Yaoguang Holy Land lay within a pure land, its endless complex of palaces spread across steep mountains, wreathed in layers of mist and clouds.
Dusk had already fallen, but wisps of immortal Qi could still be seen winding among the mountains. Like the star it was named for, Yaoguang Holy Land stood beneath an exceptionally clear map of stars in the night sky, with streams of starlight essence descending into it.
Starlight and moonlight flowed across many peaks, where cultivators of the great Dao of stars drew on the stars to cultivate. A gentle breeze stirred and surged, and brilliant rainbow light occasionally streaked across the sky. This was only one scene in the outer region, the tip of the iceberg that was Yaoguang Holy Land. Green peaks rose above verdant valleys, clear springs gurgled, and vegetation flourished. Many plants seemed almost sentient, their leaves sparkling with flecks of light.
Following the flow of moonlight into the inner region, luxuriant vegetation and abundant spiritual medicines came into view, and a faint medicinal fragrance greeted the senses. Some of the spiritual medicines were more than ten thousand years old, their branches swaying with deep green leaves, full of vitality. This was an immortal realm on earth.
"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"
Dozens of Divine Rainbows rushed ahead to clear the way. Nine strange beasts from Desolate Antiquity, resembling flood dragons, thundered after them and stopped beneath a towering peak.
The green jade and silver carriage glittered like crystal, surrounded by countless rays of auspicious light and divine radiance. It was extraordinary, with even the phantoms of the Four Symbols dancing within it. A mighty divine light covered the sacred peak and obscured the sky. The restriction could block probes by divine sense.
The green-clad youth driving the carriage was handsome and no more than thirteen or fourteen, with a tall, slender figure. Yet waves of dragon Qi surged within him, forming a golden ring around his body. He was extraordinary, like a divine being.
The youth in green respectfully bent down to assist the person inside the carriage to the ground, then stood quietly beneath the mountain, waiting for his master to return.
A gaunt figure walked up to the mountain gate. He was a middle-aged man with long hair falling over his shoulders, sharp, harsh features, a somewhat protruding forehead, and a short beard. His clothing, however, was splendid: a gold-threaded brocade robe woven from golden silkworm silk, with a blood-colored azure dragon coiling across it.
The man in gold promptly took out a white stone with a faint trace of chaos Qi clinging to it. The two great bronze doors seemed to sense something and opened on their own.
The man stepped through the bronze doors, passed through the formation-lined passage, and entered a bronze palace.
It was a palace of great antiquity, forged entirely from the essence of bronze. Palace lamps stood in rows along both sides, but there was no flame in them, nor any sound. The palace was pitch-dark and silent!
The man in gold walked calmly down the middle of the palace, then took out the white stone suffused with chaos Qi once more. The stone gave off a faint glow. It was unrefined, seemingly an ordinary rock.
After an unknown length of time, an indifferent voice came from deep within the bronze palace, stirring the stillness of the space.
"What is it? Didn't I tell you not to disturb me?"
The gold-robed man looked nervous. He prostrated himself and kowtowed, then said softly, "Greetings, Old Ancestor. There are now leads on the matter you ordered me to investigate last time! The Saint Weapon belonging to the Azure Flood Dragon King of the Northern Region bears the Qi of Chaos Stone, and it is indeed an intact Great Saint Weapon!
"There is one other matter. His Highness the Holy Son will emerge from seclusion in the next few days. As for the choice of his protector..."
Deathly silence fell over the bronze palace. After an unknown length of time, the indifferent voice seemed to gain a little human warmth as it spoke with emotion. "It seems that lineage has been completely wiped out. I thought they were responsible for the disappearance of the jar's body, but it seems I overestimated them. They were nothing but a pack of guard dogs.
"Investigate further and see which ancient imperial clan was responsible. An Emperor Weapon must have been involved. Otherwise, even if an Ancestor King had appeared, he could not have eliminated Tu Tian so completely without anyone knowing.
"As for the protector, let Li Daoqing make his own arrangements. In the future, use your own judgment on such matters. There is no need to report them to me."
"Yes! This subordinate takes his leave!"
The gold-robed cultivator knelt and bowed with great respect once more, then backed out of the bronze palace one step at a time. He resumed his former pampered manner and flew into the distance in the flood-dragon-drawn jade carriage. As the carriage departed, the area instantly cleared, and the stars reappeared across the sky, visible from afar.
