Shrouding the Heavens

Chapter 613: Chapter 617 Bone Measuring

“Martial Uncle, it will soon be time to select disciples for the inner gate. My Master has asked you to prepare,” Li Xiaoman said with a bow. She appeared ethereal, her dark hair drifting, her white dress spotless and immaculate.

“I understand,” the Mountain Master of the Eastern Vein acknowledged with a nod.

Ye Fan’s heart stirred. Could entering the inner gate bring him closer to the nine secret arts? He had to seize this opportunity; surely others harbored the same thought.

Recently, he had been keeping a close watch on Li Xiaoman but hadn’t seen her interacting with anyone noteworthy, nor could he find any trace of Hua Yunfei.

He believed Hua Yunfei had to be in the Qin Sect; he just didn’t know his guise. He had hoped to find him through Li Xiaoman but had found no openings or leads.

“Martial Uncle, I shall take my leave,” Li Xiaoman said, performing another bow. Her sleeves fluttered as she flew into the distant sky like an exiled Immortal fairy.

The smoke and dust in the pit had settled, revealing a large, vermillion coffin lying underground. Three snot-nosed brats were wailing loudly beside it, amidst chaotically fluttering chickens and ducks.

The Mountain Master looked at the three little brats howling below and was exasperated yet amused. “Look at the state of you!” he said. “Always stealing chickens and dogs. If you don’t behave, I’ll lock you in this pit.”

“Mountain Master, save us! We only did it this once! We’ll never dare to do it again!” the three snot-nosed brats sobbed, huddled by the large coffin, thoroughly terrified.

The expert of the Immortal Platform Secret Realm flicked his sleeve, sweeping them and the coffin up together. It landed on the ground with a CLATTER, exuding a damp, earthy odor.

This coffin had been buried underground for over ten thousand years, yet it showed no signs of decay. It remained pristine, carved from Red Silk Dragon Wood, making it incredibly precious.

BANG!

The moment the coffin lid was opened, a green light shot out. It was a centipede, two meters long, as translucent as green jade. It spat out a jade-green mist, and all the chickens and geese instantly turned into pus and blood.

The Mountain Master, at the pinnacle of the Immortal Platform First Layer Heaven and a half-step sovereign, naturally possessed supreme power. With a sweep of his great sleeves, he whisked all the children to safety.

“A Centipede Heavenly Demon!”

Many people cried out. This was clearly a centipede that had attained significant power; though not monstrously large, it was frightening enough.

BANG!

The Mountain Master personally engaged it, unleashing limitless magical power in an attempt to continuously refine it. However, the jade-green centipede pierced through the void and actually managed to escape.

Everyone was astounded. This was an extraordinary insect that had cultivated for over eight hundred years. Although it hadn’t taken human form, it possessed the strength of a half-step sovereign.

It followed the path of an Insect King, choosing not to evolve into human form but to continue powerfully cultivating in its insect body, making it even more formidable.

PUFF! It spat a gout of venomous green light. A single mouthful pierced through the Short Mountain, boring a hole straight through it. One could only imagine its devastating potency.

The Mountain Master gave a long cry, and a small azure gourd shot out from his mouth. An endless stream of golden vapor rushed from it, purifying the venom and surging towards the jade-green centipede.

“True Water of Supreme Yang!”

Many exclaimed in recognition, and even Ye Fan was surprised. The True Water of Supreme Yang was the counterpart to the True Water of Taiyin. Though a form of water, it embodied Supreme Yang and was the perfect counter to dark insects and beasts.

PUFF! The jade-green centipede spat out a beam of jade-green light, which transformed into a jade-green, centipede-shaped short sword. It tore through the void, lunging towards the True Water of Supreme Yang and the gourd.

“This is not good! This centipede is profoundly cultivated! All of you, retreat quickly!” the Mountain Master shouted.

He and the jade-green centipede soared high into the sky, their attacks clashing continuously. Below, an Elder transformed into a streak of light and sped towards the main sect gate to report the crisis.

At this moment, the onlookers were both tense and horrified. Inside the large vermillion coffin lay a corpse. Its flesh had not decayed, yet it was as black as ink.

“This is Red Silk Dragon Wood! It can preserve a body from decay, allowing it to last for twenty thousand years in the world. It’s an unparalleled treasure! This person must have been an Emperor Master-level figure in life; otherwise, they could never have possessed such a coffin.”

“How dreadful! This centipede devoured the Source Essence from the corpse. No wonder it’s so powerful!”

Upon seeing the contents of the coffin, everyone felt a deep unease. An Emperor Master, reduced to food for a poisonous insect after death, unable to find peace even in the afterlife.

The few snot-nosed brats turned even paler, trembling uncontrollably from fear. They had just brushed shoulders with the grim reaper. If the centipede hadn’t disdained their meager flesh and blood, they would have been dead long ago.

