However, what concerned the other cultivators the most was not these details, but rather the concept of the "Way of Humanity" mentioned by the Emperor!
"Could it be that the Emperor has discovered a new cultivation system?"
"The Way of Humanity, what kind of Dao is this exactly?"
"We've never heard of it before. Is the Way of Humanity truly viable?"
The cultivators continuously discussed this matter.
They didn't understand, but the Emperor had already created so many miracles that no matter how unbelievable something seemed, it was not impossible for him.
Therefore, this time they refrained from making any definitive judgments and decided to continue observing.
They had been proven wrong so many times recently that they were too afraid to make hasty conclusions.
In the past, no matter which Dao the Emperor chose to cultivate, he could achieve remarkable results in a very short time.
The most critical point was that in his later Heavenly Dao cultivation, the Emperor took just over a year to progress from a mortal to a Great Emperor—a cultivation speed unprecedented in history.
Now, with this Way of Humanity, five years had passed without any noticeable progress or breakthrough.
Heavenly Dao and Human Dao! It seemed that cultivating the Human Dao was even more challenging than the Heavenly Dao? No one could be sure.
After all, the Emperor's rapid progress in the Heavenly Dao was partly due to the blessings of heavenly fortune and partly due to the celestial volume of the Shanhe Sheji Map, which recorded the methods of cultivating the Heavenly Dao.
This time, the Emperor did not obtain a corresponding human volume and had to explore cultivation entirely on his own, making the difficulty imaginable.
The cultivators pondered how such a Human Dao could be cultivated, but they had no clues.
However, for the sake of cultivating the Human Dao, the Emperor lived in the mortal world and immersed himself entirely among mortals.
Sometimes, people truly saw the Emperor as just another mortal.
The Emperor's past five years had been exceedingly ordinary.
Thus, the cultivators speculated.
It was likely that the key to cultivating this Human Dao lay in experiencing the seven emotions and six desires of mortals.
By understanding mortal life and comprehending a mortal's existence, one could achieve the Human Dao!
...
During those five years, Chuyang often appeared atop a mountain, overlooking the village, observing the lives of the people.
Some led simple lives, some faced hardships, and some endured suffering only to find eventual joy.
Chuyang could clearly feel these various emotions from the people.
A mortal's life rarely involved grand events or significant changes.
In just a few decades, from the cry of a newborn to the return of an old man to the earth, a mortal's life could be summarized in a few words.
And it was these simple words that could take a lifetime to write.
This was the extraordinary aspect of an otherwise ordinary life.
Chuyang understood that to truly grasp a mortal's life, he had to become a real mortal himself and personally experience its profundities.
This was why Chuyang chose to stay in a mortal village for five whole years!
...
"Understanding life and experiencing the seven emotions and six desires of mortals?"
Yaoguang Empress's beautiful eyes showed a slight trace of emotion.
At that moment, it seemed she had reached an epiphany. The doubts that lingered deep in her heart began to unravel.
Seeing this, she finally understood.
Why, after five years of mutual support, did he ruthlessly suppress her within the Sun God Star in the end?
Even a dog, after five years of companionship, would develop feelings.
But not the Emperor.
This showed that, from the beginning, the Emperor had only been using her.
Those five years were merely a way for the Emperor to gain a deeper understanding of the mortal world.
He never had any real feelings for her.
She finally realized the reason for the Emperor's subsequent cold and ruthless behavior.
Her eyes flashed with cold light as she gritted her teeth and said, "Chu Yang, I never thought the truth would be even more cruel than I imagined. You were so ruthless to me!"
Other cultivators who saw this began to discuss among themselves.
"Perhaps it is precisely because the Emperor got along well with mortals over the years that he issued those laws favoring mortals after becoming Emperor."
"This might be the reason why the Emperor chose to protect the human race!"
The cultivators voiced their opinions.
Before this, during his childhood, the Emperor had suffered greatly from human treachery. In his heart, he always maintained a respectful distance from humanity.
However, later on, the Emperor chose to protect the human race.
With this experience, it seemed more reasonable.
The Yaoguang Empress, hearing this, sneered, "The Emperor protects the human race? What a joke!"
"Do you know how many human cities the Emperor destroyed afterward, how many mortals died in that overwhelming bloodshed?"
"A single city held tens of thousands of people, and he destroyed more than ten human cities!"
"He later chose to protect the human race only to prevent them from becoming extinct. After all, his cultivation path relied on the faith of humans to continue!"
All the cultivators were stunned upon hearing this.
Indeed, many ordinary cultivators resented the Emperor because, in the early years, their ancestors had been slaughtered by him.
This blood feud could not be forgotten!
However, they never imagined that the Emperor's massacre of the human race would come so swiftly!
Could it be that the Emperor's drastic change in character started here?
Throughout the Emperor's life, there were three, or rather, four significant massacres!
The first was against the demon race, almost exterminating them. The second was also against the demon race but was not as severe, so it was not heavily recorded.
The second major massacre was against the entire human race, a bloodbath.
The third began after the Emperor usurped the throne, killing the first Emperor and succeeding him. It was a massacre against all cultivators on the Myriad Spirit Continent.
However, because mortals were too weak, even if they were slaughtered, it did not cause much of a stir.
Ye Fan couldn't help but laugh upon hearing this.
Emperor, oh Emperor, I didn't expect to see you change so quickly and wield the butcher's knife!
"The Emperor's childhood suffering was due to some persecution by humans, but now the human race is impeccable to him, yet he still chooses to slaughter them!"
"I always said the Emperor is cruel and bloodthirsty, such a person does not deserve sympathy!"
"Although mortals are weak, that does not justify indiscriminate slaughter, especially when tens of thousands of lives were lost at the hands of the Emperor, showcasing his cruelty."
"In the cultivation world, the law of the jungle is normal, and there are cultivators who kill mortals, but they would never slaughter recklessly, as they also need to maintain their reputation!"
"Who could have imagined that the Emperor would commit such cold-blooded and brutal acts!"