In the silence, after an unknown length of time, a pair of scarlet eyes suddenly appeared in the darkness at the very depths of the bronze palace, sinister in the extreme.
"The jar's body... Who was it?"
The voice echoed through the cold palace, and those blood-red eyes sank into prolonged contemplation, remaining open for a long time...
Inside a magnificent palace, a sheer curtain stirred gently in the breeze from outside. A beautiful woman leaned against the railing, gazing at the brilliant clouds in the sky.
"Ruyu, your granduncle knows this is asking far too much of you, but the Heavenly Emperor's Son is an Ancient Emperor's own son. The power of his bloodline is beyond imagining, and he possesses an Ancient Emperor Weapon. He even has Saint-level Primordial Ancestral Kings under his command. If we can befriend him, the chance for our Green Lotus lineage to rise again will be upon us!" Beyond the jade railing, the Azure Emperor's nineteenth-generation descendant spoke gently.
His complexion was rosy now, his Qi calm and even. There was not the slightest trace of his formerly withered appearance.
"What kind of spiritual medicine did His Highness produce to improve your injuries, Granduncle?" Yan Ruyu turned her head slightly, her beautiful eyes shifting as she spoke in a quiet voice.
The black-robed man walked to Yan Ruyu's side, clasped his hands behind his back, and gazed pensively at the red sun about to sink below the horizon. The sight of the sun setting in the western mountains filled his mind with countless thoughts.
"His Highness gave me a bottle of Divine Spring water from the Desolate Ancient Forbidden Land, and used an Ancient Emperor Weapon to temporarily seal my body."
His tone was calm. Then, looking at the blood-red clouds, he seemed to recall the indignities of the past. His voice began to waver, and he said coldly, "How much humiliation have we endured over the years? We've utterly disgraced our ancestor. As descendants of the Demon Emperor, have those demon kings ever truly respected us? The White Elephant King and the Heavenly Lion King all look down on our Green Lotus lineage. They even wanted to ask for your hand. Hmph, who doesn't know what they're after? They covet nothing more than the Green Lotus Emperor Scripture. And their descendants-how could any of them be worthy of our clan's princess..."
The man composed himself and let out a long sigh. Then he said to Yan Ruyu with some weariness, "I'm sorry. I lost my composure. These were never matters you should have had to face."
Yan Ruyu smiled gently. Like an immortal blossom opening, her smile was so radiant and lovely that even the brilliant clouds on the horizon lost their color. She said softly, "Why do you say that, Granduncle? You and I are the only ones left of this lineage. These are things I should face."
"Alas!"
The revived old demon sighed. Looking at Yan Ruyu's flawless face and recalling the years she had spent in exile with him, he felt somewhat guilty.
"Unfortunately, your granduncle was incapable and ended up in this state. Otherwise, I would never have agreed to such a request, no matter what. Your Highness... I hope you'll consider it carefully! After all, this one truly is the best choice. These are gifts he sent you!"
The old demon turned and left, leaving a jade bottle and a jade box on the table.
Chapter 53: Flowing Light, Flying Patterns, Enchanting Red Radiance
Her white robes fluttering and her dark hair swaying, Yan Ruyu silently watched the jade bottle and box on the table. Like a beautiful sculpture of mutton-fat white jade, she did not move.
The Solar Star Lord drove his divine carriage away from the heavens. A bright moon hung on the horizon, countless stars dotted the night sky, and points of lamplight appeared among the palaces in view.
Laughter like silver bells rang out, and a delicate fragrance wafted over. A woman had arrived. Candlelight flickered as a familiar figure walked lightly toward her. The demoness's long dress trailed across the floor, her long jade legs appearing and disappearing beneath it. Her slender waist was rounded and supple, her bare arms exquisitely smooth, pink, and lustrous. Her hair fell over her shoulders, framing an enchanting face.
"Why is Your Highness frowning so?"
The woman who spoke was alluring, with voluptuous curves-a devil's figure and an angel's face. A red beauty mark adorned the space between her brows, shimmering with specks of divine light.
Yan Ruyu looked at the maid who had been with her for many years. Her jade lips moved, and a bitter smile appeared, but she said nothing. After all, it was not an honorable matter.
The impish demoness looked at the jade bottle and box on the table, which radiated boundless life essence Qi, and chided her somewhat reproachfully. "Your Highness, divine treasures like these should be properly sealed away. How can you leave them out like this?"
