Chapter 62: Demon Emperor's Tomb Cracks

**Chapter 62: The Cracking of the Demon Emperor's Tomb**

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!" The sound of divine rainbows piercing the air was incessant as cultivators continuously streamed in from the horizon, rushing towards the Demon Emperor's tomb ahead. Ye Fan, however, watched all this with little excitement. He strode off into the distance, gradually moving away from the ruins, following his original path back to the Five-Finger Mountain region.

"What's going on...?" Ye Fan was extremely surprised. It was still the same region, yet the lush, vibrant scenery was gone. Ahead lay five bare stone mountains, completely barren with not a single blade of grass. They were no longer tall but had become very low, like five enormous boulders standing side by side.

Walking past the five stone mountains and moving forward, he neither lost his way nor saw the pure land beyond the mortal world. Ahead was a vast expanse of rubble and yellow sand—a desolate, quiet, and utterly unfamiliar place, completely devoid of life.

"I didn't take the wrong path..." Ye Fan was sure this was the same region, but the scene before him had completely transformed. That pure land had vanished entirely.

Ye Fan thought he had entered an illusion. He closed his eyes, using his heart to sense the pulsation of the Demon Emperor's heart, but he detected nothing. It was exceptionally silent here, a veritable barren wasteland.

He searched this area carefully and, to his dismay, discovered a truth: all of this was real. There was no pure land here, only a sandy, rocky expanse stretching for tens of miles, devoid of life and utterly desolate.

"How could this be...?" Ye Fan frowned. He returned to the five stone mountains, and suddenly, at the base of the central stone mountain, he discovered a corner of a sleeve.

"It's Pang Bo's..."

Ye Fan searched this area relentlessly, but ultimately, he was disappointed. There was nothing in this barren land; Pang Bo and the few great demons had completely vanished.

He circled the area, searching countless times. Ye Fan lay exhausted on the sand, pondering and speculating carefully. Finally, he sighed. With his current strength, he couldn't possibly find Pang Bo; even if he found a clue, he wouldn't be able to rescue him.

In the end, Ye Fan had no choice but to leave. He didn't know if he would ever see Pang Bo again after their separation today.

Having crossed to the other shore of the starry sky, the two had always shared life and death, supporting each other. But to be separated like this now made Ye Fan deeply disheartened. He walked away, step by step.

After walking for hundreds of miles, Ye Fan passed by the ancient ruins, only a few miles from the Demon Emperor's tomb. By then, numerous cultivators had already gathered there. The ancient tomb of the Demon Emperor was bobbing up and down in the sky, its radiant light soaring into the heavens.

Just then, a rumbling sound came, and the sky trembled repeatedly.

An ancient war chariot, exuding an aura of fierce killing intent, rolled forth, crushing the sky. Cast from gold and intricately engraved with numerous 'Dao patterns', it was pulled by nine powerful azure flood dragons, emitting sounds of wind and thunder. A powerful battle intent surged forward like a tsunami.

In the distance, many cultivators gasped. Another prominent figure had arrived, and many people's expressions changed. Only those from the Ancient Aristocratic Family Ji Clan showed joy.

The nine azure flood dragons, pulling the golden ancient war chariot, soared through the clouds and mist, swiftly arriving and stopping in front of the Ji Clan members. Then, silence fell.

Before anyone could fully recover, waves of celestial music, like sounds from heaven, approached from afar. The sky showered down shimmering, fragrant petals, and beautiful figures, like fairies, glided through the air, their sleeves fluttering, exquisitely ethereal and graceful.

Clustered like blooming flowers, they escorted a fragrant chariot woven from divine flowers, arriving lightly. A sky full of shimmering flower petals drifted down, making the entire ruined area magnificent.

Before the Demon Emperor's tomb, all the cultivators were astonished. Another extraordinary figure had arrived. This ancient palace had indeed attracted many powerful cultivators, all arriving in person.

Ye Fan had calmed down. Although he hadn't found Pang Bo, he firmly believed that Pang Bo was not dead and that one day, they would meet again as brothers.

"I must continuously become stronger!" he thought. "I cannot let others dictate our fate!"

Ye Fan cast aside his dejection. His eyes gleamed with divine light, revealing a resolute and confident spirit. Since he had already embarked on the path of cultivation, his immediate priority was to make himself powerful. Only then would he be able to rescue Pang Bo in the future.

He did not leave, but chose to retreat several miles away to observe from a tall mountain eight or nine miles from the Demon Emperor's tomb. With his current cultivation, he had no strength to contend for anything; the weakest person there could easily reduce him to ashes. He chose to watch from afar simply to gain experience.

By now, countless cultivators had arrived, and many had already made their moves. But still, no one could open the Demon Emperor's tomb, and quite a few cultivators had been killed or injured.

The magnificent ancient palace, forged from five-colored divine jade, was covered in intricate demonic script. Five-colored divine radiance burst forth as dragon-shaped, phoenix-shaped, and black turtle-shaped characters seemed to come alive. Demonic energy, like billowing wolf smoke, shot straight into the sky, and surging demonic power undulated like an ocean. No cultivators could approach; anyone daring to step past the forbidden boundary was instantly pulverized.

