155: Chapter 155 A stunningly beautiful goddess! My husband~

The Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation's skin was like ten-thousand-year-old unmelting ice and snow, flawlessly white, yet carrying a hint of sickly paleness.

Her eyes were tightly shut, her long eyelashes drooping down as if she were asleep, her expression calm and serene, without a single ripple of emotion.

Even with her eyes closed, even while plunged into an endless slumber, her body still emitted a faint, lingering aura of Great Emperor's might.

That pressure was like the Heavenly Dao itself—heavy, majestic, and inviolable. Just a distant glance made one want to kneel down and surrender.

She was the true body of the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation!

With just a distant glance, Zhou Liangan felt his blood boil uncontrollably and his Divine Soul tremble violently, as if he were about to be crushed directly by the Emperor Dao aura radiating from the figure before him.

The Golden Dragon of Fortune inside him instantly emerged uncontrollably, coiling and roaring wildly around his body, releasing a majestic power of Luck to resist that unconsciously emitted Great Emperor's might.

The Yin-Yang Dao Scripture within him also instantly operated to its limit, and an aura of supreme Yang and strength enveloped his entire body, barely stabilizing his surging blood and keeping him from losing his composure under the Great Emperor's might.

At this moment, stormy waves surged in Zhou Liangan's heart.

This was the Great Emperor's might!

Even after slumbering for countless years, even after suffering the backlash of Karma and having her Emperor foundation damaged, just a wisp of unconsciously emitted aura was enough to make it difficult for a Cultivator of his level to resist.

And now, he had to face this true Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation, take upon himself her endless Karma, and exchange it for a colossal fortune that could allow him to ascend to heaven in a single step.

Was the path ahead a single step to heaven, or eternal damnation?

Zhou Liangan took a deep breath, a look of absolute determination flashing in his eyes.

He lifted his foot and walked slowly, step by step, toward that giant Bodhi Tree, toward the slumbering Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation beneath it.

His footsteps stepped on the Void Realm, making clear sounds that echoed for a long time in this void that had been silent for countless years.

At the same time, far away on the Starry Sky Ancient Path, Zhou Liangan's figure, which had been standing quietly, vanished into air in broad daylight, leaving not even a trace of aura behind, as if he had never existed.

Inside the samsara dao coffin was a place of dead silence, completely forgotten by time.

This Chaos Supreme Treasure, which had spanned thirteen epochs, was no longer in the shape of a coffin as understood by mortals.

In the boundless darkness, countless tiny fragments of Reincarnation floated. Each fragment contained the rise and fall, life and death, of an entire world. The complete trajectory of living beings from birth to death cycled repeatedly within the fragments, emitting faint echoes that only Half-Step Emperor Realm powerhouses could capture.

Time completely lost its meaning here. One moment it was the Grandmist lightning of world creation, and the next it was the boundless, frigid silence of world extinction. Only the Origin Law of Reincarnation, like an eternally unchanging river, flowed slowly through this space, emitting a terrifying pressure that would make even Saints tremble.

And at the very center of this long river of Reincarnation, a figure sat quietly in a cross-legged position, having slept for an unknown number of tens of thousands of years.

Only when Zhou Liangan's aura completely merged into this space did that figure finally stir.

The Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation suddenly snapped her eyes open.

At that instant, the dead silence within the samsara dao coffin was completely shattered.

Countless Reincarnation fragments vibrated in unison, producing a deafening buzz. The slowly flowing River of Reincarnation instantly boiled, and layers of Reincarnation Dao rhymes surged wildly around her as the center. Yet, the moment before they could touch Zhou Liangan, she suppressed them completely with a single thought. This effortless control perfectly demonstrated the terrifying foundation of a Half-Step Emperor Realm.

She slowly raised her head, a charming curve forming on her lips. Her voice, carrying the magnetic depth of ages and wrapped in a woman's unique soft charm, echoed slowly in the empty samsara dao coffin. Every word carried a Soul-snatching Dao rhyme: "Interesting! Truly interesting! I have schemed for thirteen epochs and seen as many prodigies and emperors as there are crucian carps crossing a river, yet I never expected that there would actually be someone like you in this world."

