Time passed second by second. The endless sounds of mourning seemed about to burst out of the coffin, and everyone even felt an indistinct urge to prostrate themselves before the Small Coffin.
"This couldn't be the dirge played when an ancient Emperor was buried, could it?" Zhang Ziling asked in slight surprise.
Just then, nine successive, high-pitched dragon roars rang across the sky. The mountains and rivers shook violently, and it seemed as though a real scene was slowly unfolding before their eyes.
In an instant, they seemed to have personally witnessed an unparalleled Emperor—from the moment he ruled the land and commanded the universe's eight directions to the moment his Emperor Blood was exhausted and he died in battle at the Border Wasteland—followed by all living beings holding a grand funeral for him.
Even Li Zhi was immersed in it, pondering which Great Emperor the figure in the scene had been.
"Look! Those Buddhist treasures are glowing again!" someone shouted, pointing at the corner of the Bronze Giant Coffin.
At that moment, the Buddhist treasures everyone had placed in the corner emitted golden divine radiance.
Then, all the divine radiance was absorbed by the Bronze Giant Coffin's walls, sinking into the ancient bronze carvings.
Immediately afterward, a Star Chart on the coffin wall began to flicker.
After seeing the carving representing the Big Dipper light up, Li Zhi began desperately memorizing every detail of the Star Chart.
Those star charts seemed to be Star Coordinates.
Although only the region of the Big Dipper had lit up, the Star Chart was not limited to the Big Dipper. It seemed to encompass the entire universe, with many regions that had yet to light up.
At present, he still did not know how to determine Star Coordinates.
However, once he memorized the Star Chart, he would be able to follow it when traveling through the universe in the future and locate the positions of other Ancient Stars.
Near the Big Dipper, Li Zhi also saw the star carving representing Ziwei Ancient Star.
Unlike Li Zhi, who was trying hard to memorize the Star Chart, Lin Jia, Zhou Yi, and the others were discussing where they were going.
Suddenly, someone shouted, "Everyone, look! That bright line isn't spreading forward anymore. It seems to have stopped in the star region where the Big Dipper is located."
At the same time, everyone suddenly felt the Bronze Giant Coffin shake violently, as if it had crashed into a mountain.
Having experienced something similar on Ancient Scarlet Planet, they immediately realized that this was a sign that the Bronze Giant Coffin was landing.
"It seems we've reached the end." Their excitement was obvious.
"Could we have arrived at the Big Dipper?" someone asked in astonishment.
"Could this be the legendary Immortal Realm?" someone asked hopefully.
"Following the Ancient Starry Road created by a Deity, what kind of world will we face when we reach the end?" someone else asked worriedly.
Unlike them, Li Zhi quickly began gathering his belongings. He put the Rubbings he had made, the Luoyang Shovel, the Eternal Blue Gold Scriptures, and the Hundred Herbs Diagram into his Snakeskin Bag, then firmly tied the bag to his body.
At the same time, he silently called out to the Deity of the Hundred Herbs Diagram, hoping that Senior Tu could send out that Ginseng Fruit for him to use to save his life.
The vast universe and boundless starry sky concealed an unknown number of secrets.
Every living being on a Life Ancient Star was filled with curiosity about the universe and starry sky above their heads.
Thus, some people were born who liked to gaze at the stars, perhaps hoping that one day they might come into contact with civilizations Beyond the Realm.
In the desolate darkness of the universe, nine Dragon Corpses pulled a Bronze Giant Coffin rapidly through a passage that seemed to be formed from time. When it passed a sacred Ancient Star made up of five vast continents, it suddenly changed direction and shot straight out of the Time Passage.
Then, at an inconceivable speed, it descended beside an Abyss on the Ancient Star, an Abyss surrounded by nine Holy Mountains.
Moreover, the Bronze Giant Coffin pulled by the nine Dragon Corpses rolled several times atop one of the Holy Mountains before finally coming to a stop.
The region formed by those nine Holy Mountains was the Desolate Ancient Forbidden Zone, one of the seven most famous Forbidden Zones of Life on the Ancient Beidou Star.
With the arrival of the Nine Dragons Coffin Transport, this Forbidden Zone, which had remained deathly silent and utterly unchanged throughout the year, seemed to emit an imperceptible ripple outward.
Quite a few Yan State cultivators near the Desolate Ancient Forbidden Zone caught that strange ripple and dispatched their disciples to investigate the situation at the edge of the Forbidden Zone.
An unusual disturbance in a Forbidden Zone was often accompanied by world-shaking opportunities and calamities.
They had to take it seriously.
At the same time,
after experiencing a bout of dizziness and disorientation, everyone inside the Bronze Giant Coffin finally landed safely.
Boom!
With a loud bang, the lid of the Bronze Giant Coffin once again shifted from its original position and slid heavily to one side. The entire coffin came to rest overturned. (It seemed someone was worried that they would be unable to climb over the eight- or nine-meter-high coffin walls, so whenever the coffin stopped, it was always left overturned.)
"Light! I see light!"
Some of the people inside the coffin who had just recovered from their dizziness once again saw the gap left by the opening coffin lid.