With a movement of her jade hand, Qin Yao took out a spatial artifact: a multicolored flower basket decorated with blossoms of many hues. Even the basket itself was made of redwood with a subtle fragrance.
After placing the jade bottle and box safely in the basket, the envoy pursed her lips and said softly, "Is it because of His Highness? Why worry, Your Highness? The Heavenly Emperor's Son has a noble bloodline. I heard he is an Ancient Emperor's own son. It's truly unimaginable. He entered the Immortal Platform Secret Realm at such a young age, and I heard his bone age is only fourteen."
"Heavens, an Immortal Platform cultivator at fourteen! I really don't understand how he cultivated. Only a beauty like Your Highness is worthy of such a heavenly genius." Qin Yao shook her head lightly, then looked at the faintly blushing Yan Ruyu. Her eyes danced as she smiled alluringly, clearly teasing her.
"If I were a man, I might become one of Your Highness's suitors too. Who told you to be so beautiful?"
Hearing her maid's flattery, Yan Ruyu could not help smiling as well and shook her head gently, though a few ripples still spread through her heart.
A fourteen-year-old Immortal Platform cultivator... An Ancient Emperor's own son... And-most importantly-an Extreme Dao Emperor Weapon. As a member of an Imperial Clan, no one understood better than she did the pain of having no inherited Extreme Dao Emperor Weapon. The Demon Emperor Hall had not inherited the Demon Emperor Ruler either, but it still had a host of demon kings, and no one dared look down on it.
But their lineage...
In a daze, the last princess of a fallen lineage seemed to come to a realization. She took the flower basket in hand, then reached in with fingers like tender scallion shoots, drew out the jade box, and opened it.
A translucent red fruit lay quietly inside, brimming with vitality. It resembled a ruby, and life essence Qi gushed from it, forming wisps of mist and giving off an irresistibly enticing fragrance.
"Is this an Immortal Divine Medicine?" Qin Yao exclaimed in disbelief. A divine treasure of this level was truly beyond her imagination, shattering her view of the world. Once again, she had witnessed the scale of His Highness's generosity.
Looking at the Sacred Fruit, Yan Ruyu also revealed a smile, as beautiful as an immortal blossom in full bloom.
She was astonished. Clearly, she too had not expected this to be inside the jade box. Her jade body, its curves indistinct, trembled slightly, and her eyes seemed veiled in mist. No one knew what she was thinking...
In a palace not far away, the Azure Flood Dragon King, who cut such an imposing figure before others, was respectfully attending Su Yu from behind and reporting news of the Eastern Wasteland's great holy lands.
As Su Yu listened to his report, he carefully admired the Five-Colored Heavenly Blade, his long fingers constantly handling the rough Extreme Dao blank. From time to time, a ray of dark light descended from his hair, making the Azure Flood Dragon King's heart tremble as he stood behind him.
"Hum..."
Drawn out by the Extreme Dao Qi, the Heavenly Blade, originally a translucent white, began to change, revealing the true quality of its Immortal Gold. The light of the five-colored Immortal Gold filled the entire hall with brilliance. A ray of dark light flashed, with dragon patterns coiling around it.
A faint ripple passed, and droplets of water appeared in the void, flowing like tears, utterly crystalline. Enchanting red radiance stirred gently amid thousands of streaks of auspicious light and tens of thousands of Divine Rainbows, dazzling and beautiful enough to intoxicate...
"Five-colored Immortal Gold. It really is intoxicating!"
Su Yu stroked the divine materials carefully: Dragon-Patterned Black Gold, Phoenix Blood Red Gold, Eternal Blue Gold, Immortal Tear Green Gold, and Dao Tribulation Gold. Every kind of Immortal Gold shimmered with beautiful light, dreamlike as the stars.
Though the Heavenly Blade did not look particularly large, it was in fact immensely heavy.
After all, it was the rough Extreme Dao blank that the Undying Heavenly Emperor, who had stripped the Shrouding the Heavens World bare, had left for his own son.
The Undying Heavenly Emperor had plundered every Fortune Source Eye in the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, to say nothing of divine materials like Immortal Gold. If not for the existence of the Chaos Pure Land and the slow formation of Immortal Gold, later generations of Extreme Dao experts might truly have had to seek out the bodies of supreme beings to forge Extreme Dao Emperor Weapons.
The Lord of Desolation had obtained a Chaos Pure Land containing vast quantities of Immortal Gold and even the Root of the Mother Qi of All Things, making her arguably the wealthiest Extreme Dao supreme being in the Shrouding the Heavens World.
