5: Awaken the Ancestor

Morning light poured in, the air fresh and crisp.

As he stepped one foot over the threshold... the surrounding scenery instantly blurred and distorted!

The corridor, the courtyard, the morning light—like oil paint wiped away by an invisible hand—vanished in a 'whoosh'.

The next second, after a dizzying, weightless sensation, he stood steadily within that familiar, boundless, pure white space.

Directly ahead, the sandalwood dragon-carved throne, identical to the one from Qianyuan Hall, was especially conspicuous.

On the throne sat his father, Chu Tianxing.

But unlike his usual dignified and composed imperial image, today's Chu Tianxing was... a bit too 'energetic'.

He still wore his solemn black robes, his hair meticulously combed, even sporting a small ceremonial crown.

His eyes were wide open, burning with an almost tangible flame of extreme anticipation, nervousness, and longing, fixed directly on the suddenly appearing Chu Ye.

He looked less like an emperor awaiting his son's greeting and more like a gambler waiting for the final, life-or-death card to be revealed, or like a ravenous glutton who hadn't eaten in eight hundred years seeing a full imperial banquet wheeled in.

Chu Ye could even see the faintly pulsing veins at his father's temples and his slightly flushed face from holding his breath in anticipation.

"Fa..."

"Well?!" Before Chu Ye could finish the word, Chu Tianxing cut him off with an impatient, nearly growling inquiry.

His Majesty the Emperor 'sprang' up from his chair, rushing forward with a gust of wind to stand before Chu Ye, his hands clamping down on Chu Ye's shoulders like iron pincers, the force so great it made even Chu Ye, at Qi Refinement Foundation Perfection, grimace.

"Ye'er! The reward?! Did you get it?"

"What did the System say? Are there Medicinal Pills? Powerful ones? And what else? Divine weapons? Any Sharp Weapons?!"

A barrage of questions, spittle nearly hitting Chu Ye's face, the words tumbling out with barely a pause, each one burning with frantic urgency.

Shaken and dizzy, Chu Ye quickly circulated his spiritual power to steady himself and said helplessly, "Father, please let go first... I got it. I got everything."

"Really?!"

Chu Tianxing's eyes blazed with an alarming intensity. He loosened his grip slightly, but his gaze remained locked on Chu Ye as if trying to scan him inside out. "Quick! Let me see! Show me your cultivation first!"

Chu Ye focused his mind and stopped deliberately suppressing his aura.

The surging spiritual energy fluctuation of the Qi Refinement Perfection stage radiated out, making even the Saint-Realm Chu Tianxing nod inwardly. What a solid Foundation! Definitely not a forced advancement!

Chu Ye then flipped his palm, and the icy jade box, chilling to the touch yet containing an inner Chaos, appeared in his hand.

Even with the lid unopened, a heart-palpitating, vast medicinal power and profound Dao resonance had already begun to permeate the air, causing the pure white space to tremble slightly and the light to distort.

Chu Tianxing's breathing instantly became heavy, his eyes glued to the jade box, his Adam's apple bobbing once.

With his knowledge and the acute spiritual sense of a Saint Realm expert, he could clearly feel the terrifying energy contained within the box, far surpassing the breakthrough pill he had taken before!

This Medicinal Pill... its grade was frighteningly high!

Chu Ye opened the lid.

Amidst swirling Chaos currents, the 'qiankun breakthrough pill' hovered quietly, the size of a longan, perfectly round and natural, its surface covered with countless subtle, naturally formed Dao patterns flickering, as if containing a wisp of the Origin energy from the dawn of heaven and earth.

"This pill is named the 'qiankun breakthrough pill',"

Chu Ye explained in a timely manner, "According to the System, it can assist Cultivators below the Emperor Realm (including the Emperor Realm stage) to ignore Bottlenecks and directly break through one major Realm."

"Sss—!"

Chu Tianxing drew a sharp breath, his pupils contracting sharply.

Ignore Bottlenecks and ascend an entire major Realm?!

What did that mean?

It meant if given to a Quasi-Emperor, they could directly leap to the Early Stage of the Emperor Realm!

The value of this pill was simply immeasurable! Enough to stir bloody storms across the entire continent!

The efficacy of the qiankun breakthrough pill sent a bolt of lightning through Chu Tianxing's mind, striking a long-buried memory amidst his ecstasy.

Deep within the imperial mausoleum, that Quasi-Emperor Old Ancestor, Chu Shanhe, sleeping via a Family secret technique, serving as Great Chu's final trump card!

Endowed with heaven-defying talent, the Old Ancestor had reached the Peak of the Quasi-Emperor Realm a thousand years ago. However, due to incomplete natural Laws and lacking the right Opportunity, he had never been able to take that final step to ascend to the Great Emperor position.

