Chapter 1960: A Senior's Discernment

Chapter 1960: Qianbei Zhen Shi Huo

The purple-robed elder left the ancient star, hastening back to his own domain, eager to study Ye Chen and Lin Xing before refining them into pills.

Inside the copper furnace, Ye Chen and Lin Xing sat facing each other, their eyes wide, one clutching his stomach in pain, the other agonizing, completely immobilized.

"We need to find a way out, or we'll die the most humiliating death." Lin Xing sent a mental message. "Have you contacted your family's Zhun Di yet?"

"I'm trying." Ye Chen replied, then closed his eyes, using the Zhoutian evolution as a medium to call out to Ren Wang.

However, there was no response from Ren Wang; his mind was dormant, impossible to awaken. Earlier, when Lin Xing had kicked him repeatedly, that was the clearest proof.

After a long period of calling with no result, Ye Chen's heart sank.

He realized he couldn't rely on Ren Wang for help. Survival depended on himself. If he could break the seal on his body, he would have a chance—he could use the Emperor Dao to summon Yan Luo from the underworld for battle.

"Do you have a way to break the seal?" Ye Chen mentally asked Lin Xing.

"Don't be ridiculous. This is a Zhun Di's seal—how could I, a mere Sheng Wang, break it?" Lin Xing coughed dryly. "Even if we could break it, it wouldn't do much good. A Zhun Di could slap us to ashes with one palm. In my opinion, contacting your family's Zhun Di is still the most reliable option."

"If I could contact my family's Zhun Di, would I be wasting time chatting with you here? I'm not joking—with this seal broken, we could escape this dead end. Let alone one Zhun Di, even if ten or eight more showed up, I'd beat them all to tears." Ye Chen responded.

"Really? Or are you just bragging?" Lin Xing raised an eyebrow, scrutinizing Ye Chen up and down. Seeing Ye Chen's expression, it didn't seem like empty boast—the man who had slain emperors and created countless legends wasn't someone without aces up his sleeve. This guy was undoubtedly formidable.

"Stop wasting time—just say if you have a way or not." Ye Chen asked again.

"This? No, I really don't." Lin Xing laughed awkwardly and shook his head helplessly.

Ye Chen fell silent, not blaming Lin Xing. After all, Lin Xing wasn't in his state as the Huazuo Shen Wang right now. If he were, breaking a Zhun Di's seal would be trivial.

In the end, it all came down to relying on himself. Ye Chen sank into deep thought.

Being captured by a Zhun Di wasn't the embarrassing part; the embarrassment was not being able to contact Ren Wang, having no Zhun Di weapons or emperor artifacts on him, and being sealed so tightly that he couldn't even move. This dead end was truly hard to escape.

As the two pondered, the purple-robed elder had already landed on an ancient star.

This ancient star was enormously vast, comparable to Wangxuan Star in size. It was a cultivator's ancient star, brimming with spiritual energy, featuring towering mountains, vast rivers, and an aura of grand majesty.

The purple-robed elder steered clear of areas with cultivators and entered a range of mountains.

Then, he dove underground, where a massive underground palace lay hidden. It formed a vast realm within, dark and desolate, cold and eerie, with piles of bones scattered along the walls, a ghastly sight.

Besides that, the scent of pills permeated the entire palace.

As Ye Chen had guessed, the purple-robed elder was an alchemist of high rank, on par with the deceased Dan Zun. With his level of skill, he could likely refine nine-marked immortal pills.

In the midst of this, the purple-robed elder set down the copper furnace and reached inside, grabbing Lin Xing like a chick and pulling him out.

Ye Chen couldn't see the outside, so he only heard Lin Xing's shouts and yells, mostly trying to scare the purple-robed elder. But who was the purple-robed elder? A true Zhun Di—such intimidation had no effect.

Ye Chen was filled with worry. The purple-robed elder was a Zhun Di with extraordinary insight; there was a chance he might recognize Lin Xing's true identity and strike him down with a palm, which would be a tremendous loss for the heavens.

After some time, Lin Xing's noisy cries faded, and he was shoved back into the copper furnace, sprawled out in a big character pose.

Ye Chen glanced over and couldn't help but twitch his mouth—Lin Xing's treasures had all been stripped away, and he was beaten black and blue, his face swollen.

For some reason, seeing Lin Xing get beaten brought Ye Chen a strange sense of satisfaction, much like when Lin Xing had kicked Ren Wang that day.

"Don't laugh at me—you're next." Lin Xing scrambled up awkwardly, his face dark with frustration, as if he knew what Ye Chen was thinking. What kind of time was this to gloat?

In an instant, a mysterious force pressed him down again, forcing him to sit cross-legged, sealed just as before, unable to move.

Ye Chen coughed dryly and breathed a sigh of relief, grateful that the purple-robed elder hadn't uncovered Lin Xing's identity. That was good news, though their situation remained dangerous. Until the last second, no one could say for sure if a turnaround was possible.

Above, the purple-robed elder's large hand appeared again, reaching into the copper furnace. Ye Chen, still deep in thought, was suddenly pulled out and suspended in midair by a powerful force.

"Your secret technique hides your true appearance so well that even I couldn't see through it. You're quite extraordinary." The purple-robed elder chuckled sinisterly, his old eyes dark and filled with greed, making Ye Chen shiver all over. Even now, he couldn't discern Ye Chen's real face, but the more elusive it was, the more excited he became—for that secret technique to conceal origins would soon be his, a massive gain.

