138: A divine eye? A blind man? (Twenty-three)

At the exit of the Blood Moon Secret Realm, the light twisted.

Every prince who returned alive wore a look of terror on their face, as if they had just survived a catastrophe.

Their gazes, whether intentional or not, all drifted toward those two people.

You Chen supported Jun Yun, walking step by step with steadiness.

The pressure belonging to the Earth Spirit Realm on his body was no longer intentionally restrained.

His Aura was sharp, his edge fully exposed.

He surveyed his surroundings.

Those imperial brothers who had once bullied and mocked him now subconsciously avoided his gaze.

Thirteenth Prince Ghost Tiger, in particular, turned pale and quietly hid in the crowd.

In You Chen's heart, there was no pleasure of revenge.

There was only a strange sense of calm.

He knew that all of this was just the beginning.

Just then.

A powerful majesty descended from the sky.

Everyone felt their hearts sink and involuntarily knelt down.

"Greetings, Divine Lord!"

The sound, like crashing mountains and tsunami waves, echoed throughout the Forbidden Ground.

You Chen also knelt on one knee, shielding Jun Yun behind him.

He quietly looked up.

He saw a middle-aged man wearing a black Dragon robe standing before the teleportation gate, though he did not know when he had arrived.

He did not release any spiritual power, but simply by standing there, he was the center of this world.

He was the Great You Divine Lord.

You Chen's father in name.

The Divine Lord's gaze slowly swept across the crowd.

Finally, it landed on You Chen.

That gaze was extremely profound, revealing neither joy nor anger.

"You Chen."

The Divine Lord spoke, his voice calm yet carrying majesty.

"You are very good."

You Chen's heart skipped a beat.

This was the first time in his life he had been looked at directly by the Divine Lord, and the first time he had heard his praise.

"For this trip to the Blood Moon Secret Realm, you achieved a Breakthrough during danger and upheld the Divine Might of our royal family; you shall be rewarded."

"I hereby issue a decree: confer upon the Nineteenth Prince You Chen the title of 'Prince Chen,' grant him a prince's residence and 500,000 yuan crystals, effective immediately."

As the words fell, the entire crowd was in an uproar.

Prince Chen.

This was no empty title.

In the Great You Divine Dynasty, only princes who had performed immortal deeds were qualified to be conferred the title of Prince.

Yet You Chen, merely by achieving a Breakthrough to the Earth Spirit Realm in the Secret Realm, had received such a reward.

This favor was simply too excessive.

You Chen himself was stunned.

He felt no joy; instead, he felt an inexplicable chill.

He remembered the words of Big Brother Jun.

"Pies do not fall from the sky."

The Divine Lord's soothing gaze fell upon Jun Yun behind him.

"hostage of the Great Jun, you have been frightened. Someone, escort Your Highness Jun back to Jingxin Hall to recuperate properly; all expenses shall be in accordance with the regulations for a Prince."

"Thank you, Divine Lord."

Jun Yun's voice remained as calm and unruffled as ever.

After doing all this, the Divine Lord's figure vanished silently.

As if he had never appeared.

...

Meanwhile.

In the deepest part of the Imperial Palace, inside an airtight stone hall.

The Divine Lord sat upright on the throne, expressionless.

Below, several gray-robed elders of the Imperial Clan Court knelt on the ground, their bodies trembling slightly.

"Ming'er's Luck has been stolen..."

The Divine Lord's voice was very cold.

"There is no longer a suitable vessel..."

"Divine Lord, please calm your anger!"

The leading elder said with a trembling voice, "You Chen's sudden rise was truly an accident. But... but the plan can still continue."

"Continue?"

The Divine Lord sneered, "There is not much time left. I can feel that thing is about to be impossible to suppress."

He stood up and paced back and forth in the hall.

"Pass down the order."

"Accelerate."

"Throw all those prepared 'Materials' into the blood pool. The ritual must complete its final preparations before the full moon night of next month."

"Yes!"

