Living in the deep palace

"Ahem...Puff..."

Su Chen coughed up blood and drooled hoarsely.

"Hahaha... That's awesome..."

"Dao Ancestor! How are you?!" Lady Kugu knelt beside Su Chen, tears streaming down her face as she looked at his miserable state, helplessly trying to channel her spiritual energy.

"Don't cry...it's bad luck."

Su Chen struggled to raise his hand and push Lady Kugu away.

"Can't die."

"Did those old geezers... run away?"

"They ran away! They ran like dogs!" Giant Spirit One roared, his eyes red. "The Dao Ancestor's divine might was unparalleled; he shattered an imperial weapon with a single bite, scaring them out of their wits!"

"It's good that they ran away..."

Su Chen breathed a sigh of relief.

In truth, he was already at his last gasp. That last attack had nearly exhausted all his trump cards and power. If the Four Heavenly Kings had truly fought to the death, he might have really perished here today.

after all.

That's the Haotian Realm!

The Heavenly Emperor's companion spiritual treasure!
The divine weapon that is currently known in the Heavenly Realm is closest to a Primordial Spiritual Treasure!
But there are no "what ifs" in this world.

The one who is horizontal is afraid of being stunned, and the one who is stunned is afraid of losing his life.

He, Su Chen, was that reckless, stubborn, and suicidal madman. That's why he won.

"Hel me up."

Su Chen said through gritted teeth.

"Dao Ancestor, you are so badly injured..."

"Help me up!!"

With the help of the two men, Su Chen stood up shakily.

He refused to go to the secret chamber to heal his wounds, and instead stood on the edge of the deep pit, looking at the people of the Immortal Realm who were looking at him with worry and panic.

Hundreds of thousands of cultivators remained completely silent at this moment.

They witnessed firsthand the great war that was capable of destroying the world.

They witnessed how their king, with a mortal body, rivaled the gods, and even... devoured them!
"This is the Heavenly Court."

Although Su Chen's voice was weak, it was clearly transmitted throughout the city through the amplification array.

"This is the Heavenly Court, which claims to rule over all realms and is invincible!"

"Their Haotian Mirror is shattered!"

"Their Four Heavenly Kings have escaped!"

"And I... am still standing here!"

Su Chen slowly raised his right hand. Although his hand was covered in blood, at that moment, he shone brighter than the sun in everyone's eyes.

"Roar--!!!"

After a brief silence, a roar like a tsunami erupted.

"The Ancestor of Immortality! Unrivaled under Heaven!!"

"Counterattack the Heavenly Court! Flatten the Heavenly Palace!!"

Morale reached its peak at this moment.

The deep-seated fear of the Heavenly Court that I had felt vanished completely with the shattering of the Haotian Mirror.

Since even gods bleed, there's nothing to be afraid of!
……

After calming the troops down, Su Chen finally couldn't hold on any longer and was sent back to the Chaos Chamber deep within the Dao Palace by Lady Kugu.

As soon as he entered the secret room, Su Chen collapsed to the ground.

"This time... we've really messed up."

Su Chen looked inward at himself.

The internal universe was in complete disarray. Although the Heavenly River water had been drunk dry, the raging water spiritual energy was still surging everywhere, impacting the damaged meridians. Half of the leaves of the Longevity Tree had fallen, and its luster had dimmed.

The most troublesome thing was the fragment of the Haotian Mirror that he had forcibly swallowed.

This thing is too hard, and it contains extremely high-level "order" laws. It's like a red-hot iron stuck in his chaotic furnace, impossible to melt no matter how hard he tries. Instead, it keeps releasing Taiqing divine light, cutting into his internal organs.

"Cough cough..."

Su Chen coughed up a mouthful of blood mixed with fragments of internal organs.

"As expected of a fragment of an imperial weapon, it has quite a temper."

"However, once you're inside my belly, it's like Sun Wukong entering an alchemy furnace. Sooner or later, I'll refine you into my own possession!"

Su Chen endured the excruciating pain and activated the [Chaos Branch].

The gray chaotic fire, though weak, continuously enveloped the bronze fragment.

This is a long and painstaking process.

It may take ten years, or even a hundred years.

But once the refining is successful...

A burning desire flashed in Su Chen's eyes.

"The reason why the Haotian Mirror is so powerful is because it contains a trace of 'primordial light,' which is the first ray of light when the universe was created."

"If I can master this ray of light, my [Divine Weapon Branch] will evolve to an unbelievable level! It might even evolve into an Emperor Weapon that belongs only to me!"

"Moreover, these fragments contain secrets about the Heavenly Court's internal defensive formations..."

"That was a steal!"

However, there is an even more serious problem right now.

Su Chen felt his energy reserves were completely depleted.

To fight against the Haotian Mirror, he almost exhausted all the resources of the Eternal Realm. The Netherworld was hollowed out, the Milky Way was drained, and even the thirty million miles of starry sea became dim and lifeless.

To repair this damaged body and refine this hard bone fragment, a massive amount of energy is needed!

An energy far greater than ever before!

"There's no more profit to be made in the Ruins."

