Immortality Starts With Investment

"You are no longer my senior sister. Second, refrain from speaking ill of my senior brother. Finally, I have absolutely no interest in your proposal…"

Even if everything Dantai Xuan said was true, Ye Chen still felt nothing. Especially with Yan Qingcheng—the wealthy, generous, and supremely talented Chaos Body—standing right beside him. He would have to be insane to accept Dantai Xuan's offer and do anything improper in her presence.

In Ye Chen's mind, female cultivators were strictly tiered. The first tier consisted of women for whom he would devote himself wholeheartedly, even without any multipliers: his master, Senior An, his fiancée, and his senior sister Yao Xi.

The second tier included the little demoness, Yao Yuezhi, Lan Nuo, and others—priorities only slightly below the first. Given Yan Qingcheng's demonstrated potential and genuine gratitude, despite their limited encounters, Ye Chen had already placed her firmly in the second tier.

In comparison, Dantai Xuan—who offered no critical hit potential—belonged on the same level as the former Li Feihuang and Luo Bingling. She held no status whatsoever.

…

Ye Chen's flat, utterly unmoved rejection caused a faint smile to curve Yan Qingcheng's lips, even as fresh guilt welled up inside her. Though she herself had not been the one to tarnish his reputation, her father had. The responsibility still fell partly on her shoulders.

Meanwhile, Dantai Xuan narrowed her eyes. Seeing that Ye Chen was not playing hard-to-get, not feigning reluctance while secretly tempted, she turned sharply to leave without another word.

But Ye Chen immediately called out: "Holy Maiden, please wait!"

Dantai Xuan turned back with cool indifference.

"Have you changed your mind?"

Ye Chen gave a light smile and shook his head.

"I already told you—I would never touch the Holy Maiden. Before I entered this place, my senior brother entrusted me with the task of capturing you. He has found several techniques that might help restore you to normal… So you cannot leave, Holy Maiden. I intend to deliver you into his hands."

Dantai Xuan's voice turned icy.

"You meddle far too much. I have my own path to walk. There is no need for you to decide things on my behalf…"

In the next instant, her body transformed into a streak of divine sword light and shot toward the horizon. Ye Chen's expression remained unchanged.

"Then forgive my offense…"

As the words fell, he raised a hand from afar. The sky instantly churned with violet-gold clouds. A massive golden hand descended with terrifying speed—matching Dantai Xuan's exactly—and closed around her true form.

Dantai Xuan stared coldly at the approaching hand, her voice carrying an aura of chilling menace: "Ye Chen, do you truly believe you can handle me…"

In that moment, two divine swords erupted from her pupils. Each blade was horrifyingly powerful, as though they could pierce straight through the entire fourth realm. This was clearly her ultimate killing move—one she had kept hidden even during her earlier clash with Yan Qingcheng.

Yet in the very next breath, the divine swords shattered. Dantai Xuan was caught in the grip, unable to resist in the slightest.

For the first time, shock flickered through her normally impassive eyes. She had known Ye Chen was strong—far stronger than her. But only when he truly acted against her did she realize just how terrifying he was.

A trace of genuine anger finally surfaced in her gaze as she spoke in a flat, icy tone: "I am who I am. I am Dantai Xuan! Do you really think forcing your so-called 'help' on me is truly for my benefit? If you truly wished to help, you would simply give me the immortal qi—rather than interfering with my cultivation under the guise of doing me a favor!"

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Those words might have moved Hua Yunfei. He was sentimental and clung to old ties. But Ye Chen acted as though he had heard nothing at all. With a casual lift of his hand, he executed the minor sealing art—the introductory technique to the Great Sealing Art among the three thousand great daos—that had once been returned to him as feedback when he gifted Lan Nuo the incomplete spatial technique.

The minor sealing art proved extraordinarily potent. In an instant, it effortlessly sealed Dantai Xuan's flesh, Qi, cave heaven, divine soul—everything. At that moment, she might as well have been a mortal.

Ye Chen did not toss her into his own cave heaven. His cave heaven held far too many secrets. A woman in her strange state—neither clear enemy nor ally, yet carrying such a sensitive identity—could not be allowed inside.

