"That young man is the unborn child of the ancient Chaos God, Chu Yuan," Tian Zhao said, a hint of shame in her eyes.
After all, it was the gods' covetousness for Chu Yuan's power that led them to conspire against his wife, ultimately causing the great catastrophe that befell heaven and earth.
It could be said that the disaster brought about by the Tian Mie Xie Formation was entirely the gods' own doing.
The gods sought the divine fetus, and in the end, the Three Realms paid a heavy price.
Billions of lives perished in the Tian Mie Xie Formation. The sages who had participated in the plot against Chu Yuan's wife also died, with only a few managing to escape and survive.
Finally, to cover up the truth, the gods fabricated a lie, portraying Chu Yuan as an outright evil god.
The sages who knew the truth remained silent, while those who didn't demonized Chu Yuan into an evil god, constantly denouncing him.
In this light, the sages who participated in the conspiracy back then were utterly despicable.
Although Tian Zhao had not participated in that battle, she had learned the secret from her father, Izanagi.
Izanagi was one of the gods who had plotted against Chu Yuan's wife. However, Izanagi did not believe he had done anything wrong. For hundreds of thousands of years, he had been watching Chu Yuan's descendants, waiting for the opportune moment to construct the Tian Mie Xie Formation, capture Chu Yuan's descendants, and seize the ancient Chaos God's bloodline.
However, before Izanagi could implement this plan, he was killed by Ye Ling.
After listening to Tian Zhao recount the secrets of the Primordial Era, Ye Ling glanced at the young man and then asked Tian Zhao, "You said the gods conspired against Chu Yuan's wife for the ancient Chaos Blood. The divine fetus should have been devoured by the gods long ago. How did that child survive?"
Tian Zhao replied, "After the gods succeeded in their plan, they disagreed on how to distribute the Chaos Blood. A world-shattering battle erupted among them, and the divine fetus was eventually split in two."
"It was also because of that battle that Chu Yuan discovered what had happened. He snatched half of the divine fetus back from the gods and sealed it within his own small world. The Tian Mie Xie Formation is the key to opening his small world."
"The other half of the divine fetus was divided into nine portions by the nine strongest sages, with each taking one-ninth. As for who those nine sages were, I'm not sure, but Izanagi was not among them."
As Tian Zhao finished speaking, Ye Ling looked at the young man enveloped in demonic energy and exclaimed, "What a life story that child has…"
According to Tian Zhao's description, the ancient Chaos God should be the most powerful deity on Earth. With the ancient Chaos God's bloodline, that young man meant that, apart from outsiders like Ye Ling's Shadow Hall, he was the strongest inheritor in the Three Realms!
If he were to grow up, his future would be limitless.
Tian Zhao continued, "Now that the Tian Mie Xie Formation has appeared, the great sages should all be aware of the divine fetus's reappearance. They will definitely be watching the divine fetus and making a move to seize it."
"My descent this time is twofold: first, to ensure the complete destruction of the Tian Mie Xie Formation, and second, to take the divine fetus and hide it, preventing it from being targeted by the gods."
Ye Ling asked with a smile, "Since that young man possesses the ancient Chaos Blood, absorbing it would undoubtedly increase your strength. Faced with such temptation, can you truly just hide that young man away?"
Tian Zhao was not surprised by Ye Ling's doubt. She replied, "Your Majesty might not believe my words, but I am well aware of the power of the ancient Chaos Blood. The birth of the divine fetus will only bring endless calamities to the Three Realms. The Three Realms have been stable for a long time, and I do not wish to break this balance because of the divine fetus's reappearance."
"Furthermore, it is not necessary to absorb the ancient Chaos Blood to increase one's strength. The divine fetus itself can attract the power of the Great Dao. If the divine fetus is placed in the Takamagahara, the land there will also be blessed by the Heavenly Dao, and the strength of the deities in its territory will also increase."
"Compared to absorbing the Chaos Blood and becoming a target of the gods, I believe that making the Takamagahara stronger aligns better with my interests."
