The Yan Realm was no more than a corner of the world — a drop in the ocean compared to the vast Eastern Desolation. Once word spread, this stretch of ruins would be inundated by cultivators beyond counting.
None was more despondent at this moment than the sect master of Lingxu Cave Heaven. With the sacred grounds and ancient clans both present, he knew that this time he would likely come away with nothing — there was simply no competing against these colossal forces.
One of the Ji Family’s ancient war chariots rumbled and rolled through the upper air, making the heavens tremble as it swiftly departed. The people of Yao Guang Sacred Ground saw this and their expressions all changed. One elder hastily issued orders to two cultivators nearby: “You two, return to the sacred ground at once and report this — we need our stronger people here!”
There was no suppressing the news of the Demon Emperor’s burial mound’s emergence. It would shake the entire vast Eastern Desolation, and before long, more and more sects would certainly be converging on this place — among them, without a doubt, other ancient clans and sacred grounds of the same standing as the Ji Family and Yao Guang Sacred Ground. Both sides had no choice but to call for reinforcements.
“Our two sides joining forces — let’s break open the Demon Emperor’s burial mound at once and retrieve the treasures within. What say you?” An elder from Yao Guang Sacred Ground looked toward the Ji Family’s powerhouses, then at the dozen-odd women of Yaochi Sacred Ground, and finally swept a brief glance toward the sect master of Lingxu Cave Heaven.
“Agreed — exactly right,” said a Ji Family powerhouse from atop one of the ancient war chariots, nodding at once in agreement.
The dozen-odd women of Yaochi Sacred Ground were ethereal and graceful, every one of them pure and otherworldly. They seemed unwilling to become entangled in this contest for spoils, and all drew back. The woman at their head parted her lips lightly and said, “We are merely passing through and have no wish to contend for the Demon Emperor’s relics.”
“In that case, we will not press you. The two of us will join hands and break open the Demon Emperor’s tomb together.” The people of Yao Guang Sacred Ground and the Ji Family were more than happy to see Yaochi withdraw. Though the Demon Emperor’s burial mound held many great treasures, no one ever considered having too many sacred artifacts — the fewer parties involved, the better.
“Sect Master Li, bring your people as well,” said one of Yao Guang Sacred Ground’s elders, casting a casual glance in that direction.
Bitterness filled the sect master of Lingxu Cave Heaven’s heart. “We will give everything we have,” he replied.
The Yao Guang elder nodded. “Lingxu Cave Heaven has already contributed a great deal of effort. When we open the Demon Emperor’s burial mound, we will see to it that you are not left empty-handed.”
At once, over twenty powerhouses entered the Demon Emperor’s burial mound again, intent on prying open this ancient tomb completely.
Boom!
The ancient hall, forged from five-colored divine jade, shook incessantly, blazing with streaks of radiance that sent the surrounding heavens trembling in concert.
“Something seems off…” The dozen-odd women of Yaochi Sacred Ground watched from afar, and in this moment every one of them showed signs of unease.
“The demon script on the ancient hall seems to be growing brighter.”
“Those characters look as though they have lives of their own — all of them trembling, as though about to break free from the walls.”
The demon script covering the ancient hall was bursting with strange brilliance. Dragon-shaped characters writhed and coiled like tiny living dragons. Phoenix-shaped characters appeared ready to spread their wings and take flight. Dark tortoise-shaped characters rolled and shifted without pause…
The imperial demon script was moving — all of it. From the base of the ancient hall it crept upward, until at last, dense and intricate, it covered the entire surface of the hall completely, like a text of incantations etched into every inch, mysterious and inscrutable, with streams of demonic power flowing through it.
“This is not good — the Demon Emperor’s tomb is behaving strangely…”
The dozen-odd women from Yaochi Sacred Ground all showed expressions of alarm. They could feel the demonic power growing ever stronger — slowly, like an ocean beginning to surge.
Not everyone from Yao Guang Sacred Ground and the Ji Family had entered the Demon Emperor’s burial mound; those keeping watch outside also sensed this change. Their faces shifted sharply, and they called urgently toward those inside: “Something’s wrong — the tomb is changing! Get out, now!”
There was no need for them to shout — those inside already knew disaster was upon them. The few people at the very front suddenly dissolved into clouds of blood mist. Everything happened so fast that no one had any idea what had occurred.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Everyone retreated in full flight. Transforming into divine rainbows, they surged toward the exit.
Boom!
Boundless light blazed to life within the Demon Emperor’s burial mound. The last few people in the rear ignited on the spot — struggling in agony, but it was utterly useless. In an instant, they were reduced to ash.
“Run!”
The sect master of Lingxu Cave Heaven and the two Supreme Elders barely made it out in time. From Yao Guang Sacred Ground and the Ji Family, four or five each managed to escape — everyone else was sealed inside.
In that very moment, the ancient hall’s doors slowly shut. Through the gap that had not yet fully closed, one could glimpse part of what lay inside: brilliant light blazed, and those trapped within could not move a single inch. Their bodies became transparent, their blood ignited, their internal organs quickly scorched and charred — and then their flesh and bones, too, were reduced to ash in a single instant.
