Reputation and Deception

The long-awaited confrontation between the Divine Realm and the Immortal Realm over the Heaven Pill Gate finally came to an end with Chen Xia's dominant slaughter, making the title "Heaven Pharmacoscientist" resonate throughout the Immortal Realm. It had reached a level where almost everyone knew of it.

"Did you hear? The Heaven Pharmacoscientist recently made a bold move, engaging in a fierce battle with the Emperor of the Divine Realm in Treasure Ring Scale State. He left the Three Paths Emperor half-dead and eventually forced the Divine Realm to trade with the Emperor of Emeralda in exchange. Later, he even tamed the Emperor of Emeralda into a beast of burden, pulling his ferry across the waters."

"Why not just kill the Three Paths Emperor outright? That would clearly be more beneficial, right?"

"Well, the Emperor of Emeralda angered the Heaven Pill Gate, so the Heaven Pharmacoscientist's mission was primarily to teach the Emperor of Emeralda a lesson."

"Then why not just kill both the Emperor of Emeralda and the Three Paths Emperor together?"

"Come on, you go up there and kill one for me, see how it feels. You have no real skills, just a big mouth."

"..."

Within the Immortal Realm, Chen Xia's reputation mostly received praise, deepening his karmic ties with the realm. However, there were also negative reviews. The neighboring Heavy Upper Cloud State, where practitioners mostly focused on the Five Elements, were generally kind-hearted. The reason they criticized Chen Xia was simple:

Chen Xia had sliced their state in half with a single strike. Although no practitioners were hurt, the state was now permanently divided, and with time, the two halves were drifting further apart.

Now, Heavy Upper Cloud State could be separated into Heavy Upper and Cloud State.

Not only did this strike split the state, but it also cut through other sects, dividing them in half. One part of the sect was on one side and the elders on the opposite side, which was quite ridiculous.

So, while they criticized Chen Xia, they also acknowledged his achievements. Someone calculated Chen Xia's battle records and found them utterly astounding:

He had killed three emperors, devoured two at the beginning, sliced one in the middle, left the Three Paths Emperor half-dead, and tamed the Emperor of Emeralda.

This record was so terrifying that merely hearing it was enough to make one's blood run cold. The Heaven Pill Gate had become the most renowned faction in the Immortal Realm, with the potential to surpass the Nine Peaks of the Immortal Realm.

In the Ninth Peak, the Grand Elder listened to the news, his brows furrowing constantly as he muttered to himself,

"He's just a pharmaceutical cultivator. How can he be so powerful? It doesn't make sense. If he truly belongs to the same generation as Qingyue, then his achievements make him the greatest talent in all of history."

Huang Qingyue is currently at the level of a half-emperor (also translated as 'half-step emperor' or 'half emperor'), while the first talent of the Immortal Realm, Xu Zhen, has only recently entered the Emperor's fate (fate or path of an emperor). Even if she comes out as an emperor, what can she do?

Chen Xia has already been hunting down Three Path Emperors.

Are they really the same generation of talents? Compared to Divine Realm's Divine Sons or Supreme Realm's Little Supremes, Chen Xia is far more formidable.

To put it bluntly, if other factions and sects don't intervene, Chen Xia could sweep through the entire Ninth Peak.

The Grand Elder first felt something was off, then began to panic, worried that he had offended Chen Xia with his impoliteness.

He became increasingly anxious, constantly calculating and trying to glimpse into the future.

His fingers moved rapidly, and then abruptly stopped, his face full of surprise.

He couldn't calculate any outcomes, not even the peaks.

Within his calculations, he faintly saw the silhouette of the Pharmacoscientist, feeling only...

A colossal being!

The returning ferry didn't move quickly, focusing mainly on admiring the scenery.

Chen Xia stood at the top of the ferry, while the Emperor of Emeralda pulled the boat in front, cautiously asking,

"Master Chen, is the speed suitable?"

"It's decent," Chen Xia replied, then turned his head and glanced at Huang Qingyue, asking again,

"Do you have something on your mind?"

Huang Qingyue was startled, then smiled lightly, "I didn't expect Chen Ge to notice."

"Simple as that," Chen Xia commented, then said, "Tell me."

"I feel like I shouldn't tell you, Chen Ge," Huang Qingyue shook her head, lowered her gaze, and her long lashes fluttered, making her eyes increasingly bright. She spoke softly,

"I've spent tens of thousands of years cultivating in the Immortal Realm, and it's been my home. So, I've been thinking... If Chen Ge is so capable, why not just drive all the Divine Realm Emperors out? That way, the Immortal Realm would be stable..."

She quickly laughed again, waving her hand at Chen Xia, "It's just random thoughts, Chen Ge. You don't need to pay attention to them. The Immortal Realm's affairs shouldn't be your responsibility..."

"Sometimes, I even wish you would leave the Immortal Realm, go far away, so you'd be safe... Hah."

After these words, Huang Qingyue fell unusually silent, her pretty face drooping, her lips curving downward as she asked sadly,

"After saying all this, will Chen Ge dislike me?"

"If anything, I like you even more," Chen Xia smiled lightly, then shook his head,

"The reasons I don't help the Immortal Realm are many. Restrictions from the Immortal Realm's will, the time isn't right, the Divine Realm hasn't unveiled their trump cards, and my own combat power isn't enough yet. But if I wait a bit longer, it should work."

"Alright, good!" Huang Qingyue lifted her face, her expression brightening with a radiant smile.

Chen Xia looked at her, his expression calm, without a smile.

He didn't mention that he intended to devour the will of the Immortal Realm. The reason was simple:

He didn't dare to.

Telling a cultivator who had lived in the Immortal Realm for tens of thousands of years about such a thing, he didn't know how to begin or what the consequences might be.

Would she be angry, or would she understand?

People always grow.

Perhaps learning to deceive is part of that growth.