The group quickly glanced at each other and made up their mind.

“Excuse us then for initiating this battle to the death.” Puresword True Emperor’s eyes became stern with murderous intent.

As an emperor, this eruption of power was quite impressive and overwhelming, seemingly unstoppable.

“Clank!” He summoned a snow-white sword and slowly raised it vertically in front of his chest with the firmest grip.

He became one with it; all of his power, dao, and techniques fused within.

The shiny sword pulsed with circular halos, seemingly cast from a million stars in the sky. It encompassed an incalculable weight and vastness, akin to an entire galaxy.

The central spine of the blade contained the sword dao of the emperor, looking resplendent with numerous powerful runes twisting together and then refined into form. [1]

The sword used the stars to form the blade and the dao to form the spine, resulting in an extraordinary weapon.

Everyone could feel that one slash could tear the world apart and slay the gods when used by the emperor. Of course, it still had cataclysmic and suppressive affinities in the hands of a novice.

It represented the supreme will of an emperor and his intent to kill. He clearly had crafted this weapon himself.

This combination looked unbeatable and successfully intimidated the crowd.

 “No weaklings have ever become a True Emperor.” One older expert felt respect.

They realized that Puresword True Emperor was mighty indeed, exceeding everyone’s expectations.

In recent days, he has been overshadowed because his enemy, Fiercest, was just too strong and took away all of his radiance.

“Buzz.” A light from outer space descended onto the Tree Observer, signaling the opening of a world.

“Rustle!” An Adamantine Tree of unimaginable size appeared right behind him, blotting out everything behind it. This world’s sole reason for existence was to gestate this tree.

One leaf rustling already created quite a wave. When all of them rustled, it became an ocean of tsunami of winds with continuous waves - an ocean of green as far as the eye can see above Stone Harmony.

“Boom!” The tiny Tree Observer grew to the size of a great mountain with trees all over his body, looking just like a treant.

Moreover, his muscles increased in size as well. His arms looked like two dragons brimming with power. Just one flip could turn the earth over.

“Wow…” The spectators were startled. Not only did he get a size increase, but his power also soared. His body was filled with endless might.

“That’s a Tree Observer for you.” An ancestor said: “He’s the only person in Famed Bamboo who can borrow the power of the Adamantine Tree despite being so far away. This enraged state allows him to be the system’s guardian deity.”

Famed Bamboo had an ancestral tree that has been around for ages. It contained massive power and its roots have infiltrated every inch of that system. A Tree Observer was able to borrow a portion of this force regardless of the distance between the two.

Keep in mind that this particular Tree Observer was already strong in his own right. This fusion took him to the next level, perhaps comparable to the deer merchant.

“Boom!” A loud drum was heard. The Four Esteemed King summoned a drum and mallet out of nowhere. The first bang suppressed the worldly dao and laws right away.

Everyone felt something banging their heart violently and robbing their breath away.

“What… is that treasure?” This danger made some turn pale. 

“Soulcall Drum!” An ancestor stared at the Esteemed King and said: “So the world thinks there are four kings but that’s not the case. The title is actually referring to the four treasures of Hidden Grotto.”

“Back then, when the four ‘kings’ fought Gu Yifei, it was only the grotto lord using the four treasures to do so. People simply misunderstood.” A knowledgeable expert shook his head and said.

This drum was one of the four treasures with the ability to assault the mind and soul, rendering foes helpless.

One suddenly heard the cry of a deer. Everyone looked over and saw a pair of antlers growing on the head of the deer merchant.

They were large with multiple branching sections, almost like two small trees. Despite just coming out, they didn’t look young at all. Even the tips have hardened and looked quite tough.

In fact, they looked more like dragon horns instead of deer antlers due to their impressive power, more than enough to pierce through everything.

“How strange…” The crowd was astonished because the white-haired old man looked very bizarre with these antlers.

“Is the merchant actually a deer demon?” A young cultivator asked.

“Do you know the meaning behind the character ‘deer’ in his title?” His senior looked at the youth and asked.

“It is an auspicious symbol for longevity.” The youth answered.

“No.” The senior elaborated: “That’s only when the subject is a regular deer. But when a deer becomes a demon, this is no longer the case. So how does a regular deer reach this next stage? Excessive sexuality. That’s why many deer demons rely on the dual cultivation and are looked down upon as being depraved.”

“I agree with that, but the merchant was a blood deer.” Another ancestor jumped in.

“What’s the difference?” The experts nearby didn’t know.

“A blood deer during the initial stage is more precious than the other deer species.” The ancestor’s eyes became serious: “But once it becomes a demon… haha, do you guys know what it does to stay alive?”

“What, spill it already.” Another said.

“Blood, human blood.” The ancestor revealed: “The more it drinks, the longer it can stay alive. And though longevity comes greater powers and abilities. An inch of that antler means one hundred years, so look at how much blood he had consumed for it to be this large.”

“...!” The crowd became horrified.

All eyes turned towards the great antlers. Though no one actually had an exact measurement, it was at least nine feet long. Everyone shuddered at the cruel realization.

1. The spine is the center of the blade that slightly protrude outward in a classical style ☜