Ying Zheng stood tall and chest out on the war chariot, his belly slightly prominent. Truthfully, his expression and bearing carried a hint of the majesty of an Emperor of the Ages, yet that rotund figure spoiled the aura by more than half. Ye Wen and the others watched him for a while, finding it quite comical, especially when Ying Zheng earnestly praised Chong Lou; his eyes narrowed almost to slits, making it impossible to tell if they were open or closed.

After finishing with Chong Lou, Ying Zheng turned his gaze to Ye Wen and his companions. His eyes swept over each person in turn before finally settling on Artemis. A flicker of light seemed to pass through the eyes of this chubby Emperor of the Ages; the eyes, which had finally managed to open, narrowed back into fine lines, and then he nodded, pointing at Artemis: "This foreign girl's looks and figure are quite good!"

Bai Qi, standing nearby, just pursed his lips and said nothing. However, standing next to Ying Zheng was a man of dignified appearance, with a fair, beardless face, looking to be in his early twenties. But when he spoke, his voice was quite sharp, ruining more than half of his otherwise pleasant image: "If Your Majesty fancies her, why not take her back to the palace..."

"Damn dead eunuch!" Ye Wen instantly knew the man was a eunuch, and the particularly vile kind who only knew how to flatter the emperor regardless of others' lives.

Ordinarily, he wouldn't have said anything, but this man dared to set his sights on his woman? He clearly didn't know how to spell the word 'death'!

Frost settled over Ye Wen's face, and his gaze towards the eunuch sharpened with killing intent. The man seemed to sense it, glancing over toward Ye Wen. At first, he showed alarm, but then, as if remembering something, he straightened his neck and snorted silently at Ye Wen through his nostrils.

"You dog relying on someone else's power!" Ye Wen actually held no strong prejudice against eunuchs; though history often spoke of eunuchs corrupting politics, normal officials did plenty of that too. Moreover, not all eunuchs were bad; many throughout the dynasties had rendered great service.

But for a fellow like this, Ye Wen had no reason to give him a pleasant expression. Seeing the man still provoking him, Ye Wen also snorted. To others, this sound was unremarkable, but to the eunuch, it was like a thunderclap exploding in his mind. His vision flashed black, his ears rang fiercely, his throat churned, and he almost spat out a mouthful of blood.

Noticing his distress, Ying Zheng reached out and slapped the personal eunuch on the shoulder, sending a tyrannical surge of energy into the man's body, suppressing the force. Then, instead of saying anything to Ye Wen, he scolded the eunuch: "What nonsense are you speaking here? Retreat!"

The eunuch had intended to curry favor with Ying Zheng, but not only did he fail to achieve the desired effect, he was severely injured instead—though Ying Zheng’s slap suppressed the discomfort, the energy was too overbearing and primal. While it held the injury down for now, it left a massive hidden danger in his body. If he didn't recuperate properly afterward, a sudden death might be unavoidable.

Whether the eunuch knew these implications was unclear, but Ye Wen saw it perfectly clearly. Aided by his Glazed Pupils, not a single detail escaped his divine eyes.

Seeing this reaction, Ye Wen finally acknowledged that this amusingly fat man was indeed that Emperor of the Ages—one who never truly valued another person's life.

As for why he raged at the eunuch instead of getting angry at Ye Wen, it was likely because the First Emperor had perceived Ye Wen's strength!

After all, this world was vastly different from the Earth he previously inhabited, and the situation far more complex than the Warring States period. Especially since individual power could reach such extraordinary heights, Qin Shi Huang, while still a local overlord with no small personal strength, could no longer act with absolute impunity.

Furthermore, in that brief moment, Ying Zheng had already noticed that the woman seemed to have some connection with this Taoist. This meant his words just now had offended the other party first. Ying Zheng wasn't a fool; offending such a powerful person over a woman was hardly worth it—more importantly, he thought he had just heard that son, whom he hadn't paid much mind to, had taken this man as a master?

Even though his relationship with that son wasn't good, they were still father and son, after all. Calculating the odds, these people before him were essentially his own kin.

