Chapter 712 : A Gathering of True Lords

However, Eldrin Chen himself also needed to cultivate and could not exhaust all resources to support them without limit.

Regardless, with the addition of four new Nascent Soul True Lord [powerful cultivators at the Nascent Soul stage], the strength of the Chen Clan had still increased tremendously.

Currently, the Chen Clan's own Nascent Soul True Lord numbered eight individuals: Thalion Chen, Eldrin Chen, Kael Chen, Ethan Chen, Silas Chen, Nianxuan Chen, Chen Zuxuan, and Lucian Chen.

Adding Eldrin Chen's three Dao Companions and his disciples Elara Lin and Rosalind Meng, the main Chen Clan lineage now boasted a full thirteen True Lord.

This count did not yet include the clan's guest elders, Qingci the Recluse and Daoyi Qiu, nor the newly joined Nyssa Qu.

If all these were tallied, the Chen Clan possessed a staggering sixteen Nascent Soul True Lord.

Even setting aside the guest elders, a single clan with thirteen True Lord was an awe-inspiring force, sufficient to claim the eighth position within the entire Three Veins Ancient Domain.

The Immortal Clan [clans with a history of producing Immortals] ranked ahead were mostly those with Half-Step Primordial Spirit [cultivators on the verge of the Primordial Spirit realm] experts. Among the Nascent Soul Great Perfection [clans whose strongest members are at the peak of the Nascent Soul stage] Immortal Clan, fewer than three could boast a greater number of Nascent Soul cultivators than the Chen Clan.

Thus, the present Chen Clan could be ranked within the top sixty or seventy positions among the two thousand Nascent Soul Immortal Clan scattered across the vast Eastern Wastelands.

Contemplating the Chen Clan's current formidable might, Eldrin Chen said with a smile, "Our clan's strength is now a far cry from its former self. The time has come to lend the Ji Clan a helping hand." This novel is serialized on audio-novel*com. Visit for updates.

"Then let us gather everyone for a gathering upon Verdant Chariot Mountain."

Three days later, the various True Lord figures of the Chen Clan assembled atop Verdant Chariot Mountain.

One formidable existence after another, each a rare sight in ordinary times, converged together, every one of them radiating an aura of transcendent power.

Seated in the host's chair, Eldrin Chen swept his gaze over the thirteen True Lord figures present, a faint smile touching his lips.

In a few more days, it would be Eldrin Chen's thousand-year birthday. In the brief span of a single Millennium, they had grown from a mere Foundation Establishment Immortal Clan into a powerful Immortal Clan boasting thirteen True Lord. The development of the Chen Clan was nothing short of miraculous.

Moreover, in recent years, not only had several new Nascent Soul cultivators emerged within the clan, but several of the older True Lord had also achieved breakthroughs one after another.

Among them, the one with the highest cultivation was Verdant Consort. After seclusion to consolidate her gains, her cultivation had advanced to the Nascent Soul, 6th Tier.

Lyra Jiang had also cultivated to the Nascent Soul, 5th Tier. Both Lila and Elara Lin possessed Anomalous Spiritual Root and wielded only a single Lifebound Spiritual Treasure, granting them notably swift cultivation speeds. Their realms had now broken through to the Nascent Soul, Mid Stage.

Old Patriarch possessed Dual Spiritual Roots. Although an injury had delayed his progress in previous years, with Eldrin Chen's unstinting support, he too had recently broken through to the Nascent Soul, Mid Stage.

The reason for their rapid cultivation pace, apart from the inherent speed granted by their superior Spiritual Root, was also due to the abundant resources provided by the Chen Clan.

The Immortal Peach Pill refined from the Heaven and Earth Spirit Peach, the Fifth Rank Spirit Clam Pearls obtained from Nyssa Qu in earlier years, and precious items like the Yin-Yang Treasure Ginseng Pill were all pivotal components.

Suppressing the joy in his heart, Eldrin Chen handed the letter in his hand to the assembled elders and spoke, "Over these years, the reason our Chen Clan has been able to establish our lineage within the Ji Continent is entirely due to the patronage and support of the Ji Clan."

"Now that the Ji Clan intends to launch an assault upon the Blood God Sea Region, it is only natural that we lend our full support."

Everyone present nodded in agreement. The Ji Clan was a Nascent Soul Immortal Clan and the Chen Clan's greatest patron. In this conflict, the Chen Clan truly had no other choice.

Seeing no objections from the group, Eldrin Chen continued, "Let us deliberate on who shall represent our clan in this campaign."

"In my view, those at the Nascent Soul, Early Stage will be of limited use in such a battle. The participants should be chosen from among our more seasoned ranks."

Thalion Chen stroked his beard and stated the matter plainly.

Kael Chen and the others seated nearby nodded upon hearing this. An assault on a Primordial Spirit-level power like the Blood God Sea Region was bound to be perilous in the extreme.

True Lord at the Nascent Soul, Early Stage would contribute little, and the Chen Clan's newly advanced True Lord had not yet cultivated the Nirvana Tribulation Transference Art [a profound art that allows a cultivator to transfer their essence into a new body upon death, akin to reincarnation]. Should they face a lethal threat, they might not even have the chance for a tribulation rebirth.

