Primordial Era: I am a treasure trove, full of magical treasures.

On the battlefield, the sounds of battle shook the heavens.

The battle between Chi You and Xuanyuan had lasted for ten days and ten nights. The two fought from the ground to the heavens, and then plummeted from the clouds to the bottom of the abyss. Wherever they passed, mountains collapsed, rivers flowed backward, and everything in their path was devastated. The soldiers watching the battle could no longer see the two figures clearly, but could only feel the earth-shattering energy fluctuations, wave after wave, as if they would never stop.

But in reality, the course of this battle had already been clearly planned.

Chi You unleashed a powerful slash, the Tiger Soul Blade carrying immense force, sending Xuanyuan flying back dozens of miles. Xuanyuan steadied himself, a trickle of golden blood spilling from the corner of his mouth—of course, this was under the influence of Chi You's power, and also to make the scene appear more realistic.

"Xuanyuan, sometimes I really envy you!" Chi You, carrying his greatsword, stood atop a cloud, looking down at Xuanyuan. "You were born to be the Human Emperor, while no matter how hard I try, I can't compare to someone born with such a privilege?"

Xuanyuan wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, gripped the Xuanyuan Sword tightly, and his gaze was as firm as iron: "Chi You, you are wrong. No one is born a human emperor. To me, human emperor is just a title. Even if I am not human emperor, I will dedicate my life to the rise of the human race!"

"Moreover, Chi You, you have done enough for the human race. Even if you don't have so much infamy, in my opinion, you deserve to be called the Human Emperor."

Chi You: ...

"You! Fine, I can't argue with you, but promise me you'll lead humanity to glory. If you don't live to see it, I'll kill you."

Chi You spoke very seriously to Xuanyuan, expressing that he would absolutely keep his word.

Seeing Chi You's serious gaze, Xuanyuan's body trembled, knowing that the final moment had arrived.

"Don't worry, if you want to harm the human race, you'll have to step over my dead body. As long as the human race lives, the human race lives; when the human race dies, the human race survives."

The two, who were originally sworn enemies, now looked at each other with complicated expressions.

"Alright, let's get started. It's time to put an end to the centuries-long war between humans."

Xuanyuan, knowing the time had come, raised the Xuanyuan Sword high. The sword radiated a dazzling golden light that soared into the sky, piercing the clouds and illuminating the entire Battlefield of Zhuolu. Within the golden light, countless figures could be vaguely seen—the spirits of humanity's sages, the ancestors who had fought their entire lives for the rise of humanity. Their will was concentrated in the Xuanyuan Sword, transforming into a vast and boundless power that surged into Xuanyuan's body.

Chi You looked at the golden light, a fleeting hint of satisfaction flashing in his eyes, before he reverted to his ferocious demeanor: "Stop playing tricks! Take my blade!"

He swung his sword again, this time with six-tenths of his strength. The sword light tore through the void, carrying a world-destroying force, and slashed down towards Xuanyuan!

Xuanyuan neither dodged nor avoided the blade's edge, but instead thrust his sword forward to meet it head-on!

"boom--!!!"

The moment their swords clashed, an unprecedented energy storm erupted! Centered on the two, the clouds within a radius of tens of thousands of miles were instantly shattered, the earth cracked open with bottomless fissures, and even the distant mountains trembled violently!

Golden light and demonic energy intertwined and collided, ultimately—

Golden light gained the upper hand.

Chi You's body flew backward like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily to the ground and creating a crater a hundred feet deep. The Tiger Soul Blade in his hand flew out and stuck in the ground not far away, its blade humming.

"Cough...cough cough..." Chi You lay at the bottom of the pit, black blood spilling from the corner of his mouth. His heavy black iron armor was covered with cracks, making him look extremely disheveled.

Xuanyuan slowly landed in front of him, the Xuanyuan Sword in his hand pointing at his throat, the tip of the sword trembling slightly. His face was also somewhat pale, and his breathing was unsteady, clearly indicating that the attack just now had also consumed a lot of his magical power.

Chi You lay at the bottom of the pit, looking at the sky above him that was dyed with golden light. He was silent for a moment, and then suddenly grinned.

That smile was complex. There was relief, liberation, and a hint of...gratification that Xuanyuan couldn't understand?

"It's all over now." Chi You's voice was soft, yet it clearly reached the ears of everyone present. "Xuanyuan, from now on, the human race is in your hands. Remember your own words."

Chi You slowly closed his eyes, and his aura began to dissipate rapidly.

The demonic energy that had surrounded him dissipated like the receding tide. His body began to become transparent, as if it might vanish into the world at any moment.

"Chi You!" Xuanyuan's heart tightened, and he subconsciously wanted to reach out to pull him, but he stopped halfway through his hand.