BOOM!

High in the sky, the centipede’s body convulsed violently. Green light flared, and it instantly transformed, growing to over a hundred feet long. Like a Flood Dragon, its massive, segmented body undulated, its myriad legs moving in unison, tearing at the fabric of the void.

“A Heavenly Centipede at the pinnacle of the Immortal Platform First Layer Heaven! Nothing less than a full sovereign could subdue it; its venom is far too potent!”

PUFF! The hundred-foot-long jade-green centipede spat out a sheet of jade-green liquid. It completely dissolved the summit of a Short Mountain, causing the peak to vanish into thin air. The extreme toxicity of it made everyone’s heart pound with terror.

“Fiendish insect, meet your end!”

From the distant sky, a long cry resounded. A sovereign arrived, riding the clouds. Even from a great distance, he extended a colossal hand, which descended as if to cover the sky, reaching to seize the jade-green centipede.

“A peerless sovereign!” Ye Fan was astonished. So there really are supreme figures stationed on the main peak! An Emperor Master-level character has arrived just like that!

The Heavenly Centipede shot across the sky, its jade-green light trailing like a silken banner, venom spewing from its maw. In a single breath, it reduced five Short Mountains to dust, obliterating them. It darted frantically, trying to break free and escape.

However, the peerless sovereign’s methods were heaven-defying. He completely sealed the space around the centipede. His hand descended and, with a SNAP! seized it. Then, a brilliant radiance enveloped the creature as he began the refinement process.

So this is a peerless Saint Master-level figure, Ye Fan thought with awe. Suppressing a half-step sovereign-level Heavenly Centipede King is truly no different from pinching an ordinary insect.

The jade-green centipede was intensely poisonous and continuously spewed jade-green mist, but it couldn’t break through the curtain of light. Refined by magical power, it rapidly shrank. Finally, it was reduced to the size of a palm, resembling a piece of jade-green jade, and lay motionless in the sovereign’s hand.

“Vile creature,” this powerhouse from the main sect snorted coldly. “As one of the Five Elements poisonous insects, you’re perfect for nurturing a Gu King.” He placed it into a small cauldron and departed.

Such was a peerless sovereign. In an era devoid of Saints or those possessing a Great Success King Body, they represented the zenith of combat power in the world, the true rulers of the land.

“That insect was truly something else; it actually devoured the fragmented Source Essence of the corpse.”

“It was hardly a centipede anymore; it had already transformed into a Gu. By devouring its own kind and other living beings, it would only grow stronger.”

A Gu is a mystical insect cultivated by confining various insect kings together, forcing them to devour one another until only a single survivor remains. This practice originated in the Southern Mountains of the Five Great Domains, where the people are skilled in raising Gu.

Hearing their words, Ye Fan couldn’t help but shiver. He immediately thought of the Heaven-devouring Demon Technique. Wasn’t it exactly the same? Practitioners of such a Heavenly Technique devoured the King Bodies of other humans to empower themselves, ultimately becoming a sort of Gu King among humankind—it was a perfect parallel!

When the Ancient Heavenly Emperor created this Supreme Demon Technique, he was very likely inspired by the concept of a Gu King, Ye Fan mused. His heart suddenly jolted. “This is bad!” he muttered.

Qinling was a mysterious Ancient Land, filled with numerous Ancient Mausoleums. In ancient times, even people from the Divine Dynasties came here to entomb their dead. Heaven knew how many ancient burials these mountain ranges held.

Hua Yunfei would be like a fish in water here! If he were to discover some undecayed, powerful bodies, it would undoubtedly be a ‘grand feast’ for him!

The well-preserved corpses of peerless figures would likely still retain a portion of their Source Essence. The mere thought of such treasures falling into Hua Yunfei’s hands was enough to make one shudder.

In less than ten years, he could run rampant throughout the world!

For the first time, Ye Fan felt that Hua Yunfei’s future was even more terrifying than he had previously imagined. If Hua Yunfei couldn’t be checked now, once he fully matured, perhaps no one would be his match.

Several days later, the Mountain Master of the Eastern Vein made an announcement: in two months, disciples would be selected for the inner gate. This news stirred the ambitions of everyone in the mountain.

“The four veins will hold a competition. Only the disciple who takes first place will be eligible to enter the inner gate. There is only one spot,” the Mountain Master stated.

Everyone was stunned. Only the top disciple from all four veins could enter the main peak. The conditions were excessively harsh; after what would surely be intense battles, everyone else’s efforts would be in vain.

Ye Fan’s heart tensed. As far as he knew, in this Eastern Vein alone, three or four disciples had reached the Dragon Transformation Secret Realm, and each of them undoubtedly had significant backing.

The other three veins were by no means weak. The contest for first place would inevitably be a fierce struggle, a battle of dragons and tigers. This was undoubtedly a deliberate arrangement by the Qin Sect; they must have long been aware that some of their disciples harbored impure motives.

