Start slaying demons from the proficiency panel.

However, at the moment, they didn't know Ning Xiu at all and had no impression of him. He was like an unknown nobody who suddenly became the true king of this era.

boom!

Taking advantage of the five elders' distraction, the ancient immortal's servants seized the opportunity to work together to create a gap in the great formation and escape from the Ten Thousand Swords Immortal Slaughtering Formation. Now that the ancient immortal is not here, they can only intimidate the Heavenly City, but cannot completely eliminate him.

As for the ancient immortal servants, they dared not easily destroy the Celestial City.

After all, this world is the Purple Mansion of that immortal, and these celestial beings are all the best medicinal herbs grown in this medicine shop.

We just need to wait for the day when the ancient immortals return to this world, then we can use these celestial beings as materials to refine pills.

The ancient immortal servants dared not easily kill these celestial beings. All they could do was prevent them from escaping their grand plan and not give them a chance to leave this world.

As soon as they left the great formation, the ancient immortal servants immediately vanished into the void, making it impossible for the celestial beings to search for them.

"Damn it!" the five celestial elders roared in fury.

This time, the ancient immortal servants escaped, and it will not be easy to trap them again next time. The rare opportunity has passed, and the five elders are on the verge of being consumed by anger.

However, there is an even bigger problem right now: how to deal with this new emperor who has emerged in this era.

Is he friend or foe to the Celestial City, and what are his views on opening the Heavenly Gate?

The Celestial City is now in dire need of any powerful individual to join it.

As the pillar of starlight dissipated, the five celestial elders flew toward Ning Xiu, respectfully bowing and saying, "Greetings, new Emperor. May I ask how to address the new Emperor?"

The Evil Dragon King looked at the Five Celestial Elders with a serious expression. These were the five strongest beings who had survived the longest in this world. They had been lying dormant for countless eras, always staying in the Celestial City, existing only in legends, and were rarely known to outsiders.

However, the fact that all five of them appeared today indicates that Tianren City is truly planning a major change this time.

"Ning Xiu," Ning Xiu replied.

By forcibly elevating the Great Black Heaven of the Floating Pagoda, he embarked on the path of the Great Emperor, which can be said to be a path that no one can repeat.

"Your Majesty, please enter the city. You must have already seen what happened. We celestial beings are imprisoned in this realm. We originally intended to open the Heavenly Gate to leave, but those ancient immortal lackeys have been secretly observing and obstructing us for tens of thousands of years. They have no intention of letting us leave. Now that our grand plan has been exposed by the ancient immortal servants, we can no longer hide this matter. We beg Your Majesty to lend us a hand and help us open the Heavenly Gate, so as to contribute to the lives of all living beings in this realm."

Ning Xiu looked at the sealed bronze gate above the Celestial City and suddenly said slowly, "Have you ever considered that this Heavenly Gate is not real, but merely an illusion?"

"What??"

Upon hearing this, the five elders were stunned. Their predecessors had been searching for the existence of the Heavenly Gate in this realm for a long time, and only after finding it did they build the Celestial City beneath it.

The goal is to one day devise a way to open the Heavenly Gate and leave this world.

But now, someone is telling them that the Heavenly Gate is fake, which is unacceptable to the Five Elders of Heaven.

"Impossible! How could the Heavenly Gate be fake? It was only slightly opened just now, and celestial energy descended upon it. How can you say it's fake?"

Faced with the rebuttal of the Five Celestial Elders, Ning Xiu shook his head: "So you believe in the ancients too much, and you are deceived without even realizing it. Although I have never met that immortal, his methods are indeed extraordinary. He forged such a realistic Heavenly Gate. If I hadn't become the Great Emperor and had a clearer understanding of all things in the world, I probably wouldn't have been able to see this."

Ning Xiu's destiny star began to ascend to the heavens, until it arrived at the Heavenly Gate. The destiny star reached out and pressed down on the Heavenly Gate, and the Heavenly Gate, which was originally closed without any gaps, was slowly opened by Ning Xiu's destiny star, and the immortal energy inside drifted down again.

However, after a dozen or so breaths, the falling immortal energy gradually decreased and eventually stopped falling altogether.

The bronze door began to turn grayish-black, cracks appeared on its surface, and it shattered and scattered on the ground.

The Heavenly Gate has shattered!

Every celestial being in the Celestial City stared wide-eyed in disbelief. The Heavenly Gate, which they had been waiting for for countless eras to open, had shattered today!

This scene was no less devastating than shattering their Dao hearts.

"This isn't just a trick left behind by the immortals to keep you trapped in this realm. The true Heavenly Gate is elsewhere," Ning Xiu said.

"How is this possible..." The five elders of the Celestial Realm were distraught. They had not made any progress in their cultivation for many eras, all because of the Celestial Path.

If they cannot leave this realm, they will remain in their current state until death, unable to advance any further.

Therefore, leaving this world has always been the greatest hope of the celestial beings. But now, they have to realize that their hope for countless ages is false and nonexistent.

This was unbearable for them, and their mental state began to collapse.

