The moment Lin Chen and his nine teammates stepped through the Qingyun Sect's mountain gate, the tense, hostile atmosphere hit them like a tidal wave. The wide stone plaza outside the gate was packed with people: on one side stood the Qingyun Sect's elders and disciples, their faces twisted with rage and humiliation; on the other, a group of arrogant young geniuses in lavish, sect-specific robes, their auras blazing with unrestrained power.
At the front of the hostile group stood Ye Chen, the undisputed number one genius of the Heavenly Sword Sect, the most famous young talent in the entire Eastern Region. Dressed in a flowing white robe, a top-grade spirit sword strapped to his back, he exuded the oppressive aura of an early-stage Core Formation expert— a realm most cultivators spent their entire lives trying to reach before the age of thirty, and he had achieved it at just eighteen.
Beside him stood the cold-faced young mistress of the Pill Cauldron Sect, Liu Ruyan, a late-stage Foundation Establishment genius famous for her peerless alchemical skills and deadly poisons, and the sinister young master of Demonic Wind Valley, Mo Tian, a peak Foundation Establishment demonic cultivator with a reputation for cruelty and underhanded tactics. Behind them were eight more top geniuses from the three sects, all peak Foundation Establishment experts, their eyes filled with disdain as they looked down on the Qingyun Sect disciples.
The moment Ye Chen saw Lin Chen walk out, he let out a loud, mocking laugh, his voice loud enough for everyone in the plaza to hear. "So this is the famous Lin Chen I've heard so much about? The 16-year-old trash-turned-genius with the so-called Chaos Divine Spirit Root? You look even more ordinary than I expected. I can't believe the Qingyun Sect has fallen so far that they're putting their hopes on a boy who's still stuck in the Foundation Establishment realm."
The hostile geniuses behind him burst into jeering laughter. Mo Tian stepped forward, sneering as he looked Lin Chen up and down. "That's right! We heard you beat a few useless brats in your little sect competition and now you think you're someone? Let me tell you, the Myriad Beast Secret Realm is not your little Qingyun playground. The moment you step inside, we'll tear you and your little team apart, and take that fancy spirit root of yours as a trophy."
Liu Ruyan smiled coldly, playing with a pitch-black poison pill between her fingers. "I've heard your body is strangely resistant to damage. I wonder if it can withstand my Nine Serenities Soul Destroying Poison. I'd love to test it out in the secret realm."
The Qingyun Sect disciples roared with anger, their hands flying to their weapons. Qin Lie stepped forward, his face red with rage, his sword already half-drawn. "You arrogant bastards! How dare you come to our sect's home and insult our captain?! I'll teach you a lesson!"
But Lin Chen raised a hand, stopping Qin Lie before he could take another step. He walked forward calmly, his expression completely indifferent, as if the mocking insults from the hostile geniuses were nothing more than the barking of dogs.
"You've come all this way to our sect's gate just to bark insults," Lin Chen said, his voice cold and steady, echoing across the silent plaza. "If you're really so confident in your strength, why don't you put your money where your mouth is? If any of you think you can defeat me, step forward right now. If you win, I'll withdraw from the Myriad Beast Secret Realm entirely. If I win, you kneel and apologize to every disciple of the Qingyun Sect, then get off our mountain and never come back."
The entire plaza fell dead silent. No one had expected Lin Chen to be so bold, to openly challenge the Eastern Region's most famous geniuses, including a Core Formation expert.
Ye Chen raised an eyebrow, a cold, mocking smile on his face. "Bold words for a Foundation Establishment brat. Fine. But I won't dirty my hands with you just yet. My juniors will be more than enough to teach you your place."
He nodded at Mo Tian, who stepped forward immediately, a sinister grin on his face, a black dagger dripping with poison appearing in his hand. "Gladly. I've been dying to shut this little brat's mouth. I'll make this quick, Lin Chen. I'll cripple your dantian and carve the word 'trash' into your face, so everyone knows what you really are."
The moment Mo Tian finished speaking, the familiar cold mechanical voice rang in Lin Chen's mind.
