Chapter 883: Divine Treasure Burning Lamp

The Heavenly Dao of Xu Qing's first divine treasury, manifested as the Life-bound Dragon, had long been formed. This made the first divine treasury exceptionally vibrant and, despite having fewer rigid rules and laws, it was brimming with the most abundant power.

In contrast, his second divine treasury, formed by the poison prohibition, along with the third divine treasury, created by the power of the purple moon, and the Imperial Treasury, were all currently mere repositories without a Dao spirit.

A spirit is known as Heavenly Dao. A treasury lacking Heavenly Dao is difficult to perfect; it cannot erupt like a volcano or form the spirits of rules and laws. If it were to turn to ash, it would not become fertile desolation, and its Dao marks would struggle to return to their essence. Therefore, obtaining Heavenly Dao was Xu Qing's primary objective in coming to this divine realm, in addition to the need for the Da Xuan Tian identity.

Along the way, although he encountered many creatures from various divine realms, most of them could have been transformed into Heavenly Dao. However, due to various reasons, he had given them up one by one.

Only now, the aura emanating from those three-headed, six-armed statues with brow marks actually stirred his third divine treasury. This was unprecedented, and a look of surprise appeared in Xu Qing's eyes.

At the same time, the Captain's voice came from ahead.

"Little junior brother, hurry over, time is running out!" the Captain shouted.

His voice did not spread too far in the wind. By the time Xu Qing heard it, the sound had already been torn and shattered by the gale.

Xu Qing nodded, retracting his gaze from the statues. He looked at the storm sweeping across the sky and all directions in the distance, feeling the sensation of countless sharp blades pricking his body as the sand and wind blew around him.

All of this made him lower his head slightly. His body swayed, and he rushed straight towards the Captain.

Once Xu Qing caught up, the Captain accelerated to full speed, and they finally reached the Imperial Tomb Mountain.

Upon arriving, the storm behind them grew even larger. From a distance, it looked like a dense black mass; both sky and earth were obscured by the tempest, as if endless evil, carrying destructive power, was invading.

The statues in the vicinity were already submerged in the black sandstorm before them. Even this Imperial Tomb Mountain seemed about to be covered by the sandstorm.

However, the Captain's preparations were very thorough, and his objective was extremely clear. The moment he approached the mountain, he directly spat out a large mouthful of blood.

It was indeed a large mouthful, as the amount of blood was comparable to the entire blood volume of an adult human.

As he spat, he raised his right hand, using the blood as ink, and drew a line on the mountain's rock face.

He drew an arc.

It didn't end there; the Captain continued to spit blood, mouthful after mouthful, until he had spat out seventeen mouthfuls.

In Xu Qing's sight, the Captain used this blood to draw a complete circle on the stone wall.

Then, a wailing sound, like that of loud sobbing, emanated from the Captain's mouth.

"Alas, I deeply mourn my father, who contracted a minor ailment and succumbed to it. I know well his lifelong toil and how he cherished us like treasures. Yet, fate has forsaken me; my soul wanders the underworld, my cries unheard, his image unseen. My tears fall endlessly, my heart is broken. How can my profound grief be expressed?"

Every word of the Captain's voice was mournful, every sentence filled with sorrow. The wind could tear his voice apart, but it could not shatter its meaning; it permeated all directions and resonated in Xu Qing's mind.

Xu Qing was also moved by it.

If he hadn't seen the seemingly grief-stricken Captain wink at him at that moment, with a smug look between his brows, Xu Qing would have almost felt that the person buried in this Imperial Tomb was truly the Captain's father.

The next instant, after his mournful cries, the Captain raised his right hand and plunged it directly into his own body. He pulled out his liver and pressed it firmly into the bloody circle he had drawn on the rock wall.

His voice instantly became even more sorrowful.

"By this sacrifice, I offer my filial piety. May my deceased father, whose spirit dwells in the nether springs, come forth to partake and enjoy! Alas, may he receive this offering."