The expressions of terror on their faces in their final moments filled every onlooker with wave after wave of dread. Especially those who had just barely escaped — all of them were left shuddering and weak-kneed. One step later, they would have shared that fate.
“How could this happen — what is going on? Why has this tomb suddenly become so terrifying…” An elder from Yao Guang Sacred Ground’s expression went iron gray, deeply strained. They had yet to claim any of the treasures inside, and already they had sustained losses this severe — a far from auspicious sign.
“This is the contingency left behind by the Demon Emperor. Without a Great Demon present, this ancient hall is a death trap fatal to human cultivators!” A Ji Family powerhouse arrived at this judgment.
Everyone thought about it and found it plausible. Earlier, when the several Great Demons had still been here, nothing unusual had occurred — but the moment they departed, the ancient hall had become this mysterious and terrifying.
“Very likely so. The demon clan’s Great Emperor almost certainly did not wish for human powerhouses to ultimately obtain his inheritance.”
“Then what are we to do — would we need to capture a few of the Great Demons? It’s probably too late for that. Most of the other sects are likely already on their way.”
The people of Yao Guang Sacred Ground and the Ji Family discussed for a brief moment and decided to press the assault from outside, combining their forces to crack open the ancient hall first. Otherwise, by the time the dust settled, it was impossible to say whose hands the treasures would fall into.
“We must break it open before anyone else does!”
The combined strength of Yao Guang Sacred Ground and the Ji Family was enough to hold most sects in check — but if a powerful major faction arrived, or if other sacred grounds and ancient clans with primordial inheritances showed up, then things would become complicated. Those people would compete without any restraint whatsoever.
The Eastern Desolation was simply too vast. Not only was it impossible to truly count the powerful cultivators within it — one couldn’t even count its nations. Not a single sacred ground could awe the entire Eastern Desolation into submission.
Hiss! Hiss! Hiss!
Every weapon blazed with light as they hammered at the Demon Emperor’s burial mound, unleashing fierce waves of energy. Yet what left everyone stunned was this: the Demon Emperor’s tomb was undamaged — not by so much as a scratch — and the demon script across its surface grew only more resplendent.
“The demon script is moving!”
In that moment, every cultivator present was startled. From the base of the Demon Emperor’s burial mound, tiny dragons began to wriggle upward. Tiny phoenixes spread their wings and appeared to take flight. Tiny dark tortoises crawled slowly across the surface…
Every piece of the imperial demon script was in motion — spreading upward from the base of the ancient hall, until at last it was dense and intricate, covering the entire hall completely. The whole structure appeared engraved with incantations, mysterious and profound beyond measure, as currents of demonic power flowed through it without cease.
Yao Guang Sacred Ground and the Ji Family launched wave after wave of attacks, but all ended in failure — and in the process, they lost two ancient war chariots and seven or eight savage beasts. The characters upon the Demon Emperor’s tomb held a power that was strange and unpredictable, occasionally shooting forth streaks of divine light that pierced clean through anyone they struck.
“It’s over. That is the imperial demon script — left behind by the last generation of the demon clan’s Great Emperor himself!” The Yao Guang elder’s face went ashen. He gripped his hands tight, knuckles white, and said: “With what we have here, we cannot possibly open it. We can only wait for our sacred ground’s stronger people to arrive — though who knows how many sects will have gathered by then.”
The Ji Family’s powerhouses stood atop their war chariots, their expressions equally grim. The Demon Emperor’s burial mound was simply too uncanny — there was nothing to do now but wait for reinforcements.
Hiss! Hiss! Hiss!
The sound of air splitting never ceased. Dozens more divine rainbows appeared in succession across the distant horizon — the first wave of cultivators had arrived after word leaked out. But when they saw that it was only the people of five other cave heavens and blessed lands from the Yan Realm, everyone on the scene breathed a quiet sigh of relief, relieved that no major super-faction had yet arrived.
Rumble, rumble, rumble…
Far off, clouds and mist churned and tumbled as brilliant light scattered in all directions. A massive divine vessel, forged from divine jade, broke through the sky and rapidly closed in. The people of Yao Guang Sacred Ground and the Ji Family’s expressions instantly changed. What they had feared had finally come — a super-faction had arrived at last.
But what came next was even more alarming. In that very instant, from a different direction came a terrifying wave of power — like a tsunami bearing down on them.
From yet another direction, dozens of divine rainbows cleared the way ahead. Nine ancient savage beasts resembling qilins pulled a jade carriage wreathed in divine rosy light, riding the clouds through the sky with the sound of rolling thunder, rapidly bearing down on them.
The powerhouses of Yao Guang Sacred Ground and the Ji Family all showed dramatic changes of expression. The one seated within that carriage was without question an extraordinarily terrifying figure — otherwise, there could not possibly be such a grand procession.
“Such a person has actually come in person…”