The Shanghai coast, the morning sun rising.
Tianyuan, clad in Heavenly General armor, stood before Ye Ling, filled with extreme apprehension.
The cultivation Ye Ling displayed had surpassed the limits of Tianyuan's imagination.
Perhaps only the great being who had suppressed the Tongtian Clan a million years ago could be compared to Ye Ling.
Although Tianyuan had witnessed many grand scenes under the control of that giant snake, facing such a figure still made him feel immense pressure, unable to even breathe freely.
Ye Ling looked at the rising sun on the coastline, absorbing a wisp of purple energy drifting from the east. He then asked Tianyuan, "What are your plans now?"
After searching the soul of the giant snake, Ye Ling had learned a great deal about that extraterrestrial civilization.
That extraterrestrial civilization was called the Tongtian Clan, a dominant civilization entrenched in the Milky Way. They cultivated both martial arts and technology, and had a penchant for using planets as their testing grounds.
Tianyuan was the experimental target chosen by the Tongtian Clan on Earth, with the goal of testing the power of the Tongtian worm eggs they had developed.
If the Tongtian worm eggs could conquer Earth during the Primordial Era, the Tongtian Clan would mass-produce these worm eggs, thereby expanding beyond the Milky Way and invading other races.
More importantly, the Tongtian Clan had very long lifespans, arguably the oldest race in the Milky Way.
It was precisely because of their extremely long lifespans that their experimental cycles often spanned tens of thousands of years.
Coupled with the difference in time flow between the two civilizations, the experiments laid out by the Tongtian Clan on Earth, when converted to Earth time, were exactly one million years per cycle!
It was estimated that in the near future, new members of the Tongtian Clan would come to review the experimental results on Earth and implement new plans.
Tianyuan, having been entangled by the giant snake, was already considered a contact person by the Tongtian Clan. When their race descended upon Earth, they would contact Tianyuan immediately to read the trajectory of Earth's development over the past million years from him.
Although the Tongtian Clan appeared very powerful, when Ye Ling became the Supreme of the East Xuan Continent, the star domains he commanded numbered in the tens of thousands.
While the Milky Way was not within the domain of the East Xuan Continent, considering the scale of the Milky Way...
Even if the so-called Tongtian Clan was the number one overlord of the Milky Way, the Tongtian Clan compared to the Demonic Palace of the East Xuan Continent was like a county magistrate in China comparing himself to an imperial commander.
If the Tongtian Clan dared to meddle with Earth, Ye Ling would naturally not stand idly by.
However, there was a problem: the speed of time flow on Earth was vastly different from that on the East Xuan Continent.
One year here was ten thousand years on the East Xuan Continent. If he stayed on Earth for too long with the Ten Great Divine Weapons, his Demonic Palace on the East Xuan Continent might face problems due to his prolonged absence.
Therefore, Ye Ling could not stay on Earth for long, and it was uncertain when the Tongtian Clan would arrive.
Thus, if the Tongtian Clan did not come in the end, Ye Ling intended to use Tianyuan to lure the Tongtian Clan into exposing themselves, so that he could resolve the Tongtian Clan when he returned to the East Xuan Continent later.
Seeing Ye Ling inquire, Tianyuan knew that Ye Ling was offering him a position. He respectfully bowed to Ye Ling and said, "This subordinate is willing to follow you, my lord, and will obey your commands from now on."
Tianyuan was not foolish. The body he currently occupied was that of a Heavenly General from the Heavenly Court. If he had no backing to protect him, and wandered alone in the mortal realm, he would likely be dealt with by some passing immortal within a few days!
Ye Ling was an unparalleled powerhouse. Only by following Ye Ling could he enjoy prosperity and be feared by none!
"Very good."
Ye Ling nodded, not surprised by Tianyuan's choice. He directly took out a communication jade slip and crushed it.
Not long after, Tianyuan saw a black dragon flying towards them from a distance.
"Emperor Lord."
