Shrouding the Heavens

Chapter 528: Chapter 533 Immortal Treasure

The Dragon Wood was pitch-black and enormous, forming a massive ancient nest. Through endless ages, it had almost lost all its luster, appearing as a mountain-sized black nest.

Primal chaos surged at its base, as grand as the opening of heaven and earth. An ancient coffin floated up and down, its lid slowly moving. Shrouded in Primordial Qi, it gradually opened.

“CLANG!”

The coffin lid shifted to one side, and the sound it made caused their souls to tremble, like the first note at the creation of the world.

The Origin Qi Cauldron above Ye Fan’s head shook violently, threatening to fly away and rush into the gigantic, chaotic Black Nest, slightly out of his control.

“Don’t let it slip away! It’s the remains of the Heaven-devouring Great Emperor seeking a karmic link with you. You can’t give it up!” the Black Emperor muttered, trembling.

Ye Fan’s Heart Spirit was calm; he had no wish to be entangled with ancient Great Emperors. If the Origin Qi Cauldron flew away, he wouldn’t be too distraught.

He stood quietly on the cliff, not deliberately doing anything. If there truly is some so-called karmic link, the methods of an ancient Great Emperor would be irresistible; any attempt to fight it would be futile.

“A corpse…” The monkey was incredibly nervous, gripping the nearly rotten, fierce weapon in his hand, staring intently at the ancient coffin.

The youth from the Ancient Royal Family was extremely fearful, his large eyes filled with terror. He hid behind the others, his body trembling slightly.

“The most defiant Great Emperor in history, lived for an incredibly long time…” The Black Emperor’s fur stood on end, and he stepped back a few paces.

In the ancient coffin, hazy primal chaos lingered. The corpse inside wasn’t complete; bloodstained, it lay silently, indistinct.

This was the Ruthless One’s fourth body!

They were all extremely shocked. “Even primal chaos couldn’t damage his corpse in the slightest! It’s hard to imagine how sturdy his flesh had become…”

“A single strand of his hair could shatter primal chaos! His body had long become the rarest of holy divine relics in the world, capable of being refined into an Extreme Dao Holy Weapon!”

The group was deeply shaken. The cultivation realm of this ancient Great Emperor was long unfathomable, comparable to gods—one could say a deity in the mortal world.

Four lifetimes, and then the end!

Now, it could be clearly confirmed: the coffin contained the final fleshly body of the Ruthless One. So damaged, it indicated he could no longer regenerate.

Even though he had pioneered the Immortal Heavenly Technique, he could only extend his life for one more era, unable to traverse the same path again. The Ruthless Great Emperor had finally reached his end.

“THUD.”

The youth from the Ancient Royal Family knelt, trembling fiercely. The wisp of pressure emanating from the ancient coffin made him feel as if he were facing a deity, filling him with reverence.

The Origin Qi Cauldron above Ye Fan’s head, though still trembling, did not actually fly out. It cascaded down myriad threads of light and eventually calmed.

However, a mysterious and profound connection had not been severed.

At that moment, they all experienced an illusion, perceiving an emotional fluctuation, as if someone were whispering.

The Ruthless One defied the heavens, standing at the absolute peak a member of the human race could reach, looking down upon ancient emperors, disdainfully viewing later emperors, his brilliance stunning all of antiquity.

He was unable to achieve immortality, not because he wasn’t astonishing enough, but because this world did not permit immortal ascension. He had reached the utmost limit, yet found no path forward.

Even so, he pressed on against the current, like a deity, creating a path unprecedented in all of eternity, defying fate to live for four lifetimes, unmatched in ancient or modern times.

All of this felt so real, as if someone were musing, the words transmitting into their hearts, leaving them indescribably astonished, as if it were both real and illusory.

“You stunned all of antiquity, incomparable to any. Even in death, you are a peerless figure, looking down on past and present, an emperor among men.”