"I also destroyed the Heavenly River Realm."

"Now that the Heavenly Court is on guard, they will definitely stay put and not come out."

Su Chen's gaze fell on the Myriad Realms Star Map he had obtained from the Northern Heavenly King's avatar.

His gaze skipped over the Void Realm and the Milky Way, finally landing on a huge point of light radiating a rich, dark yellow glow.

That place wasn't too far from the Ruins Domain; it was separated only by a chaotic flow of spacetime.

【The vast and mysterious world】.

Note: The first of the three thousand great worlds under the Heavenly Court, rich in resources and abundant in "Xuanhuang Mother Qi", is the Heavenly Court's most important "granary" and "source of soldiers".

"The Xuanhuang Realm..."

Su Chen licked his chapped lips, and the hunger in his eyes rose again.

"A granary?"

"Since the Heavenly Court isn't sending me food anymore, then I'll just have to..."

"Let's go to their grain warehouse and have a buffet!"

"Order! The entire army shall rest for three days!"

"Three days from now, target—the Xuanhuang Realm!!"

……

……

[The Immortal Imperial City, the Chaotic Secret Chamber]

Inside the sealed room, there was no light, only a chaotic and turbulent grayness.

Su Chen sat cross-legged in the void, surrounded by five-colored divine light—the sharpness of metal, the vitality of wood, the vastness of water, the explosiveness of fire, and the weight of earth. As he devoured the Heavenly River and the Netherworld, the five elements within his body had reached perfection, forming a perfect closed loop, endlessly regenerating.

However, his face did not look relaxed at this moment, and it even twitched occasionally, as if he was enduring some kind of extreme pain.

"Hiss... This thing is really hard."

"It's related to the sixth mirror. As expected, it's still at a very high level."

"for me."

"That's a bit much!" Su Chen lowered his head and looked inward at himself.

Deep within his vast, universe-like dantian, beneath the towering Longevity Tree, a gray [Chaos Furnace] was operating at full speed.

Inside the furnace, no rare and precious materials were being refined; instead, a small, palm-sized fragment of bronze was being suppressed.

That was a corner of the Haotian Mirror.

Although this fragment had separated from its original body, it still exuded a chilling aura of "order" and "eternity." No matter how the surrounding chaotic fire burned it, it remained unmoved, and even occasionally burst forth with a sharp Taiqing divine light, cutting a gash in the wall of the Chaos Furnace, causing Su Chen to grimace in pain.

"As expected of a half-step innate object born alongside the Heavenly Emperor, even if it is just a fragment, the essence of the Dao contained within it far exceeds the comprehension of a Grand Luo Golden Immortal."

Su Chen wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, but his eyes gleamed with even more frenzied excitement.

The more difficult it is to refine, the greater the benefits.

"Order, is it? Eternity, is it?"

"Inside my belly, dragons must coil up, and tigers must lie down!"

With a thought, Su Chen activated the [Reincarnation Branch] that he had recently acquired.

hum!
A cyclical force, interwoven with black and white, surged into the furnace.

"Reincarnation - Time Strips Away!"

Su Chen did not expect to directly melt the material, but instead used the power of reincarnation to wash away the Heavenly Emperor's will attached to the fragment, thus accelerating the "aging" of the fragment.

Everything has an end, even imperial weapons are no exception.

Sure enough, under the influence of the power of reincarnation, the luster on that bronze fragment finally dimmed slightly.

Immediately afterwards, Su Chen seized upon this momentary opening.

"Divine Weapon Branch - Same Origin Devouring!"

The silvery-white divine weapon laws transformed into countless tiny drills, piercing deep into the minute cracks of the fragments.

Click... click...

An extremely faint cracking sound rang out inside Su Chen's body.

Strands of extremely pure azure energy, carrying a trace of "primordial" aura, were finally separated from the fragments and integrated into Su Chen's bones and divine weapon branch.

boom!
With just a wisp of energy merging into his bones, Su Chen felt a thunderous crackling sound emanating from them. A faint cyan-gold pattern appeared on his originally grayish-white chaotic bones, instantly increasing their hardness by a whole level!
"nice one!"

"If I were to refine all of this, my physical body would probably be able to withstand the bombardment of the complete Haotian Mirror without dying!"

Although progress is slow and may take years or even decades to fully digest, as long as we can manage to digest it, it is a victory.

Su Chen let out a long sigh and slowly finished his practice.

He stood up, feeling the power within his body—though empty, its essence had undergone a transformation.

Late stage of the Great Luo Golden Immortal realm.

But this is not enough.

To block that fatal blow, he had almost drained the entire foundation of the Longevity Realm. The Longevity Imperial City is now like a strong man whose body has been hollowed out; it looks intimidating on the outside, but is actually extremely weak.

"Hungry……"

That familiar hunger, originating from the depths of my soul, struck again.

"It's time to eat."

"That place called Xuanhuang Realm... I hope it won't disappoint me."

Su Chen straightened his robes, took a step, and instantly disappeared from the secret chamber.

……

[The Central Hall of the Immortal Imperial City]

The atmosphere inside the main hall was somber.

