"After waiting for so many years, you have finally arrived!"
A voice, as if traversing the long river of time, suddenly resounded within the Extinction Emperor Realm, ringing beside Ye Chen's ear, causing his entire being to jolt in shock as he stared in astonishment at the peerless emperor's shadow upon the Most Ancient Ancestral Altar.
Was the Battle Saint Ancestor speaking to him?
Was the peerless and matchless Battle Saint Ancestor still alive?
He felt an irrepressible surge of joy, his voice even trembling slightly: "Saint Ancestor, is it you speaking to this junior?"
Clang—
The Battle Saint Ancestor upon the Most Ancient Ancestral Altar did not reply. Instead, at this very moment, the Divine Stone Coffin suddenly trembled and emitted a strange resonance.
Moreover, without Ye Chen needing to sprinkle his Saint Body's essence blood, the six-layered Samsara coffin lid autonomously opened layer by layer.
Boom—
Accompanied by the most terrifying spread of corpse-tainted black fog that blotted out the sky and earth, annihilating space and time, a withered figure could be seen within. It was the corpse of the Sovereign of Formlessness, tumbling out from the Divine Stone Coffin, its sparse, yellowish hair disheveled. Yet, it lacked the fearsomeness of the past; otherwise, heaven and earth would have long since shattered.
Simultaneously, the Primordial Battle Body Great Halberd appeared beside the Sovereign of Formlessness. Endless golden light continuously poured into the corpse of the Sovereign of Formlessness, making it seem as if it possessed true vitality.
Whoosh—
At this moment, the Sovereign of Formlessness suddenly opened its eyes, shooting forth blazing golden light, an aura capable of shattering heaven and earth spreading from its body.
"Your disciple pays respects to Master!" The Sovereign of Formlessness suddenly half-knelt on the ground, performing a grand bowing ceremony towards the Battle Saint Ancestor upon the Most Ancient Ancestral Altar.
Ye Chen was shocked. The Sovereign of Formlessness had also revived!
The most powerful master-disciple pair of the Battle Saint lineage had suddenly both revived, causing waves of emotion in Ye Chen's heart no less intense than witnessing the birth of a true Mythical Emperor.
Because the master and disciple before him could almost be hailed as the most powerful pair throughout ancient and modern times.
The Battle Saint Ancestor had slain Emperors, standing alongside the Heavenly Emperor, Tai Sheng Huang, the Space-Time Great Emperor, and others as the most powerful Emperors. The Sovereign of Formlessness was hailed as the King of Sovereigns, a peerless powerhouse who, though not an Emperor, could battle Emperors.
For such an invincible master-disciple pair to revive was undoubtedly an earth-shattering event for the myriad realms of the cosmos.
Upon the Most Ancient Ancestral Altar, the peerless and matchless Battle Saint Ancestor was completely submerged within endless golden light and chaotic mist, his true visage unclear. Only a long, drawn-out sigh was transmitted: "It is you, yet it is not you. What a pity!"
Ye Chen, standing to the side, quickly understood. The true Sovereign of Formlessness had long since fallen. The current Sovereign of Formlessness was merely the Divine Spirit of the Primordial Battle Body Great Halberd taking possession of the corpse, performing the rites in its stead.
The Divine Spirit of the Primordial Battle Body Great Halberd was identical to the Sovereign of Formlessness and had followed him closely for years in the past, essentially acting as another disciple of the Battle Saint Ancestor. Calling himself a disciple was not at all inappropriate.
So, the Battle Saint Ancestor had been waiting for the Sovereign of Formlessness, not him. Ye Chen finally understood.
But was the Battle Saint Ancestor truly still alive? Otherwise, how could he speak?
"Saint Ancestor Master, you are supreme and unparalleled. Please save the Master, revive him!" The Heavenly Desolation Divine Spirit spoke, beseeching the Battle Saint Ancestor to act and revive the Sovereign of Formlessness.
