The endless Faith Power exploded apart, revealing the true form of the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins.
He appeared to be a rather ordinary man—not particularly tall, of average build, with jet-black hair streaked with a few strands of white, looking like an utterly common middle-aged man you could find anywhere in a crowd.
Yet, from his pores seeped wisps of clear radiance, each one a strand of Great Dao pure energy condensed from ten thousand Daos, containing all sorts of unimaginable, wondrous uses.
Such a middle-aged man was actually the legendary Lord of the Heavenly Ruins.
If not for the Great Emperor Reincarnation Body witnessing it with his own eyes, he would hardly dare believe this fact.
However, upon closer inspection, his eyes were pitch-black like ink, not merely profound but representing an infinite darkness welling up within.
The Lord of the Heavenly Ruins staggered, strands of Great Dao pure energy dispersing from his body, containing the terrifying power to annihilate the myriad Daos of the heavens, piercing through the cosmos and causing the Primordial Heaven Realm to tremble violently.
Had the Heavenly Dao Sun not promptly sealed off these waves of power, the Primordial Heaven Realm would likely have been pierced with numerous gaping holes, causing immeasurable suffering and death among its countless living beings.
Clearly, even someone as powerful as the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins was at a disadvantage in the clash within the Huangji Lingxiao Hall; otherwise, he wouldn't be in such a sorry state.
Quietly, the Great Emperor Reincarnation Body let out a sigh of relief.
Fortunately, it was so; otherwise, he didn't know how he should have stopped it.
"Heavenly Emperor!"
The Lord of the Heavenly Ruins roared, shaking the entire Primordial Heaven Realm. Supreme One-level power rippled out, continuously impacting the Huangji Lingxiao Hall, causing the billions upon billions of living beings in the Primordial Heaven Realm to tremble uncontrollably, on the verge of having their forms and spirits shattered.
Who could have imagined that the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins, the contemporary ruler of the Heaven Realm, possessed such terrifying strength, equivalent to a Supreme One? It was simply unimaginable and unfathomable.
The Huangji Lingxiao Hall stood eternally within the Heavenly Dao Sun, remaining as immovable as a mountain. No matter how the Supreme One's mighty power assailed it, it stood firm.
One could only sigh—the Heavenly Emperor's power was such that even a Supreme One could do little against it.
"After all, it's just a remnant shadow left behind from the past. This Emperor refuses to believe it can hold out for much longer."
The Lord of the Heavenly Ruins regained his composure. Faith Power once again submerged his form, and at this moment, the Heavenly Ruins territory below erupted, sending forth an even more terrifying, endless stream of Faith Power soaring skyward and pouring into his body.
That Faith Power was simply boundless, as if it contained the myriad realms of the heavens, an inconceivably vast quantity.
Compared to this, the Faith Power collected by the Huang Ancient Kingdom over the past century was nothing.
"Such potent Faith Power!"
The Great Emperor Reincarnation Body's expression changed. This Faith Power far exceeded imagination, even rivaling—if not surpassing in vastness—the Faith Power collected by the Heavenly Sovereign's Divine Self he had witnessed in the past.
He gazed coldly at the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins and said, "Indeed. Over countless years, the Faith Power of generation after generation of Heaven Realm rulers has all become yours. Am I not correct, Lord of the Heavenly Ruins?"
Upon hearing this, the world was shaken!
In every era, generation after generation of Heaven Realm rulers—their Faith Power's final whereabouts were unknown. Even in life-and-death battles, not a trace of Faith Power was ever seen used by past rulers. Could it truly be as this Emperor existence said?
Yet many believed it, their faces turning extremely grim.
The terror of the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins was far more astonishing than imagined.
The six Ten Thousand Ancient Inheritances also sank into a somber mood.
The Lord of the Heavenly Ruins looked at the Great Emperor Reincarnation Body and said indifferently, "Fighting Saint King, you are indeed quite clever. Correct. Having reached this point, This Emperor no longer needs to conceal anything. Indeed, the Faith Power of countless years is entirely in This Emperor's hands. As for those individuals, their tenure as Heaven Realm rulers was merely This Emperor's will. They were the nominal rulers of the Primordial Heaven Realm, but in secret, they were nothing more than This Emperor's puppets, continuously gathering the Faith Power of the Primordial Heaven Realm for This Emperor."
In the Huang Realm, the surviving rulers of the five Forbidden Zones wore ugly expressions. After all, even esteemed figures like them were merely puppets of the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins—nominal Heaven Realm rulers who were secretly controlled by another, used to collect Faith Power.
However, when they looked at the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins, their eyes were filled with immense wariness, even threads of fear hidden deep within their pupils.
In this world, few understood the terror of the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins better than they did.
"No wonder they never truly utilized Faith Power; they were merely puppets all along."
The Great Emperor Reincarnation Body said, "But cultivating these puppets must have come at no small cost. Was it worth it?"
He spoke with profound meaning.
The rulers of the Forbidden Zones—the successive generations of Heaven Realm rulers—each ultimately achieved the level of a Seventh Heaven Sovereign, a Super Sovereign.
