Chapter 2540: A Great Surprise

In Yinhe Yixiantian, Ye Chen steadied his form and summoned the Yang family members.

"Young friend, your life-saving grace is unforgettable."

The Yang family patriarch and all the Yang clan members bowed in unison, their gratitude boundless. Along the way, Shangguan Yu had explained the full story, and no one could believe it: a complete stranger, a young man named Ye Chen, had willingly contributed a Dao scripture to save the Yang clan.

Ye Chen smiled and looked at Shangguan Yu. "Go to Huashan."

"Take care," Shangguan Yu replied solemnly, took the letter from Ye Chen, and led the Yang family members across the Yinhe, heading straight for Huashan.

Watching them depart, Ye Chen turned around with an amused smile, gazing into the void. "No need to hide anymore."

Jie jie!

Sinister laughter erupted as more than a dozen figures emerged, all sent by Ba Taizi. They were cloaked in black robes, their faces hidden, but their eyes glowed with an eerie light, each one a Zhundi.

"You've followed me all this way—what do you want?" Ye Chen said with a laugh.

"To send you to hell." The leader of the black-robed figures smirked and ordered those behind him, "You three, go quickly and hunt down the Yang family. Leave no one alive, man, woman, or child."

At his command, three black-robed figures moved to cross the Yinhe.

Ye Chen snorted coldly and shifted in a single step, blocking their path. With a buzz, the Dinghai Shenjian materialized in his hand. He swung it with immense force, shattering one black-robed figure's physical body in an instant. The Yuan Shen was immediately drawn into his artifact—after all, a Zhundi would have valuable treasures.

"How is he this strong?"

The remaining black-robed figures were shocked. A Dasheng realm cultivator had destroyed a Zhundi's body with one strike—it was utterly unexpected, and they had underestimated Ye Chen.

"Join forces to suppress him!"

The leader snarled, firing a divine light from his brow that transformed into an artifact—more precisely, a treasure seal inscribed with divine patterns, radiating immortal light and destructive power, as heavy as a mountain, crashing down from the sky.

"Kongdong Yin."

Ye Chen paused briefly in surprise, then his eyes lit up. He recognized it from before—it was far more ferocious than the Dinghai Shenjian. Unexpectedly, Yin Ming had entrusted it to his subordinates to eliminate the Yang family.

What a stroke of luck!

Ye Chen laughed, darting through the nine heavens to evade the Kongdong Yin's lethal strike. With another swing, he crippled the leader, then followed up to destroy his physical body entirely, sealing the Yuan Shen into his artifact.

Without anyone to control it, the Kongdong Yin's power waned. Ye Chen suppressed it with a palm strike, erasing its divine aura, and sealed it away as well.

"Exterminate!"

The two remaining black-robed figures roared, attacking from left and right. One wielded their natal artifact, the other deployed a sealing array.

Ye Chen charged forward dominantly, shattering the artifact with his staff and sending the black-robed figure flying with a spray of blood. He broke through the sealing array in an instant and swept out with a devastating strike, exploding the attacker's body.

"Destroy!"

Another black-robed figure charged fearlessly, summoning a pitch-black thunderbolt from the sky, inscribed with Yuan Shen annihilation, aiming to erase Ye Chen completely.

Ye Chen huffed dismissively, enduring the thunderbolt with his body, and swung his staff to knock the figure down. He sealed both the person and their Yuan Shen into his artifact in one go.

"Seal for me!"

Four black-robed figures shouted in unison, positioning themselves at the four cardinal directions and forming identical hand seals. Four pillars of light appeared, covered in array patterns and flying rune chains, creating a barrier in the void filled with roaring dark dragons, trapping Ye Chen inside.

"Not a bad barrier." Ye Chen chuckled leisurely, gripping his blood-stained staff and stepping toward one of them.

As he neared the barrier's edge, his body suddenly turned illusory, allowing him to walk out effortlessly. It was the Didao Miaomiao technique—one moment ethereal, the next solid—breaking the barrier more effectively than any secret art.

"You..." The four black-robed figures were stunned, unable to believe their combined Fengtian Barrier had been breached so easily.

Buzz!

Ye Chen's staff came down with precision, smashing straight into one's head and causing a Zhundi at the second heaven level to explode on the spot. Even the fading Yuan Shen was captured into his artifact.

The other three fared no better, fleeing in panic, but Ye Chen's movements were eerily swift. He appeared instantly, swinging his staff without a word, its power dominating heaven and earth.

Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!

Three more bursts of blood sprayed out, each more vivid than the last. The three Zhundi were utterly defeated, none able to withstand even one of Ye Chen's strikes.

"Die!" Yet another black-robed figure lunged in, firing a divine light from their brow that formed a Yuan Shen killing sword, targeting Ye Chen's true essence.

In such moments, Ye Chen acted instinctively, merging his nine Shenshang into one, enhanced with his natal Dao essence, to shatter the Yuan Shen sword and severely wound the attacker.

"How is this possible?" The black-robed figure spat blood and staggered back—he was a Zhundi at the third heaven, after all.

"You're still not quite enough to destroy me." A desolate voice echoed as Ye Chen flashed forward, his staff crashing down with full force.

