Chapter 973: Missing Those Little Feet!

The Nine Apertures Exquisite Heart and Lotus Emperor's origin could be given to the holy spirit. The feedback from Lotus Emperor's origin should also bring some improvement to his Primordial Chaos Supreme Body. As for the Nine Apertures Exquisite Heart, it might allow his Innate Supreme Heart to be refreshed and advance further.

Celestial Prince's origin would definitely go to his fiancée. The origin fire seed could be given to Li Feihuang. Only the Chaos Azure Lotus seed left Ye Chen momentarily unsure who to give it to.

After a brief hesitation, he decided to set it aside for now. He would make another trip to the Central Continent and see. Since he could not break through to quasi-immortal for the time being anyway, he still had nearly two years to wait for the aura of his inner world and black holes to fully fuse.

During this period, it would be enough to settle the matter of the Chaos Azure Lotus seed. The fusion between his inner world and black holes required no external treasures; it depended entirely on his foundation. Once the fusion was complete, he could directly break through to the quasi-immortal realm. Besides, it had indeed been a long time since he last saw the little demoness.

Ye Chen suddenly missed the little demoness's small feet. They were one of a kind in the world, just like Luo Bingling's slender waist and his master's domineering aura.

After thinking for a moment, Ye Chen swept his gaze across the onlookers.

A group of quasi-immortals, each of whom could suppress an entire region if acting alone. Yet under the sweeping gaze of Ye Chen—a mere Great Emperor—all of them lowered their heads. No one dared meet his eyes.

Ye Chen's current prestige was evident. He said nothing more. He summoned the holy carriage and shot off toward the Central Continent. Only after Ye Chen's figure had completely disappeared did the quasi-immortals feel the heavy pressure lift from their bodies. All of them let out a sigh of relief.

They looked at the battlefield before them, which had already returned to its original calm state. Only the lingering might of immortal artifacts still lingered in the void, refusing to fade.

Everyone felt endless shock.

Celestial Prince and Lotus Emperor, two top-tier existences working together, had shaken the entire Central Continent. They had expected an earth-shaking battle to erupt in the Great Yan Continent.

Yet the two had not even set foot in the Great Yan Continent before they were intercepted and slain by the Heavenly Emperor's heir, who had been waiting in the Endless Sea. They had died lightly, without putting the slightest pressure on the Heavenly Emperor's heir. The entire process had been inconceivably fast.

"This generation's immortal path is truly unprecedentedly intense."

"So many heavenly prodigies, any one of whom could have suppressed an entire era, have now become nothing more than stepping stones."

"Is the Eight-Crowned King truly a match for the Heavenly Emperor's heir?"

"It's hard to say. No one knows the true power of the World Tree, because the Eight-Crowned King only used it during his first attempt at immortality. He has never brought it out since. No one knows exactly how terrifying it is."

"The problem is that the Heavenly Emperor's heir clearly hasn't used his full strength either. No one knows how strong he truly is."

"Still, I think the Eight-Crowned King must act now. Once the Heavenly Emperor's heir becomes a quasi-immortal, even with the World Tree, the Eight-Crowned King may no longer have any chance of victory."

The quasi-immortals discussed animatedly. They all believed that if the Eight-Crowned King wanted to compete for immortality, this was his final opportunity. Otherwise, achieving immortality would become extremely remote, and all his previous accumulations would turn to dust, completely in vain. Among them, the quasi-immortal from Dao One Holy Land maintained a proud expression on the surface.

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But deep inside, he felt intense anxiety. He now felt that his ancestor, the Eight-Crowned King, had been too greedy. He had insisted on waiting until the final era to claim the last strand of immortal qi. If he had acted during the previous immortal path, supplemented the World Tree, and left directly, he would never have had to face a monster like the Heavenly Emperor's heir.

The one who had achieved immortality in the previous era was indeed a heavenly prodigy, but only a Great Yang Body. In this generation, he would not even qualify to sit at the table. He would not be a match for their Eight-Crowned King at all. But it was too late to say anything now.

