Immortality Starts With Investment

Before departing, however, Ye Chen first needed to properly settle the Origin Sea. He returned to the quiet chamber and stepped into his small cave heaven. Under Luo Bingling's stunned, incredulous, and overjoyed gaze, he unfurled the Origin Sea across the sky above the cave heaven. It hung there like a vast silver canopy—breathtakingly beautiful and utterly awe-inspiring.

"You're about to become a Saint as well…" Ye Chen said with a grand wave of his hand. "Once you break through, you can cultivate directly inside this Origin Sea and rapidly advance all the way to the peak of the Saint realm."

Those words sent a thrill through Luo Bingling—her skin flushed crimson, her entire body trembling with excitement. Her husband was simply too powerful. Even without this, her cultivation speed inside the cave heaven had already been astonishingly fast. Now, with the Origin Sea at her disposal, surpassing the Divine Son of her clan was only a matter of time.

Excitement filled her eyes, soon joined by fierce satisfaction. When the moment came, she would personally suppress that Divine Son and slap the faces of all those old fogeys in her clan—hard. Back on the day in Myriad Races Immortal City, she and Ye Chen had put on an act: she pretended to betray him, only to be "imprisoned" inside his cave heaven.

Luo Bingling had always believed that, while she might not be as important as the Divine Son, her clan would at least try to rescue her or negotiate with Ye Chen. But in the end… Nothing.

From that day onward, the War God Clan had completely ignored her existence. And once she became Ye Chen's woman, any lingering attachment to the clan vanished entirely. Whenever she thought of the unique fortuitous opportunity hidden within the War God Clan, a cold sneer curled inside her heart. Once her husband's cultivation reached the appropriate level, she would tell him about it. Let him go and seize it.

The thought of herself crushing the Divine Son while her husband plundered their opportunity—and the furious, helpless expressions on the faces of the War God Clan members—filled her with even greater delight.

"Husband, you really are incredible…" Unable to hold back, she threw her arms around him tightly.

Ye Chen looked at the hopelessly addicted yet delightfully eager Luo Bingling and couldn't help but smile. He didn't refuse her embrace. With a light rise, he floated upward and settled atop the Seven-Colored Nirvana Jade. Then, his hands found her slender waist and gently lifted her, placing her right in front of him…

Lu Jing watched from the side. Though she longed to join, she wasn't in a hurry. Her turn would come soon enough. And sure enough, before long, Luo Bingling's voice grew hoarse as she cried out "Sister" and begged to be replaced.

Ye Chen set her down gently atop the Seven-Colored Nirvana Jade. Then, with a playful smile, he turned to Lu Jing. "Come here, Lu Jing. Hold on to the stone. Today, Young Master will help you reach the peak of the Unity realm…"

Inside the Seven-Colored Nirvana Jade, the Holy Spirit gnashed her teeth in helpless fury. She could only redouble her efforts to absorb the energy she needed for gestation, desperately hoping to achieve full maturity soon. Once she emerged, she would sit atop these people every single day—letting them suffer wind, rain, and a hundredfold repayment for the humiliation she had endured…

…

Outside.

The gold-robed elder naturally intended to see Ye Chen off. He had even selected a number of treasures suitable for Saint-realm cultivators from the Heavenly Emperor Hall's vault, all meant as gifts for Ye Chen. Though his daughter's tongue was sharp, how could he not understand her heart?

Ye Chen was destined to become his son-in-law. In that case, he needed to treat the young man even better. Every father with a daughter knew the truth: if you wanted your daughter to live well, you must never treat your son-in-law coldly.

On the contrary, the kinder you were to him, the more he would cherish your daughter—if he had any conscience at all. Moreover, with so many women around Ye Chen, the stronger the support his side offered, the heavier his daughter's place would weigh in Ye Chen's heart.

One moment, the gold-robed elder felt joy at the thought of his daughter eventually ascending to the Immortal Realm. The next worry crept in—what if Ye Chen, once in the Immortal Realm, fell for some other immortal beauty, changed his nature, and abandoned his daughter? What would become of her, alone and unsupported in that vast realm?

Lost in these swirling thoughts, the gold-robed elder received a report. His brows furrowed slightly, and he flew toward the outside of the Heavenly Emperor Hall.

There, standing just beyond the gates, was an old man clad in a Daoist robe, his hair and beard snow-white. An extremely terrifying imperial might flowed from him. Within that imperial pressure flickered faint traces of thunder—subtle yet horrifying. Even a single wisp would likely leave a Saint King gravely wounded and on the verge of death.

The old man made no deliberate show of power, yet his ancient eyes seemed to contain the collapse of countless voids—utterly terrifying. Any cultivator who recognized him would be shocked beyond words.

This was an Ancestral-level figure from one of the great holy lands. He had not left his sect in many years.

"Old Zhang, what brings you here? Has your lifespan finally run out? If your immortal foundation is exhausted, don't expect any handouts from my Heavenly Emperor Hall!"

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

The gold-robed elder was quite familiar with him. With a casual wave, he conjured a pavilion and terrace, inviting the other to sit before asking curiously.

The white-haired Great Emperor's lips curved slightly. "I can still live another eight hundred years. No need to worry about me…"

"Eight hundred years?"

The gold-robed elder was genuinely surprised. This old monster had already lived an exceedingly long time; five hundred years would have been pushing it. How had he suddenly gained eight hundred?

Moreover, the Daoist robe the old man wore was extraordinary—clearly a supreme Extreme Dao weapon. Where had the old fellow gotten something like that?

The white-haired Great Emperor noticed the gold-robed elder's confusion. He gently stroked his Daoist robe and spoke with a smile. "Old Yan, you must be wondering how I suddenly gained three hundred extra years of life and ended up with a supreme Extreme Dao weapon robe, right?"

