The Immortal Lord's True Appearance, Recruiting the Willow Deity, and Shi Hao, Son of Great Fortune!

"Creak—"

The ancient gates slowly swung open, but what lay beyond was nothing like the people of the Douluo Plane had imagined.

When the gates opened, no earth-shaking aura burst forth, nor did celestial music ring out amid auspicious visions. Everything seemed so natural, so calm.

Then, a figure strolled leisurely out from within.

He was tall and slender, wearing none of the ostentatious golden armor favored by other Immortal Kings, nor any elaborate imperial robes. He wore only the simplest of white garments, pure as snow and unstained by dust.

Though he appeared ordinary, every movement seemed to contain the profound principles of the Great Dao.

Simply standing there, he seemed to become the center of heaven and earth, with all the laws of the myriad paths revolving around him in submission.

This was the master of the Primordial Immortal Court: Jiang Chen!

Yet, to the people of Douluo watching from behind the Sky Screen, his face was impossible to see.

His features were shrouded in a faint haze of Chaos Qi, blurred and mysterious, as though they were a taboo that must not be gazed upon—or contained the supreme mysteries of the past, present, and future.

Though they could not see his true appearance, his aura of transcendence, of standing above all living beings, came surging through the Sky Screen!

He was like a Banished Immortal stepping out of a painting, untouched by dust and far removed from the mortal world. Simply standing there made people feel unworthy, unable to resist prostrating themselves in worship.

"Master."

Feeling Jiang Chen's arrival, Ye Qingyu hurriedly bowed, showing the utmost reverence.

Jiang Chen said nothing, merely nodding slightly.

The instant Ye Qingyu looked up, Jiang Chen raised one foot and took a step forward. Golden lotuses bloomed across the ground.

In the blink of an eye, he was before Ye Qingyu. He extended a long, jade-like finger and gently pressed it against Ye Qingyu's brow.

"Buzz!"

At the same time, the True Dragon Undying Medicine that had been floating in midair split in two, transforming into a streak of light before shooting straight into Ye Qingyu's body.

In an instant, under Jiang Chen's guidance, a vast yet incomparably gentle Immortal King's power not only healed the terrifying wound in Ye Qingyu's chest but also rebuilt his Dao foundation!

Before their very eyes, Ye Qingyu's paper-pale face quickly regained its color, and his feeble aura began to climb steadily!

What was more, bolstered by the Immortal King's power, the half of the True Dragon Undying Medicine instantly turned into surging medicinal essence that flowed into every limb and bone of Ye Qingyu's body.

In just a few breaths, not only had Ye Qingyu's injuries healed, but he had also risen from ruin, turning misfortune into blessing!

"Thank you, Master, for granting me a new life!"

Feeling the surging power within him, Ye Qingyu was so overwhelmed that tears filled his eyes. He bowed deeply to the ground once more.

Seeing this, Jiang Chen withdrew his finger and clasped his hands behind his back. Turning away, his white robes fluttered, his bearing otherworldly and transcendent.

"Qingyu, do you know what it means to be an immortal?"

Jiang Chen's voice rang out. Though calm, it struck the soul like the tolling of a great bell.

Ye Qingyu knew his master meant to enlighten him, so he promptly replied with respect, "This disciple is slow-witted."

"Today, you broke your own Dao Weapon. It may seem that you ruined your future, but in truth, you severed the shackles in your heart."

Jiang Chen's voice rang out again, carrying a hint of guidance.

"A sword is a weapon, and so is the heart."

"With a sword but no heart, one remains inferior. With a heart but no sword, all things can become weapons."

"For six thousand years, the sword you cultivated was not the one in your hand, but that fearless Dao Heart—the heart that dared to pit the Human Dao against the Immortal Dao!"

"Since your path has been cut off, then forge an even stronger one!"

Jiang Chen's words poured over Ye Qingyu like divine nectar, instantly scattering the haze in his heart.

