Tian Du City, as its name implied, was the primary and central capital of the entire Tian Du Continent. It was also the location where the cultivation holy land, Tian Du Academy, was entrenched, making it one of the most prosperous metropolises on the entire continent. Even the imperial capitals of the three great empires were slightly inferior.
However, this did not mean the other imperial capitals were lacking. It was simply that Tian Du City was a special existence. It was a city personally established by the first-generation Divine Spirit, the Great Sage of Tian Du. Occupying the best region of the Tian Du Continent, and with cultivation holy lands like Tian Du Academy concentrating their power here—even important forces from several super factions were stationed within Tian Du City—it naturally appeared exceptionally prosperous.
This first capital with millennia of history stood upon the ancestral vein of the central region. Abundant heaven and earth spiritual energy faintly emanated from it. From afar, one could see an extraordinary aura manifesting and being born.
Great fortune pierced the heavens. True Dragons and Phoenixes danced, immortal spirits soared—everything appeared so extraordinary.
Standing atop the demonic flood dragon's head, Ye Chen gazed into the distance at this massive, ancient city. It was majestic and immense. Its gray-black city walls stood a hundred zhang high, as if thrusting into the clouds. Countless mottled scars, left behind by numerous great battles throughout history and the passage of time, spoke of its vicissitudes.
To this day, this ancient city with a history of tens of thousands of years still stood at the very heart of the central region, emanating a vast, heavy, and primeval aura. It was like a legendary mythical True Dragon lying dormant here. The intangible aura it radiated could make many cultivators feel a sense of oppression.
For this was a super metropolis personally established by the first-generation Divine Spirit, the Great Sage of Tian Du. Moreover, several Supreme Divine Spirits throughout history had successively resided here, imbuing it with a special divine spiritual charm. This led to its eternal indestructibility, with a startling aura swirling and surging within.
Ye Chen's eyes shone brilliantly, his vision astonishing. He could even see from afar that the void around Tian Du City was imprinted with countless array patterns and Dao marks, bearing various divine imprints. These were the Dao marks and array patterns left in the void above Tian Du City by one Divine Spirit after another, continuously reinforcing the sturdiness of this most legendary metropolis.
Some were recently laid down, others brimmed with ancient aura. They were dense and intricate, infinitely profound, connecting heaven and earth.
Once activated, they would unleash a terrifying, boundless divine power. Even a peak Divine Spirit would find it difficult to truly conquer this place.
"Truly worthy of being the first sacred city of the Tian Du Continent. It is indeed extraordinary."
Ye Chen marveled. The cultivation holy land, Tian Du Academy, was indeed incredibly powerful. As the seat of a super faction, it had Divine Spirit realm grand arrays imprinted in the void for protection, capable of displaying a world-shaking divine might.
He speculated that this was probably also connected to the future Slaying the Heavens War.
The tall, heavy city gates stood wide open. Cultivators from all over the world entered the city one after another. Streams of light also flew from the sky into the city—these were powerful cultivators arriving, including elders and even leaders of major factions.
These powerful individuals either rode jade carriages, sat atop exotic beast mounts, controlled formidable magical artifacts, or tread upon divine light. Each displayed their imposing might, traversing the sky like deities in the mortal world.
However, once they entered the city, they all restrained themselves considerably, subdued by Tian Du City's imposing aura, not daring to act recklessly.
Ye Chen had the demonic flood dragon shrink to the size of a small worm and hid it within his hair.
He was far too famous now. In just a few short days, he had successively slain so many experts from the Tianqi Empire, even including a peak Martial God. His achievements were too glorious, unprecedented. His limelight was currently unrivaled.
And the demonic flood dragon, as his spirit pet, was undoubtedly the best identifying mark. It would be recognized, and that would inevitably bring him a lot of trouble.
He walked slowly into the city. The streets were bustling with prosperity. Cultivators came and went, and ordinary mortals also lingered.
Luxurious taverns were established along the streets to host and entertain cultivators from various places. Gambling dens, auction houses—everything one could imagine was present, displaying a vibrant vitality. It was a manifestation of the combined world of cultivators and mortals.
This was Ye Chen's first time in Tian Du City. Although he had anticipated it, the scale of this first sacred city was even more massive than he had imagined.
Moreover, he faintly sensed that many powerful auras were hidden in the shadows. It could truly be called a place where tigers crouch and dragons hide.
After wandering for half a day, Ye Chen had gained a certain level of understanding of Tian Du City. He then asked a passerby for directions. Under the passerby's astonished gaze, he learned the direction to Tian Du Academy.
As the continent's acknowledged cultivation holy land, Tian Du Academy's situation was similar to that of Xia Feng Academy within Xia Feng Kingdom. Within the vast Tian Du City, it occupied a remarkably large area—one-fifth of the entire city.
One must understand how enormous Tian Du City was, spanning a thousand li, nestled against mountains and rivers. Yet Tian Du Academy also occupied one-fifth of it. One could imagine the immense wealth and power of this cultivation holy land, perhaps also due to its Academy Head being a Supreme Divine Spirit.
Not long after, Ye Chen arrived at the location of Tian Du Academy. Upon first arriving here and seeing the majestic Tian Du Academy, he couldn't help but marvel again.
Truly a cultivation holy land. In his pupils, brilliant golden holy flames burned, allowing him to see numerous majestic and powerful auras rising within the academy. Those were at least Martial God realm experts, densely packed.
