Chapter 208: Communicating with the Celestial Lord

Taiyi Sect.

Within the Eternal Furnace lies infinite space-time; at the center of countless realms floats a grand hall, and the plaque at its entrance bears four soaring dragon and dancing phoenix characters: Eternal Temple.

Both inside and outside the Eternal Temple, ethereal immortal aura and misty haze linger, a strange kind of Qi.

This Qi constantly changes, has no fixed color, and depends on the individual; if you imagine it as any color, it becomes that color.

It is the legendary Eternal Qi, drawn by the Eternal Furnace Artifact Spirit from a mysterious place in the Celestial Realm, perhaps linked to the Eternal Celestial Lord, three degrees more profound than Pure Yang Qi.

Tai Hun Tian's ascent to the eighth Tenfold Mixed Cave realm of Longevity relied entirely on this Qi.

At this moment, two figures materialized in the Eternal Temple; one knelt, wearing a tattered imperial robe, the celestial canopy collapsed into a huge pit, blood gushed out, staining his face, neck, and robe—this was Tai Huang Tian, who had escaped death after being besieged by Chen Zheng and Linglong Xianzun.

The other was a standing elder with a long beard, a head of splendid hair, and strikingly bright eyes—the Eternal Furnace Artifact Spirit that rescued Tai Huang Tian from outside Linglong Blessed Land, the truly invincible presence of the Taiyi Sect, countless times stronger than Tai Huang Tian.

Even Linglong Xianzun, the top master of the Mysterious Yellow, cannot muster resistance before the Eternal Furnace Artifact Spirit.

Thus, the Eternal Furnace Artifact Spirit is the true number‑one master of the Mysterious Yellow.

No, it is truly the second master.

Within the Xuan Huang Da Shijie there exists an even more formidable celestial artifact, imprisoning a person inside—a legendary Mysterious Immortal; whoever can transform the artifact into a body with great magical power would be the genuine number one.

It is well known that the Changsheng Mijing is divided into Tenfold tiers; the Ninth Tier houses Void Immortals, the Tenth Tier houses True Immortals, and a further step leads into the Immortal's Secret Realm, achieving Heavenly Immortal status.

However, Heavenly Immortal does not imply invincibility; it is merely the first level of the Immortal's Secret Realm, with higher realms above.

For example, the second level, Divine Immortal.

The third level is the Mysterious Immortal, profoundly mysterious, almost too vast for the current three‑thousand great worlds to contain, illustrating its immense power.

Returning to the main story.

When Tai Huang Tian reentered the Eternal Temple, he could not attend to his wounds and disarray, suddenly looked up, and asked the Eternal Furnace Artifact Spirit before him: "Why did you not rescue my disciple just now?"

Tai Hun Tian is not only the supreme headmaster of the Taiyi Sect, whose succession was reported to the Celestial Realm and is of utmost importance to the sect, but also his direct disciple, closer than a son; should he fall into the hands of Chen Zheng and Linglong Xianzun, his fate would be worrisome.

Yet the Eternal Furnace clearly has the ability, it would be a simple matter, but it does not rescue Tai Hun Tian as well; he does not understand.

As for asking the Eternal Furnace Artifact Spirit to slay Chen Zheng and Linglong Xianzun, he never coveted that.

Because the Eternal Furnace Artifact Spirit only follows the command of the Eternal Celestial Lord, guarding the Taiyi Sect from destruction, it will not involve itself in any other matters.

Otherwise the Taiyi Sect would have already unified the Xuan Huang Da Shijie, leaving no room for Linglong Xianzun's arrogance.

"Tai Huang Tian, I risked my life to save yours, and you turn around to question me?" the Eternal Furnace Artifact Spirit's gaze suddenly became sharp.

When that gaze fell upon Tai Huang Tian, he felt a chill run through his body, realized his slip of the tongue, quickly clasped his hands in a bow, forcing a thin smile: "Eternal Senior, today I was repeatedly forced to kneel by Chen Zheng, causing my mind to be in disarray; I hope you will not blame me."