"I see…" Ye Ling nodded. "However, even with what you say, I cannot give you that young man."
"Since all the gods covet the young man's legacy, placing him with me is undoubtedly the safest option."
Now that Tian Zhao had been defeated by Ye Ling, she knew she had no leverage over him. She could only say, "If Your Majesty is willing to protect the divine fetus, I have nothing more to say. However, I would also like to offer Your Majesty a piece of advice."
"Your Majesty does not have the backing of a divine court, and there are many sages who are targeting the divine fetus, some of whom are far more powerful than I am. Even with Your Majesty's immense strength, you cannot withstand the encirclement and killing of numerous sages."
"In the future, I hope you will be extremely careful."
Ye Ling smiled and said, "Thank you for your advice."
With that, Ye Ling withdrew the demonic energy that was restraining Tian Zhao and said, "There is nothing more for you here. Perhaps you should take your leave?"
Seeing that Ye Ling did not take her advice to heart, Tian Zhao sighed slightly. She did not dwell on the matter, merely shook her somewhat stiff arm, cast a reluctant glance at the young man enveloped in demonic energy, and finally bowed to Ye Ling, "Your Majesty, take care."
With that, Tian Zhao reopened the gate to the Immortal Realm and departed from the mortal world.
After Tian Zhao left, Ye Ling brought the young man down to the ground, removed the demonic energy surrounding him, and said, "Kid, can we talk?"
The young man was still somewhat fearful of Ye Ling, but he knew that Ye Ling was the one who had driven Tian Zhao away, so he nodded, "Mm…"
Ye Ling asked, "What is your name?"
The young man shook his head, "I don't have a name."
Hearing the young man's answer, Ye Ling was taken aback for a moment, then said, "That's right. I estimate you've been within the Tian Mie Xie Formation since your birth, so it's normal not to have a name. However, now that you're out and walking in the world, it's inconvenient not to have a name. How about I give you one?"
The young man nodded, "Mm."
Ye Ling glanced at Chu and pondered for a moment, "How about Yuan?"
"Yuan?" the young man asked, confused.
Ye Ling patted Chu's head beside him and said to the young man, "Yes, your father is called Chu Yuan, and this fellow is called Chu. You two seem to have some connection. Yuan and Yuan have similar pronunciations, and the character 'Yuan' also represents unfathomable depth. I think this name is very suitable for you."
The young man had no concept of these things. After reciting the name Ye Ling gave him twice, he did not object and agreed, "I understand. From now on, I will be called Yuan."
After naming Yuan, Ye Ling got straight to the point, "I didn't block your hearing just now, so you heard what Tian Zhao said, right? You are a coveted prize for the gods. Without protection, you won't live long."
Yuan nodded, "I heard…"
Ye Ling asked again, "What are your thoughts on this?"
With the ancient Chaos Blood within him, Yuan was coveted by the gods. Walking alone in the world, he would inevitably be devoured by the celestial beings and gods.
In this regard, Yuan was quite similar to Ye Ling.
Ye Ling possessed the inheritance of the Creation God, and had long since become a coveted prize for extraterrestrial forces. It was likely that a large number of powerful beings outside the universe were now targeting Ye Ling, looking for an opportunity to seize the Creation God's inheritance.
Therefore, Ye Ling could empathize with Yuan's current predicament.
Logically, Ye Ling had no obligation to help Yuan, but Yuan harbored secrets related to Chu, and perhaps through Yuan, Chu's origins could be revealed.
For this reason alone, Ye Ling would not let Yuan fend for himself.
More importantly… Yuan, like Chu, was a blank slate to the outside world. If Ye Ling cultivated him well, he could train Yuan into an outstanding warrior.
One day, Ye Ling would leave Earth and venture into a vaster world. At that time…
Yuan could replace Ye Ling and become the guardian of Earth.
Although Yuan knew nothing of the outside world, he was not foolish. He knew that in the Three Realms, only Ye Ling could protect him. He immediately knelt before Ye Ling and respectfully said, "Please accept me as your disciple, Your Majesty!"