The entire rock wall trembled. Then the Captain pulled out his kidneys, spleen, and lungs, placing them within the bloody circle on the rock wall. Finally, he pulled out his own heart and pressed it onto it.

It seemed these were his offerings.

Waiting for his father to consume them, heaven and earth roared, and the Imperial Mountain shook. As the storm, now even more terrifying, howled closer, the Captain formed hand seals, a look of madness in his eyes. His head tilted back, and then he fiercely slammed it forward against the rock wall.

He shouted loudly, "Consume!"

The force he used was his utmost.

With a crack, the Captain's skull, from this impact, directly split open, forming a fissure.

Xu Qing was moved once again.

All of the Captain's actions resulted in the Imperial Tomb Mountain trembling violently. The part of the rock wall within the circle that he struck also cracked open, forming a fissure.

The Captain's expression grew even more frantic. With a cry of "Alas," he tilted his head back again and fiercely slammed it against the wall.

"May he enjoy!"

The earth quaked and the mountains shook!

The fissure on his forehead grew larger and larger, and the cracks on the mountain body in front increased.

Finally, after the Captain had consecutively struck nine times, the bloody circle on the rock wall collapsed with a roar, revealing a passable cavern.

Inside this cavern, a shimmering light barrier separated the interior from the exterior.

"Haha, it's finally open!" The Captain, his face covered in blood, looked crazed. He rushed unimpeded and smoothly into the light barrier within the rock wall cavern, not forgetting to turn back, laugh, and wave at Xu Qing.

"Little A-Qing, this is the back door of the Imperial Tomb that I, your senior brother, left in my previous life. You can pass through by activating the Wordless Heavenly Book. And with the light barrier in this fissure, dangers from outside cannot enter."

"Haha, the treasures here are waiting for me." The Captain said, rushing forward. But after a few steps, he realized Xu Qing hadn't followed, so he turned back.

The next instant, he froze for a moment.

"Little junior brother, what are you doing?"

Xu Qing, outside the cavern's light barrier, had originally intended to follow the Captain into it. But after hearing him say that dangers from outside couldn't enter, Xu Qing's heart stirred, and a look of resolve flashed in his eyes. His Purple Master divine spirit state instantly erupted.

Millions of soul threads dispersed and rapidly converged to form the Purple Master's body. And with the Nine Li's Head bolstering his battle prowess to its peak, he pressed his hand in the air towards the nearest statue.

Divine power spread out, forming a giant illusory hand, which swept away all obstacles, breaking through with irresistible force directly towards the statue.

He clearly intended to kill one of the statues here, subdue its core, and suppress its soul to form his own Heavenly Dao.

The Wordless Concealment also dissipated slightly at this moment. The statue suddenly trembled; its closed eyes abruptly carved open, revealing its petrified body, which instantly erupted, and in a flash, it revived into a body of flesh and blood.

Facing the grasping hand, a single word emerged from the statue's mouth.

As the word was uttered, heaven and earth churned. Chains of white bone descended from the void, directly locking Xu Qing's illusory hand, preventing it from moving forward even an inch. Moreover, a backlash surged within Xu Qing's body as the statue spoke.

Xu Qing grunted, his body recoiling one step. Immediately after, the statue's entire body radiated violent aura and terrifying fluctuations; its three heads and six arms formed hand seals and charged straight at Xu Qing.

Xu Qing remained calm, suppressing the backlash within him. His eyes like sharp blades, he gazed at the charging statue. As he retreated, he raised his right hand and grabbed at the void beside him.

Immediately, the void tore open. Flames erupted from within, and a black long spear, wreathed in fire, flew out. After Xu Qing gripped it, a ferocious and savage Ya Zi, a jackal-bodied, dragon-headed beast, surged out from Xu Qing's body and merged into the black long spear, empowering it.

