Immortality Starts With Investment

Ye Chen condensed his chaotic vortex. The amount of energy he absorbed far exceeded what ten thousand Great Emperor realm cultivators could gather combined. It was simply outrageous.

Fortunately, the disaster Feng Baiyu had feared never occurred. After a full month had passed and more than a hundred massive stars had been destroyed, the chaotic vortex finally stopped devouring everything around it and quietly faded away once more.

Yet Feng Baiyu's eyes were filled with shock.

After a cultivator broke through to the Great Emperor realm, their chaotic vortex and inner world became interdependent. The inner world served as the foundation for the vortex. Only a sufficiently stable world could support the vortex's continued growth. In turn, the stronger the vortex became, the faster it could draw power from the outside world, allowing the inner world's reserves to accumulate endlessly.

Feng Baiyu suspected that Ye Chen's inner world had already reached the peak of the Great Emperor level back when he was still at the Great Saint realm. Now, he no longer needed to divert any attention to strengthening his world's foundation and could focus entirely on nurturing his chaotic vortex.

Having drawn in such an enormous amount of power—one capable of swallowing entire stars—Ye Chen's vortex had likely grown to its absolute limit. When it reappeared, would Ye Chen have already stepped into the peak of the Great Emperor realm? If so, his foundation could truly be described as unprecedented and unrepeatable.

…

The world possessed tremendous self-recovery power.

Merely half a month later, the spiritual Qi density in the Heavenly Evolution Holy Land and the surrounding region had returned to its previous levels.

The chaotic stellar phenomena in the sky, caused by the destruction of hundreds of great stars, had also settled into new, stable orbits.

Inside the Heavenly Evolution Holy Land, almost every cultivator was waiting for Ye Chen to emerge from seclusion. They all wanted to know whether the person responsible for such a massive disturbance had truly reached the peak of the Great Emperor realm the moment he came out of closed-door cultivation.

If that were the case, Ye Chen's cultivation speed at the ninth layer of the Mahayana stage would be even faster than most cultivators progressing through the ninth layer of Qi Refining.

Just then, endless strange phenomena suddenly gathered above Holy Son Peak. Accompanied by the slow opening of the long-silent gates to the Holy Son's residence, a figure walked out unhurriedly, instantly drawing every eye in the area.

The person who appeared was naturally Ye Chen.

The moment the experts of the Heavenly Evolution Holy Land sensed his aura, their breathing halted. Before entering seclusion, their fourth Holy Son's presence had already been enough to make Quasi-Immortals feel awe and fear. Now, he had clearly taken another major step forward.

A Great Emperor's aura was not something one could look at directly; even Quasi-Immortals trembled in dread. Especially Ye Chen's eyes—they were deep and serene, as if connected to the cycle of reincarnation itself. A single glance was enough to draw a person's soul into their depths.

Feng Baiyu flew over to stand before Ye Chen and stared at him with widened eyes.

"You… you've really reached the peak of the Great Emperor realm?"

Feng Baiyu could hardly believe it.

Ye Chen merely gave a faint smile in response. His inner world's foundation had long since reached an unattainable level. After breaking through to the Great Emperor realm and beginning to nurture his chaotic vortex, he had felt no strain at all.

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Thus, after condensing the vortex, he continued nurturing it without pause until it directly reached its limit. His cultivation had naturally risen along with it, climbing straight to the peak of the Great Emperor realm.

Faced with Feng Baiyu's incredulous gaze, Ye Chen simply shook his head lightly.

"I simply worked a little harder than most on a daily basis and built up a slightly deeper foundation, that's all. These are the most basic things. Why is the Holy Master so surprised?"

Feng Baiyu's mouth twitched. This kid had grown stronger, and his ability to show off had grown even more unbearable. If he could still beat Ye Chen, he really wouldn't be able to hold back.

"Who asked you?"

Feng Baiyu rolled his eyes, turned around, and flew back toward the Cloud Summit Heavenly Palace. He had originally wanted to ask many more questions, but seeing Ye Chen acting so smug, he decided not to. Let the brat suffocate from holding it in.

