The crowd had yet to recover from Yun Xiao's resolution when Yao Niming's next words sent a shock through everyone's entire being.
All eyes turned to Yao Niming in stunned disbelief, each person wondering whether the usually stern and unsmiling Immortal Alchemy Emperor had just made the most outrageous joke of all time.
Immortal Alchemy Emperor!
You are the Immortal Alchemy Emperor!
After overcoming countless trials and tribulations, now that you’ve reached the Emperor Realm, how could you say such a thing?
Nearing the end of your life?
How could you possibly be nearing the end?
"Master, this… this isn’t true, right?"
"You’ve attained the Emperor Realm—how could you have reached the end of your life?"
"This can’t be real, can it?"
Medicine Destiny trembled uncontrollably in panic. No wonder his master had been acting strangely lately. No wonder he had been seeking someone to inherit his legacy.
Could it truly be because his master’s time was running out?
Medicine Destiny had grown up alongside Yao Niming, relying on each other for survival. To Medicine Destiny, Yao Niming was his entire world. If Yao Niming were to die, he wouldn’t know how to go on living.
"Foolish child, all men must die."
"To have lived this long is already a rare fortune." Yao Niming smiled fondly at Medicine Destiny. Life and death—he had long since grown indifferent to them.
After all, his entire existence had been a journey walked step by step between life and death.
"But Master, you’re in the Emperor Realm—why is this happening?" Medicine Destiny couldn’t bring himself to believe it, yet knowing Yao Niming as he did, the man never lied.
The other alchemists stared at Yao Niming in shock. This was a legend of the alchemy world. None had ever imagined he would fall so soon.
And… so abruptly, without warning. Why?
Chen Chang'an took a deep breath. Though he had already glimpsed a trace of deathly aura around Yao Niming earlier, hearing the man confirm it still left him sighing in lament.
Such a tumultuous life—was it truly impossible for him to live peacefully until the end?
"What exactly is wrong with your body?" Chen Chang'an asked with a frown.
Yao Niming chuckled. "Truthfully, I should have died long ago."
"My first life was given to me by my parents. They bore me, raised me, and spent their entire lives trying to prolong mine."
"My second life, Chen Chang'an, was given by you. Back then, reckless and ignorant, I ventured into the Forbidden Forest. Had it not been for you, I would have perished. So you granted me my second life."
"And my third life—I gave to myself. I refused to bow to heaven or fate. I believed I could defy destiny."
"I succeeded… but also failed."
Huh?
Succeeded, yet also failed?
No one quite understood. Success was success, failure was failure—how could the two coexist?
"Back then, I thought breaking through to the Emperor Realm would mean I had truly defied fate. But I was gravely mistaken."
"To act against heaven’s will always demands a price."
"For others, breaking through brings heavenly tribulation. For me… it was heavenly punishment."
"When I broke through the Immortal Realm, I already realized my actions had provoked the wrath of the Heavenly Dao. Fortunately, I succeeded."
"But I knew the heavenly punishment wouldn’t vanish. So when I neared the Emperor Realm, I prepared thoroughly."
"The heavenly punishment descended, fraught with peril. I exhausted every means at my disposal and barely survived."
"But my body… suffered irreversible damage. The wounds inflicted by the heavenly punishment refused to heal. With time, my body continued to deteriorate."
"Now, my end draws near. And I sense it—the heavenly punishment is coming again."
Over the past six months, Yao Niming’s condition had worsened daily. And faintly, he could feel it—the heavenly punishment was about to strike once more.
It truly was a case of kicking a man while he was down. Even the Heavenly Dao seemed to believe Yao Niming had lived long enough—it was time to collect the debt.
Hearing Yao Niming’s words, the crowd sighed in sorrow. Who could have imagined that the legendary Alchemy Emperor would meet such an end?
A life that should have been immortalized in legend… yet in the end, even he had fallen to the will of heaven.
Was it truly impossible for anyone to defy fate?
Was the Mandate of Heaven truly unbreakable?
"Ah, the fall of a legend… Will the alchemy world never rise again?"
"If the Alchemy Emperor perishes, who will carry the banner in his stead?"
"There are so many of us—surely we can think of something, right? There must be a way!"
"Think of what? What can we do? Even the Alchemy Emperor is powerless—are we more capable than him?"