Ji Xue transformed into human form and also respectfully bowed to Ye Ling.
Seeing Ji Xue arrive, Ye Ling smiled slightly and beckoned with one hand. The lively spiritual body of Xiao Lan appeared in his palm.
"Xiao Lan!"
Ji Xue's eyes lit up with surprise upon seeing her daughter in excellent spirits. She quickly took Xiao Lan into her embrace.
The moment she held Xiao Lan, her eyes turned red.
Everything Ji Xue had done before was to resurrect Xiao Lan. Seeing Xiao Lan's vitality restored, she didn't know how to describe her overwhelming emotions.
"Mother..."
Xiao Lan called out to Ji Xue in a childish voice, then nuzzled her head in Ji Xue's embrace.
Seeing Xiao Lan's adorable appearance, Tianyuan felt his heart melt.
She was too cute.
Ye Ling smiled at Ji Xue and said, "Xiao Lan's spiritual body is stable. You can keep her with you; there's no need to worry about her dissipating."
"However, I haven't found suitable materials for her body yet, so she can only exist in her spiritual form for now."
Ji Xue quickly replied, "That's enough! Your Grace, you have given my daughter and me so much. I truly dare not ask for anything more!"
Ye Ling said, "You are my contracted spirit beast. You should have what is due to you. This is not your asking for more, but my obligation. You should distinguish this."
Hearing Ye Ling's words, Ji Xue was slightly stunned, and then her tears could no longer be held back, flowing directly from the corners of her eyes.
"I... I understand..." Ji Xue whispered, her admiration for Ye Ling reaching its peak.
Ye Ling did not expect that a single sentence had completely won over Ji Xue. He asked her, "How is the task I assigned you progressing?"
Upon hearing Ye Ling's question, Ji Xue quickly composed herself, wiped away her tears, and nodded, "I have not failed your expectations, my Emperor Lord. I have found the entrance to the ancient ruins. Now, we only need to wait for the solar eclipse to enter."
"Mm," Ye Ling nodded. "You've done very well. You will guard there now. When the entrance is fully open, I will come to find you."
Ji Xue responded, "Yes!"
After instructing Ji Xue, Ye Ling turned to Tianyuan and said, "For the next period, you will follow Ji Xue. Whatever she instructs, you will do as she says, understand?"
Tianyuan nodded repeatedly, "Understood, understood! I will definitely obey Lady Ji Xue!"
From Ye Ling's attitude towards Ji Xue, Tianyuan understood that Ji Xue's position in Ye Ling's heart was far higher than his own.
If he offended Ji Xue, he would not have a good end.
Seeing Tianyuan clad in Heavenly General armor, a hint of confusion flashed in Ji Xue's beautiful eyes. She looked at Ye Ling and asked, "Emperor Lord, who is he?"
Ye Ling smiled and said, "He was once the puppet patriarch of the Tongtian Clan. The ancient ruins we are going to next were built by their Tongtian Clan."
"The puppet patriarch of the Tongtian Clan?"
Upon hearing Ye Ling's introduction, Ji Xue's gaze towards Tianyuan instantly changed, filled with curiosity.
Those ancient ruins were at least from the Primordial Era, from a million years ago!
For Tianyuan to have lived from a million years ago to today... his strength was likely unimaginably great!
And Ye Ling, who had subdued Tianyuan...
Thinking of this, Ji Xue's admiration for Ye Ling grew even more, almost to the point of being a fanatical follower.
Sensing Ji Xue's curious gaze, Tianyuan scratched his head and chuckled, "Lady Ji Xue, please don't look at me like that. I'm just a controlled good-for-nothing, not that powerful... I will have to rely on you, Lady Ji Xue, in the future."
Seeing Tianyuan's demeanor, Ye Ling also shook his head and smiled. Just as he was about to say something, his phone suddenly rang with a special ringtone.
Ye Ling was immediately stunned and quickly took out his phone.
That ringtone... was one he had specifically set, a unique ringtone for when Ye Feng's signal was detected!