Chapter 1085: The Door Knock

Upon returning to You Du, the three individuals eagerly rushed into their respective homes and retrieved the Da Di Ling Mai.

Da Di Ling Mai is a treasure nurtured by heaven and earth, something rare and serendipitous. Whenever encountered, it brings profound fortune, akin to a divine gift for cultivators, equivalent to a thousand years of cultivation.

Inside the stone monument, Xiao Ying hovered in mid-air, his entire body enveloped in flames with golden divine light bursting forth, each ray piercingly bright. He had already swallowed the Da Di Ling Mai and was now fully focused on refining it.

As for Ye Chen, he sat cross-legged on a cloud, quietly gazing at the Da Di Ling Mai within the Chaos Divine Cauldron, his expression somewhat dazed.

In the past, in the Great Chu dynasty, the Da Di Ling Mai from the underground world of Zhengyang Sect was formed from the blood and bones of the Earth Son. It was precisely because he had swallowed that Da Di Ling Mai that it triggered numerous subsequent karmic events.

He did not know if the current Da Di Ling Mai was also derived from the blood and bones of the Earth Son, but it was undoubtedly connected to it.

All along, he had been deeply curious about the bloodline of the Earth Son, which merges with all living beings and must hold profound mysteries. Unfortunately, he knew very little about the legends and secrets surrounding the Earth Son.

Suddenly, he gathered his thoughts, flipped over, and leaped into the Chaos Divine Cauldron.

The cauldron then hummed with energy, and the sealed Da Di Ling Mai inside was completely absorbed into Ye Chen's body.

Everything fell into a profound silence at that moment.

Meanwhile, on the eighth heaven of You Du, Yue Zhen sat in his pavilion, his face unusually grim. None of the people he had sent out had returned, and his informants had personally witnessed Ye Chen returning to You Du.

This meant that those he dispatched had failed their mission and had not obtained Ye Chen's true fire.

"Four quasi-emperors and over a dozen heavenly realm experts, and none of you could handle a single heavenly realm junior. What use are you to me?"

In a sudden outburst, the grim-faced Yue Zhen exploded in anger, his cold snort making the pavilion tremble violently.

"This subordinate is incompetent."

Below him, a group of cultivators knelt prostrate, trembling in fear, not daring to breathe. The outcome was something they had not anticipated; logically, they should not have failed.

"With him back in You Du, it's almost impossible to make a move against him now."

An elder with blood-red hair pondered aloud, seemingly of high status, even earning deference from Yue Zhen.

"With my master's birthday approaching, what can I offer to please him?"

Yue Zhen took a deep breath, his face flushed with anger.

"For now, we must settle for the next best option."

The blood-haired elder gave a faint smile.

"What do you mean by that?"

"The Mu family is the last pillar supporting Ruo Tian Xuan Yu, and they have always opposed your master. If you, Cabinet Elder, can cripple the Mu family, Ruo Tian Xuan Yu will have no chance to rise again. As a birthday gift, I think your master would be quite pleased."

"It seems you already have a plan in mind."

Yue Zhen looked at the blood-haired elder with interest.

"This subordinate is unworthy, but recently I acquired an extraordinary individual."

The blood-haired elder hurriedly explained, "This person possesses a divine ability that is incredibly profound, enough to bankrupt the Mu family's gambling houses. The gambling houses are the Mu family's largest enterprise in You Du. Once we deal with them, the Mu family will be severely weakened, and the rest will be much easier to handle."

"Very well, I'll leave this matter to you."

Yue Zhen smiled coldly, "And as for that Ye Chen, keep a close watch on him. The moment he leaves You Du, no matter the cost, seize his true fire for me."

"Understood."

The blood-haired elder replied and vanished in an instant.

In the pavilion, Yue Zhen took a deep breath and gazed downward, as if he could see through the seven heavens to Ye Chen sitting in meditation, his eyes flickering with icy, desolate light.

Naturally, Ye Chen was unaware of his schemes.

At that moment, Ye Chen was immersed in a mysterious realm, all thanks to the Da Di Ling Mai.

As a treasure nurtured by heaven and earth, and intertwined with the Earth Son, it was no ordinary item. His cultivation and dao insights broke through to the third level of the heavenly realm during this enlightenment.

Time passed swiftly, and night fell in an instant.

