Immortality Starts With Investment

Ye Chen was all too familiar with the aura of immortal roots. In fact, he could confidently say that no one understood immortal roots better than he did. The holy spirit before him gave him the exact same feeling as encountering an immortal root. Could this person be an immortal root that had gained sentience? No—an immortal root that had given birth to a holy spirit?

Ye Chen's eyes narrowed at once. There were twelve immortal roots in the cultivation world, and eleven of them were already in his possession. Under these circumstances, what other immortal root could have nurtured the holy spirit standing before him?

Combined with the words spoken by the two holy spirits he had crushed when he obtained the Seven-colored Nirvana Jade, the answer became clear. This person was most likely the hope of the holy spirit race in this generation.

Yet Ye Chen could not help but frown. The Chaos Azure Lotus had nurtured this holy spirit. Then, where was the Chaos Azure Lotus itself?

The azure lotus rotating above the other party's head no longer looked like an immortal root. It resembled a weapon instead.

Senior An needed the essence liquid from all twelve immortal roots. He could not simply crush this holy spirit and squeeze out its juices… The thought alone felt rather disgusting.

Ye Chen studied Lotus Emperor carefully, pondering the matter of the Chaos Azure Lotus.

Lotus Emperor stared back at Ye Chen as well.

Although he had heard countless rumors about Ye Chen and even seen images recorded in shadow stones, the moment he laid eyes on him in person and sensed the unfathomable aura within his body, Lotus Emperor still felt a surge of alarm.

This youth was terrifying. Merely at the peak of the Great Emperor realm, he already made Lotus Emperor feel apprehensive. If Ye Chen truly grew to his full potential, Lotus Emperor would likely be no match for him at the same cultivation level. Only the Eight-Crowned King, who possessed the World Tree, would barely qualify to fight him on equal footing.

No wonder Celestial Prince was willing to offer such a supreme treasure as the Phoenix Fire Divine Seed to invite him along. Even the Lotus Emperor himself lacked the confidence to face Ye Chen alone. This person was a formidable enemy on the Immortal Path.

…

The two stared at each other for a long time.

Ye Chen finally spoke. "Are you the holy spirit nurtured by the Chaos Azure Lotus?"

Lotus Emperor nodded. "Greetings, fellow Daoist. I am Lotus Emperor. I began nurturing during the Heavenly Emperor era and only emerged two days ago."

Ye Chen nodded as well. The name was quite domineering. But he cared more about another matter. "The Chaos Azure Lotus nurtured you. Does the Chaos Azure Lotus still exist?"

Lotus Emperor looked slightly puzzled, but he answered calmly, "The origin of the Chaos Azure Lotus became me. Its remnant body transformed into this quasi-immortal artifact. Therefore, I am the Chaos Azure Lotus."

Ye Chen's frown deepened. "If you die, will there still be a Chaos Azure Lotus?"

Faced with such arrogant words, the Lotus Emperor did not grow angry. Instead, he smiled. "As long as I do not die, no second Chaos Azure Lotus will appear in this world. After my death, I will leave behind the seed of the Chaos Azure Lotus, which will slowly nurture a new one."

Hearing this, Ye Chen felt relieved, and his brows relaxed. A seed was good enough. Once he obtained it, producing a finished product should not be difficult.

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In other words, after this battle, the problem that had troubled Senior An for so many years would finally be solved. Senior An had waited for so long and could finally have her wish fulfilled—not only the Seven Absolutes Immortal Physique, but also becoming his Dao companion. After all, when counting the years, Senior An had waited the longest, without question.

Ye Chen looked at Lotus Emperor and suddenly thought of something else. "After you fall, will your origin be effective for a nurturing holy spirit? Can it help it emerge ahead of time?"

Lotus Emperor fell into thoughtful silence for a moment. He guessed that the holy spirit inside the Seven-colored Nirvana Jade had not been forced out and was still being kept by Ye Chen.

Did Ye Chen want to nurture and tame it?

Whatever the reason, it was a good thing.