"This will not set a precedent."

The Eternal Furnace snorted, casually tossed a palm‑sized Doom Apocalypse Banner before Tai Huang Tian, then ignored him, sitting back on the seat beside it, brow furrowed, lost in thought.

In fact, according to his original plan, he intended to rescue Tai Hun Tian from outside Linglong Blessed Land as well.

But for some unknown reason then, a faint, vague palpitating feeling rose in his heart, as if staying any longer in Linglong Blessed Land would bring great disaster.

He had to abandon Tai Hun Tian, hurriedly leave with only Tai Huang Tian, and close the space‑time portal.

At this moment he is pondering where that faint palpitating feeling originates.

"Rise!"

Seeing the Eternal Furnace Artifact Spirit no longer attend to him, Tai Huang Tian, though somewhat worried about Tai Hun Tian, could not say much more; he could barely protect himself and could only kneel, so he shouted inwardly at full power, trying to stand up from his kneeling posture.

But soon he discovered that no matter how he exerted force, tried every method, even cutting off his lower body and regrowing a new one, he remained kneeling, unable to stand.

It seemed that from the moment Chen Zheng forced him to kneel, his destiny was sealed to kneel forever, never able to stand.

Even if he died on the spot, his corpse would still be kneeling.

His soul would reincarnate into the next life, and the one after, still kneeling, until his spirit finally dissipates.

"How could this happen, how could this happen?"

Tai Huang Tian, hair in disarray, his blood‑smeared face filled with a never‑before‑seen despondent hue.

He gazed upon eternity, having taken part in the Celestial‑Demon War, encountering countless great foes—both within the Mysterious Yellow realm and beyond, facing many perilous falls, yet never had he felt as despondent as now.

Even despair rose in his heart; his once steadfast Dao heart wavered.

If he must kneel forever, how could he meet others, how to face the ancestors of the Taiyi Sect, and confront all his disciples and Elders?

How could any dignity remain?

Seated at the front, the Eternal Furnace Artifact Spirit heard the commotion, furrowed its graying brows, stared at Tai Huang Tian, pondered for a long while, then said: "The force Chen Zheng imposed upon you is a peculiar Rule Power."

"Rule Power?"

Tai Huang Tian, startled from his despondency, urgently like clutching a lifeline, said: "Eternal Senior, your cultivation surpasses mine by an unknown multiple; you must know a method to unravel that strange rule and let me stand again, right?"

The Eternal Furnace Artifact Spirit's gaze flickered, a hint of teasing smile, then it shook its head and sighed: "I have no solution either. Only Chen Zheng can personally intervene to free you from the rule's shackles, or another rule that supersedes that peculiar Rule Power could disperse the strange rule on you; you cannot stand. Unless you break the constraints of the Changsheng Mijing and enter the first tier of the Immortal's Secret Realm, you may use stronger magic to break the binding."

"Must I achieve Heavenly Immortal to break the binding?"

Tai Huang Tian's face turned bitter as if holding a bitter fruit, then showed a hint of doubt.

It is not that he doubts the Eternal Furnace Artifact Spirit's words, but that he doubts the entity has the ability to help him stand again yet deliberately refuses because of the earlier questioning.

Nevertheless, the entity is a senior who just saved his life, so he does not press further; he sighs, bows, bids farewell, leaves the Eternal Temple, and seeks another way.

His cultivation, though near the pinnacle of True Immortal, is only one step away from the Heavenly Immortal realm, yet taking that step remains extremely difficult.

It may even be impossible forever.

Because he lacks the most crucial thing, a Qi: Primordial Qi.

What is Primordial Qi?

It is a Qi that surpasses Pure Yang Qi, more noble and domineering, claimed to bear the origin of all heavens, the King of All Qi.

Legend says that immortals in the Celestial Realm cultivate by absorbing Primordial Qi.

