Chapter 1399: Claiming Kin

As Tian Fa Shen Zi stepped onto the stage, with Cang Ling Shen Zi, Yu Hua Shen Zi, and Ri Yue Shen Zi blocking the way below, the crowd erupted in disdainful murmurs.

"Wheel warfare—this is an attempt to wear down the Sacred Body!" Many stroked their beards, glancing at the Shen Zu Shen Zi, Yao Zu Shen Zi, Mo Zu Shen Zi, and Feng Huang Shen Zi, who had already recovered about seventy to eighty percent and looked ready to pounce for another fight.

"In my view, even without the Feng Huang Shen Zi and the others stepping in, the Sacred Body is likely to leave that stage soon." Many veteran cultivators sighed. "In his current weakened state, he can't even handle Tian Fa Shen Zi alone, let alone the three divine sons waiting below."

"Today, old grudges and new ones will be settled together." Amid the discussions, Tian Fa Shen Zi roared in fury, his aura surging to its peak as he unleashed his full combat power, his face twisted into a terrifying expression.

"Scum." Ye Chen sneered, steadying himself and forcibly gathering his golden vital energy.

"You're asking for death." Tian Fa Shen Zi's eyes flashed with malice as his palm crackled with thunder, striking down from the sky. This was a deadly technique, delivered at full force, leaving Ye Chen no escape.

However, before his palm could fully land, a crystalline jade hand suddenly appeared, brushing it aside like a gentle breeze and sending him stumbling back.

The spectators were astonished, straightening up to look closely. On the stage, a graceful figure had appeared, surrounded by swirling immortal radiance and light that wove into the form of a stunningly elegant woman. Upon closer inspection, it was clearly Yao Chi Shen Nu Ji Ning Shuang.

"Shen Nu, what is the meaning of this?" Tian Fa Shen Zi steadied himself, his face darkening as he glared at Ji Ning Shuang, his eyes filled with violent rage at her intervention.

"No particular meaning." Ji Ning Shuang parted her lips lightly, her voice as melodious as celestial music. "As the Shen Nu of Yao Chi, I feel compelled to say a few words. You're a divine son of your sect, after all. Bullying a half-crippled person like this—aren't you afraid of tarnishing Tian Fa's reputation?"

"This is a grudge between him and me. I hope the Shen Nu won't interfere." Tian Fa Shen Zi snorted coldly.

"Speaking of grudges, I almost forgot—we have some history too." Ji Ning Shuang pulled out a small mirror, casually adjusting her hair as she leisurely recounted old grievances.

"You..." Tian Fa Shen Zi's face turned ashen from her words. Fighting against the Yao Chi would likely not even give him a chance to strike; that was the gap between them.

"So, are you going to fight or not?" Ji Ning Shuang put away the mirror, eyeing Tian Fa Shen Zi with interest.

"Tian Fa concedes defeat." Tian Fa Shen Zi snorted coldly and turned to leave, but before stepping down, he smirked at Ye Chen. "The mighty Archaic Sacred Body, hiding behind a woman. You shrinking turtle, you've truly perfected the act."

With that, he moved to descend, but before he could take a step, Ji Ning Shuang slapped him down.

"I've already conceded—Shen Nu, this is blatant bullying." Tian Fa Shen Zi shouted in anger, grinding his teeth as he stared at Ji Ning Shuang. "Today, Yao Chi Sacred Ground must give Tian Fa an explanation."

"I was going to let you go, but who asked you to insult me?" Ji Ning Shuang shrugged her shoulders.

"When did I insult you?" Tian Fa Shen Zi looked utterly baffled, not understanding at all.

"Ye Chen is an old friend of mine. Insulting him is the same as insulting me." Ji Ning Shuang blinked her beautiful eyes. "For behavior like yours, the ancient texts call it criticizing by implication."

"You..."

"Still not admitting it?"

"Come on, let me handle this." No sooner had Ji Ning Shuang spoken than Ye Chen pulled her aside. He pinned the still-prone Tian Fa Shen Zi back down and mounted him, delivering a furious beating. As he struck, he shouted, "Insulting me is one thing, but daring to insult the Yao Chi Shen Nu? And not just her—insulting the Yao Chi Sacred Ground, a noble holy land full of beautiful immortals, calling them all shrinking turtles!"

"What kind of logic is this?" Watching the bloody scene and hearing Ye Chen's bold words, every cultivator present couldn't help but twitch their mouths.

You really know how to climb kinship—clearly, he was insulting you, but you dragged the entire Yao Chi Sacred Ground into it. You're masterful at flipping the script and pinning the blame.

As for the female immortals of Yao Chi, whether disciples, elders, quasi-saints, or quasi-emperors, their expressions turned strange in an instant. How had they suddenly become shrinking turtles?

"I quite like this guy." A group of old quasi-emperors stroked their beards meaningfully.

"Good thing he stopped at Yao Chi Sacred Ground—if he'd dragged in the Yao Chi Empress too, today's Yao Chi gathering would really be chaotic." Many people rubbed their chins thoughtfully.

"I shouldn't have let him in." The intoxicated Yao Chi Immortal Mother rubbed her forehead heavily; what was supposed to be a fine Yao Chi gathering had turned utterly absurd because of him.

"You brat, you're courting death." From the other side, the great saint of Tian Fa Sacred Ground charged forward.

