The dense spiritual energy filled Lie Zhankuang's entire body, a sensation that thrilled him beyond measure.
Continuously circulating his cultivation techniques, Lie Zhankuang sought to break through to the highest realm—the Emperor level.
Time slipped away unnoticed, and in the blink of an eye, three days had passed.
Throughout these three days, Lie Zhankuang had been absorbing the energy of the Immortal Spirit Fruit, while Chen Chang'an waited patiently, watching silently from the side.
"Senior Da Huang, it's been three days since the young master went down. Why hasn't he returned yet?"
"Could something dangerous have happened?"
With no news of Chen Chang'an for three days, Gu Xian'er's heart was heavy with worry.
"There's nothing I can do. My perception can't reach that far down."
"But you can rest assured—I’ve said it before, there isn’t a soul in this world who can harm Chen Chang'an."
"Let’s just wait a little longer."
Though still uneasy, Gu Xian'er felt somewhat reassured by Da Huang's words.
"Dammit, why is this so difficult?"
After halting his cultivation, Lie Zhankuang couldn’t help but curse aloud.
The energy was abundant, but breaking through the barrier to the Emperor realm was proving far more challenging than he’d anticipated.
"Finished?" Chen Chang'an asked.
"No."
"The energy of the Immortal Spirit Fruit is too immense. There’s no way I can fully absorb it in just three days."
"It’ll take at least a year before I can completely refine this energy."
"This thing truly lives up to its reputation as a supreme treasure—it’s terrifying."
"Even with my cultivation, it’ll take a year."
"If it were anyone else, who knows how long they’d need?"
Though he hadn’t broken through to the Emperor realm, Lie Zhankuang couldn’t help but marvel at the Immortal Spirit Fruit’s extraordinary power.
It was undoubtedly a rare treasure, one in a million.
"Is the energy inside the Immortal Spirit Fruit volatile?" Chen Chang'an asked.
"Surprisingly gentle. Even a child with no cultivation could eat it without any adverse effects."
"Though, for them, it wouldn’t be of much benefit."
"First, they wouldn’t be able to absorb it. Second, over time, the energy would simply go to waste."
"And third… well, I don’t actually know."
If you don’t know, then why even mention it?
"Alright, I’ve been down here for three days. It’s time for me to leave. What about you? Any plans?" Chen Chang'an asked, looking at Lie Zhankuang.
Leaving already?
No matter how one looked at it, this was a reunion of old friends. Lie Zhankuang hadn’t expected Chen Chang'an to depart so soon.
After so many years without seeing anyone, truth be told, Lie Zhankuang was reluctant to let him go.
"You go ahead. I won’t be leaving for now."
"I can’t leave this place anyway, and I don’t particularly want to."
"I’ll use this year to attempt a breakthrough to the Emperor realm."
"Once I succeed, I’ll have the confidence to step out again," Lie Zhankuang said solemnly.
"He’s at the peak of the Emperor realm. Even if you break through, you might not be his match."
"I know. But he wouldn’t dare act recklessly against me either."
"Once I leave, I’ll come find you. We’ll have a proper reunion then."
"Deal."
Chen Chang'an smiled and nodded before leaving the Heavenly Pool under Lie Zhankuang’s reluctant gaze.
When Chen Chang'an emerged from the pool, both Da Huang and Gu Xian'er let out sighs of relief.
Though Da Huang knew Chen Chang'an couldn’t die, he was also aware that the young man’s true strength wasn’t yet sufficient.
If something had happened, his life wouldn’t be in danger, but what if he’d been detained?
"What’s down there?"
"Young master, you’re back!"
Chen Chang'an first gave Gu Xian'er a warm smile before shooting Da Huang a sidelong glance.
"Look at her—she actually cares about me. All you care about is what’s down there."
"Your ancestors are down there."
After saying this, Chen Chang'an paused. Had Lie Zhankuang just gotten the better of Da Huang?
Da Huang, however, was long accustomed to Chen Chang'an’s antics and couldn’t be bothered to retort.
"Just tell me already. What’s down there?"
Chen Chang'an then recounted everything that had happened below.
"That kid Lie Zhankuang actually ended up like this?"
"Serves him right for his youthful arrogance."
"Still, it’s good that he’s alive at least."
"Who would’ve thought there’d be an Immortal Spirit Tree in the Heavenly Pool of Cloud Snow Ridge?"
"This thing… I bet there’s only one in the entire Tai Xuan Realm!"
A treasure like the Immortal Spirit Tree couldn’t possibly be found everywhere. Once one existed, another would never appear.
"Da Huang, want to try an Immortal Spirit Fruit?" Chen Chang'an asked with a grin.
"Something this precious, and you’re giving it to me?"
Da Huang eyed Chen Chang'an suspiciously. Since when was this guy so generous?
"Of course. But you’ll have to do something for me in return—something simple," Chen Chang'an said, still smiling.
"Tch, knew you weren’t that kind. Fine, what do you want me to do?"
"Head to the Northern Domain and deliver an Immortal Spirit Fruit to that kid Chen Yunxuan."
The Northern Domain? Chen Yunxuan?
"You really dote on that boy, don’t you? Even with treasures like this, you still think of him."
"But it’s no trouble. The Northern Domain isn’t too far from here."
"Wait—you’re giving me one first because you’re afraid I’ll eat Chen Yunxuan’s, aren’t you?"
"Chen Chang'an, am I really that much of a dog?"
"You literally are a dog."
"I—"
Da Huang understood Chen Chang'an just as well as Chen Chang'an understood Da Huang.
If Chen Chang'an hadn’t given Da Huang a fruit first and simply sent him off to deliver one, this bastard would’ve eaten it on the way, made up some excuse, and returned to demand another for Chen Yunxuan.
