Chapter 1102 : A Stubborn Heart's Heavenly Trial

It was precisely because of this that Worthy Verdancy Chen was like a child who had just received their favorite toy, unable to put down the three Immortal Treasure [a supreme grade of enchanted artifact], handling them with utter delight.

She even couldn't resist practicing a few moves with the Great Mystery Halberd [a powerful halberd artifact], exclaiming with glee, "Watch closely, Father! After I descend the mountain this time, I am determined to capture several True Dragon [the supreme rulers among dragon-kind], strip their sinews and skin them, to respectfully offer them to you for making congee."

"Do not speak such nonsense!"

Before Eldrin Chen could even respond to her words, Verdant Consort could no longer remain seated.

Her expression shifted slightly, and she immediately reprimanded, "Within the Crimson Dragon Sea, the True Dragon are overlords of their domain. Even your father and I dare not lightly slay a True Dragon. You absolutely must not act so recklessly."

"Mother..."

Seeing Verdant Consort's stern expression, Verdant Child instinctively looked towards Eldrin Chen for support. Yet, she found his gaze as deep and inscrutable as the Starry Abyss [a cosmic void filled with ancient stars], revealing no hint of his thoughts. Only then did she lower her head slightly.

"This child understands,"

Worthy Verdancy Chen murmured softly. As for whether she had truly taken the words to heart, that remained to be seen.

Upon the Great Hall, Eldrin Chen remained silent until after Worthy Verdancy Chen had withdrawn. Only then did he let out a deep breath, sighing as he spoke, "Over these years, you and I have disciplined this child perhaps too much." The complete novel can be found at audio-novel . com.

"Yet the Innocent Stubborn Heart is far too unruly; the more one disciplines her, the more it kindles her curiosity,"

"Only by enduring a Tribulation [a profound trial or heavenly ordeal] can she gain a deep lesson. Only by using the Tribulation as a furnace's fire can that stubborn heart be refined into a heart of true resolve."

Verdant Consort understood Eldrin Chen's reasoning, yet her heart remained filled with profound worry. "But Tribulation are difficult to cross. I fear..."

"There is no need for fear."

Eldrin Chen shook his head, drawing her into his embrace. "Within the three treasures, I have left a fourth seal. It will activate at the moment of true life-and-death peril. It should be sufficient to ensure her safety."

Upon hearing this, Verdant Consort finally let out a slight sigh of relief, though a trace of concern still lingered on her features.

......

After Verdant Child's departure, Green Chariot Mountain settled into its familiar rhythm once more.

Varen Wei had grown into adulthood over these years and had ventured down the mountain to temper himself some time ago. Thus, Eldrin Chen began preparations for his own seclusion.

Unbeknownst to all, nearly four thousand years had passed since Eldrin Chen ascended to immortality.

Over these past several thousand years, his cultivation base could be said to have advanced by leaps and bounds. Precisely because of this, his strength still possessed immense room for further growth.

At this current stage, the means to rapidly increase Eldrin Chen's power were his Five Lifebound Immortal Treasures and the Polarity Dual Poles Pearl.

The Polarity Dual Poles Pearl was a Supreme-Grade Immortal Treasure [a treasure of the highest known rank among immortal artifacts]. To successfully refine and wield it required a level of magical power at least equivalent to the Late Ascendant Immortal Realm.

Although the sheer volume of Eldrin Chen's current Immortal Essence [the purified energy core of an immortal] was not inferior to that of an Ascendant Immortal Realm 8th to 9th Tier cultivator, its quality remained at the Mid Ascendant Immortal Realm level. He was still unable to refine the Polarity Dual Poles Pearl.

Therefore, Eldrin Chen planned to advance all of his Five Lifebound Immortal Treasures to the Upper Grade Immortal Rank.

Once he possessed five High-Grade Immortal Treasure [powerful immortal artifacts] to temper his magical power, he estimated it would only take two or three thousand years for Eldrin Chen to hone his power to the level of the Late Ascendant Immortal Realm.

Thus, for the past several hundred years, Eldrin Chen had been entrusting friends like Six Stars Immortal and Xander Qian to procure vast quantities of Five Elements Immortal Energy [immortal-grade spiritual essence containing the powers of Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth] for him.

By now, these resources of Five Elements Immortal Energy had been gathered. Hence, this period of seclusion was for the purpose of advancing several of his Immortal Treasure.

Compared to the time he advanced the Celestial Abyss Twin Swords, Eldrin Chen's current foundation and reserves far surpassed those of the past. Handling the advancement of his Lifebound Immortal Treasure [treasures intrinsically linked to their owner's life force] now felt increasingly effortless and natural.

As time flowed onward, the Bulwark Earth Sovereign Bell, the Polarity Void Mirror, and the Primordial Verdant Lotus Throne successively ascended to become High-Grade Immortal Treasure.

After this advancement, Eldrin Chen faintly sensed that his strength had grown immensely.

This was especially true for the Primordial Verdant Lotus Throne. Upon its successful promotion, this treasure could now store three times the power of Immortal Essence [the foundational energy of an immortal].

With the Primordial Verdant Lotus Throne, Eldrin Chen's spiritual power [the energy used to cast spells and techniques] was now more than four times vaster than that of an Immortal at the Late Ascendant Immortal Realm. In future battles, he would be nearly unstoppable.

