Entering

As the heatwave gradually subsided, wisps of smoke still rose from the charred cracks in the ground.

Chen Changqing leaned on his flying sword, half of his sleeve charred yellow by the Great Sun True Fire, and blood foam spilled from his heaving chest.

"Dad, eat this."

Chen Fan stepped forward and handed over a bright green fruit.

There was no trace of spiritual energy on the peel; it looked more like an ordinary sour wild plum from the mountains.

However, inside this green fruit, Chen Fan erased all the strange phenomena and sealed only a drop of the Grand Void Origin Source from the "Life Formation Core" of the Miniature Divine Kingdom.

"What good are wild berries...?"

Chen Changqing was somewhat dazed, and casually took it and put it in his mouth.

The moment you bite into the crisp fruit flesh, a warm, spring-like aroma instantly spreads through your throat, flowing smoothly down your esophagus into your Qi Sea without any obstruction.

Crackle, crackle.

The meridians that had been shattered by the pressure of the Deity Transformation were healing rapidly at a speed visible to the naked eye. Even the dim Nascent Soul in the Dantian stretched out its curled-up limbs and regained its shimmering blue light.

Chen Changqing abruptly stopped, staring wide-eyed at his perfectly intact hands.

"This... this wild fruit by the roadside, its medicinal power surpasses that of a third-grade Resurrection Pill?"

"Perhaps it's a specialty from Setting Sun Mountain, having absorbed the remaining spiritual liquid from the mountain-protecting formation."

Chen Fan casually made up a story, his expression completely at ease.

Mo Wendao, who was standing to the side, stood up from the ground, patted his scorched beard, and shook his head with a wry smile.

"Changqing, stop thinking about it. We're already incredibly lucky to have survived. The Immortal Alliance Edict has been issued, the battle arena is open, we should set off."

Chen Changqing took a deep breath, sheathed his longsword, and gripped Chen Fan's small hand tightly in return.

His palms were sweaty, and his knuckles were slightly stiff from exerting too much force.

"Let's go," Chen Changqing whispered, "Let's see just how domineering these so-called Prodigies of the world really are."

In the center of the Immortal Alliance Divine City, the Heaven-Reaching Divine Mountain rises abruptly from the ground, piercing straight into the thunderclouds of the nine heavens.

Halfway up the Divine Mountain, twelve floating islands made of lapis lazuli, like Stars, slowly rotate around the ancient battle platform in the center, which spans thousands of miles.

Tens of thousands of cultivators converged from the four city gates. A rainbow tore through the sky, spirit beasts pulled the divine carriages, and the entire Divine Mountain Square was bustling with noise and filled with a murderous aura.

The three members of the Azure Cloud Sword Sect walked on the narrowest outer stone steps.

The cultivators from various sects around them noticed the faint fluctuations of Chen Changqing's Early Nascent Soul, and upon seeing the eleven-year-old child he was leading, they all revealed strange and mocking sneers.

"That's the Azure Cloud Sword Sect?"

"Is that the peasant from the Southern Region who offended Myriad Phenomena Academy at Four Directions Lodge and just now angered the young master of the Golden Crow Immortal Pavilion?"

"A Mortal Body child, who hasn't even awakened his spiritual roots, dares to bring him to participate in this Ascension Convention? He's practically asking if his family line isn't dying out soon enough."

Amidst whispers, the surrounding cultivators retreated three zhang as if avoiding a snake or scorpion, carving out a conspicuous blank space for the Azure Cloud Sword Sect in the crowded throng.

Isolation, scrutiny, and even an undisguised chilling murderous intent.

Chen Changqing's jaw tightened, and he didn't utter a word in reply. He simply pulled Chen Fan behind him, the flying sword at his waist humming as he coldly surveyed the entire scene without taking a single step back.

Chen Fan stood behind his father, his Divine Thought piercing through layers of clouds and mist, looking directly at the three tallest floating islands above.

On the white jade tower in the due east direction, the banners of the Myriad Phenomena Academy fluttered in the wind.

The Grand Elder Han Mo, a cultivator at the Deity Transformation stage, sat solemnly at the head of the table, without bringing the injured Gu Changge with him.

