Inside the Jade Smoke Pavilion, Chen Qing stretched lazily, secretly pleased with himself. So what if someone was waiting? Green Lotus couldn't just show up completely naked, could she? After all, the Virtual Universe was constantly synchronizing. I wasn't capable of sneaking in under the Original Ancestor's nose. But I couldn't keep hiding now.
Chen Qing arranged for the two women to continue cultivating, then sent a sliver of his consciousness to log into the Virtual Universe.
"Huh? The senior isn't here?"
Seeing Palace Master Biluo's graceful figure, Chen Qing asked curiously. When she didn't respond, he didn't press her either. He looked around on his own. With his level of willpower and his unusual state of mind, the Original Ancestor couldn't hide from him.
"He really isn't here?"
"Your Intelligent Life received an address. I'll take you there!"
Palace Master Biluo glanced at Chen Qing, her eyes full of disdain. Without waiting for a reply, she turned and disappeared. Chen Qing gave an awkward laugh, then raised his head toward the empty sky and shouted, "Senior, the meeting's started! I've got good news!"
When they appeared again, they were somewhere else. Palace Master Biluo stood outside a palace, with an ancient stone hall behind her. "Behave yourself!"
When Chen Qing arrived, Biluo reminded him coldly. The palace's style was clearly different from the Chaos City Lord's. Weapons of all kinds stood around them, and the walls were covered with murals of battles against the Alien Races. Chen Qing rubbed his cheeks, pretending to admire the murals as he thought to himself, I'm used to spending time with the Original Ancestor, so I've never had to hold back. He never said anything outright, and I was happy to play dumb. But I can't be too presumptuous around these people. Just because I have a trump card doesn't mean I should provoke powerful beings.
As soon as he entered the palace, he saw a long stone table. Two stone chairs stood at the head, facing the door. A towering giant sat in the chair on the left, while all kinds of strange-looking people filled the seats on either side.
Before Chen Qing could react, nineteen gazes pressed down on him along with an invisible aura. His eyes instinctively narrowed, then opened wide again. My first performance wasn't exactly a success.
Chen Qing cursed inwardly. Sure enough, a phantom appeared in the chair on the right across from him. Though he couldn't hear anything, he could tell from the open mouth that the Original Ancestor was laughing heartily. And from the corner of his eye, he noticed Biluo's mouth had curled into a sharper point.
"Very well, young man. Don't worry about it. Take a seat at the lower end. I'm sure you have good news for us!"
Giant Axe grinned. It had been a long time since he'd met such an interesting junior. Chen Qing sat down obediently and crossed his fingers beneath the table. People said that in Swallowed Star, a fist was all the reasoning you needed. But these powerful beings thought faster than Intelligent Life. If not fists, then what?
Chen Qing knew that any movement he made would be a flaw in their eyes, so he hid his hands. "There are things I can't reveal, and I can't make the decision myself. Not even the Primal Universe Will can!"
After speaking, Chen Qing looked at the Original Ancestor. As expected, the Original Ancestor's gaze drifted. Chen Qing couldn't help feeling grateful for the big shot's willingness to stir things up. He could probably figure some things out now. Everyone's expressions turned strange at Chen Qing's gesture. Chaos City Lord and several others in particular leaped to their feet, their voices trembling with excitement. "Teacher?"
The three of them stared quietly at the empty seat. The others watched with hopeful eyes, and even Giant Axe turned in his chair.
"Go on."
A cool voice broke the strange atmosphere. As the others sat back down, Chen Qing couldn't help sighing inwardly. It just wasn't the same without the Original Ancestor. "A World Lord from the Training Camp broke through to become an Immortal. Their life form has changed, so naturally they need to head for a wider world. As for their old position, you can just make new arrangements."
Chen Qing fell silent again and quietly regarded the stone table before him. He couldn't help scoffing inwardly. Starting with Yuan, they were all playing a game of nested dolls. He didn't believe they couldn't understand. He might as well let them fill in the blanks, so they'd stop keeping an eye on him all the time.
