The Little Stone Emperor's Final Step

In a single, shattering moment, the Little Stone Emperor soared like an eagle piercing the storm—a blaze of glory in his final ascent. Though he fell, his radiance was eternal, a monument carved into the ages. Even the hostile Stone Man Kings were awed, humbled before his peerless legend.

Ten thousand li of ancient land stretched desolate; a great river rolled eastward; a hundred peaks had crumbled. The earth was stained red, the sun sinking in the west. A few withered grasses clung stubbornly to the crevices of shattered rock.

Crows cawed against the blood-red sun, their mournful cries echoing across the broken landscape. The Great Calamity Raven circled the crimson sky, not in triumph but with a weight of sorrow, lamenting the end of a sovereign age with its funereal song.

The Old Bone Turtle came also, drifting among the seven great tombs. He approached the upright, towering corpse and sighed long: 'The great river rolls eastward, washing away the heroes of ages. Right and wrong, success and failure—all turn to dust in a breath.'

The Stone Corpse's eyes blazed with murder, his withered stone claws twitching to rend the old man, but he held back. The Old Bone Turtle had not touched the Three Sovereign Mirror—he was only mourning the Little Stone Emperor. The other Stone Man Kings did not act, and the Stone Corpse, already weakened after ten thousand years, did not wish to make an enemy alone.

'I told you long ago: do not be obsessive. The Heavenly Dao is forty-nine—let the one drift away. But you said that since you were the First Scatterer of the Path, you would press forward and unite with all forty-nine.' The Old Bone Turtle wept three times, then sighed long: 'The eagle strikes the sky, spreading its wings to ride the clouds, soaring ninety thousand miles upward. You have fulfilled your wish...'

In that instant, the Little Stone Emperor's body crumbled to ash and scattered on the wind. The seven kings were stunned—the Stone Corpse's might had not moved him, but now he had dissolved of his own accord. From his left palm, the seven demon stars with which he was born fell and vanished into the seven great tombs. After death, his sovereign body left only those innate stars, returned to heaven, and nothing else.

Then, in a blur, they saw a rough hand grasping a small figure—an extremely faint silhouette—disappearing into the blood-red sunset.

'Boom!'

Lu Zhan moved first. Beyond all expectation, he did not seize the legendary Three Sovereign Mirror but instead transformed into a rainbow, blocking the horizon and grasping toward the empty sky where the rough hand and the small figure had vanished.

At the same time, the Stone Raven reacted, its mournful cries continuing as it beat its wings and flew to the edge of the sky.

'Hong!'

Lu Zhan and the Stone Raven clashed directly, sending a violent tremor through the primordial wastes. Then the Reverse Heaven Warrior Shan Jun soared up as well, charging toward the horizon. The Stone Raven and the Lishi Beast roared in fury, unwilling to be outdone, and soared after them—demonic clouds churning, boiling over the skyline.

The Suspended Void Old Ancestor sneered coldly: 'You fight over those insubstantial things. I am practical—I seek only the supreme self. With the Three Sovereign Mirror in hand, what else matters?'

Of the same mind was the Three-Eyed Stone Man King and another king. Both lunged for the Three Sovereign Mirror, ignoring the other war treasures in the tombs for now.

The Old Bone Turtle instantly vanished to one side, seeming unwilling to contend for the mirror, lest he invite disaster.

Xiao Chen moved quickly as well, pulling Keke along as he raced across the ancient land, weaving in and out of the seven great tombs. He was not scavenging other war treasures—he was sensing for the Heavenly Stele's aura. Where was the Ninth Heavenly Stele? That was his foremost concern.

He passed in and out of the seven tombs dozens of times, scanning every inch of the surrounding hundreds of li, but found nothing.

'Where is it? Why can I not sense it? There is no trace of its aura!'

Xiao Chen transformed into flowing light, circling the heavens, sweeping his divine sense over every plot of land—still nothing.

Meanwhile, the battle at the horizon had reached a fever pitch. The Stone Raven, Lu Zhan, Shan Jun, the Stone Corpse, and the Lishi Beast fought until primordial mountains shattered, ancient veins collapsed, the earth sank, and three of the red suns in the sky were shot down, reduced to ashes in the void.