Zhou Liangan stood just ten paces away from her, his body enveloped in a faint shimmer that not even the Laws of Reincarnation could penetrate.

Looking at this legendary Ancient Emperor of the Human Race before him, who ruled over Reincarnation and dominated an entire epoch, his face showed none of the awe and trepidation that ordinary Cultivators should have. He merely chuckled and spoke in a flat tone: "Now, surely you can be certain that I can truly help you resolve that Karma that has plagued you for thirteen epochs?"

His words were no empty boast. The Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation had spent thirteen epochs setting up a grand scheme across the heavens. Her sole purpose was to completely transfer the terrifying karmic debt on her—which was enough to consign even a Half-Step Emperor Realm to eternal damnation—thereby jumping out of Reincarnation and achieving true transcendence into the Emperor Realm.

But the Samsara Dao is intricately linked, and the power of Karma affects the whole body with a single pull. Even though she already stood at the ceiling of this world and had tried every possible method, she had never been able to break free from this shackle.

Until Zhou Liangan appeared—this man who had popped out of nowhere, whose Origin even her Eye of Reincarnation could not see through, could actually crush her Karma threads at will and ignore the constraints of the Laws of Reincarnation. He was simply the only Opportunity to break the deadlock that she had waited thirteen epochs for.

Hearing this, the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation chuckled as well.

She tilted her head slightly, a few strands of black hair sliding down her cheek, revealing her beautifully contoured jawline. Her beautiful eyes, filled with unconcealed amusement, swept up and down Zhou Liangan as if appraising a rare treasure: "I do believe you a bit now. However, what you are scheming for is simply too grand. How about this, why don't we change the terms? The Cultivation Techniques, supreme treasures, and authority you desire—even paving the path to becoming an Emperor for you—I can give them all to you, as long as you speak."

As soon as these words were spoken, the air inside the entire samsara dao coffin seemed to freeze a bit.

A Half-Step Emperor Realm Ancient Emperor personally promising to pave the path to becoming an Emperor for someone; if this word got out, it would be enough to drive the entire cultivation world mad.

An Opportunity that countless prodigies would fight tooth and nail for was placed so lightly before Zhou Liangan.

But when Zhou Liangan heard this, the smile on his face instantly vanished, replaced by an unconcealed sneer.

He took a step forward. Though his Realm was worlds apart from the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation, his aura did not fall behind in the slightest, even carrying a domineering force that refused to yield an inch: "The grand Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation, a Half-Step Emperor Realm powerhouse of the Human Race, and an old Senior who has lived for thirteen epochs, surely wouldn't go back on her word, right?"

He looked up, his gaze locking firmly onto the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation's face, the sarcasm in his tone completely undisguised: "Moreover, what I want is merely a simple primordial yin. Your Excellency has already reached the Half-Step Emperor Realm, having long seen through the illusion of the Physical Body, and even holding the entire Reincarnation in your hands. You shouldn't be so pedantic and conservative as to value this small thing more than your thirteen epochs of scheming, right?"

Every word of this hit home, putting the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation directly on the spot.

Hearing this, the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation's eyes rippled, and a flash of strange emotion quickly crossed her beautiful eyes, which held the abyss of Reincarnation.

She hadn't expected that this kid, despite his young appearance, had such a sharp tongue, completely blocking her retreat in just a few sentences.

She fell silent for a moment, and finally spoke slowly, with less amusement and more seriousness in her tone: "primordial yin is indeed of no consequence to me."

She paused, her gaze landing on Zhou Liangan, carrying a hint of wariness that even she didn't realize: "What truly makes me hesitate is the karmic debt on you. It is too heavy, so heavy that even I, who rules over Reincarnation, cannot see through to its bottom. In you, I genuinely feel a strong sense of crisis—a sense of crisis that could drag my thirteen epochs of planning, along with myself, into the abyss of eternal damnation."

These were her true feelings.

Having lived for thirteen epochs, she had seen countless Devil Heads burdened with monstrous Karma, world-destroying Vicious Beasts, and even the terrifying catastrophes of world extinction. Yet, there had never been a single person who, like Zhou Liangan, could evoke an instinctive dread from the depths of her Soul.

