"The Nuo Ancestor's mind is perturbed!"
Before the Jade Void Palace, everyone's heart gave a jolt. Immortal fire crept onto Nuo Lu; though his aura forced it back the very next moment, the flames advanced and retreated, drawing near him time and again, showing that his aura was surging in violent fluctuation.
His inner heart was far from calm.
For such an ancient being, who could disrupt his Dao heart with a single sentence?
"Who was that, disrupting the Nuo Ancestor's Dao heart?" Sharp gazes swept around in search of the speaker.
Far too many people had come before the Jade Void Palace to try their luck, every one of them yearning to obtain the immortal medicine. Earlier, all eyes had been fixed upon Nuo Lu, so none had noticed who spoke.
Only a few in the back rows had taken note of Xu Ying, but even they could not be certain whether it had been his shout.
*That sounded like the Grand Supreme Elder's voice!*
In the crowd, Shi Yuqing's heart jumped, a headache blooming in secret. *Why did he call the Nuo Ancestor an old man? He nearly got him killed! Running wild on our Mount Jianmen was one thing, but how could he dare to cause trouble on the holy mountain of Kunlun?*
"Aba, aba." A handsome youth with grass sprouting from the crown of his head was looking all around, brimming with curiosity.
This youth was Lin Tianhua, the current master of the Penglai Pavilion and an extraordinary talent of his generation. Beside him was a formidable great serpent with black and white horns. In his hands, the stately youth carried a bronze bell.
Master Lin's arrival at Jade Void Peak had also been on the orders of his ancestral master, who had already ascended as an immortal, bidding him come to Kunlun in search of an immortal encounter.
"Aba, aba!" Master Lin said with a solemn expression to the great serpent, drawing the stares of those nearby, all wearing looks of astonishment.
"Does the immortal grass of Penglai Pavilion grow right out of their heads?" someone murmured.
A young woman in brocade nearby remarked, "Penglai Pavilion has always walked its own path. Even their speech isn't human tongue. I wonder what profound meaning lies behind this aba?"
Beside Lin Tianhua, the great serpent hurriedly whispered, "Lord Grass, don't just speak up whenever you feel like it. If someone spots the slip-up, it won't be fun anymore."
The big bell in Master Lin's hand also sent a stealthy divine consciousness transmission: "Lord Grass, I was almost ruined by his Golden Script immortal talisman before you got the chance to control him. Don't go fooling around."
That great serpent was none other than Yuan Qi. In a hushed voice, he asked, "Was that Ah Ying who just threw the Nuo Ancestor into chaos?"
The bell replied, "It was his voice. But how could Ah Ying throw the Nuo Ancestor into disarray with just one sentence?"
Yuan Qi worried aloud, "Ah Ying provoked the Nuo Ancestor. When he dies in a moment, his blood won't splatter on us, will it?"
"We'll just hide further away," the bell said.
"Aba." Great Master Lin nodded repeatedly.
Aside from them, several other old acquaintances of Xu Ying also recognized his voice and craned their necks, trying to spot him.
In the crowd, Guo Xiaodie hopped up and down repeatedly, leaping high into the air. The Guo clan ancestor hastily pushed the girl's head down and hissed, "Have you lost your mind? Hop any higher and the Nuo Ancestor might slice your noggin right off! And if he doesn't, someone else will!"
Guo Xiaodie grinned. "I heard Demon King Xu's voice! Ancestor, you heard it too, right?"
Full of worry, the Guo clan ancestor said, "I heard it, which is why you must stop hopping! I suspect that brat has a grudge against the Nuo Ancestor. He unsettled the Nuo Ancestor's Dao heart just now to draw the fire and burn him to death."
He sighed. "Who knows, before long we might even have to place righteousness before kin."
Guo Xiaodie was startled, crying out in shock, "Ancestor, you want to kill the Nuo Ancestor?!"
At those words, countless sharp gazes instantly turned upon them, cold killing intent rising from all directions. The Nuo Ancestor was the progenitor of Nuo methods, the one who created the six secret depositories from nothing to bless countless people. Wanting to kill the Nuo Ancestor meant making an enemy of the entire world!
The Guo clan ancestor jumped out of his skin, blurting out in panic, "Crazy girl, I said placing righteousness before kin!"
