The Ancient Emperor Continent, the Primordial Lands stretched boundlessly, devoid of human traces. Only fearsome primordial ancient beasts, demonic beasts, and savage beasts roamed as the masters of this vast earth.
Some terrifying ancient beasts even swallowed the radiance of the stars and moon to cultivate when night fell, with streams of starry rivers connecting heaven and earth, a truly spectacular sight.
Usually, the Primordial Lands were quiet at night, but tonight, they stirred the six directions and eight wildernesses.
In the pitch-black night sky, a streak of golden light was chasing like a shooting star, flashing across the firmament with lightning speed. It traversed tens of thousands of miles in mere breaths, continuously accelerating, leaving even Saint-ranked beast kings unable to discern its trajectory.
Yet, behind that figure, a massive ancient ship was in hot pursuit, its speed not the slightest bit slower, even slightly faster.
Beast kings cultivating at night roared in fury, wondering what audacious being dared trespass their territory. But upon sensing the terrifying auras emanating from the golden light and the ancient ship chasing behind—auras that shook heaven and earth—all the ancient beast kings immediately cowered in fear, voluntarily suppressing their own auras, not daring to provoke.
For they could all sense how terrifyingly powerful the figures aboard that ancient ship were. More than a dozen auras pierced the heavens; any single one appearing would be enough to plunge all Saint-ranked beast kings into despair, utterly beyond their reach.
The one fleeing was none other than Ye Chen!
The pursuers were naturally the Heavenly Kings of the Ancient Divine Palace aboard the Great Power-level ancient ship.
Along the way, Ye Chen pushed the movement technique of the Boundary-Traversing Secret Art to its limit. Before him, illusory projections of great worlds continuously manifested, as if he were shuttling through the myriad realms. He raced like thunder, golden light illuminating the entire world, traversing tens of thousands of miles in an instant.
Mountains and rivers reversed, the starry sky flowed backward—even a Heavenly King would be left eating dust.
Yet, the Great Power-level ancient ship behind was even faster, clearly augmented by Great Power-level array patterns. Its speed was extreme, surpassing Ye Chen's, and the distance between them was closing.
Now, the figures standing on the ship's bow were clearly visible: the four Heavenly King Xuan Elders and the nine Heavenly Kings of the Imperial Dynasty, each as terrifying and overwhelming as gods or demons.
Several times along the journey, Ye Chen's face had darkened to the point where he nearly threw out the protective treasure bestowed by the Wan Chu Venerable One or another ancient Great Sage, summoning a Great Power phantom to intimidate the powerful and attack the Heavenly Kings.
But in the end, he did not. These were his most precious life-saving treasures; using one meant losing one. Unless absolutely necessary, he must not use them.
Moreover, the Ancient Divine Palace might very well possess similar means.
Pursuer and pursued, they traversed a staggering distance of five hundred thousand miles, continuously crossing the endless Primordial Lands. Their momentum was immense, causing all the powerful beings of the six directions and eight wildernesses to not dare move a muscle, fearing they might invite fatal disaster.
Ye Chen's expression grew increasingly grim, for his Chaos Secret Art was about to end. Once it did, not only would he fall back to his original cultivation level, but the backlash from the Chaos Secret Art was even more severe than that of the Battle God Seal. It would leave him greatly weakened for a longer duration.
Yet, he simply could not shake off the Great Power-level ancient ship behind him. It wasn't that he didn't want to use the Void God Platform, but his aura was completely locked. It was difficult to activate it; the slightest delay would lead to being caught. How could he use it?
Boom—
The Great Power-level ancient ship behind closed in even more. Moreover, the First Heavenly King Xuan Elder transmitted his voice from afar, his shouts echoing for tens of thousands of miles: "Battle Saint King, there's no need to flee. You cannot escape. Hand over the Mythical Crown obediently, and we will grant you a dignified death."
Ye Chen did not respond, for it was meaningless.
Finally, after fleeing another two hundred thousand miles, Ye Chen shuddered throughout his entire body. The primordial Chaos Qi around him abruptly dissipated completely. A sudden wave of weakness instantly enveloped his entire being. Ye Chen's aura plummeted, dropping even below that of a Saint Lord.
Ye Chen forcefully suppressed that weakness, using all the recovery pills he had prepared beforehand—divine pills and miraculous medicines he had refined in his spare time, naturally of high grade. He even refined a portion of divine spirit sources. His body was instantly replenished with powerful energy, reducing much of the weakness, but he still could not recover to the combat power of the Samsara level.
The Heavenly Kings aboard the Great Power-level ancient ship behind all noticed. The nine Heavenly Kings sighed helplessly at the Battle Saint King's misfortune, but the four Heavenly King Xuan Elders laughed heartily in delight: "Hahaha, Battle Saint King, you've finally reached your limit and fallen in cultivation. Let's see how you escape now."
Heavenly King Xuan Elder Tian Mei directly strode forward, slapping out a palm strike. Divine radiance exploded, tearing through heaven and earth.
Ye Chen relied on his extreme speed to dodge sideways, but he was still a fraction too slow and was affected. His blood energy churned violently, and he coughed out a mouthful of brilliant golden blood.
This scene delighted the four Heavenly King Xuan Elders. Indeed, the Battle Saint King was far from his former self.
There was no need for the nine Heavenly Kings to intervene. The four Heavenly King Xuan Elders directly attacked, charging forward with incredible speed. After Ye Chen's cultivation fell and he entered his weakened state, his speed, though fast, was clearly insufficient to escape the four Heavenly Kings.
The First Heavenly King Xuan Elder even descended before him, unleashing a beam of divine radiance.
Clang—
At the critical moment, Ye Chen activated the Human Sovereign Pagoda. Primordial Chaos Qi cascaded down, blocking the Heavenly King's strike. However, a formidable force still penetrated through the Chaos Qi into his body, causing him to shudder.
"Indeed, this brat is much weaker after his secret art. Good. Now let's see how you escape our grasp."
The First Heavenly King Xuan Elder spoke coldly, continuously attacking with Heavenly King-level divine might of the Great Dao. Even with the Human Sovereign Pagoda, in its unawakened state, it only offered passive defense, its defensive power much weaker.
Wave after wave of terrifying power, even after being weakened by the primordial Chaos Qi, remained incredibly strong, continuously striking Ye Chen's body. Even his Battle Sacred Body was pummeled until his blood energy churned.
Later, blood began to trickle from the corner of his mouth, that strand of golden blood strikingly brilliant.
For now, Ye Chen could only defend passively like a turtle in its shell. He couldn't use the Void God Platform to traverse the void either, because his aura was locked. If he tore through the void to traverse, he would inevitably be followed. Moreover, at that moment, the primordial Chaos Qi would have to withdraw to allow traversal, and he would be caught by his pursuers immediately, putting him in even greater danger.
Rumble—
Within his body, the Saint Body Regeneration Technique operated autonomously. Blood energy roared, easily repairing all injuries.
He directly sat cross-legged in the void. The Human Sovereign Pagoda hovered above his head, motionless. Primordial Chaos Qi poured down, protecting his body. He seemed to have entered a meditative state, eyes closed, repairing himself here, waiting for the period of weakness to pass.
"Don't let him recover! Everyone, attack! Smash through the Chaos Qi defense!"
The First Heavenly King Xuan Elder's expression changed slightly as he discerned Ye Chen's intention. He shouted, ordering the other three Heavenly King Xuan Elders to attack together, assaulting Ye Chen.