Chapter 904: Immortality Mystery

## Chapter 906: The Immortal Mystery

This was an incredibly eerie scene: old graves were cracking open, and pale, even decayed, skeletal hands reached out, slowly climbing up.

It was hard to believe; even bone fragments that had long decomposed into dust were forming skeletons. These rapidly grew flesh and blood, and then the Heavenly Soldier armor, which had long turned to dust in the graves, reversed time, clanking into battle attire that covered their bodies.

The Heavenly Soldiers, pale-faced and expressionless, emerged step by step, cloaked in armor and wielding weapons. They formed squares and advanced forward.

This scene was almost unbelievable, raising goosebumps and sending chills down one's spine. People struggled to comprehend: could anyone truly achieve immortality?

The pouring rain was relentless, and streaks of blood-red lightning flashed across the night sky, occasionally illuminating the pitch-black mausoleum. Everything here was terrifying and inexplicable.

“This Daoist has been digging graves his whole life, and I’ve never seen anything like this! They’re all alive; it defies all logic!” Duan De swallowed hard.

He had encountered Yin Soldiers, seen malevolent spirits, and fought demonic corpses, but he had never seen living people emerge from coffins. This unnerved him so much that he even declared he might not want to do archaeology anymore.

“The Feathered Divine Dynasty is too bizarre. What secret did they uncover? How did these people revive? What exactly is going on?”

This was the mausoleum of successive generations of Heavenly Soldiers, an accumulation over countless ages. If all of them were to revive, a single dynasty could sweep across the world, and even ancient clans would be powerless to stop them.

“It’s truly terrifying. If the mausoleum of the Heavenly Generals is also like this, with Kings who have ‘cut the Dao’ continuously reviving, then I think we should leave as soon as possible. Going any deeper would be certain death,” said the Old Blind Man.

This is the Heavenly Soldier Mausoleum, with ancient tombs stretching as far as the eye can see, countless in number, accumulated over tens of thousands of years. The Heavenly General Mausoleum must surely exist, but it’s not here. The thought of that possibility sends shivers down one’s spine.

What kind of scene is this—the deceased returning to life? Successive generations of powerful individuals reviving at the same moment is horrifying, and various terrible consequences quickly flood one's mind.

“I don’t believe in evil; just wait for me.” The stout Duan was bold. He found a secluded corner with only a few old graves. He waited quietly for a skeleton to crawl out, and the moment it revived, he covered it with his Immortal-Trapping Pouch, stuffing it inside, slung it over his back, and ran.

Even though he was fast and chose a remote spot, he was still discovered, and a group of Heavenly Soldiers immediately gave chase.

Seeing this, the others turned and fled. This damned fat man always caused trouble with his itchy hands. However, they didn't blame him entirely; they also wanted to understand what was happening, as the events here made them very uneasy.

The ground trembled as hundreds of Heavenly Soldiers, organized into battle formations, charged forward like an overwhelming flood. Each step they took shook this small world, their killing intent tearing through the sky.

At this moment, the rain poured down like a hanging river, intensifying so much that it was hard to keep one’s eyes open. Where it hit the ground, thin layers of mist rose.

Ye Fan and his companions ran wildly, quickly disappearing into the hills and forests, finally escaping the horde of living dead behind them.

Duan De untied the pouch and released the captive, who fell into the mud. Just as the Heavenly Soldier tried to struggle, the Black Sovereign’s large paw knocked it over.

The group quickly moved in to seal it, then immediately probed its sea of consciousness, hoping to understand everything.

“This is weird. Its sea of consciousness is completely blank—there’s nothing there. Oh, wait, something appeared: just a simple desire to kill us all,” Dongfang Ye said, puzzled, showing a strange expression.

The others successively stepped forward and also discovered this strange situation. Duan De, highly alert, suddenly changed expression and said, “Not good, retreat quickly!”

As soon as they flew back, the Heavenly Soldier exploded, seemingly intending to harm them. Rotten flesh and bones splattered everywhere, its life force vanished instantly, and it returned to death.

Duan De picked up a small bone fragment and pondered it for a long time before saying, “Let’s go back and see what happened to the Heavenly Soldiers we killed earlier.”

