Chapter 1367: Emperor's Mausoleum

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Ye Fan looked back, two sharp divine lights shooting from his pupils like golden lightning tearing through the void. The onlookers, who had been gazing at the mountain range, felt a chill through their bodies and all retreated.

He began inscribing formations, painstakingly carving them onto the giant mountain peaks. Lines of runes shimmered like dragons and snakes, circling the mountains with a brilliant divine glow, pulsating with the energy of life.

This was no longer a simple array; he was imbuing it with essence, qi, and spirit, as if creating life and awakening a divine will, granting even mountains and ancient tombs their own consciousness.

"I've already heard that the Overlord suffered a crushing defeat at your hands. It's truly gratifying, well done! I always resented his 'I'm the greatest' attitude," Pang Bo said from within the great tomb.

Ye Fan recounted the battle's details, his hands ceaselessly working. A dragon-shaped curve was carved, dividing the mountain range into two parts, forming a divine Taiji symbol in the vast wilderness.

Almost instantly, the area began to glow, absorbing the essence of heaven and earth. The clash of Yin and Yang sacred energies could then be channeled to breach the tomb's entrance.

This was Ye Fan's improved Origin Heaven Formation. For days, he had been diligently studying origin techniques, incorporating insights from the vast Yin-Yang divine array of the Ancient Heavenly Court.

The mountains vibrated, winds howled, and thunder rumbled. Dragon-snake-like runes surged across the peaks, radiating brilliant light, transforming the entire area.

Pang Bo recounted his experiences after falling into the mausoleum. He explained that a fissure had opened, allowing him to enter the tomb, only after a peerless Holy Spirit had transcended into the Great Dao. It had been a near-fatal ordeal; had Ye Fan not given him an Ancient Chaotic Emperor Talisman years ago, he would have long since turned to dust.

That ancient talisman had shielded him from disaster, effectively "dying" for him four times.

Ye Fan nodded and then pondered. Soon, he would use formidable divine power to dismantle this place, likely causing a cataclysm. The Ancient Chaotic Emperor Talisman had limited uses and might no longer be reliable enough.

"Pang Bo, listen closely..." He transmitted the "Zhe" character secret to Pang Bo via divine consciousness, urging him to study it thoroughly over the next few days as a safeguard.

"An unparalleled divine art!" Pang Bo exclaimed in admiration. He hadn't idled away his years; in the Eternal Star Domain, he had unlocked the Green Emperor's divine treasury, obtaining peerless good fortune. (XX Website)

Among the treasures were ancient evolutionary divine liquids, as well as several notebooks and booklets containing profound insights into the Dao and its evolution, along with unique annotations of scriptures.

"Possessing such an exquisite technique is truly profound. Mastering it is akin to having a semi-immortal body. We can venture onto those Golden Ancient Roads and compete for fortune with the Great Devil God, Human King, Goddess, Di Tian, and Fairy Qing Shi." Pang Bo was completely absorbed, and it didn't take him long to fully appreciate the unparalleled wonders of the "Zhe" character secret.

Ventures into the depths of space, challenging the ancient paths of humanity's holy cities, were no longer the main focus. Such trials could not satisfy the rigorous training requirements of some young prodigies, who now turned their attention to various abandoned wondrous sites.

The so-called Golden Ancient Roads were exceptionally dangerous divine domains, long deserted by cultivators. Once part of the ancient paths, they were now overgrown with thorns and nearly derelict.

The Star Ruins, itself a segment of a Golden Ancient Road, had recently seen prominent figures venturing in for trials. Inadvertently, they disturbed an ancient Emperor's mausoleum, causing it to manifest in the world. This transformed the Star Ruins into a hub of activity, dispelling its former desolation and making it bustling.

The Golden Ancient Roads were in fact a series of incredibly ancient, mist-shrouded secret realms—primordial star-field lands that had gradually fallen into disuse over the long river of time.

