The Human Emperor

Translated by: Hypersheep325

Edited by: Michyrr

“Fine, follow me!”

After some thought, the Lone Silence Ancestor nodded, and then he swam forward like a big fish.

Splashsplash! As the two began to move, the splash of water came from behind them.

Bzzzz! Electricity seemed to arc through the bodies of the pair as they trembled in shock and glanced at each other with grave looks in their eyes.

The waters of this underground river were extremely cold, and most importantly, unlike the rivers of the surface, they were extremely calm. The only sound was that of its flow, and there would not be any splashes unless an external object entered.

“Someone’s come in!” Wang Chong sternly said, his straight brows creasing.

This underground river was not at all easy to discover. If there was one way to get in this place, it was moving aside the mountain-shaped incense burner and finding the passage beneath it.

“I wonder who it could be?”

The Lone Silence Ancestor frowned, a pensive look in his eyes.

“These people are coming for us!”

Wang Chong shook his head. The Lone Silence Ancestor might not have had the proper perspective to determine if these were friend or foe, but Wang Chong was sure that it was the men in black. Only they would have the reason to doggedly pursue him, finding him no matter where he fled.

Moreover, the passage into this river was precisely in the palace guarded by the fifth-generation successor. The incense burner covering the passage had probably been destroyed during the battle, allowing the men in black to find the passage and realize what was going on.

There was only one passage, but the men in black had not found him despite so closely pursuing him. It was very easy to connect the dots.

Splash!

As he conversed with the Lone Silence Ancestor, an even louder splash came from behind him. The other party was beginning to swim toward them at astonishing speed.

“Run!”

The Lone Silence Ancestor’s eyes narrowed as he pulled on Wang Chong and swam forward.

Several hundred meters behind them, several powerful figures were swimming through the river like dragons, getting closer and closer to Wang Chong’s position.

These people were shrouded completely in black robes, leaving only their eyes exposed, and they exuded a mysterious aura.

Wang Chong’s guess had been correct. The ones behind them truly were the men in black.

“Hurry! Search this place from end to end! There’s only one underground river, and there’s no way for them to escape. No matter what, we have to capture that brat!

“The Origin Immortal Village Chief is already in the hands of our lord. Only that foul brat is left! If we can’t complete the mission, you all know what will happen!” the third bamboo hat man coldly said, his voice transmitted through Psychic Energy to the men in black behind him.

“Yes! Milord!” everyone replied in unison.

The third bamboo hat man quickly focused his gaze up ahead.

Roooar!

Water gathered around the bamboo hat man, shrouding him as he transformed into a serpent dragon some ten meters long.

Only now did the third bamboo hat man reveal that he also possessed a formidable Water Element art.

Bang!

In a spray of water, the third bamboo hat man summoned raging waves to push himself and the men in black around him to go faster and faster.

While his strength might have been limited in the caves, in the water, not only was he not weakened, he actually became stronger.

“Kid, you can’t escape!”

The bamboo hat man’s eyes flashed with sharp light as he charged forward.

“So fast!”

Wang Chong and the Lone Silence Ancestor instantly sensed what was going on behind them, and their minds were shaken.

“Let’s go!”

A bright light gleamed in the Lone Silence Ancestor’s eyes, and a moment later, the pair began to swim even faster. But unlike the sound and fury behind them, the pair moved without a sound, the water parting before them so as to reduce the resistance they faced.

And as the Lone Silence Ancestor pulled Wang Chong forward, Wang Chong could sense that they were both being dragged forward by an enormous pull in the water itself.

This pull seemed completely natural and inconspicuous, but the power behind it was far greater than the third bamboo hat man’s serpent dragon.

As Wang Chong spread out his Psychic Energy, he sensed that a massive three-pronged trident had appeared in the river ahead them, ten-some meters long and formed from the river waters.

This trident exuded a profound and ancient energy.

“This is…”

Wang Chong’s eyes twitched and widened in realization.

The Gonggong Divine Art!

Wang Chong immediately remembered a powerful Water Element art that very few people in the Central Plains knew about.

