Dominator Emperor

After leaving the Qiankun Pouch behind, Li Qiye turned and departed. Chi Xiaodie stood there, stunned. She was all alone in the dilapidated temple, rendered speechless for a long time.

Standing in the temple, Chi Xiaodie couldn’t help but feel wronged. Although the Lion Roar Country couldn’t compare to the great sects and ancient countries, it still possessed a solid foundation and was stronger than any ordinary, small nation.

As the Princess of the Lion Roar Country, Chi Xiaodie was the very definition of "Golden Branches and Jade Leaves," a Heavenly Pride Girl who had always been pampered. It was bad enough that she had followed Li Qiye to this desolate, remote place to act as a servant, but now, she even had to perform such grueling, filthy chores with her own hands.

She had never done such grueling, filthy work in her entire life. To think that today she would be reduced to such tasks, just like a common maidservant in the mortal world.

Chi Xiaodie remained silent for a long while before quietly picking up the tools from Li Qiye’s Qiankun Pouch and beginning to clean. Even though she was a King and Marquis Strong Person, this was the first time she had ever performed such menial labor. It was a true challenge for her. Sweeping floors, wiping dust, pulling weeds... without relying on any Divine Technique, Chi Xiaodie was hopelessly clumsy, making one mistake after another. It was a comedy of errors.

Despite all this, Chi Xiaodie silently continued to work. Even though her heart was filled with grievances and sorrow, she pushed through the grueling chores. For her, this in itself was already a challenge.

It was also an act of stubborn pride, though it was hard to say whether she was competing with herself or with Li Qiye. In any case, her former self would have found this whole situation completely impossible. Yet here she was, doing these grueling, filthy chores. On any other day, she herself would have found it inconceivable!

Patiently suppressing her temper, her heart full of sorrow, indignation, and dissatisfaction... Chi Xiaodie still managed to clean the entire dilapidated temple.

After leaving the Ancestral God Temple, Li Qiye took a casual stroll around the area. He looked up, gazing at the endlessly undulating mountain ranges in the distance. The mountains rose and fell like a stormy sea, with peaks that pierced the clouds, unfathomably deep valleys, and treacherous, unpredictable ridges... it was a vast and magnificent landscape.

Li Qiye began to walk slowly toward the mountains opposite the temple. Although they had seemed close when viewed from the Ancestral God Temple, the actual distance was several dozen li.

Li Qiye ambled along and eventually arrived at his destination opposite the Ancestral God Temple: a small, unassuming mountain ridge. Such a minor hill was insignificant compared to the vast territory of the Celestial Dao Academy behind it; hardly anyone would have paid it any mind.

And yet, atop this very ridge stood a Daoist monastery—a tiny one, with only three or five rooms. The monastery was built with green bricks and gray tiles, though there was no telling how many ages it had stood. The green bricks had faded to white, the gray tiles were caked with grime, and weeds even sprouted from the roof.

Still, compared to the ruined Ancestral God Temple, this monastery was in decent shape. At the very least, it showed signs of life.

Approaching the monastery, one would see a long plaque hanging above the main entrance. On it were written two words: Longevity Academy. Who knows how long ago these words were painted? Originally written in black ink, they had now faded to a ghostly white, becoming nearly illegible.

The monastery’s main gate was unlocked and standing open. Li Qiye slowly walked inside. The moment he stepped through the threshold, he was met with the sound of snoring. The rumbling snores were as loud as thunder, and it seemed as if the entire monastery was trembling with each one.

The thunderous snores were coming from one of the rooms. Li Qiye entered it and found an old Daoist lying there.

The old Daoist was sprawled on his back, his sleeping posture far from dignified. He lay spread-eagled, taking up the entire bed. He looked nothing like a cultivator.

The old Daoist wore a shabby Daoist Robe that was shiny with grease; who knows how long it had been since he’d last washed it. His hair was a tangled mess as well. Fortunately, he didn’t stink, or the sight would have been truly unbearable.

Though the Daoist was unkempt, his features were well-formed. With a lion’s nose and a wide mouth, he had a certain magnanimous air, looking like the type of person who could feast in all four corners of the world.

The old Daoist was sleeping so soundly that even with Li Qiye’s arrival, he remained lost in his slumber, continuing to let out thunderous snores. One suspected you could carry him right out of the monastery, and he still wouldn’t wake up.

Li Qiye glanced at the sleeping Daoist but said nothing. Instead, he began to slowly walk through the monastery, examining every brick and tile as if he were conducting an archaeological study.

Even so, he touched nothing, merely observing with his eyes. Finally, after he had thoroughly examined the entire monastery known as the Longevity Academy, he departed as quietly as he came.

