The Zhou Family
Zhou Yuanxiong looked at the five people before him, his smile so radiant it sent chills down Chen Yunxuan and the others' spines.
"Truly unexpected."
"Absolutely unexpected."
"To think you could ascend to the upper realm in such a short time."
"The Zhou Family has ruled the Tai Xuan Realm for so long, yet you are the most..."
"Ahem, aside from Chen Chang'an, the most talented individuals I've ever seen."
"Would you... be interested in accepting our Zhou Family's offer?"
"You need not worry—we won’t restrict your freedom or interfere with any of your decisions."
"We only hope that, once you’ve grown stronger, you might lend us a hand if the Zhou Family ever faces trouble."
Zhou Yuanxiong was both excited and nervous, genuinely concerned they might refuse his recruitment and investment.
These five before him were all monstrous geniuses, and in Zhou Yuanxiong’s eyes, they were no weaker than the prodigies of the Primordial Immortal Domain—perhaps even surpassing them.
Most importantly, winning over Chen Yunxuan and the others meant forging a connection with Chen Chang'an.
Chen Chang'an was already someone the Zhou Family couldn’t afford to provoke, especially given his ties to Mu Yunyao—let alone now.
Though the name Chen Chang'an wasn’t yet a household one, it had already shaken the Primordial Immortal Domain.
Many knew of him, but few had actually met him.
Chen Yunxuan and the others exchanged glances. Their sole purpose in striving so hard to ascend to the Primordial Immortal Domain was to catch up to Chen Chang'an and follow in his footsteps.
Over the years in the Tai Xuan Realm, they had devoted themselves entirely to cultivation, never bothering with worldly dominance.
Fortunately, within just a few decades, they had succeeded in ascending.
"Patriarch Zhou, we’ve already discussed this before coming."
"We can accept your offer."
"But we insist on deciding how and what we cultivate—everything else is our own choice," Chen Yunxuan said with a smile.
"Of course."
"Rest assured, we won’t interfere in your affairs."
"To be honest, while you were unrivaled in the Tai Xuan Realm, this is the Primordial Immortal Domain."
"Your current strength still leaves you vulnerable."
"If you don’t mind, you could first cultivate here to improve your strength."
"Once you’re ready, you can leave."
"What do you think?" Zhou Yuanxiong asked with a smile.
This was something Chen Yunxuan and the others were well aware of, which was why they sought the Zhou Family’s support in the first place.
Having connections made things easier—far better than wandering aimlessly like headless flies.
Moreover, the Zhou Family wasn’t some insignificant clan in the Primordial Immortal Domain. Their foundation was solid, making them an excellent choice.
"Patriarch Zhou, there’s one thing I’d like to ask."
"Do you... have any news about the Young Master?"
"How is he doing in the Primordial Immortal Domain?" Gu Xian'er asked nervously.
As soon as she spoke, Chen Yunxuan and the others turned to Zhou Yuanxiong with tense anticipation.
Zhou Yuanxiong took a deep breath, his voice trembling with excitement. "Young Master Chen... is formidable!"
"Unbelievably formidable!"
"When he first arrived in the Primordial Immortal Domain, he left immediately—no one knows where he went."
"But who would’ve thought that, in just over a decade, he would shake the entire realm?"
"Ranked first on the Heavenly Pride Leaderboard!"
"Rumored to still only be at the Golden Immortal Realm, yet his strength... rivals that of an Immortal Emperor!"
"Counting the years, it’s been three decades since he claimed the top spot."
"By now, his power might already be close to catching up to mine."
"Ah, truly remarkable."
Hearing about Chen Chang'an’s exploits, Chen Yunxuan and the others were overjoyed.
In their hearts, Chen Chang'an was their one and only deity—no one could ever replace his status in their eyes.
It seemed anything that happened to Chen Chang'an was only natural.
Their gazes held nothing but reverence and excitement, not a trace of surprise.
"It seems we’ll have to push ourselves harder if we want to catch up to the Ancestor’s footsteps."
"Otherwise, we’ll never have the chance to stand by his side," Chen Yunxuan said solemnly.
"Exactly!"
"Right now, we’re not even qualified to appear before Master."
"Let’s cultivate with all our might."
"I hope when we finally meet him, we won’t disappoint him," Ye Zhiqiu added eagerly.
"Patriarch Zhou, we might have to trouble you for some expenses."
"Could you provide us with cultivation resources now?"
