Immortality Starts With Investment

”…And the position of Heavenly Emperor’s heir as well… Ye Chen has already earned recognition across the entire cultivation world. Keeping the title with me now feels improper and unjustified… It would be better to just…”

Yan Qingcheng was about to continue, proposing that both the position of Heavenly Emperor’s heir and the associated resources be formally transferred to Ye Chen. Even though her father’s opinion of Ye Chen had undergone a complete reversal, she knew full well that the Heavenly Emperor Hall had long been regarded by the Yan family ancestors as their private property.

They were fundamentally unwilling to share it with any outsider. They feared that after a few generations, the Yan family’s imprint would fade entirely. Convincing her father would not be easy. But before she could finish, the golden-robed elder understood her intent at once.

He spoke immediately.

”This is exactly what I wanted to discuss with you. In truth, I also believe Ye Chen is far more suited to be the Heavenly Emperor’s true disciple. Heavy Pupils, Supreme Heart, an invincible physique, the Heavenly Emperor Fist that sweeps aside everything…

”The Heavenly Emperor Treasury is already in his hands. Even if the Heavenly Emperor himself were reborn, he wouldn’t resemble the Heavenly Emperor as closely as Ye Chen does. It would be truly inappropriate not to make him the Heir.

”Besides, haven’t you always said your ambitions lie elsewhere—that you want to walk your own path? If that’s the case, then I won’t try to persuade you otherwise. Once Ye Chen emerges from seclusion, we’ll officially confer the position of Heavenly Emperor’s heir upon him!”

Yan Qingcheng had only gotten halfway through her prepared speech when her father’s words left her stunned. The words lodged in her throat—she couldn’t cough them up or swallow them down. She hadn’t even started persuading him, yet he had already agreed. Though this was precisely her goal, the suddenness left her feeling strangely off-balance.

Fearing she might overthink it, the golden-robed elder quickly continued.

”Of course, your father has his own calculations in all this! I’ve always hoped you would become an immortal and wanted to accompany you to the Immortal Realm—perhaps the environment there is better, and I might even have a chance to achieve immortality myself in the future. But now, I’ve faced reality. If Ye Chen were merely talented, I wouldn’t trust him. Spots to enter the Immortal Realm are far too precious, and people who go back on their word are all too common.

”There was once a small sect’s prodigy whose extraordinary potential was discovered by a certain holy land. They poured everything into cultivating him—nearly emptying their treasury, with many powerhouses sacrificing their lives to protect him. When he reached a quasi-immortal level, they even gave him an immortal artifact. They even married the daughter of one of their Supreme Elders to him!

”And that prodigy did live up to expectations—he seized immortal qi on the path to immortality and successfully advanced to True Immortal. Just as the holy land was joyfully selecting people to follow the True Immortal into the Immortal Realm—planning to have him clear out their enemies, allowing the sect to recover its losses and flourish once more—That True Immortal turned ruthless and disowned them entirely.

”He claimed his achievements were due solely to his own hard work and had nothing to do with the holy land. He even turned on his own wife, saying marrying her had been forced upon him, a humiliation he endured against his will, and that he had a true love elsewhere. He threatened that if they kept pestering him, he would wipe out the entire sect!

”Then, taking his concubines and descendants with him—and without returning the immortal artifact—he stepped straight through the Heavenly Gate. In one stroke, the holy land was crippled. Without the immortal artifact, it could no longer even be called a holy land. Within a few short years, it was carved up and vanished completely from history.

”That’s precisely why the great holy lands have become increasingly cautious when choosing Heirs. No matter how monstrous a small sect’s prodigy might be, they’re only taken in as laborers—never as true heirs. But Ye Chen is different. He truly has loyalty and righteousness. He’s not the sort of petty villain who turns his back the moment he gains power.

”If he becomes the Heir of our Heavenly Emperor Hall and receives our resources and backing, then even if he ascends to immortality with countless women, he will still remember our kindness and secure a spot for you.”

At the end of his words, the golden-robed elder looked at his daughter with deep affection. Though he had come to acknowledge Ye Chen on this journey, the person he loved most in his heart would always be her.

For someone like him, every action was a careful weighing of gains and losses. He only hoped his daughter could escape this gradually decaying prison and step into a new world. That in the future she might become an immortal, an ancestor, and attain eternal life.

Yan Qingcheng listened, her heart heavy. Her father had many flaws, but he had always considered her interests with single-minded devotion. In his heart, she would forever come first. He only wanted her to live well. But she…

”Father, I’m sorry…”

Overcome with guilt, Yan Qingcheng threw her arms around the golden-robed elder. He gave a gentle smile and patted her head softly.

”There, there. It’s mainly because your luck was poor—you were born in this world. If you had been born in the Immortal Realm, your Chaos Body would still be outstanding. You could enter a great sect and contend with most Immortal Bodies. Between father and daughter, what is there to be sorry about? As long as you live well, your father can accept anything!”

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The tension that had strained their father-daughter relationship because of Ye Chen finally eased, and they reconciled. But after talking for so long, Yan Qingcheng suddenly realized something and shook her head lightly.

”Father, I feel deep gratitude toward Ye Chen, but I have no intention of becoming his Dao companion. My Dao companion should be someone devoted heart and soul, loving only me. Ye Chen is excellent, but he’s not right for me…”

The golden-robed elder had once shared exactly that view. But now his attitude had completely shifted.

”Qingcheng, don’t overthink it. Just follow your heart. As for how many women Ye Chen has—what does that have to do with you? As long as he has you in his eyes and in his heart, that’s enough!”

”…”

Yan Qingcheng’s mouth twitched. She felt somewhat helpless. Her father’s change of heart had come so swiftly that she could barely keep up.

