Immortality Starts With Investment

Chapter 377: An Miaoli's Gratitude

An Yuyi couldn't get enough. Every few days, she'd eagerly seek out Ye Chen for "detoxification," brimming with enthusiasm. Meanwhile, Ye Chen opened Ascension Peak's gates to recruit another disciple. This time, the influx of female disciples was even greater, but his standards were stricter. He sought not only heavenly spiritual roots but also unique physiques.

In the end, he selected just one disciple with a seven-hundred-fold return. This left countless female disciples of Heavenly Evolution Holy Land sighing in regret. They shouldn't have hesitated back then—hesitation led to defeat. Now, they lacked even the chance to join the Holy Son's peak.

Ye Chen also learned of Li Feihuang's earlier attempt to storm his gates. He brushed it off. She was becoming increasingly irrelevant to him, not worth his attention.

Two weeks later, An Miaoli emerged from seclusion, having successfully broken through to the mid-Nascent Soul stage. Sensing the disturbance, Ye Chen flew to her immediately. The newly advanced An Miaoli was radiant, exuding an ethereal, sacred aura, like a celestial maiden from the heavens, untouchable by profane thoughts—except, of course, to Ye Chen.

"Congratulations, Senior!" Ye Chen said with a smile, then asked, "Did you notice anything unusual in your body after this breakthrough?"

An Miaoli understood his meaning. Inviting him into her cave abode to sit, she shook her head. "No more memories surfaced, nor did that immortal scripture reappear." She had worried that advancing her cultivation might awaken more past-life memories, but now she felt relieved.

Ye Chen nodded and produced a jade slip. "This is the Thunder Emperor Soul Purification Technique I requested from the Holy Lord. Those past-life memories likely stem from deep within your soul. Cultivating this technique, using divine lightning to cleanse your true soul, might eliminate the issue entirely."

An Miaoli's eyes lit up. Her stunning gaze fixed on Ye Chen, a swirl of emotions within. The Thunder Emperor, one of the Vicious Ten, made its Treasure Technique immensely valuable. Even a Holy Lord wouldn't part with it lightly.

Yet Ye Chen had gone to great lengths to obtain it for her. The depth of his care touched her deeply, melting her usual cool composure. With a soft word of thanks, her eyes shimmered like gentle waves, lacking overt charm but far more captivating.

She spoke softly. "Has Fellow Daoist Ye's nether poison improved?"

Ye Chen caught her meaning instantly. Just yesterday, An Yuyi had pestered him for detoxification, but how could he refuse such a heartfelt gesture?

A system prompt rang in his mind: "Congratulations, Host, for successfully gifting…"

"Triggering critical reward!"

"Reward: Complete Thunder Emperor Treasure Technique!"

"The Thunder Emperor Treasure Technique: In ancient times, the Thunder Emperor embodied the heavens, wielding tribulation lightning. At its peak, one can become the master of the lightning path…"

As the system's notification echoed in his mind, Ye Chen felt a surge of joy. After acquiring the True Dragon Treasure Technique, the True Phoenix Treasure Technique, and the Kun Peng Treasure Technique, he had finally obtained the fourth of the Vicious Ten Treasure Techniques. If he continued at this pace, he might truly complete the set before ascending to immortality.

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Beyond the system's voice, a faint sound reached his ears, like a kitten lapping water. In that moment, Ye Chen's spirit soared to the Ninth Heaven, light as if he were already an immortal. If only there were some jelly, he thought whimsically—that would make this moment perfect.

But soon, an unexpected interruption broke his reverie. An Yuyi burst in, her voice brimming with excitement. "Auntie, have you broken through? Ah…" The cave's restrictions hadn't been sealed, and she walked right in. Her words cut off abruptly as she took in the scene.

An Miaoli didn't pause or show any trace of panic. With calm composure, she merely beckoned to Yuyi, inviting her to join. Before long, another "kitten" was drinking water in the cave.

Ye Chen gazed at the two breathtaking faces, utterly absorbed in their task, and couldn't help but think that even becoming an immortal ancestor might pale in comparison to this. Yet the thought was fleeting. The cultivation world was not Earth.

On Earth, one could drift through life without much turmoil. But in the cultivation world, disasters—natural or man-made—lurked at every turn. Only by attaining absolute strength and reaching the pinnacle could one truly savor the world's beauty without fear.

...

In his small world, Ye Chen sat quietly beneath the Enlightenment Tea Tree. Most of its leaves had been plucked, yet the tree remained extraordinary, as if the Great Dao itself descended, enveloping his body. An aura of profound tranquility emanated from him as he immersed himself in deep cultivation.

Flashes of lightning occasionally sparked from his pores, and at times, divine thunder liquid flowed forth, casting Ye Chen in the likeness of a Thunder Emperor.

Above, in the sky of his small world, over a thousand stars glimmered, forming a radiant river of light. Each strand of starlight carried spiritual qi and stellar energy, bathing the world in brilliance and elevating its spiritual qi density to rival that of most Holy Lands.

After a long while, Ye Chen opened his eyes. An indescribable majesty shone in his gaze. Tiny arcs of electricity flickered across his body, vanishing as quickly as they appeared. He stretched lazily, his mood buoyant.

The thousand stars An Yuyi had gifted him were now fully integrated into his small world, not only providing starlight but also condensing spiritual qi, indistinguishable from the real thing.

With the stars in place, Ye Chen mused about one day adding a small sun and moon to make his small world even more like a true great world. The Enlightenment Tea Tree's effects had exceeded his expectations.

Far from indulging in worldly pleasures, he had thrown himself into cultivation after acquiring the Thunder Emperor Treasure Technique. Beneath the tree, his cultivation speed skyrocketed, and his comprehension of the Treasure Techniques advanced by leaps and bounds.

In the past, mastering the True Dragon and True Phoenix Treasure Techniques had taken considerable effort. But now, the Thunder Emperor Treasure Technique came to him with astonishing ease, his progress almost effortless.

Beyond that, Ye Chen revisited the various Treasure Techniques and immortal scriptures he had learned. With the tree's enhancement, each review brought fresh insights, making him feel more complete, more whole.

Time slipped by. Ye Chen focused on cultivation, occasionally exchanging gifts or dispelling toxins. Senior An still couldn't take the final step—neither the Thunder Emperor Soul Purification Technique nor anything else seemed to work, as if her past life resisted it. His master sent word that she had successfully ascended to a Heavenly Spirit Root and was now fully focused on refining the seal.

As for the little demoness, after taking Ye Chen's golden core, she vanished, and no further news had come. She had the air of a heartless rogue, true to her style. Ye Chen half-suspected she'd followed Granny Man-Hater to another great continent.

Two years passed in the blink of an eye. For cultivators, two years was a fleeting moment. Those at the Nascent Soul or Deity Transformation stage might spend years in seclusion comprehending a single technique or decades breaking through a realm.

But for Ye Chen, with the Enlightenment Tea Tree, two years was enough to advance another minor realm. Now, he stood at the peak of mid-Nascent Soul, ready to break through to the late stage at any moment.