Rather than waste time, Chen Chang'an decided to give him one upfront—it made him look generous too.
"Enough nonsense. Go quickly and come back soon."
"Fine, I’ll be fast."
"Where are you heading next?"
"Once we cross Cloud Snow Ridge, we’ll reach Lanling territory. I might go there first."
"Alright, I’m off then."
"Go."
Since Da Huang was traveling alone this time, his speed would be much faster. The round trip would likely take only a few days.
"Young master, shall we set off for Lanling now?" Gu Xian'er stepped forward and asked.
"Don’t you want an Immortal Spirit Fruit?" Chen Chang'an asked with a smile.
"I’m merely the young master’s servant. Such a precious item should be reserved for someone more important." Gu Xian'er replied calmly, her expression unreadable.
Chen Chang'an stared at Gu Xian'er for a long moment, until her cheeks flushed slightly, before finally looking away.
"What’s wrong with the young master?"
"Could there be something on my face?"
Her face still tinged pink, Gu Xian'er lowered her head, her mind a whirlwind of chaotic thoughts.
"Take it."
"I’d like to see how much your cultivation improves after consuming the Immortal Spirit Fruit."
"This is an order."
Seeing Gu Xian'er about to refuse, Chen Chang'an cut her off with his final words, forcing her to swallow her protest.
"Thank you, young master."
Gu Xian'er hadn’t expected Chen Chang'an to be so generous. As a mere servant, she never imagined she’d be given such a priceless treasure.
"Take it now."
"Yes!"
ing gift was a patch of barren land, and disciples were all picked up along the way. He spent fifty years diligently building three "ramshackle little sects," thinking he could finally live a carefree life relying on his disciples. But right at the fifty-year mark, he was suddenly swept away by a spatial rift and exiled to the Chaos Desolation, the Disorderly Ruins. There was no spiritual energy there, only slaughter. Relying on the cultivation feedback from his disciples, Gu Changyuan hacked his way through a sea of blood for eleven hundred years. When the system finally fished him back out, he discovered the ramshackle little sects he'd built back then had developed a rather... unusual style. Hold on... I vanished for a thousand years, so how did my ramshackle little sects become holy lands?!
young master of the Shen family—a figure of immense power and wealth beyond measure—and awakened the "Destined Ultimate Villain System"! His starting scenario? Running into his icy fiancée who shows up with a mountain-descending divine doctor to break off their engagement. The divine doctor arrogantly taunts: "What does your Shen family have besides a bit of stinking money? You're not even worthy of tying Qingxue's shoelaces!" Shen Fei just smiled. He completely defied the usual script: "Fine, I agree to break off the engagement. Also, notify the finance department to withdraw all investments from the Su family." Minutes later, with its capital chain severed, the Su Group teetered on the brink of bankruptcy! The once aloof and proud ice queen CEO was thrown into utter panic. That very night, she went to Shen Fei's villa, casting aside all dignity to beg and plead desperately... From then on, in this world teeming with Sons of Destiny, Shen Fei embarked on a path of extreme dimensional suppression! A mountain-descending divine doctor? Peerless medical skills? Shen Fei: "Reporting you for practicing medicine without a license! I'll gladly take your ancient medicinal cauldron and twin sister assassins." The Crooked-Smiling Dragon King? Commanding a hundred thousand soldiers with a single order? Shen Fei: "Illegal assembly and suspected treason! Let a fleet of attack helicopters sanitize the area and teach you what the state apparatus really means!" A reborn tycoon? Knows all the golden opportunities of the next decade? Shen Fei: "A trillion in capital to reverse and pump the stock market, making you blow your margin and jump on the very first day of your rebirth!" What Chosen Ones? What bearers of Heavenly Fortune? In Shen Fei's eyes, they're all just chives (i.e., suckers/marks) waiting to be harvested! Shen Fei: "Sorry, but as the Destined Ultimate Villain, I don't play by the rules of honor. I only play the game of dimensional suppression."
't think I'm that capable, I'm just trying my best to stay alive. I've been kind all my life, never did anything bad, yet worldly suffering spared me not one bit. The human world is a nice place, but I won't come back in my next life. A kind young man, who wanted to just get by singing, but through repeated deceits and betrayals, has gone down an irredeemable path.
transmigrates into the world as the sect master of the Heavenly Yan Sect, which is on the verge of being wiped out. He binds a system that grants him cultivation power based on the number of disciples he has: for each disciple, he automatically gains a year's worth of cultivation every single day! Take one disciple: every day he gains 1 year of cultivation power. While others struggle through a year of bitter training, he gets the same just by sleeping through a single night. Take ten disciples: every day he gains 10 years of cultivation power. Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul—he breezes through all bottlenecks without lifting a finger. Take one hundred disciples: every day he gains 100 years of cultivation power. Even a Soul Transformation Venerable before him can’t survive a single blow. Take ten thousand disciples: every day he gains 10,000 years of cultivation power! With a wave of his hand, he topples empires. With a single step, he crushes the sacred grounds of the universe. ... While others fight tooth and nail for secret techniques, Lin Yan casually hands out Nascent Soul-level cultivation manuals as beginner textbooks. While others strain to find talented recruits, Lin Yan opens his doors to anyone—so long as they’re human. In just three short years, the Heavenly Yan Sect went from a backwater sect made up of three crumbling huts to a sacred land that every cultivator under heaven would kill to enter. ... One day, otherworldly demon gods invade, with a million demon soldiers pressing down upon the realm. Lin Yan, yawning, rises from his lounge chair and glances at the system panel: [Current Disciples: 1.28 million] [Daily Cultivation Increase: 1.28 million years] He waves his hand casually, and the countless demon soldiers are reduced to ashes in an instant. “So noisy… interrupting my fishing.”