As such, they could also be referred to as Primordial Golden Secret Realms. Even more ancient secret realms were known as Mythical Golden Ancient Roads or Mythical Secret Realms.

"Just wait a few more days; I'll get you out!" Ye Fan declared after completing the Origin Heaven Formation, cautioning Pang Bo to be extremely careful, as a major shift was likely to occur in the coming days.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine. We brothers still have to roam the world together, to witness the God Race and the Imperial City where the Ancient Heavenly Court is located," Pang Bo said nonchalantly.

They conversed briefly, succinctly sharing their experiences without lengthy discussions, as Ye Fan needed to monitor the Emperor's corpse and the Yellow Spring, guarding against any sudden changes.

The Cloud Misty Continent, suspended in the cosmos, had drifted for an unknown number of years. Despite being a land rich in Yin energy, it had been thoroughly purified by the essence of the sun and moon, resulting in countless natural treasures on its surface.

This was a peculiar celestial body—not a star, but a continent, its existence in the cosmos somewhat strange. (XX Website) However, in the Star Ruins, it was unremarkable; this was the burial ground of stars, abundant with fragments of ancient continents, unlike other star domains.

A murky yellow river descended, flowing into the distance. It was utterly lifeless, offered no hope, and was permeated with a deathly aura, rendering the entire star region desolate and withered.

This vast river flowed from the void as if it had no source, simply falling from thin air. Its yellow waters resembled corpse fluid and possessed a soul-seizing power.

It flowed beside the Cloud Misty Continent, not far away. Some speculated that the true Emperor's tomb lay hidden within the void, now fractured, allowing the Yellow Spring to pour forth through the emptiness.

Ye Fan observed for a long time, initially keeping his distance. This Yellow Spring water differed from what he had seen in extremely Yin regions; it possessed an eerie and malevolent power.

Even before one drew near, the human body would tend to disintegrate and dissolve into the Dao. It seemed to contain immense destructive power, and many cultivators who recently attempted to explore it had all been reduced to dust.

Ye Fan fully employed his origin techniques, opening his divine eyes to pierce through the void. Vaguely, he seemed to glimpse a vast tomb suspended in the cosmic void, radiating a majestic imperial aura.

But in the next blink, it was ethereal and formless, nothing remained but a profound stillness, not a single sound audible.

Seemingly real yet illusory, no one could discern the true form of the ancient Emperor's tomb. What appeared were merely tomb shapes conjectured from the traces of the Great Dao, not necessarily their actual form.

Ye Fan frowned; even his Origin Heaven Eye couldn't penetrate it, revealing how extraordinary and counter-intuitive the Emperor's burial ground was. Even after the Great Emperor's passing, his imperial blood and immortal bones commanded awe and could not be desecrated.

Ye Fan attempted to draw closer, aiming to venture further than others. However, his hair stood on end as he felt a piercing, bone-chilling killing intent.

"Seal!"

Ye Fan whispered, gently drawing with his hands. Mysterious trajectories emerged one after another, accompanied by dazzling divine light. Dao patterns imprinted themselves into the void, stabilizing the starry sky and dissolving the killing intent.

At this level, origin techniques transcended the mere application of individual methods. Ye Fan spread all ten fingers, radiating immortal brilliance, as six golden formations successively materialized around him for protection. Furthermore, lines of runes extended towards the Yellow Spring, surveying the true conditions of that deathly realm.

This was the manifestation of origin techniques: divine patterns forming brilliant rivers that flowed through the star domain, weaving together peculiar origin Dao symbols.

Ye Fan's expression turned solemn. Indeed, some areas proved impenetrable; even a formidable Origin Heavenly Master couldn't fully comprehend them, as they transcended the scope of his mastered origin techniques.

This was the burial ground of an ancient Emperor; all divine arts proved useless, unable to penetrate it. The void isolated everything, with only the yellow river flowing ceaselessly.

Suddenly, his scalp tightened, pricking as if with needles. Ye Fan gasped and swiftly retreated.

