Shrouding the Heavens: The Ruthless Heavenly Emperor

There is no smoke of gunpowder here, only tranquility.

At night, the starry sky is dazzling, with countless stars twinkling brilliantly. A bright crescent moon hangs high in the sky, its surface radiating a pale golden light, but when it shines on the ground, it appears cold and serene.

Xu Changqing vanished from the dense forest in a flash. He planned to stay there for a while, as he hadn't had a proper rest in a very long time.

Moreover, with such intense killing intent, there is no suitable environment for enlightenment. Therefore, it is best to refrain from fighting and killing during this period and instead wait out the next phase in peace.

At night, he passed through a small town.

Under the moonlight, rows of houses lined the streets of the small town, with bright red lanterns hanging above them. Dark figures moved about in the windows, accompanied by laughter and chatter, creating a lively atmosphere.

It's not late now; according to the time, it's only a little past 8 PM.

Xu Changqing sensed that the cultivators here were not strong, with the strongest being Dao Gong, who was stationed in a large house in the center of the city.

"Haha, today is my day to be a dad!"

Beside the street, there was a willow tree. Under the willow tree, several young children were playing and frolicking. There was a pile of sand and mud at their feet. They were playing house.

At the entrance of some courtyards, some elderly people with white hair were sitting, some old men and some old women, discussing who had an accident or whose family had someone die.

Some people also talked about their dashing days, recounting just how handsome they were back then.

"Today is Chinese New Year, have you made any plans for next year?"

"Why think so much? It's the New Year, don't think so much. Everyone should be happy and have a joyful reunion, eating New Year's Eve dinner. It's not good to talk about next year's plans."

"Brother, let's go set off firecrackers!"

The town was bustling with activity, every household filled with laughter and joy. Children, their faces beaming with happiness, carried their parents' New Year's money and headed to various shops.

Through the windows of houses in the town, five or six people were gathered together, chatting and laughing, some drinking loudly, and some relatives who had not seen each other for several years had returned.

A myriad of lights illuminate the mortal world, a scene usually reserved for ordinary people. But cultivators often spend years in seclusion, and it's unknown how long it has been since they've experienced such a reunion.

What exactly are they pursuing?

Immortality?

But after achieving immortality, all those familiar people will be gone. What's the point then?

Embark on the imperial path and conquer all directions?

But not everyone is the protagonist.

Their goal is to become emperors, and once they become emperors, they will be revered by the entire universe and invincible among all the heavens. But so what? They can live as happily as mortals.

Xu Changqing did not envy anything here.

He was surrounded by countless lights, yet none were lit for him. But so what? He was destined to walk a path that prevented him from fitting into this environment.

"Is this young man from out of town?"

"How can someone so young have white hair? That's so unlucky."

Some people on the street sighed when they saw Xu Changqing.

Moreover, some elderly people could tell from Xu Changqing's expression and eyes that he was a very lonely person, exuding an aloofness and an indomitable spirit.

"Young man, have you eaten yet? Would you like to come to my house for a meal? It'll be fun to have some fun." An older woman with a warm smile walked up to Xu Changqing, took his hand, and tried to pull him into the house.

Although Xu Changqing had a full head of white hair, he was truly handsome, though he looked somewhat cold.

Xu Changqing hesitated for a moment, but did not refuse, and followed the old woman into a simple house.

The reason there was no refusal was simply because she was reminiscing about her past life.

He did not extinguish all humanity or emotions, but rather removed what he considered to be shackles of emotion.

As for killing countless people, that's to nip it in the bud and prevent all sorts of trouble from coming to our door.

An oil lamp hung on the wall, and upon entering, the room was filled with a strange smell, a smell that was hard to describe.

The taste was both familiar and strange, like the first time I went to a friend's house.

Inside the house, there was an old man and four young boys and girls.

Two men and two women.

They were good-looking, but their skin was rough and sallow with large pores, and they were also a bit dark-skinned. They wore linen clothes, but the fabric looked very new.

"Come on, let's eat something together." The enthusiastic middle-aged woman pulled Xu Changqing to sit down at a small table and then served him rice.

Xu Changqing remained silent, sitting quietly and occasionally glancing around. The four young men and women all stared intently at him.

"Young man, are you married?"

"Hey buddy, where are you from?"

The enthusiastic middle-aged woman asked all sorts of questions, showing great curiosity. However, her ultimate goal was to find out whether Xu Changqing had a wife or a woman he liked.

