Hearing Ye Chen’s words, the dozen guards nearby were all wide-eyed with disbelief, as if they suspected their ears were playing tricks. They stared at the white-haired man, mouths agape, utterly speechless.

Feng Wuji choked, his face flushing crimson, his body trembling slightly, and he roared, “…You will regret this. The me of today is absolutely beyond your imagination!”

“Let’s begin,” Ye Chen said with palpable impatience.

Feng Wuji nearly choked him, a savage feeling surging within, but he forcibly suppressed his rage and said with chilling intensity, “I will wait for you on the battle stage.” With that, his figure flickered, and he turned to ascend the platform, glancing at Xue Nü beside him with a cold snort.

Ye Chen released the Seventh Princess’s hand and stated flatly, “Stay right here.” His form vanished and reappeared on the battle stage. His tall, well-proportioned frame, his face carved like cold, resolute marble, and his deep, obsidian eyes, coupled with his silver-white hair, gave him the presence of an immovable mountain simply by standing there.

Possessing the Nine Heavens Dao Scripture, Ye Chen naturally possessed a 10-billion-fold amplitude multiplier even without employing any other secret arts, enough to contend with an early-stage Divine Spirit expert. Most geniuses relied on the explosive amplification of self-detonating secret arts. In terms of body-strengthening arts, achieving a 100-fold amplitude was considered the absolute pinnacle. For someone like Ye Chen to reach 10 billion times—if not for the Heavenly Dao Scripture, the foremost mystical tome of the ancient continent—he wouldn't even dare to dream of it.

Seeing that the two had settled their terms and the audience's calls were growing intense, the referee waved his hand. Several peak Divine Spirit experts, towering like iron pagodas and radiating explosive power, quickly entered the stage and positioned themselves before Ye Chen. One of them spoke swiftly, “To prevent accidental harm, we must extract a wisp of your soul. That way, even if your body perishes, your soul will not dissipate.”

“Unnecessary,” Ye Chen waved him off. “I don’t need it.”

These men were all astonished. They exchanged glances, ultimately shaking their heads, casting a look of slight mockery at Ye Chen before returning offstage. They had performed this duty for millions of years and had never encountered such an arrogant genius. Even some geniuses renowned across the continent, far more fearsome than Feng Wuji, would never commit such a foolish act.

Feng Wuji’s gaze sharpened, a cruel curve spreading across his lips as he licked them. “Indeed, you have courage.”

“Begin,” Ye Chen stated impatiently.

The referee glanced at him, then announced loudly, “Start!” Hwaa!

A tidal wave of cheers erupted from the spectator stands. Everyone’s attention was fixed on this battle, speculating whether Ye Chen would be defeated by Feng Wuji in a single instant, or perhaps an infinitesimal moment.

The fight on the stage commenced.

Almost the instant the referee’s voice faded, Ye Chen seemed genuinely intent on ending the fight in a second. Robust energy surged from his body. The Mystic Tome of Yan was driven to its limit, and the Yan God Hammer and Nether Flame Shield materialized in his hands. The friction between the two generated a mysterious magnetic field that communicated with the heavens, ripping open a vortex from which a ball of red light descended, enveloping Ye Chen.

This crimson light struck down like lightning, its speed blinding. Simultaneously, the ground beneath Ye Chen shuddered violently, and a majestic palace rose unsteadily from the earth. The nine great gates of this palace burst open with a roar, and nine Palace Guardians floated out, exploding almost instantaneously.

This Nine Palace Secret Art was a peak Divine Spirit-level technique. Despite only having practiced it for a century—limited by Ye Chen’s nascent realm brainwaves—he had grasped its essence completely and instantly brought it to its peak state.

This was the first time Ye Chen had unleashed the peak version of the Nine Palace Secret Art. The moment the nine guardians violently detonated, before the resulting energy shockwave could expand, it was rapidly pulled toward Ye Chen’s palm, compressed into a single mass of potent energy, and injected into the Yan God Hammer. The entire hammer blazed with intense crystalline light, erupting with blinding radiance that became the sole source of illumination in heaven and earth.

All of this transpired in the blink of an eye. Ye Chen’s white hair flew backward, his eyes cold and dark. Standing atop the majestic Nine Palaces, he looked down at Feng Wuji, his indifferent gaze treating the opponent like a humble ant. His body suddenly leaped, plunging downward in a furious charge.

This movement seemed to stir the very winds and clouds of the world, swirling around his body, carrying a suffocating pressure that gathered upon the ancient war hammer as it smashed down!

Silence descended upon the entire venue.

Across the streets of the entire ancient continent, everyone watching this scene saw the calculated battle amplitude figures displayed beneath the high-definition screens. On the right side, Ye Chen’s amplitude reached a terrifying, staggering number: 180 trillion!!!

Upon seeing this figure, many people’s minds momentarily short-circuited, going completely blank. Others desperately gripped their screens, certain the computer must have malfunctioned!

Horrifying!

Was this truly a human being?

