The sealed cultivation retreat was actually a small world that had been opened up, spanning a thousand miles in radius. Verdant mountains and clear waters created an atmosphere of tranquility.
The spiritual energy here was exceptionally rich, surpassing the outside world by a thousandfold.
Naturally, Ye Chen paid no mind to this spiritual energy. He turned to Yaya and said, "Yaya, enter my body."
He opened up his Origin Mini-Universe. Yaya's eyes widened as she sensed the shift and change in space-time, exclaiming in surprise, "Dad, is this a universe?"
As a World Tree, she herself had condensed a true Origin World and was naturally more familiar with all worlds and heavens and earth. But the world within Ye Chen's body was far more complex and profound, autonomously giving rise to myriad realms and billions of stars... Everything about it surpassed ordinary worlds and heavens and earth; even the Origin Emperor Realm and the Immortal Realm were far from comparable.
It was as if it were a small-scale universe.
Ye Chen smiled. "Yes, this is my Origin Universe, a universe I was fortunate enough to open up."
Yaya was both shocked and delighted. As a World Tree who had also received the World Tree legacy left by the Space-Time Emperor of the Tenth Emperor Pass World Tower, she naturally understood some things.
One of the supreme giants of the Chaos Sea had become the most powerful giant throughout the epochs of the Chaos Sea precisely because he controlled a Chaos Ancient Universe.
If Dad's Origin Universe grew to its limit, wouldn't it also become a Chaos Ancient Universe? And Dad, as the master of the universe, wouldn't he then be...
The more she thought about it, the more excited she became.
Whoosh—
Yaya entered Ye Chen's body, sensing a familiar, connected aura through their bloodline. She traveled all the way to the center of the mini-universe, where a towering tree swayed with radiance, surrounded by countless miniature worlds and heavens and earth within the mini-universe. Sand-grain-sized stars hung like the center of the cosmos.
"A World Tree!"
Yaya was shocked and delighted once more, never expecting to encounter another World Tree here.
However, she soon grew sorrowful, sensing that the spirituality of this World Tree was nearly completely extinguished. If not for the continuous nourishment of Cosmic Power and the infusion of Chaos Ancient Qi, it would likely have fallen into complete spiritual extinction, hovering between life and death.
Ye Chen's consciousness appeared and said, "This is an ancient coffin I was fortunate enough to obtain back then—a World Tree Burial Coffin that once buried a supreme sovereign. Unfortunately, when I found it, although this World Tree's true spirit hadn't been completely annihilated, only a trace remained."
Yaya nodded, her gaze quickly turning resolute. "If we meet Grandpa Space-Time in the future, he will definitely be able to revive our clansman."
Ye Chen nodded. He never doubted the heaven-defying methods of the Space-Time Emperor.
"As fellow World Trees, this might be an opportunity for you. Contemplate it well. I'm going into seclusion now."
Leaving Yaya at the center of the Origin Universe, Ye Chen's consciousness dispersed and returned to the outside world.
He sat cross-legged in meditation and murmured softly to himself, "Right now, the Emperor's reincarnation body is in seclusion within the Emperor Star Secret Realm, refining the Emperor Star. It won't be able to come for several decades. For now, I can only rely on my true self."
"The Soul-Restraining Hall suffered a crushing defeat at my hands this time. The Third Hall Master of the Earth Hall had his physical body destroyed and his divine soul suppressed by me. The Second Hall Master of the Earth Hall's Origin World Heaven and Earth was also shattered, dashing his hopes of advancing to Ancient Monarch. This is a heavy blow to the Soul-Restraining Hall. Given their vindictive nature, they definitely won't let me off."
"Because the Ancient Monarchs of the Ultimate Ancient Path are watching, it's unlikely the Soul-Restraining Hall will dispatch an Ancient Monarch. Moreover, doing so would have far-reaching consequences. But below the Ancient Monarch level, it's highly likely to be the First Hall Master of the Earth Hall."
"The First Hall Master of the Earth Hall is a true Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch, not someone Lei Long could compare to."
