This Is What a Villain Is Like

She had truly become the master of the Imperial Capital, wielding a vast and indescribable Emperor’s Power, utterly incomparable to what she possessed before.

If she wanted to suppress the cultivators within the Imperial Capital now, a single thought was all it would take to command the momentum of the world and the dynasty’s National Fortune, crushing them with ease.

A grand Dao Rhyme echoed deep within the Imperial Palace, like the sound of ancient ancestors kowtowing in worship.

Emperor Xia’s slender figure sat cross-legged, but her Celestial Emperor’s Dharma Body was projected across the vast sky, its brilliant, sacred light illuminating the endless heavens.

She had now cast aside her previous timidness, revealing her female form with dignity and confidence. Once these inhibitions were severed, her state of mind finally achieved a flawless, unified perfection.

The Spiritual Energy in all the acupoints and meridians of her body boiled and surged, flowing like a hundred rivers into the sea. It forged a path between her Spirit Sea and Sea of Consciousness, constructing a Tribulation Bridge that pulsed with golden light and gushed with Dragon Fortune.

Deep within the firmament, lightning surged as dark clouds gathered. The tribulation clouds of a bygone era had reappeared, covering an area hundreds of miles wide. An aura of destruction swirled within them, threatening to crush down at any moment.

From a distance, it looked as if a black dragon were swimming within the clouds, watching with predatory eyes, ready to pounce and kill.

Beneath this vast and immense aura, everyone felt an oppressive pressure. Before such heavenly might, any living being was as insignificant as an ant.

The entire Imperial Capital was now enveloped by the aura of the Celestial Tribulation. Many reclusive masters of the older generation revealed themselves, their faces filled with shock and awe.

"This is the tribulation for breaking into the Tribulation Bridge Realm..."

"Once you break into the Tribulation Bridge Realm, you can touch the Heaven and Earth Dao. In ancient times, all sorts of incredible phenomena would manifest to obstruct the process."

"As the sovereign of Great Xia, Emperor Xia’s authority is divinely granted. The tribulation she faces now is therefore even more terrifying."

"I am Emperor Xia..."

And in the face of such a tribulation, Emperor Xia spoke. Her voice, majestic and cold, resounded between heaven and earth, echoing in every corner of the Imperial Capital.

Countless cultivators and living beings kowtowed, their hearts filled with piety and reverence.

Meanwhile, deep within the Imperial Palace, the Dragon-Suppressing Seal bobbed in the air, growing more crystalline by the second. Dragon Fortune converged and poured into it ceaselessly. Then, as if refined and condensed, this power began to weave itself into a net above Emperor Xia’s head, submerging her in a tide of radiant light.

Her aura soared ever higher until a boundless, magnificent phenomenon manifested behind her, filling the entire sky.

Ancient and brilliant Decrees emerged from the Void, one after another, accompanied by a grand, divine sound. It was as if an Ancient Emperor from the mists of time was announcing his abdication, passing the throne to her. This was a divine conferral of imperial authority, a resonant manifestation of the Celestial Dao itself.

Faintly, countless people heard the grand voice. An Ancient Emperor had truly appeared, his presence resonating with heaven and earth.

"Long live Emperor Xia! Long live! Long, long live Her Majesty!"

Within the Imperial Capital, countless subjects knelt in worship.

The space between Emperor Xia’s eyebrows grew translucent, her cheekbones glowing. The phantom of a bridge appeared there, brilliant and crystalline as if forged from Immortal Jade. It flickered in and out of the Void while connecting to her Spirit Sea, where boundless golden Spiritual Energy churned with a deafening, tsunami-like roar.

"Begone..."

Her eyes shone brilliantly, her words carrying the weight of heavenly law as she faced the tribulation lightning head-on.

At that moment, countless gazes from all over the Imperial Capital turned toward the sky. Amidst the roiling tribulation clouds, lightning flashed and thunder boomed. A lifelike phantom of a black dragon, wreathed in lightning, emerged. It opened its fanged maw, let out a sky-shaking roar, and dove toward Emperor Xia.

...

’This whole affair actually ended up helping Emperor Xia, allowing her to advance to the Tribulation Bridge Realm...’

’As expected of an Emperor favored by the heavens. These trials, instead of hindering her, have only served to perfect her state of mind.’

The shocking events unfolding in the Imperial Capital had not escaped Jiang Lan’s notice within the Qianyuan Cave Realm. He sat cross-legged on a blood-red altar, manipulating the Blood Immortal Sect’s Ten Thousand Transformations Blood Array.

He opened his eyes, his brow slightly furrowed.

The appearance of the Barbarian God’s phantom had drawn all eyes. The battle raging there was intense, the upheaval so staggering that the entire Qianyuan Cave Realm seemed on the verge of being torn apart.

He naturally had no mind to spare for such matters, but the commotion in the Imperial Capital was faintly transmitted through the Blood Immortal’s Muddy Blood on the Dragon-Suppressing Seal, forcing him to divert some of his attention there.

He had long since re-refined the Muddy Blood that the Blood Immortal Sect used to corrupt the Dragon-Suppressing Seal, using the sect’s own legacy techniques.

He could now use that connection to perfectly monitor the situation deep within the Imperial Palace.

Divine light wreathed the Dragon-Suppressing Seal, making it as brilliant and crystalline as a piece of jade. Its surface radiated a shockingly high, eye-searing temperature that seemed to warp the very Void around it.

Its spiritual nature was on the verge of transforming into a dragon, and it had now given birth to a hazy consciousness. Sensing danger, it was attempting to expel and refine away the corrupting Blood Immortal’s Muddy Blood that stained it.

Emperor Xia achieving a perfected state of mind was not, in itself, enough for her to break through to the Tribulation Bridge Realm.

The main reason was that the hazy consciousness within the Dragon-Suppressing Seal had sensed the danger. It had no choice but to acknowledge her, granting her a massive infusion of Dragon Energy. She then leveraged the momentum of the world to absorb endless Dao Rhyme and construct her Tribulation Bridge in one fell swoop.

’Without this plot from the Blood Immortal Sect, who knows how long it would have taken her to break through to the Tribulation Bridge Realm...’

’If Emperor Xia successfully breaks through to the Tribulation Bridge Realm, it won’t be difficult for her, with her abilities, to cleanse and refine away the Blood Immortal’s Muddy Blood on the Dragon-Suppressing Seal...’

’In that case, wouldn’t all my previous plans have been for nothing?’

Jiang Lan’s brow furrowed. His original plan had been to let events unfold without his direct intervention.