Guo Xiaodie blinked. "We are Nuo masters, so naturally we are closer kin to the Nuo Ancestor! Could we possibly be closer to that brat Demon King Xu?"
Knowing he could never win an argument with her, the Guo clan ancestor said earnestly, "Just behave yourself. When Demon King Xu dies shortly and his blood rains down, dip a steamed white bun into some of his blood. Eating it might grant you longevity."
Nuo Ancestor Nuo Lu's gaze was like lightning as he swept his eyes across the crowd, trying to locate Xu Ying. But outside the Jade Void Palace, the sea of people was dense, making it difficult to pinpoint Xu Ying's whereabouts, nor did he know whether that person had truly returned.
"The Ascension immortal medicine is about to emerge into the world, and it is inevitable that heavenly demons will appear to corrupt and confuse people's hearts."
Nuo Lu's gaze illuminated the crowd as his voice rang in everyone's mind: "Be on your guard, everyone. The heavenly demon is among you. When the Ascension immortal medicine appears, he will make his move to snatch it."
*Impressive,* Xu Ying inwardly praised. If anyone discovered right now that he was the one who had disrupted the Nuo Ancestor's Dao heart with a single phrase, he would likely be torn to shreds by the furious mob in the very next instant.
Right then, a voice beside Xu Ying spoke languidly, "Can the Nuo Ancestor who oversees the immortal medicine of the Jade Pool secret depository casually brand someone a heavenly demon?"
Xu Ying looked over. The speaker was a man in his thirties, dignified in bearing, with an air of righteousness and commanding martial presence.
His attire consisted of a yellow upper robe and matching lower skirt, devoid of superfluous emblems or ornate patterns; there was only noble dignity, as though even the plainest clothing exuded greatness when worn by him.
Xu Ying smiled. "Thank you, brother, for speaking up."
The man in yellow chuckled. "I was not speaking up for justice, but rather harboring doubts about the Nuo Ancestor."
By now, Nuo Ancestor Nuo Lu had calmed his mind and was walking toward the Jade Void Palace.
The immortal fire parted to either side. Vaguely visible within the flames were figures standing or sitting in peculiar postures, their numbers increasing the closer one got to the palace.
They were Qi Refiners from the Shang and Zhou eras who had entered this place to harvest immortal medicine, now bathed in the immortal fire, motionless.
Xu Ying felt a stir in his heart and asked, "Why does Your Excellency harbor doubts about the Nuo Ancestor?"
Xu Ying doubted the Nuo Ancestor because Nuo methods were clearly the source of the Undying People's immortality; the true origin of Nuo arts was undoubtedly the Undying People. Yet the six Nuo ancestors had claimed them for their own, proclaiming to the outside world that they were the progenitors of Nuo arts.
Xu Ying had ample reason to doubt the six Nuo ancestors, but what reason did this man in yellow have?
The man in yellow replied, "Do you see those people within the immortal fire? When attempting to enter the immortal palace, they were scorched by the fire and forced to seal off all their senses and apertures, plunging themselves into insensibility to prevent the immortal fire from invading their bodies."
Xu Ying looked toward the people in the flames, recalling how Zhu Chanchan had also once been bathed in immortal fire outside an immortal palace, her entire cultivation burned dry. Had Pei Du not rescued her, she surely would have burned to death in that sea of flames.
"The immortal fire is the flame used to refine the great medicine of Ascension, carrying the aroma of medicinal herbs within its flames. By absorbing this medicinal aroma, Qi Refiners gradually accumulated copious amounts of immortal medicine inside their bodies. They used this as a means to attain longevity, hoping to elude death and achieve immortality, coexisting with the world."
The man in yellow sighed with emotion. "Yet once bathed in the immortal fire, they discovered they were merely squandering their years. Sealing away all self-awareness like this—even if one remains alive, what meaning is there in it?"
His speech was extraordinary, his words seemingly laden with deeper implication, piquing Xu Ying's interest.
Xu Ying smiled. "Your Excellency seems to know the other shore very well. I am Xu Ying. May I ask how to address you?"
