It had to be said, Divine Lord Kasyapa's news completely stunned Jiang Chen, leaving him unable to collect his thoughts for a long while.
He had known that the Endless Prison had held many powerful cultivators since ancient times. But he had never imagined there were quite so many.
The number of Divine Dao cultivators alone was staggering.
There were even existences more powerful than Divine Lord Kasyapa himself. Though Jiang Chen didn't know exactly how powerful Divine Lord Kasyapa was, his instincts told him that the latter's cultivation was on par with the Holy Ancestor of the Eternal Holy Land—if not beyond.
The thought of beings even stronger than Divine Lord Kasyapa was enough to give Jiang Chen a headache.
Myriad Abyss Island was going to descend into chaos, and the entire Divine Abyss Continent might follow.
Once Myriad Abyss Island could no longer satisfy these cultivators' appetites, they would inevitably return to the mainland, back to the various great territories.
If that happened, the situation would become even more destabilized.
This was different from the ancient era. Back then, at least the various territories and races had been united in their stance against the Demon Race invasion. Even if many lacked the courage to resist the demons and chose to flee, they hadn't actively caused trouble or deliberately harmed the Divine Abyss Continent.
Of course, some had defected to the demons, but overall the number was small. And many of those so-called defections had been cases of capture—forced surrender with no other choice.
When Jiang Chen thought these problems through carefully, his head ached.
However, this was hardly the first time he had faced such a predicament. From the very beginning of his journey, whether in the Eastern Kingdom, the Tiangui Kingdom, the Treasure Tree Sect, Danqian Palace, or even the Glazed Royal City, he had never once started from a position of advantage.
At least now, he held a considerable number of cards in hand.
The situation was difficult, but perhaps no more difficult than before.
Divine Lord Kasyapa, seeing the shifting emotions in Jiang Chen's eyes, knew that this young man harbored not the slightest intention of yielding to reality.
He sighed softly. "Jiang Chen, if not for my granddaughter's deep feelings for you, I would never have offered you this advice. Look after yourself."
Jiang Chen smiled candidly. "Senior, let's wait and see. You tried to convince me today—who knows, perhaps one day you'll be the one I convince?"
Divine Lord Kasyapa blinked in surprise, then burst out laughing. "If you could convince me, that would be fine indeed. I too hope that one day I might return to the fiery passions of youth, setting aside all distractions to fight wholeheartedly for my dreams."
At this point, it was clear that neither would sway the other.
Still, a man of Divine Lord Kasyapa's stature would never antagonize someone simply over a difference of opinion. In truth, he genuinely admired Jiang Chen.
Seeing Jiang Chen rise to take his leave, Divine Lord Kasyapa smiled faintly, a glint of appreciation in his eyes. In this young man, he could faintly see a shadow of his own younger self.
"Divine Lord, this junior takes his leave." Jiang Chen bowed respectfully.
"No rush, no rush." Divine Lord Kasyapa laughed freely. "The Endless Prison may have accumulated a fair bit of violent energy in me, but after I destroyed the Yan family, that energy has been largely purged. Don't tell me you're afraid I might harm you?"
"I wouldn't dare even think it." Jiang Chen chuckled. He truly hadn't entertained that thought, and he could tell that Divine Lord Kasyapa was, above all, a man who valued dignity and decorum.
Besides, with Huang'er around, Divine Lord Kasyapa would never act against him—unless there was an irreconcilable grudge between them.