Originally, Ye Chen's plan was to head to the Origin Ancient Path to request the Flame Emperor and other ancient giants to help resolve the injuries within his body. But with this small fragment of an Emperor Pill, perhaps such trouble wouldn't be necessary; he could resolve it right here.
Of course, he didn't consume it immediately. This incomplete Tenth-Rank Emperor Pill needed to be restored to its complete form. Only then could it unleash its maximum effect.
"Good! Today, I shall attempt to restore this Tenth-Rank Emperor Pill to its flawless perfection!"
A brilliant light flashed in Ye Chen's eyes.
Refining a Tenth-Rank Emperor Pill was the dream of every alchemist, the supreme honor—and that included Ye Chen. Only by refining a true Tenth-Rank Emperor Pill could one be called a Dan God.
A Dan God, throughout the Chaos Sea, held a status comparable to a Supreme One, perhaps even surpassing it. After all, the Tenth-Rank Emperor Pills refined by a Dan God held immense effects even for Supreme Ones.
Currently, Ye Chen, having inherited the Alchemy Emperor's alchemy legacy, had seen his cultivation grow over the years. Although he rarely practiced alchemy anymore, his mastery in the alchemical arts had not regressed. On the contrary, it had progressed alongside his cultivation.
Now, he could be called a peak master-level alchemist, capable of refining Ninth-Rank Divine Pills without issue. But refining a single Tenth-Rank Emperor Pill was extremely difficult, with a minuscule success rate.
Even so, restoring an incomplete Tenth-Rank Emperor Pill was not impossible.
Before refining, he needed to identify the origin of this small fragment of a Tenth-Rank Emperor Pill. Otherwise, rashly refining it could very well waste even this small surviving fragment.
Ye Chen gazed at it for a long time. He saw countless violet-gold Dao patterns on its surface, winding like True Dragons. Vaguely, it seemed to conceal a vast Great World, with infinite members of the Dragon Race dwelling within—Black Dragons, Crimson Dragons, Golden Dragons, and more.
At the center of this Dragon Race Great World coiled a True Dragon of indescribable immensity, each of its scales larger than stars. Two crystalline white dragon whiskers, stretching for hundreds of millions of miles, resembled two vast, majestic star rivers shimmering with a faint, radiant light.
That was an Emperor-level True Dragon, perhaps called a Dragon Emperor, clad in violet-gold, overflowing with a noble aura.
Pills reaching the Eighth Rank possessed corresponding spirituality, let alone a Tenth-Rank Emperor Pill, which was nearly at the Emperor level and extraordinary, giving rise to incredible illusory phenomena. This Dragon Race Great World was merely a manifested illusion, not a real existence.
"Such a unique Dragon Race Great World, as if real... If I'm not mistaken, this should be the legendary Eight Desolates Dragon Emperor Pill," Ye Chen murmured to himself.
The Eight Desolates Dragon Emperor Pill was refined by the legendary Eight Desolates Dragon Emperor. That was not the Primordial Dragon, but an ancient Dragon Emperor of the Dragon Race. As for this Dragon Emperor, he had seen him before.
Yes, precisely that True Dragon that perished along with the Eight Desolates Ancient Universe. Because of the Eight Desolates Ancient Universe, it was titled the Eight Desolates Dragon Emperor. Furthermore, this Eight Desolates Dragon Emperor's alchemical skill was divine, having reached the Dan God realm. This small fragment of the Eight Desolates Dragon Emperor Pill was undoubtedly refined by him in the past.
He never expected that the Eight Desolates Dragon Emperor, who had fallen for endless eons, would have an Emperor Pill he refined still existing in the world. Unfortunately, only a small fragment remained. Yet, for the Second Emperor Envoy to have obtained it was still astonishing.
Even though it was only an incomplete fragment, roughly one-third, consuming it would still have earth-shattering effects, significant even for an Emperor.
Simultaneously, Ye Chen guessed why the Second Emperor Envoy hadn't consumed this incomplete Eight Desolates Dragon Emperor Pill. He likely harbored grand ambitions, hoping to restore the pill to completion, then devour and refine it to assault the Emperor realm.
