Sovereign Xue Ye led the way, but along the journey, he remained slightly half a step behind Ye Chen. This was a sign of respect for the latter.
The strong are revered. Even though Ye Chen was still young, his status as a Monarch could not be ignored or overstepped!
The Eight Desolates Supreme Hall was vast and spacious inside, with not many people present. Yet, every single person here was a true powerhouse. Anyone who stepped out casually was a God King, and there was no shortage of Quasi-Sovereigns. As they passed, there were also Ancient Monarchs, fully displaying the might of the Eight Desolates Supreme Hall.
Even though it had not completely dominated the Eight Desolates Ancient Domain, allowing the various powers of the world to contend for the vast territory and vie for supremacy, it undoubtedly possessed the strength of the absolute uncrowned king.
When they saw Ye Chen's appearance, they were first taken aback, then everyone immediately performed a grand bow of respect, serious and reverent.
Ye Chen's expression remained natural.
Finally, they arrived at the deepest hall, far more magnificent than the others, permeated with a Supreme Emperor's might. It was unmistakably a true Imperial Hall.
Above the Imperial Hall, a peerless powerhouse sat upon the Emperor's throne, like a supreme Great Emperor, his boundless aura surging. Sovereign Xue Ye, an Ancient Monarch, dared not take a single step into the Imperial Hall.
A Monarch!
At this moment, Ye Chen's expression also grew considerably more solemn. He hadn't expected there to be a Monarch within the Eight Desolates Supreme Hall.
However, upon careful thought, the Ten Heavenly Emperor Halls also had Monarchs, even ancient Great Emperor-level existences in residence. It was only natural for the Eight Desolates Supreme Hall to have a Monarch overseeing it.
"Battle Saint King, we finally meet, hahahaha—"
From the Emperor's throne, the Hall Master of the Eight Desolates Supreme Hall let out a hearty, unrestrained laugh and rose to his full height.
The moment he stood up, infinite phenomena instantly manifested. Auspicious colors appeared, the Great Dao condensed and refined, and a rain of light scattered in all directions. As his vast aura fluctuated, the entire Imperial Hall trembled, even causing Sovereign Xue Ye's body to feel as if it would split apart, difficult to endure, as if about to explode.
In a daze, it seemed as if an ancient Great Emperor had awakened, his aura surging, overwhelming heaven and earth, submerging them.
Ye Chen smiled faintly. He sensed no malice from the other party, more of a probing, likely driven mostly by curiosity. He probably also knew that Ye Chen had achieved a Monarch-level physical body.
Boom—
The Chaos Supreme Body trembled, infinite blood energy bloomed forth, like billions of stars exploding. That blood light transformed into a torrent of radiant flames, incinerating everything and also resisting the Hall Master's aura pressure.
If this weren't an Imperial Hall, inscribed with Great Emperor-level formation patterns, an ordinary ancient hall would have been utterly unable to withstand it, exploding into pieces in the first instant.
"Haha—, as expected of what my teacher said. The Battle Saint King has achieved a Monarch-level physical body, its power capable of contending with Monarchs. Truly so."
The Hall Master laughed heartily, the Monarch aura around him abruptly dispersing and withdrawing.
Ye Chen also withdrew his Monarch-level blood energy.
With the Monarch-level Dao principles scattered, the Eight Desolates Supreme Hall revealed its true appearance, causing Ye Chen to be slightly taken aback.
Because this Hall Master was not the elderly, twilight figure he had imagined, but a young man—very young, with black hair like a waterfall and a vivid, blood-red vertical mark between his eyebrows, strikingly like an unopened Heavenly Eye.
Moreover, this was not a deliberately maintained appearance; this Hall Master truly was this young, looking to be in his twenties.
Very young!
Without a doubt, the Hall Master before him was genuinely young. However, Ye Chen thought for a moment and also smiled.
A Monarch could live for an epoch, an epoch lasting far more than billions of years. Even if one broke through only at the life limit of an Ancient Monarch, they would still only be halfway through their lifespan.
Of course, this Hall Master of the Eight Desolates Supreme Hall was absolutely less than a quarter of an epoch old, perhaps even younger, maybe not even a million years in lifespan.
Ye Chen's thoughts raced a thousand times, simultaneously sighing at the terrifying depth of the Ultimate Ancient Path.
Only now could he fully sense the formidable foundation of the Ultimate Ancient Path.
