Chapter 1717 : The Golden Crow's Final Ascent

After three thousand exchanges, he had failed to slay Eldrin Chen, only managing to burn through his own Soul Spirits [the refined essence of one's soul and blood] until it was utterly exhausted, transforming into motes of starlight that scattered amidst the Heavenly Layers [the stratified realms of heaven].

"In this battle, my defeat was not unjust."

As he dissolved into the Dao [the fundamental principle of existence], Solaris, the Golden Crow spoke slowly.

His gaze profound, he looked at Eldrin Chen and said, "With you among the Human Race, it seems that in tens of millions of years, the Azure Firmament Immortal Domain [the vast celestial realm where immortals dwell] will gain another Ancient Immortal Grotto-Heaven [a blessed paradise realm created by an ancient immortal]."

Eldrin Chen's expression remained placid. He regarded Solaris, the Golden Crow calmly and nodded. "In this ultimate battle, you have not disgraced the prestige of the Demonic Tribe [the collective race of powerful demonic beings]."

"In the end, I could not match you."

Solaris, the Golden Crow let out a sigh, which finally dissolved into specks of golden light that faded away.

Thus, a generation's Demonic Tribe Imperial Son [a prince of immense power and destiny], the strongest Heaven's Chosen [a prodigy favored by heaven] in the history of the Golden Crow Grotto-Heaven, was utterly annihilated at this moment, leaving behind only a lingering echo of regret.

"Cultivate well. I hope that one day, you can shatter the Tenfold Heavenly Pass [a legendary, nearly insurmountable tribulation] and, on my behalf, witness the vistas that lie beyond Great Luo [a supreme realm of cultivation]."

"I will." Find thousands of chapters at www . audio-novel.com.

Eldrin Chen had once obtained Solaris, the Golden Crow's Dao Source [the primordial origin of a being's cultivation path and life essence]. Gazing at this Dao Source, he murmured softly to himself.

He spoke no further. Instead, he swallowed a Cloud-Patterned Immortal Pill [a high-grade elixir that restores spiritual energy] to recover a measure of his Mana [the refined spiritual energy used to cast spells and techniques]. Then, with a single step, he arrived at the edge of the grand Formation [a powerful magical array or barrier].

There, he saw the Verdant Sun Imperial Son desperately, at any cost, madly unleashing his treasures to assault the Formation, striving to tear open a single corner of the barrier and escape with his life.

"It is useless."

Eldrin Chen spoke calmly. With a flick of his sleeve, he summoned the Primordial Chaos Qi Grasping Hand [a divine technique that manifests a giant hand of primordial chaos energy] to press down and suppress his foe.

The Verdant Sun Imperial Son was nearly deranged, mustering all his strength to resist and evade. Yet, before a Half-Step Patriarch Grade Divine Ability [a divine technique of immense power, nearing the level of a Patriarch], he was ultimately powerless to change his fate. He was instantly suppressed upon the colossal palm.

Holding the captured Verdant Sun Imperial Son in his grasp, Eldrin Chen could not help but ask, "When Solaris fought for his life earlier, had you poured all your strength into aiding him, there might have been a sliver of a chance for victory."

"Your Innate Primordial Indestructible Physique [a legendary, nigh-unbreakable innate body constitution] is impervious, further reinforced by Innate Dao Principles [the fundamental laws of the Dao one is born comprehending]. Even if we could defeat you, we could never truly annihilate you."

The Verdant Sun Imperial Son let out a bitter, almost maniacal laugh. "I am the most powerful Heaven's Chosen [a prodigy favored by heaven] in the history of the Verdant Sun Grotto-Heaven [a blessed realm of cultivation]. The Supreme True Blood [the purest, most potent ancestral bloodline] of a Primordial Divine King flows within my veins."

"My future holds limitless potential. I have not yet witnessed the glory that lies beyond Great Luo [a supreme cultivation realm]. I do not wish to die here."

