Chapter 1695: One Boundary Mound

Ancient Mars was clearly much larger than it is now, but due to a cataclysm, it rapidly contracted to its current state.

The Northern Sea Eye was dry, with no water. When Ye Fan and his companions arrived, they found only sand and colossal rocks, scoured clean and predominantly reddish.

Some say these were soaked in blood. During a battle long ago, the entire ancient planet Mars was stained red, and had it not been for the suppression of an immortal treasure, the very solar system would have ceased to exist.

Bang! The Hundred-legged Heavenly Worm acted, moving aside a colossal boulder and unveiling a seal. A pitch-black opening was revealed, from which a chilling, soul-stirring aura emerged.

Ye Fan stepped forward, leading the way into the depths below. Faintly, he heard the sounds of crashing waves, hinting at a vast, subterranean world far more expansive than anyone could have imagined.

Seals lay below, initially not difficult to break, posing no challenge even for Great Sages. However, they only grew cautious when faint chanting began to reach their ears.

"Hmm, it's those monks," he murmured, "they've become ghost monks." A large ship blocked their path, radiating dazzling golden light. Faint Buddhist chants emanated from it, so weak they seemed on the verge of fading completely.

"No," Ye Fan whispered, "it’s different from how it was hundreds of years ago."

His spiritual sense was incredibly powerful. He perceived that the ancient Buddhas and Arhats were all gone; a layer of fine dust on the ship was all that remained of them, as if they had disintegrated into mere particles.

The chants emanated from the ship itself, merely an echo of ancient Buddhist sounds, not from anyone actually chanting.

Evidently, something had occurred. This place had changed, becoming far more terrifying than before, prompting a sense of alarm, especially since this was not even the deepest level.

Finally, they arrived in the underground world, and everyone was profoundly shaken. There truly was an ocean, black as ink, vast and boundless, stretching without end—a bizarre and wondrous sight deep beneath the surface.

"This place is a realm unto itself," said Da Xia Long Que.

To his knowledge, approaching this boundless sea was exceedingly difficult, a feat even Great Sages struggled to achieve. Yet now, it was remarkably easy. Clearly, the grand seal of this place had been breached.

"Be careful!" Shan Huang cautioned.

"Don’t worry, old rooster—no, Lord Shan Huang!" Yin She quickly corrected himself, having slipped up by habit, truly fearing he might invite disaster upon himself.

"Now that we've arrived, let us work together," Ye Fan stated. "Everyone, please share any information you have in advance to prevent major complications."

Having said that, he was the first to descend into the black ocean, probing its mysteries.

Nothing unusual occurred. The place was utterly lifeless, devoid of vitality. There were no fish in the sea, nor any demons. It was a silent, dead sea.

Was this truly the place where an entire era had been buried, interring imperial-level experts? Nothing was visible but the water, only the black sea.

There was no immediate danger, and the place was calm, yet its profound silence was almost terrifying, always leaving one with a sense that something was fundamentally amiss.

The entire group followed closely behind Ye Fan and Shan Huang, advancing into the sea's depths. With two Quasi-Emperors leading, their combined strength provided ample confidence, making it truly a formidable lineup.

At their speed, they could have crossed a star field without issue, yet they still couldn't reach the end of the ocean. It was indeed a vast realm.

Finally, they spotted an island, black as a mountain range, piercing the water's surface.

But as they drew closer, their expressions shifted; this was no island at all. Instead, it was a colossal spinal column, stretching boundlessly across the expanse, tens of thousands of miles long.

How unimaginably vast must this skeleton be, to be submerged in the ocean yet protrude so prominently? It was astonishing.

"This is a star beast, and a juvenile at that," someone remarked. "It feeds on star cores. To think such creatures truly exist; few have been seen since ancient times."

Everyone was astonished. Such creatures possessed infinite growth potential, reaching Quasi-Emperor strength in their later stages. Indeed, the few that had appeared throughout history had all stirred up immeasurable storms.

Were it not for their rarity, this species would undoubtedly become a grave menace to the universe.

"A boundless watery realm," someone muttered to himself. "When will it ever end?"

Ye Fan extended his spiritual sense, but it was strangely peculiar. This place was exceptionally unique; even his powerful divine consciousness couldn't fully probe it, as it was obscured by a mysterious fluctuation.

"It's the aura of that supreme treasure," someone speculated, "transformed into an invisible Grand Dao, obstructing everything here."