From the corner of his eye, he watched the people seated on either side. They weren't speaking to one another, but Chen Qing's willpower still caught the ripples of their mental messages. "That explains the matter of entering the cycle of reincarnation. It looks like we're just seeds being considered for selection."
"Then what's the Holy Land?"
"Perhaps it's a reward, like the rewards we give our own descendants?"
"Come to think of it, the Holy Ancestor has never appeared. If the Holy Ancestor could appear, there'd be no point in reincarnation!"
"I never knew there were worlds beyond this one. No wonder the Universe Boat is so magnificent. But if we go by Chen Qing's reasoning, are we at the Planetary Level?"
"Only Giant Axe would qualify, since he has his own Mini-Universe. We're probably at the ninth level of the apprentice stage!"
"Then what is the Primal Universe Will? Intelligent Life? Has it become an Intelligent Life?"
"Incredible!"
"7"
The mental exchange was swift. Before long, the leaders settled down and turned toward Chen Qing in unison. Chen Qing quickly sat up straight. This was the important part. What he'd gained would reveal a lot!
"A Peak Palace Supreme Treasure! Palace Master Biluo knows about this. It's the most direct way to express our gratitude!"
"That's not enough!"
Chen Qing cautiously glanced at Palace Master Biluo, but all he saw was a pair of calm silver eyes, as if she were looking at a prisoner. He couldn't help wondering: She's on our side, right? She is, right?
"The senior in the empty seat can come out in another trillion eras!"
The Original Ancestor's eyes snapped open, and everyone held their breath. "R-really?"
Chaos City Lord's voice trembled. He looked back and forth between Chen Qing and the empty seat twice, then asked again, "That's a punishment imposed by the Supreme Being. Only the Supreme Being has the authority to do that. Even the Primal Universe can't change it. The Three Ancestral Gods should know. We can ask them to confirm."
"Wait a moment!"
It seemed Chaos City Lord had reached out to someone, or found another way to verify it. Chen Qing murmured to himself, then started calculating. If the universe evolved over ten trillion eras, then one-tenth of that wasn't especially long or short. The important thing was that there was hope.
How much credit was this worth in Supreme True Treasures? He'd only mentioned it to Yuan, but it had come through his channel, after all. The Original Ancestor was the strongest in the Universe Ocean. With him, the Human Race could claim to be the strongest race. And they were currently the most likely to establish a Holy Land Universe. Ten treasures shouldn't be too many, right? That ought to be enough. After all, he'd specifically "negotiated" with Xiao Yu to reduce the sentence from three trillion eras to one trillion. When the World Beasts came, the Original Ancestor could still catch the last wave. They couldn't afford to waste such a powerful fighter.
They didn't have to wait long. Chaos City Lord suddenly opened his eyes. After looking around, he let out a long breath. "It's confirmed. The Three Ancestral Gods received confirmation from the Primal Universe Will!"
"Good, good, good! We just have to put up with him for another trillion eras!"
Giant Axe's voice made the palace ring, but the relief in his tone was unmistakable. "That's right. One trillion eras. We can endure that!"
"By then, we'll still have half a cycle of reincarnation left. That'll be enough time for us to grow."
"And we may even advance further—the Holy Land Human Race—"
Giant Axe smiled as everyone discussed the news. At last, he looked toward Chen Qing, who was glancing around. "All right, everyone, quiet down. We can celebrate later!"
Giant Axe pressed down with both hands. Once everyone had settled, he turned to Chen Qing again. "The race will remember what you've done. You accomplished something we couldn't manage for countless years. Whatever else there is, you don't need to tell us as long as it doesn't involve the race. Powerful beings all have their secrets. I hope you'll soon take a seat here for real. For now, the important thing is to keep you separate from this matter."
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