The primary tomb held the Ancient Qiongqi, a being revered as the mightiest Qiongqi in existence. The burial chamber was lavishly adorned, displaying all manner of rare treasures and ancient magical treasures, as though the Ancient Qiongqi could come back to life at any moment, wielding these artifacts in battle to slay his foes.
If even a single one of these treasures were put up for auction, the auction house would need to spend half a year preparing and publicizing it far and wide before offering it as the grand finale to fetch an astronomical price.
Even with Lu Yang's and Meng Jingzhou's discerning eyes, they could not identify the origins of these items and had no choice but to ask Third Senior Sister to explain.
Fortunately, Lu Yang had two ears. His left ear could listen to Third Senior Sister's explanations, while his right ear listened to the Immortal Fairy's.
Three identical, glowing spirit grasses grew upon the wall, teeming with tenacious vitality.
"Kunlun grass. Legend has it that it can improve one's root bone, cleanse the tendons, and scour the marrow. It even has a one-in-three chance of turning someone into a Kunlun Immortal Physique, which hasn't appeared in ten thousand years!"
"Kunlun grass. Eat too much of it and you turn into a Kunlun Immortal Physique. Utterly useless. The Kunlun Immortal Physique is the trashiest of all Immortal Physiques—the very first Immortal Physique this immortal ever beat up was one of those."
A feather radiating pure white light rested inside a person-sized seashell, both appearing extraordinary.
"A Qiongqi feather—the plume from the very center of the Ancient Qiongqi's back. Legend says that by holding this feather, one can request assistance from any race allied under the Demon Race Covenant. What's more, the feather contains a mantra spoken by the Ancient Qiongqi. Anyone who hears this mantra must agree to the conditions put forward by the Qiongqi Clan."
"A Qiongqi feather—just a hair the old Qiongqi plucked from his back, grimacing in pain for ages afterward. Holding this thing lets you ask other demon races for help, but only the Qiongqi Clan can use it. To use it, you drip blood onto it and activate it with magic power. The feather then plays the old Qiongqi's voice: 'Show me some face.'"
A palm-sized black miniature mountain stood upon the floor. It was extraordinarily heavy, warping the surrounding space. If not for the reinforcement of formations, the area would likely have collapsed into a black hole long ago.
"Mount Buzhou essence. Legend has it that during ancient times, two mighty figures controlling water and fire engaged in an epochal clash over celestial ascension. Water and fire collided, volcanoes erupted, oceans turned to magma, and stars shattered into countless meteors. In the end, the master of fire emerged victorious. In a fit of rage, the master of water rammed into Mount Buzhou and toppled it. When Mount Buzhou collapsed, the mountain essence was born."
"Mount Buzhou essence. You remember that Golden Core cultivator who could produce saltwater, right? He had decent luck, managing to cultivate all the way to the Tribulation Transcendence stage. Then he had a clash with the peerless talent of the Phoenix Clan, and the two threw hands. They smashed quite a few celestial bodies to pieces! The Phoenix prodigy had received pointers on a few moves from this immortal and was an absolute beast in a fight. Flustered and desperate from losing, that saltwater Golden Core rammed right into Mount Buzhou and knocked this thing out."
"Is this the core of Mount Buzhou?"
"No, his head was just that hard. He literally compressed Mount Buzhou into a piece this small with his skull."
Lu Yang was speechless.
All of these treasures were sealed. If one were disturbed in the slightest, the Qiongqi Clan would detect it, locking down the entire Qiongqi Tomb so that no grave robber could ever escape.
Just as Third Senior Sister had said, she was here for archaeological research, not grave robbery, and felt no greed toward any of these objects.
At the very center of the primary tomb rested a massive, pitch-black coffin. Rather than a coffin, it looked more like a giant black vessel cut off from the mortal world, capable of ferrying across the River of the Underworld to live another life.
"This is hundred-thousand-year Netherwood, the finest material for a coffin. It isolates all divine sense probes," Third Senior Sister said.
"This immortal remembers that stuff. The old Qiongqi bought it from Immortal Suiyue. Immortal Suiyue used the Tree Planting Art and the Suiyue Dao fruit at the same time to turn a little sapling into hundred-thousand-year Netherwood."
