ISWI Chapter 835-836 (Patreon)

Chapter 835: Presenting the Saint King!

"Phew…"

Ye Chen let out a long, satisfied breath, his energy brimming with vigor. He gently set aside the master and grandmaster who lay before and behind him. Then he lifted Fan Qinghe from above his head and carefully lowered her.

Stretching lazily, Ye Chen rolled his shoulders. This time was different from the previous ceremony. This pure, unadulterated version truly let him experience what it meant for specialists to excel in their craft.

But a full week had passed. It was time to end things. In truth, he should have left after the last time. He had deliberately stayed an extra week, however, because he wanted to present the captured Saint King to Fan Qinghe as a gift. Now that the matter was settled, he could go find his fiancée and bestow her with origin, allowing her to achieve perfect completion as well.

The expressions on Fan Qinghe and the other two women were all languid with post-satisfaction bliss. A faint, lingering contentment glowed between their brows, along with a trace of wanting more. They helped Ye Chen adjust the flow of his immortal power, their voices soft and coquettish as they wheedled: "Holy Son… won't you stay a few more days? I still have one more secret technique I'd like to use to thank you properly."

Ye Chen felt their tender affection, yet his refusal was crisp and decisive: "I've delayed long enough. It's time for me to leave."

When rejecting someone, one must be firm and resolute. When agreeing to something, however, it was better not to sound too eager.

Fan Qinghe gradually emerged from the sweet haze of honey production. The memory resurfaced—the look of deep regret in the Ancestor's eyes when she spoke of her dwindling lifespan…

Finally, she could hold back no longer. With utmost caution, she spoke: "Holy Son… that ginseng fruit… were you planning to give it away?"

At her words, the master and grandmaster both stiffened. They had been thinking the exact same thing. But they were already freeloading off Fan Qinghe's favor. Without her, they wouldn't even have had the chance to taste the edge of things. They didn't dare speak up again and risk earning Ye Chen's disgust. If he stopped inviting them next time… that really would be unbearable for the rest of their lives.

Ye Chen raised an eyebrow at the question.

"I was planning to give it to an elder from a holy land. She helped me greatly in the past. Now she has only about a hundred years left…"

Fan Qinghe's anxious heart sank. She immediately fell silent.

Yet Ye Chen seemed to sense something. He pulled her gently into his arms and asked in a soft, caring voice: "Why bring up the ginseng fruit all of a sudden? What's wrong? You're only a little over a hundred years old. Your master and grandmaster should still have many years before their great longevity limit approaches."

Only when Ye Chen asked directly did Fan Qinghe dare to speak again, her voice small and hesitant: "It's… It's the Ancestor. She still looks radiant and full of vitality on the surface, but that's only because of our cultivation method. In reality… she can only hold on for three more years at most… But…"

By the end, Fan Qinghe couldn't bring herself to finish the sentence. Ever since she met Ye Chen, she had taken and taken—food, resources, even her cultivation had been forcibly pushed up by him. She had no face left to ask for more. Why should her Ancestor keep demanding things from Ye Chen?

Ye Chen's expression grew serious.

Fan Qinghe's heart jolted. She hurriedly waved her hands: "I'm not asking on behalf of the Ancestor for the ginseng fruit… The ginseng fruit belongs to you, Holy Son. Of course, it should go to the senior who once helped you."

Ye Chen said nothing.

Fan Qinghe grew more and more anxious, her heart filled with unease.

But the next moment, Ye Chen looked at her with tender pity.

"There's no need for that between you and me. What I love most about you is your kindness—something completely different from the other women out there. It would be far too cruel to force you to watch your Ancestor approach her end with your own eyes. This ginseng fruit… I'll give it to your Ancestor, for your sake."

With those words, Ye Chen directly took out a jade box. The box was translucent, revealing a pure white fruit inside that looked exactly like a tiny infant. The three women present all sucked in a sharp breath.

Ye Chen had actually given away the ginseng fruit just like that. It was clear—even to them—that the fruit held great importance to him. Yet after only a brief hesitation, he had taken it out.