"The Immortal-Slaying power laid down by a generation's Demon Emperor has long since fallen to its lowest point under the erosion of time, and its pulsation patterns have been mastered by us," a cool, clear voice, not very loud, even a little low, was heard from the jade palanquin pulled by nine Qilin beasts in front of the Demon Emperor's tomb. "It's almost time; we can act now." The voice clearly spread to every corner, making many cultivators tremble.

This super powerful figure was finally going to act!

"Indeed, the Demon Emperor's tomb can be opened now," a soft voice came. No one saw the woman's figure, but no one doubted that anyone daring to speak with the prominent figure in the jade palanquin must be an existence of the same caliber.

"Our families have a natural geographical advantage," a majestic voice came from another part of the sky, "If we open the tomb now, our gains will be substantial!" Each word was like a clap of thunder, making everyone's ears buzz.

Under the sky where flower petals drifted, a woman's voice, clear and melodious, came from the fragrant chariot woven from divine flowers. "Since that's the case," she said, "let's begin."

"We will forcefully open the Demon Emperor's tomb," an ancient voice came from the Ji Clan's golden ancient war chariot, filled with killing intent. "To avoid harming the innocent, everyone retreat!" It resonated like a tsunami, making the entire sky tremble with unparalleled might.

The five prominent figures spoke one after another, their voices almost merging, soul-stirring like rumbling thunder. At this moment, everyone's minds were greatly shaken, their bodies swayed repeatedly, and they involuntarily retreated into the distance.

The five mysterious prominent figures didn't want to wait any longer, because powerful figures from other super great forces were about to arrive. The five would join forces to forcefully shatter the Demon Emperor's tomb and seize its treasures ahead of time.

Even though he was eight or nine miles away, Ye Fan still felt a terrifying fluctuation. His heart was awe-struck, and without hesitation, he quickly moved away from the area, retreating a few more miles.

"Boom!" Soon after, an earth-shattering roar came from the direction of the Demon Emperor's tomb, making souls tremble. Brilliant divine light pierced through the clouds, spanning heaven and earth. Like a volcanic eruption, endless demonic power surged forth, and dazzling light, like a tsunami, crashed in all directions. Many cultivators, like duckweeds, were directly swept away by the massive energy waves. Even though they had retreated far enough, they were still affected.

In the distance, Ye Fan was horrified. Even his location was affected; many plants were broken, and numerous rocks went tumbling away. Even hiding behind a stone mountain, he felt a heart-pounding dread.

This Demon Emperor's tomb was too terrifying. Countless years had passed, and the Immortal-Slaying power laid down by the Demon Emperor had long since weakened considerably. But when impacted by external forces, it still erupted with such terrifying demonic might. One could only imagine how powerful that Great Emperor who unified the Eastern Wasteland's demon race must have been back then!

"The Demon Emperor truly lived up to his reputation as a supreme powerhouse who dominated the Eastern Wasteland before the Ancient Era," one of them exclaimed. "Even the seals he laid down during his lifetime possessed such terrifying power. One could glimpse his peerless grandeur from back then!"

In front of the magnificent ancient palace, only five figures remained. Their forms were indistinguishable; only five dazzling balls of light hovered there, and all of them sighed with emotion.

"A generation's Demon Emperor was truly amazingly talented and brilliant!" said one. "He was indeed a master of his generation!"

"The demonic power remaining in this tomb now is probably less than one-tenth of what it was in his prime," another added, "yet it still possesses such terrifying might. Just thinking about it is astonishing."

Although the five prominent figures said this, they did not stop there. Instead, they gathered all their divine power and launched even more fierce and domineering attacks.

"Boom!" Like a surging divine ocean or the Milky Way pouring down, the world was a vast expanse of dazzling light. Endless divine radiance surged, and vast demonic power roared. The Demon Emperor's tomb seemed to be boiling.

All cultivators had retreated far from the area; no one dared to stay.

The five prominent figures attacked continuously, wielding their weapons and forcefully striking the Demon Emperor's ancient tomb. Their power dimmed the sun, moon, and stars and made the entire world tremble.

Endless divine light and terrifying demonic power continuously surged in all directions.

It was unclear how long passed, or how many times the five prominent figures had attacked, before they barely managed to create a crack in a corner of the Demon Emperor's mausoleum.

"Boom!" Joining forces again, with a powerful strike, five powerful weapons pulsed with divine light, concentrating the essence and divine power of the five prominent figures. They finally tore open a corner of the Demon Emperor's tomb.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!" Just then, streaks of radiant light flew out from the torn corner of the Demon Emperor's tomb, rushing in all directions. Sentient weapons had escaped on their own!

All five prominent figures stretched out their large hands, grabbing towards the sky, but many streaks of radiant light still slipped through, either soaring towards the horizon or disappearing into the mountains and forests.

At this moment, the cultivators observing from afar all sprang into action, rapidly flying in every direction, either pursuing into the sky or rushing into the deep forests, chasing after those streaks of radiant light.

"Whoosh!" A streak of azure light plunged into the stone mountain where Ye Fan was, easily piercing through the rock face and penetrating inside. This startled Ye Fan; he had never imagined that hiding so far away could still lead to a gain.

"Boom!" Just then, the five prominent figures joined forces again, wielding five powerful weapons, and struck at the Demon Emperor's tomb!