Chapter 1215: Nine-Colored Ice Coffin

Xu Qing didn't believe that the reconnaissance he was using as a pretext could genuinely uncover the Nine-Colored Ice the Jiu'an Immortal Lord required within this Hun Tian universe. If everything were truly that simple, then the Jiu'an Immortal Lord's task would be far too trivial. Furthermore, if the ice were indeed here, the first thing Xu Qing would have to re-evaluate would be all his judgments about the Poison Lord. Therefore, no matter how he considered it, the possibility of the Nine-Colored Ice being present was virtually zero.

Pondering this, Xu Qing frowned, his mind churning. He put away the heavenly principle he had been idly playing with, but he did not immediately enter the Hun Tian tribal grounds to investigate. Instead, he turned his gaze to the Hun Tian Emperor, who was kneeling nearby.

The Hun Tian Emperor's eyes were wide, his expression incredulous, and his body was trembling. He knew perfectly well that if this matter wasn't clearly explained, an extreme catastrophe awaited his tribe, and any reason could doom his people forever. After all, it concerned an Immortal Lord. Thus, even his own superior would surely not dare to utter a sound. Realizing this, as the Hun Tian Emperor saw Xu Qing's gaze fall upon him, he quickly cried out, "My Lord, this is a misunderstanding!!"

"I know what that fellow Daoist was referring to, but that is absolutely not the Nine-Colored Ice the Jiu'an Immortal Lord requires. It is an old artifact from the Aurora Immortal Palace, a coffin our tribe salvaged from the void at great cost, long ago, to commemorate the Aurora Immortal Palace!" The Hun Tian Emperor was anxious, daring not to conceal anything, and immediately explained, "Although this coffin is an ice coffin and also has nine colors, it is definitely not the same item."

Xu Qing listened, his expression impassive, and spoke calmly. "Whether it is or isn't, I will know once I see it. Now, all members of the Hun Tian tribe, from the Emperor downwards, surrender your soul blood! Should you resist, you will be executed without question!"

Xu Qing's gaze turned cold. Xing Huanzi also radiated an imposing aura, as did Seaweed and Mud Fox nearby. The Hun Tian Emperor hesitated, but he was also a decisive individual. He knew that at this moment, he could not cause any more misunderstandings. The other party's actions did not seem to be aimed at easily annihilating his entire tribe; rather, it was more like a precaution, a concern about unexpected events occurring after entering the tribal grounds.

So, the Hun Tian Emperor gritted his teeth, raised a hand to his brow, extracted his soul blood, and handed it over, then motioned for his tribesmen to obey the command. At the same time, the bitterness in his heart intensified. All the Hun Tian tribesmen, in silence, surrendered their soul blood one by one.

These gathered soul bloods landed before Xu Qing. With a wave of his right hand, the blood flew towards Mud Fox. "You stay outside. Should there be the slightest abnormality here, annihilate all Hun Tian tribesmen!" Mud Fox's expression was solemn. After nodding, he collected the soul blood, his divine might continuing to spread, enveloping all the Hun Tian tribesmen present.

Xu Qing still felt it wasn't secure enough, so he glanced at Seaweed. He did not fully trust Seaweed either. He narrowed his eyes and suddenly sent a divine thought, instructing Seaweed to seal the Hun Tian Emperor and then accompany him into the Hun Tian tribe. Seaweed, standing by, pondered for a moment but then chose to unfurl its leaves, forming a seal that moved directly towards the Hun Tian Emperor. The Hun Tian Emperor dared not resist in the slightest and allowed himself to be sealed.

Having completed these preparations, Xu Qing's gaze deepened. Without further hesitation, he took Seaweed and the sealed Hun Tian Emperor directly towards the Hun Tian tribe's entrance. In an instant, Xing Huanzi in front and Xu Qing behind, vanished into the entrance.

The tribal grounds of the Hun Tian Royal Clan were a hidden galaxy. Standing at the highest point, one could see countless stars within, glittering irregularly. One particular light spot gave Xu Qing a peculiar feeling. He focused his mind, spread his divine sense, and under its influence, unfolded this galaxy, expanding it outwards. In an instant, the galaxy expanded in Xu Qing's vision, and continued to expand further and further.

Finally, when it had expanded to a certain extent, after traversing countless stars, Xu Qing's eyes narrowed. He saw that at the very center of this galaxy, precisely where he had been looking, five vast figures were seated cross-legged. These five figures were all from the Hun Tian tribe; they were colossal in height, multi-colored in body, multi-faced in appearance, and all withered. They were corpses—corpses of divine spirits, to be precise, the divine spirits of the Hun Tian tribe.

At the center of these five corpses was a star, completely encased in ice. There was no life on the star, only a single coffin crafted from ice, emitting a nine-colored light. At this moment, in the starry sky of this region, many ascendants were gathered around, their eyes glinting with curiosity, all observing. No one made any rash moves.

"The arrangement there is somewhat peculiar," Xing Huanzi said in a low voice, seeing Xu Qing's attention was already fixed on it. Xu Qing gazed at them, lost in thought. The Hun Tian Emperor, who was nearby, quickly spoke. "My Lord, those five corpses, though once our tribe's gods, ever since our tribe's surrender, we have also borne the mission of suppressing them with our bloodline. For countless years, it has remained so, untouched. Placing them in the coffin was also to intensify this suppression, because... once they revive, it would be impossible for our current tribe to accept them; they would surely devour all kin and flesh immediately." The Hun Tian Emperor spoke rapidly, fearing misunderstanding.