With this thought, Ying Zheng naturally wished to avoid conflict with Ye Wen and the others. He smiled, waved his hand, and the soldiers, with a whoosh, neatly and uniformly sheathed their crossbows and retreated in perfect order, lifting the encirclement.

Ye Wen had been watching the movements of these soldiers, noting their extreme proficiency. Despite their numbers, there was no hint of disorder, testifying to the First Emperor's rigorous military discipline. It was this formidable army that allowed him to conquer the realm.

Once the soldiers withdrew, Ye Wen cupped his hands and offered a slight bow to Ying Zheng—this was already appropriate. For a regional hegemon, even when meeting the Jade Emperor, Ye Wen wouldn't offer the full rites owed between sovereign and subject!

"May I ask the Immortal Elder's name?"

During this time, Bai Qi had whispered a few words into Ying Zheng's ear, learning that Ye Wen and his group hailed from the 'Upper Realm,' or the Immortal Realm. Though their purpose was unknown, their strength was immense, and they evidently had ties to the Heavenly Court—Qin Shi Huang recognized the divine generals Xue Rengui and Lu Bu.

After a few more exchanges, although Chong Lou remained icy, unresponsive even to his biological father, Ying Zheng seemed unconcerned by this. He conversed freely with Ye Wen and the others.

By now, he knew Artemis was one of the main gods of the Olympian Pantheon, so he treated her with more deference afterward. As for Xue Rengui and Lu Bu, he showed considerable courtesy, even ordering his subordinates to bring a set of brand-new armor... asking Lu Bu to change out of the one ruined in his fight with Bai Qi.

Talking along the way, Ying Zheng actually led the group into his temporary palace here and arranged a banquet to entertain them. This level of reception was extraordinary; by some standards, this was a state banquet—albeit a small one.

Ye Wen was quite surprised by Ying Zheng's enthusiasm. Why was he arranging a banquet and even having Wang Jian and Bai Qi sit nearby to pour drinks—though with those two flanking Ying Zheng, they seemed more like guards to prevent Ye Wen's party from suddenly attacking.

However, during their conversation, Ye Wen managed to glean information about Ying Zheng's group through subtle inquiries, especially since Ying Zheng had no intention of concealing anything, particularly after learning that Lu Bu and Xue Rengui were also from his original world.

It turned out that ever since inheriting the throne of Qin, Qin Shi Huang had been obsessed with achieving immortality. He eventually stumbled upon some secret scrolls left by Bai Qi within the palace's hidden archives.

Only then did Ying Zheng understand why Bai Qi enjoyed annihilation in battle, often slaughtering entire enemy forces: it was to use this secret method to preserve his primordial spirit after death and use the amassed blood energy of over a million people to reconstruct his physical body. That was why Bai Qi possessed such a violent, blood-red killing aura upon rebirth in this world.

Ying Zheng, however, could not use that method. He was an emperor; he couldn't lead troops on the front lines, nor could he easily order his generals to carry out such a task for him. In the end, he chose an alternative method.

After unifying the nation, he initiated massive construction projects—publicly building the Great Wall and his mausoleum, but in reality, he was setting up a colossal formation—to seize the destiny of the entire realm and concentrate it upon himself. This was to ensure his spirit remained undying after death and then use that immense destiny, augmented by the dragon energy of the dynasty, to reshape his physical form.

These methods were fundamentally similar, only differing in the type of power used and the specific execution. But they shared one crucial commonality: all these methods were self-serving means that harmed others.

Bai Qi had killed over a million imperial soldiers to forge his current cultivation based on blood energy. Qin Shi Huang played a much grander game, usurping the dynasty's destiny for himself, which resulted in the swift collapse of the Qin Dynasty soon after his death!

Ye Wen had always considered destiny to be too ethereal, but now he was gradually realizing that while intangible, destiny truly couldn't be ignored.

Take a dynasty, for instance: everything might be fine internally, but if Heaven decides to torment it with endless natural disasters, the dynasty will collapse even without internal strife. Especially since the Ying Zheng of that time was more concerned with eternal life than governance, internal problems were abundant. Thus, it was no wonder the Qin Dynasty vanished immediately after his death.