He knew that this was Chi You's choice.

Chi You's body transformed into starlight, slowly rising into the sky and dissipating between heaven and earth. The starlight drifted onto the battlefield of the Jiuli tribe, landing on the Jiuli warriors who had already "died" in battle, as if bidding a final farewell to their sacrifice.

The entire Battlefield of Zhuolu fell into a deathly silence.

Then, I don't know who was the first to shout it out—

"Long live the Yellow Emperor!"

"Long live the Yellow Emperor!!"

"Long live the Yellow Emperor!!!"

Cheers surged like a tidal wave, one wave higher than the next, resounding through the sky. The three hundred million soldiers shouted in unison, their voices shaking heaven and earth, even dispersing the dark clouds and revealing the long-awaited sunshine.

Xuanyuan stood at the edge of the giant pit, looking at the place where Chiyou disappeared, and remained silent for a long time.

He knew that Chi You was not dead.

Just moments before Chi You vanished into starlight, he clearly sensed an extremely subtle spatial fluctuation that had quietly transported Chi You's true form away. That spatial fluctuation was incredibly subtle; had he not been the Human Emperor, intimately connected to the fate of the human race, he probably wouldn't have noticed it at all.

"Thank you, Brother Chi You," Xuanyuan said silently in his heart, then turned around, raised the Xuanyuan Sword high, faced the three armies, and said loudly:

"Issue the order—Chi You has been slain, and the remaining Jiuli tribes who surrender will not be killed! From this day forward, humanity is unified, and the world is one!"

"Long live! Long live! Long live the Emperor!"

Cheers resounded once again throughout the land.

The battle for supremacy has come to an end.

However, not everyone was basking in the joy of victory.

Among the crowd, several monks dressed in gray robes stared intently in the direction where Chi You had disappeared, their brows furrowed. They were the Western Sect's spies stationed among the humans, responsible for monitoring the progress of the Battle of Zhuolu. According to the plan, they were supposed to confirm Chi You's fate as soon as possible after the battle and relay the news back to the Western Sect.

But what they had just witnessed left them feeling deeply uneasy.

Chi You was a quasi-saint, yet he was defeated so easily!

Logically, the fall of a quasi-saint level expert should have caused extraordinary phenomena in the heavens and earth—disruptions in the laws of nature, surges in spiritual energy, and possibly even the collapse of space in certain areas. However, after Chi You's death, nothing happened except for the starlight effect. The laws of heaven and earth remained stable as usual, and the flow of spiritual energy was smooth and unobstructed, as if Chi You had never died, but had simply... departed.

"Something's not right," the gray-robed monk at the head of the group said in a low voice. "There's something fishy about Chi You's death."

"Senior brother, then what about us..." another monk asked cautiously.

"Return to Mount Ling immediately and report to the Sage." The gray-robed monk made a decisive decision. "This matter is of utmost importance; the Sage must be informed as soon as possible."

The monks exchanged a glance, then silently withdrew from the crowd, transforming into streaks of light and speeding westward.

On the battlefield where the deer were vying for supremacy, before the cheers had even subsided, the sky suddenly changed color!

The dark clouds that had been dispersed by the golden disc player regrouped, but instead of the leaden gray war clouds of before, they displayed a magnificent rainbow of colors. These auspicious rainbow clouds rolled in from the horizon, covering the entire Battlefield of Zhuolu.

Xuanyuan looked up at the sky, his pupils contracting slightly.

He sensed it—it was the will of Heaven.

Not only the Way of Heaven, the Way of Earth, and the Way of Humanity—three paths of merit descended simultaneously!

"They're here."

Xuanyuan took a deep breath and gripped the Xuanyuan Sword tightly. He knew that this moment was the true confirmation of his right to the throne.

Three enormous beams of light fell from the sky at the same time!

The first beam of light, a chaotic color, vast and boundless, contained the supreme majesty of the Heavenly Dao. As the beam struck Xuanyuan, he felt a surge of information flood his mind—the Heavenly Dao's recognition of his achievements, a reward for unifying humanity and ending the chaos.

The second pillar of light, a deep, dark yellow, was heavy and stable, embodying the earth's capacity to encompass all things. The moment it struck, the Deer Chasing Field beneath Xuanyuan's feet trembled violently, and streams of spiritual energy from the earth's veins surged forth like giant dragons, converging into his body. His aura began to surge—peak of the Great Luo Golden Immortal realm, early Quasi-Saint stage, mid-Quasi-Saint stage…

The third pillar of light, a deep crimson gold, warm and intense, embodied the hope of humanity's enduring legacy. The moment this pillar descended, Xuanyuan heard countless voices—the prayers, hopes, and blessings of millions of ordinary people. These voices coalesced into a vast power of will, surging into the depths of his primordial spirit, allowing him to break through his cultivation level once more!