Towering primeval stone peaks fell one after another. From within the seven great tombs, a new sun rose: the true undying Sun Star, crushing the last remaining red suns, now hanging at the sky's edge. Phoenix divine birds broke free from their imprisonment, crying out as they soared.

All of the Primordial Celestial Realm trembled. Even ordinary creatures looked up—the Sun Star, lost for ten thousand years, had finally returned. The age of nine suns hanging in the sky was over.

Rustling like a great river spread across the sky, Xiao Chen unfurled the ancient scroll. The Five Peerless Kings of the Chaotic Land immediately returned, vanishing into the majestic painting. Next, he forcibly summoned the Otherworld Supreme Dao Imprint, suppressing it into the King-level Divine City. After ten thousand years, many things had changed; he no longer wished to suppress this imprint within his divine sense sea. Finally, the Stone Man King puppet transformed into a beam of light, dissolving into the mysterious stone jar as a humanoid carving.

'Where is the Heavenly Stele?' Xiao Chen sighed deeply. He desperately wanted the Ninth Heavenly Stele, but now he had not the slightest clue.

'Ya-ya!' Keke's big eyes darted sideways, staring at the Suspended Void Old Ancestor and the others. She muttered quietly, 'I want that mirror too.'

Xiao Chen wanted it as much as anyone, but three Stone Man Kings were fighting over it. Even joining the fray, he likely could not seize it. 'Wait for an opportunity. Strike when the time comes.'

Over these ten thousand years, Xiao Chen had traversed the peak of the Half-Ancestor Ninth Heaven and forged his own unique path. Though he could not yet transform into a matchless Stone Man King, his combat power had greatly increased—but he was still not invincible.

'Ya-ya!' Keke pouted. 'Then let's take everything else!'

The little beast was decisive. She pulled Xiao Chen through the seven great tombs, breaking restrictions and collecting the Little Stone Emperor's relics. Seats, incense burners, stone beds—anything they could see, she swept into Paradise Lost.

Nothing here was worthless. The seemingly ordinary stone bed was polished from divine jade marrow—its interior held a jade heart, a treasure cultivators dreamed of. Meditating on it doubled one's progress. The seats were carved from the king root of the Divine Wood of Wood Essence, rare treasures for practitioners.

'What's this?' In one tomb, Keke found a dozen ordinary green herbs growing in a fist-sized crystalline vessel—obviously a treasure, but the herbs seemed too plain. She carelessly picked one, sniffed it, then took a bite. Her face screwed up. 'So hard! And bitter!'

'Don't eat everything you see,' Xiao Chen laughed, knocking her lightly. He was busy too, moving everything he saw into Paradise Lost.

'Those are Life-Returning Herbs, nurtured with the blood essence of a Stone Man King. As long as your Dao resonance hasn't collapsed, no matter how severe the wound, applying their juice will restore you, rebuild your flesh, and stabilize your soul.'

The Old Bone Turtle had somehow slipped into the tomb, his eye sockets gleaming with covetous light—clearly seeking something as well.

'Ya-ya!' Hearing this, Keke's eyes lit up. She launched into an appalling operation: digging three feet into the ground, she collected everything—useful or not—into Paradise Lost. She had finally understood: nothing here was ordinary; everything had a great origin. Now she had only one goal: to strip it all clean.

Even the remains of incomplete ancient formations were shifted into the divine garden along with the shattered arrays. It was a complete and utter plunder. Only the fact that all the killing formations could not fully activate saved them from a catastrophic backlash.

Inside Paradise Lost, the others had awakened from cultivation, bewildered by the daily objects raining from the sky. But when Sha Polang picked up an incense burner and casually weighed it, a string of sparks nearly burned him to death—only then did they realize in shock that every single item was extraordinary.

However, some restrictions could not be broken quickly. Xiao Chen and Keke could not truly move all the divine objects.

'The seven stone weapons—where are they?' Unable to find the Heavenly Stele and unlikely to seize the Three Sovereign Mirror, Xiao Chen turned his attention to the seven great stone weapons. In fact, he had already obtained two terrible ones: the Little Stone Emperor had once given a holy sword and a stone seal to two of the Five Peerless Kings of the Chaotic Land. Now that the five kings had returned to the ancient scroll, Xiao Chen could clearly sense that this war treasure had grown much stronger.

