The sea gradually calmed down.
Chen Xia breathed heavily, his face pale, stowed his immortal sword, and his imperial blood flowed into the sea. His mental energy was severely depleted, and he didn't have the energy to care about anything else. With a smear of blood on his body, he prepared to leave.
Emperor Witch and his combat prowess were indeed very close. The two were probably at a six-to-four ratio, with Chen Xia holding the advantage due to his previous complete fusion with East Jia State. This temporary boost in strength had worked out correctly for him.
After this fierce battle, Emperor Witch fell into the sea, disappearing without a trace. Chen Xia wasn't faring much better either; his spiritual lake and mind sea were vibrating, and he was just a couple of battles away from exhaustion.
But he had won. That made him the most powerful great emperor in the world. Martial Emperor and Daoist Suppressing Heaven were not considered great emperors; they held the title of supreme beings.
"The outcome of the battle has been decided. So, what do you plan to do next?" Daoist Suppressing Heaven asked Martial Emperor.
Martial Emperor rubbed his head, his golden eyes pausing for a moment before shaking his head. He sighed.
"This really is a tough question. If I had a choice, I would slightly favor Emperor Witch. Chen Xia is very strong and good, but the problem is that he's just too strong, and that brings a lot of trouble..."
He chuckled softly and continued.
"But since things have come to this, I can accept it."
"What about your next move, then?" Daoist Suppressing Heaven asked again.
"Simple," Martial Emperor replied, turning to face Daoist Suppressing Heaven with a calm expression.
"I'll kill you."
Daoist Suppressing Heaven's expression was even more placid than Martial Emperor's, as if he had already anticipated this outcome. He nodded.
"Then I'll wait for you to come."
"Fine," Martial Emperor responded, his figure disappearing from East Jia State and leaving the Celestial Realm. He began searching the entire universe of myriad realms for Daoist Suppressing Heaven's true body.
The Immortal Realm was surprisingly calm at the moment. The cultivators stared blankly at the shattered sky, the massive void hole hovering above the immortal realm, astonished and unsure what to do next.
Chen Xia slowly made his way back to Heaven Pill Gate with his heavily injured body, greeted by Xu Zhen and Huang Qingyue and the others at the mountain gate.
Emperor Capital was still ecstatic, raising his arms and shouting, "Chen Xia, my most proud idol!"
Suddenly, Chen Xia's body faltered, and he spat out a mouthful of blood, gasping for breath weakly.
Xu Zhen and Huang Qingyue's faces immediately filled with worry, rushing to support Chen Xia on both sides.
The others behind them were also concerned.
"Oh no, Chen Xia, I was wrong! I won't shout randomly anymore!" Emperor Capital quickly stepped forward, thinking it was his fault and hurriedly apologized.
Chen Xia waved his hand lightly and said in a soft voice, "It's not your fault. The battle was just too intense. This Emperor Witch was really troublesome. The Dao was almost knocked out of me, and the injuries are severe. A Daoist at the fifth level of the great emperor realm actually managed to push me this far. It's really unbelievable!"
"...No comment," the group said silently, because if they remembered correctly, Chen Xia was only at the fourth level of the great emperor realm.
"Take some pills and recuperate," Wang Yangzi walked forward from behind, handing Chen Xia a top-grade medicinal herb that nourished the spiritual lake.
Chen Xia accepted it, swallowed it, exhaled a breath of bloody turbid air, and continued.
"The Immortal Realm should be calm for a while, and then it might be the final stage. I'll discuss with Daoist Suppressing Heaven to see if I can send you all away first."
The crowd fell silent, lowering their heads. Although they didn't want to leave, they knew staying in East Jia State would only add pressure to Chen Xia.
No one spoke, and the atmosphere was heavy.
Chen Xia forced a smile with his pale face, waving his hand and saying, "Don't worry, it's just a short goodbye. Once I become a supreme being and handle the troubles in the Immortal Realm, we can all reunite in the Blue Sky Sword Sea. Isn't that a good thing?"
The expressions of the crowd varied, each turning their head in different directions, no one willing to speak first.
"Y-yes... it's a good thing," Chi Yu, who was usually silent, spoke up first, nodding firmly to Chen Xia, "You will definitely return, leading the entire Blue Sky Sword Sea again."
"I will," Chen Xia replied with a smile.
"I believe in that too," Big Yellow Dog said, standing behind them, offering his trust.
The others then nodded one by one.
It wasn't exactly an abrupt separation. After all, they had been together for so long, and it wasn't happening right away, just in the future.
Life had many stages, and they were just moving on to the next one.
Thinking of it that way, it was easier to accept.
Chen Xia slowly walked back into the mountain gate, finding a quiet place to recuperate and think about his cultivation.
At the deepest part of the sea in the Immortal Realm.
Emperor Witch opened his eyes, staring blankly at the darkness above. Many sea beasts swam past him, attracted by the imperial blood flowing from Emperor Witch. As soon as they got close, they suddenly turned into black mist, becoming healing nutrients absorbed into Emperor Witch's body.
"I lost." After a long while, Emperor Witch finally spoke these words.
He looked calm, unaffected by the loss. His injuries were more severe than Chen Xia's, and he didn't move much at the moment. This allowed him to think deeply.
The depths of the sea gradually quieted, losing all movement, and even the light couldn't penetrate.
Emperor Witch floated quietly, unknowing of the passage of time, waiting for everything to become silent before closing his eyes and nodding gently.
"Losing is just losing."
He was not one who couldn't accept defeat.
Lord of the Divine Realm stood at the foot of Heaven Pill Gate, contemplating for a long time before finally ascending the mountain. He entered the resting area where Chen Xia was repairing his injuries and proposed a deal.
"How about making a trade?"
"You speak," Chen Xia replied from a bench, propping his head up while facing him.
"I'll give you Treasure Ring Scale State. In return, protect the Divine Realm."
"Why can't you protect it yourself?"
"Because in Martial Emperor's plan, we great emperors at the fifth level of the major realms are just chess pieces, while you and Emperor Witch are the true candidates for supreme beings. Now that you've won against Emperor Witch, Martial Emperor will undoubtedly choose you as the supreme ruler and give you control of the Immortal Realm."
"I naturally become a discarded piece, and losing to you is something I accept willingly. But I don't want the Divine Realm to be affected later on. So I can give you Treasure Ring Scale State beforehand. If you can achieve a preliminary sense of the world earlier, you won't be so constrained by Martial Emperor."
Their gazes met, each conveying their intentions.
"Agree to it," Daoist Suppressing Heaven suddenly appeared, adding further, "One more moment of sensing the world is another chance. With your current strength, reaching the fifth level would allow you to match a supreme being, and the sixth level would match Martial Emperor."
"Alright," Chen Xia agreed without hesitation, nodding cheerfully.
Lord of the Divine Realm's expression was calm, and he suddenly sighed.
"The Immortal Realm is a massive whirlpool. I thought I would be one of the anglers, but I turned out to be just a fish in the whirlpool. The true angler is only Martial Emperor."
"That's alright," Chen Xia said with a smile, waving his hand, laughing heartily, "I specialize in countering anglers."