Ninth Layer of the Golden Core!

Inside the Qiongqi Tomb, two figures—one large and one small—stood silently before the black coffin, neither saying a word. In the pitch-black darkness, the oily green gleam reflected in their pupils added a touch of dread. Had an elder of the Qiongqi Clan been present, they would have recognized the larger figure as a living fossil of the clan, the most senior being alive: an old Qiongqi at the Tribulation Transcendence stage who had lived for nine thousand years. Yet strangely enough, between these two figures, this Tribulation Transcendence living fossil stood slightly behind the other, displaying absolute deference toward the petite figure without the slightest sign of overstepping. The petite figure gently caressed the sealed funerary objects. To one's surprise, the relics produced low humming sounds, as though eager to burst through the seals and fight alongside their master. "It is not yet time," the petite figure murmured softly. Hearing their master's command, the burial items quieted down. Clan Head Jin scrambled into the tomb chamber on all fours. As he neared the main burial mound, his pace slowed, and he gradually took on human form. Seeing the two figures, he halted and bowed deeply. "Little Ancestor, I have seen off the people from the Meng Family and the Dao Seeking Sect. The young master of the Meng Family promised that once he returns, he will speak to his father about lending us spirit stones." The figure addressed as Little Ancestor turned around, revealing a petite young girl who appeared around thirteen or fourteen years old. The girl nodded, looking quite pleased with Clan Head Jin's handling of the matter. "That is good news indeed." "With the arrival of the Golden Age, that old fellow from the Dijiang Clan can no longer hold back. He wants to unify the Demon Domain and seize the upper hand." "His rudimentary Dao fruit is indeed suited for this sort of ambition. Our Qiongqi Clan has no need to copy others. There is still some time before the true Golden Age arrives. What all of you need to do during this period is raise your own realms." "Yes," Clan Head Jin and the living fossil replied in unison, their eyes brimming with suppressed excitement. The struggle of the Golden Age was on a scale comparable to ancient times. If anyone today understood the conditions of antiquity best, it was undoubtedly Little Ancestor. Then, as if a thought had suddenly crossed his mind, Clan Head Jin hesitated. "If you have something to say, speak freely." "Little Ancestor, with the strength of our Qiongqi Clan, can we truly develop enough to be qualified to contest for opportunities in the struggle of the Golden Age alongside behemoths like Great Xia and the Buddhist Kingdom?" The young girl rolled her eyes, her expression carrying a hint of exasperation over his lack of ambition. "I never said we had to fight for first place. Is making the top ten not good enough?" "Oh." *** In the black market, fish and dragons mingled, and street rumors flew thick and fast. As long as one was willing to spend money, there was virtually no intelligence that could not be obtained. Inside a tavern, two black-robed figures whose faces were shrouded in darkness sat conversing. This was the most common attire in the black market. "Have you heard about the Demonic Sound Heavenly Maiden?" "What kind of question is that? Who hasn't heard of her? The moment her ancient zither sounds, tens of millions of sonic threads slice demons into shreds without leaving a single intact chunk of meat. That female fiend is on every clan's wanted list. If anyone could capture her, the combined bounties would make even Body Integration experts green with envy! If I only had the strength, I'd want to capture her myself!" "Come on, who asked you about that stale old news? What I'm asking about is the two attendants who appeared beside the Demonic Sound Heavenly Maiden four months ago." "Two attendants? To tell you the truth, brother, I've been in closed-door cultivation for the past six months and haven't paid attention to that." "Buy me a drink, and I'll fill you in." "Waiter, bring two jars of your finest monkey wine!" The man's nostrils twitched as he caught the aroma of the wine. Chuckling, he finally began: "I won't say much about the Demonic Sound Heavenly Maiden herself—everyone knows that already. Just four months ago, two attendants suddenly appeared by her side. Both are humans, at the late Nascent Soul stage." "Ever since she gained those two attendants, news of her appearances has become even more frequent. She constantly enters and leaves the ancestral