A lucky general is indeed a lucky one, just like a pillow offered when one is sleepy.

A surprise too great can turn into a shock.

Most ordinary people wouldn’t be able to handle it, but Chen Yi was no ordinary man—no matter how big the surprise, he could take it!

Yet when Ye Wuchen strode in, one hand dragging the unconscious Ye Ancai and the other holding an unremarkable blood-stained cloth pouch, even Chen Yi couldn’t help but stiffen slightly in astonishment.

Of course, it wasn’t the person that surprised him—it was the object!

What Ye Wuchen couldn’t discern was laid bare before Chen Yi’s eyes, as clear as day!

The heart’s blood staining that pouch seemed to belong to a demonic scourge descendant, yet not entirely—it lacked that eerie, corrupt aura. It was as if it had been shed before the demonic scourge descendant had fully mutated!

Whoosh—

Merely looking wasn’t enough to confirm, so Chen Yi acted decisively. With a flick of his palm, he summoned the blood-stained pouch from Ye Wuchen’s hand to hover before him. After a brief hesitation, he chose to construct a void array to analyze it rather than touching it directly.

Though his divine sense could crush down and reveal its secrets in an instant, he had learned his lesson after his encounter with Wuji. Now, he treated unknown objects with caution, and this was no exception!

Seeing this, Ye Wuchen felt a chill crawl down his spine.

Just what was this thing, to make even Brother Yi handle it so carefully?

Back when he’d been ignorant, he’d even played with it for a while—had he picked up something foul?

With unease gnawing at him, he began a thorough self-inspection.

Fang Zheng, standing nearby, did the same. After all, compared to Ye Wuchen, who had merely handled the pouch, he had actually entered its inner space—a place reeking of a heady, metallic stench. If there was any contamination, he’d best seek the boss’s help immediately!

As the two sank into deep introspection, the Illusory Star Grotto fell into silence.

Moments later—

Having fully unraveled the pouch’s secrets, Chen Yi arched an eyebrow, his gaze suddenly burning with intensity.

Truly, Ye Wuchen was a man of fortune!

As everyone knew, Chen Yi had long wanted to visit the birthplace of the Scourge Progenitor, but he’d never found a way. Now, the blood-stained pouch Ye Wuchen had brought... contained a clue!

The pouch was merely a disguise. Unfolded, it revealed a star chart mapping the orbits of the myriad realms!

Unfortunately, the chart was outdated—the coordinates of the myriad realms were ever-shifting, and following its markings would lead to nothing.

But!

The heart’s blood staining the pouch made up for this flaw!

Though the coordinates were obsolete, traces of aura would linger along the recorded orbital paths. A single whiff would be enough to track them down!

And this heart’s blood possessed an extraordinarily keen sensitivity to the essence of worlds!

Upon deeper analysis, Chen Yi realized this was no ordinary heart’s blood—it belonged to a Profound Immortal!

And not just any Profound Immortal. Unlike Xu Jinghong, who had succumbed to corruption, the residual memories in this blood revealed that its owner had resisted a peculiar mutation until the very end, spitting it out in utter despair!

In its final moments, it had been lucid—unlike Xu Jinghong’s mindless state!

And because of this, the heart’s blood hadn’t fully corrupted, retaining fragments of memory!

Among them... was information about the "Calamity Realm"!

What more needed to be said?

Though he couldn’t confirm outright that the Calamity Realm was the Scourge Progenitor’s birthplace, all signs pointed to it!

What was the truth behind the Scourge Progenitor’s theft and harvest of countless realms?

Was it truly just for evolution?

To force a Profound Immortal into mutation, pushing it onto the Cosmic Path—when even the highest-tier Cosmic Scourge Progenitor was only equivalent to a Profound Immortal!

Even if a Cosmic-tier Scourge Progenitor surpassed a Profound Immortal in power and methods, the resources and time required to reach that level were astronomical!

This was like taking off pants to fart—sure, the range was wider, but the end result was the same!

Behind such unnecessary steps... there had to be a greater scheme!

He would take this hidden path and uncover the truth!

With this in mind, Chen Yi declared, "Well done, Old Ye. You’ve rendered a great service. This pouch is invaluable. Now, tell me in detail how you found it."

