Chapter 324: Realm Stabilized, News of Taichu

Buzz—

The teleportation array emitted a brilliant light, enveloping Zhou Chen.

In the next second, Zhou Chen's figure vanished from the spot.

The giant hand of Devilish Qi grabbed at empty air and let out a heaven-shaking roar of fury.

Roar—

The terrifying demonic sound echoed throughout the Ten Thousand Demon Plains, causing countless Yao Beasts to tremble in fear.

Deep within the Abyss Forbidden Land, an ancient voice spoke.

"Interesting… he actually escaped."

"A little fellow of the Human Race, yet his talent is actually so prodigious."

"The next time we meet, you won't be so lucky."

Jixia Academy, Teleportation Hall.

The light flickered, and Zhou Chen's figure appeared on the teleportation array.

His face was pale, and cold sweat streamed down his forehead.

In that moment just now, he had truly felt the threat of death.

"What on earth was that thing?"

Zhou Chen took a deep breath to calm his emotions.

"Deep within the Abyss Forbidden Land, there truly is a terrifying existence sealed away."

"Fortunately, I chose my Breakthrough location in advance, close enough to the teleportation array."

"Otherwise, I might have truly perished today."

He shook his head, pushing the thoughts aside.

The most important thing now was to stabilize his Realm.

Although he had broken through to the Third Layer of the Emperor Realm, his Foundation was not yet stable and required time to consolidate.

Zhou Chen left the Teleportation Hall and walked toward his residence.

Along the way, he noticed that the atmosphere within the Academy was somewhat off.

Many Disciples were gathered in small groups, whispering to one another.

"Have you heard? A terrifying celestial phenomenon appeared over the Ten Thousand Demon Plains."

"I heard it too. They say it was a phenomenon triggered by someone breaking through to the Emperor Realm."

"Not only that, the Golden Crow Demon Emperor seems to have died. The Golden Crow Yao Race is in complete chaos right now."

"What? The Golden Crow Demon Emperor is dead? How is that possible?"

Hearing these discussions, a slight smile appeared on the corner of Zhou Chen's mouth.

It seemed the phenomenon triggered by his Breakthrough had already spread across the Tianxuan Continent.

But that was normal; with a phenomenon of that scale, it would be hard not to attract attention.

Returning to his residence, Zhou Chen set up a soundproofing formation and began his secluded cultivation to consolidate his Realm.

He sat cross-legged and peered into his Dantian.

Within the Dantian, a golden Imperial Dao Mark floated above the Dao Foundation.

The mark was inscribed with the word 'Sever,' emanating a terrifying pressure.

This was his Imperial Dao Mark—the Severance Seal.

With a single thought, the Severance Seal could transform into the true form of the qingping sword at any time.

Zhou Chen carefully sensed the power of the mark.

The Imperial Dao Severance Seal contained all the Profound Truths of the Law of Severance.

It could sever the attacks of others, intercept their spiritual power, and even sever the connection between heaven and earth, sealing the sky and locking the land, bringing extinction to all things.

"This Imperial Dao Severance Seal is even more powerful than I imagined."

Zhou Chen nodded in satisfaction.

He began to circulate his Cultivation Technique, guiding the spiritual power within his body to wash through his Meridians again and again.

The Third Layer of the Emperor Realm needed to be thoroughly stabilized before he could exert his maximum combat power.

Time passed minute by minute.

Three days later, Zhou Chen opened his eyes, a sharp light flashing within them.

"The Realm is stabilized."

He stood up and stretched his limbs.

Crack, crack, crack—

His bones let out a series of pops, and Zhou Chen felt his entire body brimming with power.

"Now, I should be able to easily defeat an expert at the Fifth Layer of the Emperor Realm."

"If I use the chaos bell, I could even contend with the Sixth Layer of the Emperor Realm."

Zhou Chen was very confident in his own strength.

He opened his door, preparing to head to the Scripture Pavilion to see if there were any Cultivation Techniques suitable for him.

Just as he stepped out, he saw an old man in white robes standing outside.

The old man had an immortal air and a kind countenance; he was the Vice Academy Head of Jixia Academy, Master Cen.

[Name: Master Cen.]