tombs of various tribes. By the time anyone discovers them, it's already too late; they've long vanished without a trace." "Even when caught on the spot, the Heavenly Maiden has plenty of ways to escape with her two attendants, leaving those tribes stamping their feet in sheer fury." "I've heard that the tomb keepers of some tribes actually welcome the Heavenly Maiden's arrival. They stole plenty of burial goods themselves and can shift the blame onto her once she comes." "Too bad the Heavenly Maiden looks down on tribes like that. The ones she targets all boast heritages spanning over three hundred thousand years, with ancient backgrounds." "Rumor has it that her next target is the Zhuyan Clan. She even sent an advance notice!" "That brazen?! The Zhuyan Clan is guarded by a Tribulation Transcendence ancestor! Just what is this Demonic Sound Heavenly Maiden's background?" "My guess is that she might be the personal disciple of Great Xia's Thief Ancestor, sent to our Demon Domain for a trial." By this point, the patrons in the tavern had crowded around the two, all listening intently to the tales of the Demonic Sound Heavenly Maiden. One of them frowned and chimed in, "Why did the rumors I heard say that the Heavenly Maiden's two attendants introduced themselves to the Insect Clan by claiming they were from the Five Elements Sect?" "Don't talk nonsense! As one of the Five Great Immortal Sects, the Five Elements Sect acts honorably and uprightly. How could they stoop to something as vile as grave-robbing?" "So what if they're one of the Five Great Immortal Sects? Isn't the Dao Seeking Sect also one of the five?" While the crowd squabbled over the Demonic Sound Heavenly Maiden's background, the black-robed figure who had shared the rumors quietly slipped away and emerged outside the black market. "Senior Sister, we're back." The figure lifted his hood, revealing Meng Jingzhou. "How did the intelligence gathering go?" "I pretended to be an insider and spouted nonsense for ages. Everyone in the tavern was eating it up. It looks like they still don't know our identities or location." Lu Yang soon emerged from another exit of the black market, joined Third Senior Sister, and reported his findings. "I tried to buy information from the Baize Clan regarding our identities and whereabouts. The Baize Clan said they only had speculations, no solid intelligence. Seeing that they didn't know, I just came back." Third Senior Sister was speechless. *I gave you two spirit stones to gather intelligence in the black market, and neither of you spent a single stone.* Over the past four months, the three of them had raided tombs to explore ancient history while cultivating, and both Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou had progressed at breakneck speed. Nine layers of the Golden Core, each step ascending the heavens. The two of them had already climbed from the eighth layer of the Golden Core to the ninth, standing a mere half-step away from that legendary, elusive Nascent Soul stage! Just as the three of them were verifying their own intelligence and confirming their safety, a shocking piece of news spread across the Demon Domain, reverberating throughout the entire cultivation world. Ancient Dijiang had emerged into the world! Hundreds of large tribes had submitted, venerating him as the Demon Emperor and establishing the Demon Empire. Ancient Dijiang had declined three times before reluctantly agreeing to the pleas of the demon populace. The Dijiang Clan was currently erecting temporary palaces in full swing and making intensive preparations for the Emperor Enthronement Ceremony. Ancient Dijiang had sent out invitations far and wide: the Qiongqi Clan, the Dragon Clan, the Phoenix Clan, Great Xia, the Five Great Immortal Sects, the Buddhist Kingdom, the East Sea... Every major faction received an invitation from Ancient Dijiang to attend the Emperor Enthronement Ceremony. "So many demon tribes have submitted?" The Immortal Fairy was somewhat surprised. *That was fast. Does he think that because there are no immortals in the present age, he can just let himself run wild?* One characteristic of the rudimentary Law of the Jungle Dao fruit was that the more powerhouses one controlled, the stronger one became. "Those large tribes definitely possess Body Integration or Tribulation Transcendence experts. By controlling so many Demon Kings and Demon Emperors, Ancient Dijiang's strength is probably even greater than it was in ancient times, putting him on par with Old Qiongqi. He stands in the strongest tier among half-immortals. No wonder he dares to proclaim himself emperor."