Chaos reigned, with darkness as the dominant hue.
There was no direction, no light, only pervasive chaos and gloom.
A world encompassing life and death floated serenely in the void.
The Realm of Life and Death.
The energy within the chaos was boundless, continuously pouring into the Realm of Life and Death, strengthening this newly formed world.
Within the Realm of Life and Death, a Great Dao Net was woven across the expanse of the domain.
After entering the Realm of Life and Death, the chaotic energy was filtered by the Great Dao Net, separating the disparate energies. Water, fire, space… various Daos were guided to their respective Great Stars.
The domain was adorned with stars, and a great sun hung in the sky.
The Great Sun of Life was the sun of the Realm of Life and Death.
Rolling yang energy diffused throughout heaven and earth.
"City Lord."
Old Demon Chu approached.
He had not condensed an Imperial Palace and could only remain within the Realm of Life and Death.
Within the sun, Chen Fan opened his eyes. "Is something the matter?"
"We have detected traces of the Great Yu Realm."
*Swish.*
Chen Fan emerged from the Great Star. "Where?"
"Outside the domain. The traces were captured by the Mad Emperor. He wishes for you to see…"
"Let's go."
Chen Fan left the Realm of Life and Death without hesitation.
From the outside, the Realm of Life and Death did not appear large, only about ten thousand meters in diameter, yet its internal space was vast.
As the two flew out of the Realm of Life and Death, the chaos immediately began to encroach.
"This way…"
Old Demon Chu personally led the way, moving away from the Realm of Life and Death.
The two rapidly carved through the chaos, and after half an hour, they saw Mad Emperor and Xi Qiu.
Mad Emperor's hands were gripping a stone.
"City Lord, this is it."
Mad Emperor handed the stone to the City Lord.
Upon contact, Chen Fan confirmed the residual aura of the Great Yu Realm.
"Indeed, it is the Great Yu Realm."
Chen Fan nodded and continued, "It seems we are on the right track. Notify Zhao Kai to accelerate the world's approach. I will scout ahead…"
With the Realm Lord absent, Zhan Kai, who mastered the Dao of Death, could also utilize the world's power.
This was a power Chen Fan had bestowed upon him.
"Understood."
Xi Qiu turned and left.
Taking advantage of the Realm of Life and Death's advancement to the fourth tier, Xi Qiu had also become an Emperor.
He was content with being a first-tier Emperor.
"Let's go."
Chen Fan personally led Old Demon Chu and Mad Emperor, pursuing the direction of the Great Sun's fluctuation.
The chaos was vast, with no discernible end.
The trio rapidly carved through the void.
Behind them, the Realm of Life and Death followed closely. As the Realm Lord, Chen Fan could pinpoint its location.
As long as it wasn't too far, it was fine.
…
At this moment.
A phantom world drifted through the chaos.
The Ethereal World, a fifth-tier world.
The Ethereal Realm Lord was fifth-tier, thus the world was fifth-tier.
This world practiced the Ethereal Dao, capable of dispersing like mist, gathering at will, and disappearing into invisibility.
The Ethereal World had been drifting in the chaos for ten years. During this time, they had only encountered a few wandering chaotic beings and no other worlds.
Of course, perhaps they had encountered others.
It was possible that the other party had been well hidden, and they had passed each other by.
"Realm Lord…"
At this moment, within the Ethereal World.
A fourth-tier Heavenly Emperor ascended, bowing towards the firmament.
A Great Dao Net materialized, upon which the Ethereal Realm Lord's figure stood.
"Li Meng, what is it?"
Li Meng, as the second-in-command of the Ethereal World beneath the Realm Lord, was the only one, besides the elder in seclusion, qualified to meet the Realm Lord.
The Ethereal Realm Lord's figure flickered between ethereal and solid, as if he did not truly exist in the world.
Li Meng bowed and said, "You sensed a world's aura earlier. After investigation, we found no such thing near the Ethereal Realm."
Indeed, the Ethereal Realm Lord had sensed a faint, unfamiliar aura previously.
He had assumed another world had appeared near theirs and dispatched people to investigate.
