Chapter 1665: Supplementing the Source

Outside Nie Hai, the crowd of spectators had grown even larger, forming a dense throng that filled the land and stretched toward the sky. There were little ghosts and Earth Underworld Generals present, and faintly, one could sense the aura of Tian Underworld Generals hidden among the crowd, standing leisurely.

Nie Hai was shrouded in dark mist, with massive waves crashing repeatedly onto the shore, and evil ghosts crawling up the beach, letting out eerie howls. The spectators retreated again and again. It had been many years since Nie Hai had stirred like this, with karmic entanglements and resentments awakening.

Many people said, "Ye Chen is likely to kneel this time."

"Even the edges are this terrifying—let alone the depths of Nie Hai."

"That might not be the case." Someone waved their hand lightly. "Don't forget his bloodline, and don't forget who is protecting him."

As soon as these words were spoken, many people slapped their foreheads, realizing what they had overlooked. With an emperor watching over him, Ye Chen would be absolutely fine.

Deep within Nie Hai, inside the belly of a great saint-level evil dragon, Ye Chen was still devouring the karmic entanglements, purging the evil thoughts, malicious intents, and resentments, and only absorbing the power of the karmic entanglements.

Gradually, he discovered that this so-called power of karmic entanglements was subtly integrating into his Huang Gu Sheng Ti origin. As more of the karmic entanglement power merged, his origin began to enhance bit by bit, slowly but steadily gaining strength.

Ye Chen showed a delighted expression. The power of karmic entanglements could actually strengthen his origin and serve as nourishment for it—this was a truly unexpected boon.

Thinking of this, he mustered all his effort and devoured even more fiercely. He split his focus into two tasks: purging the impurities while refining the power of karmic entanglements. His Huang Gu Sheng Ti origin surged powerfully, aggressively devouring everything.

In reality, even though he had been swallowed, this guy remained restless. Who would have thought that inside a great saint-level evil dragon's belly, not only was he not being refined, but he was still lively and active?

"This isn't so bad," Ye Chen muttered to himself as he devoured even more eagerly. He was starting to not want to leave.

If time allowed, he wouldn't mind staying for a hundred or eighty years.

He was devouring happily, but the great saint-level evil dragon was far from pleased, thrashing about in Nie Hai and stirring up massive waves. It wanted to spit out Ye Chen, but he clung on shamelessly.

He was like a persistent parasite—no matter what, he refused to leave. After swallowing its fill, it thought it could spit him out? No chance.

The Swallowing Heaven Vortex operated, fused with the power of reincarnation, greedily absorbing the karmic entanglements. Ye Chen's mind was clear and empty, not daring to be careless.

This process was one of mutual decline and growth: the evil dragon's karmic entanglements decreased, while Ye Chen's origin was empowered. The two continued to contend like this.

Time passed slowly—one hour, two hours, one day, two days... everything seemed to follow a set pattern.

Outside Nie Hai, the crowd gathered and dispersed, with people coming and going. They hadn't waited for Ye Chen, but waves of evil ghosts had arrived instead.

"This has been a whole month—why hasn't the Huang Gu Sheng Ti come out yet?" someone asked, hands tucked in their sleeves. Unfortunately, nothing could be seen.

"Clearly, he's trapped inside. He might even be dead already."

"We haven't seen the emperor make a move." Someone subconsciously glanced at the void. "By all rights, the emperor should know about this."

As discussions continued, the waves of Nie Hai crashed onto the shore again, with lone souls and vengeful ghosts crawling up the beach, howling eerily.

The spectators hurriedly retreated, afraid of being dragged into Nie Hai by the ghosts and waves. This was a place of great calamity, where it swallowed people without leaving a trace.

Looking back at Nie Hai, the vengeful ghosts struggled, the evil dragons coiled, and in the hazy mist, evil thoughts, malicious intents, and resentments engulfed everything.

Amid the vast Nie Hai, that great saint-level evil dragon roared and howled.

