Shrouding the Heavens

Chapter 280: Chapter 2815 Great Emperor’s Bedroom

The Black Emperor was suspicious and hesitant, reluctant to advance. It worried that someone might be attempting to use a corpse to prove their ascension to emperorship.

Ye Fan shook his head and said, "It’s impossible for any ’Corpse Emperor’ to emerge. There are sounds of a great battle inside. If such a being truly existed, even if all the cultivators of the Eastern Wastelands came, they would be utterly annihilated, body and soul!"

These buildings were constructed from gold and jade, shimmering and sparkling. They were as radiant as sunshine and as transparent as crystal, creating an effect that was both real and illusory.

They ascended the flight of stairs, the jade steps beneath their feet flowing with auspicious radiance. There was no trace of Yin aura; instead, the air was filled with the sweet fragrance of flowers. The jade palaces and pavilions were surrounded by flora.

Upon entering the first Jade Palace, a dense wave of Spiritual Qi washed over them. Everything sparkled and glittered; all the artifacts were carved from Spirit Jade.

"Let’s split up to avoid drawing attention," Ye Fan said, taking the lead.

The Black Emperor shrank its body to about a foot long, resembling a spirit cat. It moved with feline grace, tiptoeing stealthily forward.

Inside the first palace, the ground was covered in bloodstains. Many cultivators had met violent ends, their bodies nearly pulverized. There were also several Yin Soldiers—or perhaps they should be called Yin Generals.

Though slain, they still appeared remarkably lifelike. They had black wings on their backs, spanning two meters. Tapping on them with a finger produced a metallic clang; they were indestructible.

It seems peaceful, but with such things guarding it, this is truly not a benevolent place, Ye Fan mused.

He hesitated for a moment before walking deeper inside. The second palace left him stunned. If one were to step on the ground, the blood would be enough to submerge their feet. Apart from the corpses of cultivators, there lay an eight-headed serpent.

The massive serpent lay dead, its blood pooling across the ground, flooding the entire palace with an overwhelming, putrid stench.

Yin aura transforming into such strong flesh and blood is truly terrifying, yet it still got vanquished, the Black Emperor clicked its tongue from a distance.

Ye Fan discovered the mark of the Great Wilderness Halberd on it; it had also been slain by the Golden-Winged Little Peng King. This future king of the demon clan was indeed courageous.

TAP. TAP. TAP...

The only sound in the quiet palace was Ye Fan’s own footsteps. As he entered the third palace, a burst of silver light rushed towards him, accompanied by a blast of malevolent wind.

Startled, he formed a hand seal and struck out. CLANG! The creature was sent flying back.

It was a flying yaksha, its silver light flickering. It had a ferocious face and a pair of powerful, silver wings. Growling deeply, it pounced at him again.

This was the first time Ye Fan had encountered such a creature. Legends said they possessed strength at least equivalent to the Four Extremes secret boundary, making them incredibly formidable and difficult to deal with.

Yet he wasn’t afraid. This silver-winged yaksha, though fearsome, was already on the brink of death. Half of its body had long been shattered, and it had little strength left.

He swung his golden palm, like the Heaven-Flipping Seal, and brought it down fiercely. SMASH! The flying yaksha was obliterated.

In this hall, the corpses of more than a dozen silver-winged yakshas lay scattered about. This was equivalent to over a dozen cultivators of the Four Extremes secret boundary, yet they had all been killed by the disciples of the various Sacred Lands.

The formidable strength of the younger generation successors from the Sacred Lands was evident.

Similarly, the corpses of human cultivators were also present in the hall, indicating heavy casualties. Crimson blood outnumbered the silver, staining the ground red.

Soon after, Ye Fan entered the fourth hall. There were even more human cultivator corpses here, strewn everywhere, with a lingering mist of blood in the air.

In this palace hall, there were six peculiar corpses. They were not human but six feathered Daoists, all skin and bones, clad in Daoist robes.

Their golden skin was dry and tightly wrapped around their bones, with short feathers growing on their surface. When touched, their bodies felt immensely heavy, and the feathers chimed like metal.

These were not formed from Yin aura but were the true remains of cultivators, later refined by someone. Yin spirits had possessed them. Such powerful Ancient Corpses held incredible combat power, surpassing the Four Extremes secret boundary.

All six feathered Daoists were killed, their powerful Golden Bodies shattered. These successors from the Sacred Lands are truly terrifying, Ye Fan thought.

He was surprised, though not overly so. After all, individuals like Ji Haoyue and the Jiang Family’s divine body, once they manifested their Variations, could fight across an entire secret boundary. They could even slay elder powerhouses, let alone these six feathered Daoists.

This grand tomb is truly extraordinary; it even has feathered Daoists. I really wonder what else might pop out. I’m getting a bit uneasy again... could there really be some fool who doesn’t know their own limits trying to use a corpse to attain emperorship? the Black Emperor muttered to itself.

In the fifth palace hall, there were even more corpses on the ground, leaving no place to step. The ground was a mire of blood and mud, with occasional white bone fragments splattered onto the translucent jade walls.

What happened here? Could everyone have died in this place? Ye Fan felt a chill.

Suddenly, Ye Fan sensed lingering Extreme Power. At the same time, he discovered three peculiar bone fragments in the bloody mud, glowing with a jade-like luster.

The Black Emperor was startled and said, "Those are three Jade Bone Strange Corpses! They must have been sovereigns when alive. After death, they were refined by someone, and Yin spirits possessed them. Although they can’t compare to living sovereigns, they are still extremely terrifying."

They even managed to find the corpses of sovereigns... Ye Fan was quite shocked.

It was clear Yan Ruyu had made a move, shattering the three Jade Bone Strange Corpses with a peak weapon. Traces of Extreme Divine Power still lingered.