It was indeed Ya Zi, who was bloodthirsty and fond of fighting. Then, with icy resolve in his eyes, Xu Qing raised his hand and fiercely hurled it towards the statue in front.

Flames violently scattered in all directions. The Nine Li Ya Zi roared, shaking the heavens. The black long spear unleashed a world-splitting sound, like a primordial sun tearing through the night or darkness shattering, as it slammed into the statue.

A deafening roar rose into the sky. The charging figure of the statue abruptly halted. Its four arms simultaneously rose and grabbed the long spear, preventing the spearhead from touching its body or moving.

Xu Qing frowned, retreating rapidly without hesitation. The moment the statue roared forward, its four arms crashed onto the cavern's light barrier, which Xu Qing had retreated into, amidst a rumbling sound.

The light barrier violently shook, blocking the statue.

The Captain was right; this light barrier could indeed block outside dangers. And the statue, after coldly staring at Xu Qing for a while, retreated to its original position, its body once again petrifying.

Only, its damaged parts could not be restored.

Seeing this, without waiting for the Captain to say anything, Xu Qing, from inside the light barrier, suddenly stepped out. With swift hand seals, he unleashed divine abilities and spells that fell like meteors.

The statue awoke again, and another battle ensued. For a time, sounds reverberated, and violent fluctuations spread in all directions. Xu Qing sometimes retreated, sometimes charged out.

The Captain, watching this scene from within the light barrier, was startled, knowing that Xu Qing intended to slowly wear down the statue to death, using the light barrier as a point of refuge.

He instinctively wanted to remind Xu Qing that the statues here could not be allowed to die, because according to his past research, if a statue was shattered, there was a high probability that other, greater unforeseen circumstances would occur.

But then he thought that if he spoke up like this, it would diminish his prestige as a senior brother, and prestige was more important than life or death.

Internally, he quickly put on a look of satisfaction.

"Little junior brother, I'll help you!" he said, and then also entered and exited the light barrier, joining Xu Qing in suppressing the statue.

This repeated cycle of attack and retreat continued. The statue's collapse persisted until, moments later, the Heavenly Dao reappeared outside the light barrier. But this time, it was different from before.

The Heavenly Dao materialized: the divine curse and prohibition transformed into its blade, the light of the morning glow formed its edge, the Imperial Mountain became the execution platform, and the Qi Luck of the 'Ding Yi San Er' formation became its groove. The Golden Crow served as the connection, the Purple Moon as the seal, with time itself integrated, and driven by a sundial acting as a life lamp. As the God-Slaying Platform's blade descended, the continuously damaged statue, now reduced to only one head and one arm, violently convulsed outside the light barrier. Its head was severed, its body shattered into pieces, and it utterly collapsed on the spot.

The instant it shattered, streaks of moonlight emanated from its broken body.

Xu Qing's breathing quickened slightly. His third divine treasury within him opened wide, transforming into a drawing force. Instantly, those streaks of moonlight rushed towards Xu Qing, integrating into his divine treasury.

Inside the pitch-black divine treasury, it was as if a lamp had been lit.

At the same time, on this peculiar star, on its side extremely far from the Imperial Tomb area, there was a figure initiating a strange and mysterious ritual.

This ritual used the sun as its source and the moon as its power, with Mars as its guide, forming a giant triangular diagram on the ground. Strong winds howled around the totem, and in its very center, a person sat cross-legged.

This person wore loose clothing, seemingly a man's robe, but in the wind, the robe clung tightly to their figure, revealing enchanting curves.

Their appearance was exceptionally beautiful; their skin was so delicate it seemed it could break with a touch, fairer than snow. Only their expression was cold and aloof, containing a hint of malice.

It was Yan Xuanzi.

The ritual around them currently glowed, forming a beam of light which did not shoot skyward, but plunged into the ground, piercing through the entire star and connecting to the Imperial Tomb at the other end of this star.

In an instant, Yan Xuanzi's figure vanished.