Fan Qinghe's eyes instantly reddened. She hurriedly waved her hands in refusal.

"Holy Son, I don't want it… I really don't… I'm not worthy of you treating me this well…"

The Heavenly Desire Sect had always carried a terrible reputation. As its Divine Maiden, the rumors swirling around her outside were especially unsavory. After all, who would believe the old saying about emerging from the mud unstained?

Yet Ye Chen treated her with such extraordinary kindness. Simply because he couldn't bear to see her suffer, he was willing to part with a life-extending treasure meant for an elder. It was too heavy a burden…

Ye Chen smiled gently.

"You are worthy of every beautiful thing in this world."

Hearing those words, the self-doubt that had lingered in Fan Qinghe's heart shattered. She buried her face in his chest and burst into loud, unrestrained sobs. The Holy Son… truly loved her so much.

…

A long while later—whether more had happened in between or not— The four finally emerged from the cave abode. With a casual wave of his hand, Ye Chen had the sealed Saint King brought forward. A flicker of anticipation crossed his face as he spoke: "Qinghe, since you've already condensed your first Desolate Seal. Then this person is yours to keep."

The Saint King's eyes widened in shock. She had assumed Ye Chen spared her life because he intended to use her himself. Keeping her imprisoned for so many days—perhaps it was some twisted game of torment followed by intimacy? But she had clearly thought too much. The Heavenly Emperor's heir actually planned to give her away to another woman? And not just any woman—a mere Third Heaven cultivator from a second-rate sect?

Worse still, that sect was the Heavenly Desire Sect. Any proper female cultivator would turn pale at the name, filled with instinctive disgust. This was an enormous humiliation. Yet she remained completely sealed, unable even to speak.

Fan Qinghe, meanwhile, expressed her gratitude with deep sincerity. The Holy Son truly treated her too well. First, the ginseng fruit, now a Saint King servant. When the day finally came that the Holy Son was willing to fully accept her, she would use every technique she knew to satisfy him completely—to repay this endless grace. If the Holy Son loved honey, then she would let him have his fill—every single day, willingly and happily.

"Thank you, Holy Son…"

With those words, under Ye Chen's gentle urging and the Saint King's furious, resistant glare, Fan Qinghe planted the Desolate Seal she had worked so hard to condense. In an instant, the seal took root deep within the Saint King's divine soul and began its transformation.

The woman's mind—previously roaring with rejection, rage, humiliation, and murderous intent—Suddenly went blank. Her pupils turned vacant.

A long time passed. When the transformation finally completed, clarity returned to her eyes. But now, when she looked at Fan Qinghe, only regret and deep reverence remained. With a soft sigh, the Saint King lowered her head.

"Greetings… Master."

Joy bloomed across the faces of Fan Qinghe and the other two women. With the ginseng fruit, their Ancestor could live another three hundred and sixty years. And now they had a Saint King-level servant as well. The Heavenly Desire Sect's strength had risen dramatically. It was now qualified to contend for first-rate status.

Yet the excitement passed quickly. After all, with the Heavenly Emperor's heir as their backer—and given how deeply he doted on Fan Qinghe—even holy lands wouldn't dare provoke the Heavenly Desire Sect. In such circumstances, the sect's own strength had become largely irrelevant.

Fan Qinghe bowed once more, her heart overflowing with gratitude.

"Thank you, Holy Son…"

Ye Chen merely waved his hand calmly. At that moment, the long-awaited system prompt finally sounded in his mind. It actually worked?

Ye Chen immediately turned inward with excitement to check the system. But when he read the content clearly, the corners of his mouth twitched, and his brows furrowed slightly…

"This system does not support any form of human trafficking…"

Chapter 836: The Holy Son Has Returned!