After a month, its size had shrunk by more than half.

This was all thanks to Ye Chen. He hadn't stopped for the entire month; his Huang Gu Sheng Ti was like a bottomless pit that could never be filled.

Well then! A great saint-level evil dragon had been reduced to saint king level, with bits of karmic entanglement power turned into nourishment.

Yet, this was far from over. This guy was getting more energetic with each swallow.

It was fortunate that the evil dragon had no consciousness; if it had even a shred of awareness, it would surely be driven mad with rage. This situation was unbearably humiliating.

It knew Ye Chen was causing chaos in its belly but couldn't spit him out.

Ye Chen didn't care about any of that. He was solely focused on devouring the karmic entanglements.

Day by day passed, and while the evil dragon's temper remained fierce, its size shrank steadily as its karmic entanglements were lost.

No wonder Ye Chen was called a monster—if he kept devouring like this, the great saint-level evil dragon would eventually be reduced to nothing.

And that's exactly what happened. Two months later, the evil dragon's level dropped from saint king to quasi-saint king, and then to saint.

Now, in front of the great saint evil dragon, it had become a mere small worm, forcibly turned into this pathetic state by Ye Chen.

Inside its belly, Ye Chen opened his eyes and stretched lazily, feeling quite content.

After a full three months of feasting, thanks to the empowerment of the karmic entanglement power, his Huang Gu Sheng Ti origin had become vastly more abundant.

Upon internal inspection, his origin was like a vast sea, golden and radiant, with phenomena interweaving, life force flourishing, and vital energy surging.

But he didn't leave yet; the Swallowing Heaven Magic Skill was still in operation.

This time, he was using the evil dragon as a medium to devour the karmic entanglements of Nie Hai.

Looking into the distance, centered on that evil dragon, a vortex had formed, drawing in rolling karmic entanglements and pouring them into its body.

As soon as the karmic entanglements entered, they were swallowed by Ye Chen.

The evil dragon had truly become a medium. Hiding in its belly, Ye Chen was perfectly safe, with the vast Nie Hai's resources to devour.

That vortex of karmic entanglements spread endlessly in all directions, growing larger and larger, even drawing in the hazy mist.

Nie Hai's waves soared to the sky, with countless vengeful ghosts howling and evil dragons roaring. The commotion was significant, making the place lively.

Outside Nie Hai, the spectators all stared in astonishment.

From outside, one could vaguely see that massive vortex, full of aggression as it devoured everything in all directions—it was incredibly domineering.

This unusual phenomenon attracted even more people, all wondering what was happening in Nie Hai and why a vortex had appeared.

Ye Chen closed his eyes again, ignoring everything else and focusing solely on devouring the karmic entanglements.

As more karmic entanglement power integrated, his Huang Gu Sheng Ti origin gained an intangible force, gradually evolving toward perfection.

It was as if his origin had gaps, and this karmic entanglement power was like needles and thread, perfectly stitching them together.

He began to understand that being swept into Nie Hai seemed like a disaster, but it was actually an opportunity. Even he felt his luck was defying the heavens.

And just like that, another three months passed in the blink of an eye before he slowly opened his eyes.

He dispersed the Swallowing Heaven Magic Skill, not because he didn't want to continue, but because his origin was already complete—devouring more would be useless.

After half a year, he stood up for the first time, twisting his stiff Huang Gu Sheng Ti and exhaling a breath of turbid air, feeling refreshed and energetic.

This was indeed a stroke of fortune. Without the power of Nie Hai's karmic entanglements, he wouldn't have known his Huang Gu Sheng Ti origin had flaws. Now, it was perfected, with the karmic entanglement power filling the gaps and making the origin whole.

He tore open the evil dragon's abdomen and leaped out, quickly fleeing in one direction. After all, this was a land of great peril.

His appearance drew many evil dragons, a massive number including quasi-saint king and saint king levels, their enormous dragon eyes blood-red.