After escaping the cycle of reincarnation and reconstituting their bodies, neither Qin Shi Huang nor Bai Qi lingered on Earth but instead came to this world. Initially, their impression of this world was not favorable, especially the perpetually gloomy sky that seemed to have no daytime, which was highly uncomfortable for two men accustomed to living under the sun.

They traveled extensively in all directions before they gradually figured out the state of this world. They even ventured into the Immortal Realm—only then did Qin Shi Huang finally understand what kind of world he was in. It turned out he and Bai Qi had arrived in a world corresponding to the Immortal Realm, though where they appeared was merely a connected plane.

However, the methods described in the secret scrolls actually allowed them to glimpse the path to true immortality—this filled them with both shock and delight. But after the initial excitement, both felt a measure of confusion, unsure what to do next.

Qin Shi Huang proved that he was certainly not someone content with mediocrity; if he could unify the world of mortals, he wouldn't be content to be a recluse in this world either!

Moreover, after reconstructing his body, he had achieved a preliminary mastery of the secret scroll's techniques. He then cultivated for nearly a thousand years, thoroughly consolidating his power and forging several magical artifacts. At this point, he began planning to stir up trouble again.

With Bai Qi by his side, they conferred—they would raise an army! Thus, the Great Qin Dynasty was re-established in this world. Ying Zheng even resurrected the great general Wang Jian using secret treasures and the Terracotta Army, having him assist Bai Qi in advising him.

"The Terracotta Army is a magical artifact!?"

Ye Wen had always assumed Qin Shi Huang created the Terracotta Army merely to command millions of soldiers in the netherworld after death. He hadn't realized the army was a technique recorded in the secret scrolls, one that could ultimately be refined into an artifact. And Wang Jian, who hadn't practiced cultivation, had his soul pulled from reincarnation and his body reformed by Ying Zheng using this very secret method?

"This ability seems somewhat similar to the Investiture of the Gods!"

He was very interested in the specific details, but since the Terracotta Army was an extremely vital artifact for Qin Shi Huang, he naturally wouldn't divulge everything to Ye Wen. The fact that he revealed this much was partly because Ye Wen had inadvertently disclosed information about himself too. During this banquet, the two were engaged in a mutual exchange of information.

Ying Zheng was overjoyed when he learned Ye Wen was also from Earth—it was like meeting a fellow native in a foreign land. Though he didn't shed tears of joy, he became significantly warmer than he had been at the start.

As they spoke happily, the group acted like old friends who had known each other for ages, completely discarding decorum, bursting into loud laughter when something amused them, leaving the maids and guards outside wondering about the true status of these guests the Emperor had brought back.

After talking for quite a while, Ying Zheng finally claimed fatigue and retired to rest. Then, Bai Qi arranged for maids to assign rooms to everyone, and the banquet concluded.

Ye Wen and Artemis returned to their specially prepared quarters. Once everyone else had dispersed, the smile vanished from Ye Wen's face... He gave Artemis a meaningful look, seemingly asking a question.

Artemis understood immediately what Ye Wen was asking, nodding with a grave expression.

"Looks like the feeling wasn't wrong!"

If anyone else heard this, they would be utterly confused, but if Xue Rengui were present, he certainly wouldn't find it incomprehensible, as Xue Rengui and Lu Bu were also huddled together, murmuring softly.

"At first, I thought something had gone wrong with the tracking, but after confirming repeatedly, I realized it is indeed that Qin Emperor!" Lu Bu rubbed his temples. He had already discarded his tattered armor and was wearing only a long robe, sitting there with a look of surprise: "But the appearance is too different, isn't it?"

"During the banquet, I secretly exchanged a few gestures with Immortal Elder Ye. Immortal Elder Ye and that Moon Goddess also secretly confirmed it's the Qin Emperor beyond doubt!" Xue Rengui, too, had initially felt uncertain and had specifically asked Ye Wen for help in confirming. To find that it truly was Qin Shi Huang made Xue Rengui deeply uneasy, as he never expected that his target this time would be Qin Shi Huang—and more importantly, Qin Shi Huang was no easy character to deal with.

