While in Battle Through the Heavens, one can pre-appoint oneself as an emperor.

Chapter 290 Gu Yuan

The desolation underground is unimaginable to those who have never experienced it. It is completely dark, without light or life, and visually resembles pure nothingness. However, compared to the void, it also has an indescribable sense of oppression and gloom.

Chen Xiao's consciousness was ethereal and formless, traversing rapidly through the pitch-black underground.

Because there was no light and no reference points, even he himself did not know where this wisp of consciousness had spread to on the Dou Qi Continent.

Time ticked by, and the oppressive feeling simmered in my heart, making me incredibly frustrated.

Just as Chen Xiao was beginning to doubt whether his ideas were truly unrealistic, the oppressive feeling suddenly vanished.

And in that unknown underground place, a network of crisscrossing underground passages came to Chen Xiao's mind!

These passages are interconnected, like the tracks left by a group of giant pythons, but instead of the fishy smell, they are mixed with wisps of fresh air.

It was precisely because of this pure energy that the pervasive oppression was completely dispelled.

In this deep underground where even light and the energy of heaven and earth are extremely scarce, it is impossible for any kind of race to exist. Therefore, there is only one answer to why these traces were left.

That is the Bodhi Ancient Tree, which traverses the depths of the Dou Qi Continent and is difficult to find!

Chen Xiao was overjoyed, unsure how long this strange state would last. He dared not delay and controlled his consciousness to spread along the largest passage.

I don't know how much time passed; it could have been an hour, half a day, or even longer.

Finally, Chen Xiao's rapidly traversing consciousness crashed hard into "a wall".

Unlike his previous ability to move freely, Chen Xiao was stunned to find that the "wall" in front of him seemed to be made of a special material. Not only could he not pass through it, but he also could not sense it at all.

Just as Chen Xiao was filled with doubt and surprise, suddenly, the 'wall' in front of him trembled slightly, and an extremely rich and pure aura rose up instantly.

"Is this a root of the ancient Bodhi tree?!" A terrifying thought suddenly popped into Chen Xiao's mind.

Before he could think any further, Chen Xiao sensed the extremely dense pure energy emanating from it and quickly focused his consciousness, leaving a mark on the enormous root.

Just as Chen Xiao finished doing all this, boundless pure energy surged forth.

When the passage was discovered earlier, the residual pure energy was enough to dispel Chen Xiao's irritability, demonstrating that the unique pure energy of this ancient Bodhi tree is actually beneficial and harmless.

However, at this moment, the terrifying pure energy swept over, and Chen Xiao's wisp of consciousness was as if it could not be nourished, and was instantly dispersed.

In the magnificent palaces on Qifeng Mountain.

Chen Xiao's body trembled violently, and he was jolted awake from that indescribable and wondrous state. He felt a slight swelling between his brows, a reaction to the extreme depletion of his soul power.

Chen Xiao rubbed his temples, recalling the scene he had just witnessed.

"Finding the ancient Bodhi tree again based on just a trace left behind is like finding a needle in a haystack, unless there is an opportunity to enter that state again."

Chen Xiao released his soul perception and found that it was already late at night outside, with a bright moon and few stars.

The soul's perception probed towards Qifeng Mountain Palace, and saw that the ghost-like middle-aged man was still there blowing in the wind.

Chen Xiao's senses lingered there for a moment before he probed downwards into the ground.

Unfortunately, after leaving that wondrous state, even with his current soul perception, he could only probe a depth of about a thousand miles underground.

Although his soul power was greatly depleted at the moment and he was not at his peak.

However, Chen Xiao quickly realized that even at his peak, he could not achieve the same level as before.

"Well, at least there's a glimmer of hope."

Chen Xiao shook his head slightly, suppressing his soul perception.

The ancient Bodhi tree is too special; it doesn't sprout on its own, so no one can find it.

Chen Xiao had just left a mark on its roots, and if you get close enough, you can sense it.

Even if the probability is very small, it is still far ahead of others.

Putting aside his distracting thoughts, Chen Xiao looked up and glanced in the direction of the summit of Qifeng Mountain.

The fact that this person could render the protective formation of the pavilion ineffective and enter the Zixiao Pavilion silently without being detected by Ziyan and him speaks volumes about his strength.

As for this person's identity, Chen Xiao had some guesses in his mind.

However, I'm not in a hurry to see him!

Now that the pre-funded cultivation technique has been completed, Chen Xiao's biggest wish is to see the changes brought about by the pre-funded technique.

This will give him more confidence.

Consciousness sank into the mind, and the pre-drawn information immediately appeared.

[Currently Available Spells: (1/1)]

Rare and precious materials: (0/1)

General: (1/1)

"Should I be able to borrow source energy in advance now?"

