Xiao Chen's sword slash cleaved through Demon General Kuang Sha and thousands of Blood Demon Troops, leaving a gaping crater etched into the Northern Border of the Tianyuan Continent. Around the smoking crater, dozens of human cultivators who had been preparing to face death could only stand there dumbfounded. An immense silence spread across the entire battlefield.
The sect elders and elite disciples exchanged glances, their faces filled with fear and disbelief. A young man who was visibly only at the Foundation Establishment Realm had executed a Demon General at the Pure Soul Realm with a single, simple move!
"Wh-who is that young man...?" whispered a female disciple from the Heavenly Sword Sect, unable to tear her eyes away from Xiao Chen's black-and-gold robes fluttering in the wind.
"Impossible... Even our Sect Master, who is at the Peak of the Pure Soul Realm, would need a fierce battle to defeat Kuang Sha," growled an old elder with a bloodstained beard. "Who exactly is this monstrous genius?!"
Ignoring the mortal cultivators' worshipful and fearful gazes, Xiao Chen sheathed the God-Demon Sword on his back once more. The sword's ringing clatter echoed coldly. He raised his eyes toward the enormous dimensional rift in the northern sky, which had begun to shrink slowly as Kuang Sha's energy dissipated.
*"Master Ku,"* Xue Ling'er whispered softly within his soul. *"Kuang Sha was only a small pawn. His death must have ignited the fury of Demon King Mo Zun in the Demon Realm. However, this dimensional rift runs in both directions. This is a golden opportunity!"*
Xiao Chen narrowed his golden eyes. "You mean... infiltrating the Demon Realm directly?"
*"Exactly,"* Xue Ling'er replied excitedly. *"The main seal shown on your mother's bark map is located deep within the Dark Demon Palace. If you can absorb the Demon Energy Core there, your cultivation will break through to the Golden Core Realm in an instant, and your God-Demon power will awaken to the next level!"*
Before Xiao Chen could take a step toward the dimensional rift, several shadows shot rapidly from the direction of the border fortress. Three elderly men dressed in white-and-gold robes landed several dozen meters in front of Xiao Chen. The auras emanating from their bodies indicated that all three were experts ranging from the Peak of the Golden Core Realm to the Pure Soul Realm.
They were Special Envoys from the Three Great Sects of the Tianyuan Continent, sent to hold back the demon invasion.
"Young man, stop right there!" shouted the envoy holding a wooden staff carved with a dragon. His eyes studied Xiao Chen with a mixture of deep admiration and suspicion. "I am the Grand Envoy of the Sky God Sect. Your attack just now truly saved the Border Gate. What's your name, and which sect are you from?"
Xiao Chen slowly came to a stop. He turned his face slightly and looked at the three envoys with cold golden eyes, without the slightest hint of respect.
"My name has nothing to do with you," Xiao Chen replied flatly. The pressure of mystical Qi in his voice made the three senior envoys flinch in shock as they felt an invisible pressure on their souls.
The second envoy, a stern-faced man with a long sword on his back, stepped forward and narrowed his eyes. "What an arrogant attitude! But with the extraordinary ability you've displayed at such a young age, you deserve special treatment. The Three Great Sects will hold the Grand Selection Trial in Imperial Alchemy City five days from now. If you join our sect, unlimited cultivation resources will be yours!"
At that offer, the cultivators surrounding the battlefield drew deep breaths. Becoming a direct disciple of one of the Three Great Sects was the ultimate dream of every cultivator on the Tianyuan Continent.
Xiao Chen, however, only gave a mocking smile. To someone who had inherited the power of the Ancient God-Demon Emperor, the Three Great Sects were nothing more than minor practitioners' groups in the Mortal Realm.
"Unlimited resources?" Xiao Chen sneered. "Your sects aren't even worthy of holding the hilt of my sword. Save your cheap offer for someone else."
"You...!" The third envoy looked furious at Xiao Chen's arrogance and was about to step forward and release his aura.
But before the envoy could act, Xiao Chen stomped his foot against the ground.
**[Untraceable Shadow Step]**
*BOOM!*
Xiao Chen's body exploded into a streak of golden light that shot high into the sky, piercing straight through the dimensional rift to the Demon Realm as it began to close!
"He... he actually jumped into the Demon Realm alone?!" the cultivators shrieked hysterically. Breaking into enemy territory without an army was no different from throwing away one's life!
The three Grand Envoys stood frozen, staring at the dimensional rift that finally sealed shut, leaving behind only fading black clouds.
"That young man... is he a mad hero, or a demon disguised as a human?" muttered the Sky God Sect's envoy, his hands trembling. "Quickly, send a message to the Main Sect! Tell the Sect Master that an unnamed genius has thrown the border into chaos and broken into the Demon Realm!"
On the other side of the dimensional rift...
*BLAR!*
Xiao Chen landed on blood-red rocky ground. The air around him was thick with the stench of sulfur, poison, and dark energy that was ten times denser than in the Mortal Realm. The sky here was a dark purple with no sunlight at all, decorated by two blood-red moons hanging motionless overhead.
This was the **Demon Realm**—the domain ruled by monsters, demons, and Demon King Mo Zun.
Xiao Chen knelt on one knee before slowly rising to stand tall. When he inhaled the poisonous air of the Demon Realm, his body channels did not become poisoned. Instead, they seemed to cheer with delight. The *Ancient God-Demon Physique* within his body wildly absorbed the Demon Realm's dark energy, transforming it into pure Qi that strengthened his soul lake.
*BZZZZT!*
Xiao Chen's cultivation aura trembled violently. Within seconds of setting foot in this place, his cultivation broke through naturally!
**[Foundation Establishment, Fourth Level!]**
"This place..." Xiao Chen swept his gaze across the enormous mountains of bones stretching before him. A murderous light burned ever brighter in his eyes. "To ordinary practitioners, this is hell. But to me... this is my hunting ground!"
Xiao Chen took out the bronze mirror left behind by his mother, the Dark Soul Mirror, which now emitted a glow pointing toward the center of the Demon Territory. Without the slightest hesitation, the Young Master strode into the darkness, ready to shake the entire demon clans and bring them all beneath his feet!