"Hahaha..."

Verdant Sun Imperial Son laughed bitterly through blood-flecked lips, twin trails of crimson tears streaming from his eyes.

He was the most prodigiously talented Divine Spirits [a high-level spiritual being, often a deity or powerful spirit] to emerge in the Azure Firmament Immortal Domain in a billion years, supremely confident that none within his realm could rival him.

He had believed he would sweep aside all rivals during this Dao Tribulation [a grand trial of fate and destiny that determines a cultivator's ultimate path], amass boundless fortune to forge a Supreme foundation. He never imagined he would encounter a being as astonishing as Eldrin Chen.

Most crucially, facing the unleashed might of Eldrin Chen, he felt fear for the very first time in his heart.

Thus, when Solaris, the Golden Crow burned his very essence for a final battle, his own thoughts were not of fighting with all his might, but of seizing the chance to flee for his life.

The moment he chose flight, his invincible conviction shattered. Even if he later broke through to the Heaven Immortal Realm [the realm of Heaven Immortals, a high level of cultivation], his path would likely end there.

Contemplating this, Eldrin Chen gave a slight nod, then shook his head and spoke.

"Your talent is not lacking. But in terms of courage and Dao-heart [the unwavering core of a cultivator's will and conviction], you cannot compare to Taiyang, the Imperial Son of Tai Cang or Solaris, the Golden Crow."

"Hahaha... *cough* *cough*..."

The Verdant Sun Imperial Son let out a bitter, blood-flecked laugh, his mind flashing back to the battle at the Great White Mountain Range where the Twin Imperial Sons of Tai Cang had been routed and forced to flee.

Upon receiving the news back then, he had mocked the Twin Imperial Sons of Tai Cang for tarnishing the mighty reputation of the Tai Cang Divine Emperor. Yet now, facing Eldrin Chen, he realized he was not even the equal of Taiyang, the Imperial Son of Tai Cang.

In this final moment, a wry smile touched his lips as he looked at Eldrin Chen and said, "Between Life and Death lies a great terror."

"I hope that even after countless eons, your Dao-heart remains as it is now, and you do not become someone like me."

In the end, the Verdant Sun Imperial Son still met his demise.

Knowing he was no match for Eldrin Chen, he did not struggle pointlessly. Instead, he willingly dissolved his form into Dao Soldiers [manifestations of pure Dao principles], scattering amidst the Heavenly Layers [the stratified realms of heaven]. Support the author by reading on audi0-n0vel.c0m.

Eldrin Chen did not harm his Soul Spirits [the spiritual fragments that constitute a being's consciousness], allowing his Divine Soul [the core spiritual essence of a high-level cultivator] to return intact to the Netherworld [the underworld, realm of the dead]. With the Divine Soul of a Twelve Calamity Forbidden Prodigy entering the cycle of reincarnation, the innate talent of the Verdant Sun Imperial Son in his next life would undoubtedly remain astonishing. Perhaps, after countless eons, their paths might cross again.

In contrast, Solaris, the Golden Crow had burned away his own Primordial Source [the foundational life-force and cultivation base] and his Divine Soul. Only his True Spirit [the indestructible spiritual core] and a wisp of a remnant Divine Soul entered reincarnation. The legacy of his current life was nearly extinguished; his next incarnation might not even be able to set foot upon the path of cultivation again.

Using his Supreme power to assist both in their passage into Reincarnation, Eldrin Chen felt a profound, ineffable intuition. The Verdant Sun Imperial Son would rise swiftly in his next life, while Solaris, the Golden Crow might wander through a thousand cycles of Reincarnation, and only then, perhaps, find his way back to the cultivation path.

Yet, as their fates were intertwined in this life, perhaps after millions of years, a destined entanglement would draw them together once more.

