Facing the sudden reality that the Supreme Emperor's weapon they had imagined was already claimed by an owner, both the Mountain Range Beast Venerable and the human supreme powerhouse could not accept it. They had come through great hardships, even shattering a Divine Spirit-level Saint Phantom, all for the sake of seizing the Human Sovereign Pagoda. Yet, from the very beginning, it had already belonged to someone.
"Brat, release the mark. This is not something you deserve," the Mountain Range Beast Venerable roared, charging forward directly. Boundless blood energy erupted, flooding the area as it descended into madness and endless fury.
"Hmph!" Before Ye Chen could even make a move, the Peacock King acted. A wave of spatial power enveloped the area, intercepting the Mountain Range Beast Venerable's assault. He sneered coldly, "What a ridiculous statement. If it's not Qian's, then is it yours? If you don't want to die, step aside."
His words were equally forceful, just like Qian's.
The atmosphere was now extremely tense, almost at the breaking point. The very heavens and earth seemed to be collapsing into their most primordial state of disintegration, on the verge of being completely annihilated.
Amidst this tense standoff, Imperial Wuming, piloting the Devouring Heaven Cauldron, suddenly retreated.
This move caught everyone's attention, leaving them all bewildered.
Even Ye Chen and the Peacock King were somewhat puzzled. Could it be that Imperial Son Wuming, having come this far, was now voluntarily backing down?
"The Human Sovereign Pagoda is his. It has acknowledged its master; it cannot be contested," Imperial Wuming stated.
"So what if it has acknowledged a master? We can kill him and seize it," the Mountain Range Beast Venerable said sinisterly, brimming with chilling killing intent.
The human supreme powerhouse also harbored hostility.
Ye Chen's expression remained unchanged, while the Peacock King sneered coldly. Their demeanor greatly displeased the Mountain Range Beast Venerable. Logically, with its side holding the absolute advantage, Qian and his companions should be feeling fear and panic.
But they weren't. What was the meaning of this?
Imperial Wuming spoke indifferently, "If you have the capability, I can restrain the Peacock King, allowing you to deal with Qian. As for Lord Tongxuan, are you certain you wish to act against Qian? Regardless, he is, in a way, a member of the human race. Moreover, Qian is very forceful; becoming his enemy would bring no benefit to the human race."
"So it is Lord Tongxuan!"
Only then did the human Saints realize that the supreme powerhouse who had arrived from the human race was Tongxuan Wang, one of the mightiest existences standing at the pinnacle of the pyramid within humanity.
Although Tongxuan Wang held considerable hostility towards Ye Chen, he still shook his head and said, "I do not wish to act against him. However, I hope he will voluntarily hand over the Chaos Supreme Treasure to be safeguarded by our human race's higher echelons. That would be the best course of action."
Then, he turned directly to face Ye Chen, speaking earnestly, "Qian, you are strong, but you are ultimately just one person. Furthermore, the demon race and the beast race each have more than one supreme powerhouse. With your strength alone, formidable as it is, I'm afraid you cannot truly protect such a Chaos Supreme Treasure. Why not entrust it to our human race for safekeeping? Not only would its security be far greater, but it would also significantly enhance the overall strength of the human race. Wouldn't that be better? If you join our human race's higher echelons, you would also gain the right to use the Chaos Supreme Treasure."
These words sounded very righteous, framed from the perspective of human race interests while also considering Ye Chen's personal safety. This caused many human Saints to nod in agreement; this approach was essentially the best possible.
The Mountain Range Beast Venerable immediately glared angrily at the human supreme powerhouse, roaring, "Tongxuan Wang, does your human race truly intend to monopolize it? My beast race will not let this rest!"
Tongxuan Wang replied coldly, "Mountain Range Beast Venerable, do you still wish to act against my human race? Do not think that the achievements of the ancient era represent everything. Today, my human race does not fear you. We also have Divine Spirits in the Nine Heavens. At worst, it would be a battle between our two races. Moreover, my human race's supreme powerhouse currently holds the advantage. Do you still wish to continue this fight?"
The Mountain Range Beast Venerable glanced at the human supreme powerhouse, then at Ye Chen. With two supreme powerhouses present, it, a single beast race supreme powerhouse, held no advantage. It could only snort coldly and retreat from their edge.
Of course, in this border region between races, it did not believe the human race would truly be so bold as to attack it. If they did, it could absolutely summon several beast race supreme powerhouses. At worst, it would lead to a full-scale war between the two races.
Soon, Tongxuan Wang looked at Ye Chen and smiled, "Well then, Qian, please hand over the Chaos Supreme Treasure for now, so that I may take it back to the human race's heavily guarded lands for safekeeping."
The Peacock King watched coldly from the sidelines. No matter how one looked at his beautiful and delicate face, it seemed filled with a peculiar meaning, as if he were sneering. He did not speak, making the atmosphere on the scene somewhat strange.
Yet, Ye Chen did not hand it over. Instead, he looked towards the distant Imperial Wuming and asked, "Will you still make a move?"
Imperial Wuming smiled with a carefree, transcendent air, as if untouched by worldly concerns. "You can rest assured. Our battle has already concluded. I have no impulse to fight now. However, I very much look forward to the day you shatter the shackles of the laws."
"Good," Ye Chen said. From beginning to end, the one he was most wary of was Imperial Wuming.
At this moment, the human supreme powerhouse began to sense something amiss and said gravely, "Qian, are you truly unwilling to hand over the Chaos Supreme Treasure to be safeguarded by my human race's higher echelons?"
"Why should I hand it over?" Ye Chen countered.
Tongxuan Wang spoke earnestly, "Naturally, to enhance the overall strength of our human race. With this Supreme Dao weapon in hand, our human race gains another force to deter the world. Furthermore, the Chaos Supreme Treasure would receive greater protection. It's a win-win situation. Wouldn't that be better?"
"That idea does sound quite good," Ye Chen nodded, causing a trace of pleased smile to appear at the corner of Tongxuan Wang's mouth. But it soon froze, because Ye Chen added another sentence: "But what does that have to do with me?"
What does that have to do with me!?
These four words struck Tongxuan Wang's ears like a thunderclap on a clear day. Even the Mountain Range Beast Venerable was somewhat stunned.
The Saints outside the Hundred Battles Mountain Range were all dumbfounded. What was going on?
Imperial Wuming's expression remained unchanged, merely watching the scene with great interest, purely for the spectacle.
Tongxuan Wang's expression changed drastically. "Qian, are you unwilling to consider the greater good of our human race? Do you intend to monopolize this Chaos Supreme Treasure?"
The Saints who had already left the Hundred Battles Mountain Range were all watching this tense scene through their All-Seeing Divine Eyes.
"Monopolize? How laughable. It's clearly my supreme treasure, yet you accuse me of monopolizing it? Are you sure your head hasn't been squeezed by a door?" Ye Chen responded coldly. "And what of the greater good of the human race? What does that have to do with me? Why should I hand over my Human Sovereign Pagoda to you so-called higher echelons of the human race for safekeeping?"
"You seem to have misunderstood something. The Human Sovereign Pagoda is mine, not the so-called human race's. Don't drag out all that useless talk of righteousness. I will not hand over the Human Sovereign Pagoda. Is that clear?"