Other Great Emperors, Ancient Emperors, and Heavenly Venerates used Immortal Gold to forge Emperor Weapons. This one made it into chains to seal herself, and she also possessed two immortal artifacts, the Bronze Immortal Palace and the Immortal Sword.
Of the four immortal artifacts that had survived the entire Perfect Era-the Immortal Bell, the Immortal Sword, the Desolate Pagoda, and the Bronze Immortal Palace-she had found two. Her fortune was unmatched. Ancient Emperors would fall silent at the sight, and Great Emperors would shed tears...
Aside from Emperor Zun, who used the stars of the universe directly as a furnace to forge the Immortal Ascension Cauldron, and Cao Yusheng, an elder from the Perfect Era who refined the Heaven-reaching Nether Treasure, the remaining two immortal artifacts were the Desolate Pagoda, which vanished for years and was not found until the Azure Emperor's era, and the Immortal Bell, which also escaped the Undying Heavenly Emperor's control and did not appear until Ye Fan became a Mortal World Immortal.
That was enough to show that the Lord of Desolation was a woman favored by fortune...
"Crack..."
Drawing on the Extreme Dao Qi of the Devouring Heaven Demon Jar, Su Yu began slowly working over the Immortal Gold.
Under his efforts, the five-colored Immortal Gold, which had originally taken the shape of a blade, began to change. Freed from the constraints of the Dao patterns within it and with its internal seal undone, it grew to half the height of a person.
"This much..."
Su Yu could not help marveling at the Undying Heavenly Emperor's vast wealth. Otherwise, it really would not have been easy for him to find Immortal Gold.
Of the Immortal Gold that appeared in the original story, only the Divine Mark Purple Gold Pagoda in Kunlun contained enough to forge a major weapon. The other quantities were too small, none sufficient to melt down into one.
She put the Immortal Gold slab into the Devouring Heaven Demon Jar and continued listening to the Azure Flood Dragon King's report.
"Your Highness, the two men you ordered this subordinate to find, Ye Fan and Pang Bo, are now in the Spirit Ruins Paradise in the Yan Kingdom, under Yaoguang Holy Land's rule in the Southern Region."
Su Yu nodded lightly, his expression unchanged. Although he had given Ye Fan a mighty-expert-level escape technique in the Desolate Ancient Forbidden Land, he had not changed the original story's timeline.
With Ye Fan's steady temperament, he certainly would not act recklessly. Besides, the Spirit Ruins Paradise also possessed the opening section of the Dao Scripture.
The only ordeal was Elder Han, who had put Ye Hei through heaven and hell early on by throwing him into a furnace to refine him.
"Mm. Earlier, I told you to send people to search for the Demon Emperor's Tomb near the Spirit Ruins Paradise. Keep searching. The Demon Emperor's Tomb will soon come to light."
The Azure Flood Dragon King nodded and said in a deep voice, "Yan Ruyu has accepted the gifts you sent, my lord. The old demon is very much in favor of the matter. In this subordinate's view, it is as good as settled!"
Chapter 54: Ripples in the Western Desert
"It's settled already?"
Hearing this, Su Yu looked momentarily dazed. Then he stretched. He was not particularly surprised, but he did feel somewhat reassured.
His left hand tapped the table without drawing attention. After a while, he stood up. "I understand. Have the arrangements concerning the Azure Emperor's nineteenth-generation descendant been made?"
The Azure Flood Dragon King followed behind Su Yu and said with a relaxed expression, "Your Highness, that man is now in the Ageless Hall. As for a suitable candidate, we are still screening them."
Su Yu nodded lightly and waved his hand. The Azure Flood Dragon King bowed and left the hall, while Su Yu took out a purple jade jue and stared at it for a long time.
Ever since he had rebuilt his body, escaped the predicament of having his body seized, and undergone a transformation of his soul that brought him into the Immortal Platform Secret Realm, the Ghost-Face Jade Jue had been absorbing his divine power. Yet it had not changed in the slightest. It still looked like an ordinary jade pendant, with no radiance visible on its surface.
Even now, however, he remained unable to make use of the secrets hidden within it. He once again examined the space inside the jade jue, but it was the same as always: only a patch of purple radiance floated in the darkness, illuminating him...
Mount Sumeru in the Western Desert was Buddhism's supreme immortal land. There were far too many legends about it, and it had left the world with endless mysteries.