Several elders of the Spiritual Void Cave Heaven made their move against Pang Bo. One of them surged a wave of red light from his body — it formed into a great crimson net, each strand crystalline and gleaming with a brilliant red radiance, as though it had been tempered from red agate — and swept it down toward Pang Bo.
At this moment, Pang Bo’s face was ashen and devoid of expression — only his eyes burned with a ghostly green light. He spread both arms wide in a gesture of bracing against the heavens above, straining upward, trying to tear apart the red net.
Another elder’s body erupted with a burst of violet light. A purple-gold Eight Trigrams Mirror appeared in his hand. He turned it over and directed it at Pang Bo, and violet brilliance blazed out in all directions — a brilliant, intense purple radiance immediately engulfed Pang Bo, holding him fixed in place, hazy violet mist swirling all around him.
“Swish!”
The red net descended smoothly, enveloping Pang Bo within it and binding him firmly in place. Elder Wu Qingfeng stepped forward, two fingers pressed together like a sword, radiance cascading from them, and used divine power to seal Pang Bo — leaving him unable to stir even the slightest bit.
The thing Ye Fan had worried about most was Pang Bo. Seeing the several elders subdue him — and the old man Elder Wu Qingfeng appearing calm and composed, even letting a faint smile show at the end — Ye Fan immediately let out a breath he had been holding. He judged that there should be no great problem.
“Boom!”
The dull, muffled sound rang out once more from within the volcano’s crater. This time Ye Fan was prepared — he channeled the mysterious method recorded in the Dao Scripture, and the golden point of light within his Bitter Sea instantly flowed out threads of divine radiance, streaming toward his heart. In an instant he felt a great deal better — not nearly as painful as the previous times.
Ye Fan observed carefully and found that every one of the super-powerful ferocious birds and beasts involuntarily shuddered, and the dozen-odd elders from the Spiritual Void Cave Heaven also stiffened momentarily — all of them affected. This surprised him considerably. Having consumed the sacred fruit and drunk from the divine spring, he had truly undergone a complete rebirth and transformation. Setting aside cultivation level and the wheel of life and the Bitter Sea — speaking purely of his current physical body — he seemed to be not much inferior to those elders.
“Boom — boom — boom!”
Three more dull rumbles rang out in quick succession, with very short intervals between them. The lava within the volcano’s crater surged and churned, and wave upon wave of blazing radiance shot up into the sky — turning the black night into something resembling white day.
At that moment, the lava flowed and began to pour out over the crater’s rim. That luminous, crystalline ancient hall rose directly upward, emanating a powerful life force.
On the volcano’s slope, the Sect Master of the Spiritual Void Cave Heaven and the four Grand Elder Patriarchs all erupted with radiance from their bodies and slowly pressed forward. On the other side, the several great demons who had taken human form simultaneously took a stride forward as well — undaunted by the surging lava, eyes fixed unblinkingly on the ancient hall — until they reached the edge of the crater and turned to sweep their gazes over the human cultivators.
Among them, the great man whose arms were covered in scales bellowed at the Sect Master of the Spiritual Void Cave Heaven, “You humans have gone too far! The Primordial Ruins were divided in two — you already hold the Spiritual Void Cave Heaven. Now you come to our territory to compete for the Immortal Repository. Are you looking to start a war?”
In the distance, the towering, three-meter giant with the pair of bull horns likewise let loose a booming voice. “If you want a battle — come and try to touch this ancient hall, and see what happens!”
The Sect Master of the Spiritual Void Cave Heaven and the four Grand Elder Patriarchs showed no fear. One of them stepped forward and said, “These ruins were left behind by the human race. Now that a great treasure has appeared, it is entirely reasonable for us to come and seek our fortune here. What is wrong with that?”
“These Primordial Ruins are our dwelling place — we naturally cannot allow you to come and seize our treasures here!” The young woman with no arms, only golden wings and a full head of golden hair, called out sharply. “If you insist on reaching for it — do not blame us for being inhospitable!”
“These ruins are the legacy left by the human race. You are merely living here on borrowed ground — how can you presume to lay claim to them as your own?” The Sect Master of the Spiritual Void Cave Heaven showed no fear. Though his voice was calm, it radiated a suppressive and awe-inducing force.
“The ancestors of our Jiao dragon clan left a clear teaching: this place was never the homeland of your human race. It was the Imperial Capital of the demon race at the height of their power — everything here has not the slightest connection to you.” The old Jiao dragon — though it had not taken human form — was nonetheless capable of human speech, and its power was no weaker than the others around it. It simply had no aptitude for shedding its beast form. “This is not possible — every last structure here bears the style of human architecture. What does it have to do with the demon race?” one of the Grand Elder Patriarchs of the Spiritual Void Cave Heaven challenged.
Both sides argued, neither yielding an inch — all of it for the sake of the ancient hall in the lava.
“Boom!”
The ancient hall gave off its dull, muffled sound again at intervals. Even the several great demons and the Sect Master of the Spiritual Void Cave Heaven, at such close range, found it difficult to bear — their expressions all somewhat strained.
The boiling lava — a red of vivid, lurid, almost intoxicating vibrancy, surging outward like bright crimson blood — continued to flow. That luminous, crystalline ancient hall rose slowly upward, gradually nearing the rim of the volcano’s crater. A brilliant radiance flowed from it, five-colored divine light flickering — the burial mound of the last demon race sovereign was on the verge of completely reemerging into the world.
