Ao Chen thought of none other than the Heavenly Dao—or, more precisely, Hongjun.
He knew the Dragon Race carried Karmic Debt. His previous incarnation had died under the backlash of that debt, which was how he had come to be here.
But though the Dragon Race's duty to suppress the Four Seas had burdened them with immense Karmic Debt, it was not enough to kill them all at once—or even to make it erupt all at the same time.
After all, in ages past, Ancestral Dragon had sworn to guard the Four Seas forever. If the Karmic Debt could erupt on such a massive scale, the old and young members of the Dragon Race would have died long ago. They would never have lasted until today.
Now East King Duke had made his move, and the Dragon Race's ancestors had all suffered a Karmic Debt backlash at the same time. Ao Chen did not believe that was a coincidence.
It had not happened sooner or later, but now, of all times. Something was definitely fishy.
Thinking of the Dragon Race's wretched state in later ages, and the fact that East King Duke had been appointed by Hongjun, Ao Chen could not help suspecting that this was connected.
What he still could not figure out was whether Hongjun had schemed against them, or whether Hongjun's union with the Heavenly Dao had simply allowed it to grow more complete and monitor the Primordial Wilderness more strictly.
After all, by any reasonable measure, the Dragon Race was not worth such elaborate scheming by Hongjun.
After a long while, Ao Chen slowly shook his head.
"Forget it. It's too early to worry about that. I'll deal with the Immortal Court first."
East King Duke was a Quasi-Sage. Of the auras Ao Chen had sensed breaking through to Quasi-Sage, East King Duke was one.
East King Duke's dream of unifying the Primordial Wilderness was little more than wishful thinking, but his origins were indeed extraordinary. At the very least, he was one of the top figures in the Primordial Wilderness.
Still, that level of strength meant little to Ao Chen now.
At the peak of the Mythical Heavenly Immortal realm, he could easily suppress an ordinary Quasi-Sage. East King Duke would be no exception.
Just as Ao Chen was thinking this over, an angry shout came from outside.
"Where's Ao Guang? Tell him to get out here! Why hasn't he delivered the Jade Nectar he was told to prepare?"
"If the Sovereign Lord blames him, can he bear the consequences?"
The voice was arrogant and impatient, full of imperious contempt. It pierced straight through the Dragon Palace's protective wards and rang clearly in Ao Chen and Ao Guang's ears.
Ao Guang's already pale face darkened further. His fists clenched unconsciously, his eyes burning with humiliation and anger, though helplessness outweighed both.
"An envoy from the Immortal Court..." Ao Guang said hoarsely to Ao Chen.
"The Immortal Court is holding a banquet, and they've come to demand tribute again..."
Ao Chen's expression remained calm, but his deep eyes had turned cold as a frozen pool.
He did not even bother to use his divine sense to see who had come. He merely asked, "Does this happen often?"
Ao Guang nodded dejectedly. "Ever since the Immortal Court was established, they've done this all the time. If the slightest thing displeases them, they curse and berate us. I..."
He had not finished speaking when the arrogant voice sounded again from beyond the hall. It seemed to be approaching, and footsteps rang out clearly.
"Ao Guang, are you deaf? Get out here and welcome the envoy! Do you mean to defy the Sovereign Lord's decree? Do you think I won't tear down this rickety Dragon Palace?"
The visitor's tone grew even more brazen, as if he had no regard whatsoever for the East Sea Dragon King.
Ao Guang trembled with rage but dared not act.
Then, without warning, Ao Chen, who had been sitting there quietly, raised a hand.
He did not even stand or look toward the hall's entrance. He simply made a casual wiping motion through the air in the direction of the voice.
As if brushing away dust.
There was no ripple of magical power, no radiance of a divine ability, not even the slightest leak of energy.
Yet the instant Ao Chen's hand swept through the air, the envoy's furious shouting and arrogant footsteps outside abruptly stopped!
It was as if an invisible hand had closed around his throat, or as if he had never existed at all. He vanished from the world without a trace.
Silence!
A deathly silence!
The arrogance that had filled the space outside the hall vanished in an instant. Only Ao Guang's heavy breathing remained.
Ao Guang's eyes widened. He could scarcely believe his ears—or what his senses were telling him!
He sprang to his feet and stumbled toward the entrance. When he looked outside, there was no one there!
The Immortal Court envoy who had just been shouting outside—and even his aura, which had been that of a Taiyi Golden Immortal—had vanished completely, as if he had been erased from the world!
What kind of terrifying power was that?
Ao Guang turned around sharply and stared at Ao Chen, who was still sitting there as calmly as before, as if he had done nothing more than swat away a speck of dust. His face was filled with shock and horror beyond words.
What had he done?