[Cultivation: Venerable Realm Seventh Layer]

[Fate: Three-Colored]

[Destiny: Vice Academy Head of Jixia Academy. Ultimately stops at the Tenth Layer of the Venerable Realm due to insufficient Foundation. Dies from the backlash of the Heavenly Tribulation after a failed forced Breakthrough.]

Zhou Chen recalled that when he advanced to the Emperor Realm earlier, the System had prompted an upgrade, but he had been too busy with his Breakthrough to check it properly.

One change brought by the System upgrade was that the number of people he could bind regardless of distance had increased to one thousand. It was finally no longer like squeezing out toothpaste, which Zhou Chen was quite satisfied with.

The second change was the addition of fate displays above the Golden level, ranging from One-Colored to Nine-Colored using odd numbers.

After Three-Colored came Five-Colored, Seven-Colored, and Nine-Colored fates, corresponding to different potentials.

Other changes would require Zhou Chen to explore slowly.

Zhou Chen had a strange expression. 'Nine-Colored' sounded like 'Leek' in his language. Could the System think that 'Leeks'—the easily exploited—possessed the strongest Aptitude?

If so, based on his experience of being harvested like a leek in his past life, Zhou Chen's talent was terrifyingly strong, unsurpassed throughout the ages.

"Master?"

Zhou Chen was somewhat surprised.

"What brings you here?"

Master Cen smiled.

"I came to congratulate you."

"Breaking through to the Emperor Realm and reaching the Third Layer in one go—this kind of talent is rare even across the entire Tianxuan Continent."

Zhou Chen said modestly, "Master, you flatter me. I was just lucky."

Master Cen shook his head.

"Luck is also a part of strength."

"However, the phenomenon you triggered was too terrifying; it has already caught the attention of various factions."

"Especially the Heavenly Secret Clan. Their Old Man of Heavenly Secrets seems very interested in you."

Zhou Chen frowned.

"The Heavenly Secret Clan?"

Master Cen nodded.

"The Heavenly Secret Clan is one of the most mysterious powers on the Tianxuan Continent."

"They excel at divining heavenly secrets and predicting the future."

"It is said that the Old Man of Heavenly Secrets' divination techniques have reached the pinnacle. Furthermore, their clan specializes in the Life-Locking Secret Art. The fates of everyone in the Family are locked within the Heavenly Secret Clan, making it impossible for others to perform reverse divination on them."

Hearing this, Zhou Chen thought of the two girls, Chi Mei and Wang Liang. No wonder the System panel couldn't view their opportunities; it turned out their fates were locked by the Heavenly Secret Clan.

This also reminded him of Liu Qianru, who had been taken away by the Heavenly Secret Clan and whose opportunity panel could no longer be checked. In all likelihood, her fate had also been locked by them.

If everyone on the Tianxuan Continent practiced this, Zhou Chen might not even have a chance to intercept opportunities. He had to find a chance to thoroughly learn or crack this secret art; otherwise, he wouldn't be able to sleep or eat in peace.

Zhou Chen was clearly worrying unnecessarily, as this secret art still had many restrictive conditions, but that was a story for later.

"The phenomenon you triggered has likely already been divined by him."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Chen's heart sank.

He had seen records regarding the Heavenly Secret Clan, one of the three upper races of the Tianxuan Continent, in the ancient texts of Jixia Academy.

This faction was extremely mysterious, never participating in the struggles between various parties, yet they held countless secrets.

If he were targeted by the Heavenly Secret Clan, it could be very troublesome.

Master Cen seemed to see Zhou Chen's concern and smiled, "You don't need to worry too much."

"Although the Heavenly Secret Clan is mysterious, they generally do not take the initiative to attack people."

"Furthermore, you are now a Disciple of Jixia Academy. With the Academy's protection, they won't dare to act rashly."

Zhou Chen breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank you for the reminder, Master."

Master Cen nodded.

"However, I came today to tell you one more thing."

Master Cen's expression became solemn.

Zhou Chen's heart tightened, vaguely sensing something was wrong.

"It's about the Taichu Holy Land."

Upon hearing those words, Zhou Chen's pupils suddenly constricted.