Cultivating a single Primordial Sovereign already required immeasurable resources. Under normal circumstances, even in an upper realm like the Myriad Domains, it would take unknown tens of thousands of years to cultivate one, let alone a Super Sovereign above the Seventh Heaven, whose resource consumption was many times that of an ordinary Sovereign.
Throughout the ages, there had been ten generations of Heaven Realm rulers. Excluding the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins, that made nine individuals—nine Super Sovereigns.
Among them, the Kunxu Ruler and another were even Eighth Heaven Peerless Sovereigns, requiring even more terrifying resources.
The cost of cultivating nine Super Sovereigns merely to plunder Faith Power was unimaginably vast.
He strongly suspected the causality here was not so simple. Otherwise, with the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins' strength, he could have dominated the Primordial Heaven Realm long ago. Why cultivate so many Super Sovereigns?
There must be a deeper reason behind it.
Moreover, there was the unexplained reason for changing rulers almost every era.
It seemed there was no need for concealment at this juncture. The Lord of the Heavenly Ruins sneered, "Naturally, it was worth it. Do you truly believe the purpose of cultivating them was simply to allow This Emperor to secretly harvest Faith Power? Hah, of course not."
Not only the Great Emperor Reincarnation Body but also the people of the world were greatly puzzled. Why did the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins cultivate generation after generation of Heaven Realm rulers? What was the true reason behind it?
"Cultivating them was merely one part of This Emperor's plan," the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins said. "Over past eras, This Emperor cultivated their growth. One of the key purposes was to use their hands, under This Emperor's direction, to annihilate the Ten Thousand Ancient Inheritances one by one."
"The Ten Thousand Ancient Inheritances are transformations of the Mythical Imperial Clans of the Pangu Universe. They are also the guardians of the Primordial Heaven Realm and the protectors of the legacy left by the Heavenly Emperor."
"Back then, although This Emperor was powerful, I admit I had not yet reached the level where I could single-handedly contend against the other twelve Ten Thousand Ancient Inheritances. I could only endure and accumulate strength, waiting silently, while using absolute power to become the first Heaven Realm ruler."
"Unfortunately, in those days, one could not serve as Heaven Realm ruler indefinitely. The various Ten Thousand Ancient Inheritances imposed restrictions, requiring rotation; no one could serve as ruler for more than one era."
"Therefore, while serving as Heaven Realm ruler, This Emperor secretly searched the world for prodigies. Even in the era when the Eight Realms of the Myriad Worlds were still connected, under the pretext of the younger generation's competition across the eight realms, I sought suitable prodigies to cultivate. I spared no expense, secretly expending immense resources to assist them, allowing them to grow smoothly. I secretly imparted corresponding techniques, enabling them to ultimately become Primordial Sovereigns, sweep aside all other experts, and assume the role of the next Heaven Realm ruler."
"Thus, over endless eons, This Emperor found nine individuals in total. Employing unimaginable resources for their cultivation, I turned these nine into nine generations of Heaven Realm rulers."
"Of course, the annihilation of the other Ten Thousand Ancient Inheritances in the past was also under This Emperor's direction. The goal was to plunder the resources of the Ten Thousand Ancient Inheritances. After all, cultivating a single Heaven Realm ruler required an overwhelmingly vast amount of resources—almost the entire consolidation of a Ten Thousand Ancient Inheritance transformed from a Mythical Imperial Clan was needed to cultivate one."
"Hence, the subsequent fall of the six Ten Thousand Ancient Inheritances. Ultimately, it was to reduce the strength of the Primordial Heaven Realm's guardians and to cultivate Heaven Realm rulers."
The Lord of the Heavenly Ruins spoke unhurriedly, revealing many truths of the past, shocking the people of the world and leaving them incredulous.
The Heaven Realm rulers of past eras were not only puppets of the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins, but even the fall of the six Ten Thousand Ancient Inheritances was carried out under his direction.
Within the Huang Ancient Kingdom, in the Huang Ancient Hall, the members of the Huang Imperial Clan were all furious to the extreme.
All the actions of the Kunxu Ruler in the past were actually secretly directed by the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins.
The six Ten Thousand Ancient Inheritances were immensely enraged, each having Primordial Sovereigns manifest, glaring furiously at the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins.
Although many tens of thousands of years ago, they had already suspected the Heavenly Ruins might be involved—because during the fall of the Ten Thousand Ancient Inheritances, the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins, as the ancient and modern foremost expert of the Primordial Heaven Realm, had never once intervened, which was itself highly suspicious.
Yet no one dared to question it.
This was due to fear of the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins.
At the same time, there was also deep regret.
Back then, precisely because of mutual suspicion among themselves, it led to the successive annihilation of the six Ten Thousand Ancient Inheritances, including the Huang Imperial Clan, by past generations of Heaven Realm rulers. This indirectly created more Heaven Realm rulers, who became puppets of the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins.
Unfortunately, the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins paid no heed to any of this. Or perhaps, in the past, he still had some apprehensions, but now there was no need for that.
Within the Huang Divine Kingdom, Chenyuan Huang Sovereign loudly demanded, "Lord of the Heavenly Ruins, as a member of the Heavenly Court lineage, why did you do this?"
