Emperor Jade

Emperor Jade

Before reaching this oasis, Zhou Tong had spotted a solitary mountain on the horizon from afar, several thousand meters tall.

There was no soil or vegetation on the mountain. It was entirely a stone mountain. Its rocks were violet, giving off an incomparably heavy and solemn feeling.

"That's right, that's Purple Mountain!" Zhou Tong's eyes lit up, and he immediately headed toward it.

This oasis spanned more than ten li in every direction, yet it contained only this single great mountain.

Zhou Tong soon arrived at the foot of the mountain.

The entire mountain was violet-brown, as though it had been polished from dull purple gold. It was thick, weighty, and solemn. More than four thousand meters tall, it was extraordinarily steep, nearly impossible for ordinary people to climb.

Many sword and blade marks could be seen on its surface, and these traces also revealed the mountain's history.

Zhou Tong continued flying upward and soon reached the summit of Purple Mountain.

The mountaintop was still bare, with nothing on it.

Standing at the summit, Zhou Tong gazed into the distance and discovered mountain ridges in every direction.

Those ridges were not within this oasis, but lay very far away. Purple Mountain stood squarely at the center of the region surrounded by nine mountain ridges.

This must be the so-called Nine Dragons Guarding a Pearl, Zhou Tong thought silently.

Purple Mountain has already been occupied by Wu Shi the Great. It is incomparably dangerous inside. To enter, I need to obtain at least one piece of Emperor Jade, Zhou Tong thought.

He remembered that even Saints could be trapped within Purple Mountain. Only cultivators carrying Emperor Jade would receive preferential treatment and could obtain some minor fortune.

In other words, those pieces of Emperor Jade were actually passes for entering and leaving Purple Mountain!

The first piece of Emperor Jade is in the Azure Cloud Sect! Zhou Tong pondered for a while before leaving Purple Mountain.

Along the way, he casually asked someone about the location of an Azure Cloud Sect outpost nearby, then set off directly.

The five hundred li surrounding Purple Mountain all fell within the Azure Cloud Sect's sphere of influence. Though the Azure Cloud Sect called itself a sect, it was really no different from a bandit den. Its people lived by robbing those nearby.

Zhou Tong felt no psychological burden whatsoever in dealing with such a sect.

Before long, Zhou Tong arrived directly at one of the Azure Cloud Sect's outposts.

Rather than an outpost, it would be more accurate to call it a bandit den. The people inside possessed none of the bearing of an immortal cultivation sect; they were nothing but a nest of brigands.

"Who are you?!" someone immediately shouted upon seeing Zhou Tong suddenly appear.

Pfft!

With a casual point from Zhou Tong, a stream of sword qi shot forth and directly beheaded the man.

"Who dares trespass into our Azure Cloud Sect?!"

Hearing the commotion, everyone rushed out.

But Zhou Tong did not answer. He merely waved a hand, and sword qi bloomed like lotuses. Corpses fell one after another, each forehead pierced through by sword qi.

"Who exactly are you? Do you know who we are?!" At that moment, a bearded man shouted.

He looked fierce but was weak inside. Though he appeared vicious, he was terrified to death. He already knew that today would most likely end badly for him, with not the slightest chance of survival.

Zhou Tong did not reply. He simply acted calmly, slaughtering everyone in the entire outpost under the man's furious gaze.

"Does your background have anything to do with me?" Zhou Tong said softly. At the same time, a point between his brows scattered nine-colored light, and the bearded man's eyes immediately went blank.

The "Front" Secret of the Nine Secrets specialized in the primordial spirit. Though Zhou Tong had not yet cultivated to the Immortal Platform Secret Realm, he already possessed a trace of its power. He could easily search the souls of cultivators whose divine sense was inferior to his own.

So that's how it is. Chen the Bearded isn't here, which means the Emperor Jade isn't at this outpost... Zhou Tong muttered inwardly. He then slapped the man to death and turned to leave.

From the man's sea of consciousness, he had already learned the Azure Cloud Sect's entire arrangement. He could now strike at specific targets and ensure that he obtained that piece of Emperor Jade.

Over the course of an entire day, Zhou Tong wiped out all of the Azure Cloud Sect's outer outposts.

Finally, at the last outpost, he found a palm-sized fragment of ancient jade.

"At last, I've found it—Wu Shi the Great's Emperor Jade." Holding the ancient jade, Zhou Tong immediately sensed an ancient, desolate aura, as if he had crossed time and space and arrived in the era before the Ancient Desolation.

He examined the Emperor Jade closely and saw mountain ranges and earth veins carved upon it. The image was precisely a map of Purple Mountain and the nine dragon veins. Of course, it was only an incomplete map.

There was also a character on the Emperor Jade—Emperor!

I've acquired the first piece of Emperor Jade. To be safer, I should probably obtain a few more pieces. Rather than immediately heading to Purple Mountain, Zhou Tong prepared to get several more pieces of Emperor Jade.

The more of these tokens he had, the safer he would obviously be. Though he did not know how much safer, any increase in safety was worth it.

And... where another piece of Emperor Jade is located, there is also a Blazing Fire Furnace. That was once Hengyu the Great's weapon! Zhou Tong thought silently. Through that Blazing Fire Furnace, he might be able to glimpse some traces Hengyu the Great had left behind.

Three days later.

Zhou Tong returned to the oasis near Purple Mountain, rubbing two pieces of Emperor Jade in his hands.

The two pieces of Emperor Jade reflected each other's radiance in his hands. Warm, lustrous, and crystalline, both shone with auspicious light.

The strongest experts of Mystic Moon Cave and the Blazing Fire Cult were only at the third level of the Dao Palace Realm. Zhou Tong forcefully entered the two sects, crushed the weak from above, and swiftly defeated them, taking what he wanted.

I now have two pieces of Emperor Jade! Zhou Tong thought silently. According to the original text, there is one piece in the Primordial Forbidden Land, another at the auction house, and one in Victorious Fighting Buddha's hands. There are also several pieces of Emperor Jade whose whereabouts are completely unknown.

Forget it. I wasn't expecting to obtain every piece of Emperor Jade anyway.

Zhou Tong shook his head, then took out a bronze furnace.

The bronze furnace was only an inch tall. It was exceptionally crystalline and dazzling all over.

"The Blazing Fire Divine Furnace, the weapon Hengyu the Great used before attaining the Dao!" Zhou Tong looked at the divine furnace and sighed inwardly. It is at least a Quasi-Emperor Artifact. If not for the inferior material, it might even have become an Emperor Artifact.

Unfortunately, without the corresponding cultivation level, it is absolutely impossible to fully display the Blazing Fire Divine Furnace's power. It is also difficult to reveal Hengyu the Great's Great Dao...

Thinking of this, Zhou Tong felt somewhat helpless. He had acquired the bronze furnace several days ago, yet had still failed to find even the slightest trace of Hengyu the Great's Great Dao within it.

Could it be that, like the Yaoguang Saint Son, Yaoguang Saintess, and Golden-Winged Little Peng King in the original work, I must enter the Blazing Fire Divine Furnace and activate it before I can sense such Dao Rhyme? Zhou Tong hesitated...

Forget it. I'll try again after exploring Purple Mountain! As it happens, aside from Thunder Body Tempering, the Chaotic Ancient Method also has a Blazing Flame Body Tempering technique... It will be perfect for further strengthening my cultivation in the Blood Movement Realm!