Only by absorbing Primordial Qi can a True Immortal ascend to the Heavenly Immortal realm; otherwise it is nearly impossible.

In fact, in ancient times the Xuan Huang Da Shijie also possessed Primordial Qi.

Moreover, this Qi radiated from the Mysterious Yellow to all heavens and realms; back then immortals could absorb it for cultivation, which is why the world was filled with so many great powers.

But later, countless cataclysms occurred in the Xuan Huang Da Shijie: the Divine Race invaded, the World Tree was felled by a supreme being of the Divine Race, a great battle between Immortals and Demons broke out, and various other causes, which together caused the Primordial Qi of heaven and earth to gradually wane.

Until now, the Primordial Qi has vanished completely; it may exist only in some ancient caves or in treasures left from distant ages.

In other words, a True Immortal of this age, barring accidents, cannot attain the Heavenly Immortal realm; they are trapped in this realm for a lifetime, until they die of old age.

As for the existing Heavenly Immortals, Divine Immortals, and even Mysterious Immortals, they were essentially cultivated when the Primordial Qi still existed in heaven and earth countless ages ago, and have survived to the present.

Of course there are exceptions.

For example, some factions with backing in the Immortal Realm occasionally receive Primordial Qi bestowed from the Upper Realm, or a Primordial True Pill, and after refining it successfully ascend to the Heavenly Immortal level.

In fact, the Great Unity Sect seeks to win over Hua Tiandu, even arranging a marriage contract between Yan Shuiyi and the other party, hoping to seize the Heavenly Martial Treasury through this person, because a priceless treasure inside contains Primordial Qi.

Unfortunately, this plan was thwarted by Chen Zheng, and Hua Tiandu has vanished without a trace.

Moreover, even if Hua Tiandu were in the hands of the Great Unity Sect, Supreme Emperor could not wait; he cannot keep kneeling, kneeling until the day the Heavenly Martial Treasury opens, then kneeling again to seize the Primordial Qi, which would make the world laugh at him.

Therefore he intends to go to the ancestral master site of the Great Unity Sect to worship, using a talisman decree granted by the Immortal Realm to contact the Upper Realm's Great Unity Sect, requesting the Immortal Realm's mighty beings to bestow Primordial Qi so that he can achieve the Heavenly Immortal realm and break free from the shackles of "kneeling".

He also wants the Upper Realm's Great Unity Sect to send a messenger down to eliminate Chen Zheng, the source of disaster.

The matter of Supreme Yan Heaven's fall being in Chen Zheng's hands, perhaps already killed by Chen Zheng, must also be reported to Yan Yujing, Supreme Yan Heaven's father in the Immortal Realm.

The impending invasion of the Divine Race into the Xuan Huang Da Shijie has also been learned by Supreme Emperor, who likewise must report it to the Immortal Realm.

"Chen Zheng, you are the stumbling block to my Great Unity Sect's domination of the Xuan Huang Da Shijie. Once the Immortal Realm's Great Unity Sect bestows Primordial Qi, allowing me to ascend to the Heavenly Immortal realm, and the Immortal Realm sends a messenger down, that will be your death!"

Supreme Emperor, kneeling, flew into a towering hall, slammed the doors shut, and a cold, ominous voice sounded from within.

According to the oldest Dao scriptures of the Great Unity Sect, once a cultivator ascends, they can never return to the lower realm.

This is a hidden rule of the Immortal Path: cultivators of Heavenly Immortal rank or higher are not permitted to descend to the mortal world.

However, whenever great upheavals or anomalies occur in heaven and earth, factions like the Great Unity Sect, which have a strong background in the Immortal Realm, will dispatch celestial envoys to descend.

How powerful is the Immortal Realm's Great Unity Sect? By constraining the Immortal Path rules, sending a celestial being down is trivial, and eliminating Chen Zheng would be equally effortless.

