Chapter 869: Mysterious Little Black Box

Upon seeing the newcomer, Reverend Evil Pupils' face lit up with joy.

"Senior Qiyin!" he immediately stepped forward to greet him.

Reverend Qiyin had a good relationship with Sanqing Mountain, and Reverend Evil Pupils had met him several times. The two could be considered acquaintances.

Reverend Qiyin had already noticed him. He smiled and nodded, then glanced at the giant gate burning with blue flames. A look of hope appeared in his eyes.

"This is the second time in my life I've encountered a God Transformation relic," he mused. "I wonder if I'll find what I'm looking for this time."

Reverend Qiyin took out three fire seeds, giving one to each of his two disciples behind him. "Stay close behind me later," he instructed, "Don't let the venomous insects harm you."

The two disciples were overjoyed. To enter a God Transformation relic before even attaining the Nascent Soul realm, they truly were unique, weren't they?

The North Sea Demon Emperor quickly stepped forward to greet him, "Reverend Qiyin, weren't you supposed to arrive in a few days?" He knew that if Reverend Qiyin had arrived early, he would have prevented Jiang Fan from entering no matter what.

Reverend Qiyin said helplessly, "Since the appearance of the Heaven-Connecting Black Pillar, strange phenomena have been occurring frequently throughout Taicang Great State. Not long ago, a mysterious ancient path to heaven even appeared! Some people saw venerables who had died a thousand years ago at the end of the ancient path. Others saw a cauldron taller than the sky, with colorful pill clouds rising from it. Still others even saw ancient ultimate arts inscribed on immortal corpses. Taicang Great State has gone mad. All sects are dispatching disciples, preparing to ascend the ancient path to investigate. I wanted to bring my two disciples here before the ancient path opens, to also seek some opportunities for them, so that they can gain an advantage on the ancient path to heaven."

The North Sea Demon Emperor was repeatedly stunned by what he heard. What exactly was at the end of that ancient path to heaven? However, this was an ancient path belonging to Taicang Great State. It was probably unlikely that people from the Four Seas and the mainland would be allowed to compete for it. Collecting his thoughts, the North Sea Demon Emperor said, "Senior Qiyin, I have a young human friend who just entered the relic not long ago. He's only in the Core Formation realm. I hope Reverend Qiyin can look after him if you encounter him."

Hearing the first part of the sentence, Reverend Qiyin frowned, his gaze sharp. Learning that the person was only in the Core Formation realm, his lingering concern subsided. He nodded perfunctorily, "We'll see if I encounter him." He could barely manage his own two disciples; how could he possibly look after an outsider?

Reverend Evil Pupils quickly stepped forward and said, "Senior Qiyin, the venomous insects here are quite formidable. May I follow behind you? Don't worry, any treasures I find will be given to you to choose first. If you don't want them, then I'll take them."

Reverend Qiyin frowned slightly. Although he knew the words were unreliable, considering their acquaintance, he found it difficult to refuse. He said expressionlessly, "Then make sure you keep up." With that, he took his two disciples, holding their tokens, and rushed into the fiery gate.

Reverend Evil Pupils chuckled, then quickly followed them in. The Demon Emperor, however, was filled with worry. "Jiang Fan, take care of yourself," he murmured.

Inside the relic.

*Squish*—

Jiang Fan stomped on three blue centipedes, and their splashing blue bodily fluids corroded the ground, leaving black marks. Gazing at the ground where there was no clear place to step, Jiang Fan frowned slightly.

"There are just too many of these venomous insects," he muttered.

Even though the venomous insects were moving around Jiang Fan, some were still pushed towards him due to their sheer numbers. He looked around. After entering the fiery gate, he had appeared before a plaza paved with bluestone bricks. The plaza was swarming with dense blue centipedes. They moved like a tide. It was enough to make one's scalp tingle.

"There probably isn't anything left on the plaza, is there?" Jiang Fan mused, "This place is a necessary path into the relic. If there were any treasures, the many North Sea demon cultivators would have found them long ago. Besides, it's unlikely the relic's owner would place important items in a public plaza accessible to everyone." He strode towards the deeper parts of the plaza.

But suddenly.