Because in his impression, the Battle Saint Ancestor was supreme and unparalleled, surely possessing heaven-defying means capable of reviving even his master, the Sovereign of Formlessness.
"Alas—"
Only a sigh came from the Most Ancient Ancestral Altar: "I am him, yet I am not him. How can I revive the Formless One?"
The figure upon the Most Ancient Ancestral Altar was not the Battle Saint Ancestor's true self. The true Battle Saint Ancestor might have fallen during that encirclement and slaughter by the five Emperor-realm Supreme Ones, or perhaps he had not fallen. Because the Battle Saint Ancestor was so powerful, having slain Emperors, even the supreme Primordial Ancestor of the alien races was extremely wary of him. Perhaps he had not perished.
Yet the one seated upon the emperor's throne of the Ancestral Altar now might merely be an imprint, or perhaps a projection left behind here after traversing time and space.
Exactly like Tai Sheng Huang of the past.
The true Battle Saint Ancestor was long gone!
"My existence was intentional on the part of my true self, leaving me here to wait, to guard, awaiting your arrival, to deliver a supreme treasure to the Formless One. Perhaps it can give him hope of revival," the Battle Saint Ancestor spoke.
Ye Chen was shaken. A supreme treasure that could revive the Sovereign of Formlessness? Could it be the true Immortal Spring?
Legend had it that the true Immortal Spring possessed the heaven-defying divine effect of reviving even a wisp of true spirit.
Although Ye Chen greatly desired to obtain the Immortal Spring to fully revive Yu Qing, he stopped himself.
Leaving aside the fact that he could not possibly be a match for the Battle Saint Ancestor—such a peerless Emperor could crush him thousands upon thousands of times with a single finger—what was more important was that the Sovereign of Formlessness was the hope of the Sealed Realm Cosmos and also the ancestor of the Battle Saint lineage. No matter what, as the inheritor of this lineage, he could not possibly contend for it.
Moreover, the hope of reviving Yu Qing was not limited to this one. Because Yu Qing's true spirit had not been completely extinguished, he could grow stronger, continuously surpass himself, and one day ascend to the Emperor realm, fully reviving Yu Qing.
Boom—
Suddenly, Ye Chen saw immeasurable golden light continuously pouring from the Ancestral Altar into the corpse of the Sovereign of Formlessness. A voice slowly resounded: "Formless One, your master can only help you this far. The rest depends on yourself."
"Success or failure, it all rests on you."
Boom—
Ye Chen only felt as if a ball of dawn light had appeared there, its brilliant radiance stretching for billions of zhang, countless times more dazzling than the sun. Moreover, within it appeared a terrifyingly vast and boundless power, so immense it was indescribable. It felt as if even the entire power of the Ancient Orchid Great World would be but a drop in the ocean in comparison.
"What is that?" Ye Chen was utterly shocked. Even with the Human Sovereign Pagoda reviving to protect him, he still felt a terrifying sense of heart-palpitating fear, as if his very flesh was about to shatter.
But before Ye Chen could see it clearly, that mysterious ball of dawn light completely submerged into the corpse of the Sovereign of Formlessness.
Ye Chen was astonished. What had the Battle Saint Ancestor just infused into the Sovereign of Formlessness's body? Why did he feel that ball of dawn light contained the myriad Daos of the heavens and possessed energy so vast it surpassed imagination?
Could this be the true Immortal Spring?
Boom—
The corpse of the Sovereign of Formlessness began to rapidly fill out with flesh and blood at this moment, no longer withered like tree bark. Even its black, white, and yellowish hair turned back to jet-black and thick. One could see how truly heroic and peerless the real Sovereign of Formlessness was, possessing a supreme emperor's bearing, ruling over myriad realms, matchless for his generation.
Compared to before, the Sovereign of Formlessness now seemed to possess a certain vitality.
Yet, that was all. The Sovereign of Formlessness had not truly revived. Only his flesh had returned to its former state, his matchless Saint Body truly revived, but his divine soul was absent.
