Ye Chen had never been particularly close to his Eldest Senior Sister—in fact, they barely had any real connection. Back when he gifted her the war chariot, it hadn't triggered any dramatic reaction either. Still, his Eldest Senior Brother seemed to share a deep sibling bond with her.

For his Eldest Senior Brother's sake, if the opportunity ever arose to obtain the Immortal Exquisite his brother had mentioned, Ye Chen wouldn't mind passing it on to his Eldest Senior Sister. Perhaps it could help her regain some of her former self.

Meanwhile, a faint chill flickered in Feng Baiyu's eyes as he pondered inwardly:

"This Supreme Emotionless Scripture might not even originate from our world—perhaps not even from the Immortal Realm. After all, even I have never heard of it. It could be something transmitted here by a powerful being from the foreign domain through some secret art... In the future, Dantai Xuan may completely cease to be who she was. She could become an entirely different person—a great power from the foreign domain. Should I strike now? Crush her before she fully awakens, nip the threat in the bud?"

But after a moment of consideration, Feng Baiyu shook his head. He had already more or less given up on the idea of resisting the foreign domain. After all, even the Heavenly Emperor was gone. He fought his way out of the Immortal Realm and never returned. For a hundred years afterward, blood rain fell across the heavens. The great powers of the Immortal Realm each harbored their own schemes.

Feng Baiyu even suspected that many of the Descent Faction had already secretly reached agreements with the foreign domain, negotiating shares of future spoils. Without the Heavenly Emperor to suppress them, the Immortal Realm—already inferior in strength—was nothing but scattered sand.

You might fight bravely at the front, only to be stabbed in the back by your own allies. The foreign domain's conquest of the Immortal Realm was merely a matter of time. Whether he killed Dantai Xuan to prevent one more foreign existence from descending would hardly change the grand outcome. There was no point in drawing unnecessary attention. Let it be…

With his own rebirth and re-cultivation, perhaps it was time to start thinking about an escape route for himself as well. The thought drained the lingering good mood Feng Baiyu had felt over Ye Chen's breakthrough. He waved a hand dismissively, ending the conversation.

…

Ye Chen didn't dwell too much on his Eldest Senior Sister either. After confirming that everyone else was still in seclusion, he didn't ignore the pitiful, puppy-eyed maidservants gazing up at him in silent pleading. He distributed a portion of the spirit liquid to each of them and sent them off to cultivate.

Then Ye Chen summoned the phantom of his Dao Cauldron and began his own training. Now, at the second heaven of Mahayana, his next step toward the third heaven was to forge his own cave heaven.

Thanks to the Minor Space Technique, that part posed basically no difficulty. But Ye Chen had an even bolder idea. He wanted to refine his personal small world and use it as the core foundation for his cave heaven.

Naturally, a cave heaven was superior to an ordinary small world. Yet a small world remained an external object—there was always the risk that someday, someone might find a way to seal it or prevent him from accessing it. If he could instead refine it directly into his cave heaven, the hidden dangers would disappear forever.

Moreover, the larger the cave heaven, the stronger its master became. By directly assimilating an entire small world, his combat power would likely skyrocket. It would also bring tremendous long-term benefits to his future cultivation.

For example, once he reached the fourth heaven of Mahayana, the small world itself likely contained considerable fragments of the time law, making it far easier for him to comprehend. Mastering the time law would allow him to control the flow of time within his cave heaven, accelerating his cultivation even further. And when he eventually broke through to higher realms, the cave heaven could be reshaped back into a small world—perhaps with even greater ease.

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In short, the path of Ye Chen's future cultivation was almost completely paved. For now, his most important task was simply to raise his realm.

…

For the next full month, Ye Chen cultivated with single-minded focus and a cheerful mood. The main reason was simple: his progress really was absurdly fast. With the Dao Cauldron, the Enlightenment Tea Tree, and his current monstrous physique, his cultivation speed had reached an outrageous level.

