Boom.
The battle erupted immediately.
No more nonsense, just fight.
Both Overlord and Mad Emperor had been cooped up for too long. This time, the City Lord had taken Old Demon Chu out but not them, and the two had long been dissatisfied with Old Demon Chu.
"Beat him, haha..."
Mad Emperor and Overlord roared to the heavens.
Their previous slump vanished instantly, and they charged at Old Demon Chu like madmen.
"Hahaha."
Old Demon Chu grinned ferociously, "If I don't beat you two into dogs today, I'll take your surnames. Demonic Shadows Soaring, crush them for me!"
Majestic demonic shadows emerged one by one.
Two of them.
With a single punch each, they sent Overlord and Mad Emperor flying.
Mad Emperor: "???"
Overlord: "..."
Boom.
The two demonic shadows attacked wildly, pounding them and sending them running all over the place.
"Damn it, seventh tier."
The two finally realized.
Old Demon Chu had actually become an Emperor.
"Hahaha."
At this moment, Old Demon Chu was extremely exhilarated. Looking at the two fleeing in embarrassment, the pent-up frustration of years was finally released.
"These three fellows."
Chen Fan smiled and walked into the realm gate, "Everyone, you've all been bored to death, haven't you? I'm back."
Roar.
The entire Realm of Life and Death was in an uproar.
"The City Lord is back."
"Haha, we can finally go out and have some fun. We can't let the Dragon-Phoenix Domain and Sword Domain have all the glory..."
"Our Realm of Life and Death is the number one in the world."
"..."
Excitement, fervor.
They had been waiting for this day for almost a year.
A year before, it was merely a period of closed-door cultivation.
But ever since the Dragon-Phoenix Domain and Sword Domain had left one after another, everyone felt an unbearable itch, finding time passing too slowly.
Each day felt like a year.
Now, it was fine. The City Lord was back, and they could go out.
"Huu."
Even the Immortal Emperor couldn't contain himself.
Suppressing his surging emotions, he said, "City Lord, when do we leave?"
"Tomorrow,"
Chen Fan said, "Since I've finally returned, let's stay for a day."
Seeing this, the others, though eager, did not dare to say more.
They had waited for so long, what was one more day?
In the distance...
"Bastards, stop hitting!"
Mad Emperor and Overlord were beaten to a pulp, running for their lives.
It was too pathetic.
Before, watching Overlord and Mad Emperor fight was uninteresting. After all, the outcome was always the same: either both were injured, or it was an even match.
Today was different. These two lunatics were being utterly thrashed by Old Demon Chu.
The feeling, tsk tsk... it was unbearable to watch.
...
A day was not long.
The next day, everyone gathered in the Great Dao Universe early in the morning.
A vast sea of people, even Emperor Lords had arrived.
They also wanted to go out.
"This..."
Chen Fan had not intended to let the Emperor Lords go out.
But seeing those expectant eyes, he could only sigh inwardly.
Looking up, he then said, "Everyone, are you afraid of death?"
"No."
A uniform roar echoed in the Great Dao Universe.
Chen Fan waved his hand, "Listen to me. The East is in chaos now. Eighth-tier Emperor Lords are rampant, and even Heavenly Emperors are cannon fodder. Emperor Lords often only have the job of sweeping the battlefield."
"It's very dangerous out there. A single casual strike from a Great Emperor could kill all the Emperor Lords present. Are you ready?"
This was not an exaggeration, but a fact.
Emperor Lords were no match for Great Emperors, not even worthy of raising a hand.
"City Lord."
Lu Qi, the foremost figure of the new generation, stepped forward.
She was now a Heavenly Emperor, yet she stepped forward to speak for the Emperor Lords. "I wish to express my thoughts."
"Speak,"
The Realm of Life and Death never suppressed speech.
Didn't they see Mad Emperor and the others even dared to gossip about the City Lord behind his back?
As long as their hearts were for the Realm of Life and Death, there was no issue.
Lu Qi nodded and then spoke, "I, and all the Emperor Lords who came after, were rescued by the City Lord from other places."
Her voice was a little low.
But it was very firm. "We are now all citizens of the Realm of Life and Death, citizens of the City Lord. Without the City Lord, there would be no us."
"We are not alone. We have families, friends, relatives... many people we are connected to."
"We were born into hardship, struggling in despair. At that time, we didn't even know that life could be lived like this, so happily, so full of hope."
As Lu Qi spoke, everyone fell silent.
Only the newer Emperor Lords stood firmly behind Lu Qi.
"City Lord, we thank you for your care. But... you still don't understand us. You... are mistaken."
Her words left Chen Fan speechless.
Before he could say anything, Lu Qi continued, "You have swept across the Thunder Domain these years, leaving us a safe rear."
"But do you know? What we want most is to repay you. We have cultivated diligently, working hard to reach this point, just so we can fight alongside you."
"Just to... follow your footsteps, even if it leads through mountains of knives and seas of fire."
She had spoken too late.
Her chest heaved slightly.
She had wanted to say these words for a long time but had never had the chance.
Bang.
Lu Qi knelt on one knee and said in a deep voice, "We are willing to follow the City Lord's footsteps, traversing countless mountains and rivers, until death, without regret."
Boom.
Behind her, all the Emperor Lords followed Lu Qi's action, kneeling on one knee.
"We are willing to follow the City Lord's footsteps, traversing countless mountains and rivers, until death, without regret."
The sonorous voices, like thunder, resonated throughout the Great Dao Universe, as if a vow was branded into the Great Dao Universe of the Realm of Life and Death.
He was their banner, their faith.
A miraculous man whom everyone was willing to follow to their death.
"..."
Chen Fan was silent.
Looking at the dense figures before him, his eyes were inexplicably moist for a moment.
When he had taken in these people back then, it was merely to strengthen the Realm of Life and Death, to strengthen himself.
He had never imagined that his unintentional actions would garner such a large group of loyal followers.
It was worth it.
At this moment, Zhao Kai suddenly spoke, "The City Lord is peerless, sweeping away all enemies in the Chaos."
As soon as he finished speaking, a uniform roar echoed through heaven and earth: "The City Lord is peerless, sweeping away all enemies in the Chaos."
"The City Lord is peerless, sweeping away all enemies in the Chaos..."
Shouts echoed in the Realm of Life and Death.
Seven Kill and Emperor Yu also involuntarily joined in.
A moment later, Sky Splitting also opened his mouth, "The City Lord is peerless, sweeping away all enemies in time."
He had lived too long, and the years had long since dulled his passion.
Everything today seemed to have given Sky Splitting a rebirth.
This feeling was exhilarating.
Only the Drilling Heaven Rat stood to the side, appearing out of place.
Until...
Those gazes turned towards him.
Drilling Heaven Rat: "..."
Fine.
Under this pressure, he chickened out.
"The City Lord is peerless, sweeping away all enemies in time."
After shouting this, the Drilling Heaven Rat suddenly felt that it wasn't so awkward anymore.
It seemed like this sentence was meant for Chen Fan.
The sound rumbled like thunder, echoing back and forth.
Until Chen Fan raised his hand, and the sound immediately vanished.
His reddened pupils carefully scanned every face.
Then, his voice, like a god's, resounded through heaven and earth, "Realm of Life and Death, march! Let the outer realms witness the passion of our Realm of Life and Death."
"March!"
"March!"
"March!"