Chapter 1465: Welcoming the Master

The Golden Crow Prince was seething with indignation. "Father already considers this guy an equal opponent?" he thought.

"What have I done to deserve such high regard from you?" Zu'an wondered. He understood the Demon Emperor's words perfectly: they were all in the same boat now. If an extremely formidable entity emerged later, Zu'an couldn't be expected to handle it alone; everyone would have to contribute. With Zu'an's exceptional combat prowess, along with two Grandmasters and the Medusa Queen on his side, they were certainly a force to be reckoned with.

The Demon Emperor didn't wait for a reply. He tossed a skull to Wu Liang. "Here, go open that stone coffin in the center." The skull was perfectly clear and translucent, emanating a unique luminescence, as if crafted from crystal. This artifact had been acquired earlier in their journey. The Demon Emperor had noticed a peculiar skull-shaped indentation on the central stone platform, prompting him to instruct Wu Liang to investigate it.

Wu Liang grumbled inwardly, "Wasn't this Zu'an's task before?" Despite his reluctance, he didn't dare defy the Demon Emperor's command, fearing he might also be afflicted with a puppet curse mark. He made a mental note: once they were out, he absolutely had to ask Zu'an how he had managed to remove the puppet curse mark.

Lost in thought, he cautiously approached the central stone platform. After meticulously examining the surrounding runic formations and confirming the absence of any fatal mechanisms, he slowly inserted the skull into the indentation. Watching this unfold, Zu'an frowned inwardly. "Emperor Yao was a venerable emperor, a figure of righteousness. Why would he employ something as sinister as a skull?" he mused. "Still, this crystal skull is rather beautiful..."

At that moment, a crisp click echoed through the chamber as the crystal skull nestled perfectly into the indentation. It then appeared to be drawn in by some force, sinking directly down. Noticing Wu Liang was still clinging to the skull, Zu'an couldn't help but prompt him, "Fatty, aren't you going to let go?" The Demon Emperor and the Golden Crow Prince also watched Wu Liang warily, wondering if the fatty had made some discovery and intended to claim the immortal treasure for himself.

Just then, Wu Liang shrieked, his voice trembling, "I want to let go, but it's pulling me in! I can't release it!" As he spoke, the skull re-emerged from the stone platform. The others, their gazes sharp, quickly realized Wu Liang's hands were being held fast to the skull's surface by an unknown force, unable to be pried away despite his efforts. At that very moment, red light burst from the skull's eyes, and an evil, chilling aura manifested out of thin air.

The Demon Emperor's face changed, and he instinctively took a step back. Zu'an and the others felt an icy sensation spread throughout their bodies. It wasn't the coldness of Yan Xuehen's Snowfall Divine Sword; rather, it felt like an evil presence, causing their limbs to stiffen involuntarily. Their expressions shifted, and they swiftly retreated. Wu Liang, the first to be affected, was utterly terrified and shrieked, "Your Majesty, the Demon Emperor, save me! Please save me!"

The Demon Emperor frowned, showing no inclination to intervene. He seemed to intend for Wu Liang to serve as a guinea pig, to ascertain the situation. Zu'an frowned. He and this fatty had a history, and he couldn't just stand by and watch him perish. He immediately brought down a hand-chop towards Wu Liang's forearm, reasoning that compared to one's life, the loss of a pair of hands was a small price to pay. High-level cultivators, after all, possessed self-healing capabilities; with some spiritual herbs for recovery, they might even grow back in a few years.

Wu Liang clearly understood his intention, and a flicker of gratitude crossed his face. He offered no resistance, willing to sacrifice his hands to escape. To their surprise, as the blade qi neared him, a black vortex suddenly materialized on the skull's forehead, absorbing the strike. Wu Liang let out a cry of agony, realizing his life essence was being rapidly drained away. His usually plump hands withered at a visible, alarming rate. His rounded cheeks also began to hollow inwards. He frantically attempted to unleash his internal energy to sever his arms, but it was too late; the force intended to break his arms was, predictably, absorbed by the black hole. He was left with no strength to resist, only able to turn his head towards the Demon Emperor, his lips trembling slightly. "Save... save me..."

He knew that among everyone present, only the Demon Emperor possessed the power to save him. However, the Demon Emperor remained impassive. If the stone platform required a blood sacrifice to open, then Wu Liang was the most convenient choice among them. Zu'an's group appeared to be closely bonded; harming any one of them would inevitably shatter their fragile alliance. And besides them, he certainly couldn't sacrifice his own son.

Zu'an and his companions watched with heavy hearts, but by then, they were powerless to intervene. In the blink of an eye, Wu Liang, who had been as rotund as a ball of flesh, was reduced to skin and bones, resembling a dried corpse. Zu'an couldn't help but recall Sang Qian, who had perished at the hands of Mosquito Daoist long ago, reduced to the same skeletal state. "Could a blood-sucking creature be sealed within this stone platform?" he wondered. "The poor fatty. He seemed to have so many mysterious abilities, yet I never imagined he would die so easily."

At this point, disturbances began to emanate from the surroundings. The group looked up to see the clay exterior of the two towering statues beginning to crack and flake away. Immediately, two powerful auras erupted within the hall, their presence escalating with incredible speed. Yun Jianyue and Yan Xuehen simultaneously whispered a warning: "Be careful. This is the aura of a peak Grandmaster. No, it's still rising." Zu'an's expression shifted. "Could they be two Earth Immortals?"

Not only Zu'an but even the Demon Emperor grew tense. He fixed his gaze on the two statues, whose clay coverings had now completely fallen away, revealing their true forms. One was a massive, bear-like creature, entirely crimson. It rubbed its head, appearing somewhat disoriented from just waking up. Upon registering the people in the hall, it pounded its chest with both fists, emitting furious roars. On the other side stood a monstrous creature with a human face and a serpentine body, adorned with nine heads. Each head bore an extremely ferocious and distorted expression, as if having endured unimaginable suffering.

Immediately after, the light around several of its heads twisted, gradually merging into a single head. Its form also shrank progressively, eventually transforming into a graceful young man, appearing delicate and fragile, utterly devoid of the grotesque ferocity of its previous nine-headed serpentine form. The Demon Emperor, however, dared not underestimate him in the slightest. In fact, his gaze towards this figure was even more solemn than it had been towards the red giant bear. While the red giant bear monster was massive and appeared formidable, its aura had only just entered the Earth Immortal realm, still a considerable distance from his own power level. But this white-robed young man was entirely different; his power was surging rapidly, and currently, he appeared to be at least as strong as the Demon Emperor himself.

Yan Xuehen and Yun Jianyue were explaining similar observations to Zu'an and Yu Yanluo, making the hairs on their arms stand on end. "Wait, the auras of these two are completely different from that sinister, evil aura we felt earlier, aren't they?" Zu'an suddenly realized, a serious question dawning on him.

The Demon Emperor had been secretly congratulating himself, grateful that he hadn't engaged in a conflict with Zu'an's group earlier. Now, he could handle the white-robed man himself, while Zu'an's group and the Golden Crow Prince dealt with the crimson bear; it seemed manageable. However, upon hearing Zu'an's words, he was jolted and sharply turned his gaze to the central stone platform. At that moment, both the white-robed man and the crimson giant bear approached the stone platform and knelt on one knee. "Welcome, Master!" they declared.