Chapter 346 - 345: Corpse of the Last True Demon Emperor (2)

He had commanded the demonic armies with overwhelming authority, leading his forces against the Grand Ascendants who defended the lower world. His cultivation had reached a realm that ordinary Demon Lords could only dream of, and the laws surrounding his body were so profound that even the collapse of mountains and rivers could not easily injure him.

Yet three Grand Ascendants eventually joined forces against him.

Each of them wielded supreme laws, and each possessed the power to shake the foundations of the world. Their combined attack tore through the Demon Emperor’s defenses and pierced his heart, bringing an end to an existence that had once stood at the pinnacle of the demonic race.

The Demon Emperor fell.

The war continued.

And before long, the world itself was cleaved in two.

The formation of the Imperial Domain and the destruction of the ancient boundaries changed the fate of every surviving power. The demonic armies that had once swept across the lower world were driven back into the Hollow Beyond, while the surviving powers of the lower world withdrew behind the Nine Heavens Ward.

The gates were sealed.

The paths between the realms were severed.

And the Demon Realm was left to endure the consequences of its defeat.

Many powerful demons had attempted to escape during the final moments of the catastrophe. Some abandoned their armies, others sacrificed their followers to preserve their own lives, and a few even betrayed their comrades in exchange for a chance to enter the newly formed Imperial Domain.

Gu Cangming had done none of those things.

While the heavens collapsed and the ancient laws of the world shattered around him, he had personally retrieved the Demon Emperor’s corpse from the battlefield. He had endured the remaining power of the Grand Ascendants, crossed through a region where space itself was disintegrating, and brought the fallen emperor into the depths of the Hollow Beyond.

He had then sealed the corpse inside the Dao Coffin.

It had been a decision that many might have considered foolish.

After all, the Demon Emperor was already dead, and the power that had once allowed him to command the demonic race had been greatly diminished. Preserving his corpse for ten thousand years would accomplish little if the remaining foundation could never be used.

But Gu Cangming had never been an ordinary being.

He understood that death did not necessarily mean the complete disappearance of an existence. The flesh could decay, the soul could perish, and the consciousness could vanish, yet the foundation upon which a powerful being had cultivated might still retain traces of its former glory.

The Demon Emperor had reached a height that few could imagine.

Even in death, his body remained a treasure beyond the comprehension of the current generation.

And Gu Cangming had waited ten thousand years for the opportunity to claim it.

A faint smile appeared upon his face as he finally spoke.

"Ten thousand years."

His voice was quiet, but the sound traveled through the enormous chamber with a strange clarity. The words seemed to settle into the obsidian walls, passing through the stone and reaching the depths of the mountain itself.

"Ten thousand years have passed, yet the Hollow Beyond remains much the same. Regressing in might and glory."

He slowly raised his right hand, examining the ancient markings that covered his skin. Each marking resembled a fragment of an incomprehensible script, and faint traces of archaic demonic laws flowed through them like rivers hidden beneath the earth.

"But I, Gu Cangming, have outlasted them all."

There was no need for him to raise his voice.

He did not need to proclaim his greatness before an audience, nor did he require the approval of the countless demons who might one day kneel before him. The statement was delivered with such absolute certainty that it sounded less like a boast and more like a simple declaration of fact.

He had survived the ancient war.

He had endured the collapse of the world.

He had watched ten thousand years pass while the descendants of the ancient powers struggled to inherit the remnants of a civilization they barely understood.

And now, he was ready to take the next step.

Gu Cangming placed his palm against the surface of the Dao Coffin.

The moment his skin touched the Abyssal Void-Amber, the runes engraved across the artifact brightened. Countless golden lines spread outward, forming an intricate network that covered the entire coffin. The ancient formation attempted to respond to the pressure of his hand, drawing upon the remaining laws embedded within the amber.

For a brief moment, the chamber trembled.

Then everything became still again.

Gu Cangming’s golden eyes narrowed slightly.

"The Nine Heavens Ward was a cage forged against the demon race," he said. "A flawless seal, one that even the combined strength of every Demon Lord in the Hollow Beyond could not breach for countless years."

His fingers moved slowly across the surface of the coffin, tracing a rune that had been carved before the present era began.

"Those who came after them spent ten thousand years trying to understand the formation. They searched for weaknesses, studied its laws, and attempted to force their way through its boundaries. Yet none of them possessed the ability to break it."

He paused, and a cold light appeared within his eyes.

"They mistook the inability to break a cage for proof that the cage was eternal."

A faint pressure spread from his palm, causing the ancient runes to flicker.

"But a cage is only as strong as the foundation upon which it rests. Even the most perfect formation must obey the laws that sustain it. If those laws are damaged, then the formation itself will eventually weaken."

Gu Cangming lifted his gaze toward the darkness above the chamber, as though he could see through the mountain, beyond the corrosive clouds of the Hollow Beyond, and toward the distant Nine Heavens Ward.

"I waited because I knew the world would eventually change."

His expression remained calm, but the words carried an ambition that had endured longer than most civilizations.

"The passage of time has weakened the ancient boundaries. The lower world has been divided, its spiritual veins have deteriorated, and the laws that once supported the Nine Heavens Ward have suffered countless years of regression. Yet the seal continued to hold because no one had dealt it a sufficiently powerful blow."

His lips curved slightly.

"Then an anomaly appeared."