But Xu Changqing simply shook his head, his eyes turning colder.

The people here are very warm and simple. I miss my past life, but that was just the past.

Now, his heart is as firm as a rock, and no one can shake his resolve.

After countless years of hard work and struggle, I have developed a heart of steel.

He came here only to calm his murderous intent, not to be tempted by the beauty of this place.

In the days that followed, there was only blood and tears, only the battlefields engulfed in flames, and the breathtakingly beautiful epic of the imperial road to slaughter.

Why not just enjoy it now?

Chapter 42 Calculation

Xu Changqing quietly observed everything around him, then took a small bite of rice, a cold glint in his eyes.

He slowly raised his head and found that everyone around him was staring at him.

"Big brother, what's wrong? Is the food not good?" A little girl blinked her innocent big eyes and asked Xu Changqing naively.

“We slaughtered our own hen that we’ve raised for years, and we can only eat it once a year. How could it not taste good?” A boy with pimples on his face picked up the bowl of chicken soup in confusion and drank it down in one gulp.

There was nothing wrong with what I found.

He looked at Xu Changqing with a strange expression.

Xu Changqing smiled, stood up, walked to the three children, gently patted their heads, and said, "How could that be? The food you made was delicious."

At this moment, a change occurred within his body; black lines appeared in places unseen.

"boom!"

Suddenly, Xu Changqing squeezed hard and crushed a little girl's head. White and red blood splattered on the table, and a column of blood shot up from the sky, covering the entire room.

It felt like some kind of poison was spreading through his body, which made him think that there must be something wrong with the food.

However, it doesn't seem to affect him.

Everyone was stunned, their eyes widened, and their fingers trembled as they pointed at Xu Changqing. They opened their mouths, wanting to say something, but no sound came out, as if something was stuck in their throats.

"you you."

The middle-aged woman pointed at Xu Changqing, her whole body trembling.

Several children were still being held by the head by Xu Changqing, but then a series of explosions rang out, turning the once cozy room into a bloody mess. The pungent smell of blood spread, assaulting people's senses.

"Stop pretending." Xu Changqing sneered, and then with a wave of his hand, the entire house exploded.

He only realized now that something was wrong with the whole world from the moment he sat down, but he didn't think much of it at the time.

It seemed as if the entire town's setting was arranged for him, to disturb his mind, or rather, to disrupt his state of mind.

What a coincidence!

On the Emperor's Road, although there are ancient life stars, there are not many mortals and weaklings; there are more or less some strong people.

But this town is not only mostly populated by ordinary people without any cultivation, but even the Dao Palace is the strongest.

Moreover, that food would be harmful to him, causing black threads to appear in his body. These black threads could block his meridians, making his divine power or cultivation techniques flow unevenly.

But it's not a big problem.

"What am I pretending for?!"

The next moment, the old woman saw bloodstains and various brain matter all over the room. She was so frightened that she collapsed to the ground, crying uncontrollably and holding the headless corpse on the ground.

Such adorable children, they're only a few years old, how could anyone do this to them?

"I'm going to kill you!"

The old man was not frightened; instead, he took a kitchen knife from the kitchen and slashed at Xu Changqing.

With tear stains on his face and bloodshot eyes, he looked like a demon crawling out of purgatory.

"when!"

However, when the cleaver struck Xu Changqing, it only produced a metallic clang, without even a spark.

There wasn't a trace left.

Xu Changqing's eyes were cold. He turned to the side, stretched out his right hand, stuck his thumb and ten fingers together, and then flicked the old man's head.

With a bang, his head exploded like a watermelon falling from the rooftop.

Next, the old lady who was holding him was also shot in the head by him.

This puzzled Xu Changqing. These were truly ordinary people, so how could they have the ability to drug him without him even noticing?

"Hey!"

Suddenly, a terrifying sword light appeared in the void. The sword light was dazzling and illuminated the entire night sky. Everyone in the town was stunned. Then they saw the house explode, bringing with it a shower of blood.

"puff!"

The sword light was incredibly fast, so fast that Xu Changqing didn't even have time to react before it pierced his shoulder, splattering blood.

Then, his entire shoulder was pierced by the light, and his arm fell off, spurting out blood.

After the first strike, the sword light reappeared, this time targeting Xu Changqing's neck.

However, he was already prepared. He picked up the severed hand, put it back on his shoulder, and activated his healing technique to recover from the injury.

His indifferent gaze, like that of a hawk in the night, stared intently into the void, yet he sensed no presence whatsoever.