# Chapter 1836: Chen Yuhua
Inside the Saint Prince Mansion, various formations and prohibitions were arranged, making it impossible for ordinary people to quietly break in.
Deep within the Saint Prince Mansion stood a towering spiritual mountain, with steep slopes and colorful sacred rays bursting forth from the soil.
A thirty-three-story ancient pagoda was built within the mountain, giving off a mysterious aura.
Xie Canghai swallowed a heavenly-grade healing sacred pill worth over a hundred million, barely recovering sixty to seventy percent of his injuries, and immediately rushed over here.
Because Divine Cliff Gentleman had told him that this Saint Prince Mansion was located at the node of all the ancient inscription patterns in the Eastern Domain Sacred City, making it a critical location.
The node of the ancient inscription patterns was not in the main city of the Eastern Domain Saint Prince Mansion, but here—this was already an unusual matter in itself.
Xie Canghai stepped into the spiritual mountain in one stride, as if crossing through a layer of water curtain, appearing in a vast small world.
The spiritual mountain still stood before his eyes.
But the ancient pagoda within the spiritual mountain revealed its true form—it actually had three hundred and thirty-three stories, piercing straight into the clouds, so majestic that it could oppress a person's soul. It was ten times taller and a thousand times larger than what was seen from outside.
A smile appeared on Xie Canghai's face: "This is the true form of the ancient pagoda. What we saw outside was just an illusion. It should be the control hub for the ancient inscription patterns of the Eastern Domain Sacred City. Divine Cliff Gentleman's calculations were indeed correct."
Suddenly, Xie Canghai's smile froze as he saw an old man with silver hair sitting beneath the pagoda.
The old man was simply dressed, his face covered in wrinkles, his eyes cloudy.
Before him lay a rotten, decayed tree root, so rotted that it was beyond recognition—a single touch would cause the wood to crumble.
Yet the old man seemed unwilling to give up, holding a small knife and carving on it, as if trying to sculpt a masterpiece.
"Tap, tap."
Xie Canghai walked over step by step, standing straight across from him, and said: "Rotten wood cannot be carved. You'd be better off finding a different tree root."
The old man did not look up, immersed in the world of carving, and said: "Rotten wood naturally has its own method of carving. If rotten wood cannot be carved, it only means the carving skill is not yet sufficient."
The old man's hand was as withered as firewood, as if he could barely hold the knife.
But every line he carved was profoundly exquisite, following the same trajectory as the laws of heaven and earth. With each cut, the laws of heaven and earth were attached to it.
He was both carving and comprehending the Heavenly Dao.
Ordinary cultivators could not see the mystery.
But Xie Canghai saw the clues and was secretly shocked: "The carving marks conform to the Dao. This person's understanding of the laws of heaven and earth surpasses mine. There is still such an expert in the Kunlun Realm?"
"How should I address you?" Xie Canghai asked calmly.
The old man said: "Chen Yuhua."
Zhang Ruochen, hiding in the distance, was shocked when he heard this name.
Chen Yuhua was still alive?
Chen Yuhua was the ancestor of the Chen Clan. Eight hundred years ago, he helped the Green Emperor pacify the Eastern Domain, making great contributions. After the establishment of the First Central Empire, Empress Chi Yao named him one of the twelve founding meritorious officials.
Eight hundred years ago, Chen Yuhua was already a top-tier expert second only to the Nine Emperors.
Just now, when Zhang Ruochen's emotions fluctuated for an instant, both Xie Canghai and Chen Yuhua glanced toward his hiding spot.
But they did not pay him any attention.
Clearly, in the eyes of Xie Canghai and Chen Yuhua, the other was the true enemy.
Xie Canghai clasped his hands and said: "So you are the ancestor of the Chen Clan. I have failed to show proper respect. This Saint wishes to enter the pagoda to gaze upon the scenery of the Eastern Domain Sacred City. Would Fellow Daoist Chen be willing to step aside?"
"The scenery of the Eastern Domain Sacred City belongs to the Kunlun Realm, not to another world."
Chen Yuhua's voice was quite hoarse, and he continued: "I have stayed here to guard the pagoda. You cannot enter. Please leave immediately and do not disturb me as I carve this rotten wood."
Xie Canghai laughed: "Fellow Daoist Chen's realm is high, but you are too old. You have long passed your prime, your blood energy is declining, and your physical body is far from what it once was. In a real battle, you will surely lose within a hundred moves. Why not retreat immediately? You might still save your life."
"I have only a few years left to live anyway. What difference does retreating or not make?" Chen Yuhua said indifferently.
Xie Canghai shook his head and sighed: "What a pity, what a pity. Your talent was ultimately lacking by a hair, destined never to step into the Great Saint realm in this lifetime. Otherwise, you could at least extend your life by a thousand years."
Hearing this, the small knife in Chen Yuhua's hand stopped.
The line he was carving broke.
Clearly, Chen Yuhua's calm heart had been disturbed by Xie Canghai's words.
Eight hundred years of bitter cultivation, yet his cultivation progressed slowly. In truth, Chen Yuhua had long known that he had reached his limit and would never achieve the Great Saint realm in this life.
This was a limitation of talent, the greatest regret of his life.
It was at this moment that Xie Canghai seized the opportunity. Demonic Qi erupted from his entire body, condensing into a black demonic dragon in his palm. It let out an earth-shaking dragon roar and surged toward Chen Yuhua.
The sounds of air explosions, earth shattering, and demonic Qi surging intertwined, rolling like heavenly thunder, shaking Zhang Ruochen's eardrums to the point of bursting, even though he was hiding far away.
Zhang Ruochen had no time to worry about exposing his position. He activated the divine pattern that the Moon God had inscribed on his body, barely withstanding the impact of the battle's aftermath.
