Chapter 1431: Crimson Lotus Karma Sea

Chapter 1431: Hong Lian Ye Hai

The Kunlun Yan was a glittering gathering of stars, as if proclaiming the dawn of an era, a true golden age.

Ye Chen sat leisurely, quietly sipping his wine, occasionally lifting his gaze to scan the banquet hall.

For some reason, looking at all these divine sons and daughters, he felt an inexplicable sorrow. They were all like brilliant stars, yet in the flux of time, they were ultimately pitiable figures on the emperor's path.

The Xian Wu Da Di had fallen only nine thousand years ago, and his imperial dao imprint still suppressed the heavens. To defy the heavens and achieve emperorship under such constraints was almost impossible. The so-called competition on the emperor's path was really just an ancient joke, their only misfortune being that they were born in the wrong era.

The current myriad realms of the heavens were strikingly similar to Da Chu. In Da Chu, only one person could reach the supreme cultivation level, and in the myriad realms, only one could attain dao and become emperor.

Through the long passage of time and the vicissitudes of life, how many legendary heroes had met tragic ends, expending their entire lives without crossing that elusive chasm? Figures like Chu Hai Shen Bing and Zhan Shen Xing Tian had been just one step away, yet they could never take it, leaving behind a world filled with scars, pain, and desolation.

Ye Chen smiled, his sorrow deepening. He felt sorry for these many divine sons and daughters, and equally for himself. At the Kunlun Yan thousands of years from now, would they still be chatting and laughing as they were now? By then, the years might have worn away all their aspirations.

"Don't end up crying while you're laughing."

At his side, Yan Lao Dao, who was still pouring wine into his gourd, spoke leisurely.

"You're not wrong about that," Ye Chen replied with a smile, turning his eyes toward the entrance, hoping to see someone reincarnated walk in. Compared to the ancient ruins, he cared more about the people from Da Chu's homeland.

He didn't see any reincarnated individuals, but he did spot Xiao Jiu Xian returning, huffing with annoyance. She had probably failed to catch up to Nan Di. Though her combat strength was formidable, her speed was still no match for Nan Di.

He averted his gaze and consciously sealed his sacred body origin to avoid being recognized by Xiao Jiu Xian.

As expected, Xiao Jiu Xian didn't notice anything, even after advancing to the saint level; it was hard to see through the Zhou Tian evolution.

More people entered the pavilion outside, not just divine sons and daughters, but also some old-timers who came for a while and then left, as they were extremely unsociable.

At the center of the banquet, on the cloud platform, divine daughters from great sects performed dances, their graceful movements drawing cheers from all around.

After wave after wave of climaxes, the Kunlun Yan gradually quieted down. Amid the sounds of zithers and flutes, people began to rise and leave discreetly, everyone understanding that they were heading early to the ancient ruins.

Ye Chen and Yan Lao Dao also stood up, following the crowd to the city center and stepping into the teleportation array.

The teleportation array in Kunlun Ancient City was enormously vast, transporting them an extraordinarily long distance.

It wasn't until three hours later that the two emerged, facing another vast and boundless sea, stretching endlessly with swirling, ethereal mists that made it seem like a dream.

Ye Chen subtly activated his immortal eye, focusing on this sea, but all he saw were illusions, with various faint and elusive visions manifesting. Even his immortal eye struggled to distinguish reality from falsehood.

What surprised him most was that the five small demon tripods in his storage bag were now buzzing, radiating demonic light as if eager to burst out.

Ye Chen frowned, unsure why the five small demon tripods were acting this way—it was something that had never happened before. Helplessly, he used secret techniques to seal each one individually.

"The ancient ruins are deep within this sea," Yan Lao Dao said leisurely as Ye Chen frowned, while pulling out his wine flask and drinking casually. "It's not yet time for it to open."

"What's the origin of this sea?" Ye Chen deactivated his immortal eye and asked curiously, looking at Yan Lao Dao.

"This sea is called Hong Lian Ye Hai," Yan Lao Dao replied. "Legend has it that it's formed from a single immortal tear of the Hong Lian Empress, and its existence dates back to an unimaginably ancient time."

"The empress's tear." Ye Chen frowned again. "No wonder even the immortal eye can't penetrate its mysteries."

