Chapter 495: Immortal Taoist

The Dacheng Sacred Body shone with dazzling light, threads of which emanated, filling the heavens and earth, causing many great mountains to collapse. Except for regions protected by ancient Great Emperor formation patterns, other areas were almost reduced to deserts, and some black mountains even crumbled into dust. This was an incomparably terrifying sacred power; almost no one in the human world could withstand it. It wasn't an intentional attack, but merely a fraction of the divine power naturally surging forth.

Ye Fan was shaken to his core. If he could inhabit this body, who would he fear in this world? Even facing peerless masters emerging from the ancient halls of the primordial assassin god dynasty, there would be no need to fear! He was profoundly shaken. This was merely a fraction of the remaining divine power of the Dacheng Sacred Body; if it were at its peak, how terrifying would its combat strength be? Perhaps... it could truly destroy this great world with bare hands!

Ye Fan carefully probed and completely imprinted the complete auxiliary secret art. His heart surged with excitement, knowing this would be a powerful reliance for him to advance into the supreme realm in the future.

*Clang!*

With a wave of his hand, he drew the golden ancient staff from the stone coffin. Divine power surged within him; he felt as if he could pluck stars and seize the moon, as if there was nothing he couldn't accomplish. At this moment, inhabiting the Dacheng Sacred Body, he almost believed it was his own flesh, responding as easily as moving his own arm, without the slightest sense of sluggishness, perfectly to his will.

"If I could take it away," he thought, "I would go directly and flatten the human world and hell!" Ye Fan was very excited. Although the lifeless body of the Dacheng Sacred Body could not compare to its peak, it still possessed immeasurable combat power.

At this moment, holding the golden scepter, he possessed world-dominating combat power, his killing intent soaring to the clouds; he felt he could completely sweep clean this Sacred Cliff. The supreme scepter of the Heavenly Court was chillingly oppressive, stained with the blood of millions of living beings. At this moment, it emitted strands of light, as if the infernal hell had opened.

*Whoosh!*

Suddenly, Ye Fan was expelled from the corpse by a strange force. The supreme assassin scepter fell to the ground, emitting a crisp clang. The Azure Lotus enveloped his spiritual sense, instantly returning to his own body, protected by the old lunatic within a light barrier, confronting the Dacheng Sacred Body.

"The corpse of the Dacheng Sacred Body is too terrifying! We must take it away!" Li Heishui exclaimed. "Its combat power is enough to awe the world, comparable to a supreme sacred weapon!"

"Although it's covered in corpse hair, that's irrelevant," the big black dog added, unable to sit still. "This is an invincible humanoid weapon!"

Unfortunately, Ye Fan was ultimately forced out, unable to maintain control.

Moreover, the old lunatic frowned, saying, "Don't touch him; there's something ominous inside him."

Just then, the divine power of the Dacheng Sacred Body receded, its eyes turned green, and the corpse hair all over its body grew wildly, becoming even more terrifying.

"My descendant..." it suddenly spoke, its voice firm and powerful, like the grinding of metal and stone. Its eyes glowed with fierce divine light, staring at Ye Fan without blinking, saying, "Take me away!"

"You..." Ye Fan was startled.

Little Nannan, meanwhile, was extremely nervous, pulling on Ye Fan's sleeve, and trembling, said, "There's... a ghost in his body."

"You are my descendant, help me revive, take me away..." The voice was distant, as if from ancient times, possessing a demonic quality that made it impossible to refuse.

Ye Fan let out a cold snort. He came from beyond the starry sky and had no blood relation to this world's pre-Archaic Sacred Body. His eyes instantly turned cold.

The old lunatic, meanwhile, let out a heavenly sound, shaking the entire Sacred Cliff, saying, "If you want to act, then come!" He advanced several large steps.

"Hmph!"

