"Mm..."
The little girl held a candied hawthorn skewer in one hand and a glutinous rice ball with half of it eaten in the other. After pondering for a while, she tilted her little face, looking deep in thought.
"Brother Lu Chen, why does Luo Li feel like you've become kind of bad?"
"???"
"!!!"
Hearing that, Lu Chen looked utterly innocent and was just about to speak when he saw Luo Li suddenly burst out laughing.
"But Luo Li still really likes Brother Lu Chen."
As soon as she finished speaking, Lu Chen let out a long sigh of relief.
However, at that moment, Lu Chen suddenly heard a voice beside his ear!
Congratulations, you have completed the mission! Congratulations, you have advanced directly to the Land Immortal Realm!
Along with the notification, Lu Chen suddenly felt an inexhaustible surge of spiritual power erupt inside his Dantian.
In an instant, Lu Chen's Dantian expanded hundreds of times over.
The vast spiritual power within his Dantian poured into his limbs and bones. At that moment, Lu Chen's body was like a gigantic water-absorbing machine.
It frantically absorbed the spiritual power around him.
The absorption was so wild that a spiritual vortex even formed above the imperial palace. At the very center of the vortex stood Lu Chen!
At that moment, Lu Chen felt the power within him. He felt as though he could overturn mountains and seas, summon wind and rain, and wield enough force to destroy Heaven and Earth.
His entire person underwent a transformation.
Moreover, this was not an illusion. This was Lu Chen's true power.
"So this is the power of the Land Immortal Realm?"
Lu Chen muttered to himself.
Generally speaking, across the major nations of the Eastern Cang Region, most ordinary people could cultivate their entire lives and still only reach around the fifth layer of the Houtian Realm.
Anyone who reached the Xiantian Realm already counted as an expert in their region.
Those who reached the Grandmaster or Great Grandmaster Realm could establish their own sects, become generation-defining powerhouses, and even wield the strength to overturn mountains and seas!
Above the Great Grandmaster Realm were the three realms of King, Emperor, and Sovereign!
Anyone who reached one of those three realms could walk sideways through the Great Qian Divine Dynasty—as long as they did not provoke the four great sects, the four great clans, or the imperial family—and roam the world freely!
After the three realms of King, Emperor, and Sovereign came the Heavenly Phenomenon Realm!
Every movement of a Heavenly Phenomenon Realm expert could make Heaven and Earth change color. They could draw thunder, summon lightning, call the wind and rain, and even cause an earth dragon to be born. They were terrifying beyond measure. Such experts were exceedingly rare. The patriarchs of the four great sects and other first-rate forces in the Great Qian Divine Dynasty were all Heavenly Phenomenon Realm experts!
As for the even more powerful Land Immortal Realm...
Just look at the Azure Emperor. As a Land Immortal, he had pressed the several sects within the Great Qian Divine Dynasty and the various divine dynasties beyond it until they could scarcely breathe!
"Still, this place isn't safe to linger in!"
Lu Chen raised his head and looked at the spiritual vortex in the sky. Such an extraordinary phenomenon would inevitably draw the attention of the many powerful experts in the imperial palace—even the Azure Emperor.
Lu Chen immediately reined in the power around him, grabbed the dumbstruck Luo Li beside him, and hurried toward Yuan Xiu Palace.
At that moment, inside the Golden Palace Hall.
Upon a Nine-Dragon golden throne sat a towering figure dressed in a golden-yellow robe embroidered with nine dragons and a panorama of mountains and rivers, a Heaven-and-Earth crown upon his head. He sat as steady as a mountain.
Simply sitting there, he resembled a pillar holding up the sky, inspiring awe in all who saw him. The civil and military officials below were shaken into lowering their heads and staring at the floor, not daring to look directly at him.
This figure, radiating supreme imperial majesty, was none other than the highest ruler of the Great Qian Divine Dynasty—the Azure Emperor!
"Hmm?"
At that moment, the Azure Emperor gave a soft hum and abruptly raised his head. His eyes seemed to contain ten thousand worlds.
"The aura of a Land Immortal!"
The Azure Emperor spoke softly as he looked toward the direction where Lu Chen had been moments ago.
Only to find that the place was now completely empty.
Not far away, however, one of his sons—someone he was about to forget—and the beloved daughter of the Duke of Zhenguo were holding hands and playing noisily.
The Azure Emperor watched the two children for a while, then silently shook his head.
A Land Immortal. How could that term possibly have anything to do with two children?
Still, faced with the aura of a Land Immortal that had appeared and vanished without warning, the Azure Emperor furrowed his brow slightly, worry surfacing in his eyes.
His fingers knocked rhythmically against the dragon throne.
The Azure Emperor was in a foul mood, causing the atmosphere in the hall to freeze completely. The civil and military officials below were drenched in cold sweat!
Their fear did not stem from the Azure Emperor being especially tyrannical. It came from the absolute suppression created by the difference in realms.
"Brother Lu Chen, why did you suddenly start running? What happened?"
Within the imperial palace, Luo Li was dragged along by Lu Chen as they ran. Confusion filled the little girl's face.
"Heeheehee, we're playing eagle catches chicks!"
Lu Chen patted the little girl's head and spoke with a grin.
He glanced toward the Golden Palace Hall, a meaningful look flickering in his eyes.
Although he had already reached the Land Immortal Realm,
Lu Chen understood his condition very clearly. He possessed the realm but had not cultivated any techniques or divine abilities, and he had no combat experience whatsoever.
In other words, he possessed a mountain of gold but could not use it.
With his Land Immortal Realm cultivation, he could probably only easily defeat experts below the Land Immortal Realm, such as Heavenly Phenomenon Realm experts.