Instead, he activated his Heavy Pupils. Chaos Qi flowed as he forcibly opened a pocket of Heavy Pupil Pure Land. Without ceremony, he threw the still-protesting Dantai Xuan—"I am who I am"—straight inside.

Later, once they exited the Immortal Path, he would hand her over—furnace and all—to his senior brother. This side quest his senior brother had assigned would then be perfectly complete.

…

With everything settled, Ye Chen looked up.

Ling Yu had slipped away at some point without a word.

Yan Qingcheng, meanwhile, gazed toward where Dantai Xuan had been with open curiosity about her condition. Toward female cultivators who knew gratitude, Ye Chen had always been forthright. Besides, there was nothing here he couldn't share.

Yan Qingcheng stood behind the Heavenly Emperor Hall; she might even know of a solution. So without holding anything back, Ye Chen began explaining the sinister scripture—known sometimes as the Supreme Scripture, sometimes as the Supreme Emotionless Scripture.

He recounted, step by step, how Dantai Xuan had gradually been transformed into what she was now. When he finished, shock flickered unmistakably through Yan Qingcheng's eyes. She sighed at the existence of such a perverse technique in the world.

Once cultivation began, there was no stopping it. And the deeper one delved into mastery of the immortal scripture, the more one's original self would be eroded, little by little, until nothing remained but a completely different person.

"If this continues to the end, wouldn't the cultivator simply become someone else entirely? I suspect the scripture was left behind by an Immortal King-level existence. And upon reaching great completion, the practitioner might very well become nothing more than clothing for another—completely used up."

Yan Qingcheng shared her conjecture.

Ye Chen immediately nodded in strong agreement.

"Fairy, your insight is sharp. I share the exact same suspicion—there is definitely a conspiracy lurking behind this scripture."

Finding that their views aligned perfectly lifted Yan Qingcheng's spirits and gave her a rare sense of kindred understanding. She felt even more warmed by Ye Chen's complete openness toward her. He truly held nothing back when speaking with her.

That realization only strengthened her resolve. She would return the Heavenly Emperor Hall—and every opportunity it contained—to Ye Chen. But that alone was not enough; it would merely restore what had always rightfully belonged to him. Her father must also apologize to Ye Chen—for forcing him into the role of a false successor and for deliberately tarnishing his reputation. If her father refused, then she would no longer acknowledge him as her father.

Lost in these thoughts, Yan Qingcheng grew curious about the method planned for treating Dantai Xuan. She asked Ye Chen about it, though she was careful to add that she was merely curious—if it was inconvenient to discuss, he need not say anything.

Ye Chen, still waiting out his cooldown anyway, saw no harm in raising her favor a little more. So he gave her the broad strokes.

"My senior brother scoured ancient records and concluded that the Divine Maiden Furnace might prove useful. It could briefly restore her clarity, allowing her to cultivate the scripture once more and attempt to sever the 'new self' that has taken root. That's why he came to me. The last time the Divine Maiden Furnace appeared in the world, it was in the hands of the Heavenly Emperor…

"I didn't know its whereabouts either, so I searched—until I finally found it deep within the treasury. To be honest, I never imagined something so disrespectful toward female cultivators would be hidden in the Heavenly Emperor's vault. If it weren't still needed, I would have destroyed it on the spot. In any case, just looking at it makes me feel unclean. Once the Holy Maiden is restored, I will obliterate it completely!"

Yan Qingcheng listened without the slightest doubt. She even spoke up gently to dissuade him: "The Divine Maiden Furnace is merely a weapon. It has no inherent good or evil—it depends entirely on who wields it. Fellow Daoist Ye possesses a pure and upright character; you would never misuse it. I simply never expected the Heavenly Emperor to have kept it.

"In those days, the Heavenly Emperor used this very artifact to capture Holy Maidens from various sects and clans, extorting vast resources in exchange for their release. Eventually, under immense pressure from the female cultivators of every major holy land and aristocratic family, he was forced to destroy the Divine Maiden Furnace in public view… I never imagined… he never truly destroyed it at all… Truly, no one in this world is perfect."

Ye Chen: "…"

"Exactly. I never would have guessed the Heavenly Emperor was that kind of person either!"