Palace Treasure at the Peak

In the Virtual Universe, Jiang Fang and Yao Rao both held Chen Qing's arms, pressing tightly against him without speaking. The Original Ancestor squinted and watched for a long while before speaking slowly:

"To repeatedly withstand the crushing of a Venerable—the Void Nether Armor can't do that. You've got no shortage of secrets, kid. But no need to explain. Just be careful and don't expose them casually outside."

Chen Qing nodded helplessly. With the Green Lotus empowering his Origin Core, destroying it was impossible, but sealing it was still doable. Only once the Green Lotus was nurtured and its roots could reach straight into Chaos would he no longer fear being sealed and could continue absorbing the source. Luckily, the puppet lacked the ability to think and simply pinned him to the plaza; if it had just tossed him out, Chen Qing would have been truly screwed.

"Time?"

The Palace Master Biluo glanced at the two women, then fixed her gaze on Chen Qing.

"Going all out now, preliminary recognition will still take over a decade."

"Don't rush to comprehend the secret patterns; focus on the laws first!"

Hearing the Palace Master Biluo's explanatory tone, Chen Qing looked at her curiously. She hadn't been this polite to him before. But these secret patterns were beneficial for his comprehension of the fifth layer—a rare chance to gain on both fronts.

"Little one, this thing looks like it could save your life, but if you take it out, at best it buys you time. Whether it stays yours after that is another question."

Chen Qing's eyelids drooped slightly. Even the overlord of the Mist Shadow Race couldn't keep hold of this thing, let alone him. If it were exposed, it would definitely attract a swarm of Universe Masters; even overlords wouldn't qualify to participate. Considering that Primal Star only opened once every many years and yielded just one peak treasure each time, even the strongest might step in. Then the clan's powerhouses would have to get involved. Even if the dozen or so top brass didn't want it, they'd have to agree to lend it out, since they'd contributed effort too.

"And once it's bound to you, when you really need to use it, just hide inside!"

"I understand what you both mean, seniors. Rest assured, I'll be mindful."

Chen Qing didn't stubbornly argue. After all, no one knew what he was comprehending, and there was no point making his women worry.

"You should still use it when necessary. That's far less serious than your current secrets."

The Original Ancestor's voice was light but carried weight. Through the mist, Chen Qing could see his blurry face and nodded.

The Palace Master Biluo turned to the two women beside her, her cold voice ringing out.

"Remember this: even if it means suicide, you must not be enslaved. If you die, I can reverse time and space to revive you. But once enslaved, even revived, you are no longer yourselves—and Chen Qing's secrets will no longer be secrets!"

Jiang Fang and Yao Rao involuntarily straightened their bodies. This was the first time they'd heard about resurrection, and even more shocking was that their teacher had spoken so much at once.

Inside the Origin Core, Chen Qing sensed the outside. The puppet was still pressing down, grinding away. But wrapped in the Green Lotus's root tendrils, it felt as if they were in different dimensions. Aside from making the Origin Core roll endlessly, it had no effect.

"It won't kick me out, will it?"

Chen Qing felt a bit anxious. He quickly sat cross-legged beneath the Green Lotus, calming his mind and focusing on sensing the Lotus Seed's condition. In a hazy state, he finally connected through the Lotus Seed to the outside again. Outside the Origin Core, a few illusory root tendrils extended and quickly connected to the plaza's ground. Though the Origin Core's range of movement shrank, it accelerated the infiltration speed, and at last, there was no fear of interruption.

"Now this is solid. If not for the good gains earlier, I'd really want to slap myself twice."

Chen Qing touched his own cheek but ultimately couldn't bring himself to do it. He sank his mind fully into the recognition process.

A World Lord's power was, after all, not divine power, nor could he directly seize the core like Luo Feng. Chen Qing had to withstand the pressure of the treasure's own might with his will before his power could seep in. Now, with full concentration, the speed increased significantly.

Thirteen years passed quickly. During this time, Jiang Fang and Yao Rao had been sitting on the hill, either comprehending laws or receiving guidance in the Virtual Universe.

"Water can form a maelstrom, driving spatial fluctuations. These fluctuations are mainly about rotation... Combining this can enhance the speed of spatial rotation... The spatial maelstrom is complete!"

A maelstrom suddenly appeared above Jiang Fang's head. Yao Rao calmly watched the dripping water droplets, her nostrils flaring slightly.

"She overtook me! But I'm close too—already at maximum speed..."

The commotion outside the city didn't disturb Chen Qing. He was sprinting full force, adding bricks and tiles to his grand mansion!

A year later, the entire palace suddenly trembled. The puppet on the plaza collapsed with a crash, and the endless mist around began to converge toward the center.

"Besides the main hall, there are side halls on both sides and at the back, with 10,081 rooms inside. The pavilions on each side have a main hall each, with fewer rooms. So, what do you think? This is our home!"

At this moment on the square, 108 Marquis-Ranks and 36 King-Ranks stood neatly arrayed around its perimeter.

Chen Qing stood before the pavilion with the two women, excitedly describing the supreme treasure's capabilities. "Later, the number of puppets we can control can increase tenfold, even a dozen Venerables!"

"Little young man, with a palace this big, are you trying to play emperor and build yourself a harem?" Yao Rao licked her lips, but her eyes narrowed. "All flash and no substance—say something useful!"

"Hehe, how could I!" Chen Qing quickly straightened up. "It's mainly for defense. Material attacks can be reduced to as little as one hundred-thousandth, and soul attacks to one ten-thousandth. Suppression and speed still depend on one's own strength, and as for offense, that goes without saying—it all comes down to the materials themselves."

"That's already quite impressive, especially in terms of soul defense—no less than a peak supreme treasure of the same category!" Jiang Fang sighed with emotion. "It seems there were many stories back in the day!"

"Nothing more than ambushes and schemes—nothing to do with us. Now it goes by the name Chen!"

"Show-off!"

Ignoring Yao Rao's eye roll, Chen Qing instead turned to them with a serious expression. "I need to go into seclusion now. You two can leave your marks in the side halls for temporary use. Be careful when exploring the secret realm."

This was the plan they had agreed upon. The two women would go out to explore the secret realm—especially Yao Rao, who was just a step away from being acknowledged by the Time Law and was feeling a bit anxious. Chen Qing naturally wouldn't restrict them. He would go into seclusion inside the supreme treasure, and they could carry it with them.

"This secret realm is only a half-finished product, so the level of life within shouldn't be high. Although the environment is harsher, it's also more conducive to comprehending laws. Rest assured!" Jiang Fang waved her hand and turned toward the adjacent palace.

"Little young man, work hard. I'll give you a reward when you come out!" Yao Rao threw him a flirtatious glance, winked, and turned away with a flourish.

"Though the five-layer Secret Script Diagram is complex, it at least points the way. This is the benefit of inheritance!" Chen Qing placed his Origin Core in the main hall and slowly sat beneath the illusory Green Lotus. Having exchanged insights with the Lotus Seed several times before, he found that this brought him closer to the origin. Moreover, since Creation was originally inherited from the Lotus Seed, he believed that fusing with it would make his comprehension much easier!