ISWI Chapter 1229-1230 (Patreon)

Chapter 1229: Again?

"Again?"

Sensing that aura unique to a Great Luo, Xie Linyuan finally could not take it anymore. If they wanted to test the Heavenly Emperor's successor, they should go find Ye Chen. Why come looking for him?

He was about to speak, determined to clarify everything of his own accord. He intended to tell the newcomer that he had not even struck that day and that he had been no match for Ye Chen at the time. Yet the arrival wore a flowing cloud immortal robe of crimson gold. The moment he appeared, he said nothing and gave Xie Linyuan no chance to open his mouth. A terrifying flame erupted outward at once.

Seeing the crimson-gold divine fire, Xie Linyuan's pupils contracted. It was the Innate Li Fire of the Gongsun Clan. The peak Great Luo Gongsun Jin had also come. There was nothing he could do; the gap in cultivation was simply too vast.

In a single instant, Xie Linyuan was wrapped in endless divine fire. The Innate Li Fire burned both his divine soul and his flesh, plunging him into agony beyond endurance. He could only rely on the power of reincarnation to barely protect his core. Half of his body was burned away in that instant.

"Oh?"

The figure in the crimson-gold immortal robe let out a soft sound of surprise. He then raised a hand and withdrew the Li Fire. A trace of puzzlement appeared in his red eyes.

"With only this level of strength, you managed to fight the Heavenly Emperor's successor to a draw?"

His voice was filled with incomprehension.

Xie Linyuan retreated frantically while restoring his body. Hearing those words, his face flushed crimson. The humiliation was too great. What did "only this level of strength" mean? Almost no one in the Golden Immortal realm could match him. Even against ordinary Great Luo, he still possessed the power to put up a fight. He was a top-tier prodigy; his realm was simply a little lower.

Gritting his teeth, Xie Linyuan decided that since he had already been beaten, there was no longer any reason to explain the truth. Otherwise the beating would have been for nothing. Yet many questions still lingered in his heart. Could these bastards not simply go find Ye Chen directly?

Xie Linyuan was filled with grievance.

Gongsun Jin, still clad in his crimson-gold immortal robe, had already restrained his aura. "My Gongsun Clan shares a decent relationship with the Supreme Hall. For the sake of the Other Shore Immortal Monarch, I will spare your life."

The corner of Xie Linyuan's mouth twitched at the words. It was always the same line. What, after beating him, he was supposed to thank them as well?

"Why come looking for me first? It is completely unnecessary! Why not go find Ye Chen directly?"

Xie Linyuan could no longer hold back and spoke out in indignation.

Gongsun Jin's expression remained ordinary and completely open. "This fellow is suspected of possessing an Immortal Spirit Root and is further suspected of being the Heavenly Emperor's own son left in the lower realms. Although his realm is low, anyone connected to the Heavenly Emperor cannot be treated in the ordinary manner. Without certainty, one naturally cannot casually make an enemy of him."

Gongsun Jin's demeanor was entirely natural. For a lofty Great Luo to be wary of a mere Profound Immortal was, of course, extremely absurd. Yet the stronger one became, the more clearly one understood how outrageous the Heavenly Emperor's past battle records had been. The Heavenly Emperor had accomplished far too many inconceivable deeds. Therefore, they did not dare show the slightest underestimation toward Ye Chen, the Heavenly Emperor's successor and possible blood son.

Xie Linyuan's fists clenched hard. So they were deliberately picking on the soft persimmon? They lacked confidence against a Profound Immortal, so they came looking for a Golden Immortal like him first?

After finishing his explanation, Gongsun Jin said nothing more. He transformed into divine fire and roared away into the distance. Xie Linyuan remained filled with indignation. His desire to grow stronger reached its absolute peak in that moment, and resentment toward Ye Chen took root as well. When he next met Ye Chen, he would definitely teach the man a harsh lesson. It was all Ye Chen's fault that he had suffered this undeserved disaster.

After the lesson, however, he would make Ye Chen hide. These three were far too terrifying; Ye Chen could not defeat any one of them.

Xie Linyuan did not care whether Ye Chen lived or died, yet he could not ignore the goddess's feelings. The fact that she had personally chased him all the way to the Heavenly Secrets Immortal City was proof enough of how much she valued Ye Chen. If Ye Chen died, how heartbroken would she be? He had to keep Ye Chen alive and well. Only then could he avoid disappointing the goddess.

Xie Linyuan shot away like a thunderclap. He seized treasures, swept aside enemies, and contended for a place among the Ten Outstanding Ones.

In the blink of an eye, another month passed.

The divine pillar above Xie Linyuan's head surged upward by a great length, and his aura grew increasingly condensed. Confidence returned to him once more.

Over the past month, every Golden Immortal he encountered—whether early, mid, or late stage—had been no match for him in a single exchange. Even the few relatively renowned prodigies proved completely unequal to him. Therefore, his earlier defeats had been due solely to the gap in realm. Once he made up that difference in the future, exacting revenge would be no empty dream.