"We want to improve quickly and venture out as soon as possible."
Zhou Yuanxiong naturally wouldn’t refuse such a request. Who would turn away such driven geniuses?
This was a golden opportunity for the Zhou Family!
Without wasting words, Zhou Yuanxiong immediately arranged resources and cultivation grounds for them.
Chen Chang'an, however, remained unaware of Chen Yunxuan and the others’ ascension.
At present, he had been in seclusion for thirty years—a duration nearly matching the sum of all his previous cultivation periods!
"Should we keep waiting?"
"It’s been so long already!"
"Maybe we should leave some people here and attend to other matters first."
After waiting so long without any sign of Chen Chang'an emerging, many were growing impatient.
Yet Ye Beixuan remained resolute—he wouldn’t leave until Chen Chang'an appeared.
"We’ve waited this long—what’s a little more time?"
"For us, a few decades is nothing."
"But if we miss Chen Chang'an’s emergence, finding him again won’t be easy."
"If you wish to leave, go ahead," Ye Beixuan said calmly.
"I’m not going anywhere. I need to see my brother-in-law."
"Besides, there’s something about my sister I need to discuss with him," Mu Yunhai added, equally unwilling to depart.
"Well..."
"Fine, since we’ve waited this long, we might as well continue."
"Let’s just hope Chen Chang'an doesn’t make us wait another few decades."
"Hard to say. Seclusion lasting a century is hardly unusual."
"But this time, Chen Chang'an’s seclusion has indeed been unusually long—unlike his usual speed."
"Could it be he’s not just aiming for the peak of the Golden Immortal Realm but breaking through to the Heavenly Immortal Realm in one go?"
"Who knows? We’ll find out when he emerges."
Just as the crowd murmured among themselves, a sudden surge of energy rippled through the air.
"Such an intense energy fluctuation!"
"Could it be...?"
"Chen Chang'an has emerged?"
saw a female celebrity tied up and stuffed in the trunk! Little did he know, countless cameras were aimed at him at this moment - this was a new type of reality show. The first randomly selected passerby was caught in less than an hour. But when Xu Moru was selected, things started to take an unexpected turn. "Damn, this isn't how the script goes. This Xu Moru is too bold, he's not following the rules at all." "Crap, is this guy taking it seriously?" "The female celebrity has been scared to tears!"
with countless casualties. As a top-tier gamer, Liu Xuan volunteered to join the fight, intending to dominate with his skills, but instead he obtained the hidden class: [Pacifist]. Unable to attack. Unable to use active skills. Fortunately, with each level gained, he acquired a new passive skill. And so, armed with a body full of passives, Liu Xuan slaughtered his way through the battlefield of ten thousand races! [You attacked Liu Xuan] [You gained the debuffs: 'Poison', 'Fear', 'Burning', 'Bleeding', 'Freeze', 'Silence', etc.] [Your attack speed has been reduced by 99%] [Your armor and magic resistance have been reduced by 99%] Warriors of the Ten Thousand Races: How the hell am I supposed to fight this?!
grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)
] [Lone Wolf, No Male Gaze] [Protagonist is pursued early on; extreme protagonist-stans, stay away!] The "Carnival Paradise" descends and slowly devours the real world in the form of a game. By chance, Zhu Yan awakens the talent [Roleplay], becoming one of the first beta players. He thought he could develop safely, but after clearing the first instance, he is branded by humanity as the chief culprit behind the game's spread—a traitorous villain. A villain? Who would ever... become one! He'll be the villain! From then on, Zhu Yan is not only a player but also a lackey for the Carnival Paradise. Between the straight path and the crooked path, he chooses the con. With his left hand, he dons the villain's mantle, staging scenes within instances, infuriating players who decry him as a despicable traitor, all while the game happily promotes him. With his right hand, he joins the non-human organization "Fangcun Mountain," which opposes the Carnival Paradise, transforming into a mysterious player who slaughters game bosses, earning cheers of "Long live the expert!" from fellow players. Gradually, Zhu Yan rises to become an S-rank human player in Fangcun Mountain's archives, while also being the Carnival Paradise's certified top game Boss. But when the final war erupts and both major factions place their hopes in him— Players tag his various aliases: "Experts, this offensive depends on you." The Carnival Paradise's supreme Boss throws an arm around his neck: "Bro, you're the iron, I'm the steel; you can't let me down again!"