Lady Kugu (now known as Meng Po) and Giant Spirit No. 1 (now known as the Ghost Commander of the Underworld) had been waiting for a long time.

Upon seeing Su Chen appear, the two knelt down in unison and said, "Greetings, Dao Ancestor!"

Su Chen glanced at the two of them.

Lady Kugu's aura grew increasingly cold and profound. Her robe, adorned with spider lilies, seemed to connect her to the underworld, and deathly energy emanated from every gesture she made. Since taking over the Netherworld, her cultivation had progressed rapidly. Although she had not yet broken through to the Great Luo realm, she was already at the peak of the Taiyi Golden Immortal realm, just one step away from achieving it.

The changes to Giant Spirit One were even more significant. Originally, he was merely physically powerful, but now he was covered by a thick layer of black malevolent energy. This energy was formed from the military souls of a million Yin soldiers, creating the "Ghost General's Dharma Image," which granted him not only physical destructive power but also a deterrent effect on the divine soul.

"Everyone, get up."

Su Chen sat on the throne and got straight to the point.

"Kugu, report on the losses."

After standing up, Lady Kugu looked troubled and said in a low voice, "Reporting to the Dao Ancestor, although we won this battle, the losses... are shocking."

"Ninety percent of the spiritual veins have dried up, and the reserves of soul source stones in the Netherworld have been exhausted. In order to maintain that 'chaotic sky curtain,' the Dao Tree even extracted some of the lifespans of its believers... Although you interrupted in time, the hearts of the people in the city are still somewhat unsettled."

"Most importantly, the Milky Way is gone."

"Although the chaotic river you spat out blocked the Haotian Mirror, eighty percent of it evaporated in that attack. The remaining twenty percent was turbid and filled with the laws of destruction, making it completely unusable for irrigation or cultivation."

In short: The family is starving.

"It doesn't matter."

Su Chen remained calm, tapping his fingers on the armrest.

Out with the old, in with the new.

"As long as I am here, as long as the Tree of Immortality is still here, I will take back everything I have lost, tenfold."

Su Chen stood up and looked out into the endless void beyond the main hall.

"Transmit my decree."

"Kugu, you stay and guard the Imperial City. Activate Level One alert. If any fools dare to invade, no matter who they are, immediately use the Netherworld Array and kill them without mercy!"

"Furthermore, speed up the operation of the 'Reincarnation Pool' to revive those fallen Changsheng Guards as soon as possible. Tell them that the resurrection fee can be paid later, and when I return, I will take them to make a fortune!"

"Yes, madam!" Lady Kugu accepted the order, a ruthless glint in her eyes. Now that she held the power of life and death, anyone who dared to cause trouble while the Dao Ancestor was away would be thrown into a vat of boiling oil and fried for a hundred years.

"Giant Spirit".

"My subordinate is here!"

"Gather three thousand giant spirit guards, and select one hundred thousand of the fiercest evil ghost soldiers from the underworld to accompany me on the expedition."

A cruel smile curled at the corner of Su Chen's lips.

"Let's go...eat the big spenders."

……

Half a day later.

Above the Immortal City, space was distorted.

Su Chen did not pilot the flying boat because the spacetime turbulence outside this Void Domain was too violent, and ordinary flying boats simply could not withstand it.

He directly used the power of the Void Branch.

"Void Teleportation!"

With a wave of his sleeve, Su Chen enveloped the Giant Spirit Guards and 100,000 Yin Soldiers behind him in a gray light, with the Yin Soldiers already stored in a specially made 'Ghost-Raising Bag'.

boom!
Space is shattered like a mirror.

Su Chen led this formidable army and leaped directly into the void layer filled with destructive storms.

This is the gap between worlds, known as the "Boundary Sea".

There is no direction, no time, only endless gales and spatial fragments powerful enough to tear apart even a true immortal.

However, these obstacles were as easy as walking on flat ground in front of Su Chen, a powerful expert in the late stage of the Void Laws.

A chaotic shield rose around him, like an icebreaker, as he rampaged through the Boundary Sea.

"Dao Ancestor, is that the Xuanhuang Realm?"

Giant Spirit One followed behind Su Chen and pointed to the ball of light emitting a warm yellow glow in the far distance, asking a question.

In that dark and icy sea, the ball of light resembled a tempting egg yolk, exuding a mouthwatering aura of vitality and abundance.

"good."

Su Chen looked at that world, his eyes brimming with greed.

"The most abundant granary under the jurisdiction of the Heavenly Court in the vast and mysterious world of Xuanhuang."

"It is said that a single grain of rice there is the size of a longan, and eating it can extend the lifespan of mortals by ten years; the water there is all from spiritual springs, and drinking it can directly awaken the intelligence of demonic beasts."

"It also produces a treasure called 'Mysterious Yellow Mother Qi', which is a top-grade material for forging acquired spiritual treasures and a sacred object for tempering the body."

At this point, Su Chen's Adam's apple bobbed.

"Giant Spirit, do you know what the happiest thing is for a starving person?" (End of Chapter)