He did not understand, and neither did others.
The Lord of the Heavenly Ruins was a guardian of the Primordial Heaven Realm, even a member of the Ancient Heavenly Court lineage with a monumental background. Why would he act this way? Why would he collude with the alien race? None of this conformed to reason.
It contradicted the ideals of the Mythical Heavenly Court; one could even say it was diametrically opposed.
"You... do you truly believe This Emperor is really a member of the Ancient Heavenly Court lineage?"
At this moment, the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins locked eyes with the Great Emperor Reincarnation Body. Deep within his pupils, a breathtaking demonic light flickered, almost capable of seizing everything in the world, causing the latter's heart to tremble: "You are of the alien race!"
Such demonic intent—how could he, having long battled the alien race, not recognize it?
The people of the world also changed expressions.
The contemporary Heaven Realm ruler was actually a member of the alien race?
Didn't that mean that for endless eons, the Primordial Heaven Realm, and even the entire Eight Realms of the Myriad Worlds, had been controlled by the alien race?
"No, strictly speaking, This Emperor is not considered a member of the alien race."
The Lord of the Heavenly Ruins denied it, yet added, "But neither is This Emperor considered a being of the Pangu Universe."
*Hum—*
A soft sound rang out as the boundless Faith Power surrounding the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins dispersed, revealing his true form. He appeared as an ordinary, common middle-aged man, yet his body emanated a radiant aura, as if it contained one divine being after another, or as if various ancient Sovereigns slumbered within, various Great Emperors lay dormant, and supreme immortals were submerged. It was very peculiar.
In that brief moment of observation, the Great Emperor Reincarnation Body sensed no fewer than a dozen Supreme One imprints within the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins' body—some belonging to the Pangu Universe side, others belonging to the alien Ancient Universe.
Both righteous and evil, it was as if the Emperor Sovereigns and Supreme Ones of the two great Ancient Universes were all gathered within the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins.
This was a very special, very mixed aggregate.
Even Ye Chen, through the Great Emperor Reincarnation Body, found it difficult for a moment to truly penetrate the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins' true nature.
But one could surmise his origins must be astonishing.
The Lord of the Heavenly Ruins revealed his true form. Beneath his ordinary appearance, a pair of eyes appeared profoundly deep. Then he curled a smile: "Fighting Saint King, since you can contend with This Emperor to this extent, you are a man worthy of appreciation. Today, This Emperor is not afraid to tell you This Emperor's true origin. In truth, This Emperor is an aggregate of the wills of the various Emperors from the Mythical Epoch."
The Great Emperor Reincarnation Body was greatly shocked. The Lord of the Heavenly Ruins was not a true living being but an aggregate of the wills of the Mythical Epoch's Emperors.
No wonder he was so powerful, having been formed from inheriting the wills of the Mythical Emperors.
But he was also puzzled. The Mythical Emperors were all guardians of the Pangu Universe. How could they collude and secretly conspire with the alien race? There must be a major issue here.
"Of course, This Emperor is well aware of the doubts in your heart, because this is only one part. The other part is formed from the aggregated wills of the alien race's Emperors, occupying the other half—indeed, the greater half—of This Emperor."
He spoke unhurriedly, concealing nothing, revealing the truth.
Soon, the Great Emperor Reincarnation Body understood.
Many years ago, he had successively entered other Ten Thousand Ancient Inheritances. With his status at the time, nearly equivalent to another Heaven Realm ruler, and his peerless cultivation that suppressed all, the several great Ten Thousand Ancient Inheritances naturally complied with almost all requests, allowing Ye Chen to learn of many prehistoric major events and become aware of numerous secrets.
Regarding the true origin of the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins, the other Ten Thousand Ancient Inheritances clearly did not know, but there were related records.
During the Great Mythical Cataclysm, the Mythical Emperors paid a great price and also annihilated many alien Emperors and ancient Sovereigns.
To prevent the demonic aura of the Emperor remains from polluting the Ancient Universe, the Mythical Emperors suppressed all alien Emperor remains, leaving behind corresponding countermeasures.
Now, it seemed the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins was likely the countermeasure left by the Mythical Emperors—formed from the aggregated wills of the various Emperors, thus innately possessing supreme great capabilities.
He probably possessed cultivation rivaling that of an Emperor Sovereign as early as the existence of the Primordial Heaven Realm.
However, an Emperor Sovereign was not absolutely invincible. In those days, the other twelve Ten Thousand Ancient Inheritances were all transformations of Mythical Imperial Clans, each possessing a Supreme Imperial Weapon.
With twelve Mythical Imperial Clans wielding Supreme Imperial Weapons, even an Emperor Sovereign could not possibly contend against so many.
Moreover, it seemed the Heavenly Emperor of the past never left any Supreme Imperial Weapon to the Heavenly Ruins.
Otherwise, had the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins possessed a Heavenly Emperor's weapon, he would certainly not have needed to be so apprehensive.
The Supreme Imperial Weapons the Lord of the Heavenly Ruins lent to past generations of Heaven Realm rulers to deal with the Ten Thousand Ancient Inheritances in the past seemed to have come from other sources.