Chapter 1055: Ancient Monstrosity

Qianqian www.qqxsw.tv, Beyond Time!

In the East Demonic Feather Immortal Arts Hall, the black-robed Grand Elder's voice, raspy like grinding metal and stone, echoed across the entire plaza. His voice also carried an overlapping quality, for it wasn't just his elderly form speaking; the middle-aged, youthful, and even boyish figures behind him were all uttering the words simultaneously. The scene was eerie. While the Grand Elder didn't possess the East Demonic Feather's inherited immortal art, "Six Thieves of Delusional Birth," his own mastery of immortal arts was nonetheless astonishing.

As he finished speaking, his staff struck the empty space below with an ethereal tap. A bell-like resonance instantly erupted and reverberated. It sounded like a raging thunder, yet also seemed to contain the roar of all sentient beings, creating an overwhelming force that twisted the void, blurred the surroundings, and unleashed immense power. Where the staff pointed, a rumbling sound erupted from the plaza ground, and a colossal vortex astonishingly materialized there. It rotated incessantly, resembling a black hole, pointing towards an unknown realm.

This sight drew the rapt gaze of representatives from all the Dominant Mountains. Though Xu Qing's expression remained calm, a profound depth flickered in his eyes. The other nine envoys from the Dominant Mountains also appeared pensive, clearly gaining a new understanding of the Grand Elder, who had recently emerged from seclusion.

"Esteemed Dominant Mountains," the Grand Elder said, his voice low as he lifted his head to survey the various factions, "in accordance with our ancient covenant, please present your tokens and permit my Immortal Arts Hall to raise the Immortal Refining Cauldron!"

Silence fell over the factions. After exchanging glances, the envoy from the Fifth Dominant Mountain raised a hand, and a token promptly flew out, hovering above their head, shimmering with brilliant light. Following suit, representatives from the other Dominant Mountains also produced their tokens. According to the ancient pact between the Immortal Arts Hall and the Dominant Mountains, the Hall is, in principle, subject to the Dominant Mountains' oversight. Thus, every generation's Grand Immortal Master requires their approval. Specifically, the Immortal Refining Cauldron, an ancient treasure of the Hall, is under even stricter controls, requiring the collective activation of these tokens to be unveiled.

After all, this ancient treasure boasts an extraordinary origin, being uniquely tied to the entirety of the Demonic Feather Holy Land. It also represents the former authority and legitimate lineage of the East Demonic Feather. Even though the East Demonic Feather Immortal Arts Hall has since waned, any schemes by the West Demonic Feather Immortal Arts Hall to usurp its legacy have remained fruitless. While the East Demonic Feather Immortal Arts Hall is technically subject to checks and balances, in practice, the Dominant Mountains largely respect the Hall's internal affairs and rarely interfere.

Once the other Dominant Mountains had raised their tokens, Xu Qing pondered for a moment before also retrieving his. The ten tokens appeared, simultaneously emitting a dazzling brilliance that coalesced into a sea of light, pouring into the vortex below. The vortex instantly burst into a dazzling array of colors, becoming impossibly brilliant. A thundering sound, even more astonishing than before, echoed continuously as something began to rise from within the swirling depths.

What first emerged was, astonishingly, a skull. Devoid of flesh, composed solely of bone, it radiated an alarming malevolence. Next came a lid, a hundred *zhang* in size, followed by the massive body of the cauldron itself. What ultimately appeared before everyone's eyes was a colossal cauldron, several hundred *zhang* tall. This cauldron was white, its entire structure astonishingly crafted from bone. Its surface was etched with countless ancient runes, and while it exuded an overwhelming malevolence, a palpable sense of antiquity also flowed across its form. The moment it fully revealed itself, it was as if an ancient wind carried a furious, unwilling roar into the present world. It seized everyone's attention and stirred their emotions.

Among those present, only a few had witnessed the Immortal Refining Cauldron rise in years past. For everyone else, despite having heard legends about it, seeing it with their own eyes was a first. Xu Qing, too, gazed intently, but his focus was on the skull, which looked increasingly familiar the longer he stared.

