Immortality Starts With Investment

Chapter 286: A Disappointing Fight and a Hidden Schemer

With Zhanye Ancestor dealt with, Ye Chen let the Heavenly Emperor War Chariot return to its dormant state. He was deeply satisfied with the chariotʼs versatility—it could attack, defend, and do nearly anything. But it had its drawbacks. Activating even a single Vicious Ten spirit, even for a moment, consumed an immense amount of spiritual energy and vitality.

His vitality was manageable, constantly replenished by his Primordial Supreme Heart, allowing him to barely keep up. But his spiritual energy recovery, despite being astonishingly fast compared to others, simply couldnʼt match the chariotʼs demands. So, in peaceful times, it was best used as a mere ride.

Unleashing all the Vicious Ten spirits for a grand display? The cost was too steep.

Ye Chen shifted from standing to sitting, his gaze lazily drifting toward the silently retreating North Nether Sea. ”Whereʼs Beiming Ancestor off to?”

Beiming Ancestor wasnʼt dead. After his physical body was shattered, he had merged into the North Nether Sea, suppressing his aura to escape unnoticed. But Ye Chen had seen through it from the start.

At Ye Chenʼs words, the North Nether Sea surged faster, fleeing in a rush.

Ye Chenʼs expression remained unchanged. The small bell above his head swayed gently. A resounding chime echoed, and the world seemed to fall silent.

The seals left by Beiming and Zhanye Ancestors shattered under the bellʼs toll, and the heavens and earth returned to normal. The North Nether Sea trembled violently, dissipating entirely under the chimeʼs force.

Beiming Ancestorʼs figure reappeared, coughing up blood as he stared at Ye Chen in disbelief. His eyes held nothing but terror.

The Heavenly Emperor War Chariot. A successor of the Heavenly Emperor. How could such a figure exist in this world? Even Hua Yunfei, the top Holy Son of Heavenly Evolution Holy Land, likely wasnʼt this terrifying at the Golden Core stage.

Beiming Ancestor gave up all resistance, resigned to his fate. He couldnʼt flee, and he couldnʼt fight. His natal spiritual treasure had been shattered by a single chime. What else was there but to await death?

Ye Chen, however, didnʼt rush to finish him off. He sighed, almost bored. ”Youʼre too weak.”

He hadnʼt even used half his arsenal.

Beiming Ancestorʼs mouth twitched.

Sorry for not entertaining you. Should I apologize? Maybe self-detonate to make amends?

But just as Ye Chen prepared to end him, his brow twitched. He glanced into the distant void, a smile spreading across his face. ”So, heʼs the one who sent you to kill me?”

Beiming Ancestor froze, following Ye Chenʼs gaze but sensing nothing. Still, he nodded without hesitation. ”Yes, it was him…”

The Great Chu Ancestor possessed a secret technique that allowed him to conceal himself so well that even a Deity Transformation expert might not detect him if they werenʼt paying close attention. This was his trump card. But as he emerged from the void, intending to assess the situation, something felt off. The scene before him was nothing like heʼd imagined.

He knew Ye Chen was extraordinary—his combat prowess far exceeded his cultivation level. But two early Nascent Soul cultivators were no pushovers. Beiming Ancestorʼs North Nether Sea was notoriously difficult to handle, and Zhanye Ancestorʼs sword was legendary. It was said that even a sliver of its drawn sword qi had once forced back a mid-Nascent Soul cultivator.

In such a scenario, a battle between Ye Chen and these two should have been a fierce struggle, perhaps lasting days.

Yet, as the Great Chu Ancestor looked on from a distance, Zhanye Ancestor was nowhere to be seen. Only fragments of a broken sword lay scattered on the ground. The sword was shattered—Zhanyeʼs fate was obvious.

And Beiming Ancestor, whose refined Nether Water was feared by cultivators, was coughing up blood, looking like a man awaiting death.

What was going on?

The Great Chu Ancestor had deliberately arrived late to avoid revealing his presence, but the fight was already over?

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Ye Chen sat calmly on a golden war chariot, his face not brimming with the satisfaction of a hard-fought victory, but etched with the emptiness of fleeting amusement.

Something was wrong. Very wrong.

The Great Chu Ancestor had traveled widely in his youth, seen countless battles, and built a reputation through caution and prudence. That caution had kept him alive. So, having just arrived, he decided to leave immediately.

As for avenging the Champion King? On second thought, it wasnʼt worth the trouble. The dead were gone. The living had to move forward.

Let it go.

But just as he turned to slip away, his body froze.

Ye Chen, sitting on the chariot, was looking directly at him. The bored expression on his face shifted to one of keen interest.

What the hell?

Even a Deity Transformation expert might not spot him. How could Ye Chen see through his concealment? And why was he so excited?

Wipe that look off your face! Iʼm just passing by!

Realizing heʼd been spotted, the Great Chu Ancestor debated his options: emerge gracefully, exchange pleasantries, and play it off, or bolt at full speed.

Then Ye Chen spoke. ”So, this is the mastermind behind it all?”