He recalled his resolve when facing a True Immortal in the Border Wasteland of the Foreign Realm, and the relief he had felt when the Immortal King bowed his head and his Long Sword broke.

In that moment, he understood!

"This disciple understands."

Ye Qingyu's eyes snapped open. His once-clear black-and-white irises now held a gleam of gold.

His snowy-white hair danced in the wind. The aura around him no longer faltered; instead, it surged steadily upward.

"Thank you, Master, for your guidance!"

With that, Ye Qingyu bowed deeply three more times, his forehead touching the ground. He remained there for a long while.

"This disciple will not disappoint you!"

"Today, I have risen from ruin. If I do not become an immortal, I will not emerge from seclusion!"

With that,

Ye Qingyu rose to his feet, bowed deeply to Jiang Chen once more, then flashed away as a streak of light, heading straight for the secluded cultivation grounds deep within the Immortal Court.

After sensing that his disciple had left, Jiang Chen slowly turned around and nodded to himself, thoroughly satisfied.

Though Ye Qingyu was merely an ordinary mortal body and seemed unremarkable beside the disciples with their special constitutions among the Ten Sequences, his Dao Heart was in no way inferior to theirs.

By the time he emerged from seclusion again, the positions among the Ten Sequences would likely have changed once more.

Thinking of this, Jiang Chen smiled and shook his head. Then, as if remembering something, he gazed into the distance beyond the Primordial Immortal Court.

He had emerged from seclusion not only to rebuild Ye Qingyu's Dao foundation. More importantly, after the mission concerning the Foreign Realm's fortune ended, the system had issued a new task: recruit an unparalleled Immortal King and a son of great fortune from the Lower Realm.

The karmic ties involved were too great for Jiang Chen to stay out of it. So he planned to send one of his Dao incarnations on the journey in his place.

And, while he was at it, pay a visit to an old acquaintance.

"The Eight Regions of the Lower Realm? That should be interesting. How many years has it been since I last ventured out?"

With that, Jiang Chen swept his sleeve.

"Child, come with me."

"Yes, Master!"

The Daoist child who had earlier slapped God of Demon Slayer to death hurried over at once, then stood respectfully at his side.

Jiang Chen took another step forward.

As light swirled around them, the Chaos Qi around his body gradually dissipated, and his transcendent Immortal King aura was completely drawn in.

In its place appeared a young man in a blue-green robe and bamboo hat, his face veiled in white gauze. He had a refined, mild-mannered air.

Though his face remained concealed, a breeze occasionally revealed a glimpse of his features, and the nobility and otherworldly grace that came from deep within him were still impossible to ignore.

"No need to hurry. Come, let's go take a look at this mortal world."

Jiang Chen chuckled softly, then he and the Daoist child slowly vanished from where they stood.

Meanwhile, with the appearance of Jiang Chen, the Immortal Lord, Douluo Continent was in an uproar.

In an instant, both the Soul Master World and the Soul Beast Realm were thrown into a frenzy.

"Oh heavens! That Immortal Lord is so handsome!"

In the Far North, Ice Empress clutched her cheeks, her eyes sparkling with pink hearts.

"Even though I can't see his face, that figure, that bearing—he's simply perfect!"

"And he's so gentle, too. Ye Qingyu was so badly injured, yet he brought him back to life. He even rebuilt his Dao foundation!"

"And that medicine that looked like a little golden dragon—I feel like it's older and brimming with more vitality than I am!"

With that, Ice Empress cupped her cheeks.

"Waaah, I want to be his disciple too! I'd even settle for being that Daoist child!"

Snow Empress said nothing beside her, but her beautiful eyes shone brightly.

That man was simply too perfect.

Powerful, mysterious, protective of his own—he fulfilled nearly every woman's fantasy of a powerful man.

"If only I could stay by his side..."

"That would be wonderful..."

Elsewhere, in the Divine Realm.

The Forest of Life.