"The Immortal Altar?"
Beside him, Chen Qingyu listened in utter bewilderment.
These things should have been common knowledge to the direct-line heirs of every great sacred land.
But because of his unusual circumstances, he knew nothing about them.
"Brother Chen, you didn't know?"
Zhou Chenlong gave him a surprised glance before slowly explaining:
"All the Great Void cities in [Blood Sea Heaven] have four kinds of buildings: the [Combat Victory Platform], [War God Tower], [Martial Practice Platform], and [Samsara Altar]."
"In [Golden Bridge Heaven], there's an additional functional building called the [Immortal Altar]."
As he spoke, a trace of anticipation appeared in his eyes:
"The [Immortal Altar] holds past projections of the ten strongest Golden Bridge Realm martial grandmasters in all recorded history, across the long ages."
"These ten were truly supreme prodigies who towered across past and present, invincible wherever they went."
"Every one of them was a young supreme who dominated an era, peerless in their brilliance."
"All cultivators regard ascending the [Immortal Altar] and truly becoming immortalized for eternity as the highest honor."
After hearing this, Chen Qingyu could not help looking moved:
"[Golden Bridge Heaven] has something like that?"
This was far more exciting than the Combat Victory Rankings or War God Rankings!
Those competing on the [Immortal Altar] were not the strongest of the present age, but the strongest throughout the long ages of history!
I have to see the [Immortal Altar] myself and contend with the strongest prodigies in history!
Chen Qingyu felt the hot blood throughout his body begin to boil.
He had already defeated Zhou Chenlong and could be called invincible throughout [Blood Sea Heaven]. Only one goal remained unconquered-
Clearing the ninth floor of the [War God Tower]!
Only by clearing the ninth floor would he qualify to contend for the [Immortal Altar] after entering [Golden Bridge Heaven].
At this thought, he looked at Zhou Chenlong and asked:
"Brother Zhou, just how difficult is the ninth floor?"
"Very difficult."
Zhou Chenlong fell silent for a moment, then pointed at Chen Qinggu beside them:
"I'll be blunt."
"Clearing the ninth floor is about as difficult as defeating ten thousand Chen Qinggus working together."
"I've challenged it twelve times and failed all twelve."
"Hiss!"
Chen Qingyu sucked in a breath of cold air:
"That difficult?"
With his strength having soared, he reckoned defeating several dozen, or even a hundred Chen Qinggus working together would be no trouble.
But a full ten thousand-that was a number that made his scalp prickle just thinking about it!
Chen Qinggu:
Chat all you like, but why use me as an example?
Do you look down on the strength of the sixth-best in the world that much?
Chen Qingyu ignored Chen Qinggu and pressed on:
"Then has anyone in history cleared the ninth floor of the [War God Tower] in the Blood Sea Realm?"
Zhou Chenlong's expression remained calm as he slowly said:
"Yes, and quite a few."
"I specifically went through my clan's records and counted."
"Over more than a hundred thousand years, on average, every few thousand years a prodigy of terrifying strength who dominated their generation managed to clear the highest, ninth floor."
"In total, there were a little over twenty."
"Almost every one of them ascended the [Immortal Altar] in one of the subsequent heavens, and some did so more than once."
Chen Qingyu nodded slightly and sighed:
"The Supreme Void Dao Realm has existed for over a hundred thousand years, with generation after generation of prodigies and outstanding talents coming and going, yet only twenty-odd people have cleared the ninth floor."
"On average, who knows how many generations of supreme prodigies it takes to produce one such young supreme."
Zhou Chenlong looked at Chen Qingyu and said:
"Actually, just over three hundred years ago, someone cleared the ninth floor of the [War God Tower] in Blood Sea Heaven, and he was from your Chen Clan."
Chen Qingyu's expression shifted. "Really?"
Beside him, Chen Qinggu blurted out:
"That's impossible!"
"What a sensation clearing the ninth floor would cause!"
"Besides, only a little over three hundred years have passed. There must still be plenty of people in Divine Capital Changluo alive from back then, and such a major event should still be fresh in their memories."
"Then why have I, a direct-line descendant, never heard of it? Not even a rumor?"
Hearing this, Zhou Chenlong shook his head:
"That I don't know. Perhaps there's some other mystery to it."
"Well..."
Chen Qinggu frowned, bewildered.
"Please excuse me, you two. I'll take my leave first."
At this point, Zhou Chenlong stood and cupped his hands in farewell:
"Let's meet again in [Golden Bridge Heaven]."
"Of course."
