Knocking on the Gate of Immortality with a Mortal Body

The twenty-four Supreme Rulers of the Celestial Pivot Star Domain's Forbidden Zone of Life, no matter how diminished they may seem now, were once unrivaled monarchs of their era!

But then that man arrived, casually casting them down from their divine thrones!

Reducing those who were already clinging to life by a thread into mere laughingstocks of the world.

Kicked by Fang Zheng, tripped by Fang Fan, mocked by the masses—it seemed as though anyone could bully them.

Yet in truth, they remained the most formidable beings in the Celestial Pivot Star Domain!

The likes of Fang Zheng and Fang Fan were nothing but pretenders relying on external tools to feign power. True Emperors had their own dignity, and before reaching absolute desperation, they merely bided their time!

But now, after being dragged into the Void Abyss by that man, they finally understood how laughable their persistence had been.

The Void Abyss!

What kind of place was this?

Here, no laws existed—only the violently chaotic energy of the void rampaged unchecked!

Even at their peak, when they had once ventured here seeking the opportunity to ascend to immortality, they had merely passed through, never daring to step out and face the raging void energy head-on!

But that man dared.

Not only did he dare, he even strolled around bare-chested, without any protective measures. The void energy, capable of annihilating even a prime Emperor in an instant, washed over his flawless Dao Body like nothing more than a gentle caress—no, not even that. It was as if he were soaking in a warm spring!

What kind of perfect Dao Body was this?

What kind of monstrous physique was this?

Gulp—

The twenty-four Supreme Rulers swallowed hard in unison.

Originally, they had planned to fight with everything they had, but after witnessing his absurd strength, all such thoughts vanished.

A mantis trying to stop a chariot might be excused, but a mayfly attempting to shake the heavens? Pure delusion!

"Um... Senior, if we must die, at least let us die quickly. Please stop fidgeting around like that—it's terrifying..."

The most ancient among them mustered his courage to speak. After all, he had lived far too long and grown weary of it. Survival would be nice, but death was acceptable too.

Chen Yi ignored him, wholly focused on setting up the Ascension Grand Array for them!

To put it bluntly, this Ascension Grand Array was his proudest creation, conceived in a flash of inspiration after being beaten down by the Immortal Ascension Tribulation for the forty-ninth time. It could exploit a loophole the moment the tribulation descended, peering into its origin and directly knocking on the gates of immortality!

Unfortunately, the immortal gates remained shut. Not only was there no answer to his knocking, but the guardian Immortal Ascension Tribulation was vicious, chasing him down and mauling him relentlessly!

In his youth, he had foolishly resented the tribulation for its cruelty. But now that he had matured and the tribulation no longer came for him, he found himself missing it dearly.

Had he not feared alerting Wuji and exposing himself by recklessly knocking on the gates, he would have used this array long ago when the tribulation abandoned him!

But now? The Ascension Grand Array was the lifelong work of the twenty-four Supreme Rulers of the Celestial Pivot Star Domain, all on the verge of death. What did it have to do with Chen Yi?

He was merely a passerby, an ordinary spectator who happened upon a tribulation and decided to watch.

Hum—

Soon, the array was complete.

Freed from his task, Chen Yi turned to the twenty-four Supreme Rulers with a benevolent smile. "Esteemed ones, this array can knock on the immortal gates. Do you wish to go to the immortal realm?"

The twenty-four Supreme Rulers shuddered as one.

Did they wish to go to the immortal realm?

They had dreamed of nothing else!

The immortal realm held the secret of eternal life—wasn’t their desperate clinging to existence all these years driven by their fear of death?

But was the immortal realm so easily reached?

Legends of the immortal realm had always circulated in the Celestial Pivot Star Domain, yet no path of ascension existed there.

After all, to prove one's Dao and become an Emperor, one had to obtain the Heart of Heaven's Mark. But once bound to the Celestial Pivot Star Domain by this mark, one lost the qualification to summon the Immortal Ascension Tribulation!

Strictly speaking, the Celestial Pivot Heavenly Dao was simply not advanced enough. To cultivate powerhouses equivalent to the Tribulation Transcendence stage and propel the development of cosmic laws, it condensed the Heart of Heaven's Mark using Heavenly Dao power—leveraging its higher-tier authority to have early Emperors guide later ones.

But in reality, the highest level of celestial laws here only reached the Unity stage. The so-called Tribulation Transcendence laws were incomplete, making it impossible to summon the Immortal Ascension Tribulation!

Of course, this was a common tactic for lesser Heavenly Daos. Given enough time, the Celestial Pivot Heavenly Dao could have perfected its Tribulation Transcendence laws, achieving true Tribulation-level world status and earning legitimate ascension rights.

But alas, one rebellious "child" after another refused to sacrifice for the greater cause. After reigning supreme for an era, their vitality waned, their lifespans dwindled, and they severed their Emperor status, discarded the Heart of Heaven's Mark, and retreated into forbidden zones to cling to life.

Had it been just one or two, it might have been manageable. But nearly all of them did this, placing an unbearable burden on the Heavenly Dao and drastically slowing its progress.

The worst part? The Celestial Pivot Heavenly Dao was powerless. Cutting out these "tumors" would instantly destabilize the world, causing it to regress.

But leaving them be meant enduring the Dark Upheavals—where they fed on billions of lives to sustain themselves, draining the world's fortune until progress and decay reached equilibrium, leaving no reserves to accumulate.

The Celestial Pivot Heavenly Dao truly had it hard.

And its twenty-four rebellious "children" never showed any understanding.

But now, whether they understood or not no longer mattered.

That man's question might have sounded like a choice, but in truth, there was none.

"Do you wish to go to the immortal realm?" Whether they wanted to or not was irrelevant—what mattered was that he wanted them to go.

Having lived for countless years, how could the twenty-four Supreme Rulers fail to see this?

Since resistance was futile, why not burn brightly instead of clinging to their wretched existence?

For too long, they had bent their proud spines, nearly forgetting they were once the undisputed champions of the world!

Whoosh—

One by one, the hunched figures of the Supreme Rulers slowly straightened. The faint aura of decay surrounding them was incinerated by the blazing lifeblood burning deep within their bodies. Their clouded eyes cleared, even gleaming with golden light!

"In our prime, we slaughtered geniuses and trampled galaxies to claim the Emperor's throne. Now, though aged and frail, what does it matter if we perish knocking on the gates? Let our corpses pave the path for future immortals!"

"Hahaha! The immortal gates never opened for us, but have they ever heard mortals pounding on their doors? Today, we old bones shall use our souls as thunder and our bones as drums, forcibly playing the melody of ascension to shatter this worldly prison!"

"Ah... If descendants ever see the immortal gates open, let them not remember our names. What we owe to all living beings—today, we repay!"

"..."

One after another, the Supreme Rulers roared their heroic vows, igniting their very essence. Their withered Emperor bodies underwent ultimate sublimation, briefly reclaiming their former glory!

Deep down, they had always known: after severing the Heart of Heaven's Mark, pushing themselves to the limit in this way would summon the legendary Immortal Ascension Tribulation.

Yet none had ever dared!

Because...

This state lasted too briefly. By the time the tribulation arrived, they would likely perish before even beginning to transcend it.

But now, it no longer mattered. Success would be a triumph; failure, merely death.

"At least you’ve shown some backbone. Saves me trouble..."

Chen Yi gave a slight nod, offering them a rare acknowledgment.

Simultaneously, he activated the Ascension Grand Array. A radiant beam shot into the unknown, materializing a staircase to immortality!

With this done, he donned his Cloak of Concealment once more, vanishing into the shadows to await the outcome.