Bolts of lightning shot out, converging into a sea of thunder that engulfed Ye Chen.

Ye Chen didn't dare to linger in battle; he fought his way through while swinging his sword.

This time, his luck was good—he had chosen the right direction, heading not deeper in, but toward the true exit of Nie Hai.

After six months, outside Nie Hai, people were still waiting.

The spectators didn't know if they were just bored or incredibly persistent; they had waited as long as Ye Chen had been inside.

Many were yawning, glancing at Nie Hai before burying their heads to nap, as if they wouldn't leave until Ye Chen came out.

In one spot, a yuan shen was floating, its expression full of worry.

It was Kui Niu, who had arrived half a year earlier and had been waiting here.

The judge had only given him three months, but he hadn't gone to reincarnate.

It wasn't that the judge had forgotten him; it was because Di Huang had intervened.

With an emperor's face to consider, how could the judge dare refuse? Di Huang's words were like those of the Underworld Emperor, and no one in the underworld dared to defy him.

"I say, you have a yuan shen—why not find a physical body?" a little ghost general asked, hands tucked away as he sized up Kui Niu.

"None of your business," Kui Niu replied casually, his cow eyes fixed solely on Nie Hai, hoping to see Ye Chen emerge.

The little ghost felt awkward and didn't dare get angry, knowing exactly who Kui Niu was. He was Ye Chen's old friend and couldn't be provoked.

Back in the day, Ye Chen had beaten up Ox-Head and Horse-Face for him, drawing out the great saint-level experts from Yan Luo Hall to capture him.

Anyone connected to Ye Chen was connected to the emperor. Not to mention a yuan shen, even a mere remnant soul couldn't be messed with.

Provoking Kui Niu was the same as provoking the Huang Gu Sheng Ti, and provoking the Huang Gu Sheng Ti was the same as provoking the emperor—no one dared to touch that nerve.

"He's out!" As they spoke, Ye Chen burst out of the surging waves of Nie Hai, tumbling as he went.

His condition was utterly wretched, covered in fresh blood. He had fought his way out, nearly being beaten to death by the evil dragons several times.

Surviving to rush out of Nie Hai was a miracle amid misfortune.

The spectators were stunned, couldn't help giving him a thumbs-up.

Half a year! Ye Chen had stayed in Nie Hai for half a year and actually survived—this was a miracle that shocked everyone.

"Old Seven." Kui Niu rushed over and supported Ye Chen.

"I almost died," Ye Chen spat out blood, swaying unsteadily, his aura extremely weak, his body covered in bloody wounds.

His blood-soaked Huang Gu Sheng Ti was a shocking sight.

The spectators could imagine what horrors Ye Chen had endured to escape Nie Hai alive—it must have been terrifying beyond words.

For a moment, everyone's gaze toward Ye Chen changed, as if looking at a god. This guy had created another miracle.

The Huang Gu Sheng Ti lineage truly consisted of top-tier monsters.

This one in front of them was even more impressive than the past emperor. His brilliance was destined to surpass his predecessors and rewrite Di Huang's legend.

Ye Chen stuffed a handful of healing pills into his mouth.

Though he had escaped, he still felt lingering fear in his heart. Nie Hai was too frightening, full of terrifying existences—he had nearly perished there.

Fortunately, his life-saving methods were numerous; otherwise, he really would have been buried in Nie Hai. This trip had been a desperate gamble with his life.

"You're famous again," Kui Niu sighed, clicking his tongue in amazement.

"It's hard not to be," Ye Chen smiled, not forgetting to scan his surroundings. Pairs of eyes were all fixed on him.

"Go to Ghost City and wait for me. I'm heading to Yan Luo Hall," he said, retracting his gaze and instructing Kui Niu before preparing to ascend.

"Don't go. The judge has already given me what you need," Kui Niu grabbed Ye Chen and handed him an item.

Ye Chen's eyes lit up. It was the pass document for going to Nai He Bridge—the very thing he had risked his life for.