Lotus Emperor nodded. "It requires a special method to inject the origin into the holy spirit for absorption. I can teach the method to you, fellow Daoist. If I fall, please bestow my origin upon that holy spirit."

As soon as he finished speaking, Lotus Emperor pointed a finger lightly.

Endless divine radiance surged forth and transformed into a scripture.

Ye Chen scanned the scripture twice and committed it to memory. He looked at Lotus Emperor with surprise and raised an eyebrow. It was truly rare to encounter such an easygoing opponent.

At that moment, Lotus Emperor spoke. "Does the Nine Apertures Exquisite Heart still remain in your possession, fellow Daoist?"

Since the other party had answered every question openly, Ye Chen saw no reason to hide anything. He nodded and replied, "It does."

He had kept the Nine Apertures Exquisite Heart inside his Cave Heaven all this time. He had wanted to give it to the holy spirit, but since the holy spirit lacked consciousness, he had no idea how to present the gift. He could hardly crack open the Nirvana Jade and stuff the heart inside.

Moreover, without consciousness, it was unclear whether the gift would even produce any feedback. Therefore, Ye Chen had planned to wait until the Seven-colored Nirvana Jade was born before deciding.

A faint smile appeared in Lotus Emperor's deep, sharp eyes. "If you lose this battle and are about to fall, could you gift that item to me before you die? It is quite important to me and can help me reach perfection."

Ye Chen laughed at those words. He nodded generously to indicate his agreement. But he immediately followed up with another question. "Can the method you just taught also be used to inject the Nine Apertures Exquisite Heart into a nurturing holy spirit?"

Lotus Emperor narrowed his eyes slightly. Absorbing the Nine Apertures Exquisite Heart was something holy spirits could do naturally. Yet the Seven-colored Nirvana Jade had clearly awakened its intelligence earlier, while the Heavenly Emperor's heir seemed completely unaware of it.

Obviously, the holy spirit inside the Seven-colored Nirvana Jade was pretending to still be asleep, probably out of fear of being suppressed by Ye Chen. Still, it was best for the Nine Apertures Exquisite Heart to be obtained during the nurturing phase. Only then could it fully fuse with the holy spirit throughout the process, becoming inseparable.

If the Lotus Emperor fell and the holy spirit in the Seven-colored Nirvana Jade managed to grow, it would naturally be ideal for it to enter the immortal realm in the future.

Therefore, Lotus Emperor smiled gently. "I shall impart another scripture to you—an Awakening Spirit Technique. By using this method, you can help the nurturing holy spirit awaken its intelligence ahead of time.

"At that point, simply present the Nine Apertures Exquisite Heart before it, and the holy spirit will have its own means to fuse with it.

"Holy spirits are not heartless. They merely endure too much hardship during nurturing and face too much hostility, which is why they appear cold and unyielding on the outside. If you awaken its spirit, the holy spirit will remember your kindness with gratitude…"

As he spoke, Lotus Emperor raised his finger once more and pointed out another scripture.

Ye Chen's eyes lit up completely. With this, even the matter of gifting to the holy spirit was resolved. He could first test the holy spirit with the origin to see if it possessed any gratitude. If it did, he would gift the Nine Apertures Exquisite Heart as well. If not, he would simply crush it, extract the divine materials, and use them as gifts instead. Either way, he would benefit and lose nothing.

…

However, just as Ye Chen was about to chat with Lotus Emperor a little longer, a terrifying aura suddenly surged forth and interrupted his thoughts.

Ye Chen raised his brow and turned his head, only to see Celestial Prince staring at him with a gloomy expression.

Above the Celestial Prince's head, an immortal tower rotated, radiating boundless terrifying divine might as it awakened. Behind his head, three streams of divine radiance swirled and spun. Endless immortal flames flowed across his body, scorching everything in their path.

The sight was utterly terrifying.

Ye Chen could not help but shake his head. This Celestial Prince truly had a short temper. He had already discussed Lotus Emperor's funeral arrangements, yet Lotus Emperor himself had not gotten angry.

But Celestial Prince? He had not said a single word, yet he had already flown into such a rage. Was he in such a hurry to die?