‘The creatures of the Ancient Sacred Mountains arrived at the gate of the Ancient Lin Family with great fanfare, but their loudest man with wings on his back was immediately slapped to death.' — this news soon spread throughout the Middle State.
The matter became a hot topic of discussion among the cultivators, and everyone could be heard talking about it, be it after dinner or before teatime.
Although people didn't know the specific details of the events that transpired, they did hear that the creatures of the Ancient Sacred Mountains were forced to leave in despair. All the cultivators of the world learned after this that even a mighty existence like the Ancient Sacred Mountains couldn't stand before the mysterious Young Lord from the Upper Realm!
The mysterious Young Lord Gu was unfathomable!
Other than that, the girl in purple who called herself Ye Chen's cousin also attracted the attention of many. Some said that her origin wasn't minor either, and she came from a background even mightier than the Ancient Sacred Mountains.
It's just that not many believed those rumors.
The cultivators, who had witnessed everything from outside the Ancient Lin Family, had seen the girl in purple leave with an ugly expression on her frosty face. It was clear that she had hit an iron plate inside the Ancient Lin Family.
Many then speculated that the girl in purple might be from the Upper Realm as well, and this statement was accepted by the majority.
All kinds of rumors spread through the Middle State, causing a stir.
……
Three days passed in the blink of an eye, and the Dao Conference was held in the Moon-facing Ancient City as scheduled.
Many Holy Lands, big shots, and descendants of Ancient Dynasties came to participate, and that made the Moon-facing Ancient City extremely lively.
Everyone had the same goal in mind: ‘meet the mysterious Young Lord during this Dao Conference!'
Too bad, they were disappointed.
Although there were people from the Ancient Lin Family who came to participate, no one got to see any signs of the Young Lord's presence. He wasn't even present at the platform where all the big shots gathered together to watch the Dao Conference.
This brought great disappointment to a lot of cultivators who had especially arrived to gaze upon the Heavenly visage of the Young Lord from the Upper Realm. Unfortunately, they didn't have the fortune.
As for visiting the Ancient Lin Family?
They weren't qualified.
Naturally, Gu Changge had no interest in such a low-leveled Dao Conference. Right now, he was heading towards the intersection of the Middle State's eight regions near the border of the Central Heavenly City, together with Old Ming.
Since Ye Chen was around that area, then it meant that the Ancient Heavenly Secret Realm was also there. The Secret Realm should be opening any day now, according to his calculations.
……
In a remote town near the border of the Central Heavenly City.
With sky-high mountains, towering ancient trees, and extremely vast plains, it was a place not visited much by cultivators on normal days due to its remote location.
But today, innumerable cultivators and creatures of other races flew around in the sky leaving behind brilliant lights like rainbows. Some rode atop beasts, others stood atop magic weapons, and many wandered on foot all over the place.
"A brilliant divine light broke out from this place a while ago, and Heavenly phenomenon were seen from as far as three thousand miles away! This attracted the attention of the many forces and cultivators nearby, and they say a divine treasure is about to be born here…"
"No wonder there are so many cultivators coming here! This was the reason."
A youth with ordinary features walked through the streets and listened to the chatter of the townsfolk. His face showed a resolute expression, and he couldn't help but mutter to himself, "It seems that someone has already discovered the entrance of the Ancient Heavenly Secret Realm recorded in the fragment!"
"I have already collected all the fragments of the Secret Realm's map, so I can walk around freely no matter how many deathtraps there are inside it. Other than that, I also have the key left behind by the Senior who created this Heavenly Secret Realm."
"Once the entrance opens, I will blend in with all the cultivators rushing inside and head towards the core of the Secret Realm…"
The youth appeared to be speaking to himself, but, in fact, he was communicating with his Master who lived in the ring on his finger.
This youth was none other than Ye Chen!
During this period, he had improved his cultivation and even obtained massive opportunities while searching for the map's fragments. He was already at the peak of the Transcendent Realm right now!
In just a few months, he had risen from the Spirit Palace Realm to the peak of the Transcendent Realm, and even faintly touched the threshold of the Great-Transcendent Realm. If ordinary cultivators heard about his insane cultivation speed, their eyes would pop out of their eye sockets, and they wouldn't be able to stop themselves from exclaiming in shock.