As dusk fell, Li Qiye returned to the Ancestral God Temple. He found it completely transformed. The surrounding weeds and old vines had been cleared, the old temple had been swept clean inside and out, and the rotted sections had even been repaired.

While the old temple wasn’t exactly spotless, it had been cleaned to the point that it felt lived-in again, no longer looking quite so dilapidated and decayed.

When Li Qiye stepped into the Ancestral God Temple, he saw Chi Xiaodie standing in a daze in the main hall. Two statues were enshrined there, but they were not statues of any Divine Spirit worshipped in the mortal world.

At that moment, Chi Xiaodie was staring blankly at one of the statues. It seemed familiar to her, but she couldn’t quite place where she had seen it before.

"What... what statue is this?" Chi Xiaodie couldn’t help but ask when Li Qiye returned. The statue was posed strangely, half-turned away. It looked as if it were about to kneel yet was also half-standing, as if waiting to receive a title. Furthermore, no matter which angle one viewed it from, it was impossible to see the statue’s eyes. Eyes were clearly carved, yet one could never seem to meet their gaze. The entire posture was exceedingly strange.

Chi Xiaodie had already cleaned both statues. Now that the grime was gone, she found the strangely posed statue particularly familiar. She felt certain she had seen it somewhere before but simply couldn’t recall where.

"What do you think?" Li Qiye replied with a question of his own, his gaze fixed on the statue. He sighed softly in his heart. ’Time is truly merciless,’ he thought. ’Those glorious, high-spirited days feel as if they were only yesterday.’

"I wouldn’t be asking you if I knew," Chi Xiaodie snapped.

Li Qiye smiled. He looked at the statue and said slowly, "This is the ancestor of your Chi Family—the Hundred Battles Divine Emperor!"

"My... the ancestor of my Chi Family!" Hearing Li Qiye’s words, Chi Xiaodie was utterly shaken. Now she understood why the statue was so familiar! The Chi Family’s ancestral hall had a statue of their ancestor, but it was a frontal view. Although her family rarely returned to pay their respects anymore, she had still been back to see it two or three times.

"But... why is he posed like that?" Chi Xiaodie couldn’t help but ask. Without even realizing it, she had come to accept that it was only natural for Li Qiye to know such secrets. She, a descendant of the Chi Family, knew far less about her own ancestor than an outsider like him. ’Perhaps it’s just as he said,’ she thought. ’You have to read more books to understand more things.’

Li Qiye gazed at the statue, silent for a long moment before speaking. "This is the pose your Chi Family ancestor took when he was being conferred the title of Hundred Battles Divine Emperor!"

"The Hundred Battles Divine Emperor!" Chi Xiaodie was stunned to hear such a title. She had no idea her ancestor had ever been called that. Visibly moved, she asked, "My... my ancestor achieved Divine Enthronement?"

"You could say that. A certain legendary existence, in recognition of your ancestor’s great merits, specially conferred upon him the title of Hundred Battles Divine Emperor. It was said to be one of the most magnificent Divine Enthronements among all the Divine Generals of that era!" Li Qiye sighed softly. "In those days, your ancestor was the pride of the Human Race!"

"Hundred Battles Divine Emperor..." Chi Xiaodie softly repeated the name, her blood boiling with excitement. In that instant, it was as if she could see her ancestor sweeping across the Nine Heavens and Ten Lands, battling gods and demons. Such soaring spirit, such heroic dominance, such glorious divine power...!

For the first time, Chi Xiaodie truly felt the glory of her ancestor, the weight of his legend! She was so shaken that it took her a long time to come back to her senses.

"How do you know all this?" she couldn’t help but ask after recovering. She, his descendant, knew nothing of these matters, yet Li Qiye knew it all like the back of his hand.

Li Qiye glanced at her. "This is why I say you need to read more. If you don’t read, you become an idiot. It’s not a good thing for a girl to be all bust and no brains."

Furious at his remark, Chi Xiaodie let out a cold snort! As she turned away, her gaze fell upon the other statue.

This was a frontal statue, depicting a man with simple, ancient features. But this man had a thousand hands and ten thousand arms. The posture of each arm was different, and each hand was unique. Some hands were poised as if holding weapons, some looked as if they were holding up the heavens, and others were formed into various Hand Seals...

"And who is this one?" Chi Xiaodie couldn’t help asking as she looked at the thousand-armed statue. ’One is my ancestor,’ she reasoned. ’The other one can’t just be a figment of someone’s imagination, can it?’

"The Ten Thousand Forms True God," Li Qiye said after staring at the thousand-armed statue for a long time.

"The Ten Thousand Forms True God?" Chi Xiaodie was taken aback. She had never heard the name or the title before. She couldn’t help but ask, "Was he my ancestor’s subordinate?"

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