They then rushed impatiently toward the bright land outside the gap.
A crowd surged out and bathed in the light.
Looking around, they no longer saw the dim sky and bloodstained, desolate land of Ancient Scarlet Planet.
Fresh air brushed against their faces. The scent of earth mingled with the fragrance of flowers and grass, as if they had been immersed in a wilderness where spring had returned to the land.
After seeing their surroundings clearly, they discovered that they were standing atop a mountain of moderate height. Beautiful peaks, verdant forests, and an atmosphere brimming with life and vitality entered their eyes.
Near the mountaintop, Wondrous Stones were scattered everywhere, while ancient trees stood in abundance. Old vines as thick as buckets coiled around the mountain walls like horned dragons, and lush green grass and fragrant wildflowers dotted the rocks.
Compared with the dimness and lifelessness of Mars, this place was undoubtedly a peaceful pure land.
"Wonderful! We've finally escaped the darkness and desolation and reached such a beautiful Divine Soil."
"We finally don't have to live in fear anymore."
Many people cheered. Some even wept with joy. After enduring a series of deaths and hardships, they had finally arrived in a vivid, natural world.
"Kiss the sunlight and tell yourself to live well." Even the shrewd and alluring Lin Jia could not help reciting a poem.
Pang Bo stood atop the mountain and roared toward the distant ranges, "We've finally seen the sun again! Although it isn't the one from before, I still have to shout it aloud—I've been reborn!"
Ye Fan also rarely revealed a trace of a smile.
However, compared with those whose poetic spirits had been stirred, Li Zhi felt as if he had fallen into the Nine Abysses the moment he saw the beautiful scenery before him. His entire body turned cold.
The ground was stained with blood, and layers of white bones seemed to cover the entire Holy Mountain.
There was not the slightest trace of beauty. It was practically a Demonic Land of death.
Moreover, something indescribable seemed to be watching him, causing a bone-chilling sensation to rise in his heart. He stood there, not daring to make the slightest movement.
When he saw Ye Fan walking toward him, the bone-chilling sensation in Li Zhi's heart eased slightly, so he spoke first. "Ye Fan, since we've arrived in the New World, it's time for us to say goodbye. Until we meet again."
At those words, Ye Fan's classmates, who had been seized by poetic inspiration, all turned to look at him, seemingly wanting an explanation from Li Zhi.
Li Zhi cupped his fists toward everyone and said, "I wish you all smooth sailing and the fulfillment of your wishes in the New World. Everyone, until we meet again."
Afterward, Li Zhi took off running toward the outskirts of the Desolate Ancient Forbidden Zone.
His running speed left everyone dumbfounded.
In barely ten seconds, Li Zhi had crossed a mountain ridge and vanished from their sight.
Everyone was stunned by the sight.
Pang Bo hurried to Ye Fan's side and asked, "Yezi, what's wrong with Boss Li?"
A trace of confusion flashed through Ye Fan's eyes. He shook his head. "I don't know either."
Lin Jia also came to Ye Fan's side and asked, "Could it be that he knew what this place was, so he hurried away?"
"Everyone, come look! There's a Stone Tablet here." Zhang Ziling's voice suddenly came from nearby.
Ye Fan and the others immediately walked over. Among a pile of boulders, they saw half of a Stone Tablet lying there.
After pulling away the vines wrapped around the Stone Tablet, everyone saw three ancient, dignified characters.
Even Ye Fan, who had specifically studied various forms of ancient writing, took a long time to identify them before saying uncertainly, "They seem to be the words 'Desolate Ancient Forbid.'"
"Could it be the Desolate Ancient Forbidden Zone?" Lin Jia blurted out, startling herself.
"Boss Li is really too disloyal. Since he knew this was a Forbidden Zone, he didn't tell us and ran off by himself," Pang Bo said.
Ye Fan shook his head. "We still can't determine the situation here. Let's look around first."
"I happen to be thirsty. I'll see if there's any water nearby," Pang Bo said.
Afterward, everyone split up.
Lin Jia came to Ye Fan's side and asked in a low voice, "Ye Fan, why do you trust that Li Zhi so much?"
Ye Fan replied calmly, "The two of us once teamed up to kill someone and bury the corpse."
Lin Jia's eyes instantly widened as she stared at Ye Fan. She had not expected the seemingly mysterious Boss Li to have such a "life-and-death" friendship with Ye Fan.
No wonder Ye Fan had been so calm when he saw Li Zhi kill someone.
"Do you know something?" Lin Jia asked.
Ye Fan said, "I figure Brother Li was afraid that we would ruin his plans. If I'm not mistaken, he doesn't want to embark on the path of cultivation with us."
Ye Fan recalled how Li Zhi had offered to sell him the Cultivation Method for five million that day.
Most likely, they had arrived at a place where cultivation was possible, and Li Zhi did not want to become entangled with his classmates because of the Cultivation Method. That was why he had left ahead of time.
However, what Ye Fan could not understand was why he had faintly sensed a trace of fear from Li Zhi just now.
At this thought, Ye Fan turned his head and looked toward the endless Abyss surrounded by the nine Holy Mountains.
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