As Xu Qing's mind stirred and an incredible thought began to form, an envoy from one of the Dominant Mountains slowly spoke, still gazing at the cauldron. "Grand Elder," the envoy inquired, "is this cauldron one of the bone cauldrons personally forged by the Immortal Arts Emperor?"

The Grand Elder of the Immortal Arts Hall slowly nodded, a faint glint appearing in his eyes. "Though the Immortal Arts Emperor was human, he later chose to be forgotten by history, ensuring the world remained ignorant of his true name. Even our Immortal Arts lineage can scarcely uncover a trace of it. However, the deeds of the Emperor will never be forgotten by our Immortal Arts lineage! This very cauldron was forged by the Emperor, the founder of immortal arts, during Emperor Xuanyou's early campaigns in Wanggu. He personally slew six peerless monstrous fiends of that era and used their bones as material to create six such bone cauldrons. The skull atop it is indeed the refined skull of one such fiend!

"As for this particular bone cauldron before you, the species of the being it originated from is unknown. Legends say this colossal bone resembles that of a human, yet also not entirely human. Our Immortal Arts Hall possesses ancient records describing the being from which this cauldron was made: its cultivation was immense, comparable to that of an Emperor, and its madness devoured all quarters. Its greed was utterly reprehensible! Originally, while Emperor Xuanyou was campaigning against the myriad races, this creature infiltrated their realms to pilfer various treasures. Its final attempt was to steal Emperor Xuanyou's imperial crown. Upon its failure, Emperor Xuanyou, enraged, dispatched the Immortal Arts Emperor to pursue and slay it! The Immortal Arts Emperor later laid out an unparalleled array, luring it in with a design, before finally slaying it. It was then refined into this 'Greed Refining Cauldron,' capable of forcibly distilling immortal arts by harnessing the cauldron's inherent avarice!"

The Grand Elder of the Immortal Arts Hall's voice reverberated, causing the expressions of all the Dominant Mountain envoys to shift. Though they knew of the cauldron's existence, such detailed origins were entirely new to them.

Meanwhile, a peculiar sensation stirred in Xu Qing's heart, and his unbelievable conjecture intensified. His gaze lifted from the cauldron's skull to Yu Dong, who was suspended in mid-air. *Could Senior Brother's objective be this cauldron?*

As Xu Qing mused, the Grand Elder of the Immortal Arts Hall, having finished his explanation of the bone cauldron, raised his hands. "This elder, acting in the name of the Grand Immortal Master and with the command of the Ten Dominant Mountains, shall now open this bone cauldron to refine the traitor Yu Dong into... a sixty percent immortal pill! Cauldron, ignite!"

As the words left his lips, the colossal bone cauldron instantly rumbled and vibrated. The White Lake, where the Immortal Arts Hall stood, churned and, astonishingly, transformed from water into a sea of white fire, blazing fiercely! This fire then converged, surging into the Immortal Arts Hall, flowing across the plaza, and pouring beneath the bone cauldron.

The scene was magnificent. The Grand Elder of the Immortal Arts Hall's eyes gleamed with intense light. He pointed his staff and uttered a low command: "Cauldron, open!"

In an instant, the cauldron's lid groaned even louder as it slowly opened to the side. Infinite flames then erupted from within the cauldron, engulfing Yu Dong, who was suspended above it. The iron chains binding Yu Dong's body instantly melted in the intense heat. Yu Dong's body plummeted, was enveloped by the flames, and then swallowed into the cauldron.

Xu Qing hesitated, suppressing the urge to intervene. He chose to trust Senior Brother.

Simultaneously, the Grand Elder of the Immortal Arts Hall stepped atop the cauldron, his black robe billowing. Under the watchful eyes of all present, he took a deep breath, raised his left hand, and abruptly seized the middle-aged manifestation behind him. With that grasp, the middle-aged figure shattered, its flesh and blood transforming into a gust of wind that settled into the Grand Elder's hand.

"From the starry void, I draw the Star-Shattering Wind, with which to destroy the form."

As this wind emerged, the surroundings rumbled. It contained a terrifying power that caused everyone's expressions to tighten upon sensing it. The Grand Elder then casually flicked his left hand, sending the Star-Shattering Wind into the cauldron. The cauldron roared! Since the cauldron was open, everyone could clearly see Yu Dong's form visibly disintegrating under the Star-Shattering Wind.

