Nine-Story Pavilion

Whoosh—

Xu Yan's Taiji Fish Daoist Robe snapped in the wind as he rode Primordial Mystic Qi eastward, the surrounding mountains racing backward.

Vast mountain ranges stretched all the way to the end of the earth.

Along the way, quite a few Daoists were retreating with pale faces and panicked expressions, as though something terrifying had happened ahead.

After flying for the time it took to burn half an incense stick, an earth-shattering boom suddenly rang out in the distance.

The sound was so immense that it could be heard for a thousand li around, like an earthquake. The crowns of ancient trees in the surrounding forests swayed violently, and emerald leaves came fluttering down.

A vast, domineering Mystic Qi spread outward like ripples.

A hurricane howled wildly, like ghosts weeping and wolves howling. Xu Yan's eyes widened as his Dharma crown was blown away on the spot, his black hair flying wildly!

"What happened?!"

Xu Yan had just been about to stop a cultivator and ask what was going on.

"Get lost!"

The cultivator cursed impatiently without even turning his head, transforming into a streak of light and fleeing into the distance.

Could something have happened to the Sky Boat?

Thoughts churned in his mind.

Frowning, Xu Yan held the Green Pattern Dharma Sword and used the Miaoyuan Edict to spread out his divine sense. He discovered that the aura of heaven and earth in the distance was in utter chaos, mixed with a sinister presence that made his hair stand on end.

As though he had realized something, Xu Yan stepped on Mystic Qi. Rather than retreating, he continued flying forward.

About half an hour later, Xu Yan finally saw that Mystic Gate Sky Boat high above the mountains.

It was simply enormous!

It was roughly a thousand zhang long and three to four hundred zhang wide, stretching across the heavens like an ancient great demon circling in the sky. Its oppressive presence made one's chest feel stifled.

The most eye-catching feature was the nine-tiered tower at the center of the Sky Boat.

Every floor was carved with dragons and painted with phoenixes, incomparably luxurious.

The Mystic Gate Sky Boat seemed to have traveled through from primordial antiquity, wrapped in a vast, ancient aura. It occasionally let out thunderous rumbling sounds, like an ancient whale roaring in fury, as it slowly moved and swept through the mountains.

There, Xu Yan could see densely packed black dots. They were all cultivators, some scattering in panic like ants on a hot pan.

Others, however, advanced instead of retreating, flying straight into the Sky Boat.

Xu Yan drew a deep breath, his gaze darkening.

He took a step forward and flew for the time it took to burn an incense stick. He was now less than a hundred zhang from the Sky Boat. Xu Yan did not rashly approach it, instead landing atop a mountain peak and carefully studying it.

[Mystic Gate Sky Boat: A "Dharma carriage" forged by the Gongsun Clan during the recent antiquity era. It can cross into distant outer provinces, and its hull is inscribed with formations of the Purple Mansion Path. It spans the sky and is exceedingly difficult to breach.]

The moment he landed, the Miaoyuan Edict in Xu Yan's palm grew faintly hot.

After sensing it out, he discovered that it was not merely because of the Mystic Gate Sky Boat itself—there were treasures within it as well.

With their abilities, they naturally had no way of controlling this Mystic Gate Sky Boat.

After observing for only half an incense stick's time, Xu Yan looked around and saw that only several hundred people remained. Those disciples all possessed considerable cultivation, with the weakest already at the fifth level of Pulse Opening.

"What happened inside the boat that scared so many people into fleeing?"

Xu Yan raised his brows, somewhat puzzled.

He had sensed a sinister aura. Could it be that there were sinister entities inside the Sky Boat as well?

His Spirit Eye swept across the surroundings. One figure after another either entered the Sky Boat or turned and retreated. Before long, there were no cultivators left nearby.

Not only that, Xu Yan also spotted quite a few corpses in the mountains beneath the Sky Boat. Those corpses had not been injured by people; they seemed more likely to have been killed by formation restrictions.

After pondering for several breaths, Xu Yan stepped forward, riding Mystic Qi into the wind.

The immense Sky Boat was right before him. The sky instantly darkened, and ripples of Dharma power continuously spread out from the Nine-Story Pavilion.

Bang!

Xu Yan landed steadily on the Sky Boat's broad deck.

