The Human Emperor

One month flew by much faster than expected. The clouds of war thickly covered the Central Plains, and a somber mood engulfed the land.

At this time, on the Turkic steppe, black clouds roiled and sandstorms howled.

The once lush and glossy grass of the steppe had been influenced by Heaven’s altar formation, the grass wilting and crumbling into sand. It was like all life was being absorbed by that glassy, golden barrier. While it was bright and resplendent above, the ground was dead and somber.

In the center of the steppe, divine sealing characters floated in the air, dividing the earth in two like a giant sword.

As the vast army of humanity converged on the Turkic steppe, behind that vast barrier, countless golden-armored figures were at work.

Their eyes were cold, and they exuded an extremely ancient and powerful aura. This was clearly Heaven’s Celestial Army.

At this moment, an officer of the Celestial Army commanded these countless soldiers in constructing a giant altar.

Atop the altar, countless mysterious and bizarre patterns had been drawn. If Wang Chong had been present, he would have undoubtedly recognized them as the forms of the Doomsday Insignias.

This was that Doomsday Altar that Wang Chong so feared.

On a high platform next to the altar, Essence Supreme looked down at the working figures and asked, “What is the progress of the Doomsday Altar?”

The war was imminent, and Heaven had yet to appear. All affairs in the north were currently under Essence Supreme’s supervision.

A figure that was clearly a head taller than the other Celestial Army soldiers bowed his head and respectfully said, “Venerable One, it will be done in three days!”

“Mm.”

Essence Supreme nodded, a hint of satisfaction in his eyes. Looking to the south, he spoke once more.

“Have you investigated the situation of that Child of Destruction?”

This was the final war for civilization. The entire Celestial God Organization had been mobilized, as had the Celestial Army. Such a thing had happened only a few times in the history of the Celestial God Organization.

Across countless epochs, any opponent that had faced the Celestial Army had crumpled under its sword, obliterated into dust.

Across countless epochs, the Celestial Army had never lost.

And this wasn’t even considering that Heaven himself was descending with his true body.

But Essence Supreme knew that their opponent this time was the legendary Child of Prophecy, the one who would supposedly destroy the entire Celestial God Organization. Even if there was only a one-in-ten-thousand chance, he had to be taken seriously.

“Venerable One, those human armies finished gathering together yesterday. They number around seven million,” that person said, telling Essence Supreme everything he knew. “From what we have learned, there is another human army that is on its way from the western world.”

The Celestial Army was formidable, but this did not mean that they only knew how to fight. The gathering of information and intelligence was also one of the skills they had needed to master.

“Hmph, seven million? No matter how many they send, it’s no different from suicide.”

Essence Supreme coldly snorted, utterly unconcerned.

Numbers meant nothing to the Celestial Army. In front of the Celestial Army, let alone seven million, even seventy million would just be cannon fodder. This fact had been proved countless times.

Buzz!

Suddenly, a mental wave rippled through the air and entered Essence Supreme’s mind.

Essence Supreme was taken aback, and then he began to loudly laugh.

“Haha, it’s finally begun! Hear my order! Gather the army and prepare for battle!”

……

……

Rumble!

A few moments later, the thundering of hooves came from the southern end of the Turkic steppe. From Essence Supreme’s location, he could see a black cloud that spanned the horizon approaching the north with an astonishing momentum.

Banners blotted out the sky while weapons glinted with cold light. As this army approached, the Turkic steppe shuddered and trembled.

A somber mood gripped the earth.

Tang!

Resplendent golden dragon banners snapped in the wind, as thickly packed as a forest.

On the northern side of the battlefield, Essence Supreme, Grand Supreme, and Radiance Supreme, as well as numerous Fallen, looked toward that imposing army, and even the proud Essence Supreme was slightly shaken.

This was not the first time they had faced down a unified human army. When the survival of the world was at stake, all the human factions would often come together.

But even though they had seen numerous united human armies, this army was undoubtedly the strongest they had ever seen. It wasn’t purely because of numbers, but because their energies were fused together into a single and intimidating whole.

