Chapter 870: Chapter 870

The Supreme Divine Weapon, Six Paths Wheel, slowly rotated in Li Pin's hand.

Originally, the six paths consisted of matter, energy, space, time, inner spirit, and fortune. But now, the last two, inner spirit and fortune, had been replaced by karma and reincarnation.

"This is the true, complete form of a universe."

Only a universe that embodied all these elements could survive within the Void of Chaos.

Space served as the vessel, carrying matter and energy. Time served as the measure, recording the changes of space, matter, and energy. Reincarnation determined life and death, shaping the existence and disappearance of matter, energy, space, and time.

And karma... upheld the underlying order of the universe, preventing matter, energy, space, time, and even reincarnation from descending into chaos.

At the same time, it was also the ultimate core of cultivation.

Li Pin had fully sorted out the path to his next realm. "The final form of inner spirit is Dao. The final form of Dao is karma. Only with karma can the universe continue to function. Inner spirit is me, I am Dao, Dao is karma, and thus..."

He reached out. "I am the cause of all things. I am the result of all things."

The powers of time and space flowed through his hand. With the Phantom Space Technique harmonizing both, it only took a few tries before time and space perfectly merged into spacetime.

This marked one of the three key requirements to become a Divine Emperor.

In the next instant, he flicked his finger. A streak of Eternal Swordlight sliced through the air, hitting its mark the moment it was unleashed.

Li Pin smiled faintly. "I can now unleash the Eternal Swordlight without relying on the Ruoxi Sword."

The Six Paths Wheel behind him slowly turned, radiating the powers of matter, energy, space, time, karma, and reincarnation.

Of course, since he had not yet fully grasped reincarnation or uncovered the secrets of karma, the paths of karma and reincarnation remained in an early, incomplete state, unable to reveal their true power.

Even so, the divine pressure released from the slowly turning Supreme Divine Weapon was already stronger than when it had been in Divine Emperor Yuan Jie's hands.

Li Pin muttered softly, "Divine Emperor Origin."

Then, something crossed his mind. He froze for a moment, and the Six Paths Wheel behind him seemed to stall as well.

He fell into deep thought. What shall I do with Jin'que?

Not long ago, he had planned to fight the Central Sovereign Heavenly Emperor Jin'que.

Through that unparalleled battle, he had hoped to turn the impossible into possible, surpass himself, and break through his current limits to evolve the Heavenly Fate Art to a new stage.

"Jin'que... won't do," muttered Li Pin.

Jin'que might be able to reach the ninety-ninth step on the Supreme Ladder, but his strength was unstable. He was just a peak Heavenly Emperor, not a true Divine Emperor.

In contrast, Li Pin had already mastered spacetime, created the Heavenly Fate Art, Phantom Space Technique, and Eternal Swordlight. He also wielded two Supreme Divine Weapons—the Six Paths Wheel and the World-Stabilizing Halberd.

He was a true Divine Emperor, the absolute peak of combat power in the Astral World.

To still treat Jin'que as a stepping stone to surpass himself... would be no different from looking down on his current self.

Li Pin thought to himself, It's easy to fool others, but fooling your own heart... that's impossible.

Now that I think about it, Divine Emperor Xi might've had the intention to set a trap when he told me to enter the Myriad Astral God Hall alone. If I were to fight him...

He pondered for a moment, then shook his head.

A battle between Divine Emperors wouldn't count as truly surpassing his current limits.

The difference in power between the Six Paths Wheel in his hands and in Divine Emperor Yuan Jie's made it clear. On the surface, he seemed like just a Divine Emperor. But in essence, he could already be considered a Supreme, one who had broken through from the Divine Emperor Realm.

In that case, even Divine Emperor Xi might not be enough. Thᴇ link to the origɪn of this information rᴇsts ɪn noⅴelfire.net

"I remember there are nine Astral Lords in the Astral Lord Council. They may have lost Divine Emperor Yuan Jie, but they've brought in Divine Emperor Xi as a replacement. If all nine Divine Emperors joined forces... maybe they could bring me close enough to death to pressure me into breaking through."

If even that didn't work, he would have no choice but to seek out the Supremes and the Highlords.

Supreme Dao Origin had been waiting to sit and discuss the mysteries of reincarnation with me. The master of the Ocean of Time had also spoken about the Dao Realm...

Thinking this far, Li Pin already had the intent to leave the Astral World.

Of course, at this point, he no longer needed to rely on the Eternal Oblivion Force to do that. He could simply break through the Astral World's boundary and return to the Material World.

But before that, he still wanted to give it a try. He wanted to see if the nine Astral Lords together could create enough life-and-death pressure to shatter his current limits.

With that, Li Pin waved his hand to store away the Six Paths Wheel, then stepped out of the cultivation chamber.

According to his calculations, he had been in seclusion for half a year.

I wonder what happened during this time...

As soon as he stepped out, Zi Shuang, who had been standing by the entrance waiting for orders, bowed. "Your Majesty, Origin."

"Have Wu Dang, Guang Cheng, and Scorching World come to any decision? Has the Heavenly Emperor Council been formed yet?" Li Pin asked.