"Perhaps it's underwater," Shan Huang stated, revealing the clues he had gathered.

The Hundred-legged Heavenly Worm said, "Hmm, then let's go down and take a look. However, this sea doesn't seem right no matter how I perceive it; descending rashly might lead to unforeseen consequences."

"Let's send out an attack to test it first," Yin She proposed. "If something terrifying is lurking, a battle is inevitable sooner or later; better to face it now."

"Let me do it!" The immortal crane transformed into its true form. Its wings spread wide, eclipsing the sun, then swiftly descended. Its divine wings, like gleaming celestial blades, sliced through the very sky, parting the vast ocean in two.

Suddenly, a terrifying aura surged skyward, locking onto the immortal crane. A colossal tentacle, like that of a demon from the deepest abyss of hell, reached up. It was covered in grotesque lumps and slick with viscous slime, its tentacle stretching for thousands of miles.

The immortal crane clashed with it, its silver wings erupting with brilliant, clanging light, sending it flying sideways and upwards.

The powerful tentacle continued to extend, nearly coiling around the crane and dragging it into the sea with its terrifying demonic might.

"It's an octopus," someone exclaimed, "colossal in size, brimming with corrosive power and exuding a pervasive aura of death!"

As the seawater undulated, they beheld a colossal gray octopus, as vast as a sky-piercing mountain, shrouded in a deathly mist and emitting a putrid, decaying stench.

This was not a true prehistoric octopus, but an undead entity, composed of countless decaying tissues, exuding an overwhelming surge of Yin energy.

"'Heroic spirits rest, dead slaves guard the tomb…' someone exclaimed in surprise. 'This is what my master told me when he was alive. It seems it really is beneath this sea.'"

This octopus was truly bizarre; its body was adorned with the decaying flesh of Great Sages and fragments of Quasi-Emperor weapons. It was immensely powerful, though perhaps slightly weaker than a typical Great Sage, yet certain parts of it were even stronger.

Puff! Yet, before a true Quasi-Emperor, it was insignificant. Shan Huang merely extended a finger, and the colossal creature shattered instantly, dissolving into putrid sludge. Overwhelming Yin energy and a foul stench surged forth.

Shan Huang then pointed another finger, cleaving a path that separated the seawater, leading directly to the depths beneath the ocean.

"This is..." They traversed an unknown distance, incredibly passing through the water layer to reach the very bottom. It was an immensely vast and empty space, completely dry, with the boundless ocean suspended high above, refusing to fall.

The ground below was densely covered, a boundless expanse of skeletons and the cold remains of countless beings. The sight alone made one's scalp tingle.

How many had perished back then? How could there be so many, an endless sea of them?

"This is it!" Yin She exclaimed excitedly. "We've arrived at the ancient battlefield where an entire era was buried—a place where even Imperial figures perished!"

"But wait," someone questioned, "it's said that ordinary people cannot enter this place at all. How then did we get in so effortlessly?"

"The seal of this place has been broken," another replied. "That's why we encountered no obstruction and arrived directly at this battlefield!"

Upon learning this, their hearts sank. Someone had beaten them to it, arriving many years earlier.

Ye Fan lowered his head, gazing at the boundless battlefield. He sensed an unending tide of Yin energy alongside a faint trace of vibrant life, instantly recognizing the immense danger lurking here.

It had been speculated long ago that Yin spirits might be reborn here, and now it seemed that prophecy had come true.

"This is simply a second Underworld; the most terrifying scenario might unfold here!" said Da Xia Long Que, his face grim.

Ye Fan took out the Azure Lotus, holding it in his hand as a precaution, and continued forward.

As they advanced, they grew increasingly alarmed. Countless broken weapons and tattered banners littered the ground, many of them unmistakably Quasi-Emperor artifacts. Though destroyed and rendered unusable, their divine properties utterly vanished, their original status as Quasi-Emperor weapons was undeniable.

How terrifying must that battle have been, to leave behind so many broken artifacts of such an exceptionally high grade?

Furthermore, they discovered the battlefield had multiple layers, each originally sealed. The deeper they went, the stronger the seals should have been, yet now, all were broken, allowing them to proceed unimpeded.

"This is too terrifying! Someone had already broken through them, it's appalling!" Even Shan Huang was shocked.

Indeed, as they neared the core, even the residual sealing power of the battlefield felt exceedingly difficult for him to handle. Had he been the one to break these seals, he likely wouldn't have made it this far.