He calmly turned around, summoned his flying ship, and shot off toward the Central Continent. He was heading to the Ninth Realm. He needed to find their ancestor. This was the last chance. Otherwise, the Eight-Crowned King's wait of so many years would turn into nothing but an empty dream.

The prodigies of Dao One Holy Land, especially his exceptionally talented great-grandson, would also lose their qualification to enter the immortal realm. They would be forever trapped in this world as prisoners, unable to break free. He would never allow that to happen.

…

The next day, the entire Central Continent was in an uproar.

Countless cultivators were deeply shocked.

Previously, everyone had assumed that the struggle for immortality this generation would be a chaotic free-for-all. When the immortal qi appeared, several top heavenly prodigies would clash fiercely.

Yet in the blink of an eye, only two remained.

This left everyone marveling at the Heavenly Emperor's heir's overwhelming strength and sighing at his meticulous scheming.

Everyone now understood that the battle between the Heavenly Emperor's heir and the Celestial Prince's avatar had been an act. He had not only deceived the outside world but also the Celestial Prince himself, luring him to emerge and deliver himself right into his hands. Such scheming and methods were almost on par with the Heavenly Emperor of the past.

Countless people were discussing heatedly who would be stronger between the Eight-Crowned King and the Heavenly Emperor's heir.

The Heavenly Emperor's heir was more dominant, unprecedented in both talent and combat strength since ancient times.

The Eight-Crowned King, however, had never suffered a single defeat since his emergence. He also possessed the World Tree, enhanced by eight strands of Immortal Qi.

The World Tree allowed the Eight-Crowned King to self-seal and awaken at will, free from the restriction that the divine source could only be used for a single slumber. Beyond that, no one knew exactly how powerful the World Tree truly was.

Therefore, at least until the Heavenly Emperor's heir became a quasi-immortal, the outcome remained uncertain. But once the Heavenly Emperor's heir reached the quasi-immortal realm, the outside world no longer favored the Eight-Crowned King.

As a result, countless eyes were now fixed on the entrance teleportation array of the Immortal Path. They had already seen the quasi-immortal from Dao One Holy Land enter the immortal path. Clearly, he had gone to notify the Eight-Crowned King at the first opportunity.

Thanks to the power of the World Tree, the Eight-Crowned King could sleep and awaken freely. He was the first victor on the immortal path after the Heavenly Emperor era. In later generations, his figure would frequently appear on the immortal path, striking fear and dread into all who competed for immortality, lest he suddenly emerge in any given era and snatch away that strand of immortal qi.

The major powers were also filled with dread. After all, Dao One Holy Land's possession of the Eight-Crowned King essentially meant they could control the immortal qi of the immortal path generation after generation, ensuring every member of the holy land had access to it.

One could say that the Eight-Crowned King was the strongest existence in this world after the Heavenly Emperor era. If he wished, he could turn the entire cultivation world into the domain of Dao One Holy Land.

Fortunately, the Eight-Crowned King was too proud and disdainful to do so. In a million years, he had only emerged nine times—eight times to compete for immortal qi and once to fight a true immortal.

After that, he never made another move and never fought for Dao One Holy Land even once. This had allowed the major powers to breathe a sigh of relief. As time passed, they gradually forgot about him, and the Eight-Crowned King's fame faded.

But this time, everyone was particularly eager to know what choice the Eight-Crowned King—who had always remained aloof, as if he existed outside this world—would make when faced with a monstrous genius like the Heavenly Emperor's heir.

Would he continue to sit high on his divine altar and wait for the Heavenly Emperor's heir to challenge him? Or would he descend from the mountain himself and take action to suppress the Heavenly Emperor's heir?

It was truly a matter of great curiosity.

…

In the Ninth Realm.

The quasi-immortal from Dao One Holy Land had an extremely ugly expression as he roared angrily at a figure.

"Ancestor, you clearly possess the power to suppress every generation's immortal path and elevate our Dao One Holy Land to an unprecedented peak! Yet from beginning to end, you have done nothing. Now the final opportunity for immortality stands right before you, and you still refuse to act!

"Ancestor, can you truly face your own conscience?"