Ye Fan listened intently. After some time, he heard the sounds of fierce fighting. The great battle had resumed, far from his current location.

He didn’t linger and proceeded towards the sixth ancient palace. It was a considerable journey, spanning miles.

Ahead, only one last, brightly lit hall remained, shining in the dark subterranean world.

The deep underground stratum had been hollowed out. The sixth palace was particularly distant, seemingly suspended in mid-air, appearing even more ethereal.

The final hall! All the secrets must be there! Ye Fan’s heart pounded with excitement. Perhaps the nine secret arts are there, or something else. It’s definitely an extraordinary place! He rushed forward swiftly.

In the pitch-black underground, the Black Emperor moved with feline grace, light and nimble, maintaining a distance as it closely followed behind.

Upon reaching the final great hall, Ye Fan felt an overwhelming Extreme Immortal Power that made him tremble involuntarily.

"An Extreme Dao Weapon..." the Black Emperor muttered, its eyes shining with longing, eager to seize it.

Inside this last, radiant great hall, a fierce battle was evidently raging. For the fighting to be so intense even with a peak weapon deployed, one could only imagine the opponent’s strength.

He did not enter immediately, stopping at a distance with the Black Emperor, waiting quietly.

BOOM!

The entire underground world quaked, but the sixth great hall, brilliantly lit, did not shatter. It remained standing firm, evidently engraved with extraordinary Dao Glyphs.

Above this great hall hung a plaque inscribed with four large characters: Bright God Hall.

THUD!

Continuous, violent tremors shook the underground, all erupting from the Bright God Hall, yet it stood firm, never collapsing.

Why does this Bright God Hall look somewhat familiar... the Black Emperor wondered, puzzled.

Just then, Ye Fan was taken aback. The jade palaces and pavilions had come to an end, but in the darkness behind them stood three colossal structures, emitting no light.

Those are... three coffins!

His heart pounded. Three coffins, the smallest of which was as large as a palace, stood in the darkness, one taller than the next.

Six ancient palaces and three great coffins. Together, that makes nine, the number most revered by the ancients, Ye Fan murmured to himself.

BOOM!

The Bright God Hall suddenly shook violently, then fell silent. The Extreme Immortal Power sharply diminished, gradually fading into tranquility.

Is it over? Ye Fan prepared to move.

Suddenly, chaos erupted within the Bright God Hall, as if people were scrambling for something.

It really is over! Never mind those three coffins for now; let’s check out the Divine Hall first! Ye Fan shot forward like an arrow.

As he drew near, the Black Emperor’s body trembled, an expression of utter disbelief on its face. It said, "It’s that..."

"What did you see?" Ye Fan abruptly stopped and turned to look at it.

"What Bright God Hall? This is clearly the Great Emperor’s bedroom from ages past! Which bastard dragged it here and randomly changed its name?!" the big black dog cursed under its breath.

What?! Ye Fan’s mind reeled. No matter how much he pressed, the Black Emperor said nothing more, responding only with silence.

Ye Fan had no choice but to stride towards the Great Emperor’s bedroom.

This Bright God Hall was deep and expansive, with Extreme Immortal Power still radiating from within. Yet many human cultivators were on the verge of fighting each other.

In the center of the grand and empty hall, a Divine Platform hovered. It was entirely pitch-black, yet it emitted streaks of auspicious radiance that cascaded down, looking incredibly mysterious.

Most alluring of all, an ancient animal hide scroll rested upon the Divine Platform. It looked very ordinary, but its presence instantly electrified everyone.

Every single person wanted to rush forward, seize it, and claim it for themselves, because it was very likely one of the nine secret arts!

The strongest successors from Sacred Lands like Dayan, Wanchu, the Ji Family, the Jiang Family, Purple Mansion, Dao Yi, and Flickering Light were all unharmed, completely unscathed.

Within the hall, Ji Haoyue, the Saint Heir of Flickering Light, Yao Xi, the Jiang Family’s divine body, and the Yaochi Saintess all eyed each other warily. Each of them wanted to snatch the ancient animal hide scroll from the black Divine Platform.

Ye Fan felt that one crucial person was missing: Yan Ruyu. Possessing a peak weapon, how could she possibly have vanished?

Over there...

He noticed an ancient pagoda within the hall. Initially, he had thought it was merely a decoration, but now he realized it was an incredibly terrifying weapon.

The ancient pagoda was semi-transparent, and Yan Ruyu could be vaguely seen suppressed on its fifth level. Light flickered in her hand as she resisted with an Extreme Dao Weapon.

This pagoda had seven layers. On the highest layer sat a hazy figure, who was evidently controlling the ancient pagoda to suppress Yan Ruyu.

Ye Fan gasped. This person was undoubtedly exceptionally powerful. This ancient pagoda, though a Great Artifact, was far from comparable to a peak weapon.

This individual was relying on sheer, absolute strength to seal the demon clan princess who wielded an Extreme Dao Weapon. He is the Guardian of the sixth great hall!

A chill ran down Ye Fan’s spine. None of the many Saint Heirs present offered any assistance. While Yan Ruyu battled the terrifying expert, they each had their own schemes.

The black Divine Platform floated in the center of the great hall, with streaks of auspicious radiance cascading down, making one feel incredibly comfortable. The ancient animal hide scroll was within arm’s reach. The successors from the various Sacred Lands were on the verge of a massive brawl, yet no one dared to be the first to try and seize it.

"That pitch-black stone platform, what exactly is it? How can it float in the air on its own?" Ye Fan transmitted via divine scan.

The Black Emperor seemed extremely agitated and exclaimed, "That damn thing is a treasure—Chaos Stone! It’s the bed where the Great Emperor once slept!"