Ye Chen estimated that five months at most would be enough to reach mid Mahayana. Another half year, perhaps, to reach the late stage. And then peak. All told, two years should suffice to advance an entire heaven.

Two years to cross one major realm—this kind of speed was practically a joke. Even Ye Chen himself found it ridiculous. For ordinary cultivators, the higher the realm, the slower the progress; breakthroughs often took hundreds or thousands of years without batting an eye. Yet for him, the higher he climbed, the faster he moved.

Reflecting on it carefully, Ye Chen realized the slowest part of his entire journey had actually been the Qi Refining stage. Everything had been turned completely upside down.

But it made perfect sense. Back then, he had possessed nothing—no special physique, no resources, no advantages. His body was the most ordinary mortal one, and his spiritual root was merely third-grade.

Now?

His physique bore the mark of Primordial Chaos itself—unquestionably far ahead of anyone else. Even if it was only one-millionth of its full potential, it was already leagues beyond his former self. Add in various immortal artifacts and immortal roots…

When he thought about it that way, perhaps it wasn't so outrageous after all. Thus, Ye Chen continued his peaceful cultivation without any intention of leaving seclusion. He only stepped out once a week to distribute gifts to the disciples.

In the blink of an eye, another month passed.

While deep in meditation, Ye Chen suddenly sensed a transmission talisman stirring. He slowly withdrew his energy and opened the message. His brow arched slightly. A Mahayana-stage golden-furred monkey had arrived at the sect gate, claiming to bear a message.

A monkey? Golden-furred? At Mahayana?

Ye Chen immediately thought of the Victorious Fighting Ape Clan from among the myriad races.

Could they be here for the Compliant Golden-Hooped Rod?

He wasn't particularly surprised. Ever since the Dao Cauldron had drawn Luo Bingling to him, Ye Chen had known the Battle Saint Apes would never remain indifferent to the Compliant Golden-Hooped Rod in his possession.

Still, the staff held no special meaning or unique function for him. With the Armament Secret, a staff was no different from any sword, spear, or halberd.

Unlike the Dao Cauldron or the Heaven-Devouring Demon Jar, which possessed irreplaceable abilities, this one was expendable. If the other party wanted it back, they only needed to offer something of equivalent value.

In that way, the Compliant Golden-Hooped Rod—once a "non-giftable" item—would be cleanly transformed into a "giftable" supreme Extreme Dao weapon. And Ye Chen would undoubtedly come out ahead.

With that thought, he drifted lightly out of seclusion and headed toward the sect gate. What greeted his eyes was a monkey of modest stature but impressive physical build, its entire body covered in golden fur that gleamed like spears.

Upon seeing Ye Chen and recalling the ruthless reputation he held toward male cultivators, the monkey—despite his usual disdain for humans—clasped his fists in a respectful salute.

"Greetings, heir of the Heavenly Emperor!"

Ye Chen gave a slight nod, signaling him to speak plainly.

The monkey spoke gravely: "The Compliant Golden-Hooped Rod in your possession is a sacred relic of our Victorious Fighting Ape Clan. In the great battle between our clan and the Heavenly Emperor long ago, we were slightly defeated, and the staff was lost deep in the starry void. Now that the successor of the Heavenly Emperor has recovered it, our clan is deeply grateful… The Holy Prince has specially sent me here with the hope of retrieving the Compliant Golden-Hooped Rod!"

Ye Chen nodded once more. The Compliant Golden-Hooped Rod immediately appeared in his hand.

The monkey's eyes instantly blazed with heat.

A supreme Extreme Dao weapon was fundamentally different from ordinary Extreme Dao weapons. Only when its master achieved immortality, imprinting the weapon with the full journey of their cultivation, their insights into the Dao, and their accumulated power, could it undergo the final transformation into a supreme Extreme Dao weapon. And even then, it depended on luck. Some would evolve further into true immortal weapons.

Thus, supreme Extreme Dao weapons were exceedingly rare even among the most ancient immortal families—each one a supreme treasure capable of anchoring an entire clan. Their value was beyond imagination…