"If the Heavenly Gate isn't here, then where is it? We've prepared for so many years to open the Heavenly Gate, but in the end, it's all for nothing..." The five elders of the Heavenly Realm looked somber.

Even Ning Xiu could sense that their inner fire was dying out, which meant that even though they were at the pinnacle of the Celestial Realm, the Five Elders of the Celestial Realm had already shown signs of spiritual death.

Even with invincible strength, if one cannot rise to a higher level or break through in this lifetime, and has no chance to leave, what difference is there between them and livestock locked in a cage?

"Have you searched deeper into this gray sea?" Ning Xiu asked.

After discovering that the Heavenly Gate was fake, his destiny star sensed a special aura hidden within it. If nothing unexpected happened, this aura was left behind by that immortal.

Deep within the Gray Sea, Ning Xiu also sensed a faint aura, extremely similar to the aura within the Heavenly Gate.

Therefore, the real Heavenly Gate is very likely located deep within the Gray Sea.

“No, no one knows where the end of the Gray Sea is. Even if the Celestials went to search, they would not be able to see the edge of the Gray Sea even after an entire era. The former Lord of Celestial City disappeared into the depths of the Gray Sea, and no one has ventured there since.” One of the Five Elders shook his head.

“I sensed a similar aura to that fake Heavenly Gate deep within the Gray Sea. If I’m not mistaken, the real Heavenly Gate should be hidden deep within the Gray Sea. Over all these ages, you’ve actually been quite close to the Heavenly Gate, but you were fooled by the fake one. There’s no need to be too discouraged,” Ning Xiu said.

He wasn't particularly interested in opening the Heavenly Gate to leave this realm. With the help of the Evil Heavenly Passage, Ning Xiu could easily break through the realm and leave on his own, without needing to confront the ancient immortals head-on.

The purpose of explaining this to the Five Elders of Heaven was simply to point them in the right direction.

After all, once beings like celestial beings lose their connection to life and their Dao heart becomes unstable, they will become self-destructive, with extremely serious consequences.

Furthermore, given the sheer number of Celestials in Celestial City, if they feel hopeless and their spirits collapse, they might be capable of anything, such as starting a massacre everywhere. In that case, the Great Shang Dynasty would also be in great danger. It would be better to give them a glimmer of hope and stabilize these people.

"Is that really so?" The expressions of the five celestial elders changed instantly.

The senior from Celestial City has searched every place in this world, but has never set foot in the depths of the Gray Sea.

After the last Celestial City Lord who went to the depths of the Gray Sea disappeared, Celestial City has not been able to elect a new city lord since.

After finding the Heavenly Gate, the Celestial City completely lost interest in what lay deep within the Gray Sea.

The current mention of the Heavenly Gate suggests that it may very well be hidden in that place, but the ancient immortals have set up some kind of means to prevent others from entering, which is why the exploration of the depths of the Gray Sea, which no one has ever been able to do before, has been successful.

"This matter needs further discussion. Those ancient immortal servants have escaped, and they will definitely do something to us. We must be on guard. They have already forcibly closed the Heavenly Gate once, and this cannot happen a second time."

"Please, Your Majesty, come into the city and stay in the Celestial City for a while. Since ancient times, every emperor has maintained a good relationship with the Celestial City, and I also hope to get to know the new emperor of this era."

At the enthusiastic invitation of the Five Elders of the Celestial Realm, Ning Xiu brought the Evil Dragon King and the Old Turtle into the Celestial Realm City.

As the gathering place of the most powerful experts in this world, Celestial City is a place of pilgrimage for countless Dragon Elephant Realm, Inner Realm Saint Realm, and Heavenly Dao Realm cultivators.

Since Ning Xiu rarely comes here, he should go in and take a look around, and also complete the Martial Saint's entrustment for him.

Inside the Celestial City, all the houses are built of black stone, creating a stark contrast with the city's gray tones.

Once one reaches the realm of a Celestial Being, aside from improving one's cultivation, one essentially loses all thoughts of life itself.

Eating, enjoying life, having offspring, treasures... all these things have lost their meaning for the celestial beings.

Eating is unnecessary for humans; the body has its own internal circulation that can prolong life.

They enjoy the spiritual connection between humans and nature, and material things are no longer something that can move them or make them obsessed with them.

Descendants of celestial beings may be exceptionally gifted, but becoming a celestial being is also a very difficult thing. Most celestial beings, after having offspring, will only watch their offspring die one after another until they are completely heartbroken. Offspring have no meaning for them.

Within this realm, celestial beings are already at the peak of their combat power, and no treasure can further enhance their strength; obtaining it would be meaningless.

All these factors combined led to the celestial beings gradually becoming devoid of desires, their only thought being how to open the heavenly gates and leave this world.

This is a group of powerful individuals who are already tired of this world. If we cut off their hope of leaving this world, it would be tantamount to destroying their spiritual pillar, and the consequences would be very serious.

A great emperor has arrived in the Celestial City, which is a very important event for the Celestials.

As Ning Xiu walked down the street, celestial beings would constantly emerge from their cultivation dwellings to see what the current emperor looked like.

