Immortality Starts With Investment

At this moment, he finally discerned what the sun and moon truly were. They were no sun and moon at all. But two immortal roots. The Moon Laurel Immortal Tree and the Fusang Divine Tree. This made his entire body shudder.

Two immortal roots, residing in Ye Chen’s cave heaven? What merit or fortune did Ye Chen possess for such bounty? Yet when he glanced aside, his mouth gaped wider.

Qilin Undying Herb, Peach DivineTree, True Dragon Undying Herb, Enlightenment Tea Tree... Eleven in total, including even his clan’s long-lost True Phoenix Immortal Medicine. Had Ye Chen gathered every immortal root in the cultivation world?

No—Ye Chen lacked the strength or destiny for that. Thus, it all traced to the Heavenly Emperor of old. He had claimed them destroyed. In truth, secreted away in shadows.

This half-saint’s advance halted utterly. He yearned only to flee this absurd cave heaven. But a golden beam pierced forth; his physique froze solid.

In the next breath, a branch like molten gold extended silently from the void, descending with serene calm.

”Boom...”

In an instant, blood mist filled the air.

In the distance, endless cave heaven power roiled. The half-saint trapped within could endure no longer. His physique burst apart. The two fell in the same heartbeat. In their final thoughts, one notion reigned. If reborn, they would never rashly enter another’s cave heaven again. Too terrifying...

In the following moment, the Dragon-Subduing Yellow Spring Diagram drifted forth, sweeping up the remnants of their essences, souls, and the divine fire origins unique to the Undying Celestial Phoenix Clan. It plunged them into the Yellow Springs River for scouring. Once cleansed, it would automatically feed their essences into the Heaven-Swallowing Demon Jar for secondary refinement. Efficiency automated to the core.

...

The two died swiftly.

From entry to demise, scarcely a hundred breaths had elapsed. This was only because Ye Chen had granted them time to tour. Otherwise, death upon ingress. Confirming their falls, Ye Chen, amid the sea of fire, curled his lips in a smile.

Divine fire terrified. But that was all. With the Array Secret in hand, a mere scan unveiled the array’s flaws. A thought stirred; the flames parted willingly, sparing Ye Chen and the Luo Bingling in his arms. The pair sat aboard the chariot, gliding effortlessly through the inferno. They arrived before the lone half-saint.

The half-saint’s eyes bulged in disbelief. He was shocked that Ye Chen escaped the array so easily, and bewildered why he emerged unscathed. After all, two half-saints had entered his cave heaven!

He retreated frantically, unleashing endless divine light and phoenix fire as he roared, ”Why hasn’t your cave heaven shattered?”

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Ye Chen laughed. ”Enter and see for yourself.”

Brilliant immortal tribulation light blazed from his chest; the Hand of Heaven coalesced with a boom. It locked the surrounding thousand li in aura of utter annihilation, effortlessly seizing the man. But it did not crush him outright. The Supreme Heart’s divine ability, amplified by physique, had grown ever more horrifying. One slip could obliterate an enemy’s origin.

Ye Chen loathed such waste. So he gripped him firmly, then opened the cave heaven portal, flicking lightly.

The man shot inside. Upon beholding the cave heaven’s truths, his eyes widened like his clansmen’s before—trembling in dread. But Ye Chen spared no further sightseeing. A golden branch descended silently. Blood mist erupted. The Yellow Spring Diagram drifted forth automatically, commencing cleanup...

...

In the Immortal Path’s fourth realm, the once-vibrant battlefield fell eerily still. Save for Ye Chen and Luo Bingling aboard the chariot. No—also the Little Peacock King, who had just burst from the secret realm, five-colored divine light blazing, ready to join Ye Chen in overwhelming the last half-saint and addressing the two within the cave heaven.

The Little Peacock King emerged mid-stride, divine light dazzling, his face etched in confusion. He stared at Ye Chen, brows furrowed in astonishment. Sealing foes in one’s cave heaven courted peril. Yet Ye Chen’s expression betrayed no such risk. After all, he had flung a third inside at the end.

”Au... Fellow Daoist Ye, those three... could they have perished?”

The Little Peacock King uttered in disbelief.

Ye Chen nodded lightly with a smile, unbothered by the two extra colors in the Little Peacock King’s display, and turned his gaze toward the secret realm. Seeing Yao Yuezhi, his expression warmed. But noting her pallid complexion and wilted aura, his brows furrowed slightly. He flew straight toward the secret realm.

Leaving the Little Peacock King frozen in place, along with the countless onlookers gaping in stunned silence. They had anticipated witnessing the Heavenly Emperor’s heir pushed to his limits. Instead, the battle concluded even swifter than before.

Ye Chen’s strikes had dwindled too. A few swings of the Compliant Golden-Hooped Rod, then tossing foes into his cave heaven. And that was it? This plunged the crowd into existential doubt. What lay within Ye Chen’s cave heaven?

”A supreme kill array—it must be. The Heavenly Emperor was an array grandmaster, slaying greater foes with lesser forces through cunning arrays.”

”But what array could instantly extinguish three peak half-saints?”

”No wonder the successor dared come—with such a trump card.”

”Shocking—three peak half-saints felled in a breath. Spread the word: beware the Heavenly Emperor heir—never enter his cave heaven!”

”His aces truly abound...”

The crowd buzzed in discussion, a mix of awe and disappointment. The clash had ended too abruptly. They felt they’d glimpsed nothing—straight to cave heaven toss, and done. How had the three died? What array wrought it? Unknown. Many who had captured recording stones lamented their footage’s likely poor sales.

...

Ye Chen soared toward the secret realm. Yao Yuezhi and Yao Yuekong emerged from it amid shock and joy. Yao Yuekong gazed at Ye Chen in ever-deepening admiration.

Ye Chen exceeded his wildest expectations. He couldn’t help praising aloud, drawing closer. ”Brother-in-law, you’re so formidable—my sister will surely find bliss with you. As her brother, I can rest easy.”

Yao Yuezhi, her face ashen, rushed straight to Ye Chen’s side. He sat aboard the war chariot.

Luo Bingling had no intention of yielding her spot. But Yao Yuezhi deftly claimed her own, plunging into Ye Chen’s embrace. Her small hands cupped his cheeks; her emerald eyes brimmed with affection and adoration. ”Brother Ye, trapped before, I knew my destined one would arrive in a chariot to rescue me. All foes before my destined one are mere chickens and dogs! And now, it has come true. Brother Ye, you are my destined one.”

With those words, Yao Yuezhi leaned in and kissed him!