"In the ancient myths, the Hong Lian Empress sacrificed karmic fire and burned the gods of the eight desolations. That tear was an act of repentance," Yan Lao Dao continued. "As an emperor, she had created too much slaughter."

"Whatever could make a great emperor go to such extremes, the ancient events from eons ago must have been far from simple," Ye Chen said thoughtfully. "That tear might not have been for repentance—it could have been for sorrow."

"You know, there are other unofficial histories that might be true," Yan Lao Dao chuckled. "Rumor has it that the Hong Lian Empress's lover died because of the gods of the eight desolations. After she attained dao, she burned them all, and her tears were shed for her lover. Even as an emperor, she couldn't revive him."

"Compared to the ancient myths, I lean more toward the unofficial histories," Ye Chen said with a smile. "Just like the legends of Dong Hua Nu Di and Sheng Jun Di Huang—they're equally moving."

"Young people, it's always about love and romance that never ends," Yan Lao Dao remarked with a smirk.

"If you don't understand love, don't talk nonsense," Ye Chen replied casually, then raised his eyes to survey the surroundings.

Over Hong Lian Ye Hai, a multitude of figures had already gathered, all cloaked in black robes. The many divine sons and daughters from the Kunlun Yan were present, but they had all concealed their true appearances with secret techniques.

He didn't see Ji Ning Shuang; she probably really disliked crowds. The peak divine sons and daughters of the Xuan Huang generation were all there, except for her, which was a bit regrettable.

Besides the younger generation, there were many elder cultivators, mostly saint kings, with some great saints and even one or two old quasi-emperors mixed in. They had hidden their cultivation levels and were acting quite low-key.

They had to be low-key; the ancient ruins unconditionally suppressed cultivation, so even if a quasi-emperor entered, they'd be reduced to a quasi-saint level. At the same level, they risked being killed.

As he watched, another figure streaked through the sky, also shrouded in a black robe.

This person was eerie, their body flickering between illusion and solidity, their true face indistinguishable. Though present, their aura was erratic, like a ghost, with a pair of eyes that were ice-cold and desolate.

"Jie Mie Shen Ti," Ye Chen murmured, his eyes narrowing into slits, as if he had recognized the bloodline—it was the same as that of Shen Xuan Feng from the past.

It was a fearsome lineage, one of the most troublesome bloodlines, elusive and unpredictable.

Speaking of Jie Mie Shen Ti, one had to mention their innate divine ability: Fei Lei Shen Jue.

This divine technique touched upon the domain of time and space. Once it locked onto a target, it could shift through time and space to instantly behead the enemy. It was far beyond mere Void Illusion and was in a completely different league—one a spatial secret technique, the other a temporal one.

It was similar to his Tian Zhao, both involving time and space, and they even shared similar drawbacks, such as distance limitations. The misalignment of time and space was what created such overbearing temporal and spatial immortal arts.

Ye Chen was both surprised and wary. He was surprised that there was a Jie Mie Shen Ti in Xuan Huang, and wary of its strangeness. He had fought against a Jie Mie Shen Ti before and knew full well how terrifying this lineage was.

Huang Gu Sheng Ti and Jie Mie Shen Ti were innate opposites, or rather, Jie Mie Shen Ti was the nemesis of Sheng Ti—this was proven by history. Tai Xu Gu Long had once said that even a great accomplishment Sheng Ti had been slain.

He wasn't sure if this Jie Mie Shen Ti had unlocked their divine repository. If they had, they would definitely possess Fei Lei Shen Jue, which would be a real headache. If targeted, he wouldn't even sleep soundly.

As Ye Chen observed the Jie Mie Shen Ti, the Jie Mie Shen Ti also turned their gaze, their ice-cold, desolate eyes flickering with a ghostly light.

As the two locked eyes, more and more people arrived from afar, settling over Hong Lian Ye Hai.

"We've arrived early again; I hate waiting the most. Still, there are really a lot of people here this time."

"Once we enter the ruins, we need to be careful. Everyone here is a tough character."

"Treasures and dangers go hand in hand, so don't get too greedy, or you might lose your life."

"I'm just here to broaden my horizons; I don't plan on snatching treasures."

Many spoke casually, though no one believed the last remark—who would go in without intending to grab treasures? It was just empty talk.