"You know Guhuang Great Emperor? Who are you?"
Before Ye Yunfei could even speak, Hun Lao stepped forward, asking with agitation.
Hun Lao cared deeply about everything concerning Guhuang Great Emperor.
"Be careful, he is extremely dangerous!" Ye Yunfei reminded Hun Lao.
"You seem to be… that little Hun from Gu Huang's side?"
The middle-aged man sized up Hun Lao and seemed to recognize him.
"Correct! I am Little Hun! Who are you? What is your relationship with Guhuang Great Emperor!" Hun Lao demanded.
"What relation? Can't you tell? He is my enemy. He trapped me here, a very long time ago. Enough talk, make Gu Huang come see me immediately!" The middle-aged man pointed at the iron cage confining him and sneered.
"How dare you! You dare to be disrespectful to Guhuang Great Emperor! Do you have a death wish?!" Hun Lao flew into a rage immediately. In his mind, Guhuang Great Emperor was not to be defiled.
"Hahaha… What a dog-shit Great Emperor! Others may fear him, but I do not! Gu Huang, roll over here right now! Otherwise, I will tear this place apart!" The middle-aged man roared with laughter.
Boom…
A terrifying energy pressure beyond imagination poured from his body, causing the entire palace to instantly shake violently, as if a major earthquake had struck.
The dreadful energy pressure surged towards Ye Yunfei and Hun Lao like crashing tidal waves.
"Let's go!" Ye Yunfei hissed urgently.
Right at that moment.
"No impudence!"
A commanding shout suddenly rang out within the palace.
Then, the energy pressure released by the middle-aged man vanished in an instant, leaving a calm stillness.
"It's Guhuang Great Emperor's voice! Great Emperor, I've missed you so much!" Hun Lao was so excited that tears streamed down his face.
"Indeed a Great Emperor!"
When that authoritative shout rang out, Ye Yunfei sensed a vast, majestic emperor's might and inwardly noted.
"This is strange. In my past life, there were only three Heavenly Emperors in the world: Tian Luo, Jin Wu, and You Yue. Only a thousand years later did a fourth appear—I, Heavenly Emperor Ye. Why, in this life of my rebirth, does another Guhuang Great Emperor exist? The birth of a Heavenly Emperor influences the fortune of an entire era; it is a momentous event that shakes all Three Thousand Major and Minor Worlds. Logically, every Heavenly Emperor rules over the world, known to all under heaven. Why did I have no knowledge whatsoever of this Guhuang Great Emperor in my previous life? This is too unusual!" Ye Yunfei felt bewildered.
"So it's a magic seal left behind by Guhuang Great Emperor!"
Hun Lao stared dumbfounded at the iron cage—the previous shout had come from it.
On the iron cage, one after another magic seals formed of golden light materialized, swirling around its surface.
These seals radiated dense emperor's might, completely immobilizing the middle-aged man inside.
"This cage is actually cast from Primal Chaos Origin True Gold!" Ye Yunfei examined it closely, feeling a touch of surprise.
"With these magic seals and this cage, he can't do anything to us," Ye Yunfei stated after sensing the seals.
"A puny little ant dares to act arrogant before me! Die!"
Enraged, the middle-aged man shot two beams of golden light from his eyes again, aiming to blast Ye Yunfei.
However, the magic seals surrounding the cage trembled gently and immediately shattered the two golden beams, reducing them to nothing.
The middle-aged man glared furiously at Ye Yunfei, finally letting out a soft sigh and calming down.
"Kid, you're right. With these seals and this cage, I cannot harm you now. It's all because of that scoundrel Gu Huang, who suppressed me here! Otherwise, I could annihilate tens of thousands with a single breath, ants like you two."
The man sighed as he spoke.
"Actually, I know this pagoda is no longer in Gu Huang's possession. What happened to Gu Huang? Did something happen to him?"
The middle-aged man's gaze shifted to Hun Lao.
"Nonsense! Guhuang Great Emperor possesses an invincible demeanor, how could anything possibly happen to him!" Hun Lao flared up again.
"Heh heh… Invincible demeanor? In that World-Destroying War, even a Heavenly Emperor could fall. I suspect Gu Huang perished long ago. Otherwise, why would he discard this pagoda? This was his personal magical treasure!"
The middle-aged man retorted.
"You lie! No one in this world could kill Guhuang Great Emperor!" Hun Lao roared.