He caught a strange sight in his peripheral vision. Not far away, there was an area completely untouched by the insect swarm. The venomous insects seemed to greatly fear that area. This resulted in a circular void, about several meters in diameter.

"Huh? Is there something underneath the ground?" Jiang Fan was surprised and quickly rushed over. From its appearance, this bluestone brick was no different from any other. This was why no one had noticed anything unusual. If the insect swarm hadn't been unwilling to approach, Jiang Fan would never have sensed anything amiss.

He carefully pried open the bluestone slab. Beneath the slab, he found a small, entirely black box. "What is this? It actually keeps venomous insects from approaching?" He picked it up and tried to twist open the lid. But even with all his strength, the lid didn't budge.

"Strange, it's not even a spirit artifact, yet I can't open it with my strength?" Jiang Fan muttered.

Just as he was about to try again, he suddenly heard movement from the fiery gate behind him. His expression changed slightly. Someone was coming in? Reverend Evil Pupils? He quickly tossed the mysterious black box into his Sky Thunder Stone. Then he hastily put the bluestone slab back in place. He had barely finished when a group of figures barged in.

Jiang Fan looked over warily. He saw that besides Reverend Evil Pupils, there was an old man and two young people. They must be the experts from Tianya Haige that the Demon Emperor mentioned. They also spotted Jiang Fan.

Reverend Evil Pupils' eyes immediately gleamed with malice. "Brat! You didn't expect me to arrive so soon, did you?" Even as he spoke, a wisp of Nascent Soul power condensed in his palm.

Jiang Fan's eyes narrowed. Without thinking, he stomped his foot. Large numbers of venomous insects were sent flying. Then, with a sweep of his sleeves, he scattered all the insects towards them.

Reverend Evil Pupils' face changed, and he quickly retreated behind Reverend Qiyin. Reverend Qiyin's eyes narrowed. He placed two fingers beside his mouth and silently chanted a strange incantation. Peculiar sound waves slowly radiated outwards. The venomous insects scattered towards them were all shattered by the sound waves when they came within a few meters of him. The insects on the ground surging towards them seemed startled, scattering away and not daring to approach further.

Jiang Fan's attack failed, so he immediately surged forward. The venomous insects on the ground frantically swarmed backward. As a result, a large tide of insects piled up, surging towards Reverend Qiyin. Some insects had already reached their feet. Frightened, the two disciples quickly used their cultivation techniques to kill them. Reverend Qiyin cast a sidelong glance at Reverend Evil Pupils, then quickly spoke up, "Young friend, hold on! The grievances between you and Reverend Evil Pupils have nothing to do with our Tianya Haige. Do not harm the innocent."

As he spoke, he formed hand seals and unleashed an even more profound sound wave. The approaching venomous insects became even more terrified and retreated in droves. Jiang Fan was secretly awestruck. "What powerful restraint techniques! Their effectiveness is no less than the chicken feather!" He glared at Reverend Evil Pupils. "If it's unrelated, then why are you protecting him?" When Reverend Evil Pupils had attacked just now, he hadn't seen this old man intervene. Now that Jiang Fan was attacking, not only was he protecting Reverend Evil Pupils, but he was also repeatedly claiming that the grievances had nothing to do with them.

Reverend Qiyin said, "I didn't know you had grievances beforehand. That's why I agreed to bring him in and promised to protect him from venomous insects. How about this: both of you give this old man some face. Within this relic, do not engage in combat. What do you say?" He offered Jiang Fan a benevolent smile. Turning to Reverend Evil Pupils, his gaze was a cold warning. He kindly brought him in, and this fellow was causing trouble for him and his two disciples! If he dared to utter a single "no," he would immediately throw him into the swarm!

Reverend Evil Pupils sullenly replied, "This junior was reckless." How could he have anticipated that the venomous insects here wouldn't be a problem for Jiang Fan? Instead, they had become his protective charm? He had almost suffered a huge loss.

Jiang Fan thought for a moment, then said, "This junior will naturally abide by senior's words." If someone could keep Reverend Evil Pupils in check and allow him to search for treasures in peace, why not? Seeing Jiang Fan was sensible, Reverend Qiyin smiled faintly. His old eyes glinted as he looked around. He asked, seemingly casually: "Since you entered first, have you found any treasures?"