“They came for the nine secret arts, but I… I came only for you, Princess Moon Spirit. Who have you become, and in which vein are you hiding?” Qin Yue, the scholar from the Eastern Vein, murmured to himself.

This was the only piece of information Ye Fan had managed to gather recently by observing the scholar and the ailing old man during the daytime. Using his Source Heavenly Divine Technique to resonate with the earth’s ley lines, he had overheard these words.

The second beauty of the Central States, Princess Moon Spirit of the Jiuli Divine Dynasty, is also in the Qin Sect?! Ye Fan was quite surprised. In this tiny place, a small sect with barely more than a hundred members, there were hidden dragons and concealed phoenixes. Who knew what other formidable individuals were lurking here?

It was obvious now. That refined-looking scholar had to be a prince-level figure from a Divine Dynasty; otherwise, how would he dare pursue the Moon Spirit Heavenly Girl all the way here? He was a hidden dragon.

Among the Eastern, Western, Southern, and Northern Veins, just how many people like Princess Moon Spirit and Hua Yunfei were there? And how had they all managed to find this place? Ye Fan was puzzled. Evidently, some had already been here for a year or two, perhaps even longer.

Two days later, the Mountain Master of the Eastern Vein announced another piece of news: if a disciple could make a great contribution to the Qin Sect, they too could enter the main peak and study the sect’s supreme Secret Scripture.

“What would be considered a great contribution?” a disciple inquired.

“Finding Dragon Marrow to extend the life of a Grand Elder of the main peak, or presenting precious materials suitable for forging a King’s Divine Weapon…”

The crowd was dumbfounded. Each of those items was an extraordinary treasure worth millions of jin of Source. That was indeed a “great contribution” of monumental proportions!

Ye Fan suspected the Qin Sect had long seen through these disciples’ true intentions. Now, they were making exorbitant demands, essentially extorting ‘tuition fees’ from the Divine Dynasties and other major powers.

After the crowd dispersed, Ye Fan asked the ailing old man, “Elder, do you plan to try for the main peak?”

“It’s best not to enter the inner gate,” the ailing old man replied, shaking his head.

“Why is that?” Ye Fan asked, puzzled.

“Some individuals of astonishing talent and brilliance entered, only to find themselves unable to leave for the rest of their lives,” the ailing old man said.

“Who, for example?” Ye Fan asked, his expression turning serious.

“King Greenfall, for instance.”

“What?!” Ye Fan exclaimed in shock. He immediately thought of the Nine Heavens Green Fall Bell, an artifact left behind by an invincible King from twenty thousand years ago.

This Green Fall King, of course, couldn’t be the same individual from twenty thousand years prior. The ailing old man, speaking freely, began to reveal some hidden truths.

“Thirty years ago,” the old man continued, “someone managed to find this place. King Greenfall, who was then in his heroic prime, entered the main peak within a year of arriving. As it turned out, he took up permanent residence there and never left.”

“It’s not that he doesn’t wish to leave, but rather…” The ailing old man shook his head.

“Is there some hidden circumstance?” Ye Fan inquired.

“Indeed, there is.” The ailing old man then recounted a shocking, hidden story.

“The main peak of the Qin Sect harbors peerless experts, individuals no weaker than those found in any of the Sacred Lands. And most terrifyingly, they possess a secret art known as the God Crossing Technique.”

“This technique can bring enlightenment to an entire generation of Kings. If it is said that Buddha can bring salvation to all sentient beings, then this technique can bring enlightenment to all the Kings of the world. The more talented the individual, the more profoundly they are affected.”

“King Greenfall became a Mountain Gate Guardian less than three years after entering the main peak. One can only imagine the mental transformation he underwent. Now, he has risen to become a Supreme Guardian of the Qin Sect.”

“Thirty years have passed, and in all that time, he has not taken a single step outside. He has put down roots in the Qin Sect, officially becoming one of its core members.”

“The God Crossing Technique doesn’t control one’s divine sense directly. Instead, it works at the fundamental level of one’s being—their Source—compelling an individual to genuinely and wholeheartedly submit to the sect. It’s almost a demonic art.”

“Although the Qin Sect has few members, its main peak is by no means short of experts. King Greenfall is merely one of them. Now, after thirty years, he can at the very least contend with a peerless Saint Master.”

The main peak is so unfathomable… Ye Fan was stunned.

“Indeed. The God Crossing Technique has a terrifying origin. It is said to be an unparalleled divine art left behind by the Heavenly Emperor of the Southern Mountains, capable of bringing enlightenment to all the Kings of the world.”

“This…” Ye Fan was dumbstruck. There were rumors that the Heavenly Emperor of the Southern Mountains was the Ruthless One. And here, at the Qin Sect, was one of that Emperor’s Unrivaled Sacred Techniques!