"We'll go this way."
Holding the complete Jade Scroll Map, Yan Kuan led the two Valley Lords of Ten Thousand Demons Valley into the Inner Mountain. Turning left and winding around, they nearly touched the forbidden formations several times, but ultimately arrived safely at the Daoist Sacred Land and beheld Dragon Tiger True Mountain.
Standing at a distance, the First Valley Lord sighed in awe. "This place has a more dragon-like form than the ninety-nine peaks outside. This is truly extraordinary!"
Dragon Tiger True Mountain was majestic, as though it were about to leap into the clouds. Dragons and tigers coiled around one another, twisting and interweaving. In this End of Dharma era, faint Purple Qi actually rose from it, a sight rarely seen in the world.
In ancient times, this place had undoubtedly been a supreme sacred land. No wonder it had become the birthplace of Daoism, magnificent without losing its elegance.
This place possessed the grand momentum of dragons and tigers leaping, shifting, and soaring, as though they wished to rush into the heavens. Yet the Ninety-Nine Ancient Dragon Mountain Range recorded on the Jade Scroll Map was nowhere to be seen, leaving both Old Crane and Monkey somewhat anxious.
"We'll go this way."
Yan Kuan continued to lead the way, avoiding one Daoist temple and purple-qi mountain after another as they entered the forests from afar, without approaching the Zhengyi Sect's important grounds.
"It's not here. How could it not be here?"
Within the forests of the Uninhabited Region, Monkey's Fiery Golden Eyes flashed, yet he found none of the target he sought. Auspicious light gathered around several ancient Daoist temples atop Dragon Tiger Mountain, while Purple Qi swirled and rose, stirring the heart. Other than that, however, there was no abnormality in the vast Uninhabited Region.
Old Crane and Monkey were both growing anxious. They could not remain here for long. They knew full well how terrifying and powerful the Zhengyi Sect was. If they were discovered by a reclusive Great Divine Power Expert, they would be in serious trouble.
"There are mountains beyond mountains, and heavens beyond heavens. This is where the Earth Immortal buried his bones."
Using the Jade Scroll Map as reference, Yan Kuan accurately located a landmark, then led the two onward. The journey was difficult, not because they encountered a Slaughter Formation, but because the surrounding terrain had been cleverly used to create a trap that prevented anyone from approaching.
Once they truly entered the hidden land, the three immediately sensed a vast and desolate aura, as though a host of dragons were rising. At the end of the horizon stretched immense mountains, lush and verdant, draped in dragon qi. Numerous Dragon Mountains danced and soared as though they were about to shatter the heavens.
Monkey said excitedly, "We found it. This is the place where an Earth Immortal was buried. Anyone revered as an Earth Immortal must have possessed heaven-defying methods. This person obtained the great secret of the Ninety-Nine Ancient Dragon Mountains and touched upon the Forbidden Domain. He must have left behind a shocking secret."
Old Crane, however, said worriedly, "People from the Orthodox Unity Dao must have come here before. I wonder whether anything remains."
His words made sense. The Orthodox Unity Dao's sages had chosen Dragon Tiger Mountain as their site because they must have seen something. They regarded this land of dragon and tiger winds and clouds as their ancestral court and had guarded it for so many years. No one would believe they had gained none of the Earth Immortal's hidden treasures.
The terrain ahead was magnificent, with mountain ranges dancing and many small Dragon Mountains standing lofty and grand. Suddenly, the three halted.
They saw a skeleton clad in a Daoist robe. It had sat in meditation for several centuries, yet its body had not decayed. It sat cross-legged upon a rock, looking as though it had been guarding the mountain gate leading to the Dragon Mountain Range.
"This is a protector of the Zhengyi Sect's Dao."
Old Crane immediately noticed an image of a Flying Immortal on the Daoist robe, a mark unique to Dao protectors. All Dao protectors were exceptionally powerful experts, some even surpassing sect leaders. They were enlightened masters who safeguarded their Dao lineage.
"There are words here."