The gold-robed elder's mouth twitched. He immediately shook his head. "Not interested."

The white-haired Great Emperor acted as though he hadn't heard the refusal and continued with an air of deep emotion.

"It's all thanks to my son-in-law. I've lived so many years already—what's a few more centuries to me? But that boy is so filial. He took a Ginseng Fruit from his family's treasury and insisted on giving it to me. I told him no, but he wouldn't take no for an answer! In the end, I had no choice but to use it. Gained myself another three hundred and sixty years."

The gold-robed elder pursed his lips and looked up at the sky. He knew it. The old coot had come just to brag about his son-in-law.

Undeterred by the lack of enthusiasm, the white-haired Great Emperor pressed on. "You were asking where this peak Extreme Dao robe came from—whose immortal relic it was? Well, it belonged to none other than the Golden Thunder True Immortal. Who would've thought that the Golden Thunder True Immortal's robe had somehow ended up in my son-in-law's family treasury all this time?

"And my boy, knowing that my thunder dao has already reached the pinnacle of the cultivation world, didn't hesitate for a second—he brought it out and gave it to me… I told him I'm too old for something like this. What use could I possibly have for it? But no matter what I said, he insisted on giving it…

"Couldn't refuse him at all. Sigh, how did I end up with such a son-in-law? The sole heir of an Immortal Ancient clan, and with such impeccable character!"

By now, the gold-robed elder was rolling his eyes. Seeing his reaction, the white-haired Great Emperor grew even more smug. He looked at the gold-robed elder and said, "I heard your daughter and Ye Chen are extremely close—practically engaged, right?

"Ye Chen's quite something himself. He has the potential to become an immortal. Sure, he has a lot of women, but we're all cultivators—who really cares about that… So you've got yourself a fine son-in-law too…"

The gold-robed elder began grinding his teeth. The old bastard was rubbing it in now. Then the corners of his mouth curved up. "Since you and I are so close, our descendants should get to know each other better too—keep the bond going down the generations…

"Why didn't you bring your daughter along to sit with us? No matter. How about next time we arrange for my daughter and Ye Chen to meet your daughter and her husband? Let them get acquainted…"

The white-haired Great Emperor's first instinct was to shake his head. Was he joking? Ye Chen was the type who couldn't walk straight when he saw a beautiful female cultivator. His own daughter was stunning. If they met, she'd definitely catch Ye Chen's eye. And Ye Chen was cunning—immense talent, vast resources, and generous with gifts.

The white-haired Great Emperor was genuinely worried his daughter might not be able to resist. If she ended up putting a green hat on her own husband, it would become the laughingstock of the cultivation world. The old coot had fallen into the pit himself and now wanted to drag his daughter in, too? Dream on!

The white-haired Great Emperor immediately waved his hand. "Our friendship is ours. Whether the younger generation has fate with each other is their business—no need to force it! But I really do envy you for having such a good son-in-law.

"Ye Chen is incredibly generous. He must have given Qingcheng a mountain of treasures. So lavish with your daughter—he surely values you, his father-in-law, even more, right? With our relationship, don't be stingy. Show me what he gave you—let me take a look…"

The gold-robed elder's face darkened. His daughter and Ye Chen hadn't even gotten that far yet. He was still the one planning to invest in Ye Chen. Why on earth would Ye Chen give him gifts?

Damn it—old man, let's just fight!

Just as the gold-robed elder prepared to stand, the gates of the Heavenly Emperor Hall opened. A youthful figure floated gracefully toward the pavilion where the two of them sat.

It was Ye Chen.

The white-haired Great Emperor immediately recognized him and studied him with curiosity—intrigued by this prodigy who might one day contend for immortality. He saw a young man with jet-black hair, an imposing bearing, clear and bright eyes, every movement carrying the unmistakable aura of a top-tier genius.

He couldn't help but nod inwardly. The boy really did have something. Pity about the fatal weakness for women—he would definitely be targeted for it in the future. And so Ye Chen arrived before the two of them.

He gave the white-haired Great Emperor a polite nod, then turned to the gold-robed elder. "Senior, I've finished my preparations. It's time for me to leave…"

The gold-robed elder nodded, no longer interested in watching the old coot show off. He rose to his feet. "I'll see you off…"

Ye Chen quickly waved his hand. "I have elders from the holy land escorting me—no need to trouble Senior. During my stay at the Heavenly Emperor Hall, I received so much help from you. I'm endlessly grateful. So I specially came to offer you this small token of appreciation."

The gold-robed elder frowned and waved it off. He wanted to invest in Ye Chen, not take benefits from him. Besides, he was a Great Emperor—the Lord of the Heavenly Emperor Hall, no less. What treasure in the world did he not already possess? He had no need for more.

But Ye Chen paid no attention to the refusal. With a casual lift of his hand, a jade box appeared in his palm. When the box opened, an exceptionally rich and profound Dao rhythm flowed out. The aura was so dense it almost solidified, resembling a thin thread of incense. Even the two Great Emperors couldn't help but brighten at the sight.

Both were Great Emperors from major powers—widely experienced and knowledgeable. Even though the Enlightenment Tea Tree had been destroyed long ago and the Enlightenment Tea leaves had become nearly extinct, they recognized it instantly. When they saw the variously shaped Enlightenment Tea leaves filling the jade box to the brim, both of their eyes widened.

This was Enlightenment Tea—and so much of it? The box was completely packed!

The white-haired Great Emperor couldn't hold back. "Ho! That's got to be at least twenty Enlightenment Tea leaves, right? If you scoured every treasury in the entire cultivation world, you might not even gather this many."

The gold-robed elder was stunned as well, but the corners of his previously downturned mouth slowly lifted…