This excited him greatly. The ancient scroll was capable of growth—a thrilling prospect. If each of the five kings held a powerful stone weapon, the resulting might would be unimaginable! He even began to think: could he replace the mountains in the scroll with Heavenly Steles, and the pavilions with the King-level Divine City? If he could refine all sacred relics into the scroll, how powerful would it become? Could a single sweep send a Stone Man King flying, spitting blood?

For now, these were only fantasies. He did not yet have the terrifying strength to refine such holy relics.

The Moon Shadow Magic Blade had already been taken by Lu Zhan. Xiao Chen was searching for the other four powerful stone weapons that the Little Stone Emperor had once used.

'Ya-ya! And those seven little stars!' Keke reminded him, her big eyes sparkling—she clearly wanted them badly. Only Keke would call the seven terrifying demon stars 'little stars.'

'I've been looking for them too. Strange—how is there not the slightest trace of the seven demon stars? Did they truly return to heaven?' The Old Bone Turtle was also drifting around the tombs, appearing and disappearing, but he found nothing at all.

Just then, the battle at the horizon ended. After fighting all the way, the five kings finally realized it was not what they had thought. It was not the Little Stone Emperor's Supreme Dao Imprint. It was what the Little Stone Emperor himself had considered most precious, but in the eyes of the five Stone Man Kings, it held no value.

The final vision left by the Little Stone Emperor—the eternal sovereign—scattered at last amid the struggle of the five kings. The rough hand and the small figure dissolved into the ten-thousand-li ancient land. The land, once dead and lifeless, was suddenly brimming with vitality. The desolate battlefield burst forth with verdant vegetation, growing before everyone's eyes.

Lu Zhan, the Stone Corpse, Shan Jun, the Lishi Beast, and the Great Calamity Raven all rushed back at the same moment, reaching for the Three Sovereign Mirror. The battle became even more brutal!

Eight Stone Man Kings contended for the third-greatest stone weapon in the world. None yielded; all fought as if their lives depended on it. At the same time, they joined forces to seal off the ten-thousand-li ancient domain. Even if other powerful Stone Man Kings were watching from outside, they could not break in.

Every tangible and intangible treasure here belonged to them—no one else was allowed to touch it.

The true war had only just begun!

The Three Sovereign Mirror hovered in the void at center, slowly rotating. Everyone wanted to grasp it, but each time they reached out, they suffered attacks from all others. The moment Lu Zhan extended his hand, he was met with a frenzy of assault. The Lishi Beast's claws almost tore his arm off. No one could withstand the combined strike of seven kings. Lu Zhan retreated.

The Stone Corpse tried to forcibly teleport the mirror, but he was exposed the moment he moved. Seven beams of divine light swept across him, nearly shattering his form.

After a brief stalemate, they erupted into a heaven-shaking, earth-shattering battle.

Lu Zhan devoured the sun and moon, walking with supreme arrogance. His demonic body magnified a thousand times, his giant demonic palm sweeping out. He batted away the charging Lishi Beast, sending it tumbling, stone blood streaming. The Lishi Beast roared, shaking mountains and rivers; the several-thousand-li region collapsed, and primeval mountains crumbled like tidal waves.

'Lu Zhan, you undying old bastard, why are you fixated on me?' the Lishi Beast bellowed in fury.

'I hold grudges. You were the second to block me from taking the Three Sovereign Mirror. Prepare to fall.'

'You think you can kill me? Do you take yourself for the Little Stone Emperor?' The Lishi Beast erupted and charged forward.

The battle shook heaven and earth. The worlds created by the Stone Man Kings collapsed and reformed. Both sides had repeatedly opened new heavens and earths in chaos, the fighting so fierce it defied description.

'Boom!' Lu Zhan seized one of the dragon horns on the Lishi Beast's head and twisted violently. With a sharp crack, the sharp stone horn snapped off. The Lishi Beast howled; blood sprayed everywhere, punching terrifying starry holes through space.

'Slurp!' The Lishi Beast nearly tore off Lu Zhan's shoulder, grabbing a handful of stone man flesh—hard as rock—dripping with golden blood. He brought it to his mouth and crunched loudly, eating it down. His lips dripped with stone blood, a ghastly sight.

Around them, everyone fought desperately, occasionally grabbing for the Three Sovereign Mirror, but none succeeded.