…

Northern Domain.

Within the Undying Celestial Phoenix Clan, the atmosphere hung heavy and subdued. Everyone had believed that the emergence of their Celestial Prince’s avatar would finally bring glory and vindication to the clan. Instead, it had been sent to its death…

The humiliation was monumental. The various races that had once shown interest in aligning with them now adopted ambiguous stances. Clearly, they feared that even when Celestial Prince’s true body emerged, he might still prove no match for Ye Chen.

The prodigy who had originally gifted the Heavenly Heart Immortal Crystal maintained a blank expression on the surface, but inside, his heart was bleeding. That was a Heavenly Heart Immortal Crystal—the key to condensing a divine-grade Heavenly Heart Imprint. If he had kept it, the benefits at the Saint King realm alone would have been immense.

More importantly, it would have greatly increased his chances of reaching a quasi-immortal level in the future. Then, in this Dharma-Ending Era, he could have become an ancestor, lording over others with impunity.

And yet? His own Celestial Prince had casually handed it away. He no longer cared about respecting the ancestor’s status; in his mind, he raged: You old fool—if you’re this weak, go train harder.

At the sacred mountain of the Undying Celestial Phoenix Clan, an eerie silence prevailed. A Great Emperor–level elder of the clan stood before the divine source and spoke.

”Your Highness need not dwell on this single defeat. Ye Chen most likely possesses a divine-grade spiritual root. As for his physique—even if it isn’t an immortal body, it surely rivals one. With just a strand of your avatar, you forced him to the brink of death and nearly shook him to pieces. That alone is enough.

”After the battle, Ye Chen remained unable to recover from his injuries for several days and was nearly ambushed and killed by ordinary Saint Kings. In short, this fight has already exposed the upper limit of Ye Chen’s strength. When your true body emerges in the future, crushing him will be effortless!”

”…”

Inside the divine source, divine flames flickered.

After his avatar’s fall, Celestial Prince had already received its memories and witnessed everything that transpired. For a moment, half the sky over the Northern Region changed color. Cracks even appeared on his own divine source, nearly shattering it.

Such was the fury of the Celestial Prince. He burned with the urge to emerge at once and obliterate Ye Chen. But in the end, he restrained himself. A mere Ye Chen was not worth abandoning a million years of hibernation or sacrificing his chance to become an Immortal King. He would emerge soon enough.

When that day came, he could crush this man and wash away the shame of his crushing defeat. So lately, within the divine source, he had been carefully analyzing the Heavenly Emperor Fist he had witnessed that day, searching for ways to counter it.

Today, when the clansmen arrived to console him, the Celestial Prince was bewildered. His avatar had forced the opponent to the brink of death? How did he not know about this? Hadn’t his avatar been pummeled almost to death after just a few exchanges, only to have the Heavenly Heart Immortal Crystal forcibly taken by Ye Chen using the Word of Soldiers secret art? Then forced to watch the days of the Heavenly Emperor Fist. And finally hammered to death with a single punch.

But he quickly understood. At the time, he had been inside the Heavy Pupils Pure Land; outsiders couldn’t have known the true details. That must be where the misunderstanding arose.

But Ye Chen was injured? Nearly killed by ordinary Saint Kings?

What a joke. Judging by the combat power Ye Chen had displayed that day, slaughtering the entire Sixth Realm would have been child’s play.

So why pretend to be injured?

Puzzled, Celestial Prince asked through the divine source: ”How many attempted to assassinate Ye Chen afterward?”

The Great Emperor outside replied at once: ”Roughly thirty-odd Saint Kings died!”

Celestial Prince frowned. How could Ye Chen kill even more ruthlessly than himself?

He immediately guessed that Ye Chen must have cultivated some crooked, heretical technique that required harvesting the lives of cultivators to advance. Perhaps that was the source of his absurd strength as well.

Still, Celestial Prince had no intention of exposing the truth. Doing so would only embarrass himself further. So he spoke calmly.

”In the end, I underestimated Ye Chen. His Heavenly Emperor Fist has reached the pinnacle—perhaps even surpassed the original Heavenly Emperor by forging his own path. But it matters not. I have already comprehended all of his techniques. When my true body emerges, suppressing him will be effortless. And by my calculations, I will emerge in no more than twenty years!”

The Great Emperor’s eyes lit up at once. This era’s Heavenly Emperor heir was overwhelmingly strong, and their own Celestial Prince was naturally arrogant. After all, he had once fought the Heavenly Emperor himself. Facing a mere Heir, it was only natural that he had been careless.

A narrow loss in a single move was nothing serious. But the real good news was that Celestial Prince would emerge within twenty years. For cultivators, twenty years passed in the blink of an eye. Once his true body appeared—with a sacred spiritual root, the True Phoenix Immortal Body, and a scripture surpassing even True Immortal level—who in the world could stand against him?

The Eight-Crowned King merely relied on the advantage of his World Tree! The Exiled Immortal hid his identity and had already died once—hardly worth mentioning. The Heavenly Emperor heir was only at the early Saint realm. Even if he broke through to Saint King or Great Saint in twenty years, that would already be heaven-defying. Celestial Prince could crush him with a casual lift of his hand.

When the news spread, the oppressive mood that had weighed down the Undying Celestial Phoenix Clan instantly vanished, replaced by surging momentum and soaring spirits. The clansman who had lost the Heavenly Heart Immortal Crystal and harbored deep resentment suddenly brightened as well.

Once Celestial Prince emerged, he would surely be invincible, with ten thousand races bowing in submission. Couldn’t he then ask Celestial Prince to help him acquire another Heavenly Heart Immortal Crystal?

With that thought, the clansman made up his mind. He would hold off on breaking through for now. He would wait twenty years.