Xing Huanzi heard this and glanced at the Hun Tian Emperor. He had heard of similar incidents; the Fifth Star Ring had indeed ordered many tribes to suppress their ancestral divine spirits themselves. "Interesting," Xu Qing said calmly. "You say your tribe hasn't touched it?"

As soon as he spoke, the Hun Tian Emperor's mind immediately churned. "My Lord means..." he asked cautiously. Xing Huanzi, nearby, also looked at Xu Qing. Xu Qing's eyes gleamed with an unusual light, and then he realized the reason. For cultivators in the Fifth Star Ring, because divine spirits were suppressed, foreign matter was scarce within the Star Ring, immortal spiritual energy permeated, and all tribes no longer cultivated divinities. Therefore, while the elders knew of such scenes, it was normal for the new generation of cultivators, who had never witnessed them, not to recognize them immediately.

But Xu Qing was different. Coming from the Ninth Star Ring, where divine spirits ran rampant on the Wanggu Continent, most tribes worshipped gods, and he himself had experienced the process of becoming a god multiple times, whether it was the Divine Son, or the Empress, or within the Ghost Cave. Xu Qing had experienced similar sensations. Therefore, at this moment, he instantly recognized the arrangement here—it was clearly a ritual for becoming a god!

However, this ritual felt somewhat flawed and not grand enough to Xu Qing. "It's concealed," Xu Qing murmured, narrowing his eyes. He suddenly raised his hand, and his immortal embryo immediately shone, emitting a silver light. Silver was the color of immortals. When divine spirits inhaled and exhaled source essence, they emitted sacred golden light, which was why all divine spirits Xu Qing had seen were enveloped in golden light. However, when cultivators absorbed source essence, they emitted silver.

Now, this wisp of silver immortal light flowed in Xu Qing's hand. With a flick, the light shot towards the galaxy below, merging with one of its star-lights, turning that star-light silver as well. Then, the silver spread, not completely, but only dyeing the star-lights within the galaxy. Gradually, as more and more star-lights turned silver, from the highest vantage point, a dense silver net covered the entire galaxy. As Xu Qing raised his hand to adjust, the silver net's light flickered, and it eventually revealed itself as a grand formation.

This formation, the size of the galaxy itself, connected every star, enveloping the five divine corpses, and, in conjunction with the ice coffin within, created a force of internal and external counteraction. This arrangement gathered a massive amount of source essence. Seeing this scene, the Hun Tian Emperor's face instantly turned pale. Xing Huanzi's expression also changed.

And Xu Qing's voice echoed at this moment. "This place was originally for the suppression you spoke of. However, it was used as a foundation for a large-scale arrangement, turning it into a ritual for becoming a god. But it has clearly been adjusted to prevent the act of becoming a god from succeeding. Hun Tian Emperor, what is your explanation for this place?"

Xu Qing turned and looked at the Hun Tian Emperor, whose face was even paler. The Hun Tian Emperor's body trembled, and he knelt down. "My Lord, our tribe would never dare to let our people become gods. This arrangement was made to purify our tribesmen's bloodline..." This time, the Hun Tian Emperor dared not conceal anything further. He truly hadn't expected such a secret ritual for becoming a god, long vanished from the Fifth Star Ring, to be recognized so directly.

"It doesn't matter," Xu Qing said. He raised his right hand and squeezed hard. A cracking sound immediately echoed through the starry sky. The silver light on the formation flared, causing several crucial lines within it to break, thus rendering the ritual incomplete. Then, his voice echoed, "Xing Huanzi, you may now step onto that star and retrieve the coffin. Also, make arrangements: the moment it is taken out, have everyone prepare to absorb the source essence."

As Xu Qing spoke, Xing Huanzi nodded and immediately flew off. Xu Qing waited silently. Before long, under his gaze, the ice-sealed star suddenly trembled, and then dense source essence rose from within, spreading throughout the galaxy. The ritual was completely extinguished.

Subsequently, Xing Huanzi and Zhou Zhengli returned together. Behind them was the nine-colored ice coffin that had been drawn out. Looking at the object, Xu Qing already knew what it was. Outsiders didn't know because this item, while inside the Aurora Immortal Palace, had not appeared in the mirrored history. However, Xu Qing had once inhabited the body of the Aurora Young Lord and had memories of this item. "This is the Coffin of Slumber, created by the Aurora Young Lord's parents after his birth, so that his childhood would be an era where divine spirits were enslaved! It appears to be Nine-Colored Ice, but it should not be the same item required by the Jiu'an Immortal Lord."

Xu Qing raised his hand, and the coffin flew to him. After carefully examining it, he put it away. Then, he turned and left. Whether this place was for bloodline purification or not, it no longer mattered. Xu Qing didn't need to personally collect the vast amount of source essence permeating the area. With Zhou Zhengli present, Xu Qing believed that among all the source essence gathered by the ascendants here, his share would certainly be included, and the quantity would definitely not be small.

"The matter here is concluded, and there's enough source essence for the task. So next... that true god will be the final grand feast of this banquet!" With a single step, Xu Qing exited the Hun Tian tribal grounds.