There were also powerful Heavenly God realm auras, with terrifying blood energy churning deep within. All of this was invisible to the naked eye, only discernible by opening one's divine vision. All of this indicated the profound foundation and strength within Tian Du Academy.
The academy's main gate flowed with ancient Dao charm, carrying the flavor of ages. Many young people lingered here, gazing at this majestic and grand cultivation holy land with immense longing.
For this was the gathering place for almost all the geniuses of the entire Tian Du Continent, the acknowledged cultivation holy land. Every student who graduated was an elite of the Tian Du Continent. The proud sons of some factions were one thing, but those without faction backing became figures various forces vied to recruit.
It could be said that anyone who walked out of Tian Du Academy was a true elite talent, representing limitless future prospects.
Here, over one-third of the continent's Martial Gods and one-quarter of its Heavenly Gods had been born. It could be called a cradle of powerhouses.
Unfortunately, the strict enrollment trial system blocked over ninety-five percent of the younger generation from joining the academy. Those who could become students of Tian Du Academy were each elites among elites of their generation, not ordinary individuals who could enter.
This also caused many young people to only be able to linger at the gate, unable to enter, looking at those students wearing Tian Du Academy's splendid uniforms with envy.
As for the students of Tian Du Academy, each was filled with pride, qualified to look down upon other youths.
Ye Chen strode forward and was immediately stopped by several imposing and powerful gatekeepers. They were at least Xiantian realm experts, yet in Tian Du Academy, they only qualified to be gatekeepers. This was a manifestation of a super faction's profound foundation.
"Non-academy personnel, please halt!"
Only when he took out a paper letter did these gatekeepers immediately step aside. Moreover, they bowed respectfully with clasped hands, stunning many onlookers.
Because ordinary students were not worthy of such a respectful bow from the gatekeepers. Only a very few students had the qualification for this—they were elite disciples from the highest-level Heaven-tier Academy within Tian Du Academy.
Could it be that this youth who looked only seventeen or eighteen years old was also an elite disciple from one of those high-tier academies?
"Hmm, this youth looks very familiar, as if I've seen him somewhere, but I can't remember where," someone frowned and muttered to themselves, feeling that this youth seemed very familiar.
"You think so too? I thought I was the only one."
"Just who is this kid?"
"I haven't heard of any young big shot in the academy being the only one like this."
Many people at the gate appeared puzzled and suspicious, but none recognized him as the young great demon king Ye Chen who had been making waves these past few days.
Ye Chen put away the paper letter. This was given to him by the Tian Du Academy reception envoy before he left last time—it was a token. As long as he held this paper letter, the gatekeepers would let him pass, not daring to obstruct him.
On the paper letter was a seal stamp. On it was a golden character for "Heaven," flowing with a noble and imposing charm.
That was the unique seal of the Heaven-tier Academy. Only the most elite of the Heaven-tier Academy had the qualification to possess this seal.
Without a doubt, Ye Chen was an elite disciple of the Heaven-tier Academy. Even without the Heaven-tier Academy uniform, this was sufficient to prove it. No one dared to impersonate a Heaven-tier Academy disciple identity. Once discovered, even if from a major faction, they would be hunted down.
Ye Chen entered Tian Du Academy with the paper letter. Entering this cultivation holy land for the first time, he could see numerous majestic and massive halls situated in continuous groups, with estates spread out in clusters.
There were also many mountain forests stretching continuously. The heaven and earth spiritual energy was abundant and surging, far surpassing other places.
He even saw spirit deer galloping, immortal cranes dancing, spirit birds soaring high, flowing with radiant light.
He strode towards the depths of the academy, seeking the location of the Heaven-tier Academy.
However, after wandering for a full half day, Ye Chen suddenly discovered somewhat awkwardly that he was actually lost. He simply didn't know the direction to the Heaven-tier Academy. Moreover, Tian Du Academy was too vast; it was difficult to find it in a short time.
He very much wanted to cover the entire academy with his divine sense, but Tian Du Academy was no ordinary academy. It was a place where tigers crouched and dragons hid, concealing many ancient recluses who rarely appeared. If he used his divine sense to cover the area, he would definitely alert these people and cause a lot of trouble.
Therefore, he could only wander blindly through the academy in search.
By midday, Ye Chen still had found nothing. Even when he asked some students along the way, they all looked at him in astonishment but did not answer.
Helpless, Ye Chen finally found a tavern within the academy, sat down, and ordered some food and drink.
Taverns were always the places where news spread most quickly, even within Tian Du Academy. Students coming to dine were discussing recent news.
Ye Chen ate alone, but his ears listened in all directions, gathering information from various sources.
"Big news, big news! Someone is going to challenge the Trial Gate!" A piece of news quickly spread through the tavern.
However, most people didn't pay much attention. Someone said impatiently, "What kind of big news is that? The Trial Gate basically has challengers every day. And isn't today the collective test for those new students? It happens every year. What's so interesting about it?"
The person spreading the news said, "This time is different. Because it's said that several Ancient Talents from the super factions have come specifically to test the Trial Gate. There's even a rumor that these Ancient Talents intend to push open the final layer of the Trial Gate."
"What? Is that true? Then that's really worth watching."
Instantly, the tavern emptied. Everyone rushed towards the direction of the Trial Gate.
Even Ye Chen stood up and strode over. Because he also had a deep interest in this Trial Gate.