One of the great demons was about to step forward — but the old Jiao dragon stopped him. “We have already waited several days. Can we not afford this little more time? Let it break through the ancient seal on its own — do not interfere, lest something go wrong.”
“Demon script — these are the written characters of the demon race!” At that moment, the towering, three-meter giant with the pair of bull horns suddenly let out a great cry. “Look! These are the Imperial Characters of the demon race — they must be the legacy of a Demon Emperor!”
The entire ancient hall was consecrated from five-colored divine jade, translucent and crystalline all over — radiant and gleaming, extraordinarily wondrous and mysterious. Carved into its very foundation were numerous ancient characters: some shaped like dragons and phoenixes, some resembling black tortoise and qilin — these were the Imperial Characters of the demon race from before the Primordial Age.
“Human beings — what more is there to say? Leave at once. This was left by a great Demon Emperor of our demon race from before the Primordial Age — it has nothing whatsoever to do with you.”
At this moment, the ancient hall blazed with divine radiance and pulsed with a boundlessly vast and awe-inspiring force. Five-colored divine brilliance swirled all around it — extraordinary and magnificent beyond words.
The Sect Master of the Spiritual Void Cave Heaven heard these words, and his expression first shifted — then he fixed his gaze on the ancient hall and stared with careful attention. Finally, it was as though something clicked in his mind. His face was overcome with an expression of extraordinary agitation. “I understand now — this is the burial ground of the final great Demon Emperor of the Eastern Wasteland!”
The several great demons heard these words — and every one of them changed color. All of them stared at that five-colored ancient hall, scrutinizing it with great seriousness and care, their expressions filled with uncertainty and doubt.
The old Jiao dragon reared up straight, craning half its body forward. Its expression was grave and heavy. At last, its voice trembled as it spoke, “Indeed — this is the mausoleum of our demon race’s great Demon Emperor — identical to what the ancestors described.”
Not one person present had anticipated it: the ancient hall built from five-colored divine jade was the burial mound of the demon race’s final sovereign, hidden deep beneath the volcano. Not until this day — when its seals finally began to loosen and it surged upward with the boiling lava — had it once again seen the light of day.
“The final sovereign who unified the demon race of the Eastern Wasteland — it is him — it must be him!” The Sect Master of the Spiritual Void Cave Heaven kept murmuring to himself, his expression somewhat dazed.
The several great demons present were immediately emboldened. The old Jiao dragon called out, “You know full well — this is the burial mound of our demon race’s final Divine Emperor. It has nothing to do with your human race. Withdraw at once.” Every one of the other great demons erupted with a boundless and immeasurable power — a towering, sky-filling demonic aura surged skyward, instantly blotting out the entire expanse of stars. The air was filled with a pervasive killing chill.
The Sect Master of the Spiritual Void Cave Heaven collected himself. He seemed even more agitated than the great demons themselves — his voice trembling as he spoke, “Though this is the burial mound of the Demon Emperor, it holds a great treasure of the human race. Today is the right moment for it to be reclaimed.”
“Nonsense! The burial mound of our demon race’s Divine Emperor — how could it contain a great treasure of your human race? You are plainly here to ransack our Demon Emperor’s mausoleum!”
All the great demons showed fury. One after another they pressed forward, blocking the Sect Master of the Spiritual Void Cave Heaven — ready to strike at any moment.
The Sect Master of the Spiritual Void Cave Heaven’s expression returned to calm. “Everything I have said is the truth. In the ancient past, the final great Demon Emperor of the Eastern Wasteland, whose power reached to the foundations of all creation, unified the demon race of the Eastern Wasteland — which had been fragmented for tens of thousands of years — and posed an enormous threat to the human race of the Eastern Wasteland. It was in that period that a supreme treasure of the Eastern Wasteland’s human race went missing. It is said that it was seized by the Demon Emperor. As for the legendary divine scripture of the Eastern Wasteland — the Dao Scripture — it was also split apart in that time, and an extremely crucial volume went missing. In later ages, there was evidence pointing to the fact that all of this was the work of that Demon Emperor of the demon race. It follows that the supreme treasure of the Eastern Wasteland, as well as the most crucial volume of the Dao Scripture, are here — and today is the day they come back into the light!”
At these words, all the great demons were stunned — and then their eyes blazed with a burning, consuming radiance. Even though the demon race could not cultivate the Dao Scripture — the deepest and most profound of the human race’s divine scriptures — they had made up their minds to claim it regardless. As for the supreme treasure of the human race, if it truly existed, naturally they could not allow it to slip through their hands either.
The Sect Master of the Spiritual Void Cave Heaven showed not the slightest trace of fear. Even while standing off against the great demons, he boldly took a large step forward.
“Boom!”
The ancient hall built from five-colored divine jade released another dull, muffled sound. The power of the seal was rapidly dissolving. The hall had now almost entirely risen to the rim of the volcano’s crater — brilliance and divine radiance streaming in all directions, five-colored divine light scattering and sparkling. The burial mound of the Eastern Wasteland’s final sovereign of the demon race was on the verge of fully revealing itself to the world once more.
Down the slope of the volcano, within the palace complex below, the Thunder Bird and every other super-powerful ferocious beast and creature — along with the dozen-odd elders of the Spiritual Void Cave Heaven — could no longer contain themselves. They began moving slowly upward toward the summit.
From his vantage point at a distance, Ye Fan witnessed all of this with his own eyes. His heart was deeply unsettled — and yet he had no power to go forward and contend for anything. All he could do was stand here, quietly watching.