Fallen King Tomb

Barely a hundred li from the Purple Mansion Holy Land, Lu Chen sensed people secretly following him-and there was more than one.

"Young brother, please wait." Sure enough, before long, three cultivators who had failed to gain admission to the Purple Mansion Holy Land hurried after him. Two were middle-aged men, and the third was an old man. They greeted him with false smiles.

"What can I do for you, fellow Daoists?" Lu Chen asked calmly. Secretly sensing their divine power, he discovered that two were in the Other Shore realm and one was in the Divine Bridge Realm.

"To be frank, young brother, this old man practices a fire-attribute technique and would like to trade for some of your fire crystal source," the old man said, staring at him.

The two middle-aged Loose Cultivators also said, "We would like to trade for some fire crystal source as well."

Though all three spoke of trading, Lu Chen could see it in their eyes. They probably wanted to rob him, not trade.

The cultivation world was unlike mortal kingdoms, where laws imposed restraints. As long as cultivators were strong enough, seizing another person's treasures and resources was commonplace. Some powerful Loose Cultivators even robbed disciples of holy lands and Desolate Ancient Families. The most prominent examples were the Thirteen Great Bandits of the Northern Region, who specialized in robbing great sects and holy lands.

"I have no fire crystal source left. You should leave!" Lu Chen guarded carefully against the three. He knew he would probably face his first battle against other cultivators today.

Whoosh!

The old man and the two middle-aged cultivators flew in three different directions, surrounding him. Their faces twisted with malice, revealing chilling murderous intent. "If you have no fire crystal source, other source stones or treasures will do."

Barely a few words had been exchanged before they revealed their true intentions. Killing for treasure was that simple; when it actually happened, there was rarely much talk.

"Hmph. Then let's see whether you three have what it takes." Lu Chen showed no fear.

As soon as he finished speaking, he struck first, lunging straight at the man in the Divine Bridge Realm. Golden flames blazed around his hand as he brought his palm cleaving down.

Though the three had been on guard, Lu Chen was far too fast. Like a bolt of lightning, he appeared before the middle-aged man in an instant. His palm was like a divine blade, splitting the man in two as bright red blood gushed out.

"What?"

The other middle-aged man and the old man, both in the Other Shore realm, were shocked. They had never expected this.

As far as they could sense, the young man before them was also in the Other Shore realm. Even if he was somewhat gifted, the three of them should have been enough to take him down.

They had never imagined that their companion at the peak of the Divine Bridge Realm would be killed in a single exchange, before they could even react to save him.

"Damn you!"

The old man flew into a rage and unleashed a black demon sword. Pitch-black as ink, it cut across dozens of zhang of sky, slashing toward Lu Chen amid billowing demonic flames.

The other middle-aged man unleashed his weapon as well: a pair of blood-red shears brimming with astonishing killing intent. Like two blood-colored pythons, they twisted toward him to cut him apart.

Lu Chen swiftly dodged the head-on attack. His fist, wreathed in golden flames, slammed into the side of the demon sword. The precious sword, which the Other Shore cultivator had refined for years, gave a mournful cry, broke into several pieces, and fell.

Whoosh!

He turned again and flashed above the blood-red shears. Brilliant divine light burst from his left foot as he stamped down hard. The bloody shears, resembling two enormous pythons, let out a defiant roar before shattering into fragments.

"He shattered Magic Treasures with his bare hands! Could he be a holy son from some holy land?"

The old man and the middle-aged cultivator were utterly horrified. In their entire lives, these two Loose Cultivators had never encountered anyone who could shatter Magic Treasures of the same realm with bare hands. They imagined that perhaps only holy-son-level prodigies from the holy lands could accomplish such a feat.

"Die!"

At the same time, Lu Chen gave a sharp cry. His hands traced profound paths, and an enormous, indistinct phantom of a Divine Phoenix instantly appeared behind him. It burned with towering divine fire, like a phoenix descending from the immortal realm.

