the big door where Mu Chen was. After a few steps, he appeared beside Mu Chen.

He turned his head, smiling at Mu Chen as he said, “It is a pity. I wanted to have a real fight with you, but you fell into our death trap. Don’t worry, when you die, Saint Demon Palace will destroy your Daluo Territory. Then, they’ll all join you.” Garuda smiled unsettlingly, revealing his white teeth. A chilling aura radiated from him.

However, in the face of such chilling murderous intent, Mu Chen also looked at him, smiled slightly, and said, “Maybe. I’ll see you next time.”

See you next time?

Garuda was stunned, and his sarcastic smile grew more intense. He shook his head pityingly. This fellow actually looks forward to the next chance. How naive.

It seemed that such a desperate situation had caused Mu Chen to lose his usual calm and spout cryptic nonsense. With this thought, Garuda’s heart became more gleeful. He ignored Mu Chen and went straight past him, stepping out of the ruined hall to begin his search for the Sacred Artifact left behind by the First Hall Master.

Mu Chen did not stop him from leaving, as his main opponent at the moment was still Elder Zuo of the Saint Demon Palace. As for Garuda, they would meet again.

With Garuda’s departure, the hall became silent once more. Elder Zuo slowly raised his head. His expression was deadpan as he looked at Mu Chen and said, “I am in charge of dealing out punishment in Saint Demon Palace. People who have died at my hands have tasted immense pain and suffering and begged for death. So if you kill yourself now, I will make it easier for you to die.” His voice was hoarse, but the chilling intent was creepily unsettling.

It was apparent that Elder Zuo was not in a good mood. After all, anyone who entered this Ancient Celestial Palace to carry out his task after paying such a price would not be in a good mood. However, in the face of Elder Zuo’s eerie tone, Mu Chen smiled instead and said, “It seems that my luck this time is not bad.”

This was his true sentiment, because if Mu Chen had met this situation half a day ago, the chances of survival would be extremely low. Even if he had used up all his trump cards, he would have had no qualifications or power to challenge Elder Zuo. Fortunately, he had acquired the Spirit-Slaughtering Troop half a day ago. As a result, the outcome began to change.

However, when Elder Zuo heard Mu Chen’s words, he nodded in agreement.

“You are lucky indeed, to be able to die easily at my hands,” he said.

Clearly, he had thought that Mu Chen was relieved that he had given him an easy way to die. It was true that under normal circumstances, as a matter of common sense, even death was a relief to a Complete Grade Nine at the hands of a Lower Earthly Sovereign.

Upon hearing his words, Mu Chen was also shocked, and he couldn’t help laughing. A moment later, the smile gradually dissipated as he said coldly, “You weakened old man, if you scram now, perhaps you can still live.”

The look on Elder Zuo’s face seemed to freeze, and a moment later, he came to his senses and looked at Mu Chen in disbelief. This boy who is as weak as an ant dares to speak to me in such a tone?

Elder Zuo’s face twitched, his hands seemed to tremble, and a terrible spiritual energy fluctuation burst out of his body in a ferocious manner.

Boom!

The space in the great hall shattered, and dark runes emerged as if space itself could not bear the terrible spiritual energy scourge. In the midst of such terrible spiritual energy fluctuations, Mu Chen was like a faint flame in the wind. Just blowing at it a little would leave no bones behind.

Mu Chen’s expression turned grave. Under that terrible pressure, the flesh of his whole body was experiencing a tingling feeling that horrified him. A Lower Earthly Sovereign’s power was terrifying indeed, and compared to a Complete Grade Nine, the difference was like a firefly and a bright moon.

As the vast expanse of spiritual energy madly swept through, Elder Zuo glared ferociously at Mu Chen. “I will make you suffer terribly, and you will know by then, even death would be a great luxury!”

Clearly, Mu Chen had really enraged him. Originally, he thought that letting Mu Chen die himself had been considered a gift to him, but he had not expected the boy to court his own death.

“Is that so?” However, in the face of Elder Zuo’s spiritual oppression, which was horrifying enough to make an ordinary Complete Grade Nine tremble, Mu Chen grinned. An ancient Commander’s Seal appeared in his hands.

“Haha, I yearned for the Earthly Sovereign’s power long ago, but I did not expect that today my wish would actually come true.” He smiled at Elder Zuo, and a light bloomed out of the Commander’s Seal as countless streams of light suddenly burst out.

Boom! Boom!

The streams of light swept out and landed. Suddenly, the main hall’s stone floor shattered, and smoke and dust permeated the surroundings. Silent figures clad in heavy armor appeared in the hall. With the appearance of these figures, a bloody fighting intent rose from their bodies, causing Elder Zuo’s terrifying spiritual oppression to dissipate.

Before the stone door, even with Elder Zuo’s calm composure, his face changed seeing this scene. Finally, for the first time, a dramatic change took place. Elder Zuo looked at the silhouettes in the main hall clad in heavy armor and could not help but exclaim in an appalled tone, “This is… an army?!”

It was indeed an army, and it was an extremely elite army. The terrifying fighting intent that emanated from them was absolutely capable of competing with a true Earthly Sovereign!

“You… How can you have such an army?” Elder Zuo exclaimed in disbelief. Such an army was extremely rare, even within Tianluo Continent. Even Saint Demon Palace does not possess such an army, so why does a mere Complete Grade Nine have one?

Mu Chen stood behind the Spirit-Slaughtering Troop. He felt the vast expanse of horrifying fighting intent as his palms clenched, and he trembled from sheer excitement. How many times had he longed for such power?

And now, he had finally obtained it!

“What? Is it very surprising?” Mu Chen looked back at Elder Zuo, who was flustered, with a hint of sarcasm in his smile.

Elder Zuo’s face changed as a multitude of expressions flickered on it. A moment later, he sneered and said, “You met with a good opportunity and unexpectedly obtained such an elite army. No wonder you are so arrogant, but you fool, even if you have obtained it, did you think you could bring its full power into play?”

Even the most powerful army must have a strong enough war troop dispatcher. Only when the two are combined will the true power of fighting intent then come into play. In order to take control of this elite army, it would take a million-battle-rune war troop dispatcher to be able to do it. Such a level of war troop dispatcher was extremely rare. This young boy obviously could not be one of them.

“Oh, really?” However, upon hearing Elder Zuo’s words, Mu Chen smiled gently and raised his palm. Looking at the smile on his face, Elder Zuo’s eyes suddenly narrowed slightly, and a deep sense of uneasiness grew in his heart. In the next moment, his uneasiness was completely revealed.

He saw that when Mu Chen slowly raised his palm, the terrible army in the hall, which frightened even him, stomped with heavy halberds in their hands. A terrible crimson fighting intent condensed into thick blood clouds above them in a frenzy.

A chill ran down his spine and surged towards his head from the soles of his feet. Terror and fear finally emerged on his face. At this moment, he finally realized this unremarkable boy in front of him could truly control this terrifying army!

But… how could this be possible!?