“Dead. Ultimately dead. A life so resplendent, yet ending after four lifetimes. Unmatched, invincible, and lonely throughout life.”

“Brilliant and peerless, an Ancient Heavenly Emperor, yet unable to endure. The fault lies not with you, but that the world would not permit it.”

They all sighed. Such a great and mighty figure had ultimately been worn away by the passage of time, shattering their final shred of illusion.

However, the Ruthless One’s life was absolutely unparalleled, crowning antiquity and surpassing the present. He ascended against all odds with a Mortal Body, becoming one of the most powerful figures in all of history, leaving people in awe.

Is that the emotion of the ancient Great Emperor that we’ve sensed? Before his death, he seemed very peaceful, as if life and death were just that. That was their collective feeling. While there was a sigh in that emotion, there was more calmness, a perspective that saw through joys and sorrows, an indifference to life and death.

Perhaps the Ruthless Great Emperor had lived too long and was truly weary.

Ten thousand dragons leaped as one; the ancient coffin was surrounded and venerated by countless Great Dragons formed from Dragon Qi. Only when a violent gale surged could one glimpse its silhouette.

In another fleeting glance, beneath the primal chaos in the ancient coffin, the head of this Great Emperor emerged. His hair was black, but alas, his face was covered by a mask.

A ghostly visage, neither crying nor laughing, expressing both grief and joy; perhaps this was his or her entire life.

Crying in laughter, smiling in sorrow—such was the Ruthless Great Emperor. Understood by none, he was the most mysterious; the world had no idea what was in his or her heart.

Perhaps only this mask revealed a glimpse of his or her inner self, something others could not comprehend.

For a short time, they all remained silent, sensing a kind of solitude, the lonely chill of standing at an insurmountable height.

An unknown amount of time passed before they gradually came to their senses.

“Dead, they’re all dead…” the Black Emperor sighed deeply, then unexpectedly began to mourn. “Even the Great Emperor of No Beginning is dead! All of them are dead! In the end, not a single one survived. What’s the point of cultivating to the very end?!”

The Black Emperor, in a rare display of emotion, was profoundly sorrowful. He muttered mournfully, gazing towards the Purple Mountain, “Great Emperor, may your journey be peaceful!”

The last glimmer of hope was extinguished. Ye Fan stood there in a daze, realizing that indeed no Great Emperor had survived. His hopes for the Great Emperor of No Beginning, kindled by the Black Emperor, now scattered like smoke.

“SPLASH!”

A gentle sound came from the ancient coffin. A hazy radiance flew out, like a dragon leaping through primal chaos, incredibly mysterious and elusive.

“What is that?”

They all snapped awake, gazing at the primal chaos with shock in their hearts. Could there be something living inside the ancient coffin?

The Ancient Royal Family youth exclaimed excitedly in his native tongue, his face flushed.

The monkey explained in amazement, “That’s an Immortal Treasure from the Ancient Nest! Ordinary people can hardly ever see it. It would be fortunate if it appeared even once in tens of thousands of years.”

The Ancient Kings slumbering here had perhaps only been fortunate enough to sense it once or twice, yet they dared not attempt to seize it, only observing from afar.

“Grab it, grab it!” The Black Emperor wiped his face, his sorrowful expression vanishing, replaced by his usual greedy nature as he clamored incessantly.

The Ancient Royal Family youth shouted a warning in his native tongue. The monkey looked serious and said, “He says we absolutely must not try to grab it. Otherwise, even if an Ancient King intervened, they couldn’t guarantee our lives.”

The Black Emperor scratched his ears and fidgeted, unable to sit still, but he was helpless. He exclaimed, “To enter the Black Nest and not obtain an Immortal Treasure would be a disgrace to eight generations of my ancestors!”

“DANG!”

He held the Ancient Emperor Order in his paw, striking it repeatedly and shaking it towards the Chaos Dragon Nest. “The Ancient Holy Emperor Divine Order is here! Heed my summons!”

