Immortality Starts With Investment

With the myriad races' prodigies all fallen, only Shen Yu remained alive. Yet he had knelt, returned the Extreme Dao weapons, and even offered up the clan leader's own wife. Such an immense sacrifice—he deserved to live. The others could only envy; they could not emulate.

As calm returned, the myriad races' great powers gazed at Ye Chen with eyes full of wariness and chilling intent. This single youth had nearly slaughtered the future elites of every major clan, leaving them with generational voids and no heirs. His terrifying combat prowess and unfathomable cunning inspired dread.

They knew clearly: if Ye Chen continued growing unchecked, no one in the cultivation world would ever restrain him again. Thus, two paths lay ahead. Either mobilize all forces, sparing no means, to strangle him in his ascent and eliminate the threat forever. Or follow the Heavenly Demon and Divine Silkworm Clans' example—lower pride, offer wives and daughters, seek to appease and draw him close for the clan's security. No third option existed.

Recalling the auction, though their treasures had sold at tenfold premiums—seemingly overflowing profits. In truth, it had armed Ye Chen with rarities otherwise unobtainable. That was the real aid to the enemy.

For Mahayana cultivators, ordinary resource piles meant little; only converting them into tangible strength mattered most. The more they reflected, the deeper their regret. From start to finish, they had been toys in this junior's palm—led by the nose entirely. This confrontation had cost them to the bone.

...

The battle concluded. Though unwilling, the myriad races' great powers dared not act rashly. They departed in bitter resentment, vanishing without a trace. The onlookers remained rooted, gazing at Ye Chen with awe—as though beholding a deity.

Wen Tailai narrowed his eyes, greed surging ever fiercer within. Merely at King Realm, yet wielding saint-level might—equivalent to leaping two full great realms. Such a heaven-defying feat was unheard of.

Infinite secrets surely hid behind Ye Chen. If he could claim them, forget Great Emperor prospects. Even the distant quasi-immortal fruit might become attainable.

Yet glancing skyward—at Heavenly Evolution Holy Land's guardians and the ring of human great powers—he forcibly suppressed his avarice. When an opportunity arose, he would strike Ye Chen like thunder!

...

Ye Chen calmly gathered the battle's harvest of origin, feeding it into his cave heaven for automatic purification. Then, with a faint smile, he flickered upward into the firmament.

"Greetings, Holy Master. Greetings, elders and seniors. My thanks for your protection this time..."

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Ye Chen addressed the assembled human great powers with sincere words and a courteous demeanor. The great powers—who ordinarily appeared aloof and celestial before juniors—now faced Ye Chen as though transformed. Each grew exceptionally warm, smiles blooming. Most had come for profit—to invest in this conflict's future.

Ye Chen's display far exceeded expectations. With discerning eyes, all saw his genuine ascension potential—no empty boast. Should he truly ascend one day, today's favors would prove priceless.

Ye Chen proved unstinting. Fifteen great powers present—each received a high-grade Extreme Dao weapon. Eyes brightened across the board.

High-grade Extreme Dao weapons! The Heavenly Emperor's heir—too generous!

They demurred politely at first, pushing back several times. But Ye Chen's gifts were ironclad—never retracted. Seeing this, they feigned helpless expressions—"next time, you absolutely cannot"—and accepted the weapons.

Yet their ever-widening smiles betrayed inner delight utterly. They transmitted fervently to Feng Baiyu—earnest pledges that next time aid was needed, they would arrive without delay, no ambiguity.

...

"Young friend Ye, our clan's Lan Nuo often speaks of you!" The Lan family great power enthused warmly before departing. "If you have time in the future, please visit our Lan family often."

Ye Chen nodded slightly, his expression gentle. "I will visit soon to pay respects to Friend Lan Nuo."

At this, the Lan great power's brows arched in delight, though recalling what he had overheard earlier, a flicker of complexity crossed his face. It vanished swiftly as he smiled and nodded. "In that case, I shall await you at the Lan family..."

Once the great powers departed one by one, Ye Chen turned to Yao Yuezhi and Yan Wenwen, who had watched from afar. He bid them soft farewells. Having slain so many prodigies, Myriad Races Immortal City was no longer hospitable. Moreover, his cultivation neared a breakthrough—he needed to return to the Heavenly Desire Sect.

Under the women's reluctant, silk-thread-like lingering gazes, Ye Chen summoned the Heavenly Emperor's War Chariot. Bathed in resplendent divine light, it exuded boundless majesty as it thundered away. Countless myriad races cultivators watched his departing silhouette and exhaled in relief.

The Heavenly Emperor's heir's oppressive presence was truly overwhelming. In this generation, few could stand before him. Yet some suddenly recalled: Shen Yu wasn't the sole survivor. There was also the War God Clan's princess, Luo Bingling.

The Heavenly Emperor's heir was a fiend for beauty—coveting even others' dao companions. With Luo Bingling's "betrayal," who knew what torments awaited her in his cave heaven.

The War God great powers, however, harbored no thoughts of rescue—departing cleanly and decisively. This left all worrying for Luo Bingling's tragic future. With the heir's refined tastes, his methods of torment surely abounded. Would Luo Bingling be ruined?

...

"No more... let me rest a while..."

The Heavenly Emperor War Chariot shrouded itself in divine light, obscuring the interior.

Ye Chen regarded the exhausted Luo Bingling—arms too weary to lift—and couldn't help a chuckle. For all her War God Clan heritage and astonishing physique—like a female war goddess—her endurance proved quite ordinary. She begged for mercy swiftly.

Ye Chen cherished beauty and showed mercy, sparing her excess hardship. With a gentle wave, he sent her into his cave heaven to recuperate and cultivate. Wasting no time himself, he closed his eyes to meditate and cultivate the Heavenly Emperor Scripture.

Ye Chen's cultivation speed was astonishing—visible to the naked eye. Yet upon concluding, he couldn't suppress a sigh. His progress fell short of expectations. The vast amplification from his cave heaven's spiritual charm, his heaven-defying constitution, and immortal artifact aids—all undeniably effective. The issue lay with himself—his spiritual roots.