Do Not Ascend, Send the Ancestor Off on His Way!

A flash of surprise crossed the eyes of Yuan Ruoyu, and she was somewhat moved.

Holding this jade talisman meant one could ascend!

This was a temptation of massive proportions; for any cultivator, being able to ascend to the Immortal Realm and become an immortal was a lifelong dream.

Cultivating Qi and seeking the truth—wasn't the ultimate goal of all this to achieve carefree immortality?

Now, an opportunity was laid out right before her eyes.

Even though Yuan Ruoyu had been mentally prepared, she could hardly imagine that the appearance of this person would bring her such news directly.

However, as she stared at the jade talisman in her hand, her state of mind slowly calmed down.

An inexplicable sense of fear and anger welled up in her heart!

What did the Immortal Court take the cultivators of the mortal world for?

If even ascension could be treated as a transaction, where was the justice of heaven!

At this moment, Yuan Ruoyu understood a little why Lin Feng had been unwilling to ascend when the Gate of the Heavenly Realm opened last time.

He must have discovered something...

She pondered for a moment in her heart, then looked up again at the Masked Person not far away and asked:

"Ascension? Are there any conditions?"

The Masked Person was silent for a moment, and that ethereal voice drifted out from beneath the mask once more:

"Assist the Immortal Court in finding everything related to the Immortal Great Emperor, and track him down!"

Yuan Ruoyu sneered and added, "And what if I say no?"

"If you disobey the order, you shall be apprehended and brought to justice immediately, without fail!"

Yuan Ruoyu was incensed and said, "What a joke. I am not a criminal, so why would I be apprehended and brought to justice?"

"What, does the Immortal Realm also have a habit of making false accusations?"

The Masked Person said nothing more, letting out a sigh.

A cold glint flashed in Yuan Ruoyu's eyes. The next moment, the jade talisman in her hand was crushed directly, turning into powder that flowed out from between her fingers.

"Come then. If you want to apprehend me and bring me to justice, let's see if you have the ability to do so."

As her voice fell, an aura of slaughter soared into the sky.

A clear radiance rose behind Yuan Ruoyu, and within that radiance, the manifestation of a lotus flower appeared, accompanied by the resonating sounds of the Great Dao.

Her aura climbed to its peak, shaking the heavens and the earth.

Above the void.

The robes of the Masked Person fluttered, and behind her, the same clear radiance rose, with lotus flowers blooming one after another.

The cultivation techniques of the two actually originated from the same source.

The secret realm churned with wind and clouds, and a staggering hurricane whipped up as two terrifying auras collided.

Crack—

Snap, snap—

As the incredibly powerful auras clashed, the space became turbulent and twisted, becoming extremely unstable, with sounds like thunder ringing out incessantly.

Yuan Ruoyu's expression was grave; she stepped on a lotus flower, standing in the midst of the storm like a lone boat in the vast ocean.

The Masked Person locked eyes with her.

The next moment, both moved simultaneously, transforming into streaks of light and colliding at an extremely terrifying speed.

Boom, boom, boom!

At the center of the collision, deafening sounds rang out one after another, brilliant light erupted, and the space shattered.

A staggering storm swept outward, scouring in all directions!

Everything in its path was reduced to dust, and a mountain peak in the distance was sliced clean off.

Petals filled the sky as they fell into the earth, causing the ground to shake and the mountains to rock; the rolling mountain range was lifted up directly, like a piece of green fabric hanging in the sky.

In a battle of this level, even a Body Integration stage cultivator would likely perish on the spot if they were even slightly grazed.

Another quarter of an hour passed.

The sounds of battle ceased, and the turbulent space slowly returned to stability.

Yuan Ruoyu stood in the air, stepping on a lotus flower, and watched the Masked Person not far away in silence.

There was a complex look in her eyes.

Not long after.

Yuan Ruoyu straightened her robes, her expression solemn, and she bowed deeply toward the Masked Person in the distance.

"I did not know which generation of ancestor you are from my Jade Pool Holy Land."

"For Ruoyu to have raised a hand against you today is an act of unfilial conduct; I beg for the ancestor's forgiveness!"

The Masked Person stood motionless, and a moment later, laughter rang out: "Good! Good! Good child, it is not your fault!"

"Seeing the Holy Land in your hands, my heart is greatly comforted!"

Yuan Ruoyu raised her eyes, her expression complex.

During their exchange just now, she had already realized that the other party was seeking death.

The reason he had fought her was more to point out the flaws and openings in her cultivation technique.

The Masked Person shook his head, his body shuddered, and gray flames ignited all over him. His voice became ethereal as he said: "Child, remember this!"

"Do not ascend!"

"Do not ascend!"

"Do not..."

Before the words could finish, a sudden sizzling sound erupted. The flames on the Masked Person surged, rapidly burning his flesh, blood, and primordial spirit into ashes.

Yuan Ruoyu was shocked at the sight.

She wanted to step forward, but the Masked Person stopped her with a wave of his hand.

The Masked Person's voice carried pain: "I have long since died; there is no need to be sad."

"The Immortal Great Emperor is the only one they could never control!"

"You must remember this, and warn the cultivators of the world: do not... as... cend!!"

Yuan Ruoyu's eyes welled with tears, her expression sorrowful: "Grandmaster!"

She knelt and bowed once more, pressing her hands against the Lotus Platform and lowering her head to touch it gently.

"I respectfully send the Grandmaster on his final journey!"

In less than a moment, under the influence of those strange flames, the Masked Person was completely reduced to ash.

Not even a wisp of his primordial spirit remained.

The secret realm returned to silence, empty and hollow, with only the flattened mountain range in the distance telling Yuan Ruoyu that all of this had truly happened.

Yet, even now, she still did not know which ancestor of the Jade Pool Holy Land the Masked Person had been!

But the news he brought today left her heart shaken, unable to find peace for a long time.

"Do not ascend!"

"Do not ascend!"

Yuan Ruoyu whispered softly, then suddenly looked up at the sky, her gaze seemingly piercing through the firmament.

She seemed to want to explore whether there were truly immortals beyond the nine heavens.

If there really were, then why was the situation as it was today?

And if there were not, then where had the Great Emperors who ascended in the past gone?

Yuan Ruoyu could not fathom it, but she vaguely sensed that she had already been drawn into an earth-shattering storm.

To retreat now was already impossible.

Or rather, it was not just her and Lin Feng; the entire mortal world was already caught in the eye of the storm.

It was just that, for now, only Lin Feng had the foresight to know it.

Yuan Ruoyu thought back to the words Lin Feng had said to her when he left.

"This is something only I can do, and it must be done!"

"I have already been targeted; there is no way back!"

Only now could she understand why Lin Feng had said such things at the time.

Even as a Great Emperor, perhaps there were still many things beyond one's control.

Based on the information currently at hand, the enemy could not only control ascension but also command the former ancestors of the Jade Pool Holy Land, and they must surely possess hidden power within the mortal realm as well.

The strength of the opponent was beyond imagination.

After calming down...

Yuan Ruoyu began to worry about Lin Feng's safety again, sighing softly: "Where are you right now?"

"Why haven't you come to see me? You know that no matter what happens, I will face it with you!"

In the silent secret realm, the small voice sounded exceptionally clear.

Yuan Ruoyu took one last look at the devastated secret realm, scarred by the battle, and then turned to leave!

The purpose of this seclusion had been achieved; there was no need to stay any longer.

The speed at which the enemy had struck exceeded her expectations.

That meant it was not just them who were in a hurry; those people were also racing against time.