"Quasi-Monarchs are divided into five levels: Initial, Middle, Late, Great Perfection, and Heaven-Defying. Each level is practically a world of its own. The gap between the Great Perfection level and the Heaven-Defying level is the greatest. A Great Perfection Quasi-Monarch typically masters around a hundred Monarch Rules, but a Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch can master over five hundred. Moreover, their Origin Heaven and Earth can completely transform into an Origin World, undergoing reconstruction by the power of the Origin World. Their physical bodies become so powerful they are not inferior to some Ancient Monarchs. They are only somewhat lacking in Monarch Dao Principles compared to Ancient Monarchs. But in a sense, a Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch is what truly qualifies as a Quasi-Monarch—an Ancient Monarch just a step away!"
"With my current strength, although I've mastered three hundred Monarch Rules, there's still a gap compared to the minimum five hundred Monarch Rules of a Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch. Furthermore, whether in terms of physical body or Origin World, a Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch is on par with the Ancient Monarch level."
"My Chaos Saint Body can now rival an Ancient Monarch's physique, but my Origin Universe is still in its initial stages of evolution. Even though it has improved significantly and can mobilize stronger Cosmic Power, it still lags behind the Monarch Origin Worlds that span hundreds of millions of miles."
"Whether in terms of Monarch Dao Principles or the power of the Origin World Heaven and Earth, I fall short compared to a Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch."
"Unless I also increase the number of my Monarch Rules to a comparable level, the likelihood of defeat is high the next time I face the First Hall Master of the Earth Hall."
Ye Chen murmured to himself, calculating the difference between himself and a Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch. He realized that although the gap seemed to lie only in the number of Monarch Rules and the Origin World, even disregarding the nearly twofold difference in Monarch Rules, the opponent's complete Origin World alone could mobilize enough World Power to double their strength, equivalent to the power of a thousand Monarch Rules.
At present, the Origin Cosmic Power Ye Chen could mobilize could only enhance his strength by about a hundred Monarch Rules' worth.
Because the Chaos Mini-Universe was in its growth phase, its volume was only a tiny fraction of a Monarch Origin World. If not for the special nature of Cosmic Power, it wouldn't be able to provide such an enhancement.
Of course, this was also the portion of Cosmic Power that could be mobilized while maintaining the stability of the Origin Universe, roughly accounting for twenty percent of the Origin Mini-Universe's total Cosmic Power.
If he were to mobilize all the Cosmic Power, that would be a different story. However, doing so would have too great an impact on the Origin Mini-Universe, easily causing it to lose stability or even collapse—something Ye Chen did not wish to see.
This created a vast gap in strength between Ye Chen and a Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch.
In a true battle, Ye Chen admitted he would likely not be a match for a Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch.
Of course, in reality, Ye Chen's cultivation realm was at the Quasi-Monarch level. But due to the special nature of the Chaos Mini-Universe, his Quasi-Monarch classification was actually quite ambiguous and difficult to determine.
However, one thing was certain: he would inevitably reach the Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch level because he was a Ten Tribulation Divine King Great Perfection Supreme Talent. Moreover, he might even have hope of surpassing the Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch path within the Quasi-Monarch domain.
Setting that aside for now...
At this moment, Ye Chen retrieved the treasure silver pearl from between his brows. He could feel the faint yet incredibly surging Thunder Power within it and said softly, "Back when I sealed Lei Long, although this mysterious silver pearl devoured the vast majority of the Thunder Power, it left behind twenty percent. While not a huge amount, it still contains over a hundred Thunder Monarch Rules. Once refined, my strength will advance further, bringing me closer to the Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch level."
Looking at the treasure silver pearl, a fervent light appeared in his eyes. With a soft shout, he slapped his palm against the treasure silver pearl. Instantly, boundless thunder radiance erupted, transforming into a vast sea of lightning.
Boom rumbling—
Visible to the naked eye, enormous thunder dragons surged forth, each radiating a terrifying aura that would make even Divine Kings pale.