The Spoils

The Heavenly Emperor was dead. Yuangeng's Lunar Essence runes naturally dispersed into the void, yet the hundred-zhang Five-Colored Phoenix corpse remained suspended in the air, its immortal feathers radiant and wreathed in undying light.

Dao thunder rumbled across the heavens, and black-red blood rained down in torrents. The myriad Daos mourned together. The Undying Heavenly Emperor was dead. Whatever he had been in life, he was still a Five-Colored Divine Phoenix, and his death was enough to stir the myriad Daos.

"An era has drawn to a close!"

Examining the immortal bird's corpse up close, the Qilin Emperor could not help sighing with emotion. The Undying Heavenly Emperor's name had been far too illustrious. Even an old Qilin like him had grown up hearing legends of the god of the Myriad Races.

"His era ended long ago."

Yuangeng, however, felt no burden at all. It was merely a Five-Colored Phoenix who had yet to become an immortal. He had killed more than one Quasi-Immortal and cared nothing about adding the Undying Heavenly Emperor's name to his tally.

With that thought, Yuangeng reached one hand into the Undying Heavenly Emperor's body and searched through his Five Great Secret Realms. Before long, he had retrieved quite a few things.

The Qilin Emperor stepped forward to inspect them and was startled by the wealth the Undying Heavenly Emperor had amassed.

Through a million years of diligent cultivation in this world, the Undying Heavenly Emperor had indeed accumulated plenty of treasures. The first things to catch their eyes were nine chunks of metal of different sizes and colors. Some resembled the Dao Blood of a True Phoenix, their crimson radiance illuminating the world; others seemed to rise like immortal feathers, dissolving the myriad Daos... Every piece sent radiant light soaring skyward, lighting up half the heavens.

The Undying Heavenly Emperor had clearly gathered all nine immortal metals. Each piece was at least the size of a fist, and the largest rivaled a human head. There was plenty of material.

"Judging by this, he was quite attached to his Five-Colored Immortal Phoenix Dao," Yuangeng teased. With the Undying Heavenly Emperor's abilities, forging a Nine-Colored Heavenly Blade would have posed no difficulty. He must have chosen only five colors for his Dao weapon to match his Five-Colored Immortal Phoenix Dao.

"For someone like him, the entire universe was a field of resources," the Qilin Emperor said with a sigh. He took a precious flask forged from phoenix blood red gold out of the pile of spoils and slapped apart the seal over its mouth. A fragrance that refreshed the heart and soul instantly spread through the air.

"Nine-Turn Golden Pills!"

Even Yuangeng could not help glancing over. Inside the flask, two pills the size of fingertips had been carefully enshrined. Their bodies were translucent and flawless, with a gentle nine-colored glow flowing over their surfaces. A single whiff could let a low-level cultivator shed their old flesh and bones and be reborn.

This was said to be a supreme Human Dao pill formula created by a Heavenly Venerable in the Mythological Era. The pills underwent nine turns, and when a Nine-Turn Pill reached perfection, it possessed countless wondrous effects.

Could it lay a foundation for a low-level cultivator? Yes. Could it let a mortal attain the Dao on the spot, soar through the heavens, and burrow through the earth? Yes. Could it extend the flawless emperor lifespan of a supreme being at the Human Dao Pinnacle by two thousand years? Yes. Could it help a Quasi-Emperor break through and ascend another level? That too...

"A fine pill formula. I'll refine a few batches later."

Yuangeng also found the formula for the Nine-Turn Golden Pill at the bottom of the flask. After a moment's consideration, he sent one of the pills over to the Qilin Emperor. Pleasantly surprised, the old emperor carefully stored it inside the Qilin Staff.

"A pity he still destroyed his own Immortal Platform. That most precious Blood Pool was destroyed."

The two inventoried what the Heavenly Emperor had left behind. Aside from some scriptures and secret arts, there was little else. The precious materials, Ancient Emperor essences, and other resources had all been exhausted to refine that Blood Pool for Nirvana.

"It doesn't matter. The corpse of a True Phoenix from another world is the most precious gain of this venture."

Yuangeng shook his head. In truth, aside from the Nine-Turn Golden Pills and the nine immortal metals, most of the other things could hardly catch his eye. Only the Undying Heavenly Emperor's immortal Dao body was truly a treasure rarely seen even in the Immortal Ancient Era.