This art was said to have been passed down from ancient times by the Water God Gonggong1. It possessed an incredible ability to control water. While few records of it existed in the records of the Central Plains, Wang Chong had come upon a record or two during the apocalyptic era.

The most obvious symbol of the Gonggong Divine Art and the easiest way to recognize it was the giant Gonggong Divine Trident that would appear at the user’s side when the art was used in the water.

Wang Chong had always believed that the art had been lost, but now, to his surprise, he was seeing the Lone Silence Ancestor using it.

No wonder the Lone Silence Ancestor can control the weather and summon the rains, in addition to becoming much stronger when water is present! Wang Chong quietly said to himself.

As the Lone Silence Ancestor had not said anything, Wang Chong naturally did not expose him. Every person had their secrets, and the Lone Silence Ancestor was no exception.

The Lone Silence Ancestor did not notice the shift in Wang Chong’s expression, as his eyes were completely focused forward.

“Just who are these fellows? Everyone here is coming for the Origin Immortal Art, but these people seem intent on hunting us down. We can’t even hide by jumping into this river. And these people are too mysterious. Even martial arts titans like us who have lived for many years have never heard of them, and they also seem to have some deep relationship with those Origin Immortal Villagers!” the Lone Silence Ancestor muttered. He had not connected this matter to Wang Chong at all.

His mind was still pondering the conversation between the bamboo hat leader and the Origin Immortal Village Chief.

This conversation had clearly been a great shock to martial arts titans like him and the Black Yin Ancestor.

Wang Chong said nothing, but his expression turned grave. The battle in the cave back there had actually managed to cover for him.

Wang Chong suddenly changed the subject. “They’ve sped up. It seems like they won’t rest until they catch us!!”

Wang Chong’s words also had the Lone Silence Ancestor realize what was going on, and he frowned once more.

“Let’s go! We’ll swim up ahead. The air is lacking, so they won’t be able to last for long and will have to leave!” the Lone Silence Ancestor sternly said.

“It’s useless! If my guess is right, they should also have those green leaves.”

Wang Chong shook his head, and his words caused the Lone Silence Ancestor’s heart to sink.

Wang Chong had obtained the leaves from the body of an Origin Immortal Villager, and the men in black had captured quite a few villagers, so they had probably also obtained the leaves. Moreover, the men in black clearly had some understanding of the Origin Immortal Villagers, so Wang Chong wouldn’t have found it strange if they had prepared similar items beforehand.

“Ah? Then what do we do?”

The Lone Silence Ancestor paled.

There was a danger in traveling this underground river. If they swam too far and used up all their leaves before they could find another exit or get back to the surface to take in air, they would be the ones who died.

And most problematic was that they couldn’t expose themselves. The men in black had only conjectured that they were in the river, but they had no firm evidence.

But once they were discovered, even more men in black would enter the river, perhaps even the man with the three-eyed deer mask joining them.

This was something that Wang Chong and the Lone Silence Ancestor had to worry about. They had no desire to actually engage in a pitched battle with the men in black.

Rumble!

As the two conversed, they swam forward at full speed. Suddenly, a massive trembling came from overhead. Some invisible energy seemed to be pushing at the ore vein above them, causing it to tremble and shake.

Moreover, the pair could also hear a deafening clanking of gears that chilled their hearts.

Wang Chong suddenly realized what this was.

“It’s the Origin Immortal Villagers!”

Only the Origin Immortal Villagers were capable of operating the switches throughout the underground space. However, this sound was simply too loud, and even that vast ore vein was trembling.

What a powerful mechanism! The Origin Immortal Villagers must have sensed danger and activated it to use against the men in black! Wang Chong quietly said to himself.

The two of them had been in the river for some time. This had allowed them to avoid the vast majority of dangers, but it had also made them clueless of the situation in the caves.

But based on the shaking, the battle at the final barrier was undoubtedly fierce.

“Not good!”

As he was thinking, he heard a cry of alarm. His blood ran cold as he looked around and noticed that the walls of the underground river were trembling, sending large blocks of dirt and stone into the water. And fifty to sixty meters ahead, the rocks above the river collapsed, a massive boulder slamming down and blocking off the river.

Wang Chong and the Lone Silence Ancestor instantly paled.