The Cloud-Reaching Palace fell into deathly silence.
Luo Chen gently raised his right hand. The two golden spheres floating above his palm drew each other in and spun.
Turning around, he addressed the many immortals and gods in an even tone. "Your Highness the Crown Prince, fellow Daoists, I thank you all for coming to offer congratulations. But I have no need for Heavenly Dao merit or fortune."
"But this is, after all, a congratulatory gift bestowed upon me by the Heavenly Dao. How could I refuse it? Once I find someone destined for it in the future, I will grant this opportunity to them, returning it to nourish the Heavenly Realm."
Upon hearing Luo Chen's words, the immortals held their breath, their eyes burning as they stared at the two hovering golden spheres.
Even some Immortal Ancestors were no exception. The merit and fortune the Heavenly Dao had bestowed upon Luo Chen this time were simply too vast.
Even for Immortal Ancestors, accumulating such immense merit and fortune would require several eras—billions upon billions of years.
The immortals fell silent. The Immortal Emperors, who had no right to speak, had already sensed the increasingly grave atmosphere within the Cloud-Reaching Palace.
The immortals instinctively turned their eyes toward Crown Prince Diyan, seated at the very head. Yet the Crown Prince voiced no opinion, merely watching Luo Chen's actions in silence.
Crown Prince Diyan did not step in personally, perhaps because he had his own calculations and depths.
But some Immortal Ancestors had no such reservations.
An immortal ancestor seated upon a throne, his aura as serene and profound as primordial deep space, spoke. His voice echoed through the hall. "Immortal ancestor Luo, what remarkable methods—to actually seize Heavenly Dao merit and fortune!"
"Yet this is a congratulatory gift the Heavenly