Early in the fight, Venerable Divine Vine sensed the enormous disparity between Chen Yuan's cultivation and strength. Though his cultivation was merely at the Earth Immortal level, his combat prowess rivaled that of a peak Heaven Immortal.

This was all thanks to his terrifying power of rules, which was even comparable to his own power of laws!

And now, with Chen Yuan's Five Elements intergeneration, his strength must have reached an extremely terrifying level. If they were to fight again, the outcome would likely be even more disastrous than before.

Meanwhile, at the bottom of Azurewave Lake, a body that had been still for a long time slowly opened its eyes, exhaled a long breath, and a smile crept onto the corner of its lips.

Finally,

He had finally broken through!

After six years of seclusion, he first comprehended the Water Rule, then the Wood Rule. After that, he pushed the power of the Five Elements to its peak, truly reaching the peak of the Earth Immortal realm.

At the same time, the Five Elements within his physical body's inner world were complete and constantly revolving, which would bring Chen Yuan tremendous power.

Before reaching the peak of the Earth Immortal realm, Chen Yuan was able to barely possess the strength of a peak Heaven Immortal by relying on the national destiny of the Great Yan, and he even managed to kill the extraterrestrial demon god, Luo Tian Demon God.

Now, his strength had improved significantly again. Based on previous estimates, he already possessed the power of an unparalleled Martial God, coupled with the national destiny of the Great Yan Dynasty.

He was now stronger than the Chu Emperor Taizu of the past.

However, this was not enough.

According to Chu Emperor Taizu, there were dozens of Immortals in the Immortal Domain, with three Immortal Sovereigns guarding it. Their strength was unfathomable. The Taiyin Immortal was not worth worrying about, but the Sun Immortal Sovereign and the last Immortal Sovereign were not so easy to deal with.

Especially the last Immortal Sovereign, who was the one who caused the Chu Emperor Taizu to fall. Although he was severely injured, it was clear that he was still not his opponent; otherwise, he would have swept through everything.

Therefore, Chen Yuan did not take it lightly.

Originally, he had planned to take the last step under the Sixth Realm, the Heaven Immortal Realm, taking advantage of the gathering of the Five Elements Rules. However, he was trapped in a huge predicament.

Because the road ahead was impassable...

The Chu Emperor Taizu back then only gathered the Five Elements. He did not find a way to take the last step. Chen Yuan believed that the only one in the world who could take this step.

Was probably the legendary Martial Emperor.

Chen Yuan's cultivation was different from ordinary people. Ordinary people only followed one path, either the physical body or the primordial spirit. Both paths could be taken, but combining the two paths was somewhat impossible...

Above the Rules was the Law, which was something Chen Yuan had gradually discovered. It was more powerful than the Rules, an existence beyond the Five Elements, with a huge gap.

But how to transform Rules into Laws troubled Chen Yuan, which was why he had been in seclusion for several years. Otherwise, he would have been able to leave a year ago.

Now that he had no clue about the Heaven Immortal realm for the time being, Chen Yuan could only find ways to increase his combat power.

Ascend the throne and become the Human Emperor!

Gather Human Emperor's Destiny!

Only in this way could Chen Yuan increase his chances of winning.

He raised his head and looked at the void, his gaze slightly condensed.

Immortal Domain...

.....

"Your subordinate congratulates Your Majesty on your great improvement in cultivation and longevity," Venerable Divine Vine hurriedly bowed and saluted after Chen Yuan walked out of Azurewave Lake, his attitude extremely humble.

Even his address had changed to Your Majesty.

During the years of Chen Yuan's seclusion, besides protecting the Dharma, he also separated a clone to leave this place and inquire about Chen Yuan's affairs, and then he learned about his great achievements.

He pacified the Western Regions, suppressed the Northern Barbarians, destroyed the Eastern Japanese, and镇压 the Southern Border. He was revered by the Central Plains human race as the Holy Martial Great Emperor, a figure who only appeared once in a thousand years, and the strongest person in the current realm.

"The Jianmu is of great importance. You should continue to cultivate here and await orders," Chen Yuan said softly.

Venerable Divine Vine's combat power was at the Demon Emperor level, comparable to the Taiyin Immortal Sovereign. Naturally, Chen Yuan could not leave him unused forever, but he was not needed for the time being.

The Jianmu divine tree also needed to be guarded by him.

Although Chen Yuan had not figured out the road ahead, the year of contemplation was not in vain. He vaguely had some ideas. Since there was no reference for the road ahead.

