Invincible Soul Emperor

Chapter 583: Powerful Enemy

Mu Changfeng could never have imagined that members of the Ten Great Ancient Clans would also participate, joining forces with the four major academies to target a disciple from his very own Central Celestial Academy!

Elder Yang also shook his head. He had gone to the Jiang Ancient Clan, not wanting to burn all bridges with them. He originally thought that even if the Saint Heir was specifically targeting Ye Qingchen, it would at most result in Ye Qingchen’s defeat. But he had never anticipated the inclusion of this life-or-death rule. Considering the Saint Heir’s ruthlessness, he would certainly not spare Ye Qingchen. No wonder that guy had agreed so readily at the time.

Now, the only glimmer of hope for Ye Qingchen was if he actively conceded. However, in the history of the joint assessment of the four major academies, no one had ever conceded. If Ye Qingchen were to do so, he would be forever nailed to the pillar of shame, subjected to the scorn and curses of all disciples, both present and future. Furthermore, based on Elder Yang’s understanding of Ye Qingchen, getting him to concede was simply impossible.

Forget it. I’ll have to swallow my pride and get him out of this Secret Realm, even if it means losing face. I can’t let him die in there, Elder Yang thought. He was so protective of Ye Qingchen not just because of his unparalleled talent, but more importantly, because Ye Qingchen was his disciple.

Despite Elder Yang’s usually lazy and indolent nature, where he seemed uninterested in everything, he felt it was only right and proper to do anything for the people he cared about, especially his disciples!

By now, the first phase of the assessment was gradually drawing to a close. With the Saint Heir’s aid, the two disciples had successfully broken through to the fifth layer of the Martial Emperor realm and grasped Attribute Energy.

But the Saint Heir still wasn’t satisfied. He continued to command Li Rui to reveal all the opportunities within the Secret Realm, aiming to elevate the strength of every disciple entering the finals to the Martial Emperor Realm Fourth Layer!

Meanwhile, after several days of continuous cultivation, although Ye Qingchen’s strength remained at the Eighth Layer of the Martial King Realm, he had successfully advanced the Unnamed Divine Technique by another stage, once again increasing the number of meridians in his body.

Ye Qingchen removed the fourth-grade Spirit Gathering Array from within his body. From the Immortal Array Canon, he selected a fifth-grade Defensive Array, the Mingyuan Refining Heart Array, and began to inscribe it within his body!

Ye Qingchen now knew that hoping for a breakthrough in a short amount of time was futile. With the boost from his Double Pupil Sword, he was not at a disadvantage in terms of offensive power. That was why Ye Qingchen had decided to set up a Defensive Array within himself. This way, when facing a siege, he could focus more of his energy on using his offense to break the stalemate.

Even among fifth-grade formations, this Mingyuan Refining Heart Array was considered one of the best. Not only could it boost his defensive power by more than tenfold, but it could also use the surrounding nature’s spiritual energy to restore his own reserves. Although this recovery was far inferior to a Spirit Gathering Array, it was almost as fast as consuming a fifth-grade Spirit Pill.

However, as powerful as the Mingyuan Refining Heart Array was, the difficulty of setting it up was significantly higher. Even though Ye Qingchen was now a fifth-grade Array Master, inscribing it within one’s own body raised the difficulty to another level.

After a day and night of countless failures, Ye Qingchen finally completed the inscription of the Mingyuan Refining Heart Array. With it in place, he let out a slight sigh of relief. Although he still lacked the confidence to break the stalemate, his chances of victory had at least increased a little.

Ye Qingchen had no idea how much time was left until the finals. He calculated that a month had passed since he entered the Secret Realm, so the finals must be fast approaching. Further cultivation was now meaningless, so Ye Qingchen gave it up and devoted himself entirely to his recovery.

To his surprise, however, while he had been cultivating the Unnamed Divine Technique these past few days, the fourth-grade Spirit Gathering Array inside him had been running nonstop. Because Ye Qingchen was not circulating a cultivation technique, nearly all the spiritual energy absorbed by the array was devoured by the Dual Pupil Martial Soul in his sea of consciousness.

A fourth-grade Spirit Gathering Array could gather a substantial amount of spiritual energy in a month. All of this immense energy being absorbed by the Dual Pupil Martial Soul brought him unexpected benefits.

First, Ye Qingchen’s six senses were enhanced once again. Second, the Dual Pupil Martial Soul itself seemed to have advanced, making the Blood Wheel Eye even more acute. Most importantly, the speed at which the Dual Pupil Martial Soul perfected cultivation techniques and martial techniques had greatly increased.

In just one month, the Divine Wood Technique within Ye Qingchen’s body was nearly perfected, with only the final step remaining.

If I can make it out of here alive, I must first find a way to fully perfect the Divine Wood Technique. When a true Divine Level Cultivation Technique is born, my combat power should increase severalfold!

Ye Qingchen resolved firmly, but he still felt uneasy. Whether he could escape with his life this time remained a complete unknown. He shook his head. He could only take it one step at a time. Casting aside his distracting thoughts, he continued to perfect the Divine Wood Technique within his body.

Another half a month went by. The teams from Pingtian Academy and Dengtian Academy had now appeared on the light screen for the finals.

To everyone’s astonishment, both teams were at full strength, with all ten members present and accounted for.

"These people... they’re so strong!" a disciple from the Central Celestial Academy exclaimed in awe, gulping as he watched the screen.

"Of course they’re strong! Didn’t you notice their cultivation is all at the Martial Emperor Realm Fourth Layer? Any one of them could be a master in their own right, and now they’re all on the same team. How could they not be terrifying?"

"No, wait. Look at that person," someone interrupted with a gasp, pointing at a red-haired youth on the light screen.

This red-haired youth stood out like a crane among chickens, even in a group of cultivators at the Martial Emperor Realm Fourth Layer. The disciples around him were all exceptionally deferential and respectful.

The aura emanating from this young man was particularly striking. It was like a blazing fire that could incinerate all creation, making others shrink back in fear.

"This guy... has he reached the fifth layer of the Martial Emperor realm?" an Inner Court Disciple muttered, his eyes fixed on the red-haired youth.

"The fifth layer of the Martial Emperor realm? How is that possible?"

Hearing this, the crowd erupted in disbelieving cries. It was common knowledge that the fifth layer was a watershed in the Martial Emperor Realm. For someone of this cultivation to fight Martial Artists below it was like an attack from a higher dimension—an utter mismatch!

"I know that guy. It’s Huo Ziyang from Dengtian Academy! His strength is terrifying!"