Chen Qingyu laughed heartily, immediately stood, and pulled Chen Qinggu along to see Zhou Chenlong out of the Moon-Gaining Tower.
Soon:
Chen Qingyu and Chen Qinggu exchanged a few words before taking their leave of each other.
Chen Qinggu hurriedly left the Supreme Void Dao Realm, seemingly to seek an answer.
Chen Qingyu went alone to the [Martial Practice Hall] to continue honing his martial skills through accelerated time.
Meanwhile, in the outside world:
News that Chen Shaojun had defeated Zhou Chenlong and claimed first place in the world had already shaken the entire Desolate Continent, stirring up a feverish wave of discussion.
The name Chen Shaojun became the absolute focus of the entire Desolate Continent.
Across the world, countless young Blood Sea Realm martial artists recounted Chen Shaojun's legendary journey, marveling at the myth of how he had risen step by step from an unknown nobody to the strongest in the world within seven days.
At this point-
Zhou Chenlong fell from his pedestal, his radiance dimmed.
Chen Shaojun, meanwhile, rose in a single stroke to stand at the summit of the world, becoming a goal countless Blood Sea Realm cultivators looked up to and yearned for.
That evening.
Chen Qingyu left the Supreme Void Dao Realm. He had just stepped out of the study when he saw his father, Chen Zhengxing.
"Congratulations, Qingyu."
Chen Zhengxing looked at him with a faint smile.
By now:
As he looked at his son, all his shock and surprise had long since vanished, leaving only gratification and pride.
He had thought cultivating too quickly would become Chen Qingyu's weakness.
Unexpectedly, Chen Qingyu's performance had completely overturned many people's expectations, his own included.
"First in the world in the Blood Sea Realm. Impressive."
"Not a whit inferior to me back then."
Hearing this, Chen Qingyu's expression shifted:
"Really? Dad, were you first in the world back then too?"
He sat beside Chen Zhengxing and said with a casual smile:
"I just heard that someone from our Chen Clan cleared the ninth floor of the War God Tower in [Blood Sea Heaven] over three hundred years ago!"
"Dad, don't tell me that was you?"
Chen Zhengxing gave him a surprised glance before nodding slightly:
"That's right. It was me."
"The ninth floor of the War God Tower was indeed very difficult, but after struggling for three years, I finally succeeded."
"Huh? It really was you?!"
Chen Qingyu was greatly startled, and even the way he looked at Chen Zhengxing changed.
Good grief.
A young supreme was right beside me, and he was my own father?
No wonder Dad wasn't severely punished after committing such an enormous wrong back then, and was only sentenced to guard the Great Yin Grotto...
He could not help clicking his tongue repeatedly, thinking to himself:
So that was it! The clan's higher-ups couldn't bear to punish Dad severely!
With this thought, he could not resist asking:
"Then why hasn't any word of it spread in the Divine Capital?"
Logically, those who had personally witnessed such a sensational event as clearing the ninth floor would still bring it up from time to time, even after more than three hundred years.
Related legends and accounts should certainly have circulated in the Supreme Void Dao Realm as well.
Yet, like Chen Qinggu, he had never heard so much as a rumor. That was very abnormal.
"It's perfectly normal that there are no rumors."
Chen Zhengxing said mildly:
"Because I don't want them to remember, they forget, overlook it, and turn a blind eye."
"Once your cultivation realm reaches a certain point, you'll always have some abilities that place you above all living beings."
"Good grief!"
Chen Qingyu exclaimed in amazement and rubbed the blue jade thumb ring on his thumb:
"That's much like the effect of this thumb ring of mine."
He composed himself, then asked again:
"Then Dad, how did you clear the ninth floor back then?"
Hearing this, Chen Zhengxing glanced at him and said:
"Very simply. Just punch your way through, one person per punch."
"I threw ten thousand punches, killed ten thousand people, and cleared the ninth floor."
After hearing this, Chen Qingyu could not help feeling shaken.
The method sounded simple, but the strength it revealed was simply inconceivable!
Withstand a siege by over ten thousand people and kill them all, one punch each?
Even now, he was far from capable of that. He would only be battered to pieces and die a miserable death.
Those were not ten thousand pigs, but ten thousand supreme prodigies on Chen Qinggu's level. Any one of them could rank among the world's top ten!
"What, are you scared?"
Seeing Chen Qingyu's expression, Chen Zhengxing laughed heartily:
"You've been shocking me every day lately. For once, I finally got to give you a proper shock."
"Don't tell me the ninth floor's difficulty has frightened you off?"