"Chen Zheng's combat power and tactics are terrifying; he must be an anomaly of heaven and earth, and even the Immortal Realm has no such terrifying being. I must quickly communicate with the Eternal Heavenly Lord and report his case. After all, the Heavenly Lord has always loved seeking and nurturing unparalleled geniuses; once he learns of Chen Zheng's defiance of the heavens, he will surely take him to the Upper Realm for cultivation. And if the Heavenly Lord acknowledges my contribution in uncovering Chen Zheng, he might even allow me to enter the Immortal Realm, so I will never have to stay in this god‑forsaken place guarding the Great Unity Sect."

After Supreme Emperor left, the Eternal Divine Furnace spirit sat on a chair, frowned and pondered for a long time, and finally decided to report Chen Zheng's matter to the Immortal Realm's Eternal Heavenly Lord, seeking a bright future for itself.

The Eternal Heavenly Lord is one of the oldest beings in the Immortal Realm, having forged countless divine artifacts over his lifetime.

Although his Eternal Furnace appears powerful and boasts an impressive title, claiming to be the Heavenly Lord's vessel, in reality it is merely the lowest‑grade item among all the divine weapons the Eternal Heavenly Lord has forged.

It is even a discarded trinket.

It also wishes to improve.

………

Linglong Blessed Land.

In the plaza beneath the Sumeru Golden Summit, millions of people from all regions gathered, a massive sea of darkness that should have been bustling, but now fell into silence.

No bird chirps!

Everyone looked up at the peak of Sumeru, where Chen Zheng stood with his hands behind his back, tall and majestic, like a ruler of the nine heavens.

And the bright‑eyed, white‑toothed Linglong Immortal Lord, dressed as a man, resembling a refined gentleman of a turbid world.

No one expected that today's battle between Chen Zheng and Supreme Mixed Heaven would end in such a way.

Supreme Mixed Heaven was not even a match for Chen Zheng; even the forceful Supreme Emperor was repeatedly forced to kneel in humiliation and was injured by Chen Zheng's bizarre tactics, and ultimately Chen Zheng together with Linglong Immortal Lord beat them into a frantic, head‑cowering retreat.

Had it not been for Supreme Emperor's timely cry for help, and the sudden intervention of the Eternal Furnace, this True Immortal who had dominated the Xuan Huang Da Shijie for countless ages would have surely perished on the spot.

Everything was so shocking that everyone's souls trembled incessantly, unable to recover for a long time.

"Chen Immortal Lord, immortal and invincible across past, present and future, unifying all heavens, dominating the Immortal Realm!"

A wildly shocking, fervent shout suddenly rang out, like a meteor from the heavens striking a calm sea, raising countless waves.

It was Jin Rilie; he was the first to regain his senses, raised his arm and shouted, finally seizing the initiative one step ahead of Prince Yi.

He ignited the entire venue.

"Chen Immortal Lord, immortal and invincible across past, present and future…"

On the Golden Stone Platform, Prince Yi, Fang Yu, Chen Fu, Qiu Xiyu, Piao Yun and all the people of Linglong Blessed Land—including Fang Han, Long Xuan, Ling Xiao, Jiao Fei, Xing Mie Xie, Xing Yun Baby and members of various sects—joined Jin Rilie's fervent chant.

Even the sect heads such as Star Lord, Mysterious Emperor, and Heavenly Dao King also roared along.

Ying Tianqing's face was bitter, and he reluctantly shouted together with everyone.

In this situation, he could only go with the crowd; not shouting would be disrespectful to Chen Zheng.

Even if Chen Zheng himself would not mind such a trivial matter, he would still be brutally killed by those who worship Chen Zheng.

In an instant, the soaring shouts of millions thundered across the world like rolling thunder, surging in all directions and shaking mountains and rivers.

Kneeling at the mountain gate, Supreme Mixed Heaven, Supreme End Heaven and others grew paler with each shout, eventually losing all color and strength, utterly despondent.

Pfft…

At the peak of Sumeru, Chen Zheng's expression was indifferent; with a flick of his finger, thirteen flames shot through the air, striking the foreheads of Supreme Mixed Heaven and the others, erasing them.