If he faced someone in the same Land Immortal Realm, there was a high chance he would lose.
Therefore, Lu Chen did not want to reveal himself yet.
He would wait until he could hammer the Azure Emperor into the ground before saying anything.
"Eh, isn't this Little Eleventh? If I remember correctly, Eleventh Brother, you'll turn six tomorrow and have your constitution, Root Foundation, and comprehension tested!"
"Be prepared. If they test you tomorrow and find that you have some useless constitution or something, that'll be embarrassing!"
At that moment, a group of people strode toward Lu Chen and Luo Li. At the front was a thirteen- or fourteen-year-old boy in a yellow robe. With sword-shaped brows and long eyes, he was handsome and dashing, carrying the bearing of royalty.
Only, a trace of sinister malice showed in his narrow eyes.
When Lu Chen saw this person, his expression did not change, but his eyes filled with ice-cold intent.
The Seventh Prince, Lu Ren!
He and the Second Prince shared the same mother. Their mother was the greatly favored Spirit Consort.
The reason Lu Chen's emotions shifted upon seeing him was that, through the Reversal System, he already knew his future.
Leaving aside how these two would join forces with outside sects to force the Azure Emperor into abdicating against his will,
most importantly, their mother, the Spirit Consort, would frame his own mother, resulting in his mother being banished to the Cold Palace, where she would live a life worse than death.
For that alone, Lu Chen had already sentenced the Second Prince and the Seventh Prince to death in his heart.
Still, this man's talent was quite good. With the imperial family's lavish resources, he had reached the ninth layer of the Xiantian Realm and half a step into the Grandmaster Realm despite being only eleven or twelve years old.
"Thank you for your concern, Imperial Brother. I won't trouble you to worry about me."
Lu Chen spoke with a faint, mocking smile.
Hearing this, Lu Ren froze and fixed his narrow eyes firmly on Lu Chen.
For some reason, when Lu Ren looked again at the five- or six-year-old child before him, he felt as though he were facing his own Imperial Father.
He shook his head, dismissing such an absurd thought. But when he looked toward Luo Li, anger and heat appeared on Lu Ren's face.
"Little Luo Li, don't keep following Little Eleventh around. His mother came from a palace maid's background, after all. As the beloved daughter of the Duke of Zhenguo, if you keep tagging along beside him, you'll inevitably lower your station!"
Lu Ren spoke mockingly. However, the instant his words fell,
Lu Chen's face turned utterly cold.
The next moment, centered on Lu Chen, an incomparably violent surge of spiritual energy erupted, transforming into a roaring spiritual dragon that charged toward Lu Ren.
In an instant, Lu Ren felt as though some supreme terror had locked onto him.
More importantly, he felt the might of Heaven and Earth burst from Lu Chen and crash down upon him.
At that moment, facing Lu Chen, Lu Ren felt like nothing more than an ant.
Lu Ren let out a terrified growl. He and the eunuchs and palace maids behind him all turned deathly pale and collapsed limply to the ground.
The entire thing happened in the blink of an eye. Seeing Lu Ren and the others lying on the ground, trembling, Lu Chen suppressed the killing intent in his heart, put on an astonished expression, and walked over to Lu Ren.
"Imperial Brother, what happened to you?"
Lu Chen spoke as though he were surprised.
"You, you..."
Lying on the ground, Lu Ren stared at Lu Chen, disbelief and terror written across his face.
"What happened to me?"
"Hey, Brother Lu Chen, look at Brother Lu Ren! He wet his pants! How embarrassing! Heeheehee!"
At that moment, Luo Li noticed the yellow liquid beneath Lu Ren's crotch and clapped her hands as she laughed.
"Luo Li, don't say things like that. Imperial Brother must be unwell, so this is understandable. You absolutely mustn't tell your little friends and let the entire imperial palace—or even the entire imperial capital, the entire Great Qian—know that Imperial Brother is already eleven or twelve and still wets his pants. How embarrassing."
Lu Chen spoke with profound meaning. Hearing this, Luo Li's eyes lit up.
"I understand, Brother. I definitely won't tell anyone. Luo Li will only whisper it secretly. But, Brother Lu Chen, why did you say Brother Lu Ren is unwell? Where is he unwell?"
"Heh heh. Kidney deficiency."
Lu Chen glanced coldly at Lu Ren lying on the ground.
"Ahhh..."
Humiliated like this, Lu Ren was furious beyond measure. But remembering the terrifying power that had suddenly erupted from Lu Chen, he no longer dared say a single bad word about him. He merely let out a miserable cry, then scrambled up and fled on all fours.
After bidding Luo Li farewell, Lu Chen had just stepped through the gates of Yuan Xiu Palace
when he suddenly found a transparent panel appearing before his eyes once more.
Another line of text appeared across the panel.
Congratulations. You have gained the affection of your childhood sweetheart, the current Land Immortal Realm powerhouse Luo Li. However, decades have passed, and you have never met your mother. Your mother has wept herself nearly blind every day! Reversal Mission issued: Make your mother reveal a sincere smile! Mission reward: Supreme Sword Body!
"Make my mother reveal a sincere smile!"
Would that be difficult?
Lu Chen scratched his head.
The Reversal System had arrived decades early. To him, it was practically a cheat-like Golden Finger.
Moreover, this reward was incredibly tempting.
The Supreme Sword Body!
After reincarnating into this world, Lu Chen had secretly searched for and read many books because he was unfamiliar with it.
Across the entire vast Eastern Cang Region, over tens of thousands of years, only a handful of people had possessed the Supreme Sword Body.
As long as none of them died prematurely, every person who possessed the Supreme Sword Body had become an unparalleled powerhouse who towered over all living beings beneath Heaven!
Before you continue