The Path of the Martial Arts BOSS-Chapter 1200 - 225: Xue Ya’s Helplessness

"Boom—"

With a loud crash, a large section of the city wall collapsed, and the array plate beneath it shattered as well.

Defeat descended as swiftly as a mountain avalanche, yet to see it happen in less than two hours was indeed rare. The siege was over, and the city had fallen.

Most importantly, the three strongest fighters of Daqian fell too quickly. As a result, the Northern Zhou army could advance swiftly, led by warriors of the Divinity Realm.

"Too fast."

A blood shadow appeared outside the city, gazing with blood-red pupils at the distant battle in the sky. "I intended to launch a surprise attack but didn't expect Daqian to fall so swiftly."

The blood hue faded, revealing a gentle and elegant face. It was none other than Xue Ya, the sect hierarch of the Blood Demon Sect, who had taken on the identity of King Renyi.

Nowadays, Daqian and Ji Province are like lips and teeth, dependent on each other. If Daqian falls, Ji Province will be Northern Zhou's next target.

Xue Ya did not wish for the powers he painstakingly built up to turn into ashes again, hence he resolved to assist Daqian in repelling Northern Zhou.

But despite all his calculations, Xue Ya never predicted that two of Daqian's strongest fighters would falter at the onset of battle. Even if Yama remained formidable, the tide was irreversible.

Even if Xue Ya intervened, he could only temporarily hinder Yin Tianxia or War Beast Sky Slaughter, keeping the supreme forces in balance. But no one could counter the Four Swords used by the Heavenly Demon Locking God Barrier against the strongest warriors.

In any case, Daqian was destined to lose.

"Lord Qingyu's might prevails over the world. Even that old fox Xinyuan from the Great Zen Temple died at his hands. The Human Emperor was gravely injured by him, and it's unknown if he's alive or dead. The world is no longer ours."

His words betrayed a sense of bewilderment.

Recalling the heyday of the Blood Demon Sect, when they unleashed blood calamities and harvested essence blood, now Xue Ya dared not even make a move.

The enormous changes over the years left even a powerful figure like Xue Ya perplexed.

The world is no longer one where the strongest can stir up chaos. Now, only one person could dominate the winds and clouds—Lord Qingyu.

Unfortunately, he couldn't pledge allegiance to Lord Qingyu.

Thinking about this, Xue Ya sighed softly.

Hostilities with Lord Qingyu ran deep. Even though the daunting Qingyu might not see Xue Ya as a threat, others under Qingyu's command would not easily allow Xue Ya to join them.

The advantage of being insignificant to Qingyu was avoiding targeted suppression, but the downside was that even as a supreme force, Xue Ya lacked sufficient leverage to be accepted by them.

"I, once a supreme, now have become like a rat crossing the street, truly ironic," Xue Ya laughed bitterly at himself.

"Even a rat crossing the street has its uses."

An inexplicable voice made Xue Ya's heart falter.

"Who?!"

The demon sect leader instantly churned up layers of blood waves, crashing in all directions. He himself transformed into several blood shadows, merging with the Blood River, and fled in different directions.

Silently and effortlessly approaching him, even revealing his speech didn't expose himself—such skill unequivocally surpassed Xue Ya, unwinnable.

Educated harshly by reality time and again, Xue Ya reached this conclusion and chose to vanish without a trace.

Nearly ten blood shadows merged with the Blood River, fleeing in different directions, soon distancing twenty li away from Tianjing City.

But...

"Roar~"

The sudden appearance of the Xuanhuang Dragon coiled around the shadow merging with the Blood River, precisely and accurately capturing Xue Ya's true body.

"Xuanhuang Dragon Qi..."

The blood shadow, composed of blood water, flickered between real and illusory, yet was firmly bound by the Xuanhuang Dragon.

"You are the Human Emperor!" Xue Ya cried out in surprise.

The Human Emperor, rumored to be severely injured, unexpectedly appeared near Tianjing City, and did not participate in defending against the Northern Zhou battle.

"If I reveal myself now, I fear I'd inevitably meet my end..."

An old and weary voice slowly came from behind. Xue Ya spun his head nearly 180 degrees, seeing the hunched silhouette.

It was hard to imagine the Human Emperor appearing so destitute.

His spine slightly hunched, face showing signs of illness, and wearing hemp clothing, he looked like an old man with half his body in the grave.

Upon seeing the Human Emperor's visage, a frightful sensation surged from within Xue Ya, striking his mind.

The Human Emperor, even injured, possessed the power to capture him—what about when he wasn't injured? And what of Emperor Zhou and Ren Piaomiao who injured him?

And...

Qing Yu?

Xue Ya realized he had gravely underestimated Qing Yu's strength.

"Hehe, no need for panic. Even with these injuries, as long as I stand on the earth, I can exert nearly sixty percent of my strength, not quite to the point of truly dying," the Human Emperor chuckled softly.

"Qing Yu's strength hasn't reached that level yet."

He glanced at Xue Ya, his cloudy eyes seemed to peer into Xue Ya's heart, into the truth within his spirit.

As Xue Ya met his gaze, he felt a wisdom shining within those worldly, reality-illuminated eyes, almost surreal.

"You... are you the union of several Human Emperors?" Xue Ya couldn't help but ask.

"The other Human Emperors have all merged into my spiritual sense. You can refer to me as Tian Xi, or call me the 'Nine Emperors'," the Human Emperor spoke in a measured tone.

Nine Emperors?

In Xue Ya's mind, an epiphany sparked.

As expected, the Nine Emperors united, producing the most complete Human Emperor.

Back when he followed Dao Ancestor, Xue Ya heard from Dao Ancestor, possessing Xuan Du, that if the Nine Emperors combined, they'd be invincible unless a Tao Realm descended. Only then could they be defied.

However, if a Tao Realm descended, it would mean the Limit of Human and God had been broken, and the Nine Emperors could also be promoted to the Tao Realm.

At that time, the outcome between Tao Realms remained uncertain.

But now, the unified Human Emperor was severely injured, suggesting that even the Nine Emperors weren't invincible.

"Right before awakening, I was attacked by the combined Tao Realm strikes of Lord Qingyu's two avatars, severely injured. One misstep, and I failed," the Human Emperor seemed to see through Xue Ya's mind and said.

This move by the Confucian School was a misstep of his own, acknowledging this openly.

Realistically, without the Heavenly Extreme Holy Light's existence, the Human Emperor would have succeeded. No one expected that Northern Zhou's century-old Haqi River would be the key to the First Generation Human Emperor's awakening—only the First Generation Human Emperor himself, and even other Human Emperors were unaware beforehand.

This misstep was largely an act of fate, perhaps.

Of course, Qing Yu's keen instincts also played a significant role. Had he not acted against the Mountain River Academy in time, the First Generation Human Emperor might have seamlessly awakened.

"Your success or failure, Human Emperor, does not interest me," Xue Ya chuckled bitterly, "I just wish to live well now."

Having faced so many hardships, Xue Ya now simply wished to bide his time, staying low for a few centuries before emerging again. After all, his lifespan was certainly ample.

If Qing Yu manages to break the Limit of Human and God, maybe he could even find a way to reach the Tao Realm.