Suddenly, Emperor Lan exclaimed.
"Oh no, Your Majesty, the island's illusion is about to disappear."
The illusory image gradually faded, and just as it was about to vanish, Gu Changsheng coldly snorted.
"If I let you slip away in front of me, wouldn't I become a laughingstock?"
With that, Gu Changsheng reached out and gently grabbed at the illusion. In the next moment, the entire Chaos Sea seemed to be enraged, with countless colossal waves surging forth. Each wave could easily crush a Celestial Emperor. Emperor Lan's pupils constricted upon seeing this.
"Your Majesty, be careful!" Emperor Lan shouted.
"Don't worry, I'm fine!"
Gu Changsheng said calmly.
He glanced at the surrounding chaotic waves and coldly commanded, "Recede!"
At that moment, he was like a supreme emperor, his golden words carrying absolute authority. The countless chaotic waves instantly subsided, and above them, an enormous island appeared.
Emperor Lan stared in shock at the island Gu Changsheng had captured, clicking his tongue in amazement. "Just how strong is His Majesty?"
"Not that strong, just a billion times stronger than a Celestial Emperor," Gu Changsheng chuckled.
"Just a little stronger? Your Majesty is far too modest." Emperor Lan shook his head, believing the Holy Emperor was being humble. In his view, His Majesty must be an existence who had broken through the Dao, and a top-tier one at that.
Outside the Chaos Burial Realm, the gap between Celestial Emperors and those who had broken through the Dao wasn't very obvious. However, once inside the Chaos Burial Realm, the difference became immediately apparent. In the outside world, Celestial Emperors could draw upon the origin of the Great World, enough to contend with those who had broken through the Dao to some extent. But within the Burial Realm, there was no origin of the Dao, no laws of the Dao, no power of Heaven and Earth—nothing at all. Celestial Emperors could only rely on their own power.
However, those who had broken through the Dao were different. They had broken free from the shackles of the Dao and transcended it. Within the Chaos Burial Realm, apart from some Celestial Emperors with special artifacts, no Celestial Emperor could be a match for those who had broken through the Dao.
Therefore, Emperor Lan believed Gu Changsheng was an incredibly powerful expert who had broken through the Dao.
As long as an expert who had broken through the Dao didn't provoke the vague will of the Chaos Burial Realm, they were basically immortal here. Of course, if they were too hated and besieged by many experts who had also broken through the Dao, they could still die.
But regardless, those who had broken through the Dao were already at the top of the pyramid in the Chaos Burial Realm.
Gu Changsheng didn't know what Emperor Lan was thinking. He said softly, "Let's go in, or the island will float away again."
"Yes!" Emperor Lan quickly responded.
Although His Majesty could grab the island with his bare hands, he couldn't possibly let His Majesty do such a thing!
So Emperor Lan followed Gu Changsheng into the island.
The island wasn't a true island in the traditional sense. It was called an island because it floated on the Chaos Sea and provided a place to stand. It didn't seem very large, but the essence of the island was a "world." However, it was different from a world in that it had no origin of the Dao, no laws—it simply provided a place for the creatures of the Chaos Burial Realm to rest and avoid the encroachment of the Chaos Sea.
After the two entered the island's world, they arrived in a dense forest.
Emperor Lan's expression changed when he saw the dense forest around him.
"What's wrong? Is something amiss?" Gu Changsheng asked.
Emperor Lan nodded and said, "Your Majesty, look, we've actually come to a forest. Like the Chaos Sea, the island has no laws, and the Dao doesn't exist. It's normally impossible for a forest to be born here."
"I suspect that a Celestial Emperor has fallen here, and one who cultivated from a plant."
Gu Changsheng nodded and said, "Now that they've fallen, why do you still look so solemn?"
"Your Majesty, you may not know this, but the Chaos Burial Realm has existed for countless years. There are many lone wanderers like me, but there are also many who have formed one force after another. Behind these forces are experts who have broken through the Dao. Some of them will stake out territory, claim islands as their own, and demand so-called protection fees from people like me who are crossing the Chaos Sea to find the next island. Those who refuse will be attacked by the group and eventually fall on the island."
"The master of the forest we are in now probably fell for this reason."
As he spoke, a trace of sadness appeared on Emperor Lan's face.
Seeing this, Gu Changsheng guessed that Emperor Lan's relatives or friends had also fallen for this reason, but he didn't offer any comfort. Emperor Lan had lived for countless years and naturally didn't need it.
"Hmm?" Gu Changsheng narrowed his eyes and smiled. "The people you mentioned who demand protection fees are here."
As soon as Gu Changsheng finished speaking, three figures appeared in the sky.
Emperor Lan looked over, his eyes narrowing. All three were Celestial Emperors, and each one was no weaker than he was at his peak. If he were alone, he would either have to obediently pay the protection fee or be besieged by the three of them. But now, he wasn't alone!
The three were all men. They came before Gu Changsheng and Emperor Lan. When the leading Celestial Emperor saw Emperor Lan with only his head remaining, a disdainful smile appeared on his face. He said, "I thought they were two Celestial Emperors, but it's only one and a half!"
"One and a half?"
Emperor Lan really wanted to yell, 'Who are you looking down on?' but he didn't, because the man had said 'two Celestial Emperors.' He was the only Celestial Emperor, so where did the two come from?
Wait...
Emperor Lan looked at Gu Changsheng and discovered that the aura emanating from Gu Changsheng was actually that of a Celestial Emperor.
'I see, His Majesty is planning to play the pig to eat the tiger? No, no, His Majesty is upright and honorable, how could he do such a thing? His Majesty must be considering that there are experts who have broken through the Dao behind them, so he doesn't want to alert them.'
'His Majesty is truly talented!'
Gu Changsheng didn't know that Emperor Lan had once again bestowed upon him the honor of being upright and honorable. He simply wanted to have some fun.
At this moment, the leading Celestial Emperor's eyes lit up when he looked at Gu Changsheng. He said to the two beside him, "Did you notice the aura on him!"
The two also turned their gazes to Gu Changsheng, their eyes also lighting up at the same time.
"I didn't expect our luck to be so good, we actually encountered a newbie," one person said excitedly.
"The luck is indeed good." The other person seemed more composed, but he couldn't hide the excitement in his eyes.
The leader said to Gu Changsheng, "You can call me Celestial Emperor Fengyu."
"Celestial Emperor Ruolan," the excited person said.
"Cangxuan!" The composed person uttered two words calmly.