Even in the Immortal Ancient Era, Phoenixes with the purest, most flawless bloodlines had been exceedingly rare, as difficult to find as True Immortals. Though there had been plenty of phoenix-kind such as Luan Birds, Honghu, and Chongming, the gulf between them and a true Immortal Race like the Phoenixes was immense.

"By another world, do you mean the Immortal Domain?"

The Qilin Emperor frowned. Watching Yuangeng put away the Five-Colored Phoenix corpse, the nine colors of immortal gold, and the other items, he could not resist asking. He had overheard the conversation between the Undying Heavenly Emperor and Yuangeng. Both seemed to have ties to another world, and their conversation had revolved around it.

"You'll find out."

Yuangeng turned and gestured for the Qilin Emperor to look in another direction in the void. There, within a Chaos Cave more than ten zhang high, tides of the myriad Daos seemed to surge. Boundless immortal light rushed through it, occasionally leaking a few strands of Immortal Dao Lightning whose power made even the Qilin Emperor's heart tremble.

"This is a tributary of the Road to Immortality, most likely one of the branches of the road on the Big Dipper. A large part of why the little Phoenix was willing to stay here was that he wanted control over this important branch."

Yuangeng drew a shapeless, formless mass out of the Chaos Cave and flicked it into the Qilin Emperor's body. Dazzling light burst from the Qilin Emperor's eyes, and the circulation of his Qilin Dao Blood visibly accelerated before settling down a short while later.

"This is what you mentioned earlier... longevity substance?!"

The old emperor could scarcely believe it. What Yuangeng had just sent into his body had actually extended his lifespan. Though it had added only about three to five years, this was his flawless emperor lifespan. Extending it by even a single year was incredibly difficult.

"The place the so-called Road to Immortality leads to is filled with this substance. On the other shore of this road, an Extreme Dao supreme being like you could live for at least ten million years."

Yuangeng dropped another bombshell, leaving the Qilin Emperor's scalp tingling. Several times he tried to speak, only to find that he did not know what to ask.

He gazed at the Chaos Cave again. Its deep, seemingly boundless entrance stirred the old emperor's heart so fiercely that he even wanted to abandon everything he had now and charge straight inside.

But reason forced the old Qilin to calm down. He had studied the Road to Immortality extensively and knew all too well how important the right time was. Otherwise, the Undying Heavenly Emperor would have gone off to attain eternal life long ago. Why bother guarding this Chaos Cave?

"What do you have in mind?"

At last, the old emperor turned to Yuangeng. This ancient being was now the one taking the lead, not only because of his combat strength, but also because he knew far too much.

"The right time hasn't come. I have some confidence in forcing my way through this road, but someone at your level would simply be throwing his life away by entering. So wait. When the right time arrives, there should be room for two or three people to become immortals."

Yuangeng recalled the original story. The Qilin Emperor had met utter failure in the Chaos Cave on the Big Dipper's Road to Immortality. Though he sighed inwardly, he did not want this fellow to risk himself, and spoke softly.

"..."

The Qilin Emperor fell silent. Thinking of the Road to Immortality that was destined to open in the future, he could not help feeling a spark of fighting spirit ignite within him.

"Until then, we shouldn't waste the longevity substance leaking out of the Road to Immortality."

Watching the Chaos Cave gradually close, Yuangeng acted, plugging its entrance directly with his Stone Coffin. Unable to close, the entrance continuously

released wisps and strands of longevity substance.

Delighted, the Qilin Emperor strode over to the Chaos Cave and gathered some of the strange longevity substance into his body. Sure enough, he felt his innate emperor lifespan recover somewhat. Though the amount was small, it was still considerable.

"Legend has it that places like the Primordial Ancient Mine and the Immortal Mausoleum contain longevity substance like this. To think this place also has the potential to become a Life Forbidden Zone!"

The old Qilin was thrilled. Nothing could have pleased him more than finding a place to slumber before his allotted lifespan ran out. Better still, only he and Yuangeng currently knew of this place, and Yuangeng seemed to have little need for the substance. For a long time to come, he could enjoy all this longevity substance alone.