Contemplating this, Eldrin Chen deliberated for a moment before decreeing, "Nianxuan, Zuxuan, Lucian, Ruyan, the four of you have only just achieved your breakthrough. Your paramount task now is to consolidate your cultivation bases and advance your Spiritual Treasure [powerful enchanted artifacts bound to a cultivator's soul]. You shall remain to guard the family and our various Spirit Mountain [mountains imbued with potent spiritual energy]."

"And Silas [the character's name], you have only just broken through to the Nascent Soul Second Layer [the second stage of the Nascent Soul cultivation realm]. It would be better for you to remain with the clan as well."

"Understood."

Nianxuan Chen [the character's name] and the other three nodded, a wave of profound relief washing over them. Having only recently advanced their cultivation, they hadn't even finished upgrading their Lifebound Spiritual Treasure [a magical artifact bound to a cultivator's life force]. Participating in such a grand battle would likely give them the highest mortality rate among all the True Lord [a title for cultivators at the Nascent Soul realm].

However, Silas Chen [the character's name] felt a surge of discontent. Unable to hold back, he spoke up: "Why can Ethan [the character's name] go, but I cannot?"

"Ethan [the character's name] possesses combat prowess not inferior to a Nascent Soul, Mid Stage [a cultivator at the mid-stage of the Nascent Soul realm] and is capable of slaying Nascent Soul Demonic Cultivator [a demonic cultivator at the Nascent Soul realm]. What do you have to match that?"

Eldrin Chen [the character's name] frowned slightly, rejecting Silas Chen's [the character's name] request to join the campaign. For uninterrupted reading, go to audio-novel*com.

As Silas [the character's name] reluctantly took his seat, Lyra Jiang [the character's name] added, "Our clan has made many enemies. Therefore, we should also leave behind a combatant with Nascent Soul Late Stage [late-stage Nascent Soul realm] strength to oversee matters here."

"That is also true."

Eldrin Chen [the character's name] nodded in agreement, then let his gaze sweep across the assembled group.

Among the various True Lord [Nascent Soul realm cultivators] of the Chen Clan [the Chen family organization], there were actually quite a few who possessed combat strength at the Nascent Soul Late Stage [late-stage Nascent Soul realm].

Eldrin Chen and Lyra Jiang were naturally peerless, their combat prowess ranking among the very top even within the Nascent Soul Late Stage. Verdant Consort, wielding the Verdant Lotus Secret Power [a profound and unique cultivation technique], was in no way inferior to them, and her Mana [the spiritual energy used to power spells and techniques] was arguably even more formidable.

Kael Chen was no weakling either. Empowered by his Heavenly Demon Esoteric Power [a supreme demonic cultivation art], his combat strength rivaled that of an ordinary Nascent Soul, 7th Tier cultivator, not to mention he also possessed the Heavenly Demon's Immortal-Slaying Sword [a legendary demonic blade of immense power].

Beyond these four, Thalion Chen's strength had also seen a tremendous leap forward after his breakthrough to the Nascent Soul, Mid Stage.

With the augmentation of the Treasure Banner of the Eight Trigrams [a set of eight enchanted flags that form a powerful defensive and offensive formation]—all eight of which had recently advanced to the Fifth Rank Middle Grade—the Old Patriarch could unleash power comparable to the Nascent Soul Great Perfection realm once the grand formation was deployed.

The sole drawback was the Old Patriarch's limited Mana reserves. Although this formation utilized his life-bound Formation Flags [magical flags personally attuned to a cultivator's spirit], if he were to channel its full power, his Mana would likely be exhausted in fewer than thirty moves.

While this setup could grant him the upper hand against a Nascent Soul, 7th Tier opponent, it might not be sufficient to decisively defeat a foe at the Nascent Soul, 8th Tier level.

This was an unavoidable limitation. The Old Patriarch had only laid an Earthly Path Foundation [a foundational cultivation grade that limits one's ultimate potential and spiritual energy reserves]. Simultaneously controlling eight Spiritual Treasure [powerful enchanted artifacts] was an immensely taxing feat; being able to manage it in combat at all was a commendable achievement.

Contemplating this, Eldrin Chen spoke up, "For this campaign, Old Granduncle, you should remain behind to guard our home."

"It would be better to leave someone else," Thalion Chen shook his head and replied. "This battle carries its own perils. Your futures shine brighter. This old man should go in your stead."

"You worry too much, Old Granduncle."

Eldrin Chen offered a faint smile and said, "Your Mana [the spiritual energy used to cast spells and techniques] is somewhat lacking, Old Granduncle. Even with your innate Formation [a structured arrangement of power used for defense, attack, or cultivation], you might not gain the upper hand in a direct confrontation."

"However, if you remain to guard the clan and, at a critical moment, utilize the Spirit Vein [a natural conduit of concentrated spiritual energy within the earth] to deploy the Eight Trigrams Demon Refining Formation [a powerful defensive and purifying formation based on the eight trigrams], even a Half-Step Primordial Spirit [a cultivator who has partially transcended the Nascent Soul realm but not fully ascended to the Primordial Spirit realm] expert would likely suffer a significant setback."

Hearing this reasoning, Thalion Chen found it quite sound.

He thus nodded with a chuckle. "With this old man guarding the family seat," he declared, "even if a Half-Step Primordial Spirit powerhouse were to come knocking, they would find the gates firmly shut in their face." Access the full story on audio-novel . com.