Ye Wuchen straightened, wasting no time.

"Watch the replay!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, he cast a divine sense projection, perfectly recreating the scene.

In the vision, Ye Wuchen—dressed in resplendent golden-red robes befitting a God of Wealth—drifted aimlessly through the chaotic void currents. Even when he occasionally brushed against the barriers of other worlds, he didn’t recklessly breach them, strictly adhering to Chen Yi’s directives. Instead, he meticulously marked their locations for future exploration, demonstrating his disciplined work ethic.

Watching this, Chen Yi’s lips twitched.

No wonder Ye Wuchen was a man of fortune—even wandering blindly through the void, he managed to stumble upon world barriers! Over ten years, he’d marked a staggering one hundred and ninety-eight worlds—roughly one every half-month, regardless of their tier. Once Wuji’s depths were tested and safety confirmed, each would become a territorial expansion of the Purple Star Continent!

And without comparison, there was no sense of injustice.

Ye Wuchen, working alone, had discovered one hundred and ninety-eight worlds in a decade—and still claimed he wasn’t skilled at amassing wealth and resources?!

Then what did that make Chen Yi?

He’d sent countless clones drifting through the void, yet in ten years, not a single one had encountered a world. His luck was abysmal!

Fortunately, Ye Wuchen showed no hint of gloating. The blood-stained pouch had genuinely appeared by chance—right after he’d marked a world barrier, it had drifted into view.

Though it looked unremarkable, anything that could remain intact in the chaotic void was no ordinary item!

Ye Wuchen had picked it up, toyed with it briefly, and finding nothing unusual, tossed it into his personal treasury.

Then the projection shifted—

To the scene of the God of Wealth Temple’s test.

Fang Zheng subtly adjusted his stance, revealing the still-unconscious Fang Fan behind him.

As the scene played out, showing Fang Fan selecting the blood-stained pouch—which wasn’t the correct answer but held greater value—and casually activating it with a few scratches...

Chen Yi’s eyebrow arched again!

This kid!

His father was no pushover, and the son was even sharper!

A pair of prodigies from the same family—truly fitting!

Chen Yi glanced at Fang Fan, still unconscious from the backlash of divine sense disruption, and with a mere thought, smoothed the ripples in the boy’s sea of consciousness.

Truthfully...

Fang Zheng could have easily done the same. But if he had, how else would he secure a moment in the spotlight for his son before the boss?

After all, the boss was swamped with affairs. No matter how capable one was, without opportunities to shine, they’d be doomed to toil in obscurity like an overworked ox!

Of course, with Fang Zheng—the Divine Lord of the Celestial Pivot Academy—as his father, Fang Fan would never be reduced to such a fate. But his progress would undoubtedly slow considerably.

Sometimes, falling behind by just one step means you can never catch up to others again. The Purple Star Immortal Court is developing at an astonishing pace, and everyone is riding the crest of the wave. Reaching great heights isn’t solely about effort—it also takes a bit of luck and the favor of those at the very top!

Soon, Fang Fan’s sea of consciousness settled, his true spirit returned to its place, and he slowly regained awareness.

“Ah—what happened?”

“Father, Uncle Ye, and… Young Fang Fan pays his respects to Your Excellency!”

After a brief moment of confusion, Fang Fan quickly gathered his wits, flipped up smoothly like a carp leaping from water, and dropped into a flawless bow.

“You’ve got potential. Keep it up!” Chen Yi waved his hand dismissively and tossed him a jade token identical to Mu Chen’s.

Fang Fan didn’t fully grasp the significance of the token, but Fang Zheng’s lips twitched, barely suppressing a grin.

Wearing a jade token around one’s neck was the mark of a special envoy of the Purple Star Immortal Court!

Aside from the high-ranking celestial officials, even deputy ministers had to cooperate with them!

Take Mu Chen, the last one to wear such a token—he defied heavenly law, yet no one dared lay a finger on him. In the end, it was only because he couldn’t face Chen Yi in good conscience that he willingly sacrificed himself to quell the chaos—though in truth, he just ran off with his beloved to the ends of the earth…

Of course, my son Fang Fan will never repeat such mistakes. As his father, I will raise his ambitions to the clouds and see him tread the snow-capped peaks to reach the summit!