"Here, take him back." Ye Chen stood up immediately, grabbing Tian Fa Shen Zi and tossing him toward the Tian Fa great saint. The divine son was now a bloody mess, completely unconscious.

"Kill him." The Tian Fa great saint erupted in rage, his powerful pressure manifesting as bone-chilling killing intent.

"The Tian Fa Sacred Ground certainly has a fine divine son." The great saints of Yao Chi appeared, nine of them leaping out to block the Tian Fa great saint. Regardless of whether Ye Chen's earlier words were intentional or not, they had all heard the term "shrinking turtles."

"Excellent, truly excellent." The Tian Fa great saint laughed in fury but didn't dare linger to make a spectacle; he turned and left, carrying his divine son away from Yao Chi Immortal Mountain, their faces twisted in rage.

"Let's go." The great saints of Ri Yue Shen Jiao, Cang Ling Dian, and Yu Hua Shen Chao also stepped forward, dragging away the divine sons still blocking the stage. Ji Ning Shuang was clearly determined to protect Ye Chen, and with their intelligence and strength, they'd either get beaten or dragged into trouble.

"This is much quieter now." As the four groups departed, the elders felt a sense of relief and looked at Ye Chen with appreciation—the boy was a natural troublemaker.

"This isn't my fault." Ye Chen shook his head and turned to step down from the stage.

"You're leaving the stage already?" A cold laugh echoed as Shen Zu Shen Zi jumped out again, his eyes full of sinister malice and killing intent. Anger had clouded his judgment and pride.

"It seems the divine son isn't done yet. Perhaps Yao Chi could accompany you in a battle." Ji Ning Shuang smiled lightly.

"Then let's do it." Shen Zu Shen Zi ignored his elders' attempts to stop him and stepped onto the stage. He realized that to eliminate Ye Chen, he had to defeat the Yao Chi Shen Nu standing in his way. For the sake of vengeance, he didn't hesitate to fight Dong Shen.

"Don't hold back for my sake—just fight to kill." Ye Chen patted his behind and scurried off; in his current state, he couldn't handle Shen Zu Shen Zi, and playing it safe once or twice was no big deal.

The onlookers glanced at him with meaningful looks before turning their attention back to the stage. Shen Zu Shen Zi versus Dong Shen Yao Chi—this battle would be more spectacular than imagined.

Under the crowd's gaze, Shen Zu Shen Zi activated his divine patterns and unleashed his peak combat power, employing the secret art of One Qi Transforms Three Purities. Three versions of himself, each gripping secret techniques, charged at Ji Ning Shuang.

Ji Ning Shuang remained calm, simply waving her jade hand in a plain strike. Yet, its power was immense, sending one of the attacking Shen Zu Shen Zi figures flying, covered in blood and broken bones.

This strike left the surrounding cultivators in shock; Yao Chi Shen Nu lived up to her reputation. Even facing three opponents, she remained effortlessly composed, her strength evident in that unassuming attack.

Shen Zu Shen Zi roared in fury, his three forms fighting madly as he unleashed a barrage of god-slaying techniques. But each one was easily countered by Ji Ning Shuang. Despite the three-against-one setup, he not only failed to harm her but was thoroughly suppressed.

After just ten exchanges, the stage exploded in a thunderous blast, and the two combatants soared into the ethereal void.

He resembled a god-king dominating the skies, while she was like a goddess of unparalleled elegance. Both stood at the pinnacle of the younger generation, their clash a masterpiece of destruction that shattered the heavens and split the earth.

Meanwhile, back at his seat, Ye Chen had chugged a pot of spirit wine and popped a handful of pills into his mouth before looking up at the void, where the battlefield had turned into utter chaos.

He wasn't worried—in fact, he had full confidence in Ji Ning Shuang's strength. Even at his peak, he might not beat her, so how could Shen Zu Shen Zi, who had only recovered eighty percent of his power, stand a chance? Dong Shen wasn't an empty title, after all.

After a final glance, Ye Chen withdrew his gaze and stashed the golden immortal iron from Man Zu Shen Zi, the Sealing Demon Tower from Yao Zu Shen Zi, and the Demon Refining Pot from Mo Zu Shen Zi into his divine sea.

The Chaos Divine Cauldron in his divine sea flew over on its own, swallowing the three items whole. Chaos energy and principles intertwined, grinding them to dust.

What followed was a feast; the cauldron trembled excitedly as it absorbed their essence.

Ye Chen glanced at it but didn't expect the Chaos Cauldron to evolve into a quasi-saint king weapon. For one, its appetite was too voracious, and the essence from these three items, though abundant, wasn't enough to upgrade it.

On another level, his own cultivation was only at the quasi-saint level, limiting his natal artifact. This was the suppression of heavenly laws, hard to overcome.

"I should mention, the Xian Zu Shen Zi has been staring at you." Qi Wang nudged Ye Chen from the side.

"I know." Ye Chen replied casually, looking across at his opponent. Among the nine divine sons and daughters of the ancient nine clans, Xian Zu Shen Zi was the most terrifying, having never made a move from start to finish.

Precisely because of that, Ye Chen had never revealed his Six Paths Immortal Wheel Eye. He was already at odds with the Feng Huang Clan and didn't want to stir up trouble with the Xian Clan over it. He had no intention of returning the Six Paths Immortal Eye, as its true owner was Jiang Tai Xu, not the Xian Clan.