Suddenly, several powerful figures in the Da Zhou Imperial Palace erupted in anger.
"Who dares to trespass into my Da Zhou Imperial Palace? How dare you?!"
"Who are you people, to enter my Da Zhou Imperial Palace? Do you seek death?"
Though the Da Zhou Dynasty was currently in a weakened state, it was not inferior to most factions in the Qingyun Realm. Especially now, with their War Emperor having ascended to the rank of a Human Emperor, Da Zhou had regained confidence and felt it was on par with any power in the Qingyun Realm.
At a time when Da Zhou was gaining momentum, with their War Emperor's ascension stirring the most powerful of currents, the audacity of someone provoking the Da Zhou Dynasty could only be seen as a direct slap to their face in front of the entire Qingyun Realm.
Suddenly, several figures appeared before the palace.
"Bring out your Human Emperor, Da Zhou!" Bai yu, with a scornful look, bellowed as he gazed at the towering Da Zhou Imperial Palace. To them, a mere lower realm power was no threat. If not for the suspicion that Qin Tian, the one who had descended from the Upper Realm, might be involved with Da Zhou's princess, they would have already mobilized the Da Xia army to crush Da Zhou into oblivion. He didn't look down on the lower realm powers per se; he simply had no respect for those without any connection to the Upper Realm.
The Upper Realm and the Lower Realm were worlds apart, and even an ordinary faction from the Upper Realm could be a dominant force in the Lower Realm. This was not mere rhetoric; it was a fact.
"Four Human Emperors and two Half-step Human Emperors?"
The faces of all the Da Zhou experts who emerged from the palace changed drastically. Human Emperors were the pinnacle of power in the Qingyun Realm. It was unthinkable for them to be mobilized unless a major catastrophe befell a sect or family.
But before the Da Zhou experts stood four figures exuding the aura of the King, and after sensing the Emperor's aura of these men, the experts of Da Zhou recognized them. Though not fully familiar with Human Emperors, they had previously encountered their aura during the War Emperor's ascension.
Each of these four individuals radiated a pressure so powerful that it left them gasping for air. These were beings who had long embarked on the path to becoming Human Emperors, exuding the dominance of one on the verge of ascending.
"Bring out your Human Emperor, or face the consequences!" Bai yu spat, his voice full of disdain. How dare a mere lower realm faction ignore them? Truly, they were courting death.
"May I ask, who are you...?" The Da Zhou Emperor staggered forward, barely standing, but still gathering the courage to address these menacing figures.
"Scram! A mere Half-step Human Emperor dares to speak to me?" Bai yu sneered, his voice dripping with contempt. To him, a Half-step Human Emperor from the Lower Realm was no more significant than an ant.
The Da Zhou Emperor's face paled. When had he ever been subjected to such humiliation? Normally, he would have engaged this person in combat, even if the opponent was a Human Emperor. But today was different. Seeing the expressions of the others, it was clear that they came with ill intentions, and Da Zhou's situation was already dire.
"Emperor Xia?" The Da Zhou Emperor's eyes widened as he spotted the smallest figure among the four. His heart skipped a beat. This was the former Emperor of the Da Xia Dynasty, known as Emperor Xia, whose death had been widely reported. People believed he had passed away after failing to ascend to the Human Emperor realm, his life force expiring with age.
Hearing his name called out, the elderly man, Emperor Xia, let out a cold smile.
"I was fortunate enough to be favored by my ancestors, who granted me a Human Emperor Pill. I successfully ascended to the Human Emperor realm many years ago. I did not expect that people in the Qingyun Realm still remember me," he said with a wicked grin.
"I heard that someone from the Upper Realm, named Qin Tian, is here. I wish to meet him," he added.
Another elderly figure beside Bai yu, called Gu, glanced indifferently at the Da Zhou Emperor, his gaze filled with disdain. The Da Zhou Emperor looked frail, his vitality waning, and it seemed unlikely that he would live much longer. It was clear that he would never reach the Human Emperor realm in this lifetime.
"Gu, why bother with these lower realm pests? As for that person named Qin Tian, I believe he's a wise man who won't provoke us, and we'll leave him in peace," Bai yu sneered, speaking casually. He had no intention of troubling Qin Tian, as long as Qin Tian didn't provoke them.
Bai yu's idea was simple: keep to their own affairs, with neither side disturbing the other. He was even willing to allow Qin Tian to take the Da Zhou princess with him, a great concession in Bai yu's eyes.
"Why hasn't he appeared yet?" Bai yu shouted in irritation, noticing that neither the Da Zhou Emperor nor Qin Tian had responded. His patience ran out, and he suddenly clapped his hands together, sending forth a powerful surge of human emperor energy.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
The energy tore through the air, heading straight for the Da Zhou Imperial Palace, carrying a force capable of destroying everything in its path.
Suddenly, a resounding dragon's roar shook the heavens and the earth, causing the blood of all present to boil in their veins.
With a loud bang, Bai yu's body was obliterated in an instant, his form disintegrating into nothingness, not even a trace of his organs remaining.
"A pureblood flood dragon..." Gu gasped in horror. He had felt a great sense of helplessness when the roar of this flood dragon struck. It was a force far beyond theirs, and in that moment, he couldn't even move his body.
The remaining experts from the Da Zhou Dynasty stood in stunned silence. It felt as if the entire world had fallen silent. The change was too sudden—one moment, the arrogant and overwhelming figures from the Upper Realm were shouting and threatening; the next, they were reduced to nothing by a single roar. Everything happened too quickly for them to comprehend.
Before them stood a golden flood dragon, its entire body radiating a dazzling golden hue, with two prominent horns on its head. Those with knowledge of the Dragon Clan's secrets immediately recognized this as a pureblood flood dragon. Not only that, but it was likely on the verge of becoming a true dragon.
No one dared to move. Who could remain unmoved after seeing a Human Emperor-level powerhouse being instantly destroyed by the roar of a single beast? This scene was beyond anything they had ever imagined.
"Esteemed one..." Gu stammered, his eyes wide with terror as he stared at the pureblood flood dragon.
This was the dragon that the Da Xia Emperor had spoken of. Initially, when he had heard that a flood dragon had descended from the Upper Realm with Qin Tian, Gu had dismissed it, thinking, "What do lower realm people know about dragons?"
In the Primeval Immortal Domain, the true dragon clan was one of the most powerful divine beasts, and even the flood dragons were formidable. To him, a dragon brought down by an Upper Realm expert was likely to be of mixed blood.
After all, only a few factions in the Upper Realm could raise a pureblood dragon, especially one that served as a mount for a young man in the Lower Realm. Gu had assumed this flood dragon was of inferior bloodline.
However, now that he saw the dragon up close, the truth was undeniable. The dragon's golden body, without a trace of impurity, and its twin horns radiated a powerful aura that could only be described as divine.
Gu's mind shattered. This was no ordinary flood dragon. This dragon was pureblood, and it was likely that Qin Tian, the one riding it, was not someone they could afford to mess with.
Now, Gu realized the true weight of their mistake—they had picked the wrong fight.