Chapter 1129: Iron Bones, Determined Sect Pilgrimage

Can’t wait any longer!

Jiang Fan growled, “Everyone, stand back!”

He channeled a trace of fire essence from his Fire Core and forcefully struck the stone door.

With a hiss!

Upon encountering the fire essence, the remarkably resilient Yin energy rapidly receded as if meeting its nemesis. The fire essence, with undiminished force, landed on the stone door, melting a massive hole through it.

Ming Ye was profoundly shocked. He even wondered if he was seeing things. Wasn’t that the essence only Spirit Transformation Venerables could cultivate? How could Jiang Fan possess it with only a Four-Aperture Nascent Soul?

But there was no time to ponder. The ancient giants were about to return with their maces.

He kicked the stone door. Without the protection of Yin energy, how could the stone door withstand a single strike from a Nine-Aperture Asura? It was instantly sent flying, revealing a secret chamber ten zhang wide.

Inside were three stone platforms, each holding a single item.

The leftmost one, Jiang Fan recognized at a glance, was an Origin Star. It was entirely green, with a faint, swirling breeze emanating from it.

“Wind Essence?” Jiang Fan’s eyes gleamed with fervor. Among the Five Strengths of the Void Flow, one was Wind Strength. If he could absorb the wind essence from it, wouldn’t his Wind Strength reach mastery, or even perfection?

“The Bloodthirsty Ghost Eye!”

“It really is here!”

Ming Ye stood before the central stone platform, unable to contain his excited laughter. It was an eyeball with a crimson pupil. Someone had refined it into a magical artifact. It exuded a deep bloodthirsty aura, like the eyes of a malevolent spirit, sending shivers down one’s spine.

As Ming Ye stepped forward to retrieve it, a layer of Yin energy immediately surged from within the stone platform. It was identical to the energy on the stone door!

Ming Ye’s expression shifted drastically; he clearly hadn’t expected Yin energy to also protect the platform. “Young friend, lend me a hand again!”

Jiang Fan didn’t hesitate. He decisively struck it with his fire essence, breaking through the Yin energy. Then, without a word, he slammed his palm onto the stone platform sealing the Wind Essence Star. The Yin energy protecting it was also successfully broken. Jiang Fan immediately acquired the star.

He looked towards the third stone platform. He found that dense Yin energy was already swirling around it, obscuring whatever lay within. Just as he was about to take it as well, the sounds of battle outside had already ceased.

The ancient giants had returned!

Ming Ye’s expression changed, and he produced a bead imbued with spatial power. He glanced at Jiang Fan and the others, an apologetic expression on his face, and said, “Gentlemen. I wish you good luck.”

With that, he activated the spatial bead and vanished from the spot.

Jiang Fan and his two companions were startled. “This guy had already planned his escape route!” He had even worried that if the three of them used their spatial imprints to leave, Ming Ye would be in a difficult position to escape. He had, unexpectedly, kept his true abilities hidden!

That final apologetic look made Jiang Fan sense a subtle but ominous feeling! Recalling the excessively powerful Yin energy on the stone door, his heart sank, and he said, “Let’s go!”

He decisively activated his spatial imprint. The next instant, he felt the world spin as he entered spatial transference. Soon after, he felt solid ground beneath his feet. The transference was successful! He also heard the successive thuds of Fa Yin Vajra and Bai Xin landing nearby.

However, when his vision cleared, an aged figure came into view: it was Ming Ye, who had left just before them! He stood motionless, emanating an intense fear.

Jiang Fan immediately felt a bad omen. A quick glance from the corner of his eye made his heart lurch. This was not the secret chamber of Black Cloud Fortress. Instead… it was the city gate! What made his heart clench even tighter was this: On the city wall, a twenty-zhang-tall giant stood with his arms crossed. His enormous vertical eye held a playful expression. Between his brows, a star as black as ink shimmered faintly.

“Quick reactions, but unfortunately, you’ve encountered me.” The Spatial Giant King leaped, gently landing. The ground instantly convulsed violently! All four, including Jiang Fan, staggered, nearly falling to the ground.

His expression turned incredibly grim: “The Spatial Giant King?” No. Didn’t the Grand Priest of Wine say that Spatial Giant Kings were incredibly rare? That unreliable old man! His mind raced with thoughts. Encountering the Giant King they least wanted to meet—this was deadly.

However, this was not even the worst of it. The air intensely vibrated as another twenty-zhang-tall Giant King bounced towards them. He landed with a foot, cracking the earth with long fissures. He was different from ordinary giants. His Origin Star glowed with nine colors.

The Spatial Giant King scoffed, “Finally awake? You didn’t even notice people infiltrating the royal armory.”

The Giant King before them was precisely the Fortune Giant King, left to guard the Black Sun Royal Court! A faint smile appeared in his eyes: “How could that be? From the moment they entered the Black Sun Royal Court, I was aware. After all, there’s a person here whose fortune is as potent as the nine suns in the sky. It would be difficult for me not to notice.”

He casually tossed something. A lifeless, fresh corpse landed before them. It was none other than the old Asura. It turned out the Fortune Giant King had long been aware of their movements. He had simply found it amusing and hadn’t stopped them.

His massive vertical eye shifted, settling on Jiang Fan, his gaze filled with interest. “The Central Lands can actually produce a Child of Fortune like you? That shouldn’t be possible. Even exhausting an entire province’s fortune might not be enough to condense such a vast amount.”

Jiang Fan’s heart stirred. Fortune? If he possessed such fortune, wouldn’t he have been able to cultivate even the “Emperor’s Aura Gazing Art”? Soon, he realized the Fortune Giant King was mistaken. In Tai Cang Great Province, the only one who could possess such fortune was Wang Chongxiao. He was unkillable, his opportunities were astonishing, and he could acquire heaven-defying treasures anywhere, anytime. If not him, then who?

The Fortune Giant King said, “As for the others, take them to the Ancient Sky Pit and test them out. I wonder if humans can also transform into ancient giants like us. Leave this Child of Fortune for me to study. If I can seize his fortune, I might even have a glimmer of hope of reaching the Emperor Realm.”

The Spatial Giant King shrugged indifferently. “No problem. However, before that, we need to confirm if any have slipped through our net.”

He slapped the burlap sack at his waist. Zong Chaosheng was released from it. He pointed at Jiang Fan and the others, asking, “Is the other group you mentioned all here?”

Zong Chaosheng didn’t immediately grasp his meaning. Even with the Spatial Giant King’s gestures, he still didn’t understand. The Spatial Giant King grew impatient, a hint of killing intent flickering in his eyes. Zong Chaosheng was startled and quickly said, “Jiang Fan, quickly tell him to spare my life! I’ll cooperate in any way possible!”

Jiang Fan gave him a cold glare. He scoffed, “And they call you one of the Tai Cang Eighteen Sons! If all the Eighteen Sons were as cowardly as you, our Tai Cang Great Province would have been doomed long ago.”

Zong Chaosheng pleaded, “Junior Brother Jiang, I’m begging you! I cannot die yet. If I die, the Divine Movement Sect will have no successor.”

Seeing his pleading demeanor, Jiang Fan, softening, agreed. He then conveyed Zong Chaosheng’s message to the Spatial Giant King.

“He says, ‘I, Zong Chaosheng, am a man of iron will, preferring death over surrender. You might as well kill me!’”