Unfortunately, he died before fulfilling this wish. Instead, this Eight Desolates Dragon Emperor Pill fell into Ye Chen's hands, destined to aid his great enemy.
"The Eight Desolates Dragon Emperor, it's said he also received personal guidance from the Alchemy Emperor. Therefore, the Eight Desolates Dragon Emperor Pill is also recorded within the Alchemy Emperor's alchemy legacy. I know how to refine it."
Possessing the Alchemy Emperor's alchemy legacy, Ye Chen had even more confidence.
With a soft shout, the Chaos Great Cauldron flew out, descending from the heavens to seal the medicinal bottle within.
He flicked a finger, shattering the layers of seals on the small Emperor Pill fragment. With a boom, the fragment seemed to gain a life of its own, transforming into a True Dragon spanning over hundreds of millions of miles, straddling this stretch of starry sky, capable of tearing apart stars with a swipe of its claw.
This True Dragon coiled within the inner spatial world of the Chaos Great Cauldron, almost filling every inch of space. It spiraled upward, its massive dragon head descending from above. Its dark golden dragon eyes, larger than stars, gazed down indifferently at Ye Chen from on high.
Without a doubt, this was the Dragon Emperor essence, spirit, and energy within the Eight Desolates Dragon Emperor Pill, as if the Eight Desolates Dragon Emperor of old had manifested in the mortal world.
Waves of supremely powerful pressure wantonly spread forth, enough to make even a Star Sky Overlord tremble.
Unfortunately, this was Ye Chen, the Star Sky Invincible Battle Saint King.
Gazing coldly at this violet-gold True Dragon, Ye Chen's body expanded to a size of hundreds of millions of miles, transforming into a peerless Heavenly Emperor. He executed the Heaven-Suppressing Seal, manifesting a Heaven-Suppressing Pagoda resembling the Thirty-Three Layered Human Emperor Pagoda, which descended from the heavens.
Boom—
The violet-gold True Dragon, hundreds of millions of miles in size, was directly suppressed until its form shattered. Countless streams of light rain flowed backward, returning into the small Tenth-Rank Emperor Pill fragment without any resistance, reverting to a thumb-sized Emperor Pill.
Even the Second Emperor Envoy could suppress it, let alone Ye Chen. This small Tenth-Rank Emperor Pill fragment possessed at most the power of an early Ninth Heavenly Layer Monarch, far from being Ye Chen's match.
"Refining a Tenth-Rank Emperor Pill is difficult, but restoring it to completion is much easier."
A brilliant light flashed in Ye Chen's eyes as countless streams of information flowed through his mind—all the details of the Eight Desolates Dragon Emperor Pill.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
At the same time, his inner Chaos Small Universe opened, from which flew out streams of auspicious light. They were, without exception, radiant, peerless divine herbs—each with a medicinal age exceeding a hundred thousand years, even possessing Emperor Blood, Supreme Emperor Bones, and other Emperor-level treasures.
It must be said, the Chaos Small Universe was indeed a miraculous place. The many medicinal materials obtained in the past were planted within. The chaos opening heaven and earth, the universe evolving, possessed infinite mysteries, causing these medicinal herbs to grow rapidly and undergo astonishing transformations.
One could say that any herb capable of being planted there was no ordinary material.
Although this wasn't refining from scratch, merely restoring it to perfection, it concerned a Tenth-Rank Emperor Pill. Those capable of refining Emperor Pills were none other than Dan Gods, beings whose status rivaled Supreme Ones. Throughout the entire Chaos Sea, across countless epochal eras since ancient times, such individuals were few.
Any Tenth-Rank Emperor Pill, once born, was accompanied by earth-shattering phenomena.
At this moment, Ye Chen spared no effort, mobilizing the power of his two Chaos Saint Souls to assist in the restoration and refinement alongside the various peerless medicinal herbs.
Ten days passed in the outside world, but within the Hunyuan Long River, a full ten years had elapsed.
Boom—
A brilliant light that pierced the heavens suddenly burst through the layers of defensive formations, soaring into the sky in an instant, shaking a small portion of the Chaos Ancient Universe and stirring reactions from all sides.