Although the Seven Realms Proclamation from the Seven Realms Sacred Palace had stirred up quite a commotion...
Chu Feng didn't really care. He wouldn't be participating anyway.
At this moment, he had already set off with Little Fishy, heading toward a world within the Starfighting Starfield of the Firmament Heavenly River.
"Little Fishy, do you know anything about the Battle Ape Tribe?" Chu Feng asked along the way.
He had finally remembered why those four words — Battle Ape Tribe — felt so familiar.
Back when Chu Feng had returned to the Chu Heavenly Clan, he had tried to learn about his father's past by questioning many people.
Among the things he had dug up was information about the Old Ape.
The Old Ape had returned together with his father when his father came back from his travels for experience.
So no one knew very much about the Old Ape.
But the Old Ape had once said that he was a member of the Battle Ape Tribe.
Of course, though the Chu Heavenly Clan was the dominant power of their upper world, in truth they were like frogs at the bottom of a well.
They didn't even fully understand the landscape of the declining Ancestral Martial Heavenly River, let alone what kind of existence the Battle Ape Tribe truly was.
At the time, they had simply guessed based on the Old Ape's strength that the Battle Ape Tribe must be no ordinary force — but that was as far as it went.
In reality, even now, Chu Feng didn't know much about the Battle Ape Tribe.
"Not very well, but I've heard of them," Little Fishy said. "According to historical records, the Battle Ape Tribe was a race of demon beasts resembling apes. They were domineering in their actions but fiercely loyal. Though they were a demon race, they possessed an incredibly chivalrous spirit."
"Not only were they powerful, but they were also extremely well-connected. They originally had the chance to dominate an entire heavenly river."
"But for some unknown reason, shortly after they rose to fame, they suddenly vanished."
"And they disappeared during the Early Era," Little Fishy continued.
"The Battle Ape Tribe disappeared too?" Chu Feng's brow furrowed slightly. It was true that many powerful forces had vanished during the Early Era.
But something didn't add up. The Old Ape had clearly said himself that he was a member of the Battle Ape Tribe.
If the Battle Ape Tribe had disappeared during the Early Era, then how had the Old Ape met Chu Feng's father?
That left only two possibilities...
One was that the Battle Ape Tribe hadn't truly disappeared — they had simply gone into hiding, living under assumed names all along.
The other possibility was that the Old Ape hadn't truly been a member of the Battle Ape Tribe, and he had been lying.
But Chu Feng felt the first possibility was far more likely.
"During the Early Era, many powerful forces suddenly vanished," Little Fishy said. "But there's a theory that they all entered the Primordial Divine Realm."
"Like I said before, aside from those early ancients, the vast cultivation world hadn't produced a Divine Lord realm powerhouse or a Heavenly Dragon Spirit World Master in an extremely long time."
"So there's another theory — that during the Early Era, the energy of heaven and earth was still relatively abundant, but it gradually weakened afterward."
"And some have deduced that the Primordial Divine Realm contains far richer heaven-and-earth energy, so many powerhouses chose to enter it in order to break through their limits."
"Entire clans even migrated into the Primordial Divine Realm en masse."
"Even those who didn't migrate as a whole — almost every major force of that era had at some point sent people into the Primordial Divine Realm."
"But the Primordial Divine Realm, despite having no restrictions on entry, was a place from which no one returned."
"So some say the Primordial Divine Realm not only brims with heaven-and-earth energy, but also holds numerous inheritances from the Primordial Age."
"Thus, everyone who entered had their cultivation soar — the place was simply too good, and those who stepped inside refused to come back."
"But others argued that no matter how wonderful the Primordial Divine Realm might be, it couldn't possibly be so amazing that everyone who entered simply chose not to return. After all, they still had loved ones in the vast cultivation world."
"So there's another possibility — those people didn't refuse to return, but rather couldn't return at all."
"But their legs were their own. How could they possibly be unable to come back?"
"So many people believe that everyone who entered the Ninth Heavenly River died, which is why the Ninth Heavenly River is called the Primordial Purgatory. People are terrified of it and absolutely refuse to set foot inside," Little Fishy sighed.
"So what do you think — is the Ninth Heavenly River the Primordial Divine Realm, or the Primordial Purgatory?" Chu Feng asked.
"I think the Primordial Divine Realm should be a good place, but it probably isn't so good that people who go there wouldn't even want to come back."