He withdrew his gaze, prepared to raise his hand to silence all sounds in the arena and grant a reward to first‑place Fang Han, then consult Star Lord about some matters, but his hand froze and he looked up at the heavens.

Linglong Immortal Lord also seemed to sense something, his eyes flickering as he looked upward.

Swish swish!

In the next instant, two figures descended from the sky onto the peak of Sumeru: two elders, one in a yellow robe and one in black, the Red Abyss Demon Lord and the Heart‑Demon Elder.

"Congratulations, Senior Brother Chen, on achieving divine mastery and defeating Supreme Emperor."

The two elders, upon arriving, simultaneously bowed to Chen Zheng, their old faces breaking into two chrysanthemum‑shaped smiles.

"Second junior brothers, no need for formalities; I am still far from achieving divine mastery," Chen Zheng chuckled, shaking his head, and nodded to Red Abyss Demon Lord, saying, "Also congratulations, junior brother Chi Yuan, after hundreds of thousands of years, the hardships have finally turned to sweetness, and you have escaped the Five Elements realm."

"Indeed, after hundreds of thousands of years, my old bones also need some movement," Red Abyss Demon Lord sighed, looking at the pair before him like a perfect couple, and asked, "Senior Brother, Linglong Immortal Lord, what shall we do now—first attack the Great Unity Sect and slay Supreme Emperor, or head to the Boundless Star Palace to seize the Mixed‑Primordial Diagram?"

Linglong Immortal Lord smiled calmly, "I have no preference; as long as you can withstand the Eternal Furnace, it's fine."

Chen Zheng waved his hand, "Dealing with the Great Unity Sect is not urgent; I still need to use them to obtain resources for ascension. As for the Boundless Star Palace, we can go there."

The Heart‑Demon Elder nodded, "Very well, to the Boundless Star Palace then; I have already contacted the ancient Demon Hall deep within the Boundless Great World and the eight great saints of the Demon Tribe, and they will act together with us."

I have heard that within the Hunyuan Wuji Diagram there exists a supreme treasure called the Wuji Relic, formed by the diagram absorbing three thousand kinds of primordial Qi from the Celestial Realm, even the Qi of the Primordial Origin, and it would be of great use for my ascension to the Celestial Immortal realm.

Linglong Immortal Lord's eyes flickered, her gaze reaching far out from the vast Xuanhuang Great World; instantly the layered mists were cleared, the boundless spacetime was pierced by her sight, forming a temporal‑spatial wormhole.

At the wormhole's end, another vast Great World at the center of a different universe appeared before the four of them.

That was the Wuji Great World, boundless and infinite, with one majestic palace cluster after another rising, stretching endlessly, like ancient colossal dragons coiling upon the earth.

Especially the three hundred palace clusters were supreme, glittering with starlight, extravagantly beyond description; each spanned three‑million‑six‑hundred‑thousand li, as if three hundred and sixty supreme emperors stood upon the earth, majestic and powerful, ruling the world. They were the Wuji Star Palace arranged according to the heavenly zodiac numbers, forming the Beidou Hall, Pure Yang Hall, Grand Void Hall, Holy Maiden Hall, Jade Emperor Hall, and so on.

And above all the halls there existed a golden ratio point, appearing as tiny as a speck of dust, yet actually infinite.

Chen Zheng faintly saw at that point a painting, a chaotic scroll larger than countless galaxies.

"Hunyuan Wuji Diagram! Let's go to the Wuji Great World."

The Heart Demon Elder also saw that diagram, a fiery hue flashing in his eyes, and he rose first, ascending.

Linglong Immortal Lord and Chi Yuan Demon Lord also stepped forward, to enter the temporal‑spatial wormhole.

"You go ahead, I have something to handle, I'll be there soon," Chen Zheng raised an eyebrow, and his step suddenly halted.

Because someone was sending him a message.

(End of chapter)