Chapter 601 332: A Great Emperor Needs No Conferment

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, a year had passed.

Zhao Rui had successfully refined his Power, systematically sorting through his once-disordered Divine Techniques.

During this time, he rarely returned to the secular world, living in near-total seclusion.

Now that his work was complete, he naturally felt a yearning for the mortal realm.

With a jolt of his True Qi, he shook off the dust that had accumulated over the past year. In a flash, his body vanished from the mountaintop.

The Qingcheng Mountain Range stretched on, vast and unending!

The moment Zhao Rui appeared, he caught the attention of the few Mountain Guardian Beasts. They shot out from the mountain ravines, moving like soaring dragons and leaping tigers, circling him and roaring incessantly.

"Haha, you've all learned your lesson. You're actually acting like proper Mountain Guardian Beasts now."

Zhao Rui couldn't help but laugh as he looked at Chi Hu and the other top-tier Exotic Beasts.

They had originally only taken up temporary residence here. But as Zhao Rui's strength grew to the point where no one on all of Blue Star was his match, these Exotic Beasts, having long since gained sentience, knew to align themselves with the powerful.

None of them ever mentioned leaving.

During the period Zhao Rui was gone, they had contentedly served as Mountain Guardian Beasts.

Not long after the Divine Beasts appeared, Master Weichen led a group of Elders out to greet him, treading upon the clouds and mist of the ravines.

"We respectfully welcome the Great Emperor!"

The crowd chanted his title in unison. The sacred True Words pierced the clouds, echoing for hundreds of kilometers.

It was a case of a rising tide lifting all boats. The stronger Zhao Rui became, the greater the overall advancement of Qingcheng.

With the Divine Techniques he had left behind and the immortal status he guaranteed, their resources and Cultivation conditions were far beyond what they once were.

Now, the entire Qingcheng Sect not only boasted five masters at the Domain Realm but had also seen the birth of countless True Dharma Masters.

Their strength had long since surpassed that of other sects like Shaolin and Wudang.

"There is no need for such pleasantries, Masters. We are all family here; such ceremony is unnecessary."

Zhao Rui offered a few humble words, but only a few.

'There are some rules that, even if you don't care about them, carry a different meaning depending on whether others take them to heart and treat them with importance.'

'I can be friendly, but you must know your place.'

"Great Emperor, you have been away for a long time, and we have missed you dearly. Ginseng tea has been prepared in the mountain. Please, Great Emperor, enter the main hall for a chat."

Master Weichen chuckled and waved his Horsetail Whisk, inviting Zhao Rui into the mountain.

Zhao Rui nodded and stepped onto the void, walking into the grand hall in the mountain as if taking a leisurely stroll through a courtyard.

The disciples waiting quietly at the foot of the mountain were dumbstruck when they saw this, their eyes filled with utter adoration.

Walking on the void was not the same as simply flying through it.

This had reached another Realm entirely—a Realm where heaven, earth, and all of creation were within one's grasp.

"The Great Emperor is getting more and more powerful."

"This is truly a blessing for Qingcheng."

The disciples couldn't help but stand up a little straighter.

Zhao Rui's arrival was not kept secret, and soon, all of Blue Star knew of his return.

Though no one knew what he had been doing during his time away, his mere return was enough.

No one could afford to feign ignorance.

And so, in an instant, all the major powers began contacting Qingcheng Mountain through intermediaries, inquiring when Zhao Rui might have time to see them.

Upon hearing the report, Zhao Rui closed his eyes. With a flash of his Divine Thought, he took in the state of the entire Blue Star.

In that same flash, Zhao Rui's voice appeared in the minds of the leaders of all the major powers.

"Business as usual!"

Hearing his words, the leaders of the powers were all stunned. One by one, they bowed in reverence across the distance, saying, "We shall obey the Great Emperor's decree!"

No one had appointed him, nor was anyone qualified to.

Thus, Zhao Rui had openly, rightfully, and naturally become the one and only Great Emperor of all of Blue Star.

Though he did not involve himself in worldly affairs, the Great Emperor's might swept across the world, and his words, none dared to disobey!