The radiance was not intensely brilliant; it was like condensed starlight, soft and pure, captivating the heart and spirit.

It circled the ancient coffin, darting out nine times and re-entering nine times. Finally, it soared upwards and flew out of the ancient Black Nest.

“DANG…”

The Black Emperor redoubled his efforts, striking the Ancient Emperor Order forcefully with his large paw. “His Imperial Majesty truly summoned it over!”

Indeed, the light flew towards them, like a moonbeam descending. The Black Emperor howled, stretching out his large paw to catch it.

However, with a flash of radiance, it dodged the Black Emperor. With a SWISH, it vanished into the Origin Qi Cauldron atop Ye Fan’s head, its divine radiance subsiding.

“Kid, that’s robbery! You’re committing a crime!” the Black Emperor snarled in frustration, leaping towards Ye Fan with his mouth wide open, intending to snatch the cauldron.

“It has nothing to do with me. It flew in on its own,” Ye Fan said, pressing down on the Black Emperor’s massive head to prevent being bitten.

“Nonsense! His Imperial Majesty summoned it with great effort, and you intercepted it midway!” the Black Emperor fumed.

When everything calmed down, the Black Emperor was at a loss. If the radiance was taken out of the cauldron and left alone, it would automatically fly back in.

The group gathered around, observing this Immortal Treasure in detail. All were deeply surprised, especially the Ancient Royal Family youth, whose face was filled with shock.

Ye Fan held it in his hand. It was an Ancient Scroll, crystal-clear and sparkling, as if forged from Sun and Moon Essence, yet incredibly soft.

It was square, about one and a half meters across when unfolded. Occasionally, stars would flash across its surface and then vanish. It felt light and harmonious, its true nature indiscernible.

“What kind of divine object is this?” they all wondered, unable to discern its nature even after a long examination.

“Could it be an ancient scripture?” the Black Emperor asked, uncertain and suspicious.

They explored it with their divine sense but still found nothing. This Ancient Scroll, seemingly forged from Sun and Moon Essence, possessed a boundless interior, its depths unsearchable.

The monkey searched his memories carefully, as if recalling something. A shocked expression suddenly appeared on his face. “I have a vague impression that my father had a similar scroll. He often viewed it late at night.”

His father was an emperor of the Ancient Times, a Fighting Saint of his generation, unmatched in the world. That such a figure would often contemplate such an Ancient Scroll late at night was truly astonishing.

“Could it possibly be the Immortal Treasure held by the Fighting Saint Emperor from the Ancient Times?” Ye Fan asked, uncertain.

“It’s similar, very similar! I think it is that very scroll!” The more the monkey looked, the more familiar it seemed, and he nodded solemnly.

“Damn it, it’s definitely an Immortal Treasure! Even the Fighting Saint Emperor often meditated upon it, and later it fell into the hands of the Heaven-devouring Great Emperor! Its value is immeasurable!” The Black Emperor was practically drooling on it, staring intently.

“CLANG!”

In the mountain-like Black Nest, the lid of the ancient coffin closed. Then, it slowly descended, sinking into the endless primal chaos.

It’s sunk down, leaving no trace in the world, returning to primal chaos. Ye Fan was startled. Perhaps this was the best final resting place for an ancient Great Emperor. He sighed deeply and said, “Let’s go. We can’t stay here for long.”

There were certainly other divine objects within the Ancient Nest, but they couldn’t get close. Staying longer would be futile.

The group bowed towards the Black Nest, expressing their respect for the Ruthless Great Emperor, then quickly departed.

The Ancient Royal Family youth cried out, questioning in his own language, clearly finding the act of taking the Immortal Treasure improper. Only after the monkey explained repeatedly did he cease his objections.

“BOOM!”

When they had traveled some distance, a great tremor came from behind. The entire Ancient Nest became shrouded in mist, completely engulfed by primal chaos! (To be continued. To find out what happens next, please log on to www., with more chapters and support the author and genuine reading!)