The Ethereal Realm Lord pondered for a moment before saying, "Forget it. Be cautious recently. I hope I was mistaken…"
"Understood."
Li Meng retreated.
The Ethereal Realm was not weak. At the very least, its advancement from a mere Imperial Palace to a fifth-tier world during their years of wandering proved its strength.
…
Li Meng departed, and moments later, he exited the Ethereal Realm.
The domain of the Ethereal Realm extended for ten thousand li around it.
In a somewhat desolate expanse of chaos, a world as brilliant as a great sun appeared.
This world was the Great Yu Realm, which Chen Fan had been searching for.
Li Meng approached quickly and bowed, "Li Meng requests an audience with Emperor Yu."
*Buzz.*
A great sun ascended, and a figure emerged from the Great Yu Realm.
The newcomer was not Emperor Yu himself, but a fifth-tier Heavenly Emperor of the Great Yu Realm.
The fifth-tier Heavenly Emperor wore a smile. "So it is Daoist Li Meng. Did you manage to deceive them?"
"Yes."
Li Meng nodded. "The Realm Lord trusts me implicitly. He only instructed me to be cautious."
"That is good."
The fifth-tier Heavenly Emperor nodded.
With a smile, he added, "Currently, the Realm Lord is in seclusion. When the Realm Lord emerges, Daoist Li Meng can enter our Great Yu Realm and receive the blessing of sixth-tier world power. Your ascension to fifth-tier will be imminent."
Upon hearing this, Li Meng became visibly excited.
He quickly bowed. "Many thanks, Daoist."
He then rose. "I shall take my leave then. There are many matters requiring my attention in the Ethereal Realm."
"Go."
Li Meng departed swiftly.
The fifth-tier Heavenly Emperor of the Great Yu Realm returned to his world.
He was now the last fifth-tier expert in the Great Yu Realm. The number of fourth-tier experts was also dwindling.
Currently, including the Realm Lord, there were fewer than ten mid-tier Heavenly Emperors in the entire Great Yu Realm.
As for low-tier Emperors, there were only two left.
Their journey to the Immortal Realm had resulted in heavy losses for the Great Yu Realm.
"Senior, how is it?" a fourth-tier Heavenly Emperor quickly met him, a hint of panic on his face.
The fifth-tier Heavenly Emperor frowned. "Why the panic? The Realm Lord is currently consolidating the Great Dao, and order will soon be restored. At that time, our Great Yu Realm will still be a top-tier world. It's just a few deaths. Haven't we lost enough Emperors over the years?
Our Great Yu Realm has billions of beings. The Daos are now vacant, and personnel will soon replenish them."
The fourth-tier Heavenly Emperor quickly bowed his head in apology. "Senior is right. It is my subordinates who panicked."
"Hmm."
The fifth-tier Heavenly Emperor nodded. "Alright, go attend to your own matters."
"Understood."
The fourth-tier Heavenly Emperor departed, patrolling the Great Yu Realm.
They had fled here and encountered the Ethereal World.
If the Great Yu Realm were in its full glory, it would have long ago devoured the Ethereal World.
But now, it was impossible. The Great Yu Realm had suffered too greatly.
Most importantly, the Realm Lord needed to suppress and consolidate the Great Dao and could not act.
And for some reason, the Realm Lord was convinced that someone would pursue them. Ultimately, they found Li Meng and temporarily hid within the Ethereal Realm's domain.
The condition was that upon the Realm Lord's emergence from seclusion, Li Meng would be welcomed into the Great Yu Realm.
"Sigh."
The fifth-tier Heavenly Emperor also felt a headache coming on.
The headache stemmed from the fact that they had gained no benefits from the war in the Immortal Realm, but instead suffered heavy losses.
"Never mind."
Putting aside his thoughts, the fifth-tier Heavenly Emperor returned to his residence.
The Great Yu Realm had the Crimson Sun Land, a place of a higher tier than the Great Yu World itself, which greatly benefited the cultivation of mid-tier Heavenly Emperors.
Moments later, the aura of the fifth-tier Emperor subsided.