Her Eye of Reincarnation could see through the karmic trajectories of all things in the world, yet when it fell upon Zhou Liangan, she could only see a boundless darkness. It was as if he did not belong to this world at all, nor did he belong to this system of Reincarnation. He was an absolute variable, an unpredictable unknown.

And for an old monster who had schemed for thirteen epochs and calculated every step, the unknown was the greatest risk.

Hearing this, Zhou Liangan smiled instead. With his hands clasped behind his back, his face was completely indifferent, as if the karmic debt that the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation spoke of—which was enough to make even a Half-Step Emperor Realm wary—was nothing but a trivial matter to him.

He swept his eyes over the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation with a smile, his tone as relaxed as if they were chatting about daily life: "In that case, it seems we have nothing left to talk about. It's very simple: send me back directly right now, and we'll act as if today's matter never happened, and that the two of us have never met. How about that?"

As soon as these words came out, it was the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation who was stunned instead.

She had envisioned countless reactions from Zhou Liangan—perhaps arguing, perhaps raising his stakes, or perhaps uttering harsh words—but she had never expected him to actually choose to withdraw directly, without the slightest reluctance.

One had to know that this was an Opportunity to cooperate with a Half-Step Emperor Realm powerhouse, an Opportunity that countless people could never obtain even if they begged. Yet he actually gave it up just like that?

The Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation narrowed her beautiful eyes slightly, carefully examining Zhou Liangan's face, trying to find any trace of pretense in his expression.

But after watching him for a long time, she only saw calmness and indifference, without any hint of bluffing. He genuinely did not care, and truly did not view this cooperation as something that absolutely had to be done.

The smile on her lips deepened instead, carrying a touch of helplessness and a hint of appreciation as she said softly: "You little fellow, you aren't very old, but your temper is quite domineering. You refuse to suffer even the slightest loss, and won't give me even a bit of a way out."

A strange look flickered in Zhou Liangan's eyes, and he then spoke unhurriedly, his voice carrying an imperceptible trace of coldness: "It's still the same saying: if you want to get something for nothing, you've found the wrong person. I can help you solve the trouble you couldn't fix for thirteen epochs, and you pay the agreed price—this is a fair trade. Wanting me to work first before negotiating terms, or even trying to dismiss me with some random items, there is no such cheap thing in this world."

He knew the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation's weakness all too well.

After thirteen epochs of scheming, she had already reached the final step, and had also arrived at the edge of a cliff.

The karmic debt on her body had already accumulated to a critical point. If she did not transfer it out, it would not be long before she suffered the backlash of Karma, falling completely into the abyss of Reincarnation, her Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering, without even a chance at Reincarnation.

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She could no longer afford to waste time, nor could she afford to wait, and she certainly could not find a second person who could help her.

This transaction might appear as if he were the one begging this Half-Step Emperor Realm expert, but in reality, the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation was more anxious than him, and needed this cooperation even more.

Hearing his icy words, the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation did not get angry; instead, she chuckled.

She raised her hand, her fingertips gently tracing the Void Realm before her, and a profound Reincarnation pattern appeared at her fingertip, instantly manifesting into the phantom image of an ancient chessboard before vanishing in a flash.

She looked up at Zhou Liangan, her tone leisurely: "Since you do not trust me, and I do not trust your background, how about this? Let us two use this Reincarnation as a board and play a game. Whether I enter the game, and whether this transaction succeeds, shall be left to Heavenly Dao. How about it?"

Upon hearing this, the indifference on Zhou Liangan's face instantly faded, replaced by a chilling coldness.

He stared fixedly at the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation, his anger finally boiling over: "First, you used a wisp of remnant Soul to trick me into the game, dragging me into this samsara dao coffin! Then, you wanted to renege on what you promised with your own mouth, and tried to change the terms with me! Now you want to play some game of chess with me and leave it to fate?"

His voice echoed within the samsara dao coffin, carrying unabashed fury, every word striking the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation: "Do not forget! You are a Half-Step Emperor Realm powerhouse of the Human Race! You are the Ancient Emperor revered by all races, bearing the title of Reincarnation! Does your repeated prevarication, stalling, and going back on your word befit your title as the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation?"

