"You are... Ye Chen?"

The call seemed to have traveled through countless years, gently reaching the ears of the elderly man. The old man, who had been keeping his eyes closed and seemingly lost in memories of the past, opened his eyes abruptly the moment he heard the name, as if struck by lightning.

When his gaze fell upon the person before him, his previously cloudy eyes widened instantly, his face filled with disbelief.

"Elder Peng, it is indeed your disciple." Ye Chen smiled slightly, nodded slightly, and replied softly.

"Is it really you? You're still alive?" Elder Peng's voice trembled with shock. He stood up abruptly, staggering but eagerly walking towards Ye Chen, arriving in front of him in the blink of an eye.

At this moment, his eyes were filled with love and relief, the joy of a long-awaited reunion.

"Where have you been all these years? We all thought you had already..." Elder Peng suddenly stopped, as if he couldn't bear to say that cruel word.

Ye Chen naturally understood what Elder Peng meant by his unfinished words. He smiled and explained, "For the past few years, I have been in seclusion, seeking a breakthrough. I only recently emerged from seclusion. As soon as I came out, I couldn't wait to pay my respects to you, Elder."

He knew in his heart that his disappearance for so long had undoubtedly been a long period of waiting and speculation for everyone in the human temple.

Back then, he was just a martial arts emperor. In this dog-eat-dog world where the strong prey on the weak and the winds of change are ever-changing, after disappearing for so many years, anyone would assume that he had met with misfortune and perished.

However, only he himself knows how he spent this time in arduous practice, and how he broke through his own limitations step by step to get to where he is today.

Five thousand years ago, he was trapped in the Netherworld Temple, but miraculously escaped thanks to his amazing perseverance and extraordinary strength.

After going through countless hardships, Ye Chen finally made a major decision—to join the Human Race Temple.

From the moment Ye Chen stepped into the Human Race Temple, he shone as brightly as the most dazzling star in the night sky.

His unparalleled talent was like a surging torrent, quickly creating a huge wave on the path of martial arts.

In just a few decades, he made rapid progress, breaking through from the realm of Martial Saint King to the peak realm of Martial Emperor, only a step away from becoming an immortal.

Such an amazing performance not only shocked everyone in the Human Race Temple, but also enabled him to successfully become a disciple of the Temple Master.

The temple master doted on Ye Chen and taught him with great care, while the other high-ranking members of the human temple also praised Ye Chen highly and regarded him as a treasure.

However, fate always likes to play tricks on people. During a perilous training mission, Ye Chen unfortunately encountered an attack from an incomparably powerful True Immortal Realm demon beast.

Despite his best efforts to fight back, he was ultimately no match for the opponent's terrifying strength. After that fierce battle, Ye Chen was lucky to survive, but he was also seriously injured and hovered on the edge of life and death, truly having walked through the gates of hell.

Since then, Ye Chen has realized that his strength is far from enough, so he resolutely chose to go into seclusion and cultivate in seclusion.

Time flies, and this cultivation has lasted for thousands of years.

During this long period, Ye Chen remained single-minded, immersing himself in the exploration and comprehension of martial arts.

Finally, hard work pays off. Just recently, he successfully broke through the bottleneck, entered the supreme realm of the Great Luo Golden Immortal, and emerged from the barrier.

Having just emerged from seclusion, Ye Chen had only one thought in his mind: to settle accounts with the Netherworld Temple!

Filled with rage and hatred, he rushed towards the Temple of the Underworld without stopping.

Perhaps it was a blessing from heaven, or perhaps it was fate, but at a crucial moment, Ye Chen met his grandfather, Ye Lingtian.

It was only because Ye Lingtian intervened that Ye Chen was able to escape this calamity. Otherwise, given his situation at the time, he would probably have already perished at the hands of the Netherworld Temple.

"Great! Great! It's good that you're not dead! That's wonderful!"

Elder Peng's hands trembled with excitement, his face full of relief, his deep wrinkles seemed to smooth out, and his eyes were fixed on Ye Chen in front of him.

Although Ye Chen was not his formal disciple, Elder Peng had long regarded Ye Chen as his own personal disciple and had taken good care of and taught him in his heart.

Similarly, in Ye Chen's mind, Elder Peng was also a respected and dependable elder, just like a close relative.

Back then, after escaping the clutches of the Netherworld Temple, Ye Chen was already severely injured and on the verge of death.

When his life hung by a thread, Elder Peng came to his rescue and, without hesitation, led him into the human race's temple.

From that moment on, Ye Chen's fate underwent a dramatic change. If it weren't for Elder Peng's kindness, Ye Chen might not exist today.

"Child, what level of cultivation have you reached? How come even I cannot see through you?"

Just then, Elder Peng suddenly noticed something unusual. He was surprised to find that he could not perceive the fluctuations in Ye Chen's aura. If Ye Chen hadn't spoken and caught his attention, he probably wouldn't have noticed that Ye Chen had quietly come to his side.

It should be noted that although Elder Peng's own realm is not considered a top expert in this human race temple, he is still a strong person who has stepped into the early stage of Golden Immortal. Even when facing a powerful person in the late stage of Golden Immortal, he would not be completely unaware of it.

But right now, Ye Chen standing in front of him gave him a feeling of unfathomable depth, how could Elder Peng not be shocked and curious?

Could it be that... Ye Chen has already successfully broken through to the peak of the Golden Immortal realm? Elder Peng was filled with disbelief and astonishment.

Just then, Ye Chen's slightly low and calm voice slowly came: "I should be considered a Great Luo Golden Immortal now!" Although his words were gentle, they exploded in Elder Peng's ears like thunder.

For Elder Peng, an existence like a Great Luo Golden Immortal was already beyond imagination and unattainable.

After all, in this mortal realm, the Great Luo Golden Immortal is already the pinnacle of existence, and no one has ever been able to break through to a level above the Great Luo Golden Immortal.

Even someone as exceptionally talented as Ye Chen would likely have struggled to break through to the Immortal Lord realm without Ye Lingtian's assistance.

Therefore, Ye Chen did not tell Elder Peng that he had reached the level of Immortal Lord, but rather that he was a Great Luo Golden Immortal.

However, even though he was a Great Luo Golden Immortal, Elder Peng was still shocked.