Then he would cultivate according to his own ideas.

The path of cultivation progressed step by step. Chen Yuan had reached this level and had been a Martial God for many years, so he naturally understood the mysteries. No matter which path he took, it seemed...

They were all paths to create the world.

Inner world, outer world,

Ultimately, it was likely to open up a real world.

However, he had not completely confirmed this idea, and it was impossible to try it directly. After all, the danger was beyond the imagination of ordinary people. Once he failed.

The consequences would be unimaginable.

Chen Yuan might have his path cut off.

In addition, with the Immortal Domain descending in front of him, it was even more impossible for him to cut off his own arm.

In Chen Yuan's view, the truly safe method was to rely on the guidance of the Destiny Altar. If he could obtain the next destiny, perhaps... all the problems could be solved.

"Your subordinate obeys the decree."

Venerable Divine Vine breathed a sigh of relief. He was really afraid that Chen Yuan would order him to do all kinds of things, and he could not refuse. It was better to continue cultivating peacefully here.

"Um..."

After Chen Yuan instructed him on some matters, he tore open the void and left Azurewave Lake. He had been away from the Central Plains for nearly seven years, and it was time to go back and take a look.

.....

Imperial City, inside the harem.

Empress Su Ziyue, Imperial Concubine Pingyang Princess, and Shen Yanshu, Bei Mingxue, Yu Qingyan, Zhang Erjie, and others gathered together, talking and laughing about many things.

After Chen Yuan left, such gatherings rarely happened. Yu Qingyan and Shen Yanshu were focused on cultivation, and Princess Pingyang and others did not slack off in their cultivation.

After all, people had a limited lifespan. Once the deadline arrived, no one could reverse it. They all wanted to stay by Chen Yuan's side for longer, so they tried their best to improve their cultivation.

In order to extend their lifespan.

Yang Guifei was a bit of an exception. She had no talent for cultivation. Even with resources piled up, she could not overcome the inner demons of the Dan Realm, so she simply gave up.

She lived each day to the fullest.

It was a pity that Chen Yuan had been gone for several years, making her miss him very much.

"Your Majesty, what is the matter for summoning us today?" Yang Guifei lowered her head and bowed. She did not dare to show any airs of a concubine in front of Su Ziyue.

Not only because of her status as the Empress and her powerful cultivation, but also because she was a former concubine of the previous dynasty, and she could barely stay in the palace because of Chen Yuan's favor.

If she really offended Su Ziyue, not to mention her, even her daughter Pingyang would not be able to confront her.

"Your Majesty has not returned for a long time. Today, this palace is hosting a family banquet. Sister, you don't need to be restrained," Su Ziyue sat on the main seat, dignified and graceful, and said softly.

In terms of age, Su Ziyue was indeed older than Yang Guifei, but she was still very young in terms of cultivation.

"Thank you, Your Majesty..."

Yang Guifei breathed a sigh of relief and found a seat next to Pingyang and knelt down.

"Your Majesty, what exactly did His Majesty go to do?" Shen Yanshu heard Su Ziyue say that it was a family banquet, so she mustered up her courage and asked, with a look of hope in her eyes.

The moment she spoke, all the concubines present also looked up, their eyes burning, wanting to know the answer.

In the years since Chen Yuan disappeared, although there were rumors in the world that the Great Emperor had gained some enlightenment and was in seclusion, there were still other rumors.

Although they were Chen Yuan's bedmates, they certainly did not know as much as Su Ziyue, and they had all secretly asked her, but the answer they received was that he was in seclusion.

And his return was undecided.

But it was always like this, which inevitably made people worry, guessing if something had happened to Chen Yuan.

"Hasn't this palace said that His Majesty is in seclusion and should not be disturbed by anyone?" Su Ziyue frowned slightly and glanced at everyone in the hall.

"But... His Majesty seems to have never been in seclusion for so long," Madam Xu hesitated for a moment and said.

"Then what do you think His Majesty went to do?"

"This concubine is just worried..." Seeing that Su Ziyue seemed to be a little unhappy, Madam Xu quickly apologized.

"Do you think this palace would deceive you? If something really happened to His Majesty, would this palace order people to build the Human Emperor's Altar? His Majesty is the strongest person in the world, who can hurt His Majesty?"

Su Ziyue said in a deep voice.

As the Empress, she had her dignity. As soon as she spoke, the atmosphere in the palace gradually decreased.

"Alright, you..." Su Ziyue's tone softened a little, and she was about to say something to comfort these women when she saw that all of them were looking at her with disbelief and surprise in their eyes.