With anticipation, Chen Xiaojing waited for the feedback from the pre-received information in his mind.

[Source Qi: A higher level of energy from heaven and earth than Battle Qi, currently available in advance.]

[Pre-payment follow-up ① Enter the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor's Cave and obtain the Emperor-grade Chick Pill.]

② He received the lineage of Tuoshe Gudi.

③ Open up dimensional portals.

Looking at the information in his mind, Chen Xiao smiled slightly.

"There really are only these few channels. I was wondering if there might be other ancient emperor caves or emperor-grade pills in the Dou Qi Continent."

Unsurprisingly, Chen Xiao didn't pay much attention to it.

For tens of thousands of years, not only the Soul Clan and the Soul Emperor, but countless powerful individuals have been searching for a way to break through to the Dou Di realm. However, apart from the clues provided by the Ancient Emperor Tuoshe, the others have been completely clueless.

Therefore, it is reasonable that only the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor's Cave could obtain vital energy.

Otherwise, wouldn't the top experts of the past, such as the Yellow Spring Demon Saint, the Pure Lotus Demon Saint, and Xiao Xuan, become a complete joke?

[Is it possible to pre-draw gas?]

"no."

Without hesitation, Chen Xiao shook his head.

The ability to draw upon source energy in advance simply gives Chen Xiao another trump card that can overturn the table.

For now, this thing is useless to him.

If I had to pay for it in advance, I wouldn't be able to sleep soundly with it on me.

"If Origin Qi can be borrowed in advance, then the creations of Dou Di level experts can certainly do the same. I remember there seems to be a popular type of protective spirit jade in the Great Thousand World that automatically activates when encountering danger to resist fatal attacks."

Chen Xiao's memories of the Great Thousand Worlds are not as clear as those of the Dou Qi Continent, but he still remembers many interesting things.

In the original trajectory of the Great Thousand World, Lin Jing, the daughter of the Martial Ancestor from the neighboring continent, once gifted Mu Chen a protective spirit jade.

[Disposable Protective Jade (Jade Slip): Can be drawn up in advance; the current maximum quality that can be drawn up in advance is enough to withstand a Dou Di powerhouse for one hundred breaths.]

[Follow-up to the advance payment]

① He broke through to the Dou Di level and took personal charge of everything.

② Befriend a Dou Di-level expert and try to acquire [the item].

Both of the following statements are easy to understand.

The former means that when he has the strength in the future, he will obtain a protective jade to repay his debt.

The latter is obtained from others, whether as a gift or through exchange, it is all acceptable.

"Being able to withstand a Dou Di-level expert for a hundred breaths is slightly beyond the standard in the Dou Qi Continent."

There are no Dou Di in the Dou Qi Continent now!

Using such a valuable item to defend against peak Dou Sheng like the Soul Emperor would be a waste of its potential.

With a smile, Chen Xiao continued to study the pre-planned funds in his mind.

The summit of Qifeng Mountain.

The seemingly ordinary middle-aged man had slightly raised eyebrows.

He could sense that Chen Xiao in the hall below had woken up from that special state, but five or six minutes had passed and Chen Xiao still showed no intention of coming to see him.

It's understandable that you ignored me because you were in a special situation before.

Now that you're awake, are you still pretending not to know?

He gave a disgruntled snort, his gaze narrowing slightly.

"Master of Zixiao Pavilion, let's have a chat at the summit!"

A completely emotionless voice rang in Chen Xiao's ears. At this moment, Chen Xiao felt as if he had suddenly downloaded a great app and discovered a lot of high-quality movies. He wanted to watch this and that, but unfortunately, he only had two download opportunities and could only preview the rest.

Even so, Chen Xiao was still itching to watch and couldn't tear himself away.

Only when he heard the voice transmission in his ear did Chen Xiao temporarily calm down.

Chen Xiao took out a pill that would help restore his energy and swallowed it. He stood up, took a step, and when he reappeared, he was already on the mountaintop.

"Your Excellency has barged into my Zixiao Pavilion without asking questions. This does not seem like the behavior of a gentleman." Chen Xiao stood several feet away and looked at the man opposite him.

Upon hearing this, the man glanced at him but did not get angry.

"You don't need to be so cautious. If I want to make a move, no one in Qifeng Mountain can stop me. You can't, and neither can that little girl."

His tone was calm and indifferent, as if he were stating something as common sense as possible.

Chen Xiao remained noncommittal, stepping to within three feet of the man. Neither of them glanced at the other again, both gazing into the distance at the horizon.

Do you know who I am?

Chen Xiao shook his head. "Not really interested."

The middle-aged man's right hand, which was behind his back, trembled slightly. He let out a soft breath and then began to introduce himself.