Even the word ‘monstrous' wasn't enough to describe such freakish talent.
Of course, it wouldn't surprise Gu Changge. After all, this was expected from the Favored Children of Heaven.
Ye Chen, however, was not satisfied even with such tremendous improvement. He felt that his cultivation still speed wasn't fast enough. Although he had chanced upon many opportunities, he still couldn't close the chasm between him and Gu Changge.
"Only when I get the inheritance of the Ancient Heavenly Secret Realm will I be able to kill that Gu Changge and take my revenge…"
"And that b!tc4, Su Qingge…"
Flames of hatred flared in Ye Chen's eyes as he recalled the past. After pondering over the matter for a while, he had come to the realization that Gu Changge's strength was indeed not something he could deal with.
Previously, no matter how mighty his enemies, or how great the background behind them, he had always come out on top by turning danger into an opportunity and receiving a massive power-up. This made Ye Chen believe that the Ancient Heavenly Secret Realm was the opportunity prepared for him to turn over his current situation.
Inside the ring, Yan Ji floated in the void with a bored expression. She didn't reply to Ye Chen even after hearing his words.
With her glazed, scarlet pupils, she stared into the void with a dazed expression. Right now, her appearance didn't resemble the mighty Master Ye Chen was so familiar with.
She had watched Ye Chen improve sharply over the last period of time with her own eyes. His speed of improvement was even more ferocious then some of the geniuses of the Upper Realm.
All of this gave her a strange feeling, and she didn't know what to do.
Before, she had thought that Ye Chen would never be able to take revenge on Gu Changge in this life. Even if he received the inheritance of the Ancient Heavenly Secret Realm, that fact wouldn't change.
Back in her heydey, she might not have been a Quasi-Supreme, but she wasn't too far behind from that level. In her opinion, Gu Changge, a youth who could take out something as precious as the [Immortal Spirit-Gathering Pill], couldn't be from a simple background. His Family or Sect wouldn't be lacking existences at the Quasi-Supreme or Supreme level.
Because of this, Yan Ji had given up on persuading Ye Chen, and resented him somewhat now.
No matter how one compared him with Gu Changge, Ye Chen couldn't hold a candle before him. Their backgrounds were too far apart, and so was their cultivation base. Ye Chen would never be able to succeed in his revenge.
But now…Yan Ji's thoughts had changed. With the speed at which Ye Chen's cultivation rose, he might really be able to create a miracle.
Yan Ji couldn't help but feel some worry for Gu Changge.
Maybe, she was grateful to him for the [Immortal Spirit-Gathering Pill]…or maybe, his sincere attitude back in the dungeon moved her. At that time, he could have easily killed Ye Chen, or even taken the ring away from him with force, but he did neither.
Yan Ji had a good impression of Gu Changge, and believed that he would make massive waves in the future. Because of this, Yan Ji was in a complicated mood and didn't know whose side to take.
Her remnant spirit had fallen into the Lower Realm and survived in a ring. Later, Ye Chen got the ring and it was because of his hard-cultivated Spiritual Qi that she could awaken from her slumber. If not for him, she wouldn't know how long it would take for her to wake up.
It was precisely because of her that Ye Chen went from a well-known genius to a despised trash whose cultivation regressed instead of rising. His fiancee broke the engagement between them, and he ended up as an object of ridicule for everyone.
She felt extreme guilt towards him, and that's why she took him as her disciple and taught him as much as she could. She was determined to help this persevering youth rise to the top again.
Unfortunately, Ye Chen's recent performance brought her great disappointment. He couldn't tell between good and bad, and flames of jealousy and envy clouded his judgement.
It had come to the point where he even suspected her, and thought that she was in cahoots with Gu Changge!
If that was the case, then why would she bother staying by his side and keep on guiding him in his cultivation? After all, Gu Changge was far superior to him in every aspect, so shouldn't she immediately go over to his side?
She had held true to her conscience, and was unmoved by Gu Changge's sincerity in the face of her desire to repay the grace she had received from Ye Chen.
Alas! Ye Chen couldn't comprehend such a simple matter, and thought that she was staying with him right now out of pity.
This broke Yan Ji's heart and left her helpless.
She knew a rift had appeared between her and Ye Chen, and the problem, contrary to Ye Chen's belief, lied with Ye Chen himself.
She wasn't the one at fault here.