This human army was far stronger than they had anticipated.

At that moment, everyone’s face turned grave.

Whoosh!

The winds howled as the army continued to advance northward. Wang Chong, the Demonic Emperor Old Man, the Wushang Village Chief, Su Zhengchen, Bahram, Zhangchou Jianqiong, Crown Prince’s Junior Guardian Wang Zhongsi, former Ü-Tsang Imperial Minister Dalon Trinling, Great General King We Tadra Khonglo, Ozmish Khagan, Yeon Gaesomun… all of the human world’s sovereigns, generals, and elite experts had gathered here, mounted upon chariots or warhorses as they advanced in a line toward the north.

In the very rear of the army was a bronze carriage surrounded by countless soldiers of the Imperial Army and flying the imperial nine dragon banner. Within the carriage, a young figure sat, his face grave and his eyes determined. This was none other than the Great Tang’s Son of Heaven, Li Heng.

The Son of Heaven protected the gate of the country, and the sovereign died for the realm. Since ancient times, the Son of Heaven normally presided over the court and rarely went personally onto the frontlines. But now, there was no rear to speak of. If Wang Chong were defeated, the entire human world would be wiped out. There was no point in Li Heng remaining at the rear.

If the Son of Heaven lived, the realm would live. If the land died, the sovereign would cease to exist!

This was the excuse Li Heng had used to convince Wang Chong.

When the nest was overturned, would any egg escape intact?

In this battle, they would live together or die together. It was not just Li Heng who understood. Amidst the massed ranks of the army, there was a very special division.

Song Yuanyi, the Formation Elder, the Lone Silence Ancestor, the Black Yin Ancestor, the Myriad Ghost Ancestor, the Bone Devil Ancestor… almost all the experts of the martial arts world were here.

The Imperial Court and martial arts world had always been separated from each other, with the martial arts sects never meddling in the affairs of the court. But this war was not some simple war between secular powers.

If they did not defeat Heaven, all of humanity would be wiped out, and the sects would cease to exist with it. This was a war of life or death.

In the center of the army, a young figure was mounted on a horse, his expression confident and his eyes calm. His every movement stood out as much as the sun and moon. He was the center of the world, the undisputed center of attention on this battlefield.

“The day is finally here!”

As he looked at the world-spanning barrier and that giant altar vaguely visible behind it, a thought occurred to Wang Chong.

After living two lives, working from nothing, and going through countless efforts, he had finally arrived at this day.

The Great Tang had not declined, and the general stars, wise ministers, and Great Generals of humanity still shone brightly. All of them were at his side, forming the strongest army in the history of humanity.

Most importantly, the world was united and free of internal discord. The Turks, the Hu, the Mengshe Zhao, the Arabs… all of the factions of the world had been brought together. Though it was impossible to change the fact that the disaster would come, he could at least choose to establish an army of unprecedented power to take his opponent and this disaster head-on.

His mind was hardened with unprecedented resolve.

But Wang Chong quickly got ahold of himself.

“Old Eagle, Zhang Que, how are the preparations?” Wang Chong suddenly said.

“Milord, the army is here, and the supplies have also arrived,” the two replied in unison.

Everything was ready except the east wind. The army was at its peak and could take on any opponent.

About ten thousand feet away from the barrier, Wang Chong swung his arm down and gave the order.

“Set up the fortifications!”

Boom!

The millions of soldiers that had been advancing to the north with majestic momentum suddenly stopped.

Following Wang Chong’s order, countless craftsmen pushed forward countless carts which were piled with crates of steel modules.

Boom! The carts dumped their loads of steel modules, and then the craftsmen began to work, hammering metal and setting up steel defense lines with astonishing speed.

These craftsmen worked with incredible efficiency. Striding forward, squatting down, tightening nuts, connecting parts, installing beehives… all of their actions were extremely concise, with no extraneous movements. It took only a few moments for a defense line around seven meters high to appear in the northern battleground, followed by a second, a third…