The few elders acknowledged the order and retreated, bowing.

In the stone hall, only the Divine Lord remained.

He looked toward the direction of the Blood Moon Secret Realm, his eyes filled with a look of certainty.

"You Chen, Jun Yun..."

"Two catalysts possessing pure Bloodlines; perhaps the effect will be even better."

...

You Chen moved into his new prince's residence.

He did not immerse himself in the joy of being conferred a title; instead, he became even more vigilant.

He discovered that the atmosphere of the entire Imperial Palace had become somewhat eerie.

The number of patrolling Imperial Guards was three times higher than usual.

Many secluded palaces had been set as forbidden zones, and no one was allowed to approach.

What made him feel even more uneasy was this.

He discovered that some collateral descendants of the royal family, who usually had as little presence as him, had suddenly "disappeared."

Some were said to have been sent to their fiefs.

Others were said to have gone into secluded cultivation.

But You Chen keenly felt that things were not that simple.

He quietly snuck into the residence of one of the missing princes.

The place was already deserted, and everything was arranged neatly; it did not look like they had left in a hurry at all.

You Chen felt a chill run through his entire body.

Filled with doubt and unease, he arrived at Jingxin Hall once again.

Jun Yun was "meditating."

His complexion was much better than when he was in the Secret Realm.

The wound on his arm had already healed, leaving only a faint scar.

"Big Brother Jun."

You Chen told him everything he had discovered.

After listening, Jun Yun remained silent for a long time.

"It seems I was right."

His voice was very grave.

"You Chen, have you ever heard of the 'You Que Divine Body'?"

"You Que Divine Body?"

You Chen shook his head.

"That was the strongest Physique of the Great You royal family during the ancient era. It is rumored that those who possess this Divine Body can battle true Phoenixes, burn the heavens, boil the seas, and are capable of anything."

Jun Yun's voice was extremely magical, unfolding a magnificent ancient scroll before You Chen.

"But this Divine Body was lost long ago with the end of the ancient era. The later generations of the Great You royal family have tried countless methods, but none could recreate the glory of their ancestors."

Jun Yun paused, then changed the subject.

"Until someone discovered a forbidden secret technique."

"Bloodline Sacrifice."

You Chen's body shook violently.

The two words he had seen on the stone wall in the Secret Realm surfaced in his mind again.

"Using countless clansmen possessing the Great You royal Bloodline as 'fuel' to ignite the trace of divinity at the source of the Bloodline, forcibly giving birth to the 'You Que Divine Body.'"

"Those missing princes are perhaps the 'fuel.'"

Jun Yun's words struck heavily upon You Chen's heart.

"This... how is this possible! How could the Divine Lord dare to..."

"Why wouldn't he dare?"

Jun Yun asked in return, "For power, for immortality, within the royal family, are there few instances of fathers killing sons and brothers turning against each other?"

"And you, You Chen, are the catalyst he has chosen."

You Chen was speechless.

He felt a chill run through his entire body.

"Then... why did he choose me? I am just a Mortal Body..."

"You are not a Mortal Body."

Jun Yun shook his head, "Do you think a Mortal Body could withstand the Legacy of Venerable Qing Luan?"

"Within your body flows an extremely rare Bloodline named the 'You Yi Divine Body.' Although it is not as domineering as the 'You Que Divine Body,' it is one of the purest royal Bloodlines."

You Chen was completely dumbfounded.

"And I..."

Jun Yun pointed to himself.

"My situation is even more special than yours."

"My mother was a Divine Maiden of the Jun family, possessing the Great Jun Bloodline Physique. And my father was You Yu. His Physique happened to be the 'You Yi Divine Body.'"

"The combination of two Divine Body Bloodlines gave birth to a unique new Divine Body within me."

Jun Yun's voice carried a hint of self-mockery.

"A Divine Body that has never appeared in this world before."

"In the eyes of the Divine Lord, the two of us are the most perfect 'sacrifices' to activate the 'You Que Divine Body.'"

"Especially... me."