[Ding! Special location sign-in triggered!]
[Location: Qingyun Sect Mountain Gate, facing provocation from hostile sect geniuses]
[Do you want to complete the special sign-in now?]
A faint, cold smile tugged at the corner of Lin Chen's mouth. This was exactly what he had been waiting for.
"Sign in."
[Ding! Special sign-in successful! Congratulations to host for obtaining:
1. Cultivation Base Breakthrough: Early Stage Core Formation!
2. High-Grade Heaven-Rank Sword Skill: Primordial Chaos Dragon Sword Art!
3. Special Item: Dragon Might Domain (suppresses all hostile units' attack power by 40% and defense by 60% within a 200-meter radius)!
4. Special Item: Core Formation Stabilizing Pill x3!
5. Spirit Stones: 500,000!]
Boom!
A boundless surge of pure, chaotic golden spiritual energy exploded inside Lin Chen's body, breaking through the final barrier between Perfect Peak Foundation Establishment and the Core Formation realm in an instant. A solid, glowing golden core formed in his dantian, radiating power that rippled out across the plaza, the air around him warping under the weight of his new realm. In the blink of an eye, he had gone from a peak Foundation Establishment disciple to a genuine Core Formation expert, at just 16 years old.
The entire plaza froze. Every single person stared at Lin Chen in shock, their mouths hanging open, unable to believe what they had just felt. The Qingyun Sect elders shot to their feet, their eyes wide with disbelief and ecstasy. The Sect Master, who had been hidden in the clouds above, burst into delighted laughter, his heart swelling with pride.
Ye Chen's mocking smile vanished instantly. He stared at Lin Chen, his face pale with shock and disbelief. He had never heard of anyone breaking through from Foundation Establishment to Core Formation in the middle of a confrontation, in the blink of an eye. This kind of cultivation speed was simply unheard of, impossible even in the most ancient of legends.
Mo Tian froze in place, his sinister grin gone, his legs trembling with sudden terror. He had been about to fight a Foundation Establishment brat, but now he was facing a Core Formation expert. Before he could even turn to run, Lin Chen moved.
Lin Chen didn't draw his Thunder Dragon Blade. He simply raised a hand, and a thin beam of golden thunder shot forward, piercing straight through Mo Tian's dantian before he could even react.
"AHHH—!"
Mo Tian let out a shrill, blood-curdling scream, and fell to the ground, his cultivation completely crippled, his face twisted with agony and terror. In less than a second, the peak Foundation Establishment demonic genius who had terrorized the Eastern Region for years had been defeated, rendered completely helpless.
The hostile geniuses stared in shock, their faces pale as paper. Liu Ruyan's eyes narrowed with rage and fear. She flicked her wrist, and a cloud of pitch-black poison mist exploded from her hand, spreading across the plaza toward Lin Chen, the air hissing and corroding where the mist touched. This was her deadliest poison, strong enough to kill even a Core Formation expert if they breathed it in.
But Lin Chen didn't even flinch. He activated his Primordial Chaos Divine Body, and a golden glow wrapped around his body. The poison mist hit the glow and dissolved into nothingness in an instant, not a single trace of it getting through. He waved his hand casually, and a gust of wind blew the remaining mist back toward Liu Ruyan.
She screamed and jumped back, but a small wisp of the mist touched her arm. Her skin turned black instantly, and she fell to her knees, frantically pouring antidote pills into her mouth, her face pale with terror and humiliation.
Lin Chen looked at her coldly. "Your poisons are useless against me. Next time, think twice before you try to use them on my sect's disciples."
By now, Ye Chen's face was twisted with rage and humiliation. His two strongest subordinates had been defeated in the blink of an eye, and he had lost all face in front of the entire Qingyun Sect. He drew his spirit sword, the blade glowing with a blinding white light, the oppressive aura of an early-stage Core Formation expert exploding from his body.