Monkey pointed at a spot on the ground, where several lines of Pre-Qin Bird Script had been left behind by an old Taoist. Their general meaning was that he had guarded this forbidden land for two thousand years without anyone coming to replace him. Heaven and earth had dried up; no one in Dragon Tiger Mountain could Sever Dao and enter this place. It was truly lamentable.
"This was a Beheading King. He sat in meditation here several centuries ago and guarded the Dao all this time. It's astonishing."
"So that means the Earth Immortal's secret is still here—or rather, they have not taken all the hidden treasures. Otherwise, they would not have sent someone to guard this place."
After Monkey and Old Crane spoke, they seemed to realize something. They could not help looking toward Yan Kuan, their gazes filled with scrutiny. The inscription clearly stated that only a Beheading King could enter. Could this mean...?
"What are you thinking? The Taoists of Dragon Tiger Mountain have neither the token nor the map, so they have to rely on their strength to force their way through. We have the complete token map."
Yan Kuan raised the terrain map formed from the nine Jade Books in his hand. Old Crane and Monkey's doubts eased somewhat, and they looked away. Yan Kuan also breathed a sigh of relief inwardly.
He had actually deceived them. Gathering all nine Jade Books did indeed help one enter this place, but ordinary people did not possess his methods.
The real reason Yan Kuan could bring people into Dragon Tiger True Mountain and this hidden land was that he had used the Empyrean Flame to refine the nine Jade Books, tracing back to the period when the map had been created. From it, he learned many ancient secrets, which was why he had been able to arrive here so smoothly.
They continued onward. Upon reaching the first Dragon Mountain, they saw a Bone Stele, white as jade and more than a person's height. After all these years, it remained undamaged, and Oracle Bone Script was carved upon it.
"Ninety-Nine Dragon Mountains."
Only these few words were written upon the Bone Stele, yet an aura of the Great Dao pressed down like a tidal wave. Yan Kuan hurriedly held the Jade Book before him, but Old Crane and Monkey did not react as quickly. Merely looking at it from afar made them cough up blood, utterly unable to face it directly.
"An Earth Immortal... truly worthy of the title. Even a few ordinary words carry such power."
"Fortunately, the one who carved them bore no killing intent. He merely wrote them normally, leaving behind only a trace of Dao marks."
As Old Crane and Monkey wiped the blood from their lips, they were secretly shaken. Seeing that Yan Kuan remained entirely unaffected, they found him increasingly unfathomable.
They continued onward. The instant they entered the mountains, golden light flared in Monkey's eyes, and delight appeared on his face. He shouted, "I found it! I didn't expect it to go so smoothly."
As he spoke, he pointed beneath a cliff ahead. A massive fissure yawned open there, filled with at least several thousand Hanging Coffins arranged densely together. Dragon qi wound around them, making it appear as though the open Dragon Mouth of a True Dragon held the Ancient Coffins in its jaws.
Deep within the Dragon Mouth, a Jade Coffin appeared and disappeared from view, flowing with dusty light. From ancient times until now, it had remained uncorrupted.
"Earth Immortal's Dwelling, with thousands of Hanging Coffins halfway up the cliff."
"They say immortals bury their bones here."
Old Crane recited an ancient passage from the Taiping Yulan, and it matched the scene before them exactly. A faint fragrance drifted over from afar, yet it made their bodies feel light, as though they might ascend amid rosy clouds.
"This fragrance... could that be the legendary Undying Divine Medicine?"
The fragrance came from the great opening beneath the stone cliff, deep within the Dragon Mouth. Monkey was far more sensitive to such things than the other two. His Fiery Golden Eyes released golden light as he gazed into the distance. The Dao marks upon the dusty Jade Coffin had not been damaged. Within it lay a section of branch, gleaming with green light, fresh and tender, its fragrance assailing the nostrils.
Yan Kuan also circulated divine power into his eyes. His Fiery Golden Eyes flickered with golden-red flames, and from afar, he saw that half-section of emerald green: a branch of the Undying Divine Medicine Ginseng Fruit Tree.
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