Ning Xiu recalled the instructions given by the Martial Saint before his remnant soul dissipated, and asked the five elders of the Celestial Realm who were leading him, "Gentlemen, is there a person named Ji Yun in this Celestial City?"

"Ji Yun? There is such a person, but I remember he left home hundreds of years ago and we still don't know where he is. Does Your Majesty need to see him?"

“Several hundred years ago…” Ning Xiu pondered deeply. It seemed that the Three Saints of the Great Shang Dynasty appeared in the Great Shang Dynasty around that time. Could there be some connection between the two?

However, now that the Three Saints are dead and Ji Yun has disappeared, Ning Xiu no longer needs to worry about the rest. He only needs to hand over the Heavenly Dao Stele to the Heavenly City. He has come all the way to the Heavenly City, and his purpose has been accomplished.

“Elder, I was entrusted by a senior to bring something back to Celestial City. Since Ji Yun is not here, you will receive it.” Ning Xiu took out the Heavenly Dao Stele of the Great Shang Dynasty, and the five elders of Celestial City immediately showed emotion.

"Is Xiao Hetian... alright?"

Ning Xiu was stunned. He never expected that the Five Elders of the Celestial City, the five people with the highest status in the Celestial City, would remember the names of the Three Saints.

"Do any of you know this senior of mine?" Ning Xiu asked curiously.

"Of course we know. As the youngest prodigy in Tianren City, we once thought that as long as he could step out of the Heavenly Gate, his future realm would be limitless. However, after he left, we never heard from him again. It's a real pity. Now we plan to open the Heavenly Gate. If we could take him with us, that would be something I really hope to see."

Ning Xiu's expression was somewhat regretful: "Senior, after leaving Celestial City, chose to abandon his cultivation and start anew. He is no longer here."

Upon hearing this, the five celestial elders all fell silent. Many celestial beings once believed that as long as they abandoned their cultivation and started anew to fight for that sliver of the Great Emperor's Path, they would have the possibility of escaping this world.

However, putting aside the question of why only one Great Emperor is born in each era, the Celestial City has already investigated and found out that once a person chooses the Celestial Path, his soul will be completely tainted by the karma that prevents him from leaving this world.

Even if one abandons their cultivation and starts over, it will not achieve the effect of escaping this cause and effect. Therefore, starting over is useless. Even if Xiao Hetian is able to cultivate back to the Heavenly Dao Realm later, he will not be able to break through again.

"It's a pity. If he could have waited for this day in the Heavenly City, there might still be a glimmer of hope. We will keep this Heavenly Dao Stele, which can be used to strengthen the Myriad Swords Exterminating Immortal Formation."

After arranging an empty room for Ning Xiu, the Evil Dragon King, and the Old Turtle, the Five Celestial Elders departed.

The fact that those ancient immortal servants escaped today is a considerable pressure for them, so they must hurry back to prepare for any follow-up measures in case the ancient immortal servants use any methods left behind by the ancient immortals to deal with them and make a comeback.

"It's been so long since I've been to Celestial City, and it's also been a long time since I've stayed in this black rock house that contains the power of the Heavenly Dao. I really miss it," the Evil Dragon King sighed, stroking the wall of the house.

“If you had insisted on staying in Celestial City back then, you would probably be at the level of the Five Elders by now,” the old tortoise, now in human form, said as he sat cross-legged on the ground.

The Evil Dragon King gave him a speechless look: "If I had stayed in the Celestial City, I'd probably be just like these people now, worrying every day about how to open the Heavenly Gate to survive."

"Even if you feel that the Path of Heaven and Man is not to be followed, a new Great Emperor has emerged in this era, and the Path of the Great Emperor has been extinguished. What will you do then? Will you continue to stay in the Realm of Harmony with Heaven? The lifespan of the Realm of Harmony with Heaven is limited, and you will eventually die when your lifespan ends," the old tortoise asked.

"That depends on our new emperor. Perhaps he can help me solve this problem," the Evil Dragon King said to Ning Xiu with a smile.

As the Evil Heavenly Passage is not of this world, the Evil Dragon King firmly believes that it must contain a cultivation technique that can lead him to a completely new path of cultivation.

I may not be able to comprehend the Evil Heavenly Power, but Ning Xiu is different. Ning Xiu has a talent that even the Evil Dragon King would admire. With him and the Evil Heavenly Power, the current problem will definitely no longer be a problem in the future.

Ning Xiu found a spot in the room to sit cross-legged. Having just broken through to the Great Emperor realm, he needed to quickly consolidate his power and familiarize himself with the differences after becoming a Great Emperor.

Just as Ning Xiu entered a meditative state, his consciousness suddenly entered a strange world, which was not his original sea of ​​consciousness.

This is a calm lake, and I am standing on it, surrounded by endless water.

Just as Ning Xiu was wondering whether he should leave the spot, the lake suddenly became like a mirror, showing a series of reflections.

Ning Xiu looked down and was slightly surprised. It turned out to be his past memories from when he entered the champion camp until now, with every scene clearly and without any difference.

"We meet again." An old voice rang out from all directions.