The Dacheng Sacred Body let out a cold snort; the corpse hair all over its body thickened, almost engulfing it, and the strange power grew even stronger. Its killing intent was fully revealed. It walked forward step by step, then suddenly extended a large hand, reaching for the old lunatic, intending to smash him into pulp.

This was the peerless Dacheng Sacred Body; whether it was alive or dead, no one could harm its physical body. It was truly terrifying!

The old lunatic let out a soft cry, and with a raised hand, manifested a complete Dao diagram, pressing it forward, intending to seal the corpse of the Dacheng Sacred Body.

*Boom!*

At the same time, the Sacred Cliff trembled, and the Investiture of the Gods List on the mountainside burst forth with dazzling golden light, releasing an aura of world-destroying power which instantly enveloped the high heavens.

*Bang!*

A large golden hand descended, forcing the Dacheng Sacred Body's corpse to resist with all its might!

"The Investiture of the Gods List, it's not just suppressing the being within the mountain's core, but also suppressing this corpse!" Li Heishui exclaimed in alarm.

"No, that's wrong," Ye Fan speculated. "It must be the being within the mountain's core causing trouble, inhabiting the Sacred Body's corpse, thus triggering the Investiture of the Gods List."

*Boom!*

An earth-shattering roar erupted. The large golden hand instantly repelled the Dacheng Sacred Body's corpse, and then descended once more.

The big black dog was incomparably excited, trembling as it said, "Did you see that? The Investiture of the Gods List suppressing this place is equivalent to the Great Emperor Wushi's hand pressing down here!"

The Dacheng Sacred Body, covered in corpse hair, let out a great roar; numerous mountain ranges in the distance shattered, and even many black mountains cracked. It raised its gaze to the high heavens, shaking heaven and earth!

However, the large golden hand manifested by the Investiture of the Gods List was equally terrifying, slamming down with an irresistible force, covering the entire Sacred Cliff.

*Bang!*

The Dacheng Sacred Body was repelled as the large golden hand descended, destroying everything; even the Dacheng Sacred Body's physical body could only retreat, avoiding its sharpness.

"How could this be..." Ye Fan comforted himself, "Right, it must be that the Dacheng Sacred Body's physical body is withered, and it doesn't have much divine power left." After all, that was his ultimate goal.

"Kid, don't be discouraged," the big black dog said. "The Dacheng Sacred Body's physical body is peerless, but the Investiture of the Gods List was refined by Great Emperor Wushi..."

*Boom!*

The large golden hand forcefully lifted the Dacheng Sacred Body's corpse, causing it to fall into the ancient coffin, and then, with a thunderous sound, sealed the lid upon it.

"This..." Li Heishui was astonished, saying, "Is this truly equivalent to Great Emperor Wushi's hand descending?"

"Great Emperor Wushi's hand suppressed the mountainside," the big black dog said. "This is merely a manifested part of it."

"Is Great Emperor Wushi's physical body stronger than the Dacheng Sacred Body?" Ye Fan frowned.

"Great Emperor Wushi's physical body possesses all the advantages of a Sacred Body," the big black dog revealed a shocking piece of news. "This is equivalent to two Sacred Bodies clashing, but one has already become a Great Emperor." Then, it added, "Every ancient Great Emperor was incomparably powerful, reigning over the world; they were all unmatched and solitary figures throughout eternity! Leaving aside their previous physiques, their Emperor bodies alone could crush everything."

Peace returned to the Sacred Cliff. The golden hand manifested by the Investiture of the Gods List vanished, and everything returned to calm.

"The Secret Characters of the Nine Secrets and the Sacred Lord of the Heavenly Court were also sealed together in the ancient coffin..." the big black dog mumbled. It had only remembered four Dao diagrams and was a bit unwilling.

"Leave it for the next fated person," the old lunatic said.

Ye Fan walked over, enduring the terrible torment of his spirit almost shattering, and sealed the golden scepter. This was the symbol of the ancient assassin god dynasty's Heavenly Court. Furthermore, this was also a weapon, an extremely terrifying secret treasure capable of unleashing power commensurate with one's cultivation realm.

