Dominator Emperor

As for the older generation of Qianli River, they simply laughed it off. Shaking their heads, they said, "How could a nobody be worthy of Qianli River’s successor? Even a successor from an Emperor Immortal Gate might not have such qualifications."

The younger disciples, however, were all indignant. The young men in particular were intensely hostile toward Li Qiye.

This was hardly surprising. As the successor of Qianli River, Lan Yunzhu was not only supremely talented but also devastatingly beautiful. Within Qianli River alone, countless young male disciples were infatuated with her. She was, in their eyes, a Divine Maiden, the lover of their dreams.

For their Divine Maiden to suddenly have a fiancé appear out of nowhere—how could the young disciples of Qianli River not feel resentful?

"Isn’t that Senior Sister Zhu’s fiancé? I heard he’s here to marry her," a female disciple couldn’t help but whisper to the senior disciples around her.

"Senior Sister Zhu’s fiancé?" A disciple who had just heard the news was stunned. "When did Senior Sister Zhu get a fiancé? Not long ago, the Saint Heir from the Ju Que Holy Land came to propose marriage and was rejected by the Elders. How did a fiancé suddenly appear out of thin air?"

"I heard her family arranged the marriage," said a junior brother. "No one knows where this brat came from, but he’s suddenly Senior Sister Zhu’s fiancé."

"Don’t worry, a marriage contract like that will never be finalized. The Elders would never allow it to happen," a more worldly senior brother said calmly, as if a character like Li Qiye was utterly beneath his notice.

"That’s right! That little brat thinks he can marry our Senior Sister Zhu? He’s dreaming!" a male disciple sneered. "He should take a piss and look at his own reflection! Daring to come to our Qianli River with some flimsy marriage contract from the Mortal World? Hmph, doesn’t he know what kind of place this is? Even successors from Emperor Immortal Gates aren’t good enough for our Senior Sister Zhu. A mere nobody like him? He’s completely delusional!"

For a time, many disciples discussed the matter in hushed tones. The disciples of Qianli River were deeply hostile toward Li Qiye’s arrival. Even if they wouldn’t actively cause trouble for him, they certainly didn’t show him any courtesy.

As for Li Qiye, he paid no mind to such trivial matters. He continued to do as he pleased, leading Lu Baiqiu on a leisurely stroll around the various islands of Thousand Carp Lake.

Lu Baiqiu couldn’t help but smile wryly at Li Qiye’s incredible composure. ’In this respect alone, I’m no match for him,’ she thought. ’To be so calm and carefree in the heart of enemy territory, strolling about as if Thousand Carp Lake were his own home... Even with so many disciples from Qianli River giving him dirty looks, he just dismisses their chatter and disdain as nothing more than the buzzing of mosquitoes.’

Before they knew it, Li Qiye and Lu Baiqiu had arrived on a central island within Thousand Carp Lake. A colossal statue stood upon this island, but surprisingly, it only depicted a person’s back.

Even as a statue showing only a back, it was still breathtaking. The figure seemed to have emerged from an azure sea, plunging headlong into chaos, leaving an endless ocean behind.

In fact, the figure was almost completely obscured. The upper half of its back was plunged into primordial chaos, leaving only a silhouette visible. Despite this, the sight was profoundly shocking. This hazy figure seemed to sunder the Nine Heavens and Ten Lands, as if it were the end of all creation. Even the All Heavens Gods and Demons could only gaze upon it from a distance, not daring to take a single step closer.

Staring at the statue with its hazy back, Li Qiye fell into a daze, lost in thought for a long time.

Lu Baiqiu was also captivated by the statue’s imposing aura. Standing before it felt like witnessing the back of an Immortal Emperor in person—a solitary figure walking forward before finally plunging into endless chaos.

"The back of the Qianli Immortal Emperor," Lu Baiqiu murmured, her eyes fixed on the figure before her.

The Qianli Immortal Emperor was incredibly mysterious. Some even called them the most enigmatic Immortal Emperor of all time. As an Immortal Emperor from the Age of Emperors, no one knew if they were male or female, let alone their origin or sect.

For ages, the Qianli Immortal Emperor’s identity has been a source of endless speculation. Countless people have tried to guess their gender, but no definitive answer has ever been found.

In fact, not even the Qianli Immortal Emperor’s own disciples knew their master’s gender. In short, the Qianli Immortal Emperor was an absolute enigma. Everything about them seemed to be shrouded in a thick fog, impossible for the world to penetrate.