"My name is Ji Man," the man in yellow answered. "I have visited all six other shores and gathered medicine there. Under my banner was a heavenly artisan named Zhu Chanchan. She was exceedingly capable, using the leftover scraps of materials I gave her to forge a boat for me, allowing me to carry several thousand grand masters of the Ascension stage across to the other shore."
Xu Ying blinked, instantly knowing Ji Man's background.
*He is the Son of Heaven of Zhou! Just as Feng Yao and Qingluan suspected, the Son of Heaven of Zhou mingled among the crowd and came to Mount Kunlun as well!*
Looking toward Nuo Ancestor Nuo Lu, who was attempting to open the gates of Jade Void Palace, the Son of Heaven of Zhou said, "Perhaps my fortune was vast as heaven, or perhaps Heavenly Artisan Zhu's craft was truly exceptional, for that boat actually carried several thousand of us from one shore to the next."
The expression on his face was rather peculiar, carrying fear, excitement, and the joy of having survived a calamity.
"We never imagined that rickety boat could return us alive. We even suspected it would turn to ashes in the immortal fire of the very first other shore. In those days, we stood on the boat day after day, cursing Heavenly Artisan Zhu and wishing her an untimely death. When the boat carried us toward the second other shore, many knelt on the deck, praying it wouldn't fall apart."
The Son of Heaven of Zhou muttered, "Yet to our astonishment, not only did it carry us through all six other shores, it even brought us all the way back. It even helped us evade the lethal ambushes of heavenly demons on our return journey, letting us steer clear of them. Only after the boat returned to Haojing did it completely disintegrate."
He shook his head. "Brother Xu, you didn't see the civil and military court kneeling before the wreckage of the Divine Boat of the Other Shore, weeping bitter tears. They couldn't bear to let the boat go, yet they knew it had exhausted every shred of its power and could not be restored. To the point where even when We wished to slice Heavenly Artisan Zhu into ten thousand pieces, We felt somewhat reluctant."
Xu Ying remarked with feeling, "A person as talented as Heavenly Artisan Zhu—no one could bear to kill her."
The Son of Heaven of Zhou nodded. "Yet the moment I saw the Haojing she forged for me, the urge to kill her flared up all over again."
Remembering the bell, Xu Ying thoroughly agreed. In his two and a half years of tomb raiding, he had accumulated who knew how much treasure, all handed over to Zhu Chanchan—yet the big bell was still made of bronze! At the very least, she could have added some gold and silver!
Nuo Lu had already entered the Jade Void Palace. A medicinal fragrance that refreshed the heart and lungs wafted from the palace; smelling it made one feel light and ethereal, and cultivation continuously rose and expanded!
Just then, a flurry of cries broke out. Xu Ying and the Son of Heaven of Zhou hastily looked over, only to see a figure storming into the immortal fire!
"A heavenly demon is trying to seize the immortal medicine!"
Enraged, people charged toward the Jade Void Palace as well. But as soon as the immortal fire touched many of them, they turned to ashes on the spot with nothing left behind, scaring the rest into retreating!
The figure that had plunged into the sea of flames was graceful and agile, drifting like an immortal. She summoned a black coffin, remarkably drawing the immortal fire straight into it!
"Qingbi!"
Xu Ying gasped, instantly understanding Fairy Qingbi's intention. *She intends to use the immortal fire to smelt away her cultivation realms and cultivate anew from scratch!*
Fairy Qingbi's cultivation had already reached the peak of the Ascension stage. Having cultivated immortal arts, it was practically impossible for her to make further progress along the path of Qi Refinement.
If she wished to take another step forward, she had to abolish five of her realms: Chonglou, Jade Pool, God Bridge, the third Pass-Breaching stage, and the Ascension stage!
She had to begin cultivating from the second Pass-Breaching stage—or if she had no immortal artifact, she would even need to abolish the second Pass-Breaching stage as well to ensure she could open the Six Secret Depositories of the Human Body!
*Her Dao heart is truly steadfast.* Admiration welled up unbidden in Xu Ying's heart.
The Son of Heaven of Zhou looked toward Fairy Qingbi in the sea of fire and praised, "This woman is an outstanding talent. She intends to borrow the immortal fire to smelt away her cultivation and dual-cultivate both Nuo and Qi."