They returned, moving stealthily. Along the way, they saw many dead bodies—newly arrived cultivators, slaughtered by the Heavenly Soldier formations. The corpses were strewn across the field, a gruesome sight, with blood mixing with rainwater to create a crimson expanse.

“That’s strange. This is definitely the spot where we killed at least seven or eight Heavenly Soldiers, but where are their bodies?” The group was baffled, unable to find the corpses.

“No need to look; they’re all still here, but they’ve turned to dust,” Duan De said gravely. He found a rotten bone in the mud, riddled with countless small holes and already completely decayed.

Duan De took out the Great Saint Dao Bone Mirror, activated his magic power, and shone it on the spot. Immediately, the group saw a disturbing scene: seven or eight corpses, in a very short time, appeared to have aged as if twenty or thirty thousand years had passed. Their flesh and blood decayed into ash and soil, their skeletons aged and then completely rotted away, leaving only fragments. As for the Heavenly Soldier armor, it fractured inch by inch and turned to mud and dust.

“They were indeed alive just now, there’s no mistake. It’s unbelievable that they immediately turned into this upon death!” The group pondered for a long time but couldn’t figure it out.

The Feathered Divine Dynasty is too peculiar. Their ultimate goal is to ascend as immortals, and this is very likely a strange method they discovered in the past, not true resurrection.

“Many have died, but many have also pushed through. Let’s hurry on our way. Don’t pay attention to these strange things for now; we can ponder them later.”

The palace shone with dazzling light, exceptionally striking in the dark, rainy night. It resembled a sacred celestial palace, opening a path to the heavens, illuminating all directions. The group quickly approached, unwilling to miss the opportunity.

Suddenly, in the pouring rain, a black light burst forth, absorbing the essence of heaven and earth, rushing straight towards Ye Fan, threatening to dissolve him. It was a Great Dao Treasure Vase, possessing the power to devour the sky!

“Clang!”

Ye Fan flicked it away with a finger and instantly saw Hua Yunfei. In the rainy night, he appeared like an exiled immortal, his blue robes immaculate, not a single drop of rain touching him.

“Whoosh!”

A golden light flew in; Li Xiaoman also appeared from another direction, unleashing a golden crocodile shadow that tore through space.

Ye Fan struck with a punch, his golden fist shattering the long crocodile, unleashing a terrifying wave of energy that annihilated in the sky.

“You dare to show yourselves again?” Pang Bo's eyes widened with killing intent. Even seeing old acquaintances from the other shore, he showed no mercy, remembering how he had nearly died from their past pursuits.

Ye Fan said nothing, charging towards Hua Yunfei, while Pang Bo attacked Li Xiaoman. An earth-shattering battle immediately erupted, with streams of divine light illuminating the night sky.

“Whoosh!”

With a flash of light, Hua Yunfei and Li Xiaoman converged and fled together, not lingering in battle.

Ye Fan, Pang Bo, and the Monkey quickly gave chase. Ye Fan, in particular, with his "All-Travel" secret technique, was incredibly fast. He caught up several times, fighting both of them alone, his golden fist force merging with the lightning in the sky.

“Stop!” Suddenly, Ye Fan halted. He heard a rumbling sound and felt the ground subtly tremble.

“Quickly, move!” Qi Luo shouted. He saw four formations, each with five hundred Heavenly Soldiers, totaling two thousand powerful beings. This was terrifyingly excessive.

“These two want to lure us into the midst of the chaotic soldiers.”

They had no choice but to give up, veering off quickly to escape, evading the four terrifying formations. Who would dare to face so many Heavenly Soldiers alone? It would be suicide.

Through the curtain of rain, they approached the glowing palace. While there were many Heavenly Soldiers here, more and more cultivators were rushing in from outside, gradually gaining the upper hand, with large groups pushing their way inside.

Corpse after corpse lay strewn about as they fought their way forward. Upon seeing the light source on the high platform ahead, they were all startled. It was the divine remnant: a stone figure, only half a foot tall, sitting cross-legged there.

Everyone already knew that the runes around it could dissolve people, so no one approached it. Instead, it was emitting a most sacred power, wisps of which flowed outwards, merging into the void, dancing with the lightning, and disappearing into the distance.