Still in shock, the black-robed figure's body was obliterated.

"The intelligence was wrong—retreat!"

The remaining five Zhundi black-robed figures fled without hesitation. Ye Chen was too bizarrely powerful for a Dasheng; over a dozen Zhundi had tried to surround him, only to be routed. Better to withdraw for now.

"You think you can escape?"

From behind, Ye Chen stowed his staff and drew his bow, using Chaos Dao as the bow and imperial essence as the arrows. He fired three shots in an instant.

Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!

Blood sprayed as the slower two black-robed figures had their bodies destroyed on the spot. The one ahead was exceptionally skilled, surviving Ye Chen's arrow thanks to a protective secret treasure within.

"Where do you think you're going?"

Ye Chen snorted, sealing the Yuan Shen of the two fallen figures before chasing the last one.

Seeing Ye Chen in pursuit, the black-robed figure dared not stop, sacrificing his origin essence to boost his speed and flee desperately. His eyes, once sinister and fierce, now showed only terror, his body ice-cold as if plunged into Jiuyou. Being chased by Ye Chen felt like being stalked by the god of death, extinction looming at any moment.

Ahead, Nantianmen loomed in the distance, majestic and grand.

"Save me! Save me!"

The black-robed figure screamed, spotting a lifeline, and sacrificed more essence, his body erupting like a flame for maximum speed. If he reached Nantianmen, he would be safe—Ye Chen wouldn't dare cause trouble there.

"Shiyang Zhenren?"

The heavenly general guarding Nantianmen raised an eyebrow, spotting the black-robed figure from afar. He seemed to recognize him and stepped forward in confusion. As a Heavenly Court figure, he would surely be saved.

But before he could reach them, a divine arrow shot from the horizon, carrying overwhelming destructive power. It pierced straight through the black-robed figure, killing him instantly and scattering his soul.

"Who is it?"

The heavenly general roared, drawing his immortal sword. From Nantianmen, swarms of heavenly soldiers and generals gathered. Killing someone from the Heavenly Court right at its gate was a blatant provocation, defying its divine authority.

Yet, despite thousands of soldiers and generals assembling in a dark mass, not a single one could spot the assailant.

"A single arrow to kill a Zhundi—must be some great demon or devil from the scattered immortal realms?"

"Shiyang Zhenren was Ba Taizi's advisor. His death will surely enrage the prince."

"Someone's going to suffer for this."

Several heavenly generals conferred and led their troops in a thorough search, determined to find the culprit. But after scouring the area, they found no trace—not even a bird—and their expressions grew grim.

"What a pity about the treasures."

Back in Yinhe Yixiantian, Ye Chen felt a pang of regret. He could only blame the Zhundi for escaping too quickly toward Nantianmen, making capture impossible. Reluctantly, he had shot him down, losing the treasures in the process.

At least he hadn't lost much—just one Zhundi. The other dozen or so were sealed in his artifacts. Once he found a secluded spot, he could use the Tou Tian technique to claim the secrets from their inner worlds.

Those were minor gains, though. What truly excited him was the Kongdong Yin, a treasure born from heaven and earth, infused with divine iron and immortal iron, surpassing the Dinghai Shenjian in level. Artifacts like this were the real prizes.

As for the heavenly soldiers searching for him, he dismissed them entirely, having concealed his aura with Zhou Tian. They wouldn't find him.

"I am under Ba Taizi—how dare you destroy me?"

From within the bronze furnace artifact, the sealed Zhundi Yuan Shen howled, their faces twisted and savage.

Ye Chen ignored them, examining the Kongdong Yin over and over, a cold smile on his lips. Mentioning Ba Taizi only fueled his anger. He wouldn't hesitate to destroy even the Jade Emperor's people. As the tenth emperor of Great Chu, he wasn't one to be intimidated.

It wasn't until later that he slipped into a remote mountain corner.

There, he set up a hidden array to obscure the surroundings and mask his aura.

Only then did he release the group of Zhundi Yuan Shen.

These Zhundi were restless; as soon as they were freed, they roared hysterically, their faces ferocious. Like their master, they were arrogant even in defeat.

Ye Chen paid them no mind, repeatedly using the Tou Tian technique to plunder the treasures from their inner worlds.

Soon after, a vortex of Tun Tian magic appeared.

Screams rang out, shrill and piercing, as the Yuan Shen were stripped of their original consciousness, leaving only pure essence to nourish Ye Chen's own Yuan Shen.

At last, peace returned.

With his ears clear, Ye Chen sorted through the spoils, setting aside special irons, divine iron, and immortal iron. He shattered them and fused them into the Dinghai Shenjian.

Finally, he held the Kongdong Yin, pondering whether to smash it—or smash it.

As he thought, he gripped his staff, infusing it with Chaos Dao essence, imperial divine essence, and his own Dao principles, then struck with full force. The once-mighty Kongdong Yin shattered into pieces.

If any immortal passed by and saw this, they would surely curse him as a wastrel. The Kongdong Yin was a Heavenly Court immortal treasure, a divine weapon capable of sweeping thousands with its awakened power. And here he was, smashing it without a second thought.