Ye Chen said nothing, staying calmer than Lin Xing. He didn't shout or make a fuss, his expression serene, his eyes like still water.

"You're certainly composed." The purple-robed elder sneered as he approached, even more interested in Ye Chen, seeing great research potential.

"Death comes sooner or later—I've made my peace with it." Ye Chen shrugged.

"With that mindset, I'm quite pleased." The purple-robed elder smiled mockingly and flicked his sleeve, taking all of Ye Chen's treasures.

Originally, Ye Chen's valuables were hidden extremely well, even evading Lin Xing's notice. But this man wasn't Lin Xing—he was a genuine Zhun Di. No matter how cleverly hidden, nothing escaped him; everything was seized.

"A mere Sheng Wang like you possessing so many treasures is truly surprising." The purple-robed elder examined his spoils, his eyes gleaming. Secret weapons, magical treasures, pills—there were countless items. The sheer volume of Ye Chen's treasures shocked even his Zhun Di-level composure. None of it was ordinary; all were priceless.

Ye Chen watched in agony, feeling worse than if his life were threatened.

After all, he had painstakingly accumulated these treasures over the years, and now, in an instant, decades of effort were wiped out, back to square one.

"Hmm?" As Ye Chen winced, the purple-robed elder frowned, his eyes narrowing sharply at Ye Chen's great cauldron.

This cauldron was extraordinary—massive and heavy, ancient and unadorned, with chaos qi swirling inside. Its surface was etched with the Dun Jia heavenly characters, and if you listened closely, you could hear the heavenly sounds of the Great Dao echoing.

"Chaos God Cauldron." The purple-robed elder murmured, as if recognizing it.

"Qianbei, you truly know your goods. It's quite valuable." Ye Chen smiled.

"Where did you get this cauldron?" The purple-robed elder turned his head, staring intently at Ye Chen. Since he recognized the Chaos God Cauldron, he naturally knew its owner—a legendary powerhouse.

"I didn't steal it, didn't pick it up, and didn't rob it. This cauldron is my life-bound artifact." Ye Chen grinned at the purple-robed elder.

At these words, the purple-robed elder's brow furrowed deeply. With a wave of his hand, he dispelled Ye Chen's concealment secret technique, revealing his true face.

"You're Ye Chen?" Upon seeing his face, the purple-robed elder, a dignified Zhun Di, actually recoiled a few steps in shock.

"You recognize me? I'm honored, Qianbei." Ye Chen laughed, still as calm as ever, showing no sign of fear.

Now, it was the purple-robed elder who fell silent, his expression turning ugly. He never imagined that his capture would net him the Desolate Ancient Holy Body.

What was laughable was that he only realized it now. Without the Chaos God Cauldron and the cauldron breaking Ye Chen's concealment, he wouldn't have known he'd caught such a legendary figure.

"To speak of my family's ancestors, they're impressive in every way—except for their temper." Ye Chen continued leisurely, waiting for the purple-robed elder's reaction. He was just a minor Sheng Wang, not worth fearing, but Da Chu was different. Among single forces, aside from the five forbidden zones and the primordial clans, none could compare. Using Da Chu and Zhutian Gate to intimidate was the best approach.

Ye Chen's words hit hard, making the purple-robed elder's heart tremble.

A Sheng Wang-level Holy Body wasn't frightening, but the Da Chu behind Ye Chen was—Zhutian Gate was a colossal entity.

In the past, when Da Chu returned to the heavens to avenge their fallen heroes, they had wiped out four ancient clans in a rage.

Seventy years ago, the Tengshe Prince had overstepped, and the Tengshe Clan was exterminated—a bloody example repeated time and again.

Such a force was beyond his reach. If Da Chu wanted to destroy him, it would take no more than an instant.

"Qianbei, it's best to leave some room for everything. If you release us now, my Da Chu ancestors will never learn of this." Ye Chen spoke again, not daring to push too hard, his words subtle.

The purple-robed elder remained silent, his brow furrowing deeper, his eyes flickering with uncertainty as he wrestled internally.

To release or not—this was the question. If he released them, he'd avoid mortal danger; if not, if Da Chu found out later, their thunderous wrath would surely end him.

Ye Chen watched tensely; this might be his final trump card. If the purple-robed elder chose mutual destruction, he was doomed to perish here.

In the underground palace, the silence between them made the atmosphere oppressively heavy.

After a dozen seconds, the purple-robed elder finally looked up, his eyes turning blood-red. He feared Da Chu, yet he coveted Ye Chen's bloodline and treasures. Greed ultimately overpowered his fear.

In that moment, his face twisted into something more ferocious, his gaze sharp as a blade. He wouldn't easily give up the heavenly fortune he'd gained.

Ye Chen saw it and knew things had gone wrong. From the purple-robed elder's expression, it was clear he had no intention of letting him go.

"Fortune favors the bold. Using Da Chu to scare me won't work." The purple-robed elder grinned maliciously, his teeth gleaming menacingly.

"Qianbei, think this through—the consequences will be severe." Ye Chen lost his composure and made one last effort.

"How severe?" The purple-robed Zhun Di laughed even more sinisterly. "Refining a nine-marked immortal pill with your bloodline and swallowing it could let me achieve emperorship. Would I fear your Da Chu? Whether it's Da Chu, the primordial clans, or the myriad domains, under my imperial might, it's all a big joke."