His words directly brought the status, reputation, and dignity of the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation out into the open.

You are the pillar of the Human Race, an Ancient Emperor who has suppressed an entire era; your word being Law is the most basic bottom line. Now that you are acting so fickle, are you not afraid of the entire cultivation world laughing at you if this gets out?

If it were any other Emperor Realm powerhouse being pointed at and questioned like this, they would have likely been enraged and struck to kill immediately.

But the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation did not.

She looked at the cold-faced, angry Zhou Liangan before her, and the smile on her lips not only did not fade but became even more alluring.

Right in front of Zhou Liangan, she unexpectedly retracted her Emperor might, shed her lethal aura of ruling over Reincarnation, and looked at him with shimmering eyes. She actually revealed a hint of cunning, alluring girlishness, her voice softening with a touch of righteous grievance: "Facing the entire Human Race, I am naturally the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation who guards the Reincarnation and whose word is Law. But facing you, I am merely a girl who hesitates, gets scared, and cannot make up her mind. After all, if there comes a time when we are husband and wife, you will be my husband, will you not?"

As she spoke, she tilted her head slightly, smiling radiantly, her bright eyes staring straight at Zhou Liangan. With every flicker of her gaze, she was enchanting and full of charm, instantly washing away the tense atmosphere from before.

Zhou Liangan was completely dumbfounded by her words.

He had prepared a stomach full of harsh words and a pile of reasoning to leave her speechless, but she simply stopped playing the game of Imperial dignity, gave up on the spot, and claimed to be just a girl who hesitates. What could he do?

He had lived for so long, seen the tough, the soft, and the shameless, but he had truly never seen anyone like this—one moment the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation suppressing the ages, and the next, playing the part of a young girl.

The key was that her face was simply too stunning; doing this did not feel out of place at all, but instead made one's heart tremble, leaving him unable to vent any anger.

Looking at the smiling Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation before him, a look of deep helplessness appeared on Zhou Liangan's face. Finally, he could only sigh and wave his hand: "You... fine, fine! I give up. Since things have reached this point, if you want to play a game, then let us play. However, I will say the ugly things first: if you dare to pull any tricks in this game, or try to go back on your word again, this matter will not be so easily avoided. When the time comes, even if it means we both perish, I can make your thirteen eras of planning go completely down the drain."

As he spoke, he coldly glanced at the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation, the warning in his eyes could not have been more obvious.

Upon hearing this, the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation chuckled, her eyes full of the joy of success.

She spoke unhurriedly, her voice filled with absolute certainty: "Rest assured. Since you have already seen my true self and stepped into my samsara dao coffin, that already demonstrates my greatest sincerity."

This was indeed true.

She had schemed for thirteen eras, and no one had ever seen her true self; even her most trusted subordinates had only ever seen a wisp of her remnant Soul.

The samsara dao coffin was her life-bound treasure and her final hiding place; having her true self here meant she was in her most vulnerable and defenseless state.

Letting Zhou Liangan in to see her true form was equivalent to handing over half her life into Zhou Liangan's hands.

This sincerity was indeed genuine.

Zhou Liangan was also clear about this in his heart.

He nodded slightly, acknowledging her words.

But in his heart, he still felt a bit of doubt.

Something was wrong.

The Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation had even shown him her true self and revealed her greatest trump card; this sincerity could not be any greater.

Yet, if that was the case, why did she still insist on adding this game of chess?

Why risk annoying him, repeatedly going back on her word and stalling?

The only explanation was that she had truly sensed something about him—something that even she, a Half-Step Emperor Realm existence who ruled over Reincarnation, felt uneasy, or even fearful about.

Could it be that she had sensed his Origin, which did not belong to this world?

Had she sensed those more terrifying Karma of Reincarnation on him, which came from other worlds?

Thinking of this, a flash of something unusual passed through Zhou Liangan's eyes.

He looked up at the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation and spoke slowly, his tone carrying a hint of realization: "You insisted on adding this game of chess not because you do not trust me, nor is it about leaving things to fate. It is because you sensed an unusual Karma of Reincarnation on me that even you cannot see through, so you wanted to use this game to test me one last time, right?"