His gaze pierced through the vast Void and landed on Chen Fan. A trace of fear flashed deep in his eyes, but he quickly suppressed it, not daring to make the slightest move.

On the floating island due north, Nine-Headed Blazing Golden Crows hung in the air, crying out.

Lu Heaven-Burning sat atop the Divine Jade Dragon Carriage, his golden double pupils flashing with savage flames.

He looked down at the corner where the Azure Cloud Sword Sect was located, grinned, and silently uttered two words.

"Wait to die."

Before the words were finished, the western sky suddenly turned a chilling, bone-deep black.

A massive Black Jade Bone Boat crashed through the Void, and at the bow of the boat sat a cold and beautiful woman draped in a light veil, her bare feet dangling in the air.

The woman had deep purple eyes and a You Tong figure; she was none other than You Tong, the current Divine Maiden of the Taiyin Demon Sect.

"Young Master Lu, you have quite the imposing presence."

You Tong covered her lips and chuckled softly, her voice sweet yet chillingly cold.

"They rode off in a grand procession on their nine birds, only to fail to kill even a mere child from the Southern Region. Instead, they were frightened back by the bells of the Immortal Alliance. Is the Sun True Fire of your Golden Crow Immortal Pavilion mixed with rotten firewood from the hearth?"

Boom!

The Crimson Sun Divine Jade Dragon Carriage beneath Lu Heaven-Burning instantly erupted with a hundred-foot-long golden flame, its double pupils spitting out killing light.

"You Tong, once we enter the Ancient Plains, I'll refine you along with it!"

"I'm so scared."

You Tong scoffed coldly, her gaze sweeping over Chen Fan at the edge of the battle stage. Her purple pupils narrowed slightly, as if deep in thought.

The atmosphere in the entire Divine Mountain Square plummeted to freezing point.

On the welcoming platform to one side of the battle arena, several high-ranking members of the Immortal Alliance, dressed in the Nine Luminaries Star River Robes, stood quietly.

One of them wore a bamboo hat and had his eyes covered with a thick layer of blood-soaked black cloth; he was none other than Lu Jiuyuan, the Inspector whose eyes had been blinded by Chen Fan from afar.

Lu Jiuyuan's face was ashen, and his body trembled slightly, almost imperceptibly.

Although he was blind, the residual aura he sensed before his Golden Core shattered allowed him to accurately pinpoint the location of the Azure Cloud Sword Sect.

He raised his only remaining left hand and sent a secret command jade talisman, tinged with the smell of blood, to a golden-armored commander beside him. His lips moved slightly, transmitting a chilling message.

"Order the 36 Ironclad Guards to Qingyun Qingyun's entire family upon entering the Ancient Plains, and then dismember that brat, put him in a jar, and send him to me."

The commander bowed and accepted the jade token, then bent down and disappeared into the shadows.

Chen Fan stood at the edge of the stone steps, and as if sensing something, he raised his eyelids slightly, a cold smile curving his lips.

"Quiet!"

A resounding command, like the booming of a bell, echoed from the summit of the Divine Mountain.

An elderly envoy from the Immortal Alliance, with white hair, descended from the clouds, carrying a bronze edict that exuded ancient majesty.

"Supreme decree: The first battle of the Ascension Convention shall, according to ancient rules, open the Fallen Immortal Ancient Plain!"

The messenger's voice pierced the heavens and echoed in every corner of the battle arena.

"All 3,200 Prodigies under the age of 30 are hereby admitted to the Yuan!"

"Within the Ancient Plains lies a perilous land where immortals and demons perished ten thousand years ago; where killing is unrestrained and life and death are indiscriminate!"

"At the center of the Ancient Plain stand a thousand Heaven-Reaching Fiend Command. Within three days, only those who leave the Ancient Plain bearing these Fiend Tokens will be qualified to ascend the Heaven-Reaching Battle Platform and vie for the position of Southern Nation Alliance Leader!"

Boom!

The moment the words were spoken, all twelve floating islands simultaneously erupted with dazzling beams of light.

In the center of the vast, towering Heaven-Reaching Battle Platform directly in front of the Divine Mountain, the Void shattered like a mirror.