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What is the Spirit Communication Realm?

As the name implies, once a cultivator breaks through to this realm, they can commune with the spiritual energy drifting between heaven and earth, bending it to their will.

To put it simply, it is the ability to draw upon the power of heaven and earth.

A single strike from a Spirit Communication Realm cultivator-even one who has just broken through-carries enough worldly resonance to make their opponent feel entirely isolated by the surrounding heaven and earth.

The sheer strength and devastating power of such an attack are by no means something an ordinary cultivator can withstand.

Not to mention Zhao Kongyang. As the sole Pro-disciple of the Red King Palace, he had broken through to the Spirit Communication Realm several years ago. Now at the second level of the Spirit Communication Realm, his killing intent toward Chu Chen was absolute. Once he made his move, he unleashed everything, holding nothing back.

The long spear transformed into a streak of black light, hurtling fiercely from the nine heavens straight toward Chu Chen.

Amplified by the power of heaven and earth, the spear's speed reached its absolute limit. Chu Chen instantly felt the oppressive isolation of the world bearing down on him.

In his vision, there was only that spear, constantly expanding in his pupils.

Aside from that, it was as if everything else had ceased to exist.

Even...

Even Yu Youwei, whose body was restrained beside him, screaming desperately and recklessly trying to throw herself in front of him...

Chu Chen could not feel it.

Furthermore, the [Locking Heaven Grand Array] was continuously operating. Dozens of blood-red flags surrounded Chaos Peak, snapping wildly in the wind.

Tens of spiritual light beams shot from these flags, converging directly onto Chu Chen and binding his body in place.

A grand array capable of locking the heavens was no longer locking the heavens; it was solely focused on binding Chu Chen alone.

To kill Chu Chen, Zhao Kongyang had exhausted every option, unleashing his ultimate techniques and giving his all.

Even though Chu Chen was only at the Qi Gathering realm, Zhao Kongyang was steady and cautious by nature. He showed not a shred of contempt or carelessness.

There was a reason he could break through to the Spirit Communication Realm, rise to the rank of Pro-disciple of the Divine Flame Emperor Palace, and secure his position as the number one figure among the younger generation of the Red King Palace.

"Haha! Die! Die for me!!"

Amidst Zhao Kongyang's unrestrained mockery, Chu Chen unhesitatingly crushed the jade pendant in his palm.

At the same time, the spiritual energy within his body surged through his meridians, pouring entirely into the Extreme Dao Emperor Weapon, the Heaven-Swallowing Magic Jar.

He only had one life. Chu Chen would never stake his survival entirely on a mere jade pendant.

The Heaven-Swallowing Magic Jar, previously dormant, flashed with a dark luster across its ancient, pitch-black surface as spiritual energy flooded in. A dense, abyssal light gathered at the jar's mouth. A terrifying, boundless energy began to awaken within Chu Chen's body.

Crack!

Bang!!

Just as the spear was about to pierce his eyes, the jade pendant shattered first.

Rumble!!

The moment the jade pendant broke, a terrifying spatial force erupted violently, centered on Chu Chen.

Then, an extremely bizarre scene unfolded across the entirety of Chaos Peak.

How to describe it?

Chu Chen.

Zhao Kongyang.

Including Yu Youwei, the thousand guards and servants, and the hundreds of outer disciples, inner disciples, and true disciples behind Zhao Kongyang...

Every blade of grass, every tree, every stone, every spring of clear water on Chaos Peak-even the very specks of dust floating in the air.

The entire space, like a painted scroll, was forcibly peeled away from the real world and presented in isolation.

Transcending the mundane world.

The shattered jade pendant continuously emitted strands of spatial force, rippling outward and dominating this isolated, independent world.

Whoosh!

It was like a small pebble suddenly tossed into a tranquil lake, instantly creating ripples.

The ripples rapidly expanded outward, spreading from a single point to encompass the entire world.

Wherever the ripples reached, everything froze.

Whether people or objects, it was as if a pause button had been pressed on reality itself.

Everything came to a dead halt.

That terrifying spear, bearing the brunt of the impact, had reached mere inches from Chu Chen's eyes before being suspended in mid-air by a terrifying, supreme might.

The [Locking Heaven Grand Array], capable of binding a Spirit Communication Realm expert, was itself sealed by the ripples of this terrifying force.

Zhao Kongyang's eyes were wide open, his body completely out of his control. Not only his limbs, but even his eyelids could not twitch a fraction of an inch.