Reading the notification, Ye Chen's mouth couldn't help but twitch. Human trafficking, of all things…

But the system's blunt response finally killed any lingering hope he had of gifting people to trigger massive rewards. He had been fantasizing—if giving away a Saint King really worked, he could start handing out high-multiplier maids to the women around him. A few dozen-fold, hundred-fold maids… the feedback would skyrocket into thousands-fold, tens of thousands-fold. He'd ascend straight to the heavens. Clearly, that wasn't going to happen.

Still, Ye Chen wasn't disappointed. After carefully inspecting the Saint King inside and out on Fan Qinghe's behalf—confirming the Desolate Seal was perfectly rooted and without issue—He prepared to depart. Ignoring the women's reluctant pleas, under their wistful gazes, he stepped onto the Heavenly Evolution Holy Land's flying ship and drifted away.

At that moment, the ancestral master also appeared to bid him farewell. Ye Chen gave her a calm nod, flashed Fan Qinghe a gentle smile, then boarded the ship and left.

The Ancestor felt the distance even more keenly now. Ye Chen clearly had no interest in her. The ginseng fruit was something she could never obtain. A bitter smile tugged at her lips. In the end, she simply wasn't young anymore.

But the very next moment, Fan Qinghe took out a jade box and presented it before the Heavenly Desire Ancestor.

"Ancestor, please accept this."

The Ancestor's mature, peerlessly beautiful face froze.

"This…"

A ginseng fruit… it really was a ginseng fruit? The Heavenly Emperor's heir had given this… to her?

The grandmaster quietly explained: "Qinghe risked angering the Holy Son by mentioning your limited lifespan. Because he dotes on Qinghe so much, he gave her the ginseng fruit that was originally meant for an elder."

Hearing those words, the Ancestor's heart surged with emotion. She looked at Fan Qinghe with complicated feelings. She and Fan Qinghe had never truly met before. After all, Fan Qinghe was only a little over a hundred years old. She never imagined the girl would go this far for her.

"Qinghe… you've made things difficult for yourself."

Normally silver-tongued, the Heavenly Desire Ancestor could only manage these few words. She was too moved—too overwhelmed—to speak more words of gratitude.

Fan Qinghe loved the atmosphere of having elders present in the sect. It gave her warmth, the feeling of a real family. So she waved her hand lightly.

"When the sect was in danger, Ancestor emerged without hesitation… It's only right that I feel heartache for you."

Time was of the essence. The Ancestor's voluptuous figure sat cross-legged at once. She parted her red lips and consumed the ginseng fruit. An overwhelming surge of life essence instantly rampaged through her body, filling her to bursting—so much that it even seeped out from her pores…

The blissful sensation drew a soft, involuntary hum from her throat. And her mind—previously too clouded by the shadow of death to think clearly—now began to turn. With three hundred and sixty more years of life… Would she be able to wait until Ye Chen reached the peak of the Sixth Heaven?

Her disciple, grand-disciple, and great-grand-disciple had all participated. So… could she also have a chance to join the next ceremony? If so, she might finally break through her limits and step into the Great Saint realm. But Qinghe had been so kind to her, and here she was secretly thinking about tasting her protector's flavor. Guilt gnawed at her—she felt like a bad woman.

Moreover, Ye Chen clearly had no interest in her. The ginseng fruit had only been given because of Qinghe. Would he even allow her to participate when the time came?

Her mind instantly became a tangled mess. And in the midst of it, the image of her mother surfaced—followed by a wave of melancholy…

No one knew that, back then, her mother had secretly achieved a perfect Sixth-Heaven transformation and broken through to the Seventh-Heaven Great Saint realm. But right after the ceremony, her protector—her father—had been left extremely weakened.

Enemies took the chance to strike. Her mother fought desperately to protect him. In the end, her father fell on the spot. Her mother, freshly ascended to Great Saint, suffered grave injuries. Her origin was damaged, and with the loss of her Dao companion, her heart turned to ash. She entered the Land of Fallen Immortals and was never seen again. With her mother's strength, she should have perished long ago. If only her mother had never gone to the Land of Fallen Immortals…

The Heavenly Desire lineage's cultivation was grueling, but in this generation, an unbelievable existence like Ye Chen had appeared—capable of bearing the enormous consumption and feeding three or even more at once. If her mother were still alive—even with her father gone— Her fate would surely have been different…

The flying ship of Heavenly Evolution Holy Land did not return to its own sect. Instead, it flew straight toward the Heavenly Intention Holy Land. The purpose was obvious.

