"Come in."
Before Ye Chen could even speak, a voice emanated from within the hall.
Ye Chen gave a slight nod to the two Imperial Sons and pushed the door open.
*Hum—*
Ye Chen felt as if he had stepped into an infinite expanse of starry sky. Darkness enveloped everything, yet the starlight was brilliant and dazzling.
Upon the main seat, a bright moon rose, radiating resplendent rays of light. The Dark Night Sovereign sat upon it, his heavenly majesty boundless.
Seeing Ye Chen, he showed no trace of monarchial dignity, smiling faintly. "You've come."
"Senior Brother Dark Night." Ye Chen entered the hall, and the grand doors closed behind him.
The hall itself formed its own starry sky.
The Dark Night Sovereign descended from his starry throne. With a wave of his hand, a stone table appeared, along with two stone stools. He sat down and gestured for Ye Chen to do the same.
Ye Chen took his seat.
Reaching into the void, the Dark Night Sovereign produced immortal wine. A luminous wine pot poured automatically, filling two cups. The Dark Night Sovereign took a light sip himself, then put Ye Chen at ease, indicating he need not be overly formal. He smiled, "Junior Brother, there's no need to be so reserved. Whatever you wish to ask this time, as long as your Senior Brother knows, I will certainly tell you."
Though this was their first meeting, as fellow disciples of Tai Sheng Huang—even if Ye Chen was only half a disciple—the bond between senior and junior brother was unquestionable.
Ye Chen nodded, pausing briefly to gather his thoughts before speaking slowly, "Senior Brother Dark Night, this junior brother has come primarily to inquire about the true strength of Monarchs. I also wish to know the disparity between the Nine Heavens of the Monarch realm."
The Dark Night Sovereign was not surprised. Earlier, he had extended his divine sense into the endless spatial turbulence and witnessed Ye Chen's true self suppressing the Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch Ye Cuican of the alien race. He presumed Ye Chen had already eliminated him and had sensed the formidable power within Ye Chen—both his physical body and divine soul contained an absolute, overwhelming strength far surpassing that of an ordinary Quasi-Monarch.
Instead of answering directly, he asked, "Before I begin explaining, you should first make a move. Let your Senior Brother gauge your current strength. Attack directly, unleashing your full power."
"Alright!"
Ye Chen did not conceal anything. Chaotic Dao Power surged forth, his form and spirit erupting with their utmost combat prowess. Moreover, a surge of Universe Power emerged from within him, flooding through his limbs and bones.
In an instant, his combat power soared to its peak. The terrifying pressure caused the entire starry sky to tremble violently, as if it could not bear the weight of his might.
"Senior Brother, please be careful."
Ye Chen said solemnly, striding forward and launching his strongest attack at the Dark Night Sovereign.
*Boom—*
A Chaos Saint Fist blasted forth, all his power concentrated into that single punch, unleashing a peerless combat strength comparable to a full fifteen hundred Monarch Rules.
At that moment, the starry sky shook violently, countless cracks appearing throughout.
This single fist seemed to become the sole existence within the cosmos!
"Excellent!"
The Dark Night Sovereign's eyes immediately lit up, sensing the extraordinary nature of this punch. He exclaimed in admiration, "To actually rival fifteen hundred Monarch Rules... you've surpassed the limit of a Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch's power."
Despite his words, he merely raised his hand and gave a light, effortless slap, meeting Ye Chen's strongest fist head-on.
There was no earth-shattering explosion, only silent, undisturbed calm.
Visibly, all the power of Ye Chen's ultimate punch was instantly blocked and completely dissipated.
Ye Chen was stunned. His strongest attack had been neutralized just like that?
This was combat power surpassing even a Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch.
He firmly believed that even an Ancient Monarch could not have blocked it so effortlessly.
After easily resolving Ye Chen's strongest strike, the Dark Night Sovereign said, "Junior Brother, you are quite impressive. Although I don't know why you, as a mere Quasi-Monarch, possess such power, I won't ask. That is your secret."