If even Zhao Kongyang at the Spirit Communication Realm was rendered immobile, the hundreds of inner and true disciples behind him needed no further mention.

Everyone present was bound in place-except for Chu Chen, who harbored the Extreme Dao Emperor Weapon, the Heaven-Swallowing Magic Jar, within his body.

The ripples emitted by the jade pendant were pure spatial force.

When this spatial force invaded Chu Chen's body, the Heaven-Swallowing Magic Jar inside him stirred slightly. A devouring force, far surpassing the spatial force, erupted violently and swallowed it in an instant.

However, although Chu Chen could move freely, he did not act rashly. Instead, he pretended to be just like Zhao Kongyang, standing dumbfounded on the spot, not even daring to blink.

Since the jade pendant had already saved his life, there was no need to expose the existence of the Extreme Dao Emperor Weapon, the Heaven-Swallowing Magic Jar.

After all...

After all, the value of an Extreme Dao Emperor Weapon far exceeded that of a Top Grade Five-Element Full Spiritual Root.

Chu Chen believed that the moment the jade pendant was activated, even if his cheap master, Qi Lao'er, was far away in the Demon Beast Gorge, he would surely sense it.

A Saint level expert had already comprehended the Dao of Space; they could shatter the void and perform spatial teleportation.

A Saint King level expert was even more terrifying. Not only could they perform spatial teleportation themselves, but with a casual wave of their hand, they could construct a stable spatial passageway spanning thousands or tens of thousands of miles.

Distance was meaningless to a Saint King level expert.

And it was said that once a cultivator entered the Emperor realm, even if only at the Quasi-Emperor level, a single thought could directly construct a spatial wormhole!

As for a true ancient Great Emperor?

Anyone who called their name, no matter where they were on the Desolate Ancient Continent, would be sensed by the ancient Great Emperor, who would then send down a destructive Emperor's Punishment!

The facts were exactly as Chu Chen had expected. The moment the jade pendant shattered, Qi Lao'er, who was searching for the Enlightenment Ancient Tea Tree of the Immortality Herb in the Demon Beast Gorge, inwardly cursed. He immediately shattered the void and teleported to Chaos Peak in an instant, hiding in a corner of the void to observe secretly.

After accepting Chu Chen as his disciple, the most precious gift in the apprenticeship ceremony was not the hundred thousand Spirit Stones or the tens of thousands of Pills, but this jade pendant inscribed with a Saint King protective charm.

The jade pendant contained a terrifying spatial force. The moment it was crushed, this spatial force would sweep across several thousand meters, freezing everything in its path.

Even another Saint King realm expert would need at least three breaths of time to break free from this spatial binding.

And once the jade pendant was crushed, Qi Lao'er would arrive in less than a single breath.

If the one attacking Chu Chen was not a Saint King, but a Quasi-Emperor or even a Great Emperor realm cultivator, this jade pendant naturally could not stop them.

But if an Emperor realm expert had made a move, then Qi Lao'er coming here would just be throwing his life away.

The moment Qi Lao'er shattered the void and arrived at Chaos Peak, he saw Zhao Kongyang and the hundreds of disciples behind him. His heart flared with rage.

Internal strife!

How preposterous!!

This Zhao Kongyang had always been narrow-minded. Chu Chen had only been in the Red King Palace for two days and was already being targeted. Any sensible person wouldn't even need to look closely; just a little thought would reveal who was right and who was wrong.

However, the old fox Qi Lao'er did not rush to reveal himself. Since the crisis had been resolved, he patiently hid in a corner of the void, staring intently at Chu Chen.

Behind Chu Chen was very likely Her Majesty the Empress!

Qi Lao'er wanted to see if, at such a critical moment, the Empress would show herself.

Furthermore.

Chu Chen had another identity: the Holy Son of the immortal aristocratic family, the Ye Family.

Even if he was now crippled, who knew if this was a play put on by Chu Chen in collusion with the Ye Family?

After all, with such heaven-defying talent, what kind of fool would be willing to expel him from their family???

But as he waited and waited, not only did the Empress, Lin Shuwang, fail to appear, but Chu Chen also did not display any other hidden methods.

Instead, just like Zhao Kongyang, he remained completely bound by this terrifying spatial force.

"Sigh~"

Seeing that the spatial force was about to dissipate, Qi Lao'er, leaning on his staff, stepped out from the void and slowly walked before the two.

