Hidden within the main hall of the Heavenly Emperor Palace, located at the highest, most unreachable point of the celestial firmament, the Seven Region Lords also turned their solemn gazes towards the Heaven-Fall Mausoleum.
It was widely rumored that the Heaven-Fall Mausoleum was the burial ground for the bones of the great enemies slain when the Ten Divine Generals led the Divine Punishment Army to conquer the myriad heavens. However, in truth, the former Divine Generals—now the Region Lords—knew this was not the case. The existence of the Heaven-Fall Mausoleum was far more ancient, predating even the true birth of the Heavenly Emperor Realm itself. It seemed to have existed alongside the world, immeasurably old.
Furthermore, the Heaven-Fall Mausoleum was a forbidden land, a place the Heavenly Emperor himself had strictly prohibited anyone from setting foot in, as it was filled with an unparalleled danger. Only the Heavenly Emperor had ever ventured inside in the distant past. In the subsequent eras, he had placed the most powerful seals upon it, and not even the Ten Region Lords had ever truly set foot within.
Now, the Heaven-Fall Mausoleum had broken through the Heavenly Emperor's seals and appeared on its own, causing their expressions to change.
The Heavenly Emperor's seals had vanished. What was going on?
Combined with the Heavenly Emperor's disappearance for many years, this led the Seven Region Lords to think of many possibilities. Could it be that the Heavenly Emperor had fallen?
At the thought of this possibility, a tempest of shock surged within the hearts of the Seven Region Lords. If not for this, why would he disappear? Why would the Heavenly Emperor's seals confining the Heaven-Fall Mausoleum vanish?
However, they soon shook their heads. Having once followed the Heavenly Emperor as Divine Generals, campaigning across vast eons, they understood better than anyone how majestic, how peerless the Heavenly Emperor was. Time could not erode him; he existed alongside the world, possessing unparalleled vitality.
When he emerged a century ago, they had all paid their respects from afar and could sense how vigorous the Heavenly Emperor's blood energy was, showing none of the signs of decline exhibited by the other five Region Lords who had not stepped into the Ancient Monarch realm.
Similarly, in the boundless past, they had all been subdued by the Heavenly Emperor and had sincerely followed him since. They also possessed the vast Faith Power accumulated over countless years. How could he have fallen?
"Supreme Heavenly Emperor, where exactly are you?"
The voices of the Seven Region Lords struck the nine heavens, penetrating into the deepest reaches of the firmament, yet they received not a single response, leaving them deeply puzzled and confused. Where had the peerless Heavenly Emperor gone? He shouldn't have vanished without a trace.
Could it truly be as past speculations suggested, that he had journeyed to another mysterious great universe?
"I suspect the Heavenly Emperor has not disappeared, but is within the Heaven-Fall Mausoleum!"
Suddenly, the First Region Lord spoke, proposing this astonishing conjecture, causing the others' expressions to change once more. But they quickly regained their composure, finding a certain degree of belief in it as well.
The Heavenly Emperor's abrupt disappearance shouldn't have left no trace. If he wasn't elsewhere, and had even taken the boundless Faith Power with him, it was highly likely he wasn't in any other place, leaving only one possibility—
The Heaven-Fall Mausoleum!
Unseen in the past, not appearing even as faith crumbled, only this place, isolated from the outside world and untraceable, remained.
"I also believe the Heavenly Emperor should be within the Heaven-Fall Mausoleum. He shouldn't have vanished without a trace; he must be there. Let's go! We shall enter the Heaven-Fall Mausoleum, request the Heavenly Emperor's emergence, slay the so-called Saint Monarch, and re-establish the Heavenly Emperor's immortal faith!"
"If His Majesty were to return, how could he tolerate a clown like the so-called Saint Monarch acting so arrogantly, presiding over the rise and fall of the Heavenly Emperor Realm's vast territories?"
"His Majesty is invincible; a single hand would be enough to suppress such a junior."
The other Region Lords spoke in succession. Having followed the Heavenly Emperor, they were his most loyal followers, their allegiance unwavering to this day.
Especially the other five Region Lords besides the First and Second, who were not true Ancient Monarchs. After endless eons, without the support of Faith Power, they had fallen from that realm. They were too ancient; if they did not return to that realm soon, they could not last much longer.