Peak Quasi-Saint!

Xuanyuan's aura steadily stopped at the peak of Quasi-Saint! He was only one step away from the Saint Realm!

However, this is just the beginning.

Suddenly, a huge crack appeared in the sky.

From the crevice, boundless golden light surged forth, even more vast than the previous three pillars of merit combined!

The golden light split into several beams, shooting off in different directions—

The largest amount naturally flowed into Xuanyuan's body, helping him stabilize his peak Quasi-Saint realm, and even showing a faint tendency to advance towards the Saint realm.

The second stream entered Xuandu's body. Xuandu was sitting cross-legged in meditation when suddenly his whole body trembled, and his aura surged, directly breaking through from the peak of the Great Luo Golden Immortal to the Quasi-Saint. He opened his eyes, his eyes filled with great joy, as this saved him countless millennia of cultivation.

The third stream of merit dispersed into countless tiny streams, flowing into the bodies of the disciples of the three sects. Those cultivators who had stood up for humanity in times of crisis and made great contributions in the Battle of the Deer felt a warm current surge through their limbs and bones, and their cultivation levels broke through one after another. Some broke through three realms in succession, some attained enlightenment on the spot, and several elders who had been stuck at their bottlenecks for many years seized this opportunity to break through to the Great Luo Golden Immortal realm in one fell swoop!

In an instant, the aura of breakthroughs rose and fell throughout the entire human territory, like firecrackers popping and crackling incessantly during the New Year.

The greatest merit, however, fell upon the human race itself.

That power of merit did not fall into any individual's body, but instead merged into the fortune of the entire human race. In an instant, the golden dragon of human fortune let out a dragon roar that shook the nine heavens, its body swelled several times its original size, its scales and claws flew, its eyes were like lightning, and it exuded an unprecedented majesty and confidence.

At this moment, the very essence of humanity underwent a qualitative change.

Originally, the Human Path, although one of the three paths of Heaven, Earth, and Man, was always suppressed by the Heavenly Path and even inferior to the Earthly Path. After all, the Heavenly Path had the Dao Ancestor Hongjun presiding over it, and the Earthly Path had the Goddess Houtu incarnating as reincarnation, while the Human Path—although it had the Three Sovereigns ruling the world and the Five Emperors establishing order, it always lacked a supreme being who could truly represent the will of the Human Path.

But today, things are different.

Xuanyuan unified the human race, ending centuries of internal strife and bringing the human race's fortune to an unprecedented height. With the blessing of the three merits and the resonance of the wills of countless sages, the origin of humanity finally broke through the shackles and ascended to a level on par with the Earthly Dao, though it was still far inferior to the Heavenly Dao.

A grand and far-reaching Daoist sound resounded between heaven and earth.

The sound seemed to come from the beginning of the universe, or perhaps from the future, countless eons later. The sound resonated throughout the three realms; whether it was the gods of heaven, the ghosts of the underworld, or the reclusive cultivators practicing in the deep mountains and forests, everyone heard it clearly.

The tunnel emitted a cheerful hum, as if welcoming a new colleague, but the Heavenly Dao... well, it didn't react at all.

At that moment, humanity itself radiated an unprecedented brilliance. That brilliance was warm and unwavering, like the rising sun, illuminating the hearts of everyone.

The soldiers, still grieving the loss of their comrades after a brutal war, felt their sorrow soothed by an invisible force when the light shone upon them. Instead, they felt an unprecedented sense of pride and belonging—they had fought for humanity, for the future of humanity, and their sacrifice had not been in vain.

Those who toiled diligently in the rear, silently supporting the front lines, also felt that radiance. They stopped their work, looked up at the sky, and their faces revealed simple and sincere smiles. They knew that from this day forward, humanity was no longer the weak race that could be bullied at will. Humanity had stood up.

Standing atop the high platform, Xuanyuan felt the surging power within him and the boiling aura of the entire human race, a surge of indescribable pride welling up within him. He raised the Xuanyuan Sword high, pointing it to the heavens, and proclaimed in a resounding voice:

"Heaven's Way is above, Earth's Way is below, and Humanity's Way is ahead—I, Xuanyuan, the sovereign of humanity, swear this oath here today!"

"All of us, the people of humanity, should strive unceasingly and cultivate virtue to bear the weight of responsibility!"

"Anyone who offends my human race, no matter how far away, shall be punished!"

"Those who protect my human race will never be forgotten!"

The three vows resounded like thunderclaps throughout heaven and earth, echoing endlessly. The three fundamental principles of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity trembled simultaneously, as if responding to his vows.