Inside the stone monument, Xiao Ying had awakened, flapping his wings as he soared through the air. His sharp eagle eyes gleamed with excitement, and his aura carried the pressure of the emperor realm. His entire body was surrounded by brilliant divine light, each feather radiating a piercing glow.

Indeed, he had broken through, advancing from quasi-emperor to emperor realm, all due to the Da Di Ling Mai.

"I've broken through! I've broken through!"

Not long after, joyous shouts echoed from Fan Tong's stone monument. Fan Tong burst out, wearing only floral shorts, yelling incessantly. He too had refined the Da Di Ling Mai and reached the emperor realm.

"Noisy!"

Soon, eight figures emerged one after another from the stone monument—the eight quasi-emperors. Each had an unusually dark expression.

However, when they sensed Fan Tong's powerful aura, they all retreated back into the stone monument, their faces full of astonishment. How was this possible? In just a few days, he had advanced from quasi-emperor to emperor realm.

The gap between quasi-emperor and emperor realm might seem like half a step, but it was as vast as a chasm. Many cultivators spent their lives unable to cross it. The two realms appeared close, yet their combat power differed greatly, which explained why the eight quasi-emperors cowered like mice before a cat.

"You little ones, come out and fight me if you've got the guts!"

Fan Tong glared and postured aggressively, standing in front of the eight quasi-emperors' stone monument with hands on his hips, like a scolding fishwife, spitting as he ranted.

Now, Fan Tong had the capital to act wildly. Although he only had one-sixth of the Da Di Ling Mai, his exceptional talent allowed him to charge from quasi-emperor straight into emperor realm, making many veteran quasi-emperors envious.

Faced with Fan Tong's tirade, the eight quasi-emperors stayed hidden, unwilling to provoke a single emperor realm expert.

"Hmm!"

Seeing the eight quasi-emperors refuse to emerge, Fan Tong smoothed his messy, bird's-nest-like hair and strutted about arrogantly.

Time continued to pass slowly, and dawn broke once more.

This time, the one stepping out of the stone monument was Hu Xian'er, her body surrounded by dazzling divine radiance, every breath carrying the pressure of the emperor realm. Consequently, the eight quasi-emperors who had just peeked out quickly withdrew back into the stone monument.

What on earth is going on?

The eight quasi-emperors were baffled, scratching their heads in confusion.

They were all neighbors and fellow quasi-emperors, but looking at others and then at themselves, how had they ended up in such a pitiful state?

Hu Xian'er ignored them and stood at the door of Ye Chen's room, biting her lip more than once. Now in the emperor realm, her beautiful eyes no longer held their usual seductive charm, and she had never cared about her appearance as much as she did now.

Upon closer inspection, it was clear that the fox tail behind her had vanished.

Perhaps others did not know, but her fox tail had not truly disappeared—it had been deliberately severed by her. The reason stemmed from a casual remark someone once made: "I prefer women without tails."

Night fell again, and Hu Xian'er returned to her residence to meditate and consolidate her realm.

The night sky was profound, with stars scattered like dust.

The stone monument where Ye Chen sat trembled as he awakened from his mysterious realm. Compared to Xiao Ying, Fan Tong, and Hu Xian'er, who had all reached quasi-emperor, he had only advanced one minor realm.

There was no helping it—his foundation and roots were extraordinarily deep, making each advancement incredibly difficult.

Yet, one should not underestimate this minor breakthrough; for him, it was like ascending to the heavens, elevating his combat power. If he faced an emperor realm expert now, he would no longer be as embattled as before.

It was quite a stroke of fortune!

Ye Chen smiled, stretched his body vigorously, and then tucked his storage bag into his robe before stepping out of the stone monument, heading to the third level of You Du to buy a house.

No sooner had he emerged than he spotted someone approaching, dressed in a fiery red skirt with water-blue hair cascading down, holding a wine gourd in hand. Her cheeks were flushed, and she was strikingly beautiful, yet she resembled a female drunkard. Upon closer look, it was none other than Mu Wan Qing from the Mu family gambling house.

"Missed me?"

Mu Wan Qing walked up, blinking her watery eyes at Ye Chen.

"Missed you."

Ye Chen replied, then began looking around, as if searching for something.

"What are you looking for?"

"A brick."