Upon hearing this, the smile on the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation's face paused slightly.

She stared at Zhou Liangan intently for a few seconds, then chuckled and nodded slowly, her tone filled with admiration: "Not bad. You are indeed a smart person; you understand as soon as it is pointed out."

She leaned forward slightly, her beautiful eyes, which held the abyss of Reincarnation, locking onto Zhou Liangan without blinking. Her voice was very soft, yet carried a power that pierced the heart: "I presume you know in your own heart that you do not belong to this world, and you transcend this Reincarnation system. Those Child of Destiny who are favored by the World Will and blessed with Luck are, in your eyes, merely prey to be harvested at will. But, do you truly think this world is as simple as you imagine?"

She stopped at the right moment, but the profound meaning behind her words caused Zhou Liangan's heart to sink slightly.

The Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation watched the change in his expression, a knowing smile curling on her lips: "Not necessarily."

Zhou Liangan stood in place, silent for a few seconds.

The Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation's words were like a key, instantly unlocking a certain guess that had been lurking in his heart.

He slowly raised his head, a flash of realization in his eyes, and nodded gently: "So that's it. I was wondering, I have harvested so many Child of Destiny and disrupted so many world lines, yet the Will of this world has never made any big moves. It seems it has been holding back a big move, intending to pour all its effort into cultivating an ultimate Child of Destiny to eliminate a variable like me, right?"

The Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation raised an eyebrow, clearly not expecting him to figure out the key point so quickly.

She looked at Zhou Liangan earnestly, her tone carrying a hint of surprise: "You do not seem afraid at all. Being targeted by the Will of an entire world and treated as the final enemy by a future ultimate Child of Destiny is no small matter."

Zhou Liangan chuckled upon hearing this.

He looked up at the Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation, his eyes devoid of any fear, holding only an open composure, and then spoke unhurriedly: "Fear? What use is fear? If I am afraid, will the Will of this world let me go? Will that ultimate Child of Destiny not come to trouble me?"

He smiled, his tone carrying an overbearing aura that looked down upon the world: "From the day I stepped onto this path, I have never feared anything. What is the World Will? What is a Child of Destiny? At worst, it is just a battle. I even dare to manipulate you, a Half-Step Emperor Realm expert who rules over Reincarnation; why would I fear an unborn Child of Destiny?"

The moment these words were spoken, the River of Reincarnation within the entire samsara dao coffin seemed to be shaken by his will, emitting bursts of humming.

The Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation looked at the man before her, the brilliance in her eyes growing more intense.

She had lived for thirteen eras and seen countless Prodigies, but never had anyone possessed the confidence, the state of mind, and the fearlessness of Zhou Liangan.

She finally made up her mind completely.

The Ancient Emperor of Reincarnation slowly stood up, her black imperial robes fluttering without wind, and the Reincarnation Origin around her body erupted completely.

Boundless Reincarnation Dao Rhyme surged behind her, and a massive, ancient chessboard slowly appeared between the two.

On the chessboard, the crisscrossing lines were actually complete Laws of Reincarnation, and each grid was a complete Small World, a cycle of life and death for an era.

Countless stars rose and fell on the chessboard, and countless living beings cycled within the grids; this was, in fact, the Reincarnation Chess, using the entire Reincarnation as a board and thousands of worlds as pieces.

She stood at the other end of the chessboard, her black hair dancing, her Emperor might vast; clearly a Half-Step Emperor Realm expert who suppressed the ages, yet a charming smile curved on her lips.

She looked at Zhou Liangan across the chessboard, her beautiful eyes shimmering, her voice carrying a Soul-captivating tenderness, yet also an earth-shattering certainty, echoing leisurely throughout the samsara dao coffin: "In that case, enter my Reincarnation Chess and take a walk! If you can rely on your own ability to walk out of this Reincarnation Chess game, then I will be yours! I will never go back on my word again!"

As her voice fell, she tilted her head slightly, the smile on her lips enchanting and infinitely beautiful, while the Reincarnation Chessboard behind her radiated an ancient and vast light...