Next, the youthful manifestation behind the Grand Elder also fractured under his grasp, its flesh and blood transforming into a black liquid.

"From the Black Prison, I draw the Unfading Water, with which to fuse!"

This black water poured into the cauldron. As the black water spattered onto Yu Dong's disintegrating body, his expression immediately contorted, as if enduring unimaginable torment—the pain of a soul being melted. Xu Qing's expression darkened. After scrutinizing the scene, he still held back.

The Grand Elder's ritual continued; he had clearly prepared for this day for a long time. He used the flesh and blood manifestations of his own immortal art, representing different life stages, to serve as his immortal refining materials. As he proceeded, the boyish manifestation behind him abruptly disintegrated, transforming into a roar.

"From eons past, I draw the Unwilling Roar, with which to awaken the immortal essence."

This roar surged into the cauldron. Yu Dong convulsed. Threads of his seven emotions and six desires, previously intangible, became visible and were forcibly drawn out. The Grand Elder of the Immortal Arts Hall, holding his staff — which was part of his withered true form — caused it to blaze with electrical light. Streaks of lightning flashed from the staff. In a flash, the staff splintered, scattering flesh and blood. The staff itself was astonishingly another manifestation of the Grand Elder's immortal art, formed from his own flesh and blood! Now, all of this flesh and blood transformed into bolts of lightning that shot directly into the cauldron.

"From the Chaos, I draw the Eternal Lightning, with which to condense the imprint."

It wasn't over. The Grand Elder's eyes glinted with madness as he unleashed his final technique. It was fire, once more. The ground trembled. From the cauldron's vortex, eight scales suddenly flew out. Each scale shimmered with intricate patterns. Though outwardly similar, they radiated different colors. Combined, they displayed eight distinct colors. Beyond the initial seven colors, black was added. When combined with the white fire from the White Lake, the total number of colors reached nine. These nine-colored flames plunged into the cauldron, and the intensity of the burning instantly surged.

This was the "Immortal-Seizing Fire," an ancient flame used within the Immortal Arts Hall for punishing traitors. The Grand Elder's ritual incorporated wind, rain, thunder, lightning, and fire. With all steps now complete, he raised his right hand towards the cauldron. He intended to close the bone cauldron and begin the final refining process.

Watching all this, even Xu Qing, who had been convinced Senior Brother's actions were deliberate, began to feel uncertain. Everything felt too real.

"I can't let the Grand Elder continue..." Xu Qing steeled himself. Just as he was about to make his move, a shocking turn of events abruptly occurred.

Within the cauldron, which was on the verge of closing, Yu Dong's head—all that remained of him after the refining—suddenly snapped open its previously closed eyes. His eyes blazed with overwhelming madness.

"Old fool, this is the moment I've been waiting for!" As Yu Dong spoke, he astonishingly spat out a mouthful of fresh blood. This blood was not Yu Dong's own, but had been taken from the Grand Elder. Yu Dong had secretly obtained it during his earlier battle with the Grand Elder.

With this, the flesh and blood manifestations of the Grand Elder's immortal art—the middle-aged, youthful, and boyish forms, and his staff—combined with that mouthful of blood... In essence, five substances related to the Grand Elder now existed within the cauldron. This fulfilled the conditions for a "Two Ox Object Art." It was part of the "Great Five Ox Tracing the Origin of the Ruthless Dao" technique. This displacement technique allowed one to forcibly drag an opponent directly before them.

The next instant, a vortex formed within the cauldron. With a thunderous roar, its suction intensified dramatically. At the same moment, the cauldron's skull glowed with an eerie light, seemingly resonating and empowering the technique. Consequently, outside the cauldron, just as the Grand Elder of the Immortal Arts Hall's expression shifted, his body suddenly vanished under the amplified secret art. He reappeared, startlingly, inside the cauldron. In the very next moment, the cauldron's lid slammed shut.

This unfolding scene sent ripples through the minds of all the onlookers. Several representatives from the Dominant Mountains paled, abruptly rising to their feet.