Legend has it that during their era, no one ever saw the Qianli Immortal Emperor’s true face—not even their own disciples. Thus, no one knew what the Qianli Immortal Emperor looked like. Within Qianli River, there are no frontal portraits of the Immortal Emperor; at most, there is only a single rendering of their side profile.

To this day, no one knows what the Qianli Immortal Emperor looked like. The only thing later generations are certain of is that the Qianli Immortal Emperor belonged to the Demon Race. As for their true form, outsiders could never find out. Some speculate that the Immortal Emperor was originally a carp that cultivated into a demon, but this has always been mere conjecture, never proven.

’Qianli Immortal Emperor...’ Li Qiye gazed at the statue and sighed softly in his heart. ’Everything from that time has vanished into the mists of history. No one in later generations can ever trace what truly happened.’

"The Qianli Immortal Emperor seems so lonely," Lu Baiqiu said, a sense of solitude welling up within her as she looked at the back plunging into chaos. It was as if by entering that chaos, all worldly prosperity, all future glory, and all the prestige of being an Immortal Emperor became irrelevant to them. They vanished into the chaos, leaving only a lonely silhouette behind.

"The Great Dao is a solitary path," Li Qiye said with a soft sigh. "The myriad paths of the Great Dao are long and winding. As you walk them, many things will slowly fade away. The people who once walked beside you will also disappear. Even if someone accompanies you all the way to the peak, they too will one day leave. To walk the Great Dao alone... perhaps that isn’t a bad thing. It’s a day one must eventually face. There will come a time when you, walking alone, will plunge without hesitation into the boundless, endless chaos of the universe."

Lu Baiqiu was stunned by his lament. As she listened, it was as if Li Qiye’s entire demeanor had changed. He seemed to become desolate and forlorn, profound and so distant as to be unapproachable.

"A snot-nosed brat like you knows nothing of walking the Great Dao alone!" Just then, an imperious voice rang out. A young man was approaching them, followed by a large group of Qianli River disciples.

Even before the young man drew near, a scorching hot aura washed over them. The presence he exuded seemed capable of incinerating everything, so much so that even the Qianli River disciples trailing him dared not get too close.

Flames flickered all over the young man’s body. He was tall and handsome, and the flames emanating from him were interwoven with Laws, as if they were about to form a screen of Chapter Order. His Blood Qi seemed to have been brought to a boil by the inferno, seething without end. Just his proximity was enough to make one’s mouth go dry and throat feel parched, as if they were being dessicated.

No one would want to get near a person like this; he was simply too dangerous.

The young man was quite handsome. If not for his hair, which writhed like countless small, fiery red snakes, one might have mistaken him for a son of the Fire God.

As the young man drew near, he glanced down at Li Qiye with a condescending air. His arrival had already caused many of the sect’s disciples to stop and watch.

"First Senior Brother of Qianli River, Flame Dragon." Lu Baiqiu’s expression changed drastically at the sight of him. She spoke to Li Qiye in a hushed voice.

Flame Dragon was the First Disciple of Qianli River’s younger generation. Many of them believed that if Lan Yunzhu had never joined the sect, Flame Dragon would have become its successor.

Although Flame Dragon claimed to be a descendant of a Fire Dragon, his ancestor was actually a Fire Python that had attained the Dao, a type of Python Demon with an extremely strong fire affinity. His talent was extraordinary and highly regarded by the Elders of Qianli River. He was also the Direct Disciple of one of the sect’s Elders.

"First Senior Brother is here." Seeing Flame Dragon appear so suddenly and head straight for Li Qiye, many disciples stopped to watch, exchanging glances with one another.

To many of them, this was not the least bit surprising. They all knew that if Lan Yunzhu got a fiancé, the one to have the most violent reaction would be First Senior Brother Flame Dragon.

While many young disciples believed that First Senior Brother Flame Dragon would have become the sect’s successor if not for Lan Yunzhu, when Lan Yunzhu actually became the successor, Flame Dragon showed no displeasure. The reason was simple: he was also in love with her. In fact, many within Qianli River thought the two of them would make an excellent pair.

As the successor, the Elders of Qianli River naturally didn’t want Lan Yunzhu to marry outside the sect. Thus, one of the Elders had even tried to play matchmaker for the two of them. Many in the sect’s upper echelons would have been happy to see them become Dao partners, as it would have been an excellent outcome for Qianli River.

However, Lan Yunzhu showed no interest in the Elder’s matchmaking. Flame Dragon, on the other hand, remained very hopeful. After all, even a successor from an Emperor Immortal Gate had come to propose and failed to win her over. This meant that he, the First Disciple of Qianli River, still had a great chance. Moreover, many Elders within the sect were eager to see them become Dao partners.