Chapter 1396 : Slaying the Dragon God of Guixu

Unbound by the constraints of the celestial clans, he wandered through the cataclysm with Moonveil Gauze, drifting between battlefields as circumstances dictated. Wherever great conflicts erupted, he would appear to observe—and if the tide turned against him, he would simply flee with Moonveil Gauze in tow.

Thus unfettered, Chen Xianchang stepped into the Great Tribulation and reaped astonishing rewards. From the start of this battle till now, he had slain over a dozen Half-Step Earth Immortals, including 1 at the early Earth Immortal stage.

Today, Chen Xianzhang's cultivation had reached the Half-Step Earth Immortal realm, with both his physical body and comprehension of natural laws attaining the World-Forging Stage.

His foundation was roughly at the level of an 8-Tribulation Immortal, yet he had refined 18 Oceanic Divine Pearls.

With these 18 Oceanic Divine Pearls, Chen Xianzhang's combat prowess even surpassed that of some 9 Tribulation Immortals, which was precisely why he managed to reap gains during the Great Cataclysm.

As far as Eldrin knew, Chen Xianzhang had also obtained 5 Heavenly Spiritual Roots (Spiritual Root), effectively resolving the greatest challenge in his future breakthrough to the Earth Immortal realm. In contrast, despite his relentless struggles along the path, his eldest son Chen Xianzhu had merely acquired a single Heavenly Spiritual Root (Spiritual Root)—his serendipity paled in comparison.

In addition to his 3 sons, the fourth child, Chen Xianqing, had also grown remarkable. She was the child of Eldrin and Qing Ji, inheriting the foundational talents of 2 Great Perfection cultivators, making her gifts truly extraordinary.

Since attaining the Crimson Child's Heart cultivation, Chen Xianqing had ventured into the depths of the boundless sea to undergo his heavenly tribulation.

After the prolonged great war, Chen Xianqing's cultivation had already stepped into the realm of 8 Tribulation Immortals, merely 1 step away from the Ninth Tribulation Immortal domain.

"The eldest has an unwavering Dao heart, the second is backed by the Immortal Court, the third possesses peerless combat prowess among his peers. Xian Qing’s talent and wisdom are second to none—after attaining the Childlike Innocence Elixir Heart, his temperament and comprehension have become flawless and perfected."

"It seems I can rest assured about these children from now on." Eldrin sighed inwardly. As a father, he had originally intended to provide substantial support at critical junctures in their paths. Just as parents in his previous life would arrange marriages for their children, Eldrin had prepared to offer his full assistance in awakening their Heavenly Spiritual Roots.

But now, the second son had the backing of a powerful patron, the third son had managed to gather the materials to open his Heavenly Spiritual Root (Spiritual Root), the eldest son also held 1 in his possession, and the fourth son, Chen Xianqing, had seized 2 during the great calamity.

In that case, he only needed to prepare 5 or 6 more, which should significantly reduce the pressure.

At this thought, Eldrin looked at Chen Xiandao before him and said, "Since you and your wife have returned this time, stay with the clan for a few more days. Spend more time bonding with your siblings. In the future, it might be tens of thousands of years before we can gather like this again."

Upon hearing this, Chen Xiandao gave a slight nod and said, "As you wish, Father."

Eldrin nodded slightly. These children had now all come of age, often journeying across the celestial realms with worlds between them.

Although they would often return to visit him, it had become increasingly rare for all of them to gather together at once like this.

Eldrin knew in his heart that this was inevitable.

As a father, Eldrin could not bear to see his children raised into incompetence. Thus, he released them from beneath his protective wings, granting them the vast skies of the immortal realm so they might forge their own path through growth.

From today's perspective, Eldrin's decision was not mistaken. Yet the celestial realm is boundless and vast—even for an immortal, crossing the endless seas to return would require an exceedingly prolonged span of time.

It was foreseeable that unless these children reached the Celestial Immortal realm—able to tear through the void and traverse the boundless sea in an instant—they would ultimately spend more time apart than together.

At this thought, Eldrin glanced at Lu Miaoyin standing beside Chen Xiandao. Though years had passed since their last meeting, her cultivation had now ascended to the realm of a 7-Tribulation Immortal.