No alchemist in the world wished to see Yao Niming fall. He was the golden standard of their craft, the god in every alchemist’s heart.
Now, their god was about to perish—how could they accept it?
The fall of the Immortal Alchemy Emperor would send tremors through the entire Profound Realm!
"Is there truly no hope?"
"Let me examine your condition."
Chen Chang'an frowned and stepped forward to inspect Yao Niming’s body.
Yao Niming merely shook his head with a faint smile, not refusing, but knowing full well his situation was beyond saving.
Even if his deterioration could be slowed, the impending heavenly punishment was something he could never withstand.
"How could it be this dire?"
Even Chen Chang'an hadn’t expected Yao Niming’s body to be in such a critical state.
Were it not for Yao Niming’s Emperor Realm cultivation, he would have long since perished. An ordinary person would have died a hundred times over.
Yao Niming’s organs were practically in a state of decay, his meridians a chaotic mess, some even severed.
The only reason he had lasted this long was because, as the Alchemy Emperor, he had lived a low-profile life, never provoking enemies. A single battle might have been enough to end him.
All these years, he had been clinging to life through sheer willpower and profound cultivation. Otherwise, Chen Chang'an might not have even had the chance to see him one last time.
Seeing Chen Chang'an’s deep frown, Yao Niming smiled. "I know what you’re thinking. But as you can see, my condition is beyond repair."
"My body was ravaged by heavenly punishment—it cannot recover. I’ve tried everything, but nothing works."
"I can only watch helplessly as my body wastes away."
Yao Niming was never one to submit to fate. Of course he had fought—but all his efforts had ultimately amounted to nothing.
"Esteemed senior… is there anything you can do?" Medicine Destiny pleaded, his eyes filled with desperation.
"Uncertain. But I can try."
Try?
Hearing these words, everyone present was stunned. Could he really have a solution?
Even Yao Niming was surprised. Could it be that Chen Chang'an actually had a method?
"You… have a way?" Yao Niming asked nervously.
Even in the face of death, Yao Niming had remained composed, but at this moment, he found his emotions slipping beyond his control—because he truly did not want to die.
Chen Chang'an looked at Yao Niming with a faint smile, then reached out with his left hand and grasped Yao Niming's wrist.
In the next instant, Yao Niming felt a surge of vitality-infused energy rush into his body.
Under the influence of this energy, he could sense his condition actually improving.
Not only that, but the injuries inflicted by the heavenly punishment, which had left his body severely damaged, also showed the slightest signs of recovery. Though it was just a trace, the sensation was unmistakable.
To the others, the change in Yao Niming's complexion was visibly apparent.
"It's true… he really has a way!"
"Incredible, this is absolutely incredible! Just who is this Chen Chang'an? Even the Immortal Alchemy Emperor was powerless, yet he can treat it?"
"These are wounds left by heavenly punishment—this is beyond belief!"
Chen Chang'an's methods weren’t just astonishing to the onlookers; even Da Huang, who had been by his side all this time, was left dumbfounded.
Just how many secrets was this guy still hiding? How did he have so many abilities that even Da Huang knew nothing about?
"That's it, the love is gone!"
"Now he’s keeping things from me."
"Fine, Chen Chang'an, you’re something else!"
grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)
Cheng's father told him he was getting remarried—to a wealthy woman. Cao Cheng realized his time had finally come: he was about to become a second-generation rich kid. Sure, it might be a watered-down version, but hey, at least he'd have status now, right? The wealthy woman also had four daughters!! Which meant, starting today, Cao Cheng gained four stunning older sisters?? But that wasn't even the whole story... "My name is Cao Cheng—'Cheng' as in 'honest, smooth-talking gentleman'!"
with countless casualties. As a top-tier gamer, Liu Xuan volunteered to join the fight, intending to dominate with his skills, but instead he obtained the hidden class: [Pacifist]. Unable to attack. Unable to use active skills. Fortunately, with each level gained, he acquired a new passive skill. And so, armed with a body full of passives, Liu Xuan slaughtered his way through the battlefield of ten thousand races! [You attacked Liu Xuan] [You gained the debuffs: 'Poison', 'Fear', 'Burning', 'Bleeding', 'Freeze', 'Silence', etc.] [Your attack speed has been reduced by 99%] [Your armor and magic resistance have been reduced by 99%] Warriors of the Ten Thousand Races: How the hell am I supposed to fight this?!
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