"That is merely your wishful thinking. Heavenly Emperors are powerful, but they can still fall. Back then, Gu Huang once mentioned to me that he would participate in that World-Destroying War. They say the true masterminds behind that war were actually Deities. In the face of Deities, what is a measly Heavenly Emperor?"
The man sneered contemptuously.
"Who do you think you are, daring to judge Guhuang Great Emperor like this! If Guhuang Great Emperor were here, he could crush you with a single finger!" Hun Lao simply could not accept the man's words.
"True. If Gu Huang were here, he could indeed obliterate me with a single finger. Unfortunately, I have lived until now, while Gu Huang's fate remains unknown."
The man stated plainly.
"World-Destroying War!"
Hearing the man mention it, Ye Yunfei could not help but be astonished.
Because Ye Yunfei had once thoroughly investigated this war known as the World-Destroying War. However, it was an extremely mysterious conflict; despite devoting considerable time to researching it, he had found little information.
Previously, in the Ancient Beast Realm within the Holy Region of the Northern Wasteland, Ye Yunfei had heard the Suanni mention that his injuries were sustained in that World-Destroying War.
"The masterminds behind the World-Destroying War were Deities?" Ye Yunfei asked the middle-aged man.
"Oh? Kid, at your young age, you are also interested in that war? Indeed, back then there was such a legend—that the shadow of Deities loomed behind that war."
The middle-aged man glanced at Ye Yunfei before replying.
"Hmph! Back then, all sorts of rumors about that war filled the skies; no one knew which were true and which false!" Hun Lao snorted coldly.
"Hun Lao, so speaking, Guhuang Great Emperor belongs to the Ancient Era of the Three Thousand Major and Minor Worlds?" Ye Yunfei asked Hun Lao.
"Yes." Hun Lao fell silent for a moment before nodding in affirmation.
"So that's it," Ye Yunfei suddenly understood.
During the era he became a Heavenly Emperor, there were only four Heavenly Emperors in the world.
Guhuang Great Emperor belonged to the Ancient Era.
"Enough. Since Gu Huang's fate is unknown, the grievances between us are settled. Now, release me."
The middle-aged man demanded.
"Guhuang Great Emperor imprisoned you here for a reason. I will not release you," Hun Lao stated firmly.
This middle-aged man's strength was terrifyingly high; if released, Hun Lao and Ye Yunfei would likely face a calamity.
"You'd better let me out immediately. The power of these magic seals left by Gu Huang has been gradually weakening over time. In at most a hundred years, perhaps only seventy or eighty, I will break free. At that time, I will kill you two first!"
Suddenly, the middle-aged man's expression darkened, his tone filled with threat.
"Don't bluff. A seal has actually been planted within you by Guhuang Great Emperor. That seal has been eroding your life force all this time. When the power of these seals finally fades away, I estimate your internal life force will also be exhausted—and you'll be long dead. Given an Emperor's methods, once he decides to imprison you here, he will have a way to ensure you never escape."
Ye Yunfei suddenly spoke up with a cold laugh.
"You…!"
The middle-aged man stared at Ye Yunfei intently, seething with anger.
"Kid, how did you see that?"
After a long while, the man asked, indirectly admitting the truth of Ye Yunfei's words.
"If I'm not mistaken, the seal within you, every three months, will torture you to the brink of survival, making you wish for death you cannot attain." Ye Yunfei smiled as he spoke.
"I suppose you offended Guhuang Great Emperor back then, so he imprisoned you here as a form of punishment."
"Kid, are you Gu Huang's disciple? He told you about the nature of this seal inside me, didn't he?" the middle-aged man inquired.
"I am not Guhuang Great Emperor's disciple," Ye Yunfei shook his head.
"Listen, I have many treasures here. As long as you can release me, all of these treasures will be yours."
The middle-aged man's tone finally began to soften.
With a wave of his hand, he conjured over a thousand Space Rings, floating within the cage.
Then, he pointed a finger.
Swoosh…
A vast quantity of treasures began pouring endlessly out from those Space Rings.
All sorts of crystals, herbs, medicinal pills, magical treasures…
It dazzled Ye Yunfei and Hun Lao.
And these treasures came from only a very few of the rings.
"Top-grade Space Crystals!"
A casual sweep of his eyes revealed a large pile of Top-grade Space Crystals.
"Time Crystals!"
Next, Ye Yunfei exclaimed in a low voice.
A large pile of Time Crystals clattered onto the ground!
Time Crystals were even more precious and rare than Space Crystals!