Her dual pupils had grown increasingly formidable, now potent enough to subdue even an early-stage Earth Immortal.

At this thought, he gave a slight nod and said, "All these years, I’ve been indebted to you for taking care of Erlang."

"Tending to my husband is but my duty as his wife." Lu Miaoyin gave a slight bow, her tone both respectful and poised. Eldrin nodded and said no more.

Seeing this, Chen Xiandao spoke up, "By the way, my return today is not only to celebrate your birthday, Father, but also to deliver something to you on the orders of the Immortal Court."

"Oh?"

Eldrin's gaze flickered slightly as he saw a celestial general approaching, holding a white jade tray aloft.

Chen Xiandao took it in 1 swift motion, then handed it to Eldrin (Person Name) saying, "This is the Divine Lord Decree from the Celestial Court."

Eldrin lowered his gaze and saw 3 items placed upon the white jade tray.

On the left was an ancient golden edict, on the right a white jade seal, and in the center lay a set of exceptionally noble purple robes.

Among the 3 treasures, upon the white jade seal was inscribed a line of large characters: Li Fire Sword of the Returning Abyss (Magic Treasure)

"The Divine Decree, the Abyssal Seal, and the Violet-tasseled Immortal Raiment." Eldrin murmured, his gaze involuntarily sharpening.

He understood that these 3 sacred treasures were the Writ of Appointment from the Western Abyss Celestial Court to him.

Generally speaking, within the Western Qi Divine Abyss Sea, any human who has attained the Earth Immortal realm, along with certain 100 Spirit Immortal clans aligned with humanity, would be enfeoffed as Divine Lords by the Western Abyss Celestial Court.

However, as the saying goes, the Dao of Immortals values purple, and within the Celestial Court, purple is also among the most revered ranks of bestowal.

Only the most supreme Earth Immortal Patriarchs would have the privilege of being bestowed the Violet Ribbon Immortal Garment. That Eldrin could receive such an imperial decree proved he had truly caught the attention of the Western Abyss Celestial Court.

Of the 2 remaining items, the Divine Decree of the Celestial Lord could mobilize the celestial soldiers and generals of the Heavenly Court, theoretically capable of summoning up to 1,000 troops.

The Seal of the Returning Abyss was also extraordinary, containing within it the training methods for celestial soldiers and generals.

With this object in his possession, Eldrin could train up to 10,000 celestial soldiers and generals.

Of course, this seal only provides the training methods and the authority to train Celestial Soldiers and Generals, excluding the required resources and various costs. Ultimately, how many Celestial Soldiers and Generals Eldrin (Person Name) could train, and how formidable their strength would become, depended entirely on whether Eldrin (Person Name) was willing to invest substantial resources and dedicate the necessary effort and manpower.

As far as Eldrin knew, there were virtually none in the entire Western Qi Divine Abyss Sea who could train celestial soldiers and generals to their full capacity.

Even a supreme blessed land like the Abyssal Altar of Leaves is said to have trained only 3,000 celestial soldiers and generals before ceasing further efforts.

Because the Celestial Soldiers and Generals consumed far too many resources—whether it was the cultivation resources they required or the divine metals and mystical materials needed to forge their weapons and armor—none of it came at a small cost.

With this sum, rather than training the Celestial Army, it would be better to acquire some treasures and attempt to advance 1's own cultivation further.

Only those Earth Immortals and Celestial Immortals who had lived for tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of years, yet found their cultivation progress perpetually stagnant, would raise vast armies of Heavenly Soldiers and Heavenly Generals to bolster both the combat strength and foundational reserves of their blessed realms.

In any case, receiving the Celestial Court's appointment signified that Eldrin (Person Name) had taken his first steps into the middle-to-upper echelons of the Western Mist Divine Abyssal Sea. From now on, with the backing of the Celestial Court, Eldrin (Person Name) would also be able to procure some resources scarce in the Vast Azure Immortal Domain—this was undoubtedly a favorable development.

At this thought, Eldrin instructed his attendants to store the 3 treasures, then nodded and said, "This grand banquet also celebrates your mother’s 100,000-year longevity. You should go and see her."