Ancient Emperor's Cave Abode, Nine-Star Dou Saint Zhu Kun

Jia Nan Academy, Magma Depths.

The three stepped out of the spatial rift.

"This is the place." Tang Chen pointed at the magma beneath their feet and spoke gravely.

"This place... is indeed extraordinary." The moment Old Ancestor Fire Cloud landed, his senses sharply caught the disturbances deep within the magma. There were even regions he could not probe clearly.

"Tang Chen, what are we doing here?" Zi Yan asked curiously.

"Zi Yan, haven't you always wanted to find your clan?" Tang Chen's expression turned solemn as he pointed toward the Magma Depths. "Your people are down there."

"What! How is that possible!" Zi Yan's face was full of disbelief. She had lived at Jia Nan Academy for so many years, yet her people had been right beneath her feet all along? How could she possibly believe it?

Old Ancestor Fire Cloud frowned slightly as well. He had not detected the aura of an Ancient Void Dragon below, but he did not rush to point that out.

"Grandpa, this place is no trifling matter. You must be careful," Tang Chen said to the old man, his tone more grave than ever before.

It was the first time Old Ancestor Fire Cloud had seen his eldest grandson wear such an expression. He immediately became fully alert and led the two downward, deliberately suppressing his aura to avoid disturbing any of the Lizardmen here.

The space beneath the magma was far broader and deeper than Tang Chen had imagined. Even traveling at the speed of a Dou Saint, they still had not reached the bottom after a long while.

Though the three were extremely cautious, they still encountered Lizardmen halfway down.

The two Lizardmen were milky white all over, older-looking than ordinary Lizardmen and far more terrifying in presence. Their cultivation had actually reached the Half-Saint level.

"Humans, this is the Graveyard of Gods, not a place for the likes of you. Leave at once, or if you awaken the guardian, you will be buried here forever!"

The two Lizardmen spoke in human language, their halting voices reaching the three.

Old Ancestor Fire Cloud did not waste a single word. While they were speaking, he struck without hesitation, instantly killing them both without giving them even the slightest chance to react.

Before the two Lizardmen could come to their senses, they had already been killed in a single blow. Their corpses were not wasted either; Tang Chen casually stored them in his Storage Ring.

With no more Lizardmen blocking their path, Old Ancestor Fire Cloud continued descending with the two. The surrounding magma gradually changed from crimson to reddish-black. Tang Chen fully activated his soul perception, keeping watch over every movement around them.

After descending for an unknown amount of time, the three finally reached the very bottom of the magma—or rather, the end of the magma as perceived by Tang Chen's soul.

For in Tang Chen's perception, the path ahead was clearly the end. Yet before their eyes, there was still an endless expanse of magma.

"What kind of place is this?" The farther down Old Ancestor Fire Cloud went, the more alarmed he became. This region gave even him, a Dou Saint, a faint sense of dread.

Tang Chen reached out and touched the endless magma before him. A miraculous scene unfolded: at his touch, the magma rippled apart, while his palm vanished into thin air, as though it had entered some overlapping layer of space.

"There is actually another space hidden beneath the magma!" Even a Dou Saint powerhouse like Old Ancestor Fire Cloud was deeply shocked by the sight before him.

"Grandpa, Zi Yan, from here on, you must both listen to me," Tang Chen instructed them solemnly.

Seeing how serious he was, both nodded.

"Zi Yan, once we enter, release your aura with all your strength." To prevent Zhu Kun from attacking them rashly, Tang Chen felt it was necessary to prepare in advance.

Though she did not understand why, Zi Yan still nodded firmly. Their relationship had long since become inseparable, and she trusted Tang Chen almost unconditionally.

With that, Tang Chen led the two into the mysterious space.

The scene before them suddenly changed. All the magma vanished, replaced by a boundless space of darkness and silence. No one knew how many ages this space had lain dormant, and an ancient, weathered aura permeated every corner.

Following Tang Chen's instructions, Zi Yan released her aura without holding anything back.

The instant the three entered the space, a pair of enormous eyes suddenly opened in the depths of the darkness.

Those eyes were faintly red. A single eyeball was several hundred times larger than Tang Chen himself.

Yet those enormous pupils held not the slightest trace of ferocity or bloodlust. Instead, they overflowed with tenderness.

A murmur slowly rose from the darkness.

"Child... my child..."

Tang Chen and the others did not hear that voice.

They were flying forward at an unhurried pace. After several minutes, a faint glow appeared in the distance ahead. Only when they drew close did the three finally see the scene within that light.

It was a gigantic stone gate tens of thousands of feet tall, standing silently in the vast space and radiating an ancient, primordial aura.

The three slowly raised their gazes until they settled on the top of the stone gate, where four bold, vigorous characters were carved:

Ancient Emperor's Cave Abode.

The moment Old Ancestor Fire Cloud saw those four words, his pupils suddenly contracted and his breathing quickened. His loss of composure was understandable. This was the cave abode left behind by a Dou God powerhouse, and it might well contain an opportunity to become a Dou God.

But before he could rejoice, he abruptly sensed a terrifying aura rapidly approaching.

"Careful!" The instant he detected that aura, Old Ancestor Fire Cloud's scalp went numb. He instinctively shielded Tang Chen and Zi Yan behind him.

He had never expected a living creature to reside within the Ancient Emperor's Cave Abode, much less such an incomparably terrifying existence.

Could this be the "guardian" the Lizardmen had mentioned? Old Ancestor Fire Cloud turned to Tang Chen, his eyes full of questions. He had not forgotten his eldest grandson's repeated warning that once they entered, they were to listen to him in all things.

Tang Chen naturally sensed that aura as well. He nodded to the old man, giving him a reassuring look, then took Zi Yan's hand and stepped forward. The two faced the boundless darkness ahead together.

Within the darkness, a pair of huge pupils like lanterns slowly emerged. As the distance closed, those pupils continued to grow larger.

Old Ancestor Fire Cloud scarcely dared to breathe. He had never imagined that the "slight danger" his eldest grandson mentioned meant this. This was not slightly dangerous at all—it was downright fatal.

A colossal body gradually emerged from the darkness. The massive creature was entirely purple-gold, its body covered in cold scales that exuded an aged, steel-like solidity.

After stepping out of the darkness, that enormous body rapidly shrank, eventually transforming into a rugged middle-aged man with a muscular build and a face full of stubble.

Though the middle-aged man looked exceedingly rough and bold, his eyes were filled with tenderness as he stared unblinkingly at Zi Yan beside Tang Chen.

The instant Zi Yan saw the middle-aged man, a stirring from deep within her bloodline told her that the man before her was her kin.

As the two gazed at each other from afar, the middle-aged man slowly spoke. His rough voice was gentle beyond measure at that moment:

"You look so much like her. You look just like your mother."