Immortality Starts With Investment

Just as Yan Qingcheng’s emotions surged like raging waves, overwhelmed by Ye Chen’s actions and generosity, a system prompt finally sounded in Ye Chen’s mind.

”Congratulations to the host for successfully gifting the item…”

”Gift: Heavenly Heart Immortal Crystal!”

”Feedback in progress…”

”Applying 7,000x feedback multiplier…”

”Detected that the gifted item holds extreme importance to the recipient, triggering maximum emotional fluctuation…”

”Top-notch critical hit feedback activated!”

”Feedback reward: Sand of Heavenly Will ×2!”

”Sand of Heavenly Will: Refined by supreme immortal powerhouses through melting and extracting pure Heavenly Will!”

”Using it to condense a Heavenly Heart Imprint can elevate the imprint to immortal-grade quality. It deepens one’s affinity with fate, thickens destiny, grants mastery over heaven and earth, and brings boundless benefits…”

Ye Chen stared at the notification in his mind, utterly stunned. Even something as precious as the Heavenly Heart Immortal Crystal merely carried faint traces of Heavenly Will residue. Only by drawing on that could one condense a Heavenly Heart Imprint that fused seamlessly with the Heavenly Will, smooth and perfect, allowing greater borrowing of its power for all calculations.

Yet the system had given him Sand of Heavenly Will—directly forged from melted Heavenly Will itself. This was leagues beyond the Heavenly Heart Immortal Crystal. What level of supreme being could possibly achieve such a feat? This time… he had truly profited enormously.

The thought made Ye Chen want to silently thank that generous Celestial Prince big shot once again. But Yan Qingcheng’s gratitude was genuinely on another level. After all, the Heavenly Heart Immortal Crystal he had given her was already cracked and damaged. Its value had dropped significantly compared to a perfect one.

Yet she had still managed to trigger feedback of Sand of Heavenly Will—two grains, no less. After keeping one for himself, he could give the other to one of the women by his side. This was far too generous.

In an instant, Yan Qingcheng’s already high standing in Ye Chen’s heart climbed even higher. She was almost at the very front line now!

Ye Chen gazed at her with burning intensity. Yan Qingcheng, who usually carried herself with such composure, felt the heat in his eyes and found it too much to bear. She turned her face aside, unable to meet his gaze. His look was too fervent. It seemed to say: I would give everything for you—mere Heavenly Heart Immortal Crystal means nothing.

She had originally been resolute. She had no intention of taking a Dao companion before achieving immortality. And she certainly hadn’t planned to consider Ye Chen—after all, the sheer number of women around him was staggering. But now… her heart was truly thrown into disarray.

Flustered, she hurried to speak again.

”I want to give you a gift in return, Fellow Daoist Ye. I will give you half of the Origin Pool! The Origin Pool is where cosmic essence gathers. It will allow both of us to advance our cultivation at tremendous speed. Once you’ve recovered from your injuries, we’ll go there to cultivate together! And also…”

She trailed off midway. She still wanted to rightfully return the position of Heavenly Emperor’s true Heir to Ye Chen, so that he could become the genuine heir and inheritor of the Heavenly Emperor Hall.

But that would require convincing her father. She planned to have a serious talk with him after Ye Chen went into seclusion. Her father had to agree because this was what Ye Chen deserved.

After she finished speaking, Yan Qingcheng looked at him with some apprehension, afraid he might insist on keeping all the good things for himself and refuse.

To her delight, however, Ye Chen agreed without hesitation.

”Fine. I’ll go heal first. I should come out in about a week.”

Ye Chen had no intention of pretending to be injured forever. A big move was only effective once. If he overused it, it stopped being a trump card. From here on, he could simply let things develop naturally.

After once again declining the healing elixirs offered by both Yan Qingcheng and the golden-robed elder, Ye Chen returned to his meditation chamber in excellent spirits. He no longer suppressed his physique.

In the brief moment before he could even activate the Healing Secret, his aura had already begun surging upward. In the blink of an eye, he was fully restored…

This was the current state of Ye Chen’s constitution. His recovery speed had already surpassed even the Healing Secret. In the cultivation world, the supreme healing technique—the Healing Secret—was, on Ye Chen’s body, merely icing on the cake.

He opened the entrance to his cave heaven and stepped inside with a pleased smile, eager to examine the newly acquired Sand of Heavenly Will.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

…

Inside the grand hall of the Heavenly Emperor Hall, both the golden-robed elder and Yan Qingcheng hesitated, neither speaking first, as though each was lost in thought.

After a long moment, Yan Qingcheng finally resolved to have a proper conversation with her father about making Ye Chen the true Heir of the Heavenly Emperor.

But before she could begin, the golden-robed elder spoke.

”Qingcheng, I made a grave mistake this time… When Ye Chen went to face the Celestial Prince, it was actually I who informed him and sent him there. Celestial Prince was far too domineering—he openly challenged the Heavenly Emperor’s heir to a duel.

”I was worried about you, so I didn’t tell you. I only asked Ye Chen to go in your place, to stand as your shield against Celestial Prince… At the time, Ye Chen truly had no confidence. The battle was not as easy as he later claimed. If he hadn’t managed a miraculous counter-kill at the very end…”

After much internal struggle, the elder decided to come clean with his daughter. Too many people knew the truth; it couldn’t be hidden forever. Better to confess willingly than be exposed later. If she discovered it on her own, she might very well sever ties with him completely.