Eldrin Chen sought to divine the future with a finger calculation, yet found his vision shrouded by a dense mist. Even his Mysterious Profound Grade Great Derivation Yin-Yang Stellar Dao [a supreme divination art] could not pierce through the obscurity.

"Intriguing,"

Eldrin Chen murmured to himself. For his current cultivation to be unable to perceive their fates meant the future realms these two would attain were likely not low.

Yet, Eldrin Chen harbored not a shred of fear. Countless possibilities branched into the future, and even if the two were to cultivate to profoundly lofty heights in their next lives, Eldrin Chen remained utterly undaunted.

He had defeated them today; in the millions of years to come, he would inevitably soar far beyond his present self. Thus, he feared nothing.

With this resolve firm in his heart, Eldrin Chen took a step, ascending into the heavens to arrive at the Central Realm of the battlefield.

The fall of the mightiest, Verdant Sun Imperial Son and Solaris, the Golden Crow, coupled with the slaying of three other Forbidden Prodigy by Eldrin Chen, had gradually stripped this conflict of all suspense.

At the battlefield's Central Realm, Jiang Taixu was locked in a desperate struggle with the Five-Colored Immortal Phoenix. Lyra Jiang pressed Zhu Yan Imperial Son into a steady retreat. The other Nine Tribulations Half-Step Celestial Immortal [cultivators at the peak of the Nascent Soul realm, half a step into the Celestial Immortal stage] and Forbidden Prodigy from the Demon and God Races found themselves at a disadvantage, suppressed by the forces of the Human Race.

Eldrin Chen did not directly intervene in the others' battles. He stood poised upon the Firmament, intervening only to lend aid whenever one of his allies faced imminent peril of falling.

Thus, the great battle raged for ten years. The Heaven's Chosen [prodigies favored by destiny] of the Demon and God Races were gradually slain to the last, until only the Five-Colored Immortal Phoenix remained, stubbornly holding its ground.

Jiang Taixu and the Five-Colored Immortal Phoenix clashed for over one hundred thousand exchanges. In the end, he prevailed by the slimmest of margins, piercing the Divine Soul [the immortal spiritual core of a being] of the Five-Colored Immortal Phoenix with his Ethereal Void Sword Art.

"The Ethereal Void Sword Art... truly worthy of Valerius."

In her final moments, the Divine Soul of the Five-Colored Immortal Phoenix slowly began to disintegrate. Both her Physical Body and her Primordial Spirit [the highest spiritual essence of a cultivator] were undergoing a process of returning to the Dao [dissolving back into the fundamental principles of existence].

Yet, she remained extraordinarily calm. She gazed at Jiang Taixu, then turned her head to look at Eldrin Chen and Lyra Jiang, sighing as she spoke.

"With the three of you, it seems that tens of millions of years from now, the Azure Firmament Immortal Domain will be dominated by the Human Race."

"Fortunately, I am but a passing traveler. Otherwise, facing you, I too would likely have to bow my head."

The Five-Colored Immortal Phoenix murmured, a trace of a smile still lingering in her eyes.

Jiang Taixu's brow furrowed slightly, and he could not help but express his astonishment: "A passing traveler... Could it be you can still leave this place?"

"My name is Nihuang. We shall meet again."

The Five-Colored Immortal Phoenix spoke calmly, finally dissolving into motes of starlight, vanishing into nothingness.

Only then did Qiang Sun speak, his voice measured. "The Immortal Phoenix Clan [a legendary clan of cultivators with phoenix lineage] possesses the Nirvana Tribulation Transcendence Method [a legendary art of rebirth through tribulation]. It allows one to be reborn from a single wisp of the Divine Soul [the highest spiritual essence of a being] through the process of Nirvana [a profound rebirth akin to a phoenix rising from its own ashes]."

"By slaying her today, you have severed her old form. A new body will naturally gestate and be born from this Nirvana [a profound rebirth akin to a phoenix rising from its own ashes]." Continue your cultivation journey at site: audio-novel.com.