He had erased an Immortal Court envoy with a mere wave of his hand? The man had to have been at least a Taiyi Golden Immortal!
Ao Guang's mind went blank, his thoughts in complete disarray!
Was this really the same Ao Chen he knew?
Tens of thousands of years ago, Ao Chen had been no more than a Golden Immortal Peak—and because he was burdened by Karmic Debt, even breaking through to Primordial Unity had been incredibly difficult!
How had he returned with such an unfathomable level of strength?
Even more confusing and terrifying, Ao Guang had clearly sensed that Ao Chen's aura was only at the Heavenly Immortal level!
The aura was somewhat strange and profound, but there was no mistaking the fluctuations of his realm!
How could an aura that belonged to a mere Heavenly Immortal erase an Immortal Court envoy who was at least a Golden Immortal, and possibly even a Taiyi Golden Immortal?
How was that possible?
Ao Guang felt as though his entire worldview was about to collapse!
What had Ao Chen been through in these tens of thousands of years? Why was his aura only that of a Heavenly Immortal, while his strength was so absurdly powerful?
He stood there in a daze, staring at Ao Chen. He opened his mouth, but found he could not ask a single question. All that remained was boundless shock and bewilderment.
But soon, Ao Guang came to his senses, and his heart lurched.
"Quick, Brother Ao Chen, you have to leave! You killed an Immortal Court envoy. East King Duke won't let you get away with it."
"I don't know what method you used, but you're definitely no match for East King Duke."
"Just the other day, that fellow broke through to Quasi-Sage. His cultivation now rivals Ancestor Azure Dragon's. While he's away at Zixiao Palace listening to the Dao, you have to leave at once."
As he spoke, Ao Guang hurriedly pushed Ao Chen toward the exit, his face taut with anxiety.
Ao Chen paused, then teased him without thinking.
"If I leave, what will happen to you?"
Ao Guang was frantic and did not even notice Ao Chen's expression.
"There's no time to worry about that. I'm the East Sea Dragon King. Ancestor Azure Dragon is still here, so they won't dare do anything to me."
"You're different. You're just an ordinary True Dragon. You should leave at once. If you have to, go hide in Dragon Abyss."
"The Immortal Court may be overbearing, but they wouldn't dare enter Dragon Abyss."
Ao Guang was clearly in a panic. He even activated the Dragon Palace's formation to block the surrounding auras and keep word from getting out.
Seeing this, Ao Chen felt a warmth in his heart.
In this world, Ao Guang's actions had certainly improved his impression of the Dragon Race.
Still, though he appreciated the gesture, Ao Chen had no intention of leaving.
A mere Quasi-Sage was nothing. With his current cultivation at the peak of the Heavenly Immortal realm, he could suppress East King Duke with a mere turn of his hand.
"Brother Ao Guang, don't worry. East King Duke won't be a match for me. You needn't fret."
Ao Chen comforted him gently. Then his divine sense surged out of his body and swept straight toward Yingzhou Immortal Island, ready to deal with East King Duke.
Part 2: Heading to Dragon Abyss, East King Duke's Unease
In the main hall of Dragon Palace, Ao Chen's vast divine sense had silently crossed an immeasurable distance in space and time, enveloping Yingzhou Immortal Island deep in the East Sea.
His divine sense swept over the island, taking in everything there.
The defenses were tight, immortal energy was abundant, and palaces of all kinds stood in profusion. It was indeed an impressive sight.
Yet in the heart of Yingzhou Immortal Island, inside the palace belonging to its Island Lord, Ao Chen could not sense a trace of East King Duke's aura.
Many immortals and deities remained on the island, including quite a few Taiyi Golden Immortals. But the Island Lord who had just broken through to Quasi-Sage—the East King Duke—was indeed nowhere to be found.
"Looks like Brother Ao Guang was right. East King Duke really did go to Zixiao Palace to listen to the Dao."
"Come to think of it, the Third Sermon at Zixiao Palace should be happening around this time."
Ao Chen withdrew his divine sense, his brow furrowing almost imperceptibly.
Go to Zixiao Palace and kill East King Duke?
The moment the thought arose, he dismissed it.
Zixiao Palace was a Sage's domain, deep within Chaos and protected by the Heavenly Dao. Hongjun, that unfathomable Dao Ancestor, was there as well.
Forget his current cultivation at the peak of the Mythical Heavenly Immortal realm—even if he were already a Mythical True Immortal, there was no way he could commit murder under a Sage's very nose.
He was confident that with his current strength, he could suppress a newly advanced Quasi-Sage like East King Duke. But he still lacked the means to face an established Quasi-Sage, let alone a Sage in person.
"Forget it," Ao Chen thought to himself.
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