Even so, the Heavenly Desolation Divine Spirit saw hope of revival and immediately said excitedly, "Many thanks, Saint Ancestor Master, for acting. There is hope for the Master's revival."
"For the Formless One, your master cannot help much, only bestow a thread of vitality. If there is an opportunity in the future, go to the Primordial Immortal Realm. There lies the true hope of reviving the Formless One," the Battle Saint Ancestor spoke.
The Heavenly Desolation Divine Spirit nodded, and the corpse of the Sovereign of Formlessness returned to the Divine Stone Coffin, the layers overlapping one after another before submerging into Ye Chen's body.
Only the Divine Spirit of the Primordial Battle Body Great Halberd appeared, identical to the Sovereign of Formlessness, bowing respectfully to the emperor's shadow upon the Ancestral Altar: "Many thanks, Saint Ancestor Master, for acting."
The Battle Saint Ancestor upon the Ancestral Altar nodded slightly. Then, he suddenly looked towards Ye Chen, or more accurately, towards the revived Human Sovereign Pagoda above his head. After gazing for a long while, he spoke with a hint of complexity: "I never thought I would see you once more. How is your master?"
The Battle Saint Ancestor's sudden words caused Ye Chen's entire body to tremble as he stared in shock at the Human Sovereign Pagoda.
Wasn't the Human Sovereign from the Myriad Domains Era? Why did the Battle Saint Ancestor seem to have seen the Human Sovereign before?
"Cycle after cycle of Samsara, protecting all living beings. Your master has suffered," the Battle Saint Ancestor sighed softly, revealing a terrifying great secret that would shock the vast expanse of eternity.
What?
The Human Sovereign was continuously undergoing Samsara reincarnation?
What did this mean?
Undoubtedly, all of this would ultimately overturn Ye Chen's understanding of the Human Sovereign.
All along, he had believed that the Human Sovereign, as the Supreme One of the Myriad Domains, was a peerless genius who emerged victorious from the Human Sovereign competition held every hundred thousand years.
The so-called Human Sovereign was not a true Emperor, but rather an emperor's throne of the myriad realms, a qualification. Once one ascended that throne and obtained the Human Sovereign's fruit of position, they would become the peerless Supreme One of the myriad realms, gaining the qualification to look down upon all heavens, mastering the Dao power of the myriad realms, approaching infinitely close to the Emperor realm, even capable of battling Emperors, possessing the greatest authority within the myriad realms.
But now, it seemed all his understanding might be wrong.
Ye Chen now recalled that he remembered within the Immortal Heavenly Pass leading to the Purple Mansion Sacred Ground, the suspected Emperor within the pass had also spoken, mentioning similar words—the Human Sovereign undergoing cycle after cycle of Samsara.
At the time, he hadn't paid much attention, but now that the Battle Saint Ancestor brought it up again, he had to take notice.
What exactly did all of this signify?
If the Human Sovereign was truly a single person reincarnating cycle after cycle, then what exactly did the so-called Human Sovereign competition represent? What became of those ultimate victors, the strongest geniuses in history?
Thinking one layer deeper, Ye Chen felt his scalp go numb, not daring to ponder further.
"Saint Ancestor, please explain to this junior, who exactly is the Human Sovereign?" Ye Chen immediately performed a grand bow and asked.
He wanted to know, what exactly did the true Human Sovereign refer to?
The Battle Saint Ancestor looked at Ye Chen, not answering but asking in return: "You, what do you think the Human Sovereign is?"
Ye Chen was immediately tongue-tied. He knew his own thoughts, and likely the thoughts of all living beings in the myriad realms, their understanding of the Human Sovereign was probably all wrong.
The Battle Saint Ancestor's gaze fell upon the Human Sovereign Pagoda once more, slowly saying: "The Human Sovereign is the Human Sovereign. He is not anyone, and no one is him, yet he is also anyone. Because he represents all living beings, represents all sentient beings. Or perhaps it can be said, he is—"
"All Living Beings!"