They needed the boundless Faith Power to empower themselves, to return to the Sovereign domain, rekindle their divine flames, and achieve immortality once more.
Similarly, even if they couldn't find the Heavenly Emperor, perhaps they could find a corresponding path within the Heaven-Fall Mausoleum. They might even obtain the supreme legacy of the Ancient Emperors and Great Emperors from another mysterious great universe, which the Heavenly Emperor had mentioned in the past. Achieving the Dao and becoming an Emperor might become a reality.
The Seven Region Lords left the protective grounds of the Heavenly Emperor Palace and silently made their way towards the Heaven-Fall Mausoleum.
It wasn't that they were unwilling to bring that divine hall with them, but because that hall possessed true Imperial Dao divine marks, heavier than the starry sky itself. Not even the two Ancient Monarchs could move it, forcing them to abandon it with regret.
Within the Battle Saint Hall, the former main hall of the Heavenly Emperor Palace, the Great Emperor Reincarnation Body saw the seven figures and slightly frowned before letting out a cold laugh. "If you continued hiding within that turtle-shell palace with the Imperial Dao divine marks, I might not have been able to do anything to you. But you've taken the initiative to appear. Did you truly think I wouldn't notice?"
Boom—
The Great Emperor Reincarnation Body made his move. It wasn't his true self acting, but the Saint Monarch Divine Statue within the main hall stepping forth, carrying boundless Faith Power and imbued with a strand of his divine sense as its master.
The divine statue seemed to transform into a true flesh-and-blood body, identical to the Great Emperor Reincarnation Body. In the blink of an eye, it traversed the boundless starry void, arriving directly before the Seven Region Lords.
"It's you!"
The Seven Region Lords' expressions changed again, not expecting the Great Emperor Reincarnation Body to discover them so quickly. But they soon understood and sighed, "Indeed. You have become the faith dominator of the Heavenly Emperor Realm, with faith spread across the Ten Great Domains. Your divine sense is peerless; it's no surprise you detected us."
They were once powerful experts who possessed formidable Faith Power, so they naturally had a profound understanding of it and knew how Ye Chen had accomplished this.
What left them powerless was that their former greatest weapon had now become the strongest weapon used against them.
Boom—
A great battle erupted outside the domains, intense enough to draw the attention of billions of living beings across the Ten Great Domains.
Although only the divine statue body had gone, it possessed endless Faith Power, and Ye Chen's research into the path of Faith Power was sufficiently profound, allowing it to unleash terrifying might.
However, it was clear the Seven Region Lords were also extremely powerful, especially the First and Second Region Lords, who were genuine Ancient Monarchs without any pretense. The other five were at the Quasi-Sovereign level, immensely strong. As former powerful Divine Generals who had campaigned alongside the Heavenly Emperor for many years, they possessed rich combat experience. Working together, they actually managed to hold off the Great Emperor Reincarnation Body's divine statue for a time.
"A pity. The Faith Power accumulated over mere decades is ultimately not very strong," Ye Chen sighed.
Boom—
Not long after, the divine statue body shattered, transforming into a shower of dancing light that returned to the main hall of the Heavenly Emperor Palace, reforming into a divine statue, unharmed.
Indeed, the Faith Power collected within the Heavenly Emperor Realm was immensely powerful. After all, the territory was vast, even more expansive than the Primordial Emperor Realm, and filled with numerous powerful experts—quite a few Divine Kings, and even more below that level. The Faith Power accumulated over several decades had reached a staggering level.
But the time was ultimately too short—just a few short decades. No matter how powerful, it had its limits, barely able to contend with an Ancient Monarch for a short while, but not for long.
Originally, Ye Chen had planned to have the Great Emperor Reincarnation Body enter the Heaven-Fall Mausoleum, leaving this faith body to guard the Battle Saint Hall to prevent unexpected situations. But now he realized this wasn't feasible.
"No choice then. I'll have to take action personally. Remnants of the Heavenly Emperor Palace, I'll round you all up now!"
Boom—
The Great Emperor Reincarnation Body personally set out, crossing the endless void in the blink of an eye, catching up to the Seven Region Lords who had been delayed for a moment by the faith divine statue.