As soon as Qin Shi Huang appeared, Xue Rengui felt a corresponding sensation in his mind. Initially, because he had never experienced this before, he dismissed it as a hallucination. But as the time spent with Qin Shi Huang grew, the sensation in his mind became increasingly distinct.

Concentrating carefully, a segment of a cultivation mantra immediately surfaced in his mind. During the banquet, Xue Rengui had secretly performed a check. He unexpectedly discovered that this was a monthly spell imprinted in his mind by the jade slip—a technique that would send reminders when he approached the target person and could even be actively deployed by Xue Rengui to verify if the person before him was the one he sought.

This technique naturally couldn't be cast casually; it required a reference object. Since the Pomegranate Fairy had been insulted by this person, it wasn't difficult for the Mystic Lady Xuan Nü to devise this spell to aid Xue Rengui's search.

The test confirmed it again! Xue Rengui worried he might be executing it incorrectly, so he sought Ye Wen's help. Since Ye Wen was engaged in conversation with Qin Shi Huang, it was inconvenient for him, so he secretly signaled Artemis. Artemis then helped verify the spell—the technique taught by Mystic Lady Xuan Nü was quite simple, manageable even with Artemis's divine power.

Ye Wen, meanwhile, secretly activated his Glazed Pupils to check if Qin Shi Huang had any connection to the figure in his mind. He found that although their appearances were vastly different, upon close comparison, there were numerous similarities.

Now, the matter was crystal clear!

That villain was Qin Shi Huang, and Xue Rengui was looking for Qin Shi Huang. Mystic Lady Xuan Nü commanded Xue Rengui to kill Qin Shi Huang!

"This is so troublesome!" Just as Ye Wen was racking his brain over how to proceed, he suddenly made a 'hush' gesture toward Artemis. Soon after, Artemis also heard footsteps approaching, and someone called out from the door: "It's Chong Lou!"

Chong Lou knew Ye Wen certainly wasn't asleep; he stated his identity immediately without asking for permission to enter, simply waiting by the door.

Ye Wen pondered for a moment, then said, "Come in!" He sat back down, watching Chong Lou push open the unlocked door. Upon entering, Chong Lou immediately asked, "When is Sect Master Ye leaving?"

This opening remark surprised Ye Wen; it seemed Chong Lou held no positive feelings for his father, wanting to depart right away.

Ye Wen's reply, however, slightly surprised Chong Lou. He didn't ask why but directly stated, "Probably soon, but there's something that needs resolving before that!"

"Oh?"

Though Chong Lou was naturally reserved, he was still a young man. Hearing this, he became curious, wondering what Ye Wen needed to settle. Had he found the person he was looking for?

Ye Wen then asked him, "Do you know what your father... Emperor Qin... looked like before?"

Chong Lou paused, then shook his head. In his memory, Qin Shi Huang had always looked this way. But Ye Wen's specific question suggested some underlying secret, and after thinking carefully, he recalled: "If there was a change, he has gotten much fatter than before!"

Upon hearing this, Ye Wen closed his eyes and nodded: "It seems this is correct!" He then stood up and walked straight outside, speaking as if addressing the empty air: "You probably already have some suspicions yourself, haven't you?"

"Heh heh heh!" A burst of laughter materialized out of thin air, and then Ying Zheng's rotund body materialized from the void, standing not far in front of Ye Wen: "I only sensed something strange; I haven't quite figured out the details! But judging by what Immortal Elder Ye implies, are you intending to make trouble for this Emperor?"

As they spoke, the others residing in adjacent rooms also emerged. Xue Rengui was already clad in his armor, holding his White Tiger Whip, pointing directly at Ying Zheng: "You cannot deny the deeds you have done! Does Emperor Qin still remember the Pomegranate Fairy under Mystic Lady Xuan Nü?"

One might expect that mentioning the Pomegranate Fairy would make Qin Shi Huang cease denial, as someone of his stature shouldn't outright refuse things he'd done.

Unexpectedly, upon hearing the name Pomegranate Fairy, Ying Zheng's legs buckled, and his face filled with panic. He rapidly turned his head, looking around wildly: "That crazy woman is here too?" (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian to cast recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)