"That is—"
Ye Chen was utterly astonished. At the very end of the vast Divine Realm, his Heaven's Gaze opened, witnessing a scene at the extreme distance that shook him to his core.
There stood an ancient, majestic pass, pitch-black and towering beyond reach, soaring into the boundless clouds. Its entirety could not be seen, its grandeur indescribable; even the myriad stars of the heavens seemed minuscule before it.
A Heavenly Pass—another Immortal Heavenly Pass—was actually located at the extreme edge of the Ancient Emperor Realm's Divine Realm.
Legend had it that there were nine Heavenly Passes, each one different.
Like the previous Immortal Heavenly Pass connected to the Purple Mansion Sacred Land, believed to lead to the Primordial Immortal Realm.
Where did this Immortal Heavenly Pass lead?
And that was not all. What was even more shocking was that Ye Chen saw a massive ancient gate, standing before the Immortal Heavenly Pass.
This caused him to reveal a look of complete shock, for this ancient gate was very familiar. He had seen it before—on the murals within the Dark Night Ancient Hall.
In the Mythical Era, when the Sun Sovereign and the Dark Night Sovereign fell, their master, the Great Saint Sovereign, carried the two sovereigns along the River of Time. The ancient gate at the very end of that journey was this very gate, identical to the one in the mural.
Why did it appear there? Only the ancient gate itself held the answer, with a massive Yin-Yang Taiji Diagram manifesting upon it, connecting the Eight Trigrams and the cosmos, as if sealing this gate shut.
In truth, Ye Chen only had time to glimpse this scene before that massive hand of laws pressed down, instantly shattering his Supreme One's Dao Body into nothingness!
The Divine Realm's gate of light transformed into a brilliant divine radiance that scattered throughout the great world, and the power of the Great Dao's rules vanished as well.
Only Ye Chen remained, standing dazedly in that expanse of starry sky, for everything he had witnessed was far too unbelievable.
The appearance of the Immortal Heavenly Pass, the existence of the mysterious ancient gate, the ominous aura of the Divine Realm, the permeating scent of blood...
All of this seemed to portend something, causing Ye Chen's heart to pound anxiously. He had a bad premonition and strongly suspected that the chessboard of heaven and earth within the Ancient Emperor Realm was likely related to the Immortal Heavenly Pass and the ancient gate.
What truly lay on the other side of the Immortal Heavenly Pass and the ancient gate? This question plunged Ye Chen into deep thought.
Boom—
Suddenly, Ye Chen felt a chilling sense of dread. Without a second thought, he instantly shifted tens of thousands of li away, moving at extreme speed.
Yet, a spray of golden blood still splattered out. A wound had been carved into his left leg.
A Heaven's Avatar had appeared—the third Heaven's Avatar, possessing peerless grace, holding a divine sword. It was this very sword that had managed to cut Ye Chen's unparalleled physical body.
The wound was not deep, but it proved the terrifying nature of the Heaven's Avatar. After all, he possessed a Great Power-level physical body, further protected by the Law Shackles Battle Armor. Theoretically, even a Samsara-level Supreme Expert would find it difficult to harm his invincible physique.
The Nine Heaven's Avatars were merely the final tribulation of the Saint Vault Great Tribulation he had not fully overcome before. No matter how strong, they should only be comparable to Saint Lords and shouldn't be able to harm his body.
But the facts proved otherwise, making Ye Chen frown. He sensed that this Saint Vault Great Tribulation was extremely extraordinary. Perhaps the heavens had perceived his true realm and made corresponding adjustments.
Sure enough, after Ye Chen quickly suppressed his realm back to the Saint Treasury Realm, the power of the Heaven's Avatar weakened significantly, returning to normal levels and finding it difficult to harm his Saint Body.
The great tribulation rumbled. All nine Heaven's Avatars had appeared, and the most mysterious tenth Heaven's Avatar also manifested within the thunderbolt gate of light. Its entire body shone brilliantly, draped in an immortal aura of immortality, its true visage unclear.
Boom—
Ye Chen took action, engaging in a world-shaking battle with the nine Heaven's Avatars, erupting within the endless sea of tribulation light and thunder.
Boundless thunderbolts flew and splashed, wave after wave, pouring endlessly into the starry sky. The terrifying heavenly might caused many stars to suffer, turning to dust.
Throughout this battle, Ye Chen cast aside all other thoughts, fighting with utter disregard for life and death. Alone, he battled the nine Heaven's Avatars, each one absolutely peerless and invincible, equal to the Great Emperors of antiquity in their youth.
One such being was already invincible, let alone nine appearing together. How could they be matched?
For now, Ye Chen relied on his sufficiently invincible Great Power-level physical body and the Law Shackles Battle Armor to fight them in a somewhat 'cheating' manner.
Boom—
Golden light erupted. Ye Chen's body was shattered to pieces. Even a Great Power-level Saint Body was not enough; even with the Law Shackles Battle Armor, it was futile.
The nine Heaven's Avatars were ultimately too powerful. Combined, they possessed the divine might to slay immortals and kill gods.
Moreover, it was evident that all nine Heaven's Avatars had grown much stronger. Their auras were, at the very least, at the level of Supreme Experts.
And the most mysterious tenth Heaven's Avatar had not moved at all, remaining steadfastly atop the thunderbolt gate of light, its body wreathed in immortal aura, making Ye Chen particularly wary.
"To have reached this step..." Ye Chen coughed up blood incessantly, his golden blood dyeing the battle armor before him golden. He was trapped, his body shattered twice, narrowly escaping death several times. This was a difficult heavenly tribulation.
Then, he spotted Shen Rong in the distant sky and grinned, revealing his teeth: "Fellow Daoist Shen Rong, do you still wish to continue the fight? These are Heaven's Avatars, as powerful as the Mythical Emperors and Sovereigns in their youth. Aren't you convinced of your own invincibility? Why not come and fight alongside me?"
He then looked toward Imperial Wuming in the distant sky and also smiled: "Fellow Daoist Wuming, this is an excellent opportunity, a great chance to verify your own invincibility. One doesn't encounter many battles against peers of this level in a lifetime."
Although he clearly knew Ye Chen was trying to lure them over to share part of the pressure, Shen Rong was the most arrogant, believing himself inferior to no one. He strode forward, sweeping his hand out with domineering force to intercept three of the Heaven's Avatars.
Imperial Wuming also stepped out, his body surrounded by one hundred and eight divine halos, appearing supremely divine and holy, with an aura of transcendence as if an Immortal King had descended to the mortal world. He smiled faintly: "Since the Battle Saint King has issued the invitation, it would be impolite for this Emperor to refuse."
"Young Ancestor!"
The four ancient recluses exclaimed in shock, wanting to stop Imperial Wuming. That great tribulation was too terrifying, beyond imagination. They feared Imperial Wuming would also face danger.
"It's fine. This is an opportunity to verify my own invincibility, something one rarely encounters in a lifetime. Moreover, I firmly believe in my own invincibility. Why should I be afraid?"
Boom—
He transformed into a blazing immortal light and likewise charged into Ye Chen's Tenth Heaven Supreme Saint Vault Great Tribulation, confronting the Heaven's Avatars.
The entry of the two Imperial Sons into the battle greatly reduced Ye Chen's crisis, allowing him to catch his breath. Within the sea of tribulation light and thunder, he began to repair himself, reassembling his physical body.
And at this moment, his flesh and blood began to glow. Endless remnants of laws and Heavenly King laws surged forth. He intended to seize this moment to charge forward, break through the law shackles, completely restore his invincible body, advance further on the path of cultivation, and forge his invincible Dao.