Soul Land 5: The Rebirth of Tang San

Chapter 723: The Crystal Is Here

The enormous Celestial Pillar standing over five hundred meters tall, suddenly lit up. Crystalline light flickered, giving the entire Ancestral Court Council an almost surreal atmosphere and making the Emperors present feel a sense of unreality.

A somewhat ethereal figure was projected in freefall, landing atop the Celestial Pillar. As this figure appeared, the Emperors present all simultaneously bowed slightly in that direction, a gesture of respect for the mightiest among them.

Yes, the pillar that lit up belonged to none other than the strongest being on the entire Falan Planet, the one who was—at least in name—the true leader of the Ancestral Court: the Omnipotent Crystal Demon Emperor!

The ethereal figure was somewhat indistinct, but the Emperors present were all intimately familiar with the aura it exuded. No one could impersonate the Crystal Demon Emperor; the Celestial Pillar beneath it was the undeniable proof.

"Why can't we let a young girl pass her damn evaluation? The Ancestral Court Council doesn’t have enough women. Celestial Fox, you heard the White Tiger, stop with the alarmism. I don't believe that a young girl could cause the turmoil you’re talking about. If you have concrete evidence, present it. If not, shut up. That said, I approve of her. My reasoning is simple—the Empyrean Dominion needs a feminine touch. That's all from me, goodbye."

With those words, the crystalline light shimmered, transforming into a dazzling streak that soared across the sky.

Instantly, the entire Empyrean Dominion Council fell into complete silence.

Mei Gongzi stared blankly in the direction where the Crystal Demon Emperor had vanished. This... was this really the Omnipotent Crystal Demon Emperor?

No, the one who was truly omnipotent was that little bastard Tang San.

You... You really are omnipotent. You actually made it happen. I don’t know how you did it, but you did it.

None of this could be a coincidence; it was simply impossible. Even though Mei Gongzi still didn’t know how Tang San had managed it, she was absolutely certain that everything that had transpired here was connected to him.

Of nine Demon Emperors, six approved of her. And among them were even the first-ranked and third-ranked. How utterly incredible! Even under the control of the Celestial Fox Demon Emperor, the Master of Destiny, her destiny had ultimately escaped his grasp. There was no need for the Celestial Fox Demon Emperor to announce it—the result was already obvious. She had passed the second trial.

***

The Crystal Sacred Mountain.

Before coming to the Ancestral Court, Tang San had already decided that he needed to climb at least four sacred mountains. However, after arriving, he carefully considered and decided that he needed to ascend this fifth mountain—the one before him now.

It was only when he found himself before this mountain that he hesitated for a long time, finally still deciding to climb. He wasn’t sure if, after climbing, he would achieve what he wanted or face a terrifying outcome that might force him into making different choices.

The Crystal Sacred Mountain was as formidable as ever. Tang San clearly remembered the immense difficulty he had faced the last time he had climbed it. Every time he used a bloodline ability during the climb, the mountain would create a duplicate that could use the same ability. It started with one duplicate, then three, and eventually nine.

Many strong figures from both the demon and the nymph races had attempted to climb the Crystal Sacred Mountain. The only task here was to overcome oneself, making it an excellent place for training and trials. However, very few had ever climbed beyond the second level. Defeating even one single duplicate was a significant challenge for most, as the duplicates here could utilize one’s abilities to their utmost potential, often even stronger than the original. Facing three of such duplicates was almost impossible, and ninety-nine percent of climbers were stopped at this stage.

Thus, when Tang San had reached the summit, there had been no climbers behind him—no one even within sight.

This time, as he returned, Tang San did not climb the mountain step by step as he had before. He could have done so and had enough confidence to succeed. After all, according to his understanding of the Crystal Demon Emperor, despite its terrifying replication ability, it could only replicate three, at most four abilities at once. Tang San, however, possessed eight abilities granted by his bloodline imprints. The Crystal Demon Emperor could not possibly replicate them all simultaneously. Therefore, even if he had to face nine of himself, Tang San was confident he could prevail.

The problem was that Tang San’s body now felt like a balloon stretched to its limit. Any slight touch could make it pop, leading to drastic consequences.

Thus, he took out the Crystal Mirror, the token of the Crystal Sacred Mountain. With this token, he could simulate one ability for a single use, but more importantly, it symbolized the Crystal Demon Emperor's approval.

Tang San held the Crystal Mirror as he ascended slowly. As expected, no duplicates appeared, and no illusions manifested. He was able to climb step by step without any obstacles.

Without any hindrance, this climb offered Tang San an entirely different experience.

The stairs beneath his feet were crystal clear, reflecting his image and everything around him. It was as if this place was a starry cosmos, capable of reflecting all things.

The Crystal Demon Emperor was the only Crystal Dragon in history, so it was evident that it had personally constructed the Crystal Sacred Mountain and the Crystal Palace. Having lived for three thousand years, this most powerful Emperor was truly extraordinary! Even with Tang San's deep foundation, he seemed to gain some insights here.

In his previous life, he had a companion named Oscar, a food-type spirit master with the ability to make sausages. These sausages had various effects—some could restore energy, others could detoxify, and one even gave people wings for a short time. However, none of these gave the "sausage factory" any significant combat ability.

In pursuit of combat power, Oscar ventured far into the northern regions and eventually gained a powerful ability called the Clone Mirror Sausage[1], which allowed him to mirror the abilities of his opponents to a certain extent. If he wanted to use another ability, he had to replicate it first, and he could only harness up to eighty percent of the original power. As a result, he could use a wide variety of abilities in battle, but he was never the strongest combatant.

In this world, the strongest being on the Daemon Continent, the Crystal Demon Emperor, possessed this very ability, but its power was beyond comparison. It could replicate a hundred percent of his opponent's power, far surpassing Oscar’s Clone Mirror Sausage. Moreover, it could not only replicate several abilities simultaneously but also wield them at once. This ultimately made it the strongest Demon Emperor—how were the others supposed to defeat it?

But where did its replication ability come from? Did it have something to do with space or time? Perhaps it was a combination of both?

As Tang San continued his ascent, he pondered these questions, seemingly forgetting his original purpose.

Gradually, he reached the halfway point of the mountain. As he climbed, a voice suddenly rang out, "Why have you come?"

The familiar voice and aura of the Crystal Demon Emperor seemed to envelop the entire Crystal Sacred Mountain instantly.

Tang San did not stop his ascent. He simply said, "Your Majesty, I wish to meet with you to discuss something."

1. The original here actually says “Crystal Sausage,” but there is no Crystal Sausage in SL1. There is a Crystal Caterpillar Sausage (his 8th spirit ring ability) but what it does is recover all spiritual power and 50% of physical power and injuries. We have replaced this with the correct ability—the Clone Mirror Sausage. The wiki translation is Clone Mirror Large Sausage, but there is no “large” in the original. ☜