Just as Xie Linyuan accepted another treasure and was feeling pleased, an ordinary-looking male figure came roaring toward him with aggressive momentum. Xie Linyuan's heart first jumped, thinking someone else had come to use him as a test subject. After sensing the other's cultivation, however, confusion appeared on his face. The man was only at the peak of the Golden Immortal realm. Had this fellow gone mad? Within the Golden Immortal realm, he feared no one.

Xie Linyuan's expression turned supremely confident. He stood calmly in place and regarded the other with indifference. As the figure drew closer, he recognized the man's identity: Wang Bin, the male cultivator brought by the Wang Clan who had previously possessed almost no presence.

In the eyes of outsiders, this Wang Bin was merely the tallest among the short members of the Wang Clan, forced into the open after Wang Xuanji's death and Wang Teng's injury left them without a successor. His strength was presumably negligible. With such meager ability, he still wanted to avenge Wang Teng and seek out the Heavenly Emperor's successor? And he intended to treat Xie Linyuan as a soft persimmon?

A cold smile appeared in Xie Linyuan's eyes. The successive setbacks had left a mass of stifled resentment still unvented. Today he would use this disgusting member of the Wang Clan to vent it.

In an instant, Wang Bin arrived. His ordinary face stared coldly at Xie Linyuan. "You once fought the Heavenly Emperor's successor and wounded him?"

Hearing the familiar opening line, Xie Linyuan felt not the slightest desire to explain. Against Great Luo prodigies, an explanation might be necessary, but against a mere Wang Clan waste it was completely unnecessary.

He nodded with a cold smile. "Yes. And not only that. I also seized his opportunities, his master, and his inheritance. In every aspect, I crushed the Heavenly Emperor's successor. What, do you intend to use me for practice and test the Heavenly Emperor's successor through me?"

A trace of killing intent appeared in Wang Bin's eyes. His body shot forward at once, and a palm descended. The immortal power surging within the palm shone with extreme brilliance, like flowing immortal gold. Xie Linyuan first showed disdain, yet his expression changed the next moment.

Power of reincarnation surged wildly, reinforcing both arms as he prepared to block the palm. The instant they made contact, however, Xie Linyuan's arms and shoulders exploded outright. He himself was sent flying backward, his pupils filled with disbelief.

How was this possible? To what degree had this man's immortal power been compressed to produce such terror? This talent far surpassed Wang Teng's. Xie Linyuan was still filled with shock and wanted to say something when he saw the center of Wang Bin's brow open as though a heavenly gate were trembling.

A wisp of sword light that seemed capable of destroying everything erupted outward and shot toward Xie Linyuan's brow. Sensing the piercing killing intent, Xie Linyuan's face changed completely. That was the Soul-Quelling Decree, a technique specialized in slaughtering the divine soul.

Chapter 1230: The Diligent Tianzhang Monk!

Facing the sword light unleashed by the Soul-Quelling Decree, Xie Linyuan erupted with every last ounce of potential he possessed, yet still failed to block it completely. His divine soul was nearly cleaved in two. His face turned deathly pale. This injury was far more severe than the previous ones. A wound to the divine soul could not be repaired in less than a year.

That was not the most terrifying part. The most terrifying part was that the person before him did not appear to be using him merely for practice. Unlike He Ziling and the others earlier, this Wang Bin truly intended to kill him.

Moreover, the other had only released a single strand of sword light and had not even brought out the embryonic sword itself. Just who was this Wang Bin? The Wang Clan actually still concealed such a terrifying prodigy? It was simply too outrageous.

At that moment, Xie Linyuan had only one thought: flee.

Yet to his surprise, Wang Bin did not strike again. He merely swept a few cold glances over Xie Linyuan. "You should count yourself fortunate that you possess an Immortal King ancestor and the Other Shore Immortal Monarch as your master. Otherwise…"

Wang Bin did not finish the sentence. The corner of his mouth curved into a cold smile before he roared away. Xie Linyuan stood rooted in place, staring blankly at Wang Bin's departing figure in complete bewilderment.

What was wrong with this person? He did not seem to be testing himself at all. It felt more as though the man held a personal grudge. Yet when had Xie Linyuan ever made an enemy of the Wang Clan? If anyone held a grudge, it should be Ye Chen. Wang Teng had been killed by Ye Chen.

Xie Linyuan truly felt wronged. Yet the divine soul that had nearly been split in half still carried residual aura from the Soul-Quelling Decree at the wound, making recovery extremely difficult and the pain extreme, as though his brain had been cleaved open. Xie Linyuan could only immediately set up a grand formation and circulate the power of reincarnation to heal himself.

Far away, Wang Xuanji flew into the distance with lingering resentment yet also helplessness. This fellow had not only wounded Ye Chen but had also seized the opportunity for Ye Chen to enter the Supreme Hall. He truly deserved death. Had he not seized it, Ye Chen would never have gone to the Jade Pool Immortal Sect and become entangled with chaotic women like Huo Linglong.

Unfortunately, this person's backers were an Immortal King and the Other Shore Immortal Monarch. Wang Xuanji did not fear retaliation; he only feared that the blood feud would allow the two to deduce his true identity.

