“Since you’ve reached the palace, Jiang Chen, the heritage of Veluriyam Capital is yours. You’ll find its entirety in the ancient capital. Some are my personal welcoming gifts for you. The others are legacy of the ancient Veluriyam Capital. I hope you’ll pass them down and enable the capital’s traditions to flourish for generations to come. Will you promise me that?”

Divine Veluriyam gazed at Jiang Chen solemnly, addressing him as a dying emperor would his heir.

Jiang Chen could tell from the divine master’s increasingly unfocused eyes that the strand of consciousness wouldn’t last long.

If Divine Veluriyam still lived, a duplicate formed by his consciousness could last ten times longer. However, he’d been dead for two to three hundred thousand years. Without a body to support it, there was a limit to the duration a strand of unprepared consciousness could exist.

Moreover, this particular consciousness was sentient.

It’d be a much less taxing endeavour to leave only a one-way message to his successor.

Back in the secret realm of Mount Rippling Mirage, where the Ancient Crimson Heavens Sect’s heritage lay hidden, Jiang Chen had encountered one such consciousness. It could deliver a message, but it couldn’t communicate with him.

What set Divine Veluriyam’s projection apart was the fact that the strand of consciousness could think on his own and talk to Jiang Chen.

This was similar to anchoring a strand of the soul to the statue. The level of consciousness and abilities required were tens or hundreds of times higher than what was required for simply leaving a message.

“Divine Veluriyam, I will follow your instructions and ensure that the capital’s heritage thrives! I will destroy the demons and fix the heavenly axis, bring about an everlasting peace for the Divine Abyss Continent!” Jiang Chen spoke from the bottom of his heart, his voice brimming with conviction.

“Sublime! Wonderful! When I decided to pass on my heritage for later generations, I’d wondered what the future would hold. What kind of a successor would fate steer to me? Now it seems that fortune has indeed smiled upon me and the continent. Hahaha!”

The god’s tone was light. Although he was reaching the end of his existence, there was only joy and acceptance in his laughter. There wasn’t any trace of melancholy.

His attitude was exceedingly admirable.

Although Jiang Chen had lived through two lives, he didn’t think he could be as sanguine as the divine master.

“So mote it be. I am running out of time, Jiang Chen, and will impart an overview of the situation. Under my statue lies a jade slip containing answers to everything you might be concerned about: including a description of the seals I’ve placed on the spirit veins and the ways to lift them, and how I’ve hidden the various heritage. Naturally, I don’t know the exact way the others sealed theirs, but I made some reasoned speculations.”

Jiang Chen chuckled. “Senior is most thorough and wise. Thanks to a stroke of luck, I’ve already discovered the heritage of the Primosanct Sect, Ancient Crimson Heavens Sect, and Earth Bodhisattva Sect.”

“Oh?” Divine Veluriyam paused and laughed. “You are indeed blessed by fortune. All of their heritage should’ve been well-hidden. And yet...”

He sighed faintly. “However, the demonic war left us little time. Perhaps some of them weren’t as careful as they ought to have been. Concealing my own heritage had been long in the making, thus I had more time to prepare.”

In the end, it didn’t matter why the young genius had been able to stumble upon what he had.

“Jiang Chen, none of the heritage of the ten ancient factions should be underestimated. It’s best that you find and claim all of them. That slip contains the approximate locations of the ten factions. You should study it closely. Remember, the heritage mustn’t fall into the wrong hands. Otherwise, long term peace will not be found in the human domain, and a civil war may wrack the land in the days to come.”

𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

That was the divine master’s biggest unresolved concern.

“I’ll do my best to find each respective heritage a proper successor,” Jiang Chen promised seriously. “I won’t allow any to be claimed by greedy opportunists.”

“Sublime. Wonderful. Once the seals on the spirit veins are lifted, the human domain will return to its ancient prosperity. Refound glory will be hers in less than a century. I truly look forward to that future. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to witness that myself. Remember, Jiang Chen, do not let demonic claws dirty the human domain again.”

“I will take that to heart, senior. I’ll first activate the Great Formation of Heavenly Soul Confinement, preventing the demonic army from hitting the human domain first. Then I’ll focus on improving the domain’s capabilities, boosting our collective power and defending our homeland. The demonic army isn’t going to set a foot inside our territory.”

Even if the divine master hadn’t made the request, Jiang Chen wasn’t going to let demons invade the human domain, both for himself and for the good of the world.

This was Jiang Chen’s home, and his family was here. A demonic invasion would put them in danger.

“Good lad. You’ve achieved great things in youth, but you have not let that blind you. Instead, you’ve remained level-headed. The human domain is truly blessed. Under your guidance, the domain will thrive again. It might even grow as prosperous as it was in the ancient times!”

Divine Veluriyam wasn’t mouthing empty pleasantries. He’d given thought to what kind of a successor he’d have, but he hadn’t been too hopeful.

Jiang Chen however, exceeded his expectations. He had a feeling that the young man might even surpass him in the future.

“I won’t boast about the heritage left in Veluriyam Capital. You can peruse the vault, pill room, herb garden, and libraries at your leisure. Those are for the future generations. I believe you’ll find the right way to allocate the resources. What I wish to spend my remaining time on are my gifts to you.”

The heritage of the faction had been entrusted to Jiang Chen, but that had to be shared between a large group of people in order to rejuvenate Veluriyam traditions.

The divine master’s gifts were meant for Jiang Chen alone.

“I’m honored to be the recipient of your gifts, senior,” Jiang Chen said solemnly. “I await your instructions.”

“Haha, excellent. I appreciate your honesty and candidness. As the divine master of Veluriyam Capital, I do possess some treasures. Unfortunately, I had to take them with me as I fought the demons and consumed a good number of them. What I can offer you seems meager in comparison.”