In the void from which the Yellow Spring flowed, a flower abruptly appeared. It resembled a human face, terrifyingly pale, with all seven orifices present but indistinct features.

Rooted in the starry void, it had no leaves, was entirely pale, and displayed only its petals. Accompanying the Yellow Spring, its human-face-like shape and the weeping expression upon it were utterly horrifying.

Ye Fan retreated, moving away from the Yellow Spring, and then flew towards the Cloud Misty Ancient Continent. This area had also transformed; it was no longer enveloped by celestial essence and earthly splendor as before, and it seemed to have lost its vitality.

An ominous aura accompanied this change, deterring easy approach. Ye Fan moved cautiously, silently making measurements, and employed his origin techniques on the tangible land to deduce the Great Emperor's mausoleum.

He navigated through the unparalleled killing intent, completing a rough survey. Waves of shock surged through his heart. He hadn't observed the burial ground in the void, yet simply by examining this tangible ancient continent, he had gleaned some extraordinary clues.

"Within eternal despair... lies the hope for immense life."

Ye Fan was almost bewildered by this conclusion, finding it highly contradictory. This was clearly a Great Emperor's mausoleum; how could it present such an opportunity?

He withdrew from the ancient continent, standing in the cold starry sky and looking down. Then, he pondered deeply, silently deducing with his origin techniques.

One continent, two continents... On a miniature divine disk, Ye Fan connected the most significant dozen or so continents within the Star Ruins, meticulously marking their positions.

He pieced the ancient continents together, then separated them, moving them along specific trajectories until the current arrangement gradually materialized.

"These are over a dozen death zones, each an absolute deadly area brimming with death and yin, perfectly suited for burying corpses!"

However, upon closer inspection, he reached another conclusion. These dozen ancient continents were also like slumbering dragons. Viewed individually, each was a burial ground, yet when separated and moved along specific trajectories, they became like dead dragons absorbing divine essence, holding a profound hope for life.

"Dragon corpses ascending to heaven." Ye Fan's heart jolted; he had actually discerned a subtle clue.

All dozen ancient continents emanated imperial aura. Some contained sarcophagi, some were arrayed with formations, and others held artifacts from the Great Emperor's life; all of these were merely illusory tombs.

The dozen "dragon corpses" absorbed celestial essence, exhaling wisps of vitality that spread towards the high heavens, gathering in a single point within the void, seemingly indicating a transcendent emergence.

"Could it be that these dozen ancient continents each nurture celestial essence, ultimately ascending to the heavens, and the true vital point transcends them, creating something from the void with the hope of immense life?!"

Undoubtedly, the void through which the Yellow Spring flowed must be the vital point that transcends the dozen dragon corpses; everything converged there.

Ye Fan was dumbfounded. What was the purpose of this? Death was death. Was it a bizarre secret realm created for eternal life?

Suddenly, his glabella glowed, and the cauldron on his Immortal Platform hummed softly. This was because something within the cauldron was stirring, attempting to break free.

With a thought, Ye Fan opened his cauldron, and an ancient lamp instantly floated out, suspending itself before him. It emitted a sickly green light, illuminating the ancient Star Ruins.

This lamp, with its human body and ghost face, had a mysterious origin. After his confrontation with the Overlord, Ye Fan had consulted Daoist Qing Huang in the Fiftieth City, who informed him that it was very likely a relic of the Heavenly Venerate Lingbao from the mythical era.

"The myriad heavens sing from afar, ten thousand emperors offer rites, rivers and seas are silent, mountains hide clouds, sun and moon cease their course..." From within the bronze lamp, a chanting sound emerged—it was the Scripture of Deliverance. The sound was not loud, yet it pierced through the starry sky.

Ye Fan was startled. He had once questioned the purpose of the Scripture of Deliverance, finding it of little use in daily life and wondering why it had been passed down through countless ages. Now, his heart pounded violently, and he seemed to have grasped some clues. Could it truly be, as he suspected, meant to suppress the calamity of eternal life?