"This is a weapon refined by an ancient Saint," the big black dog said, drooling. "To reinforce the Heavenly Court's legacy, it has a self-sealing function. Unless one reaches the Saint realm, its full power can never be unleashed." It several times wanted to leap up and rob Ye Fan.

"Damn it, this wretched dog," Li Heishui muttered, "wants to steal from acquaintances too!" Both he and Ye Fan wanted to give it a good beating.

Little Nannan gently patted it, saying, "Be a good doggy."

Upon hearing this, the big black dog almost tripped and fell. If it had been anyone else, it would have long since rushed up to bite them. But facing Little Nannan, it could only sheepishly rein itself in, baring its fangs slightly, feeling too embarrassed to harbor any ill intentions.

They did not linger and descended the mountain along the original path, preparing to leave this Sacred Cliff. This cliff was certainly not a benevolent place, and prolonged stay might lead to disaster.

Suddenly, when they reached the mountainside, they saw a person from afar blocking their way. The Daoist robe on his body was exceedingly ancient, vastly different from what was seen in the current era. It was impossible to tell what epoch it belonged to, filled with traces of time.

The few remaining hairs on the big black dog's head immediately stood on end. It gritted its teeth and said, "Damn it, we've encountered a super-ancient one! These clothes are from over a hundred thousand years ago!"

"It's not another ancient corpse, is it?" Li Heishui whispered.

"He's not a corpse!" The old lunatic walked ahead, revealing an extremely solemn expression as he stared at the old Daoist. The old Daoist was like a living fossil, slowly walking up the mountain path. Every part of him was ancient, and he himself was extremely old. The purple-gold crown on his head was dull and lifeless, almost rotting away, and his Daoist robe looked as if it could turn to dust at any moment. He chanted a Daoist epithet, wearing a benevolent expression.

"Benefactors," the old Daoist began, "could you lend this humble Daoist a hand? I am willing to bestow two peerless sacred arts from the Nine Secrets as a gift."

The old Daoist spoke thus immediately, astonishing the group, who stared dumbfounded. He instantly offered two of the Nine Secrets—who exactly was he?!

"Who are you?" Little Nannan's voice was soft and tender, asking like a curious child.

On the other side, the old lunatic grew even more solemn, his aura like mountains and peaks. His entire being actually transformed into an ancient diagram, no longer in human form! One could imagine how seriously he took it, as if facing a formidable enemy. For a Saint to act like this was enough to illustrate the old Daoist's terrifying nature!

"This humble Daoist has forgotten the past," the old Daoist said calmly, as an ancient aura permeated the air. "Because my true self has long since decayed, and no one can resist the passage of time."

"He... he must be that supreme being in the mountain's core," the big black dog shivered all over, revealing an expression of extreme dread. "The one suppressed by the Investiture of the Gods List! If that were true, a monstrous disaster would befall them."

In the past, Great Emperor Wushi personally dealt with this being and ultimately suppressed him with the Investiture of the Gods List. If he wasn't dead yet, just thinking about it made one's scalp tingle.

"My physical body has long since returned to dust," the old Daoist continued. "I only remember others calling me the Undying Daoist."

"Undying Daoist..." Ye Fan's heart sank. "He's probably that supreme being from Mount Bu Si, isn't he?" The Sacred Cliff was a section cut from Mount Bu Si!

The old lunatic transformed into a complete ancient diagram, stirring the Great Dao of the heavens, evolving a supreme Dao fruit. An eternal aura permeated the air, as if it had always been so since eternity.

"This humble Daoist has only left behind a wisp of primordial spirit, buried within the Immortal Source," the old Daoist said calmly. "I wish to go out and fulfill a long-cherished desire, and I bear no ill will." How many years had passed? Even though his physical body had turned to dust, he still left behind his primordial spirit. Just thinking about it was terrifying.