After his breakthrough, Ye Chen was in an excellent mood. If conditions had allowed, he would have liked nothing more than to enter seclusion again and push straight through to the Quasi-Immortal realm.

Unfortunately, that was impossible for the time being. To achieve the Quasi-Immortal realm, one needed to fuse the chaotic vortex with the inner world and perfect its rules. The minimum requirement for that fusion was complete harmony between the world and the vortex—in other words, they had to coexist and influence each other for a sufficient length of time.

For most cultivators, this was never an issue. After all, the journey from condensing the chaotic vortex to reaching the peak of the Great Emperor realm took even the most talented geniuses nearly a thousand years. Their vortex and inner world would have long since achieved perfect harmony during that extended period.

Ye Chen, however, was different. He had shot straight to the peak the moment he broke through. Both his chaotic vortex and inner world had reached their limits, yet the vortex was still brand new. The two had not had time to synchronize. It was truly a problem only the most supreme prodigies would face.

Ye Chen had already calculated that it would take roughly two and a half years for the synchronization to complete, at which point he could attempt to break through to the Quasi-Immortal realm.

He was not worried. After reaching the Great Emperor realm, his strength had surged once more. While his overall combat power had doubled in many aspects, that was merely secondary. The true gain lay in the reincarnation chaotic vortex he had condensed. Even Ye Chen felt it was terrifyingly powerful.

The reincarnation rules within it had benefited him immensely, greatly enhancing many of his divine techniques, including the Heavenly Emperor Fist. His Supreme Heart had also been significantly affected, as if it were accelerating its own transformation.

Ye Chen believed his double pupils could incorporate the reincarnation rules as well. If his original destructive light evolved directly into the light of reincarnation, its power would undoubtedly become far greater—one glance could send an opponent into the cycle of reincarnation.

In short, the reincarnation chaotic vortex was like a treasure trove. Once he fully excavated and mastered its rules, his strength would surge again.

Under these circumstances, spending another two and a half years consolidating his gains was perfectly acceptable.

Besides, no one in the current cultivation world should be able to defeat him anymore. He could casually slap a Celestial Prince to death and suppress an eight-crowned king. There was also that gestating holy spirit, though he did not know whether it would emerge before he became an immortal. Either way, it would not affect the overall situation. For now, he would simply continue cultivating steadily.

Ye Chen drifted toward Senior An's cave residence. He still remembered their agreement. Once he broke through to the Quasi-Immortal realm, if he had not yet obtained the Chaos Azure Lotus, he would fulfill his promise and take Senior An as his Dao companion, then conceive their first child.

In truth, Ye Chen had never wanted children. With his lifespan stretching endlessly into the future and the hope of eventual transcendence, he had no need for offspring to carry on his legacy.

However, Senior An held a different place in his heart. Since she desired it so strongly, he found it difficult to refuse.

With these thoughts in mind, Ye Chen arrived at Senior An's cave residence.

Upon learning that he had broken through directly to the peak of the Great Emperor realm, Senior An—who had always remained calm and composed, her expression unchanging even if the sky were to collapse—showed a rare flicker of expectant joy in her eyes. When she helped dispel his poison, she was far more proactive than usual.

Clearly, after all these years, Senior An had endured far too much hardship…

…

At the same time, the Celestial Prince arrived before a hidden realm together with three Quasi-Immortals from the Undying Celestial Phoenix Clan. The secret realm was protected by mysterious arrays that shielded it from heavenly secrets. Even a Quasi-Immortal would find it nearly impossible to open.

However, three divine lights appeared behind the Celestial Prince's head. They swirled and transformed into profound talismans that empowered him. The flames in his eyes burned even brighter, as if they could see through everything in the world.

Soon, the Celestial Prince pointed a finger lightly into the void. The secret realm rumbled in response. Its entrance slowly opened, revealing a lotus pond within.