Therefore, he had not dared to kill and had merely administered punishment. In the future, once he no longer needed to conceal his identity, he would naturally vent Ye Chen's anger properly. At the thought of Huo Linglong, Wang Xuanji gave a disdainful, cold laugh. She was nothing more than a defeated subordinate from years past.

A deep boom resounded. Half a year had passed. Ye Chen, seated cross-legged, suddenly erupted with aura as he formally broke through to the late stage of the Profound Immortal realm.

Yan Ruyu was astonished by the terror of Ye Chen's aura, yet before she could speak, the Tianzhang Monk flew over with a face full of amazement. "Fellow Daoist Ye's talent is truly beyond imagination. How long has it been since you ascended to the Immortal Realm, and you have already broken through to the late Profound Immortal stage? The Immortal Spirit Root is indeed this terrifying! Once you enter the Dao Academy, Fellow Daoist Ye will certainly advance by leaps and bounds. In the future, you are destined to sweep across the Other Domain cultivators on the Prodigy Battlefield and uphold the Heavenly Emperor's prestige!"

The Tianzhang Monk offered the praise with genuine seriousness. It was not entirely empty flattery. After all, Ye Chen's origin from the lower realms had long been uncovered. To break through to the late Profound Immortal stage in such a short time was indeed extremely outrageous.

After the compliments, however, the Tianzhang Monk took out several treasures from the Chaos Secret Realm that still radiated treasure light. "Fellow Daoist Ye, may I still exchange for two Black Yellow Body-Refining Pills?"

Ye Chen swept a glance over the several treasures that appeared before him, pondered briefly, then nodded with a smile. He flicked out two pills.

The Tianzhang Monk stared at the pills in wild joy. He too came from a top-tier major sect like Shaolin Temple and was the most gifted existence of his generation. He had already refined the Great Sun Golden Body while still in the Golden Immortal realm and could never lack resources.

Yet the problem was that most of the items Ye Chen provided were limited-edition rarities even within the Immortal Realm. The Black Yellow Body-Refining Pill, in particular, was a top-tier body-refining divine pill from the Other Domain that simply did not exist in the Immortal Realm. It brought enormous benefits to his own Great Sun Indestructible Golden Body. How could all of this fail to make the Tianzhang Monk lose his composure?

As for why Ye Chen possessed such divine pills, the Tianzhang Monk felt not the slightest surprise. After all, the Heavenly Emperor had once been forced into a trip to the Other Domain and returned with greatly increased strength. Later, he had even charged from the Emperor Pass into the Other Domain itself. Given the Heavenly Emperor's character, scouring a batch of treasures before leaving was the most natural thing in the world.

Ye Chen was actually willing to bring out even these treasures simply to secure a ranking among the Ten Outstanding Ones for Yan Ruyu. In the Tianzhang Monk's eyes, the decision was rather unwise, yet the opportunity was rare, and he had to seize it to make a massive profit. When the time came, his strength would once again advance by leaps and bounds.

Ye Chen looked at the delighted Tianzhang Monk and asked with some curiosity, "Half a month ago, you already exchanged for two pills. How have you obtained so many treasures again so soon? Your fortune is quite remarkable as well."

The Tianzhang Monk did not answer directly. He simply pressed his palms together. "After all, this is for Junior Sister's place among the Ten Outstanding Ones. Of course, I must put in extra effort. Fellow Daoist Ye, I will take my leave now."

With those words, the Tianzhang Monk turned and departed once more. Ye Chen raised an eyebrow, feeling the fellow was rather shameless for claiming it was all for Junior Sister when the true goal was treasures. Still, the efficiency with which the other gathered treasures left Ye Chen very satisfied. He said nothing further, selected a suitable treasure, and presented it to his aunt.

Even though he had been giving her something every week during this period, she still triggered maximum critical feedback and critical-hit feedback every single time, making Ye Chen marvel even more at her grateful heart. Looking at the divine pillar above his aunt's head that grew ever taller, Ye Chen felt especially pleased.

This, however, counted only as gifting treasures, not as gifting a ranking slot. Ye Chen was curious what kind of feedback the system would provide if, after leaving the secret realm, he obtained a ranking slot and managed to transfer it. He felt, though, that ranking slots most likely could not be given away. They concerned the future Prodigy War and the fortune of an entire realm. Those great figures would probably not treat the matter as a child's game and allow him to hand slots out freely.

After a few gentle words with his aunt, Ye Chen sorted through his gains and once more sat cross-legged to cultivate in peace. He intended to push straight through to the peak of the Profound Immortal realm in one go. Upon reaching the peak of the Profound Immortal realm, he would be able to refine the Qilin Crystal-Casting Immortal King Pill into his body.

The moment the first strand of golden immortal power condensed, he would formally break through to the Golden Immortal realm. His own immortal power was already Primordial Chaos immortal power, the highest grade of all. If it were then compressed to the extreme and transformed into crystal form, just how great would its power become?

At the thought, Ye Chen's face filled with anticipation.

As for the Tianzhang Monk, after leaving Ye Chen, he did not rely on luck to search for treasures. Instead, he closed his eyes and sensed the auras of immortals. Soon, he detected the presence of a late-stage Golden Immortal cultivator and immediately roared toward it.