“It’s heading towards the mausoleum!” Ye Fan exclaimed in surprise.

“Exactly, it’s this power that’s reviving those skeletons,” Qi Luo affirmed, sensing a familiar aura, identical to that on the Heavenly Soldiers.

“I think I understand now. ‘Feathering others to achieve oneself’—there are fragmented records of this in ancient texts,” Ji Ziyue began. “Doing so has immense drawbacks, and ultimately, it’s not a viable path.”

What they were witnessing was clearly based on that forbidden technique. One could only imagine how many people had died entering the ancient temple, with each Heavenly Soldier representing a lost life.

“The Heavenly Soldiers are not a major concern; they won’t last more than a few days before returning to dust. However, this ancestral temple is very formidable, likely far more troublesome than we imagined. There’s probably someone truly alive controlling things.”

They found the stone door and quickly rushed into the thirty-second small world. It was a dim region, free from the heavy rain, and the ground was dry but far more dangerous.

As soon as they entered, a demonic shadow in the darkness turned around, revealing a pair of cold, merciless eyes, like two spectral flames.

“Boom!”

Wielding a black broadsword, he immediately brought it down, splitting heaven and earth in two with unparalleled dominance.

The Monkey swung his large iron staff to meet the attack. “Clang!” An ear-splitting, heaven-shaking sound resounded in all directions, as chains of divine law, crimson as blood, surged forth.

“A King who has ‘cut the Dao,’ incredibly powerful. This is a Heavenly General!”

The fierce battle began. Although the Monkey ultimately smashed the King's head with a single blow, he also expended a considerable amount of vital energy, indicating this was no ordinary King.

Over the next two days, they faced immense trouble and were unable to leave. The thirty-second small world contained no Heavenly Soldiers, only Heavenly Generals!

This was a horrifying development: all were Kings who had 'cut the Dao.' Ordinary people entering here would face certain death, with no way out.

The only fortunate aspect was that the ‘Dao-cutting’ Heavenly Generals were not overly numerous and mostly acted alone, not forming battle arrays, which gave the group opportunities.

Even so, with successive Heavenly Generals reviving, their numbers were still considerable, making it extremely difficult to move in this area. Ye Fan and his companions were trapped for two days, nearly bleeding dry.

As for the others, they either suffered heavy casualties or were also trapped, finding it almost impossible to pass, given the Heavenly Generals’ immense destructive power. During this period, the Emperor Son had set a trap, intending to kill the Monkey and Ye Fan. Several beings close to becoming saints had followed them in, almost succeeding.

The thirty-second small world was filled with killing intent. Many great sects suffered heavy losses, and even the few living fossils from the Great Evolution Holy Land were completely wiped out. They were not the only Holy Land forces annihilated.

In this temple’s small world, besides dealing with Heavenly Soldiers, they also had to guard against various ambushes. Ye Fan and his companions found every step difficult, as the Killer God Dynasty, the Emperor Son, and ancient clans all launched attacks one after another.

What most surprised Ye Fan was that Hua Yunfei’s Dao Protector had exchanged blows with Qi Luo. Although injured, he retreated safely. Ye Fan had never seen this person before, and it seemed Hua Yunfei was quite distant towards him, not particularly willing to be in his company.

“That Dao Protector is terrifying. He likely has prolonged exposure to an Emperor Armament, carrying an aura imbued by an ultimate Emperor Weapon!” Duan De’s eyebrows twitched.

Upon hearing this news, everyone was astonished, but they did not doubt the unscrupulous Daoist. He had long been accompanied by the Heaven-Devouring Demonic Lid and possessed various strange methods, so his judgment was likely correct.

The Dao Protector of the Ruthless Emperor’s inheritor being accompanied by an ultimate Emperor Armament year-round was a monumental discovery, sending chills down their spines. The more they thought about it, the more terrifying it became!

“Which Holy Land is it from, or did the Ruthless Emperor have other Emperor Armaments passed down?”

A day later, more cultivators broke in. The group combined their strength, launched an assault, and battled the Heavenly Generals. Some even brought out inherited Saint Armaments, finally breaking into the thirty-third small world of the temple.