"No, not yet," Zi Shuang replied.

She found it odd. Didn't he just ask this question before going into seclusion? Why bring it up again now?

"I'll go take a look myself," said Li Pin.

Zi Shuang responded quickly and made a guiding gesture. "I'll lead the way."

Li Pin followed her into the sky.

Since it wasn't far, he didn't bother using the Luminous Ark and simply flew toward the temporary stronghold area that the major powers had established on the Eastern Hua Continent.

After flying for a while, Li Pin noticed something. "The number of Astral Gods on Eastern Hua has increased again."

"Yes," Zi Shuang answered respectfully. "Over the past decade or so, Astral Gods from surrounding regions have been arriving one after another. Compared to thirty years ago, the number of Astral Gods on Eastern Hua has increased by fifty percent.

"And that's with regulations from the Omni-Merchant Guild. Those below the Cosmic Radiance Realm, or without a residence or property here, aren't allowed to stay for long. Otherwise, the number of Astral Gods would probably be two to three times higher than it was thirty years ago."

Two to three times might not sound like much, but compared to the usual number of resident Astral Gods on Eastern Hua, it was a massive increase.

Take Gaia Civilization, for instance. If a city with a population of ten to twenty million suddenly had thirty or forty million outsiders pour in, the shock to the system would be devastating.

The two continued flying through the air.

With Zi Shuang leading the way, they met no obstacles. Before long, they arrived at a three thousand li high mountain. Its peak had been flattened to make space for a massive conference hall.

When Li Pin arrived, the Heavenly Emperors and Sacred Monarchs present all looked surprised, as if wondering why he had shown up in person.

Still, they offered proper salutes and showed him the respect he deserved.

Someone had already reported Li Pin's arrival in advance. Not long after, Heavenly Emperor Tai Yi, someone fairly familiar with him, came out to greet him with a smile, "Your Majesty Origin, you're here. Do you need anything for your cultivation? Just say the word."

"The Heavenly Emperor Council still isn't established?" Li Pin asked.

"It hasn't been that long. It's not something that can be formed overnight," Tai Yi paused, then added. "Besides, many Heavenly Emperors are still making their way here from all directions, including a second wave of reinforcements from the Five Factions. Until they arrive, it's hard to even select the first batch of council representatives."

"It's been nearly thirteen years. You call that 'not long'? In war, speed is everything," Li Pin said, a bit speechless.

Tai Yi explained patiently, "Heavenly Emperors aren't Tyrants. When Tyrants fight, long battles only last a few stellar years. The short ones, just a few breaths. But at our level, the differences between us are minimal. So when Heavenly Emperors go to war, it's normal for the battle to drag on for over a decade—no, decades, even."

He continued, "Rather than wasting all that time fighting without a result, it's better to plan ahead and build up our advantage. That way, when the counteroffensive begins, we can guarantee victory."

"Can I sit in on the meeting?" Li Pin asked.

"Of course. As the Divine Emperor of the Human Race, you have the right to do so," Tai Yi said.

At the mention of Divine Emperor, something crossed Li Pin's mind. "Has Divine Emperor You Ying arrived?"

"Not yet," Taiyi shook his head. "According to her, the surge in Eternal Oblivion Force is affecting the Abyssal Rift too. The number of Abyssal Beasts emerging has increased sharply.

"No matter how far the Astral Lord rebellion goes, it's still just an internal conflict within the Existence Faction. But if the Abyssal Rift falls and those beasts break through, the damage could be catastrophic, maybe enough to bring down the entire Existence faction."

Li Pin thought for a moment and quickly understood You Ying's stance.

As one of the strongest beings in the Astral World, she had enough power to sit back and watch from the sidelines. Whether the Astral Lords won or lost, it wouldn't affect her much.

In that case, she might as well stay in the Abyssal Rift and avoid getting pulled into this chaotic war.

While they talked, Tai Yi led Li Pin into the conference room.

Inside, there were still twenty or thirty Heavenly Emperors from various forces, engaged in heated arguments over who should take on which Heavenly Emperor that had defected to Jin'que's side.

Some felt they had been assigned too much and even slammed the table, shouting and trying to renegotiate.

There was none of the calm, maturity, or dignity one would expect from Heavenly Emperors.

If outsiders ever saw this scene, they would probably be deeply disappointed. Many had looked up to the Heavenly Emperor, believing them to be above all, always composed and in control

At the sight of Li Pin, the quarreling Heavenly Emperors paused briefly.

"Divine Emperor Origin is here."

"Haven't you gone back into seclusion? What brings you out today?"

"Haha, just leave these matters to us, Divine Emperor. No need to show yourself so easily. What if someone sees through the truth about your cultivation?"

Though their words sounded respectful, the message was clear. They wanted Li Pin to return to seclusion and stay out of it.

After all, by order of the Supreme Council, the Heavenly Emperor Council governed the Human Race. But Li Pin still held influence in its disputes and decisions. In other words, he was practically the council's honorary leader.

And for these peak-level Heavenly Emperors, each standing at the top of their own factions, the last thing they wanted was a nominal "leader" hovering over them and telling them what to do.