Resuming their earlier topic, he continued, "When we reached the other shore back then to harvest immortal medicine, we discovered that many Qi Refiners had arrived before us; we were by no means the first to enter the other shore. However, over the vast expanse of time, their cultivations had all been smelted away by the immortal fire, leaving them with scarcely any cultivation remaining. They had been burned dry by the immortal fire."
Xu Ying said, "When we rescued Heavenly Artisan Zhu back then, we discovered that barely any of her cultivation remained. Even the realms she had cultivated had been burned away."
"Some experts from the Great Shang era, even those of longstanding renown, had already burned to ashes," the Son of Heaven of Zhou said. "Lacking cultivation and having nothing but bodies full of immortal medicine, they couldn't leave the other shore even if they wanted to, leaving them no fate but to burn to death. People who burned to death like that were countless."
Xu Ying asked, "How many?"
The Son of Heaven of Zhou repeated, "Countless."
Xu Ying frowned, about to ask again, but the Son of Heaven of Zhou had already explained, "None of those who went to the other shore returned alive; all were burned to death. However many went, that many died. Starting with me, Ascension-stage Qi Refiners who ascended to the other shore might still manage to survive, but those who ascended to the other shore before me were all burned to ashes, without a single exception!"
Xu Ying sucked in a cold breath of air.
"Before my time, Kunlun appeared once every three thousand years, and the emperors of those ages would journey to Kunlun to offer sacrifices to their ancestors."
The Son of Heaven of Zhou's gaze was somber. "Sacrificing to the ancestors at Kunlun was the duty of great emperors throughout history; anyone who had not gone to Kunlun to worship the ancestors could not be called a Great Emperor. This custom can be traced back to the ancient era when becoming an immortal was still possible. Some history is simply too distant, and even the library of my Great Zhou holds only scattered records. I hear that some later emperors considered offering sacrifices to Heaven and Earth at Mount Tai as sacrificing to their ancestors, and even dared to style themselves Great Emperors. How laughable."
Xu Ying blinked, involuntarily thinking of Zulong, Zhao Zheng.
Evidently, the Son of Heaven of Zhou was mocking Zulong's Fengshan sacrifices at Mount Tai. Yet the Mount Tai sacrifices had truly been an act of helplessness on Zulong's part, for Kunlun had vanished into concealment back then, leaving Zulong unable to find it and with no choice but to offer sacrifices to Heaven at Mount Tai.
The Son of Heaven of Zhou's expression turned cold. "Before my Great Zhou, there were the Shang, Xia, and Yu dynasties. Exactly how many Qi Refiners journeyed to the other shore under the guidance of the six Nuo ancestors during those eras is impossible to know. That is why I say they are countless."
With a solemn countenance, Xu Ying asked, "Did not a single Qi Refiner from those dynasties ever return?"
The Son of Heaven of Zhou shook his head. "The Qi Refiners you see right now within the immortal fire outside Jade Void Palace are all from the era of my Great Zhou."
"Why did the Nuo ancestors trick these Ascension-stage Qi Refiners into going to the other shore?" Xu Ying murmured.
The Son of Heaven of Zhou said, "That is also something We wish to know. I also want to find out whether the immortal medicine they claimed ripens once every three thousand years is truly real. Brother Xu, we now live in an era of great transformation, a time when talents are sorely needed. As the saying goes, a fine bird chooses its tree to roost."
He turned around and looked at Xu Ying, his gaze earnest and sincere. "We are no autocrat, unlike that autocrat of later generations who built his mausoleum beside My Haojing! I forged Haojing to bring the entire imperial court into Ascension! I intend for everyone to ascend! Grand Preceptor Jiang told me you possess great talent. Come to Haojing and assist Me!"
"No," Xu Ying flatly refused.
The Son of Heaven of Zhou's face sank.
Xu Ying said, "In my eyes, you are no different from that autocrat. You are merely taking a pack of autocrats along with you to ascend."
The Son of Heaven of Zhou sighed. "Brother Xu, speaking like that will easily cost you your head."
Xu Ying said calmly, "Where are the generals and chancellors of past and present now? Upon three-foot burial mounds, one hears only the wailing of ghosts. Throughout the ages, emperors like you have all died off, while I, Xu Ying, still endure in this world. And my head has never once rolled."
Chapter 245