As if she had suddenly changed.

Su Ziyue's eyes moved, and she understood the situation. She said lightly:

"His Majesty came out of seclusion without informing us in advance, making this palace the villain."

As soon as she finished speaking, a pair of big hands covered her slender waist, and Chen Yuan slowly sat down and chuckled:

"The Empress is still so clever."

He was not joking or praising her. It was what he really wanted to say from the bottom of his heart. Su Ziyue was definitely the most perfect woman he had ever seen, intelligent, talented, and versatile.

She could also hold her own, and she was the most suitable candidate for Empress by his side.

If she were a man, she would definitely not be inferior to Jiang He.

"You can guess everything by looking at their expressions," Su Ziyue rolled her eyes at Chen Yuan.

"Hehehe..."

"Your Majesty, why did you go into seclusion for so long this time?" Su Ziyue asked softly.

"There were some situations that required it. I made you worry," Chen Yuan didn't want to say more. They wouldn't understand even if he told them.

"Well, has Your Majesty missed us after being away for so long?"

Su Ziyue's beautiful eyes moved.

"Of course."

Chen Yuan nodded. It wasn't like he didn't like beautiful women. Otherwise, there wouldn't be so many amazing women in the harem. It was just that when he was weak in cultivation, he didn't want to shift his attention.

"Then... what is Your Majesty still waiting for? You don't know that the ladies in this palace have been thinking about you so much that they can't sleep at night," Su Ziyue gave Chen Yuan a knowing look.

Then, with a wave of her hand, she directly grabbed Yu Qingyan and Princess Pingyang, who wanted to escape, and directly closed the door of the hall, and pink curtains fluttered in the void.

"Sister, you can't do this."

"Your Majesty, this... how can this be?"

"Oh, you..."

......

.....

During the few days that Chen Yuan returned to the palace and indulged himself, the news of his return spread gradually through intentional arrangements, causing a stir in the capital.

In fact, when Chen Yuan had not appeared for a long time, there was an undercurrent surging in the world, but because the power of the dynasty was too strong, no one dared to have any real thoughts.

Now that Chen Yuan had appeared, he quickly reversed everyone's thoughts.

This was also Chen Yuan's purpose, to appease the people.

He was the emperor, so it was impossible for him not to show himself all the time.

After he appeared, he quickly issued an imperial decree, summoning the vassal kings and important ministers from all over the country to come to the capital for an audience and a grand banquet for the ministers. Some people, however, anticipated something.

They responded one after another, preparing to go to the capital.

But before the grand banquet, there was actually a small banquet held in the palace. The main purpose was for Chen Yuan to entertain Jiang He, Yang Huatian, Li Suqing, and some of the ministers he valued more.

For example, his cheap disciple, who was now the first on the Qianlong List, Shi Yi.

In addition, there were Su Ziyue, Pingyang, and others, and Sima Ke, the former Jianye Emperor of Jin, who was named Duke Anle. As for the other women, they didn't like this kind of occasion.

Chen Yuan didn't force them.

"Good, good..." Chen Yuan looked at the white-clothed sword immortal below and nodded slightly. Jiang He had indeed lived up to his expectations. He was the first to break through the Sixth Realm after the founding of the Great Yan.

He even walked ahead of the sect masters of the Immortal Sects and was revered as the Sword Saint.

"Your Majesty's strength is even stronger." With outsiders present, Jiang He still addressed Chen Yuan as Your Majesty.

"Hehehe..."

The hall was filled with laughter and endless conversations about the past and the present. Chen Yuan did not put on the airs of an emperor, but smiled and occasionally talked with all the ministers in the hall.

Making people feel like they were in a spring breeze.

There was only one person who seemed out of place, that was Sima Ke, who was kneeling in the corner. He looked at the graceful figures dancing in the hall, his eyes a little dazed.

After the founding of the Great Yan, he, the fallen king, was actually useless. He seemed to have lost his attention in an instant, and no one would pay attention to a useless person.

From then on, he rarely left the Duke Anle's mansion, and he was always indulging in pleasure. His body was getting worse day by day. Now, he was much haggard than before.

After all, his own cultivation was not high, and without restraint, his essence naturally flowed away, and his face was old. Now, looking at those women, the sad thing was that he could no longer lift his head.

His expression seemed a little depressed.

Chen Yuan noticed his expression and suddenly smiled:

"Duke Anle, does this happiness make you think of Jin?"