The Ultimate Ancient Path had an Eternal Monarch like Cang Xiong overseeing it, and within the Eight Desolates Ancient Domain, there was also a Monarch, and one in the prime of his life, like the First Emperor Envoy, with peerlessly flourishing blood energy. Yet, ordinarily, whether in the Eight Desolates Ancient Domain or the Ultimate Ancient Path, no one knew of this Monarch's existence.
"Battle Saint King, greetings. I am the Hall Master of the Eight Desolates Supreme Hall. You may also address me as Tai Wuji."
This Monarch of the Eight Desolates Supreme Hall spoke, very amiable, of medium build but with an aura that could swallow the eight desolates, like a Divine Venerable, his divine might peerless.
"Tai Wuji!? So it's Senior."
Ye Chen straightened his expression. He had naturally heard of the name Tai Wuji—the strongest of the previous Ultimate Ancient Path, sweeping all before him, overpowering the heroes of the various Chaos Ancient Universes, reaching the very end of the ancient path. He never imagined he had ultimately become the Hall Master of the Eight Desolates Supreme Hall.
"Greetings, Senior. I am Ye Chen," he quickly said.
Tai Wuji waved his hand, laughing candidly, "No need to call me Senior. We are both Monarchs, we can address each other as peers. Besides, I'm still considered young."
The Hall Master was a rather easygoing person, telling Ye Chen to address him directly by name. Even though Ye Chen's age wasn't even a fraction of his years, the cultivation world adhered to the principle that the accomplished are the teacher. Both being Monarchs, they naturally interacted as equals.
From this, one could also see the other party's regard for Ye Chen.
Ye Chen gave a bitter smile but agreed, addressing the other as 'Big Brother'.
"Brother Ye, this old brother considers himself to have been quite dazzlingly talented back in the day, otherwise I wouldn't have been taken as my teacher's only true disciple. But you are even more stunning than I was. Barely over a thousand years old, and already possessing the Monarch fruit. It makes this old brother feel rather ashamed." Tai Wuji threw an arm around Ye Chen's shoulder, utterly lacking the airs and majesty of a Monarch, and they sat down together.
In truth, no one wanted to be compared with Ye Chen. He was one of the most monstrous talents ranked throughout the ages, comparable to the Heavenly Emperor and the Primordial Ancestor in their youth.
Ye Chen smiled, "Brother Wuji, you jest. I was just luckier."
"Don't be modest, Brother. Stunning is stunning; the facts are right before our eyes. Don't worry, this old brother won't be jealous or anything. After all, you are also someone my teacher thinks highly of."
"Big Brother, dare I ask, who is your teacher?" Hearing Tai Wuji mention his teacher repeatedly, Ye Chen also grew curious. Just who in the world could have taught a true disciple who was a Monarch?
He was probably at least an ancient Great Emperor, right?
Tai Wuji chuckled, "Speaking of which, Brother, you know my teacher. You've even met and fought side by side with him?"
Ye Chen was stunned. Who could it be?
"My teacher is Cang Xiong!" Tai Wuji declared.
Ye Chen was greatly surprised, then understanding dawned.
No wonder. So he was the true disciple—the only true disciple—of Senior Cang Xiong. With Cang Xiong's status as an Eternal Monarch, teaching a Monarch-level true disciple was not impossible.
Even so, Ye Chen still praised Tai Wuji repeatedly. Anyone capable of achieving Monarchhood undoubtedly possessed the aptitude to prove the Dao and become an Emperor.
One could say that the Emperor's Dao had basically reached its most critical juncture, just one step away from taking that most crucial stride, becoming an Emperor, a Sovereign, supreme and peerless!
Within the Eight Desolates Supreme Hall, Tai Wuji warmly invited Ye Chen, also feeling deep astonishment towards this young Battle Saint King.
He knew Ye Chen's cultivation time was barely over a thousand years, far younger than himself, yet he had achieved a Monarch-level physical body, unprecedented.
If not for the tempering of long years, which had steadied Tai Wuji's mind, in his youth he would have truly wanted to directly find Ye Chen for a great battle, to see just how extraordinary the legendary Monarch-level physical body was.
Even now, there was still a somewhat eager, itching feeling.
Ye Chen gave a slightly bitter smile; Tai Wuji seemed to be a battle maniac.
Finally, Tai Wuji couldn't hold back any longer and said, "Brother Ye has achieved a Monarch-level physical body. This big brother really wants to witness it. How about we exchange a few moves?"