Huh? Mastermind?

The Great Chu Ancestor was dumbfounded. He didnʼt even know Beiming or Zhanye—hadnʼt even crossed paths with them at a Nascent Soul trade gathering.

But what left him even more stunned was Beiming Ancestorʼs response. The man glanced in his direction and nodded earnestly. ”Thatʼs him!”

You liar!

The Great Chu Ancestor wanted to punch Beiming Ancestor into oblivion. Heʼd only come to see if there was an opportunity to exploit. How had he suddenly become the ”mastermind”?

Beiming couldnʼt even see him—he was just dragging someone down with him before dying.

Back when the Ancestor fought his own brother for the throne, even those schemes werenʼt this dirty. He couldnʼt sit still any longer. He prepared to reveal himself. If he didnʼt act now, heʼd truly end up with an irreconcilable feud against Ye Chen.

But before he could emerge, Ye Chen rose with overwhelming momentum, unleashing a True Dragon Treasure Technique that roared toward him.

The Great Chu Ancestorʼs face paled instantly…

With a wave of his hand, Ye Chen unleashed hundreds of colossal dragons, each as massive as a mountain range, surging toward the void. Every dragon carried the majesty of a True Dragon, their aura terrifying beyond measure.

The Great Chu Ancestor, gripped by panic, raised his hand and conjured the True Emperor Mountain Seal. A towering mountain materialized, expanding into a gigantic peak that suppressed the sky, shielding him.

This was a treasured technique of the Great Chu Dynasty, amplified by the dynastyʼs territorial qi when used within its borders, making it both a devastating attack and an impregnable defense.

After casting the seal, the Ancestor let out a breath, thinking he finally had a moment to explain. But the onslaught of dragons came crashing down.

The first dragonʼs tail swept across the three-thousand-meter peak, carving deep gashes into its surface. As more dragons followed, countless cracks spiderwebbed across the mountain. Before the Ancestor could utter a word, the peak shattered.

A dragon shadow struck him, sending him flying.

Gritting his teeth, the Ancestor summoned a phoenix shadow to shield himself, barely holding on. Panic surged within him as he roared, ”My dear son-in-law, hold your hand! I came to discuss your marriage with Feihuang!”

Bang!

Another dragon shadow smashed through, shattering the phoenix.

”You and Feihuang are a match made in heaven! Iʼm truly optimistic about you!”

Bang!

”Feihuang only proposed those conditions because she feared I wouldnʼt approve. But you and I hit it off—how could I possibly object?”

Bang!

”Donʼt worry about the Champion King. That boy had a rebellious streak from childhood. I never liked him, so I poured resources into Feihuangʼs father, that fool, to make him emperor!”

Bang!

”My dear son-in-law, letʼs talk this out. Iʼm no old fossil. Your child with Feihuang can take any surname and still inherit Great Chuʼs throne!”

Bang!

”How about Feihuang abdicates and becomes your empress? In your hands, Great Chu will shine even brighter!”

Bang!

After a few breaths, the dragon shadows finally dissipated.

The Great Chu Ancestor, having exhausted every trick and trump card, barely survived. Thanks to his Moon Phoenix Body, which revived him multiple times, he hadnʼt yet joined his ancestors in the afterlife.

But before he could catch his breath, Ye Chen called out, ”Dragon Claw!”

A massive dragon claw roared forth, seizing the Ancestor with no chance to resist and hurling him before the war chariot.

Beiming Ancestor, already resigned to death, trembled as he saw the Great Chu Ancestor flung like a dead dog before him. Amid the chaos of the dragon shadows, he hadnʼt seen clearly. Now, he realized this was the mid-Nascent Soul Great Chu Ancestor. And yet, heʼd been reduced to this state? Had Ye Chen been holding back earlier?

Beiming was now certain: Hua Yunfei, at the Golden Core stage, was no match for Ye Chen. This man was undoubtedly the successor of the Heavenly Emperor, who had once bathed the world in blood for a century. He was the unrivaled prodigy of this era, destined for immortality. All enemies on his path were mere stepping stones, their corpses paving his ascent.

To cross paths with such a figure… Beiming Ancestorʼs heart sank with bitter regret. He was truly cursed with misfortune.

Tossing the Great Chu Ancestor to the ground, Ye Chen turned his attention to Beiming Ancestor.

Sensing Ye Chenʼs gaze, Beiming shuddered and blurted out, ”The masterminds arenʼt just him! The Wang Clan of Great Chu—theyʼre the ones who tipped me off about you, Fellow Daoist…”

The Wang Clan?

Ye Chen raised an eyebrow, unsurprised.

But the Great Chu Ancestor was livid, itching to tear Beiming apart. Even in this state, Beiming was still framing him? Dragging everyone down with him in his final moments?

And the Wang Clan—they were the ones whoʼd brought him to this point. If he survived this, he swore to annihilate every last member of the Wang Clan.

Why couldnʼt they have just let a monster like Ye Chen leave Great Chu in peace? His True Dragon Treasure Technique was far more than a single move.