"You arrogant little bastard! You think breaking through to Core Formation makes you someone? I'll show you the difference between a real Core Formation genius and a lucky upstart who broke through with a cheap trick!" He roared, and activated the Heavenly Sword Sect's most powerful technique, the Heavenly Sovereign Sword Art. A 200-meter-long sword beam shot forward, slicing through the air, the force of the attack shaking the entire mountain range.
The crowd screamed in shock. This was Ye Chen's full power, the attack that had defeated three Core Formation experts at once. No one thought Lin Chen could survive it.
But at that moment, Lin Chen activated his new Dragon Might Domain.
Roar!
A deafening, ancient dragon roar erupted from Lin Chen's body, a primordial domain of golden light spreading out across the plaza. Ye Chen froze instantly, his body trembling, his spiritual power seizing up, his sword beam weakening by half the moment it entered the domain. He felt as if he was standing in front of a primordial dragon god, his mind filled with uncontrollable terror.
Lin Chen drew his Thunder Dragon Blade, and activated his new Primordial Chaos Dragon Sword Art. A violent golden glow wrapped around the blade, accompanied by the roar of a thousand dragons. He swung the blade once, a single, clean strike.
Boom!
The sword beam sliced through Ye Chen's attack like it was made of paper, shattering his spirit sword into pieces, and slamming into his chest before he could even react. Ye Chen let out a shrill scream, and his body was sent flying more than fifty meters away, slamming into the stone wall at the edge of the plaza, leaving a huge human-shaped dent. He fell to the ground, spitting out blood, his chest caved in, his dantian severely damaged, his face pale with terror and disbelief.
In just one strike, Lin Chen had defeated the Eastern Region's number one genius, the early-stage Core Formation expert that everyone feared.
The entire plaza was dead silent for a full ten seconds.
Then, the Qingyun Sect disciples erupted into a deafening cheer, so loud it shook the entire mountain range. Tens of thousands of disciples chanted Lin Chen's name over and over, their eyes filled with absolute awe and reverence. His nine teammates stared at him, their faces filled with unshakable loyalty and admiration. They knew they had chosen the right captain to follow into the secret realm.
Lin Chen slowly lowered his blade, and looked at the trembling hostile geniuses who had rushed to help the fallen Ye Chen. His voice was cold and clear, echoing across the plaza.
"Today, I'll let you leave with your lives. But remember this: if any of you dare to touch a single member of the Qingyun Sect's team in the Myriad Beast Secret Realm, you will end up far worse than Ye Chen. Now, take your injured, kneel and apologize, then get off my sect's mountain."
The hostile geniuses stared at him, their faces twisted with humiliation, but none of them dared to argue. They helped Ye Chen and the crippled Mo Tian to their feet, then knelt down one by one, bowing their heads in apology to the Qingyun Sect disciples. Then they turned and fled down the mountain as fast as they could, not daring to look back.
[Ding! Host has defeated the hostile sect geniuses and completed the side mission!]
[Reward issued: 600,000 Spirit Stones, Full Secret Intel on the Hostile Sect Teams' Plans for the Myriad Beast Secret Realm, and a full upgrade to the Primordial Chaos Divine Body (Late Stage)!]
A powerful surge of energy flooded Lin Chen's body, strengthening his physique even further. The full intel from the system appeared in his mind, revealing that the four hostile sects had made a pact to kill Lin Chen and his team the moment they entered the secret realm, to eliminate their biggest competition for the Dragon God Inheritance.
Lin Chen smiled faintly. He had expected their betrayal. But every enemy that came for him was just another stepping stone, another chance to gain more rewards from the Supreme Sign-In System.
That night, the entire Qingyun Sect held a grand celebration in Lin Chen's honor. The Sect Master officially named him the Young Sect Master, granting him authority second only to the Sect Master himself. But Lin Chen paid no mind to the celebrations and honors. He returned to Chaos Peak, sat cross-legged in his cultivation cave, and began to prepare for the Myriad Beast Secret Realm.
In three months, he would enter the ancient realm, face the top geniuses of the entire Eastern Region, and claim the Ancient Dragon God Inheritance.
His journey from trash to Immortal Emperor was only just beginning.