Chapter 100: Mystical Ancient Emperor

With the diligent help of the Patriarch of Vajra Sect, Xu Qing found a storage bead hidden within the Patriarch's corpse. The Patriarch had embedded it deep in his flesh. It contained only three items.

The first was a spirit ticket with a face value of five hundred spirit stones.

The second was a jade box, which seemed to possess the ability to nourish pills. Inside, a purple pill was visibly being nurtured.

The third item consisted of three jade slips, separately recording the Vajra Sect's cultivation method and the residual spirit-item method he had mentioned earlier.

As for the concealing storage bag, it contained only miscellaneous items, likely worth a little over a hundred spirit stones.

As if worried Xu Qing wasn't satisfied, the Patriarch of Vajra Sect quickly whispered from the side. "The Second Highness took too much last time, so there isn't much left now."

"Was the storage bag from your sect's treasure vault also a decoy?" Xu Qing asked slowly.

"Yes..." The Patriarch of Vajra Sect trembled, lowering his voice.

Xu Qing said nothing. After destroying the corpse, he searched the ruins of the Vajra Sect's mountain gate and found the secret chamber the Patriarch had mentioned. It was also empty, containing only a formation crossbow resembling a magic artifact. Indeed, as the Patriarch had stated, this item was specifically for magic vessels and required a particular formation to activate. Xu Qing glanced at it and put it away.

He then looted the rest of the Vajra Sect, but it was too poor. The deceased disciples had nothing valuable on them; only the Sect Master and a few elders had slightly better possessions.

"Master, you killed them well. These rebellious disciples were secretly plotting to betray the sect while I was in seclusion. I had originally planned to deal with them myself later."

Xu Qing ignored the truthfulness of the Patriarch of Vajra Sect's words. After looting, he flickered away, gradually disappearing into the snowstorm.

The black sky was filled with countless snowflakes, falling from above and blanketing the entire Red Plains. Looking out, the ground's original red color had vanished, replaced by white. The wind was even more biting, swirling the snow as if to seep the cold into every corner of the land. This winter, many would die.

Xu Qing pulled his collar tighter and sped across the wilderness. He didn't return to the Scavenger Camp but instead traveled through the night toward a city on the outskirts of the Red Plains.

"I need to return to Seven Blood Eyes as soon as possible; I can't stay here long," Xu Qing murmured softly. As he spoke, a faint glint flickered in his eyes, sweeping over the leather pouch holding the black iron spike.

Xu Qing hadn't yet decided whether to completely destroy the Patriarch of Vajra Sect, who had transformed into a spirit-item. As he sped along, he calmly weighed his options while inquiring about the Departure Cult.

Sensing that his life was still not secure, the Patriarch of Vajra Sect felt bitter and nervous but dared not conceal anything, truthfully divulging everything he knew.

"The Departure Cult is a major force in the Southern Phoenix Continent, on par with Seven Blood Eyes, Purple Earth, and Truth's Utterance. Its foundation is also in Wanggu, and this branch in the Southern Phoenix Continent is merely a sub-sect."

"Its foundation is in Wanggu?" Xu Qing glanced at the Patriarch of Vajra Sect. Although he now knew about the forces in the Southern Phoenix Continent, he clearly didn't understand them as deeply as the Patriarch, who was a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Sensing a hint of doubt in Xu Qing's words, the Patriarch of Vajra Sect immediately felt it was time to prove his worth and began speaking rapidly.

"Master, among the four major forces in the Southern Phoenix Continent, only Purple Earth is truly indigenous. The foundations of the other three are not in the Southern Phoenix Continent."

"Among them, Seven Blood Eyes, where you, Master, belong, is the most typical. Its seven peaks appear to be a single entity, but in reality, most peaks are autonomous. They simply acknowledge the rules of Seven Blood Eyes and operate under them, gradually merging over many years."

"The reason for this is that the seven peaks of Seven Blood Eyes are actually branches established in the Southern Phoenix Continent by the seven largest sects within the Seven Sect Alliance of the human race's territory on the Wanggu Continent!"

"Such branches are established on other human-inhabited islands across the Endless Sea. However, the Southern Phoenix Continent is one of the largest islands in the Endless Sea, which is why its branch here is exceptionally powerful."

"As for Truth's Utterance, it's extremely mysterious; I don't know much about it myself."

Xu Qing's eyes narrowed. This was the first time he had heard such information. "The Seven Sect Alliance of the Wanggu Continent?"

"The Wanggu Continent is vast. The human race only occupies a small portion of it, but even so, that portion is incredibly expansive. I haven't been there, so I don't know its exact size, but I've heard that the Seven Sect Alliance is just a relatively strong super-force in the coastal region of the human territory. However, I imagine... compared to the entire human domain, it's probably not among the strongest."

"Of course, that's relative. For someone like me, even one peak of Seven Blood Eyes in the Southern Phoenix Continent is already a colossal entity..."

Listening to the Patriarch of Vajra Sect's words, Xu Qing's mind was stirred. He looked up at the distant sky and land, gaining a new layer of understanding about this world.

"But I do know about the Departure Cult. This cult has followers among countless races throughout the world, and its influence is immense. All of this is due to its doctrines..." the Patriarch of Vajra Sect continued.