The Divine Phoenix spread its two feathered wings, moving with his arms. Like two wing-shaped heavenly blades, they slashed down as though to tear the firmament apart.

The Fire Clan Saint Spirit's Secret Technique—Divine Phoenix Slash!

"Run..." The old man's and the middle-aged cultivator's expressions changed drastically as they sensed a mortal threat. Rainbow light surged around them as they tried to flee.

Unfortunately, their wish could never come true. The blazing heavenly blades formed from the Divine Phoenix's wings tore across a thousand zhang of sky in an instant, cleaving both men into ashes and leaving nothing behind.

With my current strength, I should be able to easily slaughter even ten times as many ordinary cultivators of my realm.

Lu Chen felt none of the discomfort of a first kill. It felt much like killing wild beasts in the wilderness when he first began. Perhaps that was because cultivation had given him command of supernatural power.

At the same time, he also sensed the disparities between cultivators. Even within the same realm, differences in cultivation methods, Secret Techniques, talent, and other factors could produce enormous differences in strength.

Ye Fan's Desolate Ancient Sacred Body was one example. Aside from a tiny handful of supreme prodigies, cultivators of the same realm facing him would generally find their Magic Treasures or physical bodies broken with a single punch.

Lu Chen was now much the same. Though his innate aptitude was far inferior to that of the Desolate Ancient Sacred Body, the Nine-Turn Immortal Pill refined by Emperor Zun had long since transformed his constitution, body, and soul to an inconceivable degree-a true overturning of heaven and earth.

In terms of his foundation in the Great Dao, he was already inferior to no one. Who would become stronger in the future would depend on their later experience, temperament, and will.

After his first battle against cultivators, Lu Chen gained some measure of his own strength.

Three days later, he returned to the outskirts of the Purple Mansion Holy Land. Along with over a hundred others, he entered in order and was led into a valley.

An enormous altar stood there, covered in incomparably profound Dao patterns. This was the super Domain Gate capable of crossing vast regions and traversing the void.

Lu Chen and the others waited in the valley for nearly two hours before several important figures from the Purple Mansion Holy Land finally arrived.

Only after the principal figures arrived did the people of the Purple Mansion Holy Land load large quantities of source stones into the altar. Terrifying waves of energy then spread outward. Divine light soared into the sky, tearing open the void, and an enormous spatial portal appeared. The Domain Gate had opened.

Several white-haired elders, seemingly supreme elders of the Purple Mansion Holy Land, led some disciples through the Domain Gate. Only afterward did the Loose Cultivators enter.

Within the silent Void Passage, Lu Chen felt as though time itself had stopped. There was only endless darkness and eternal, deathly silence.

After an unknown length of time, everyone finally tumbled out of the void and appeared in the real world.

They were at a small sect in the Southern Region, a subordinate sect of the Purple Mansion Holy Land that relayed messages, recruited talented disciples, and performed other such duties for it.

Upon reaching the Southern Region, everyone from the Purple Mansion Holy Land headed to Qing Emperor's Tomb in the Primordial Ruins of the Yan Kingdom. They hoped to contend for the legendary supreme treasure of the Eastern Wasteland. Who knew how many of these disciples would return this time?

The hundred Loose Cultivators who had borrowed passage also scattered, heading toward their respective destinations.

After leaving the Purple Mansion Holy Land's subordinate sect, Lu Chen entered a large city and began asking about the destination of his journey-the Fallen King Tomb.

It was no secret location, but an ancient ruin known to many cultivators.

Over ten days later, Lu Chen arrived in a vast wilderness. For hundreds of thousands of li, there was no sign of human habitation, only towering trees, dense wild forests, and the roars of beasts.

The Fallen King Tomb was a blood-soaked land. Its bare mountains supported not a blade of grass, and even birds would not alight there. It was as silent as death.

It was truly a barren land. The mountains were crimson, as though stained with blood. Even after endless years, they remained just as hauntingly vivid.

This was the destination for which Lu Chen had come to the Southern Region-the place where an ancient Divine King and a Source Heavenly Master had fallen.