He reflected that the reason he had been able to slay the Polarity Patriarch previously was not due to superior strength, but because his Positive Water Verdant Lotus Throne had secretly harbored a significant reserve of Immortal Essence.

"With such profound reserves of Immortal Essence," he mused, "I could even sustain the use of a supreme-grade treasure like the Polarity Dual Poles Pearl for a considerable duration in battle."

"Add to that the Bulwark Earth Sovereign Bell and the Polarity Void Mirror..." Enjoyed this chapter? Read more at audio-novel . com.

Eldrin Chen murmured to himself, a growing conviction that his current power had increased by at least thirty percent compared to before.

Facing two ordinary Immortal at the Ascendant Immortal 9th Tier simultaneously would likely pose no great challenge.

After all, with five Supreme-Grade Immortal Treasure serving as his Lifebound Immortal Treasure [treasures bound to one's life and soul], few at the Ascendant Immortal 9th Tier could boast such opulent resources.

With this thought, a profound sense of calm settled within Eldrin Chen, granting him an aura of unshakable composure.

"I wonder if the current me could prevail against that Crimson Dragon Child?"

Eldrin Chen murmured inwardly, his gaze turning contemplative.

After a moment of silence, he pondered aloud, "In a fair duel, I would hold the upper hand. Yet, if I were to assault the Immortal Source Island or Crimson Dragon Island directly, I would find myself powerless to succeed."

Thus did Eldrin Chen assess, roughly gauging the balance of power between them.

That Crimson Dragon Child possessed prodigious talent; his strength ranked among the formidable even within the Ascendant Immortal 9th Tier. Yet, Eldrin Chen was confident he could suppress him in a one-on-one confrontation.

However, the Crimson Dragon Child was, after all, the direct descendant of the Crimson Dragon Patriarch. His father, the Crimson Dragon Patriarch, had been a peerless genius of the Half-Step Earth Immortal Realm in his day.

Though that Crimson Dragon Patriarch had now passed into seclusion [a euphemism for death in cultivation], he had left behind a profound legacy for the Crimson Dragon Child.

Among this legacy were two Supreme-Grade Immortal Treasure. One was the Supreme-Grade Immortal Treasure known as the 'Crimson Dragon Sky-Scorching Sword'. It was said this treasure was forged by the Crimson Dragon Patriarch using his own Counter-Scale [the reverse scale of a dragon, a symbol of its greatest vulnerability and power] as the core material, refined into a Lifebound Immortal Treasure [a magical artifact intrinsically linked to its owner's life force].

That Crimson Dragon Sky-Scorching Sword possessed peerless sharpness, its blade said to have been stained with the blood of supreme immortals and demons. It was an Immortal Treasure renowned as matchless in its Slaughter [its capacity for destruction and killing].

Before his final departure, the Crimson Dragon Patriarch used the 'Crimson Dragon Sky-Scorching Sword' as the Formation Eye [the core and power source of a magical array] to establish a grand protective formation. It was this that allowed the Crimson Dragon Child to barely hold onto his inherited domain.

The other supreme treasure was named the Crimson Flame Golden Scale Armor [a legendary defensive artifact of immense protective power]. It was a body-protecting treasure of astonishing defensive might.

Regrettably, this treasure was damaged when the Crimson Dragon Patriarch broke through to the Earth Immortal [a realm of cultivation where one becomes an immortal tied to the earth] realm, causing its grade to fall to that of a High-Grade Immortal Treasure.

Even so, the power of the Crimson Flame Golden Scale Armor far surpassed that of ordinary High-Grade Immortal Treasure. It had been deployed by the Crimson Dragon Patriarch atop the Immortal Source Ore Vein [a vein of ore rich in the primal energy of immortality].

With these two supreme treasures at his disposal, the Crimson Dragon Child was virtually invincible among his peers on both Crimson Dragon Island and Immortal Source Island. Even a Patriarch at the Half-Step Earth Immortal Realm [a quasi-immortal state just below the true Earth Immortal realm] would find it difficult to slay him.

Although Eldrin Chen possessed strength far exceeding that of a typical Ascendant Immortal 9th Tier [the ninth and highest tier of the Ascendant Immortal realm], he privately acknowledged that on those two Immortal Isles, he would be no match for the Crimson Dragon Child.

With this thought, Eldrin Chen reined in his fighting spirit. "There is no rush," he murmured. "The Great Tribulation [a cataclysmic heavenly calamity] is still over fifty thousand years away."

"By then, dealing with a mere Crimson Dragon Child should not be difficult."

Eldrin Chen whispered this to himself, then set the thought aside.

He surveyed his surroundings. Seeing that a significant amount of Five Elements Essence [a refined spiritual essence containing the power of the five elements] remained, he retrieved three radiant, luminous pearls.

"The Sun, Moon, and Stellar Pearls are three rare treasures of the Spirit Shell Clan [a clan of spiritual beings associated with shells and pearls]," he explained. "They can greatly enhance the cultivation of practitioners like us."

"My mastery of the art of artifact forging has now reached its zenith. If I were to use three Immortal Artifact [a legendary class of magical treasures of immense power] as materials, I wonder what kind of supreme set of treasures I could forge." This chapter is part of a larger work available at audio–novel.com.