"The Departure Cult's doctrine is to abandon this cruel world. They fervently believe in the Ancient Emperor Sovereigns who left during ancient times when the gods' incomplete faces appeared. They believe that one day, the holy land established by these Ancient Emperor Sovereigns will take them away."

"The reason the Departure Cult has so many branches is that their scriptures record a total of nine Ancient Emperor Sovereigns who departed in ancient times, creating holy lands."

"Therefore, the Departure Cult itself is divided into nine major factions, each believing in a different Ancient Emperor Sovereign within the holy lands. These factions are often at odds, each believing their revered supreme being is the one who will truly take them away. And among these great Ancient Emperor Sovereigns, there are not only humans but also other races, which is why the Departure Cult's followers are found across all races."

These words deeply shook Xu Qing's mind. As he rapidly processed the information, he asked a question. "What kind of beings are Ancient Emperor Sovereigns?"

The Patriarch of Vajra Sect paused. He didn't know the answer himself, but he didn't want to reveal his ignorance while Xu Qing was still weighing his life and death. After pondering deeply, he immediately spoke.

"This humble one cannot fathom the realm of Ancient Emperor Sovereigns, but I have seen descriptions in some ancient texts... Beings who once unified the Wanggu Continent and suppressed all races were called Ancient Emperors."

"And those powerful individuals who, though not having unified Wanggu, possessed immense power and could contend with an Ancient Emperor, were called Sovereigns."

Xu Qing's eyes showed a hint of longing, and he remained silent.

Seeing Xu Qing's reaction, the Patriarch of Vajra Sect breathed a sigh of relief. In truth, he didn't know if this explanation was genuine, as most of the ancient texts he had read were popular tales... So he quickly changed the subject and continued to describe the Departure Cult.

"The highest existence in the Departure Cult is called the Lifegiver. Legends say they are not cultivators from this world but originate from the holy land. They are the spiritual leader of the Departure Cult, extremely mysterious."

"The leaders of the nine major factions, meanwhile, refer to themselves as Saints."

"Among them, this faction in the Southern Phoenix Continent is merely a partial branch of the Dark Abyss Faction. The true main Dark Abyss Faction is in Wanggu and worships our human Ancient Emperor, Emperor Dark Abyss!"

"Ancient texts record that before the gods' incomplete faces descended, among the many eras, there was one called the Dark Abyss Era, initiated by Emperor Dark Abyss, who once led humanity to unify Wanggu."

Listening to the Patriarch of Vajra Sect's words, Xu Qing's thoughts surged. He sped along until dawn broke, replaced by the rising sun. As the sky turned crimson with the morning glow, Xu Qing saw his destination in the distance. It was a city permeated with squalor, the only one in the Red Plains with a teleportation array.

Upon reaching this point, Xu Qing had made a decision regarding how to deal with the Patriarch of Vajra Sect.

"What kind of pill is that one you have?"

"Ah, that's a Spirit Whale Pill. Its consumption method is special; it can't be swallowed immediately. It needs to be nurtured in the jade box for a hundred days until it melts. By my count, it's just three days shy of being ready now," the Patriarch of Vajra Sect quickly replied, glancing at the distant city.

"I like quiet," Xu Qing said suddenly after asking about the pill.

The Patriarch of Vajra Sect shivered. Just as he was about to speak, a suppressive force from Xu Qing's vital spirit suddenly arrived, engulfing the black iron spike, directly severely wounding him as a spirit-item, and then sealing him.

After sealing him once, Xu Qing felt uneasy. He intensified his perception, layer by layer, suppressing the Patriarch further until he felt secure. Under these layers of suppression and seals, the Patriarch of Vajra Sect became extremely weak, nearing dissipation, and fell into a deep slumber.

Ultimately, Xu Qing chose not to kill the Patriarch of Vajra Sect. The value of him as a spirit-item led Xu Qing to preserve him, intending to use him to refine his black iron spike. However, until he had more means to control him and his own cultivation reached the Foundation Establishment stage, Xu Qing did not intend to let him awaken. At the same time, he was prepared to obliterate him if he proved disobedient.

Having completed these tasks, he took a deep breath. In the morning snow, he did not enter the city ahead but instead turned and sped off in another direction.

The reason he had murmured about returning to Seven Blood Eyes during the night was for the Patriarch of Vajra Sect to hear. Although the Patriarch had become a spirit-item, behaved honestly along the way, and spoke sincerely, Xu Qing wouldn't easily trust him.

Thus, the question about the pill was a test, and the statement about returning to Seven Blood Eyes was a deception. Regarding the former, the pill: if the Patriarch of Vajra Sect had lied, Xu Qing would have eliminated him. As for the latter: if the Patriarch had some special means to reveal Xu Qing's whereabouts, then being misled would render such means ineffective. This was because Xu Qing had no intention of returning to Seven Blood Eyes anytime soon.

In the snowstorm, Xu Qing moved even faster, even using a flight talisman, speeding along. It wasn't until nightfall that day that he finally found a hidden cave and crawled inside. After scattering poison powder at the entrance and concealing it, he sat cross-legged and took out the jade box where the Patriarch of Vajra Sect had stored the pill.

"Life or death, it all depends on whether this pill is as you described!"

Xu Qing lowered his gaze to the jade box, placed it some distance away, retreated a few steps to observe his surroundings closely, then pointed at it from afar. Immediately, the jade box slowly clicked open, and a rich medicinal fragrance wafted out.