Looking again toward the ancient pagoda, he saw the small knife in Chen Yuhua's hand transform into a giant flaming blade, slashing horizontally, severing the head of the black demonic dragon.
"Whoosh!"
Xie Canghai's second attack had already been launched. Holding the Xuantian Battle Axe with both hands, he chopped straight down.
The battle axe not only erupted with the power of Sevenfold Perfection but also released a divine force, possessing the might to split heaven and earth.
If this axe had been struck elsewhere, it would definitely have split a thousand miles of land and annihilated countless living beings across an entire region.
Chen Yuhua's expression turned grave. The giant flaming blade in his hand also manifested seven layers of sacred power light waves, clashing with the Xuantian Battle Axe.
"Boom!"
In the spiritual mountain, countless ancient inscription patterns were activated, surging upward as multicolored rays of light, dispersing the power of Chen Yuhua and Xie Canghai so that it did not spill outside the spiritual mountain.
The battle that followed became even more ferocious.
The power of Sevenfold Perfection continuously radiated outward, causing Zhang Ruochen's eyes to ache as if they would split. He could only see that half of the spiritual mountain was shrouded in light waves, with two figures locked in fierce combat, fighting as if heaven and earth were turning upside down.
"How terrifying. Xie Canghai was so heavily injured—how did he recover so quickly? Did he have a heavenly-grade healing sacred pill?" Zhang Ruochen grew somewhat tense.
If Chen Yuhua was defeated, Xie Canghai would take control of the ancient pagoda, thereby gaining control over the ancient inscription patterns of the Eastern Domain Sacred City.
The Chen Clan's two most important trump cards for ruling the Eastern Domain were controlling the ancient inscription patterns and the Zhou Tian Grand Formation. The hub of the ancient inscription patterns was this ancient pagoda.
The hub of the Zhou Tian Grand Formation was in the main city of the Eastern Domain Saint Prince Mansion.
Controlling the ancient inscription patterns would allow one to counter the Zhou Tian Grand Formation.
"Boom!"
Chen Yuhua was sent flying back, all the way to the base of the ancient pagoda, with sacred blood flowing from the corner of his mouth.
Xie Canghai's figure materialized, like a demon god wielding a battle axe, laughing loudly: "This Saint told you long ago, you have passed your peak. You are as old as a piece of rotten wood. You might hold on for a hundred moves, but after that, you will surely lose. You are old—it's time to be buried in the ground."
"Crack, crack."
The giant flaming blade in Chen Yuhua's hand shattered, falling to the ground as pieces of scrap metal.
A Sevenfold Ten-Thousand-Pattern Sacred Artifact was destroyed like this.
"Chen Yuhua seems to be truly too old. His combat power cannot match his prime. He probably cannot withstand Xie Canghai."
Zhang Ruochen summoned the Azure Sky Floating Pagoda and rushed toward the ancient pagoda, preparing to join forces with Chen Yuhua to fight Xie Canghai.
Xie Canghai's gaze shifted sideways, recognizing Zhang Ruochen. A strange smile appeared on his face: "I searched high and low, yet you deliver yourself to my doorstep. This junior, you are indeed very problematic."
Xie Canghai did not dare to be careless. He took out a battle scroll from his bosom.
The battle scroll was made from the hide of a Great Saint-level horned beast.
Unfurling the scroll, the painting depicted a horned beast with a fierce and ferocious appearance, baring its fangs and brandishing its claws.
Xie Canghai pressed his palm onto the scroll, and instantly, the horned beast in the painting rushed out of the battle scroll. Its body was dozens of feet tall, releasing overwhelming sacred might as it attacked Zhang Ruochen.
It was not a real Great Saint-level horned beast, but a soul shadow, with various special inscription patterns infused into it by a painting Dao master.
"Dragon-Elephant Divine Furnace."
Zhang Ruochen had no time to activate the power of the Azure Sky Floating Pagoda. He could only form the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm, his entire body igniting as he struck out with a palm, clashing with the horned beast.
The horned beast possessed immense strength, sending Zhang Ruochen flying backward.
The divine patterns on Zhang Ruochen's body flickered, dispersing ninety percent of the horned beast's power. Therefore, after landing, Zhang Ruochen slapped the ground with his palm, immediately rebounding and charging forward again.
Chen Yuhua wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and said: "You are indeed very strong, but this is the territory of the Chen Clan. As long as I activate the ancient inscription patterns, you will surely die."
Xie Canghai laughed: "Since this Saint has come here, I naturally have a way to deal with the ancient inscription patterns."
"Pattern-Suppressing Pearl, Formation-Breaking Dao."
Xie Canghai took out a pearl the size of a human head and tossed it upward. The pearl floated in midair.
All the sacred Qi of heaven and earth in the spiritual mountain was absorbed by the pearl, as if the air had been sucked into a vacuum.
Whether it was inscription patterns or formations, the power they unleashed was not generated from nothing. They required sacred Qi to activate, and sacred stones, even divine stones, to operate.
The ancient pagoda was indeed the hub for controlling the ancient inscription patterns of the Eastern Domain Sacred City, but with all the sacred Qi of heaven and earth sucked away, the ancient pagoda temporarily lost its function.
Xie Canghai laughed loudly: "Now you should be in despair, shouldn't you?"
Chen Yuhua remained calm, but his eyes gradually became sharp and resolute. He no longer seemed as old and decrepit as before, but instead appeared spirited, with a sharp and aggressive aura.
"You all just want to seize the Chen Clan's 'Four-Nine Mysterious Art.' Today, I will let you witness the power of the techniques in the 'Four-Nine Mysterious Art.'"
Xie Canghai did not believe that Chen Yuhua could return to his peak state. He must have used some secret technique, burning his remaining lifespan to fight to the death.