"Sir, may I follow you inside to take a look?"
Crown Prince Tianxu spoke up. It wasn't just him; the other Heaven's Pride geniuses also wished to enter the Ancient Divine Palace, their eyes filled with anticipation.
After all, having been born on the Ancient Divine Continent, they had heard of the transcendent mystery of the Ancient Divine Palace since childhood and yearned for it. At this moment, they all felt a desire to venture into the mysterious Ancient Divine Palace to see it for themselves.
Li Xuan smiled and said, "All of you young friends may also enter the Ancient Divine Palace. You, the Heaven's Pride geniuses, are infinitely welcome in our Ancient Divine Palace."
But Ye Chen refused, his expression resolute. "All of you, go back. It is not suitable to enter the Ancient Divine Palace now."
Who were these Heaven's Pride geniuses? Naturally, each was extremely intelligent. They understood that this time, even if Ye Chen and the others entered the Ancient Divine Palace, it would not be as simple as imagined. They might even face some dangers.
Now that the nine Heavenly Kings were openly and covertly supporting Ye Chen, if they entered, they might become bargaining chips for the Ancient Divine Palace to threaten the imperial dynasties.
Although the fourteen Heaven's Pride geniuses were somewhat disappointed, they agreed.
"Don't worry, if I become the successor of the Ancient Divine Palace, I will naturally lead you all inside," Ye Chen said.
The Ancient Divine Hall was majestic and grand, with multiple layers of palaces standing tall. Profound array patterns were inscribed within, capable of channeling the mighty power of heaven and earth.
Under Li Xuan's personal guidance, Ye Chen and the other seven Immortal True Kings strode into the divine hall, followed closely by the eight Demi-Saint knights.
Without stopping, they proceeded to the deepest part of the Ancient Divine Hall. There, embedded in the inner wall, was a massive stone gate carved with numerous exquisite patterns and mysterious birds and beasts, giving it an ancient and boundless feel.
This was precisely the passage connecting the Ancient Divine Hall to the Ancient Divine Palace. It was usually tightly shut. Without the corresponding method, it could not be opened, and even forcing it open would not lead to the Ancient Divine Palace.
Li Xuan approached the stone gate and quickly formed a series of profound and mysterious Dao hand seals, imbued with a special Dao. He then struck out one brilliant divine seal after another, continuously imprinting them onto the stone gate.
Rumble—
One beautiful Dao pattern after another rapidly manifested on the stone gate, appearing in the void. Finally, the stone gate opened, revealing a radiant, mysterious passage behind it. A vast and abundant aura of the Dao continuously flowed out, along with purer heaven and earth spiritual energy than that of the outside world.
Ye Chen even wondered if the Ancient Divine Palace was located within a chaos sanctuary; otherwise, how could its spiritual essence be so abundant? Even supreme sacred lands like the Tai Chu Sacred Land seemed somewhat inferior in comparison.
"Saint King, everyone, please follow Li into the passage," Li Xuan said, taking the lead and stepping inside. At this point, Ye Chen and the others naturally did not hesitate. Skilled and bold, they all followed, filing into the mysterious passage one after another.
Whoosh—
Space and time transformed. Everything before their eyes rapidly changed. When they reappeared, a magnificent and vast expanse of celestial palaces and heavenly halls unfolded before them, floating amidst immortal qi and auspicious light. Everything was so majestic and grand, beyond imagination.
This was the Ancient Divine Palace. It was far more real, vast, and immense than the illusion Gu Changsheng had conjured, stretching for who knows how many miles. Immortal mist drifted about, capable of blocking divine sense detection. They could also feel astonishing auras erupting within the divine palace, far surpassing those of the nine ancient imperial dynasties.
Ye Chen and the others even sensed powerful auras sweeping past, quickly scanning over Ye Chen and the other True Kings. Those were at least Saint Lord-level figures. In an instant, they sensed the divine senses of no fewer than ten such super-powerful experts sweeping over their bodies.
What an Ancient Divine Palace! Truly a place where tigers crouch and dragons hide. To have presided over the Ancient Divine Continent for countless years, standing firm through the vicissitudes of time, it indeed possessed such capital.
However, even the Ancient Divine Palace could not have too many figures of Saint Lord level. It was precisely their appearance that had stirred so many Saint Lord divine senses to scan them.
Ye Chen's expression remained unchanged. "May I ask Daoist Li Xuan to lead us to pay our respects to the Palace Master and the Supreme Elders?"
Li Xuan was somewhat surprised but nodded. "This way, please."
Along the way, they passed through layer upon layer of majestic palaces—some resplendent and magnificent, some solemn, some sacred, and some sinister. But each palace was guarded by experts, at least at the Saint Lord level. Along the path they traversed, there were no fewer than twenty such palaces.
They even saw, deeper within the Ancient Divine Palace, towering, unreachable immortal mountains standing tall. Spiritual energy cascaded down like waterfalls, abundant beyond imagination, carrying the aura of Heavenly Kings. They knew those were the territories occupied by the Heavenly Kings of the Ancient Divine Palace. There were as many as seven of them. Did that not mean the Ancient Divine Palace had at least seven Heavenly Kings?
A full half-day later, Li Xuan finally brought Ye Chen and the others before a mountain peak. It was even more towering and immense than the previous seven Heavenly King Mountains, unimaginably large, comparable to the divine peak of the Heavenly Gate, soaring into the heavens with myriad stars encircling it.
A solemn ancient hall was situated atop the divine peak, releasing a vast and boundless pressure of the Dao, cascading down like a waterfall, causing Ye Chen and the others to feel an intangible oppression.
Ye Chen and the others' expressions changed slightly, looking toward the main hall with some shock.
At this moment, a figure suddenly descended from the sky. Although his hair and beard were white, he appeared lean and robust, with two long eyebrows.
Clad in a wide Daoist robe, he appeared with his hands behind his back on the ascending steps before the divine peak. He glanced indifferently at Li Xuan and shouted from a commanding height, "Li Xuan, do you not know this place is a forbidden area of our Ancient Divine Palace? How dare you bring outsiders here? Do you wish to be punished by palace regulations?"
Li Xuan first respectfully performed a grand bow toward the long-browed elder, clasping his fists. "Elder Tianmei, please calm your anger. Li Xuan is a member of the Ancient Divine Palace and naturally would not dare to do anything that harms the palace. However, this young prodigy is the victor of this generation's battle for supremacy, brought to the Ancient Divine Palace. I ask Elder Tianmei to judge clearly."
"The victor of this generation's battle for supremacy?"
Elder Tianmei looked at Ye Chen with surprise and suspicion, then his expression suddenly changed slightly. He said gravely, "How could this be? What about that kid Gu Changsheng?"
According to their understanding, the victor of this generation's battle for supremacy should not be someone else; it should be Gu Changsheng, the successor of the Ancient Divine Palace. How could a stranger have emerged?
"It's simple. Gu Changsheng lost, and I won," Ye Chen suddenly interjected, personally stating an astonishing fact.
"What? That's impossible." Even Elder Tianmei found it hard to believe. What kind of person was Gu Changsheng? He was the most monstrous Heaven's Pride genius of the Ancient Divine Palace throughout the ages, far surpassing the so-called Heaven's Pride geniuses of the ancient imperial dynasties. How could he have lost?
"Nothing is impossible," Ye Chen said. With a flick of his sleeve, a drop of blood appeared, causing Elder Tianmei's eyes to widen.
Because that drop of blood carried the familiar aura of Gu Changsheng.