The Stone Raven and the Three-Eyed Stone Man King fought a gruesome battle as well. Both were drenched in gore, covered in stone man blood from head to toe.

A living fossil like the Stone Raven—famous before the ancient times, his body now fully restored—was overwhelmingly powerful. With a booming impact, divine light rays flashed in the millions. His entire body became a black sun, and his two claws tore apart the universe of stars that the Three-Eyed Stone Man King had created. The whole brilliant starry sky was reduced to ash.

'Aaaagh!' A miserable howl. The vertical eye on the Three-Eyed Stone Man King's forehead was pecked out by the Stone Raven. Blood drenched his face in a terrifying mask.

'Clang!' He struck back, nearly tearing off one of the Stone Raven's wings. A huge patch of stone feathers was ripped away, and stone man blood streamed freely.

'Dong!' The Reverse Heaven Warrior Shan Jun and the Suspended Void Old Ancestor were locked in savage combat. Shan Jun tore apart three layers of light shield and smashed half of the Suspended Void Old Ancestor's face, nearly extracting his Dao Imprint.

'Chi!' The Suspended Void Old Ancestor retaliated. The Golden Holy Sword, wreathed in Supreme Divine Law order, pierced through heaven and earth, stabbing through Shan Jun's right chest. Several stone ribs snapped, and golden blood spilled across the ground.

This was an extraordinarily brutal battle. The clashes of Stone Man Kings seemed simple on the surface, but every movement contained the supreme truth of heaven and earth, wielding the power of the orderly divine principles. The motions were mere appearance; the struggle of Dao resonance and laws was the essence.

Every inch of space here was filled with unimaginable terror. Were it not for the many residual formations left in the seven great tombs, this battle would surely have already spread, sweeping the entire primordial land.

The Stone Corpse and another Stone Man King withdrew from the central storm, slipping into the seven great tombs to search for the demon stars. They were not unwilling to fight for the Three Sovereign Mirror—both sensed the threat of death and retreated temporarily.

'Boy, you're dead this time!' The Stone Corpse blocked Xiao Chen and Keke inside a tomb.

At such close range, even with the Pangu Stone Token, he could not fully conceal his aura.

'Ya-ya! You stinky rock!' Keke was startled by the sudden appearance of the Stone Corpse. Her little paw shook as she muttered: 'Keke's Ultimate Art—Little Bowl Captures the World!'

A nine-colored jade bowl spun rapidly, enlarging, and plopped onto the Stone Corpse's head, looking thoroughly ridiculous. The bowl was tiny for Keke, but for an adult, it was like a wine cup. Yet this little cup, once on the Stone Corpse's head, actually worked—it grew and inverted, trapping him inside.

'Roar!'

The Stone Corpse bellowed coldly and ruthlessly. His body rapidly expanded, devouring sun and moon, towering like a mountain. The nine-colored jade bowl was now just a funny little hat perched on his head.

He opened his enormous mouth and inhaled with tremendous force. Keke yelped and was sucked inside.

'How dare you!' Xiao Chen was furious. He moved instantly, merging his body with the divine diagram and shaking the ancient scroll as he charged forward. Inside the scroll, two of the Five Peerless Kings of the Chaotic Land wielded stone weapons: a long stone spear, an ancient holy sword, and a huge stone seal—all three struck the Stone Corpse at once.

'Bam bam bam!'

The Stone Corpse was knocked off balance by the shaken scroll and then hit by the three stone weapons. Stone blood spattered, but there was no fatal wound.

'Roar!' He grinned savagely, his body growing even larger, swallowing stars and moons. Then he opened his mouth and sucked Xiao Chen in as well.

'The divine diagram and the ancient scroll are supreme treasures. If I cannot get the Three Sovereign Mirror, it doesn't matter. Merging with these holy relics and refining you both—that would be worth this trip!' The Stone Corpse laughed wildly.

Inside his body, Xiao Chen soon found Keke, who was barely holding on, not yet refined.

'So stinky! Stinky rock!' Keke grumbled angrily.

'Don't worry,' Xiao Chen said without fear. He protected himself with various war treasures, then pulled out the genuine Heavenly Stele and held it before him. 'I don't believe you can refine this. I'm going to burst you open from the inside!'