Under an amplitude of 180 trillion, Ye Chen appeared as an ancient, heaven-piercing War God, radiating divine majesty. The power emanating from his ancient war hammer swelled exponentially, rapidly expanding in the eyes of Feng Wuji, who had exerted his full strength—and then CRASHED!!!

As the ancient war hammer descended, the entire sky and earth shuddered as if this single blow was meant to shatter the world. Violent energy cascaded outward. The battle stage, hardened to a degree comparable to a peak Divine Artifact, instantly exploded, tearing open a massive crater that cracked outward in all directions.

The battle computer instantaneously determined the victor and announced: “Feng Wuji, Defeated!”

Silence.

The mountaintop where hundreds of trillions of people were gathered became instantly mute, as if plunged into the dead of night. The previously fervent cheers seemed to be abruptly cut off. Everyone stared at the white-haired figure holding the six-to-seven-meter-long ancient war hammer, their eyeballs nearly popping out, rooted to the spot in stunned silence.

A... one-hit kill?

Feng Wuji, whose technique amplitude reached three to four Yin Yi levels, was crushed effortlessly, like a piece of straw, annihilated before he could even react!

The vigilant referee on the stage was momentarily dumbfounded.

Nearby, the serene Xue Nü’s pupils contracted sharply. Her small mouth parted, her beautiful face covered in disbelief. Her heart felt as if it were trying to leap out of her mouth. Standing this close, her perception was deeper than anyone else’s; she felt that the white-haired figure radiated a terrifying, awe-inspiring power, like a ferocious beast awakened from an eon of slumber!

Too terrifying! The hairs on her spine stood on end—a natural reaction to danger—and her skin trembled slightly, unsure whether it was excitement or terror.

The Seventh Princess, standing nearby, looked somewhat dazed. While she knew Ye Chen had grasped the Laws and was a genius among prodigies, she had never imagined him to be such a terrifying entity!

Gazing at the white-haired figure on the stage, her expression grew complicated. She suddenly felt a strong premonition: once this man truly matured, no power in the entire world could obstruct him!

Ye Chen’s expression remained cold as he recalled the ancient war hammer. Beneath where it had struck, a deep pit formed, containing nothing—not even a speck of blood remained. He had smashed his opponent directly into ash!

One could only imagine the sheer lethality of that single blow!

This 180 billion trillion multiplier was achieved by stacking the Heavenly Dao Scripture’s 10 billion times, the Yan God Hammer’s 100 times, the Nine Palaces’ 90 times, compounded by the Blind Heaven Battle Skill’s 10 times, and the doubling effect of the Meteor Profundity!

The Blind Heaven battle skill surpassed the Nine Palace Secret Art and was an early-stage Divine Emperor technique. Given Ye Chen’s current state of mind, he met the cultivation requirements. However, having spent the last century comprehending Laws, he hadn’t had time to practice it. If he were to fully master it, it could easily yield an amplitude of over a hundred times!

In the soul storage compartment backstage, which resembled a glass test tube, a phantom-like male figure floated suspended—it was none other than Feng Wuji. He suddenly snapped his eyes open, gasping in horrified disbelief, “How is this possible!!! It’s only been one hundred years! How could he possibly become this strong?! It’s impossible!!!”

He could not fathom it. In just a mere century, while he had trained desperately every day, constantly comprehending and contemplating, believing his arduous effort would surely let him surpass that old rival—now, a hundred years later, the gap was even wider!

He felt a desperate urge to die. He slammed a fist against the glass test tube, but since it was only his soul form, the blow carried no force. His brain pulsed as if unable to accept the reality. Biting his lip, he closed his eyes in agony.

Having dealt with Feng Wuji, Ye Chen spared no second glance. He turned and walked off the stage, beckoning the Seventh Princess to follow him, and headed toward the nearby passage.

Countless gazes remained fixed on his departing back, as if everyone had forgotten how to breathe.

“Wait!” Just then, a chilling voice cut through the entire arena, causing a deep chill to settle in everyone’s hearts. The crowd turned to see ripples spreading in the space above the battle stage, from which a man in white robes and brown hair emerged. His hands were clasped behind his back, his appearance utterly ordinary, yet he possessed an irresistible magnetism, especially his eyes: deep, elegant, composed, and shimmering with an intoxicating light.

This man simply stood in the void, yet he seemed like a sovereign controlling the world, looking down upon the masses!

Ye Chen’s steps did not falter; he continued toward the passage, as if he hadn’t heard the man’s voice. He walked at an even, unhurried pace, composed and at ease.

A cold glint flashed in the white-robed man’s eyes. The surrounding sky suddenly seemed to solidify, and the calm space transformed into a surging vortex, aggressively swirling toward Ye Chen, compressing the space around him, clearly intending to block his path.

“Hmph!” Ye Chen did not turn around, merely letting out a cold snort. The surging spatial energy gathering before him violently shattered and broke apart under that sound, as if forcibly torn open by an overwhelmingly terrifying power!

Then, still without looking back, he continued forward with measured steps, the slightly trembling form of the Seventh Princess behind him, walking calmly, neither too fast nor too slow. (To be continued)