Yet none of the great powers aboard voiced a single complaint. On the contrary, they welcomed it with open delight. Some even sighed nostalgically, reminiscing about their own youthful days of romantic adventures as they watched Ye Chen's dashing, carefree demeanor. Their generosity, of course, stemmed purely from their kind and virtuous natures. It had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that Ye Chen had personally gifted each of them something splendid while on board the ship.

Feng Baiyu sat face-to-face with Ye Chen, discussing the Dao. The fan he now gently waved was no longer the previous Golden Crow tail-feather fan. It was a phoenix tail-feather fan. His presence had instantly risen to a whole new level of elegance.

"To reach the peak of the fourth layer in one go… truly rare! It seems you won't be long in breaking through to become a Saint."

Even Feng Baiyu couldn't hide his astonishment as he spoke. Just how deep must Ye Chen's foundation be to leap three minor realms in a single breakthrough, landing directly at the peak of Half-Saint? Since when had cultivation become so effortless?

And looking at the Heavenly Desire Divine Maiden's cultivation soaring upward, it was obvious she had "absorbed" something. Even her master, grandmaster, and the others seemed to have benefited as well. Yet every time Ye Chen emerged from these encounters, he looked radiant and invigorated—as though he were the one who had been nourished. Just what exactly was going on? Was Ye Chen actually serving as their cauldron?

If he really was… that would be far too ridiculous. To be "drained" and still grow this monstrously strong? If he wasn't being drained, wouldn't he simply ascend to the heavens outright?

Unfathomable. Truly unfathomable.

Feng Baiyu felt that, given enough time, Ye Chen might genuinely become the next Heavenly Emperor—or perhaps even surpass him. If another Heavenly Emperor were to rise… Perhaps the Immortal Realm could be sustained for another million years!

…

Meanwhile, Ye Chen looked at his own Holy Master with genuine bewilderment. When had his Holy Master become a Saint?

The aura of a Saint radiating from him was unmistakable. Hadn't he been only at the early stage of King realm before? How had he crossed two full major realms in such a short time? Even with his Heavy Pupils, Ye Chen couldn't see through him. What in the world was happening?

Sensing Ye Chen's confusion, Feng Baiyu felt a rare surge of satisfaction. After all, with Ye Chen's terrifying growth speed, opportunities to show off in front of him would only grow rarer in the future. So he simply gave a faint, unruffled smile and spoke casually, as if it were nothing: "I was merely concealing some of my cultivation."

Ye Chen was rendered speechless. Concealing two entire major realms at once? Yet considering his Holy Master's usual style of doing things, Ye Chen suddenly felt it wasn't all that outrageous. He knew the Holy Master had secrets.

But in Heavenly Evolution Holy Land, aside from every generation's second and third Holy Sons, almost everyone carried their own hidden inheritances and mysteries.

Ye Chen didn't press the matter. After all, the Holy Master was one of his own people. The stronger he was, the better.

…

Seven days later, the flying ship finally descended outside the Heavenly Intention Holy Land. The moment Ye Chen appeared at the mountain gate, the entire Heavenly Intention Holy Land was thrown into an uproar. Countless female disciples streamed forth like returning wild geese, arranging themselves in perfect formation as they flew out to welcome the return of their own Holy Son. Even the powerhouses of the Heavenly Intention Holy Land emerged one after another.

After all, during the previous battle at the Myriad Races Immortal City, many great beings from Heavenly Intention had been present. They had reaped considerable benefits. Everyone had personally witnessed the Holy Son's gratitude and loyalty in return. Such an outstanding junior was naturally treated as family.

In short, Ye Chen's arrival at the Heavenly Intention Holy Land caused an even greater commotion than his return to Heavenly Evolution.