Ye Chen nodded, with Yiyi and the Golden Little Divine Dragon both perched on his shoulders, and strode inside.
Upon truly entering the city, he discovered that the interior was vast and magnificent. Although there were many buildings, even more were vast stretches of primordial ancient lands, densely covered with forests and mountains. It did not resemble an ancient city, but rather a magnificent world, vast enough to encompass all rivers and accommodate many living beings.
Between heaven and earth, there were roars of savage beasts and divine birds spreading their wings, their bodies as massive as mountains, the largest even capable of blotting out the sun and sky, casting immense shadows upon the earth. Their bloodlines were powerful, true primordial exotic species.
Among them were quite a few primordial exotic beasts suspected to be extinct in the world, yet they had appeared here now, which was surprising.
There were even tyrannical dinosaurs, giant crocodiles entwined with thunderous tribulation light, and strange flowers whose blooms seemed capable of swallowing the heavens. All sorts of ferocious beasts and exotic birds were roaring and howling, filling the place with an incredibly oppressive aura that made it hard to breathe.
The First Emperor Pass!
It must be said that the Emperor Pass was truly extraordinary, actually containing such a vast world within. Ye Chen even had a feeling that it was more magnificent than his own Gulan Great World, and it contained faint traces of a true supreme aura—an Emperor's aura.
He immediately understood. The First Emperor Pass contained a true great world, and it might even be an Emperor's original ancient realm, combined with the Emperor Pass itself.
Moreover, the First Pass was extraordinary, containing so many terrifying primordial exotic species. He also saw within the world of the Emperor Pass, magnificent celestial palaces floating in the sky, with divine islands stretching continuously, far beyond what one could imagine from the outside.
Here, soldiers wore cold battle armor, wielding great halberds, long spears, war lances, and other weapons. They carried a strong killing intent, guarding the First Emperor Pass. They were not numerous, but they would make even a Heavenly King wary.
Because these soldiers had undoubtedly experienced truly terrifying great battles, having slain countless powerful beings. The aura about them faintly carried a bloody scent that could not be washed away.
Ye Chen slightly furrowed his brow. Although there were many living beings within the world of the First Emperor Pass city, there were not many true powerhouses from various races; most were exotic beasts and divine birds.
Several celestial palaces floated in the distant sky, with powerful figures seated within. But his divine sense was incredibly powerful, and he detected that only a few among them were Heavenly Kings, with the majority below that level.
Could the combat power of the Emperor Pass be only this? Although this was only the First Emperor Pass, if the other Emperor Passes were similar, how could they possibly fight against the alien race?
He had once seen from the River of Time a force of the alien race attempting to invade the Ancient Emperor Realm via the Tongxuan Ancient Gate, and then attack the myriad realms. Their powerhouses were far more formidable.
At this moment, a blurry figure appeared, accompanied by an immortal aura, causing Ye Chen's expression to turn serious.
That was definitely a very powerful existence, an ancient great power. He descended beside Ye Chen and nodded to him: "Battle Saint King, the first supreme genius of this epoch to reach the tenth heaven through his own power. Truly extraordinary. I am the City Lord of the First Emperor Pass."
"Greetings, City Lord," Ye Chen spoke, very politely cupping his fists in salute.
The two little beasts on his shoulders were not afraid of strangers at all, curiously sizing up the City Lord of the First Emperor Pass before them, both blinking their big eyes.
The City Lord of the First Emperor Pass also looked at the Golden Little Divine Dragon on Ye Chen's shoulder, his eyes flickering rapidly a few times as he said softly, "A pure-blooded true dragon, seen again. Future achievements will be extraordinary."
He then looked at Yiyi on the other side. Suddenly, his eyes blazed many times brighter, as if two golden lamps were blazing, yet they were also filled with shock, as if he had seen something unbelievable.
Seeing this, Ye Chen's heart gave a violent thump. Could the City Lord of the First Emperor Pass know of Yiyi's origins?
"Senior City Lord, do you know of its origins?" Ye Chen inquired.
Yiyi on his shoulder was also filled with curiosity, for it too was curious about its own true origins.
The City Lord of the First Emperor Pass stared intently at Yiyi for a long time before letting out a soft sigh: "Very similar, but I cannot confirm if it is."
Ye Chen cupped his fists: "I ask Senior City Lord to please inform me."
The City Lord of the First Emperor Pass said: "I am not too clear either. I once saw related ruins at the Tenth Emperor Pass. During the great battle of the Mythical Era's destruction, a similar race helped our Ancient Universe take action. They were heaven-defying existences, originating from the Chaos Sea. I just don't know if it has any relation to this little beast."
The Tenth Emperor Pass?
Ye Chen silently remembered this.
Immediately, Ye Chen cupped his fists towards the City Lord of the First Emperor Pass and said: "Senior City Lord, this junior still needs to proceed to the Tenth Emperor Pass. I shall take my leave now and visit again another day!"
After speaking, he turned to leave, but was stopped by the City Lord of the First Emperor Pass, who said: "The journey from here to the Tenth Emperor Pass is very far, even more distant than ten great domains in the myriad realms. Follow me, I will open a transmission gate for you that can directly send you to the Tenth Emperor Pass."
Ye Chen sincerely expressed his gratitude: "Thank you!"
Following the City Lord, Ye Chen arrived at the city wall. There stood a massive gate as ancient as the one in the Human Sovereign City. The City Lord opened the ancient gate using a special method. Surging immortal light flashed, followed by a loud boom, opening a path to the Tenth Emperor Pass.
While heading towards the Tenth Emperor Pass, Ye Chen saw many streams of light and glimpses of massive, indescribably grand passes standing within the chaotic territory. Those were the Tenfold Emperor Passes, each one incomparably huge, no less than the First Emperor Pass and not inferior to the Human Sovereign City.
The Tenth Emperor Pass, eternal and everlasting, stood at the most remote borderland of the Ancient Universe. Throughout the ages, it had guarded the defensive line of this Ancient Universe, defending against the invasion of the alien race's armies.
A stream of light flashed, and Ye Chen, Yiyi, and the Golden Little Divine Dragon all appeared within the Tenth Emperor Pass. They looked up at the Tenth Emperor Pass standing before them, so tall that its massive walls directly merged into the deepest reaches of the starry sky, immense and towering beyond description.
Compared to the Tenth Emperor Pass, even a starry sky behemoth would be as insignificant as a speck of dust, completely incomparable.
It could be seen that the materials used to construct the Tenth Emperor Pass were, at the very least, stars from the myriad realms. Ye Chen even saw some white materials among them, mottled yet special, sturdy and immortal.
Upon closer inspection, they were actually mixed with the immortal bones of some supreme living beings, intermingled with star remnants, piled together to build such a supreme Emperor Pass.
"This feeling again."
Ye Chen frowned. On the Tenth Emperor Pass, he sensed the same aura as the Human Sovereign City and the Immortal Heavenly Pass—eternal and everlasting.
The City Lord of the First Emperor Pass spoke: "Battle Saint King, you should have been to the Human Sovereign City and seen the Immortal Heavenly Pass, right? That's correct. There are nine Heavenly Passes, each different. One of the Immortal Heavenly Passes actually refers to the Tenth Emperor Pass."
Ye Chen's face revealed astonishment. The Tenth Emperor Pass was actually the Immortal Heavenly Pass!