The Divine King guardian of the Tai'a Immortal King Lineage had his head crushed, his headless body plummeting downwards, smashing into mountain ranges and startling everyone.
"Junior, you truly dare to strike!"
The voice of Sovereign Tai Shisan of the Tai'a Immortal King Lineage sank completely. He still hadn't appeared, but the Sovereign's Heavenly Might permeating the void grew even more intense.
The majestic rivers and mountains spanning hundreds of millions of li trembled at his mere thought, as if on the verge of collapsing at any moment.
Everyone was awestruck. Was Sovereign Tai Shisan of the Tai'a Immortal King Lineage finally about to become enraged?
When a Sovereign rages, corpses will litter a million li—that goes without saying.
The entire Noon Mountain Sect was filled with apprehension. Because Ye Chen had emerged from their sect, if an Ancient Monarch were to become enraged, the entire Noon Mountain Sect would not be spared.
The Wushan Sect Master gave a bitter smile. "This is my fault."
If he hadn't recruited Ye Chen, the Noon Mountain Sect would never have faced such a calamity.
But they also never imagined that Ye Chen would be so monstrous, advancing from Divine Transformation to Saint Vault Realm in an instant, and even a Divine King was no match for him, having a Divine King guardian's head shattered with a flick of his finger. Such capability wasn't something even a top-tier Divine King could easily accomplish.
Boom—
At this moment, another majestic, dragon-like aura surged from within the Noon Mountain Sect. A ray of Primordial light shot into the sky, and a terrifying, ancient, and indistinct figure emerged. Though he appeared aged, on the verge of death, the aura he released was not much inferior to that of the Ancient Monarch from the Tai'a Immortal King Lineage.
"Ancestor Master!"
The Wushan Sect Master hurriedly paid his respects. The newcomer was none other than the founding Sovereign of the Noon Mountain Sect—the Wushan Monarch!
The Wushan Monarch was very old, clearly with little time left. His figure was decrepit, his skin like dried bark, seemingly a half-step into the coffin. Yet his Sovereign's Heavenly Might remained intense. "What has happened?"
The Wushan Sect Master transmitted the entire sequence of events to the Wushan Monarch via divine sense. In an instant, the Wushan Monarch understood everything.
Tai Shisan's expression darkened slightly. "Wushan, do you intend to shelter this junior?"
The Wushan Monarch shook his head indifferently. "This youth has nothing to do with my Noon Mountain Sect."
Upon hearing this, many members of the Noon Mountain Sect breathed a sigh of relief. If the Wushan Monarch insisted on sheltering Ye Chen, it would be tantamount to making an enemy of the Tai'a Immortal King Lineage—a sky-falling trouble.
The Wushan Sect Master opened his mouth, wanting to persuade his Ancestor Master to speak for Ye Chen, but he knew it was impossible. The Wushan Monarch prioritized the sect's welfare and would not make an enemy of the Tai'a Immortal King Lineage for his sake.
Wei Yun clenched her fists. For some reason, she felt a sense of guilt.
Tai Shisan nodded indifferently. "Good. That is the wisest choice your Noon Mountain Sect could make."
From beginning to end, Ye Chen remained a cold observer, unmoved by the Wushan Monarch's words. He merely smiled. "Indeed, the wisest choice."
Tai Shisan, still hidden, said, "Junior, I asked you a question, yet you dared to strike!"
"Why wouldn't I dare?" Ye Chen sneered. In the past, he had dared to venture alone into the alien Ancient Universe, even confronting the likes of the Primogenitor, the strongest overlord of the Chaos Sea. A mere Ancient Sovereign was no different from an ant in his eyes.
The crowd was horrified. This Ye Chen's courage was immense, actually daring to provoke an Ancient Sovereign.
Even if he was truly powerful, capable of suppressing a Divine King, and likely a Quasi-Sovereign, compared to an Ancient Sovereign, there remained an insurmountable chasm.
Sovereign Tai Shisan laughed coldly. "Good, very good. In all these years, this is the first time I've seen a young man dare to provoke me like this. If I don't teach you a lesson, you'll truly think yourself invincible under heaven, that you can disregard me."
At this moment, the crowd noticed that the Divine King guardian had been lying on the ground for some time, yet hadn't reassembled his physical body, showing no movement at all, which was puzzling.
However, when Divine Kings or Quasi-Sovereigns probed with their divine senses, they were horrified to discover that the Divine King guardian had no aura left—his divine soul was gone, his true spirit annihilated. He had permanently perished.
Everyone's expressions changed. A Divine King had fallen!
The Wushan Sect Master was shocked. Ye Chen had actually killed Tai Xiao's Divine King guardian just now.
Tai Shisan, hidden in the void, also revealed a trace of surprise. He hadn't expected that the moment Ye Chen shattered the Divine King guardian's head, he had also annihilated his divine soul.
Such a method, though he could also accomplish it, he hadn't sensed any fluctuation of magical power when Ye Chen struck.
Ye Chen looked toward the void and said lightly, "I said, if you don't show yourself, I'll personally force you out."
"Arrogant brat!" The other experts of the Tai'a Immortal King Lineage snorted coldly. Tai Shisan was an Ancient Sovereign-level ancestor figure, immensely powerful, not comparable to ordinary Ancient Sovereigns. His cultivation had spanned over a third of an epoch. Though his sun was setting, he still had a long time before his great limit, with a full opportunity to reach the pinnacle in his final years and cultivate into an Immortal Monarch.
How many would dare disregard such a top-tier Ancient Sovereign?
Ye Chen swept an indifferent glance and simply reached out, pressing lightly toward the void where Tai Shisan was.
Boom—
Suddenly, heaven and earth changed color. The sky above the Noon Mountain Sect for a hundred thousand li in radius collapsed, turning into nothingness.
Boom—
An aged figure tumbled out somewhat awkwardly from the collapsing void. Judging by his aura, it was none other than Sovereign Tai Shisan of the Tai'a Immortal King Lineage.
Everyone's expressions changed, unable to believe it. He had truly been forced out.
Tai Shisan and the Wushan Monarch also looked at Ye Chen in shock, their hearts pounding.
If it were anyone else, they might have thought only a hundred thousand li had collapsed. But Tai Shisan felt it most directly: a moment ago, a terrifying power had suddenly emerged in the void, making even him feel utterly insignificant, as if a supreme, peerless True Immortal had personally struck, pressing down on the void and forcing him to appear.
What kind of method was that? He couldn't detect even a trace of its workings.
Could this be a Supreme Immortal?
At this thought, Tai Shisan's expression changed completely. Though he was strong, facing a Supreme Immortal of the Supreme One level offered no hope. But he had never seen such a Supreme Immortal before.
It couldn't be a newly ascended Supreme Immortal either. As one of the rulers of the Primordial Immortal World, Tai'a Immortal King, along with other Immortal Kings, governed the boundless Immortal World and possessed information on all Supreme Immortals within it. This person before him wasn't among them.
Nor could it be a Supreme Immortal who had ascended in the past few days. Once one attained the Dao and ascended, the Immortal Tribulation would descend; no matter how distant, he, an Ancient Sovereign, would sense it.
Since it wasn't a Supreme Immortal, it was most likely an Immortal Monarch.
But if he was an Immortal Monarch, why would he conceal his aura as a mere Divine Transformation cultivator, lowering himself to duel Tai Xiao? That didn't make sense.
Tai Shisan couldn't understand, but it didn't stop him from stepping forward to intervene. He hurriedly approached, cupping his fists. "Tai Shisan pays his respects to the Immortal Monarch!"