Thump!!

With a single tap of his staff, the spatial force binding the entirety of Chaos Peak melted away like ice and snow, vanishing at a visible rate.

Correspondingly, Chu Chen, Zhao Kongyang, Yu Youwei, and even the hundreds of disciples and thousands of servants behind them all regained their freedom at the exact same time.

"M-Master!"

Seeing the newcomer, Zhao Kongyang was so frightened his body trembled. He quickly bowed and cupped his hands in salute.

"Master!"

Chu Chen casually cupped his hands and spoke coldly, pretending to have suffered a great injustice, harboring deep resentment but daring not to voice his anger.

"Greetings, Palace Lord!"

"Greetings, Palace Lord!"

"Greetings, Palace Lord!"

...

The other outer disciples, inner disciples, and true disciples, upon seeing Qi Lao'er, turned pale with fright. Their bodies trembled as they hurriedly bowed in salute.

After all, their Palace Lord, whose lifespan was nearly exhausted and who was on the verge of dying from old age, had a strange temperament, was incredibly moody, and possessed a terrible temper.

As for Yu Youwei and the other attendants and servants, these mortals had already been completely knocked unconscious the moment the jade pendant shattered, overwhelmed by the shockwaves of the terrifying spatial force.

"Both of you are Pro-disciples of my Red King Palace. Give me an explanation!"

Qi Lao'er frowned, looking displeasedly at Zhao Kongyang and the three hundred-plus disciples behind him. The terrifying Pressure of the Saint King realm bore down on them, making it hard for these people to breathe.

With Qi Lao'er's cultivation and cunning, he actually didn't need to ask. Just by looking at the corpses of Li Long and the others on the ground, he could guess the general situation.

Chu Chen did not speak; after all, everyone present was smart.

Zhao Kongyang also did not bother to explain, only signaling to the disciples beside him with his eyes.

The disciples beside him understood immediately and pointed at Chu Chen to launch their attack:

"Reporting to the Palace Lord, Chu... Chu Chen murdered Li Long and other outer disciples of our Divine Flame Emperor Palace. Slaughtering fellow disciples is a severe violation of the palace rules."

"Senior Brother Zhao, seeing that the Palace Lord was not present, was... was enforcing the palace rules on your behalf."

The other disciples, seeing this, also began to accuse Chu Chen one after another.

These three hundred-plus disciples were all trusted followers brought by Zhao Kongyang, so they naturally spoke in his favor. Besides, Chu Chen had only been in the Red King Palace for a day and was merely at the Qi Gathering realm, meaning he had no foundation here at all.

"Moreover... he, Chu Chen, also killed the old steward, Qian Bao. He... his killing intent is too heavy."

"Yes, Palace Lord. If someone like this is not arrested and executed immediately, I fear..."

"I fear for the lives of the thousands of servants on this mountain and the safety of the tens of thousands of disciples of our Red King Palace!"

...

Seeing the voices accusing and cursing Chu Chen grow louder and more intense, to the point where they wished to execute him on the spot to set an example, Chu Chen had not yet reacted, but Qi Lao'er could no longer bear to listen.

Boom!

He suddenly waved his hand. The Pressure of the Saint King realm instantly enveloped this stretch of heaven and earth. Spatial force twisted time and space, forming spatial prisons.

All three hundred and fifty-seven outer disciples, inner disciples, and true disciples-everyone except for Zhao Kongyang and Chu Chen-were locked inside the cages.

"Regardless of who is right and who is wrong, he, Chu Chen, is my beloved disciple and a Pro-disciple of the Divine Flame Emperor Palace."

"Not only did you fail to salute him upon seeing him, but you also slandered, instigated, and provoked him. This is insubordination!"

"Is this how I usually teach you? Teaching you to become a bunch of ungrateful beasts!"

Qi Lao'er's voice boomed, so loud that it echoed clearly across the entire Red King Palace, spanning thousands of miles, heard by tens of thousands of disciples and servants alike.

"I will make this clear today. He, Chu Chen, possesses a Top Grade Five-Element Full Spiritual Root and is my newly accepted beloved disciple."

"On the entire Red King Mountain, besides me, he, Chu Chen, holds the highest status and is the most revered. All others are secondary!"

"To disrespect him, Chu Chen, is to disrespect me. And to disrespect me-no matter who it is on the entire Red King Mountain-means death!!"