Ye Chen felt grateful.
If the Dark Night Sovereign had pressed him, he likely would have offered a partial explanation, but he still preferred not to reveal the secret of possessing a Primal Universe, as it was far too astonishing.
The Dark Night Sovereign smiled faintly, "Among geniuses, how many lack their own corresponding secrets? It's normal for you to have yours. I don't need to know. It's enough that I know you are a genius of our Sealed Universe."
"Now, let me tell you about the true might of Monarchs."
"But before that, I want to know: based on your current strength, what chance of victory do you think you would have against a true Ancient Monarch?"
Ye Chen pondered briefly before answering, "About thirty percent."
This estimation was based on his own power surpassing that of a Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch, combined with the known ability of such Quasi-Monarchs to retreat unscathed from Ancient Monarchs.
He surmised that the strength of an Ancient Monarch—say, a First Heaven Monarch—likely ranged between fifteen hundred and two thousand Monarch Rules.
With his own power equivalent to fifteen hundred Monarch Rules, he could certainly put up a fight.
As for the thirty percent chance of victory, by combining his Chaos Supreme Body, Chaos Divine King Spirit, his three-in-one form, and various other techniques, he should indeed have about a thirty percent chance.
Of course, this assumed the Ancient Monarch he faced was only at the First Heaven level.
"Thirty percent?" The Dark Night Sovereign couldn't help but shake his head upon hearing this. "With your current strength, if you truly faced an Ancient Monarch—even the lowest-tier First Heaven Monarch—your chance of victory would not exceed ten percent."
"That low?" Ye Chen was taken aback.
The Dark Night Sovereign explained, "To be honest, the so-called ability of a Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch to retreat unscathed from an Ancient Monarch only applies to First Heaven Monarchs. And even then, it merely allows for an unharmed retreat. Don't mistake 'retreating unscathed' for being able to confront them head-on. If that were truly the case, Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarchs would still be slaughtered outright."
Ye Chen was shocked. This completely overturned his previous understanding.
Without another word, the Dark Night Sovereign raised his hand and delivered a slap. "Feel this carefully. This is the power of a First Heaven Monarch."
Ye Chen immediately sensed an astonishing pressure rushing toward him from the Dark Night Sovereign. Without hesitation, he unleashed his strongest attack to meet it.
*Boom—*
Ye Chen's figure was sent staggering backward. Intense pain wracked his entire body, nearly causing it to split apart. Excruciating agony spread throughout his being.
The fist that had taken the blow throbbed with severe pain.
"A First Heaven Monarch is already this powerful?" Ye Chen was inwardly astonished. He had already utilized his absolute combat strength, comparable to fifteen hundred Monarch Rules, yet the result was like this—as if he were on the verge of being severely wounded.
That force was at least twice as powerful as his own.
The Dark Night Sovereign withdrew his hand. "Generally speaking, a First Heaven Monarch masters two thousand Monarch Rules. The power of their Monarch World is equivalent to one thousand Monarch Rules. In other words, their total power equals three thousand Monarch Rules."
"Three thousand!" Ye Chen was secretly shocked. That was a full twice his own peak strength, and twice that of a Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch.
No wonder the Dark Night Sovereign said a Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch could only retreat unscathed.
Indeed, facing a First Heaven Ancient Monarch with three thousand Monarch Rules of power, even a powerful Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch could only rely on various techniques to ensure a safe retreat.
Someone like Ye Cuican, who was killed by Ye Chen despite only being twenty percent stronger, was simply extremely unlucky and not representative of the norm.
In other words, with Ye Chen's current strength reaching half that of an Ancient Monarch, retreating unscathed would be even easier for him.
"And this is without employing a Monarch Immortal Weapon. If a Monarch Immortal Weapon is used and fully awakened, it possesses at least seventy percent of that Ancient Monarch's power—in other words, it can rival two thousand Monarch Rules."
"Which means, at their absolute peak, a First Heaven Monarch possesses power equivalent to five thousand Monarch Rules."