The swordsman's innate abilities were average, his cultivation average, and his state of mind average.
The most important thing was that he was poor; he was so poor that apart from his dream of traversing the world, he only had the wooden sword with him.
The swordsman in a shabby shirt came to a small town called Jiangnan. The sun had set and a bloody moon loomed in the sky.
Standing in front of the town, the swordsman muttered, "I'll just rest here."
As usual, every time the swordsman traveled to a new place, he would rest for a few days, gather materials, and be on his way.
"Is this really Immortal Emperor Changge? How can he look so haggard?"
"The wandering swordsman only has a wooden sword... so the Immortal Emperor is the same as me?"
"Absolutely not! Unlike the Immortal Emperor, you will never reach that pinnacle!"
"?"
"I'm curious. What kind of tribulations did the Immortal Emperor go through from becoming a poor swordsman to the first Immortal Emperor of the ancient times...!"
"Ahh! Immortal Emperor Changge is handsome even in his desolate era!"
Hundreds of millions of cultivators were curious about the path to becoming an emperor; some hoped to peek into the secrets.
There were also female cultivators attracted by his appearance, causing the other sex to look at them oddly. There are always female cultivators with such an odd angle. How did they allow their cultivation to fall to this state?
***
When the fallen swordsman entered the city, he bumped into a middle-aged couple.
The swordsman heard the middle-aged couple was preparing to sell their daughter.
"That stinky girl will be seven years old in ten days and a half. She'll be able to marry the Lin Jiansheng, the son of the Lin Family."
"Although Lin Jiansheng's son is born stupid, he is the first swordsman in our Qingzhou City. When that stinky girl gets married, Lin Jiangsheng promised us hundreds of acres of fertile land and a high-grade horse!"
"Hundreds of acres of fertile land?! In this life... I won't have to worry about food and clothing!"
"There's also the high-grade horse! We'll be able to travel the world with ease!"
The couple was very happy and left with a smile; they never once mentioned their daughter.
"This pair of parents... what a beast! They would sell their daughter for money?"
"Seven-year-old child? What is this?"
"There were parents like them thousands of years ago."
"Why are we shown this scene? Could it be that the Immortal Emperor has something to do with them?"
"I don't know. We'll find out soon enough."
Hundreds of millions of cultivators talked and scolded the parents.
Xiao Zhen was even more confused.
'What does this picture mean? Why can't I understand it? And what does the golden light covering Ye Changge mean? Could it... could it be that he's not dead yet?!'
Shock filled his core at the thought that Ye Changge might not be dead.
'No! That can't be! I'm sure he's dead. If he's not dead, then I'll kill him again. Otherwise, if that terrifying fellow survives...'
It was too scary to think about!
Xiao Zhen took a slight breath, recovering the power in his body.
He'll destroy Ye Changge's body in one fell swoop after recovering all his strength!
The cultivators did not notice that above the sky, standing in front of Ye Changge's corpse, was the red-eyed and white-haired Empress Chiyue staring at the middle-aged couple in the projection. She froze in place, her soul quivering.
Forget about healing.
Her worldview was about to collapse!
'How is this possible...? How could they be like this... no! It can't be true! It can't be!'
Empress Chiyue's lips quivered.
That couple was her parents.
She had missed them dearly.
She couldn't believe that her amiable and selfless parents would be that kind of person.
She couldn't picture such evil people with the kind memories she had of her parents.
Her parents were not that kind of people! They weren't!
She didn't believe it.
No, this was Ye Changge playing tricks on her!
She'll expose him! She has to expose Ye Changge's mind in front of the cultivators! Let those cultivators who worship Ye Changge see who he really is!
Empress Chiyue took a deep breath and suppressed her unstable aura.
She needs to stay calm.
This was fake.
It has to be!
Empress Chiyue looked at the projection, her gaze piercing.
***
After entering the city, the worn-down swordsman found a ruined temple with plenty of sunshine and shelter from wind and rain. He made himself comfortable and began practicing swordsmanship.
He had no money; he couldn't afford to live in an inn or eat.
The more he practiced, the more hungry he became.
Cultivation consumed one's physical strength.
"Ughuuh! an embarrassing voice echoed.
The swordsman touched his glabella.
Hungry.
The swordsman fumbled through his pocket and found silver that had been melted.
"Forget it. Bear with it... just wait until tomorrow."
***
Seeing this scene, hundreds of millions of cultivators couldn't help but be a little surprised. In their minds, every life the Immortal Emperor lived should be amazing, not this dismal and ordinary.
"Was this the Immortal Emperor's first life? It's... worse than mine."
"Yeah! It's miserable, so miserable that he can't even eat."
"I thought the Immortal Emperor was a born genius!"
"Looking at the swordsmanship the Immortal Emperor practiced just now, I'm sure he hadn't entered the Round Sea Realm just yet! He's no different from an ordinary cultivator."
"What? Ordinary cultivator? Are you saying that Immortal Emperor Changge is... mediocre?"
"Perhaps his first life had tempered his state of mind?"