"Sir, please forgive my offense. I truly failed to recognize a great master and have offended you. It is my fault, and I beg for your forgiveness," the Tian Xu Crown Prince said sincerely, repeatedly addressing Ye Chen as 'Sir' to express the utmost respect.
Ye Chen merely waved his hand. "Crown Prince, there is no need for self-reproach. As the saying goes, youth without arrogance is wasted youth. Moreover, you yourself possess extraordinary strength, ranking among the very top of the current younger generation. It is only natural to have some pride."
"Sir, you jest. I did indeed believe before that I was either the best in the world or close to it. But only after crossing hands with you today do I truly understand that there is always a higher mountain beyond the mountain, a greater man beyond the man. My strength is utterly insignificant compared to yours." This was not modesty from the Tian Xu Crown Prince, but a genuine feeling from the depths of his heart.
He had originally thought he was nearly invincible under heaven. At least among the younger generation, aside from those Crown Princes of the Imperial Dynasties, who could contend with him, who could match him? He was indeed either the number one of his generation or close to it.
He believed that others of his generation were at most evenly matched with him; surpassing him was simply impossible.
But today's battle, despite him exhausting all his methods and revealing almost all his trump cards, ultimately made him realize that compared to Ye Chen, he was so utterly insignificant.
The other's strength far exceeded anything he had imagined.
This was the true meaning of 'a greater man beyond the man'.
But how could he know that Ye Chen, let alone just the Ancient Divine Continent, even when looking across the myriad realms, across the entire history of this epoch, was absolutely one of the most rare and monstrous geniuses, one who could stand shoulder to shoulder with the Emperors and Sovereigns of the Mythical Epoch in their youth, possessing the bearing of an Emperor.
Such a figure would make even True Kings feel ashamed of their inferiority, and only the offspring of Supreme Ones could compare.
Furthermore, at this moment, the Tian Xu Sovereign secretly transmitted a message via voice transmission, informing the Tian Xu Crown Prince of everything that had happened earlier in the Guhua Imperial Dynasty's royal capital.
"What!"
Upon hearing this, the Crown Prince's expression changed three times in succession, becoming increasingly astonished.
Although he already knew the Battle Saint King was powerful, guessing he might be a bit stronger than a Saint Lord, he never imagined he was powerful to this extent. His understanding was renewed once again.
Some time ago, the powerhouses of the three Imperial Dynasties led by the Guhua Imperial Dynasty had joined forces. Three Samsara-level killing arrays had appeared, ancestral weapons had emerged, and they held every advantage of time, place, and harmony. Yet, they still could not gain the slightest advantage; one could even say they suffered heavy casualties.
Several Saint Lords had been killed, let alone those below Saint Lord.
The final result was actually that the Guhua Imperial Dynasty's Heavenly King ancestor had been forced to awaken from slumber, and even then, he could do nothing, only entering the deepest treasure pavilion for discussions.
And later, the Heavenly King ancestors of the nine Imperial Dynasties had all paid their respects.
Such an achievement was how glorious, how world-shaking, far beyond what any Saint Lord of the current era could accomplish.
The Tian Xu Crown Prince swallowed hard, staring blankly at the handsome, seemingly harmless Battle Saint King before him.
He knew the Sovereign and the others would not lie, but it was hard to believe that someone as young as him possessed such terrifying strength.
Just how monstrous was the strength of this Battle Saint King, who was about the same age as him?
Could it be that he had transcended Samsara and achieved the Heavenly King realm?
This thought arose in his heart, bringing a sense of awe from deep within, but he shook his head vigorously.
Although he had never seen a Heavenly King, he had felt the unique aura of a Heavenly King from the ancestral weapons suppressing his Imperial Dynasty at close range. That special Heavenly King aura was absent from the current Ye Chen.
Since he wasn't a Heavenly King, yet could crush Saint Lords like chickens—this was no longer a capability ordinary peak Saint Treasury Realm cultivators possessed. What realm was the Battle Saint King then?
This puzzled him greatly.
But since Ye Chen did not speak of it, neither he nor anyone else dared to ask rashly, having to suppress the doubts in their hearts.
Naturally, it wasn't just the Tian Xu Imperial Dynasty's divine ship that had come to the Divine City; there were also divine ships from the other nine Imperial Dynasties. The Crown Princes of the other several Imperial Dynasties had briefly met with their respective Imperial Dynasty's people. Due to the final battle, none stayed long, returning to make preparations.
The hegemony battle would commence very soon.
"Imperial Father, your son must still go to the Soaring Cloud Tower to prepare for the final battle. Allow your son to gather again after the battle." Seeing that a considerable amount of time had passed since his earlier enlightenment, the Tian Xu Crown Prince immediately spoke.
The Sovereign naturally agreed, but at this moment, Ye Chen also spoke up. "Crown Prince, I wonder if I might also go over? I would also like to witness the demeanor of the other Imperial Dynasty Crown Princes."
Ye Chen's sudden request surprised everyone. The Tian Xu Crown Prince was also somewhat taken aback. "Sir, do you also wish to participate in the final battle?"
If Ye Chen truly participated in the final battle, who could contend? Everyone else would merely be working in vain for his benefit.
Ye Chen shook his head. "Rest assured, I will not take action. I merely wish to observe up close."
Hearing this, the Tian Xu Crown Prince breathed a sigh of relief and naturally did not refuse.
To avoid unnecessary trouble, Ye Chen had long since used Stealing Heaven and Changing Earth. As before, he made slight alterations, but his entire person seemed to have imperceptibly transformed into someone else.
Such methods were also astonishing to behold.
The two left the divine ship, not even followed by Cang Long, transforming into two streams of light that shot toward the center of the Divine City.
At the center of the ancient city, not far from the Divine Temple, stood a massive mountain. However, this mountain was special—its middle section had been severed, the cut surface incredibly smooth.
Upon this severed surface, a majestic and grand palace was constructed, towering high, reaching into the clouds above. This was the world-famous Soaring Cloud Tower.
The Soaring Cloud Tower had enjoyed great fame since ancient times. Many powerhouses had stopped here, leaving their footprints. Throughout history, only sufficiently outstanding Heaven's Pride had the qualification to ascend it.
Especially in this generation, the number of young Heaven's Pride qualified to set foot on the Soaring Cloud Tower was exceedingly few. This was because several Imperial Dynasty Crown Princes and monstrous geniuses not inferior to them had long since occupied it, each claiming a territory.
Boom—
Over a dozen of the strongest of the younger generation had imperceptibly released their supreme auras. All were super geniuses who had reached the Saint Treasury Realm. Their auras, imperceptibly merging together, formed a pressure of unimaginable terror, enough to crush vast stretches of mountains and rivers.
An intangible might poured down, enveloping the entire Soaring Cloud Tower, suppressing the surrounding space until it twisted, a truly terrifying sight.
Even a Demi-Saint attempting to approach would be shaken back, coughing blood.
Before the official commencement of the peak gathering, the Soaring Cloud Tower had temporarily become the gathering place for the most outstanding batch of geniuses on the Ancient Divine Continent.
It could be seen that on the highest level, over a dozen of the strongest Heaven's Pride were seated motionless behind their respective tables, each exuding world-shaking pressure.
Outside the Soaring Cloud Tower was where the other geniuses gathered, various powerhouses standing side by side, yet none dared to approach too closely.
Whoosh—
Two figures appeared—Ye Chen and the Tian Xu Crown Prince!