Chapter 1398: Ten Thousand Years of Injustice

These strange birds resembled crows but were much larger, almost the size of golden eagles. They flew very fast and emitted sharp, piercing cries, emanating a strong sense of menace even from afar.

It was then that everyone understood why the octopus monster had not pursued them earlier; clearly, the sky held many dangers.

The octopus sea monster could display its full might in the sea, but in the sky, its movements would be hindered, making it vulnerable to airborne predators. While these strange birds were individually much weaker, their immense numbers combined gave them sufficient power to hunt it.

The group's scalps tingled; even the Heavenly Soul Realm octopus sea monster had given these creatures a wide berth. Naturally, they abandoned any thought of fighting them.

“Run!” the women shouted in unison.

Zu An had already moved before they spoke, swooping rapidly downwards on his Wind-Fire Wheels, having just spotted the direction of land.

He had initially worried that the strange birds would pursue them, as their speed was no less than that of the Wind-Fire Wheels, which would likely lead to another fierce battle.

To his surprise, however, the flock of strange birds did not pursue them. Instead, they continued flying straight ahead, either avoiding something or heading to a particular destination.

“Is the Unknown Land truly this dangerous? No wonder legends always speak of it as a place of nine deaths and one survival,” Yan Xuehen moaned softly, her entire body collapsing into Zu An’s arms.

Normally, upon hearing such a sound, Yun Jianyue might have seized the opportunity to scold her for acting feverishly, but now she felt no abnormality at all, instead agreeing, “It’s more than nine deaths and one survival; I’d say it’s ten deaths and no survival.”

Although they were injured, they were Grandmaster-realm cultivators and had recovered seventy percent of their combat strength, making them much stronger than ordinary Masters.

Yet, even so, they had several times narrowly escaped death just moments ago.

The crucial point was how little time they had spent in this secret realm, yet they had already encountered so many terrifying beings. It was truly unimaginable who could possibly exit this place alive.

Zu An said gravely, “Actually, the Unknown Lands I’ve experienced before, while dangerous, were not as perilous as this one. I feel like there’s something very wrong with this particular Unknown Land.”

Hearing him say this, the other women also became interested and were about to ask for details about other Unknown Lands. However, a surge within their bodies immediately distracted them, and they all focused on suppressing the poison within them.

Soon, Zu An found a secluded forest. He landed with them, helped each of them lean against a large tree, and then said, “Let me help you.”

“No!” the three women opened their eyes in unison, staring at him with both shame and anger.

Zu An paused, then gave a wry smile, “You’ve misunderstood. I meant to help you circulate your energy to expel the poison.”

“No need,” Yan Xuehen said, her face flushing. She knew very well the effect of Zu An’s True Qi when he helped with healing.

Yun Jianyue had also seen the scene when Yu Yanluo was healed by him before, so she dared not let him help. “Don’t worry, we just accidentally inhaled a little; we aren’t truly poisoned, and the impact isn’t significant. Our own cultivation is enough to expel the toxins from our bodies. We just need quiet. Please stand guard for us.”

“I see,” Zu An said, feeling a little lost.

“You seem rather disappointed, you scoundrel?” Yun Jianyue glared at him, while Yan Xuehen and Yu Yanluo also stared at him with ambiguous smiles.

Zu An’s old face flushed. “Of course not! I’m happy for you, haha. I’ll stand guard nearby so you can safely expel the poison.”

Only then did the women withdraw their gazes, daring not to delay further, and quickly circulated their energy to expel the poisonous gas from their bodies.

Zu An inspected the surroundings; there were no dangerous creatures nearby.

He looked at the vast, boundless sea on one side and the sprawling mountains on the other, falling into deep thought.

Based on the numerous objects encountered so far that only exist in ancient myths and legends, it was highly likely that this Unknown Land was related to the Xia Dynasty.

Only the Xia Dynasty would have such strong ties to ancient myths.

Even legendary creatures like Taowu, one of the Four Fiends, had appeared; he wondered if even more powerful mythical figures would emerge.

If that were the case, this time would surely be difficult.

Suddenly, an idea struck him, and he summoned Mo Xi.

She wore a bustier-style leather armor and a super-short tiger-skin skirt around her waist, with clearly visible abdominal muscles. Her wheat-colored skin exuded a honey-like sheen, and her legs were round and firm. She looked like a sexy, beautiful, yet dangerous female leopard.

“This is a secret realm related to the Xia Dynasty. Do you feel anything familiar?” Zu An asked, looking at her expectantly.

Mo Xi tilted her head, staring at him without the slightest reaction, as if looking at an idiot.

Zu An was speechless; it seemed he had overestimated her.

Considering her skill had just saved him, he couldn't really say anything and put her away again.

He could only wait idly by as the women finished expelling the poison.

Meanwhile, on the other side, the Demon Emperor and his group continued walking towards the tall mountain. The surroundings were lush and overgrown with vegetation, yet they saw no living creatures, not even birds, beasts, or insects.

Wu Liang held his spinning compass, saying with a long face, “Life has vanished; this is a dead end.”

Perhaps his words had an effect, as the Demon Emperor suddenly stopped.

Before Wu Liang could rejoice, the Demon Emperor kicked him, sending him flying forward.

“It’s over; the Demon Emperor wants me to scout ahead,” Wu Liang thought, his heart turning cold, realizing that if there were any danger, he would be instantly torn to shreds.

To his surprise, however, no imagined danger occurred until he landed.

When he picked himself up, he was astonished to find an ancient tomb at the foot of the mountain. Outside the tomb entrance were some broken walls and faint remnants of statues, though most had weathered away, leaving only their stone bases.

Upon seeing the ancient tomb, his eyes immediately lit up, and all fear was cast aside. He began to study the surroundings incessantly, sometimes looking at the remaining statues, sometimes examining the carved patterns up close, then taking out his compass to investigate the area, all while measuring something with his steps.

Seeing no abnormality in him, the Demon Emperor then brought Prince Golden Crow over, both frowning deeply as they stared at the ancient tomb.

“This ancient tomb seems quite dilapidated,” Prince Golden Crow frowned, thinking that such a ruined tomb wouldn’t contain anything good.

To demonstrate his value to the Demon Emperor and avoid being easily sacrificed, Wu Liang hastily explained, “Prince, you mustn’t underestimate this tomb. Although it looks extremely dilapidated now, its structure and specifications clearly indicate that the tomb’s occupant was an emperor-level figure in life.”

“An emperor? Why is it so rudimentary?” the Demon Emperor asked suspiciously.

“The site selection, the orientation of the tomb, and the details of these statues all indicate that this is indeed an imperial tomb, but its scale is somewhat disproportionate,” Wu Liang mused for a moment. “There are several reasons this might be the case. One is that the tomb owner’s kingdom was on the verge of collapse when the mausoleum was built, lacking the national power to construct a grand imperial tomb. However, from what I see, the details of this mausoleum seem quite complete in all aspects, so this scenario seems unlikely.”

“The second possibility is that the tomb owner was an emperor who reigned for a very short time and died young.”

“And another possibility is that the tomb owner was a deposed emperor who was overthrown, which is why the various forms and specifications of the burial are much more rudimentary than a normal imperial mausoleum.”

As he was explaining, a long sigh suddenly echoed: “Hahaha, how many years has it been? Finally, someone understands my grievance.”

Wu Liang shivered and quickly retreated behind the Demon Emperor, because the sound came directly from the tomb, and it was exactly the same as the voice that had lured them earlier!

The Demon Emperor also looked solemn, gazing in the direction of the ancient tomb, “Are you human or ghost?”

No waiting today, just this chapter...