Yan Qingcheng’s eyes widened in shock. She had assumed Ye Chen had gone into the fight with at least some measure of confidence. She never imagined that his sacrifice had been far greater than she realized.

He had stepped forward specifically to protect her from the Celestial Prince. He had nearly fallen in the process. That had been a genuine life-or-death crisis.

Yet through it all, Ye Chen had never once blamed her father. Just earlier, he had even spoken up to defend him. And clearly, every bit of it had been for her sake. Ye Chen had given far too much for her.

Tears welled in Yan Qingcheng’s eyes. The gaze she turned on her father was filled with sorrow. He had always been good to her, but the way he had treated Ye Chen was truly unacceptable.

The golden-robed elder, already aware of how badly he had erred, hurried to explain.

”This time, I truly know I was wrong. I’ve already apologized to Ye Chen. In fact, he had no intention of returning to the Heavenly Emperor Hall at all—I had to insist strongly before he agreed to come back.”

Yan Qingcheng didn’t believe a word of it. Her father had repeatedly belittled Ye Chen in public. He had secretly undermined him. He had even deceived Ye Chen into facing a deadly enemy on her behalf.

This sudden invitation for Ye Chen to return was almost certainly motivated by the Heavenly Heart Immortal Crystal—hoping Ye Chen would gift it to her.

She wanted to say something, but the words caught in her throat. The guilt she felt toward Ye Chen swelled inside her, pressing against her chest until she could hardly breathe.

She knew scolding her father would accomplish nothing. Right now, the most important thing was to fight for what Ye Chen deserved. To return to him everything that rightfully belonged to him.

”Father, what you did this time really went too far! We have to make it up to Ye Chen. I’m going to give him half of the Origin Pool first. You have no objections, do you?”

The elder immediately shook his head.

Yan Qingcheng narrowed her beautiful eyes, her expression one of confirmation—this was exactly what she had expected. He wasn’t truly remorseful at all. Everything he had just said was merely lip service.

She decided then: if she couldn’t convince him, she would simply leave with Ye Chen. This Heavenly Emperor Hall could do without her!

But before she could speak again, the golden-robed elder continued on his own.

”Qingcheng, I think giving Ye Chen only half isn’t appropriate…”

Yan Qingcheng bit down hard on her lower lip, her snowy teeth pressing into soft flesh. Then she heard him finish: ”If it were up to me, we should just give him the entire Origin Pool.”

A cold laugh rose in her heart. Was her father speaking sarcastically now?

She stayed silent, waiting to see what excuse he would offer next.

The elder went on: ”Qingcheng, I admit I used to harbor prejudice against Ye Chen… But to speak plainly, no, his talent, aptitude, comprehension, everything about him, far surpasses yours. Even the Chaos Body you take such pride in pales in comparison to him…”

Yan Qingcheng froze. Of course, she knew this deep down. The Chaos Body was supposed to be an invincible path. Yet next to Ye Chen, it no longer shone so brightly. But why was her father suddenly admitting it so openly?

Seeing that his daughter could accept the truth, the elder continued: ”And in this era’s path to immortality, there are far too many monsters. Though Celestial Prince’s avatar was defeated, that was merely a strand of his divine sense. Once his true body emerges, he will be overwhelmingly powerful.

”Then there is the Eight-Crowned King. His World Tree sapling already bears eight strands of immortal qi—only one more remains. Once it transforms and he fully merges with it… If he succeeds, the Eight-Crowned King can refine the World Tree sapling into his second spiritual root…

”The World Tree sapling far exceeds even sacred spiritual roots. It’s said that if it can give birth to a World Tree Heart and grow to maturity, it might reach immortal-grade spiritual root level—potentially leading straight to the Immortal King realm in the future…”

”But perfect fusion is only possible before achieving immortality. That’s precisely why the Eight-Crowned King has delayed becoming an immortal. There is also that Exiled Immortal. I don’t know much about him or which one he truly is, but he clearly came prepared and is no ordinary figure either. Even if your Chaos Body were pushed to its absolute peak in the future, it would still fall somewhat short compared to these freaks.

”But Ye Chen is different. Ye Chen has the strength and potential to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with them. Yet the weakest among those monsters is already at the Great Emperor realm.

”Therefore, what Ye Chen needs most right now is to rapidly increase his cultivation. That’s why it would be better to give him the entire Origin Pool and help him reach the peak of the Saint realm.

”As for you, Qingcheng, you can take it slower—steady and solid progress is fine too. With how much Ye Chen values you, and if your father treats him a little better from now on and provides him with every resource possible…”

”There’s a very good chance Ye Chen will secure a spot for you in the Immortal Realm. Once you leave this cage behind, the possibilities will be limitless!”

At first, Yan Qingcheng had been searching for flaws in her father’s words, ready to argue back. But the more she listened, the more something felt off…

He wasn’t being sarcastic. He seemed completely serious. He genuinely acknowledged Ye Chen’s talent and character now. He was even willing to set aside his own daughter and invest everything in Ye Chen, so that she could indirectly gain entry to the Immortal Realm through him.

This…

Although she had always hoped her father would change his opinion of Ye Chen, the scale of this change was almost too extreme. Yet Yan Qingcheng was not petty, nor would she ever feel jealous of Ye Chen. She could accept reality. Deep down, she still harbored a fighting spirit—she believed talent alone did not decide everything.

Figures like the Devouring Female Immortal and the Heavenly Emperor were proof of that. She might still have a chance to contend for the path to immortality.

Even so, she nodded. She accepted her father’s words. She agreed to give the entire Origin Pool to Ye Chen.