"I am Xun'er's father!"

As he spoke, he glanced warily at Chen Xiao out of the corner of his eye.

Unfortunately, Chen Xiao showed no surprise whatsoever, only a perfunctory chuckle.

"So it was Chief Gu in person." Chen Xiao clasped his hands in a slight gesture of respect.

He had indeed suspected it for a while.

In the current continent, there are very few powerful individuals who can enter the Purple Cloud Pavilion without Zi Yan noticing.

Combining this with what Gu Mo said some time ago, it's easy to guess that the other party comes from the Ancient Clan. Among the Ancient Clan, the top experts are all old monsters. It seems that only Black Annihilation King and Gu Yuan look a little younger.

Ignoring Chen Xiao's rather perfunctory greeting, Gu Yuan withdrew his gaze.

Sending Xun'er to the Jia Ma Empire in the Northwest Continent was the decision I regret most so far. I didn't get what I wanted, and instead, I caused Xun'er to—

Gu Yuan shook his head, his meaning couldn't be clearer.

Because Xun'er hid the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade of the Xiao family, Gu Yuan is still unaware that Xun'er's two purposes for going to the Xiao family have actually been achieved.

However, the imperial jade was not actually handed over to him.

Gu Yuan still believes that the Xiao family's Imperial Jade has fallen into the hands of the Soul Clan after the Xiao family's demise.

"I think this might be one of the few correct and important decisions made by the ancient patriarch."

Before the series of upheavals caused by the origin of the soul, Chen Xiao always felt that Gu Yuan was just lacking in courage.

Just like a thousand years ago, the Xiao Clan and the Soul Clan fought a great war, resulting in mutual destruction.

Gu Yuan could have taken this opportunity to strike a fatal blow against the fallen enemy, making the Gu Clan the strongest ancient race.

Perhaps, that was Gu Yuan's only chance to defeat the Soul Emperor, or even kill him!

If he had grasped this opportunity, the later joke about the nonchalant Heavenly Emperor and the disheveled ancient clan chief would not have occurred.

Unfortunately, once it's missed, it's missed.

"I am no one you need to judge."

Gu Yuan didn't take Chen Xiao's words to heart. In his understanding, Chen Xiao's age was less than a fraction of his own, and he knew very little about him.

This kind of evaluation is meaningless.

"To be fair, you are indeed a rare genius. I have seen quite a few Dou Zun in their twenties, but Dou Sheng in their twenties are few and far between. And to advance from the peak of the Ninth Rank Dou Zun to Dou Sheng in a year without the help of a fortuitous opportunity is unheard of. It is precisely because of this curiosity that I decided to come out and see for myself."

"In terms of qualifications and potential, you are indeed worthy of Xun'er."

Even among ancient races, a Dou Sheng (Battle Saint) level expert is highly regarded.

This is especially true for a Battle Saint in his twenties.

Even Gu Yuan could not deny this point.

Chen Xiao smiled, not becoming arrogant because of Gu Yuan's objective evaluation.

Only Chen Xiao himself knows that he was able to quickly become a Dou Sheng because of his Bodhi Heart!

"Chief Gu, but what about now?"

"But I don't like you."

Gu Yuan shook his head and said, "You've reached the Dou Sheng level at such a young age, you certainly have reason to be proud, but you lack a sense of awe, a sense of awe for those stronger!"

"There are always mountains beyond mountains, and people beyond people. Take this moment, for example. If I were to attack you, how would you defend yourself?"

"Whether you are a young prodigy or someone whose potential has been exhausted, you should always have a sense of awe when facing someone stronger. Otherwise, you will pay a heavy price for it one day, and it would not be surprising if you were to perish on the spot."

That's true. In this dog-eat-dog world, it's important to be pragmatic and have self-awareness.

However, Gu Yuan automatically ignored one possibility.

That is, Chen Xiao already has other trump cards.

Otherwise, if he were really standing in front of Gu Yuan, he wouldn't be so calm.

"That's just one aspect."

"And most importantly, your stance is different from that of the ancient races, or rather, from that of all ancient races. You do not have the bloodline of a Dou Di, which means that your perspective on issues is different from ours."

"In the eyes of ancient races, how to continue their lineage was the most important thing."

"Xun'er's identity is special. Although her bloodline has not yet been tested, judging from her cultivation speed and other signs, she is very likely to become the only divine-grade bloodline of our ancient clan. This means that even if I do not express my opinion, there will be countless voices to stop you."

"In addition to that, there is one last point."

"You're a smart person, I think that goes without saying."

The point that Gu Yuan omitted is easy to guess: the existence of Cai Lin, Xiao Yi Xian, and the other girls!