"The older heavenly materials and earthly treasures are, the greater their value. People often asked Immortal Suiyue to age their treasures. Sometimes, when he aged them too much, he could even produce a Little Medicine King."
Immortal Suiyue cast the orthodox Tree Planting Art; Lu Yang could hardly compare himself to the man.
As she spoke, the Immortal Fairy extended her immortal sense to examine the black coffin. As a peer from the ancient era, she wanted to know whether the old Qiongqi was actually dead or alive.
How could there be anything under the heavens capable of blocking immortal sense?
"A pity, he really has passed away," the Immortal Fairy sighed. An old acquaintance lay in the coffin not far away; she could not describe the feeling.
Without condensing a complete Dao fruit, one's lifespan was ultimately limited. The old Qiongqi had suffered no external injuries; he had died of old age.
Even so, she wasn't overly sorrowful. She had never been particularly close to the old Qiongqi. Moreover, the old Qiongqi had frequently eaten people, stopping only when the era of the Five Ancient Celestials arrived.
That was why she had refused to help when the old Qiongqi asked her to extend his life.
"Look here, there's writing," Lu Yang whispered, pointing at a line of small characters near the bottom of the wall.
"'Meng Potian was here.' Who is Meng Potian?"
Meng Jingzhou looked a little embarrassed. "My dad."
When Clan Head Meng was young, he had believed in reading ten thousand books and traveling ten thousand li, journeying far and wide, and had left his footsteps across the Demon Domain as well.
Given his old man's personality, leaving a line of graffiti here was entirely on brand.
Third Senior Sister nodded. "The Qiongqi Clan discovered this line of writing as well."
Meng Jingzhou: "..."
Why is the Demon Domain even more dangerous than I imagined?
Wait, no, I ran away from home. I shouldn't count as a member of the Meng Family.
Lu Yang patted Meng Jingzhou on the shoulder with utmost loyalty. "Don't worry. If the Qiongqi Clan discovers us, I'll toss you out to buy us time."
"That wouldn't happen. The Qiongqi Clan won't do anything to Junior Brother Meng."
Lu Yang was astonished. He hadn't expected the Qiongqi Clan to be so noble and upright as to repay malice with kindness.
"It's hardly repaying malice with kindness. Several hundred years ago, the Qiongqi Clan was in a rush to cause trouble for the Meng Family too, but they ran into trouble of their own and had no spare attention to deal with the Meng Family."
"What trouble did the Qiongqi Clan have?"
Lu Yang wondered inwardly if a massive war had broken out in the Demon Domain several hundred years ago, with the Qiongqi Clan joining the fray, getting caught between enemies, and struggling just to survive. Or had internal strife erupted within the clan, such as two Qiongqi fighting over the position of patriarch?
Third Senior Sister explained, "The Qiongqi Clan was born with a fate of poverty. Several hundred years ago, they lost a huge sum of money in bad business ventures, stirring widespread discontent in the clan. If the Meng Family hadn't granted them a loan, the Qiongqi Clan probably wouldn't have survived that crisis.
"I hear they only finished paying off the debt fifty years ago. Junior Brother Meng, as the young master of the Meng Family, if the Qiongqi Clan learned who you were, they would probably treat you with great courtesy. If you wanted to be buried in the Qiongqi Tomb, they'd likely even agree."
Only then did Meng Jingzhou breathe a sigh of relief. It turned out being from the Meng Family didn't only draw aggro.
Lu Yang gave Meng Jingzhou a side-eye. You rascal, your Meng Family identity sure is flexible.
Third Senior Sister bowed three times toward the black coffin with poised posture and a respectful demeanor; proper etiquette had to be observed.
"Senior Qiongqi, forgive the offense."
When disturbing someone else's burial goods, one couldn't simply snatch them; that would breach propriety.
She walked over to a corner of the primary tomb, carefully wrapping a clay jar in magic power and lifting it up.
This clay jar was the lowest-grade burial item here, not even qualifying as a magical treasure. Its only purpose was decoration.
The few illustrations painted on the clay jar puzzled her greatly.
"Junior Brother, take a look at this clay jar."
Chapter 578