At a glance, several hundred Daoists stood where they were, their eyes all fixed on the Nine-Story Pavilion, their expressions varying.

Xu Yan's gaze swept through the crowd before suddenly freezing.

He saw Qin Yiren.

He also saw Murong Yan.

Murong Yan stood together with a group of Nine Star Kui Island disciples, more than twenty of them in all.

Xu Yan immediately summoned the Green Pattern Sword and walked toward Qin Yiren. Catching sight of Xu Yan from the corner of her eye, she turned her head in surprise and blinked. "Xu Yan, why are you here?!"

The two met up.

Xu Yan gave a brief explanation. Qin Yiren looked toward the group from Nine Star Kui Island and said coldly, "No need to worry. They have no attention to spare for Brother Xu right now. The restrictions of the Sky Boat's Nine-Story Pavilion are about to open—they're all thinking of seizing its treasures."

"The Great Teleportation Token?" Xu Yan asked.

"Not just that."

Qin Yiren shook her head and told Xu Yan what had happened since the Sky Boat appeared.

At noon, the Mystic Gate Sky Boat had broken through the clouds from beyond the heavens.

The moment it appeared, it carried restriction killing formations. Quite a few Daoists with insufficient cultivation were slaughtered by the formations on the spot. From within, vast ripples of Dharma power would also erupt from time to time and press down upon everything, carrying a sinister aura.

Most people still had a clear understanding of their own strength and cultivation. They had merely come to join the excitement and did not wish to leave their lives here, so many had withdrawn.

Those who remained naturally wanted to fight for the treasures within the Nine-Story Pavilion.

The Great Teleportation Token was only one of them. It was said that there was even the embryo of a Spirit-Born Artifact inside!

"This Sky Boat only appeared ten days ago. With every passing day afterward, the killing formations and restrictions within it grow another level stronger." Qin Yiren had gathered quite a bit of information as well. She said gravely, "The sun has already set. At most, we have one hour. If we cannot obtain the Great Teleportation Token, we must leave quickly, or the Sky Boat will carry us away!"

Yesterday, cultivators had been taken beyond the heavens by the Sky Boat. Not even their bones remained, and not a trace of them had been left on the boat. Heaven knew where those disciples had gone; no one knew whether they were dead or alive.

"The cultivators from Blood-Listening Tower aren't here, are they?" Xu Yan looked around and asked through divine sense.

"Most likely not."

Qin Yiren relaxed somewhat because of that as well.

If the cultivators hunting her had come here too, it would have been troublesome. Since the Sky Boat appeared, no one had attacked her, and when Xu Yan spread out his divine sense, he did not detect that cold, eerie presence either.

The two were speaking in low voices.

Not far away, Murong Yan and the other Nine Star Kui Island disciples naturally noticed him and Qin Yiren as well.

"Isn't this Half-Immortal Xu?" Murong Yan looked over with darkened eyes. A faint smile hung on his lips, while his sunken eye sockets seemed especially deep. In a grim tone, he said, "Xu Yan, you killed disciples of my clan. A blood debt must be repaid in blood!"

A group of Nine Star Kui Island disciples looked over at him.

Some wore expressions much like Murong Yan's, their killing intent intense.

Others were merely indifferent, studying Xu Yan with curiosity.

This time, two direct-line disciples of Nine Star Kui Island had been sent in. One was Huangfu Ziyang, and the other was naturally Murong Ziyao. At this moment, many disciples aboard the Sky Boat had been sent in to escort Murong Ziyao, and they had never seen Xu Yan before.

Yet this heaven-blessed daughter of the Murong Clan was immensely proud. Alone, she had made her way to the latter half of the Immortal Treasury.

Xu Yan narrowed his eyes and raised a brow. "Fellow Daoist Murong, whether I killed Young Master Huangfu or not, you know best in your heart. That chamber pot of filth should not be dumped on my head."

"We saw it with our own eyes. How could it be false?!" Murong Yan shouted. He said sharply, "Not only Young Master Huangfu—many other disciples of my clan also fell victim to your vicious hand. No matter what, you deserve to die!"

As the two argued, a piercing, shrill ghostly howl suddenly erupted from within the Nine-Story Pavilion, making many Daoists present shudder all over, their scalps going numb.