The monarch took her time absorbing the information before asking the next question: “Then what is the requirement to be an Emperor Rival?”
“This one isn't as easy.” Li Qiye smiled and shook his head: “For eons now, few characters of this level have appeared. If there must be a requirement, then a rival has to fight evenly against an emperor.”
The monarch immediately thought about someone after hearing this, their progenitor- the Black Dragon King.
The king reigned for three generations before fighting against Immortal Emperor Ta Kong! He was the shining star in the heart of all disciples from Heaven Suppression.
So many in this region grew up hearing about his tales including the monarch. That's why she was proud of being a disciple of Heaven Suppression!
“Yes, the most famous among them is probably the Black Dragon King.” Li Qiye continued: “He's indeed an Emperor Rival.”
The monarch couldn't help but say: “But I heard Immortal Emperor Ta Kong is dead. Our progenitor killed him.” She heard about the battle with Space Trample Mountain before. The emperor's corpse was annihilated by someone from Li Qiye's side.
“There are strong and weak emperors too. That's why I consider the Black Dragon King to be a rival. For example, Immortal Emperor Jiao Heng, Empress Hong Tian, or Immortal Emperor Fei and Immortal Emperor Hao Hai… if he were to fight against these emperors, it's hard to say. Immortal Emperor Ta Kong isn't among the most elite group.”
“Then how does he rank among the emperors?” She was full of curiosity. After all, he was a well-known emperor and the only person to have been killed after shouldering the Heaven's Will in everyone's mind.
Li Qiye gently shook his head: “Hard to say. The emperor still had a lot of room to grow. We can't look down on him just because he was slain by the Black Dragon King. I can only say that he was too anxious. If he kept on walking down the imperial path, who knows what kind of achievements he would have up above the nine heavens. It's no coincidence for someone to become an emperor. He was the most excellent on this path in his generation. Talents, origin, merit laws, weapons, the most powerful protectors; all of this does not guarantee your spot as an emperor. A firm dao heart is also necessary. One would have the chance to reach the grand dao as long as they do not give up. However, if they don't have the courage to persist, all of the prior advantages are useless. An emperor must be able to withstand all obstacles and resist all temptations to ascend and bring about storms in a larger world.”
He stared at the horizon and continued: “Disciples from Heaven Suppression shouldn't look down on Immortal Emperor Ta Kong. His achievement proves his exceptional abilities. During his period, he wasn't the most talented and didn't have the greatest background either but why did he become emperor in the end? Was it out of luck?”
He shook his head and said: “Emperors aren't made from luck. Others might be able to accomplish great things due to luck and favorable circumstances but this is not the case for emperors. The moment they embarked on the heavenly path, it meant that the whole world was their enemy. Numerous opponents who wanted to push them towards death. Challenges and assassinations along with the perils that accompany cultivation…”
“… Each emperor was battle-hardened and walked on countless bones and blood. Even if they had an invincible protector in the shadow, they must experience these challenges. Otherwise, they would only be sheltered flowers, unable to create their own supreme grand dao or being accepted by the Heaven's Will. A life of battle and never giving up, that's an emperor!”
Li Qiye spoke solemnly. Although Immortal Emperor Ta Kong opposed him, he truly appreciated the guy's imperial qualities. As for his personality and morality, that was a different matter.
“Each emperor has their own admirable quality; they are role models for future descendants. Thus, you cannot look down on Immortal Emperor Ta Kong just because he was your progenitor's enemy and was taken down by him. Do not think that he only got lucky to become an emperor.”
The monarch was stirred after hearing Li Qiye's explanation. She took a deep breath and bowed: “I'll carve your words into my heart and won't forget them, Young noble.”
In fact, Li Qiye's statement was very reasonable. In recent years, everyone heard about the emperor's corpse so they knew the Black Dragon King killed him. The fate of the king remained unknown.
Being the slayer of an emperor was worthy of pride. This was an insurmountable achievement!
Because of this, many disciples in Heaven Suppression became arrogant. They thought that Immortal Emperor Ta Kong wasn't much at all. So what if he had the Heaven's Will? The guy still got killed by their progenitor!
This sentiment was prevalent in Heaven Suppression. Li Qiye's guidance today was a warning for the future descendants. They weren't qualified to look down on Immortal Emperor Ta Kong even though he was their enemy.
If the emperor wasn't much, then what were they who couldn't become an emperor? Nobodies like them weren't qualified to look down on a person who experienced countless hardship and battle to become the only emperor of a generation!
This elucidated the monarch's mind even more. The path towards the grand dao was different from their imagination. It wasn't only about chasing the strongest merit law and treasure. The most precious thing was their dao heart!
“You still have a long way to go. In the future, Heaven Suppression will require your service. You need more than just talents and insightful decision-making abilities. Make sure to have a firm and understanding dao heart. With that, I'm sure the sect will prosper under your control.” Li Qiye said slowly.
“You think too highly of me, young noble.” The monarch smiled and shook her head: “Sect master is wiser and more talented than me. Her dao heart is firmer as well. The only thing she lacks is experience but she is still young. Her future will be much better than mine.”
“No, Zi Cuining has her own mission and path.” Li Qiye shook his head.
The monarch was confused and didn't understand the relationship between these two. Of course, she didn't know that Zi Cuining wouldn't be staying at Heaven Suppression. One of these days, she would leave the nine worlds completely.
This was the reason why Li Qiye told the secret of the Immortal Blood Spear to her. One day, she would continue its legend above the nine heavens.
The two of them traveled around Discover without visiting the Yu Clan right away. They took their time wandering randomly.
“Young noble, we're not visiting the Yu Clan?” This prompted the monarch to ask.
“We will but no rush for now. Matriarch Yu has just come out so she needs time to stabilize. No need to bother her.” Li Qiye chuckled.
“The Yu Clan will let us see her?” She blurted out but quickly found this question to be unnecessary.
Despite Li Qiye's assault on the clan's disciples, even Yu Zhengfeng was so respectful towards him. It wasn't difficult for him to meet Matriarch Yu at all.
“The idiots.” Li Qiye shook his head: “Killing one or two of them will be for their own good so that they will stop relying on their ancestor's fame to bully others while not having any skills. This is to let them know how vast the world is. Plenty of people are not afraid of their clan.”
The monarch found the statement reasonable. If Li Qiye had any insidious thoughts about the Yu Clan, he would destroy it given his temperament. This was only a lesson towards Yu Zhan's group, a type of tough love.