Ultimately, with his Lifespan nearing its end, he had no choice but to seal himself within the core of the imperial mausoleum's Dragon Qi veins using a secret technique, falling into a deep slumber, not to be awakened unless the Imperial Dynasty faced collapse.

If this 'qiankun breakthrough pill' could help the Old Ancestor achieve a Breakthrough... a living Great Emperor!

What a sight that would be!

Great Chu would truly possess top-tier power capable of looking down upon the Eastern Wastelands, even the entire Profound Yellow Continent!

What Dao Xuan Sect, what surrounding Imperial Dynasties—before a Great Emperor, they would all be mere ants!

Once this thought took root, it spread like wildfire, impossible to suppress.

Chu Tianxing's eyes turned incredibly sharp. He looked at Chu Ye and said solemnly, "Ye'er, come with me to a place. This pill... perhaps it can awaken a true guardian deity for our Great Chu!"

Though Chu Ye didn't fully understand, seeing his father's unprecedented gravity, even carrying a trace of pilgrimage-like excitement and nervousness, he nodded immediately.

Without alerting anyone, Chu Tianxing took Chu Ye and stealthily infiltrated the deepest Forbidden Ground of the imperial palace—a seemingly ordinary, ancient cemetery.

The place was layered with Formations, permeated with Dragon Qi, solemn and mysterious.

The surrounding light and shadows were dazzling, as if traversing a tunnel of time and space. After walking for an unknown duration, the path ahead suddenly opened up.

It was a massive underground space, like a naturally formed cavern dome.

A simple, unadorned stone platform lay there, upon which rested a person.

The person wore ancient, faded imperial robes, his face lifelike yet covered with the dust of ages.

His eyes were tightly shut, his chest showed no sign of movement, as if he were merely an exquisitely lifelike statue.

Yet, even in this deepest state of suspended animation, a terrifying pressure capable of crushing the heavens and commanding the submission of all living beings still permeated the entire space like an invisible tide.

This was the hidden strength of Great Chu, the Peak Quasi-Emperor Old Ancestor, Chu Shanhe!

"Your unfilial descendant of later generations, Chu Tianxing, with my son Chu Ye, now presents a Heaven-Defying Opportunity that may assist the Old Ancestor in shattering the shackles of eternity and ascending to the supreme Great Emperor Realm! I have come specially to report this, seeking the Old Ancestor's discernment!"

Chu Tianxing's voice, infused with spiritual power, echoed clearly through the underground palace towards the stone platform.

At first, there was no response.

After a few breaths.

On the stone platform, the figure who seemed eternally unchanged... his eyelids... twitched slightly.

In that instant!

"BOOM—!!!"

The entire underground palace space shook violently!

Those eyes, closed for a thousand years, slowly opened.

A low, hoarse voice, like the grating of bronze rusted for eons, slowly sounded. Each word resonated with the Dragon Qi in the underground palace, containing supreme Dao principles:

"Tianxing... Emperor of later generations... you awaken this Ancestor... is it... that a powerful enemy has arrived... the Imperial Dynasty... is about to fall?"

Sensing the Old Ancestor's immense Battle Intent and resolve to fight to the death, Chu Tianxing felt both moved and anxious. He said urgently, "Old Ancestor, please calm your anger! It is not an invasion by a powerful enemy! The Imperial Dynasty is safe and prosperous, even more so than before!"

"It is... it is because we have obtained a Heaven-Defying divine medicine that may help the Old Ancestor break through your shackles and prove your Dao as a Great Emperor!"

"Hmm?"

The Battle Intent in Chu Shanhe's eyes paused slightly, transforming into a sliver of doubt and scrutiny.

Divine medicine?

Help him prove his Dao as a Great Emperor? Trapped at this stage for a thousand years, having tried all the rare treasures under heaven, he had long since abandoned hope.

Had this later-generation emperor gone mad? Or been deceived by some illusion?

"What medicine?" Chu Shanhe's voice remained low, but the death-seeking intent diminished slightly, replaced by a hint of inquiry.

Not daring to be negligent, Chu Tianxing respectfully cupped the icy jade box with both hands, using spiritual power to lift it and slowly present it before the stone platform.

The lid opened by itself, revealing the qiankun breakthrough pill wreathed in Chaos currents.

For the first time, an alarming intensity erupted in Chu Shanhe's previously tranquil eyes, fixed unwaveringly on that pill!

With his Peak Quasi-Emperor perception and insight, he instantly grasped the extraordinary nature of this pill!

That Chaos aura, those natural Dao patterns, that contained, vast power seemingly capable of reshaping the universe and reversing Laws... this was no ordinary worldly pill!

It even surpassed many legendary Immortal Pills within his knowledge!