The ground was littered with endless bones, and the earth itself was black and red, formed from countless layers of blood-soaked mud and residual blood. In battles of such a caliber, bodies rarely remained intact, usually dissolving into blood mist.

"These remains must have been piled in here later," someone deduced, "otherwise there would only be residual blood. They were interred here, transforming this place into a realm-sized graveyard."

A great realm transformed into a graveyard—how utterly terrifying was that?

"I believe it wasn't descendants who buried them here," Ye Fan countered, "but rather someone who intentionally placed them, needing these very bodies and flesh."

Ye Fan frowned. He sensed a powerful life force, even though it was submerged beneath an ocean of dense death energy; his spiritual perception allowed him to detect it.

"We've arrived," someone announced, "at the core burial ground."

"What is that?" someone gasped. "Several corpses, their blood completely drained, lying dead here!"

They were astonished. In the deepest part of the battlefield lay an immensely grand palace. While many corpses of flesh and blood littered the surroundings, three distinct ones lay prostrate before the palace gates.

A divine tiger—undoubtedly a Quasi-Emperor!

Ye Fan was astonished. This was the very mount of the Everlasting Heavenly Venerate from the Immortal Mausoleum! Before the final battle, when the Immortal Road collapsed, this tiger had vanished, and he never expected it to reappear here.

It lay dead, its vital blood essence completely drained. The decaying blood on the ground had long since lost all spiritual energy.

Beside it, another corpse was also identified.

"This is someone from the Underworld!" Ye Fan exclaimed. "They actually found their way here; it's a battle slave!" Ye Fan, being very familiar with the Underworld, instantly recognized its origin, noting the reincarnation mark and Underworld slave brand on its body.

It hadn't fully awakened, yet possessed immense strength, sent out on a mission only to meet its demise here.

There was also an unknown Quasi-Emperor, who appeared to have perished at least several hundred years ago, similarly drained of vital blood essence, with decaying blood splattered across the ground.

In this place, not to mention other demons, even Shan Huang felt a chill run down his spine. Quasi-Emperors, each of profound origin, had met their untimely demise here, implying that he too would likely not be spared if he ventured further.

Ye Fan stared ahead, and with a sweep of the Azure Lotus in his hand, he dispelled the dense Yin mist. Otherwise, such mist could even obstruct the Heaven's Eye.

Inside the grand palace, there were three severed arms, half a skull, and numerous fragments of flesh and blood, clearly not belonging to a single individual.

A loud rumble echoed in Ye Fan's mind: this was the flesh and blood of an Imperial-level expert! Who could have consumed them, leaving behind only such meager remnants?

Having once battled a Supreme Being, he profoundly understood that aura. The flesh and blood unequivocally belonged to Imperial-level experts, yet now, their vital essence was gone, and the Imperial laws obliterated, leaving only a faint, distinctive aura, devoid of their former supreme majesty.

And they appeared to have been devoured by some colossal beast.

The realization sent shivers down their spines!

Upon closer inspection, he realized that the severed arms, the shattered skull, and the fragments of flesh were imbued with the power of ages, remnants left after being consumed countless eons ago.

Ye Fan's body grew cold. What was truly buried deep beneath Mars, and what was the truth? It was clearly far more complex than external rumors suggested.

Something slumbered in this place, devouring the endless flesh and blood, consuming the remains of Imperial-level experts. Even the Supremes who had perished long ago, burying an entire era, had met such a dreadful end.

Could that entity still be alive? The divine tiger, the Underworld's battle slave, and the unnamed Quasi-Emperor had all fallen outside in recent centuries, their vital blood essence completely vanished.

Ye Fan's eyes blazed with light; his Origin Heaven's Eye pierced through the void, illuminating the entire palace as the Yin mist completely dispersed.

"What is that?" someone whispered, trembling.

In the void above the palace, there was a bloody sphere of flesh, resembling a large cocoon, being pulled into a spatial gate, on the verge of vanishing from this world at any moment.

Behind that gate was a great chaotic bell, exerting a suction force that was pulling the fleshy sphere inward. Both sides were locked in a stalemate, a state that had evidently persisted for a considerable period of time.

"How could it be that?!" Even Ye Fan, whose will was as firm as iron, paled, gasping out in astonishment. This was utterly shocking to him—it was none other than the Bell of Wu Shi!

Back then, this bell had been used to seal the Immortal Road; how could it be here now? And it was trying to pull that terrifying fleshy sphere into another world!