Seven days passed in the blink of an eye.
At the edge of the continuous mountain range shrouded in ominous black mist, where the Southern Region and Central Region meet.
Gu Tianshu lightly rolled up his sleeves, causing ripples to spread in the Void. Dao patterns intertwined and extended like living things, constructing a stable and mysterious path.
The three stepped inside, and amidst the shifting light and shadows, they found themselves on the edge of a desolate mountain range Eternal shrouded in leaden-gray clouds.
Ahead, more than fifty mountains stood majestically, their bodies entirely black, as if cast from the Nether Iron the Underworld, silently cutting into the dim horizon.
Just by gazing at it from afar, one can feel a heavy, suffocating sense of oppression, as if that land itself is a crack connecting the world of the living and the underworld, constantly seeping out an aura of death and misfortune.
This is the infamous Saint Cliff.
The Saint Cliff before me appeared both more desolate and more "active," a contradictory perception.
In the utter silence, countless whispers and mournful sobs seemed to emerge from the cracks in the rocks, the depths of the earth's veins, and even from the empty wind, penetrating every nook and cranny, converging into a haunting elegy that disturbed the mind and soul.
It's like a malicious whisper targeting the instincts of living beings, formed from the lingering resentments of countless departed souls distorted by time.
Four Dao Body stood on the clouds, looking down at the dark mountain below, which resembled a giant tombstone— Saint Cliff.
The mountain is mottled, stained with an ancient, unchanging dark red, like dried imperial blood. An invisible pressure permeates the air, distorting the surrounding space, and even birds avoid it.
Li Qingshan, still dressed in white and spotless, stood at the forefront.
Gu Tianshu stood half a step to his left rear, his black hair flowing over his shoulders, his aura as deep and vast as the sea, smoothing out the subtle spatial ripples caused by the pressure of the Saint Cliff.
Ye Fan stood to the right rear, his expression solemn. After seven days of recuperation, he had reached his peak condition, with golden blood flowing slowly through his body, emitting a deep, rumbling sound like a surging river.
A Three-Legged Golden Crow, the size of a fist, with divine feathers as brilliant as if cast from gold, withdrew all its heat and quietly perched on Li Qingshan's shoulder. Occasionally, it would turn its head, and a flash of Sun True Fire would appear deep in its pupils.
A cold wind swept by, carrying the unique, decaying smell of the Saint Cliff, a mixture of ancient blood and the dust of time, causing everyone's clothes to flutter.
Ye Fan took a deep breath, the cool air filling his lungs and invigorating him.
Li Qingshan had already explained to him in detail what was sealed inside the Saint Cliff: the remains of Great Accomplishment Sacred Body that had undergone a terrible transformation, and the seal personally set up by the Great Emperor Wushi.
He also learned one of the Nine Secrets that was the true objective of this trip: the Secret of Traversal.
Li Qingshan didn't turn around, but simply raised his hand and made a perfunctory press.
An Emperor Bell emerged from his palm. The bell was ancient and its color was chaotic, as if it carried the ignorance before the creation of heaven and earth. It was the Beginningless Bell.
"This time is different from before." Li Qingshan spoke, his voice clear and distinct, drowning out the howling wind. "With this Emperor Bell as your guide, to stabilize the universe, Ye Fan!!" He paused slightly. "You will accompany me to observe, restrain your qi and blood, and do not act rashly without my command."
Ye Fan nodded emphatically, the surging blood and qi within his body slowly subsided, the golden light on his body surface dimmed, and his whole being became simple and unadorned.
Gu Tianshu stepped forward and stood shoulder to shoulder with Li Qingshan.
The taciturn Great Saint no longer concealed his aura, and a vast and powerful pressure, seemingly capable of supporting the galaxy, slowly spread out.
"An even stronger aura of deathly resentment than last time!" Gu Tianshu raised his gray eyebrows slightly, a trace of solemnity flashing deep in his clear eyes.
As Great Saint, his spiritual senses were almost divine, and at this moment he clearly perceived the horrifying bloodshed and despair accumulating on the earth beneath his feet.
It was not merely a cursed land formed by the mass demise of ordinary beings; it was also imprinted with the boundless hatred and resentful curse of some higher-level being, like magma that had long since cooled and solidified, its exterior gray and withered, yet its interior still contained the heat and malice that could incinerate everything.
Ye Fan stood to the side, his golden blood and qi surging uncontrollably, causing ripples to rise in his Bitter Sea.
The Sacred Body's origin reacted to this place in two ways: firstly, it resonated with and felt sorrow for the faint remnants of the strongest beings of its kind; secondly, it instinctively rejected and was wary of the pervasive, dense, and impenetrable yin and death energy that filled the heavens and earth.
Li Qingshan's expression remained calm, but a fleeting glimpse of the primordial chaos flashed in his eyes, revealing that he had already roughly discerned the true nature of the surrounding world.
"Although the Wu Shi Great Emperor Formation Patterns primarily seals the core, the remaining restrictions and the deadly terrain on the outer perimeter are still not to be underestimated. One wrong step could lead to utter destruction." He spoke calmly, "Follow my lead closely and do not recklessly use your divine sense to probe."
After saying that, he took the first step.
Pale golden lotus shadows bloomed out of thin air beneath his feet. Each step landed precisely on points where life force flowed and energy flowed smoothly, skillfully avoiding the destructive traces hidden in the folds of the Void, imperceptible to the naked eye and ordinary divine sense.
Gu Tianshu walked with his hands behind his back, his posture calm and composed. An invisible Daoist aura naturally flowed around him, like Qingfeng brushing across the water's surface, quietly smoothing out and eliminating the sporadic bursts of killing intent that were occasionally stirred up by the passing of the three people.
"Buzz!"
The Void trembled, emitting a faint rumbling sound.
Countless intricate and golden ancient array patterns appeared out of thin air, fluctuating with a mysterious rhythm, faintly resonating with the silent Emperor Formation inside the Saint Cliff below.
On the surface of the mountain, the originally dim engravings seemed to be awakened, with a fleeting, extremely faint luster.
Ye Fan held his breath and focused all his attention on Li Qingshan's footwork. He keenly sensed that the footwork contained a kind of extremely mysterious rhythm, which subtly echoed his own painstakingly cultivated Merak Steps, giving him a slight, almost imperceptible, touch on his understanding of the Dao of Speed.
Re-entering the Saint Cliff.
The cold wind was even more biting than before, carrying a chill that penetrated to the bone and a faint, mournful wail.
The light was dim, as if swallowed by an invisible force.
Beneath my feet lay pitch-black rock, hard and cold, riddled with cracks, and dark red stains stained the crevices.
But this time they came prepared.
Li Qingshan's steps were steady, and with each step he took, golden array patterns spread out beneath his feet, contacting and merging with the killing array patterns that appeared on the ground, stone walls, and even in the Void.
Along the way, occasionally distorted shadows seeped from the rock walls, or ghosts wrapped in tattered armor crawled out of the ground, emitting silent howls as they pounced.
Their aura was chilling, and some even retained a terrifying pressure reminiscent of King.
Li Qingshan didn't look at it much, but flicked his finger lightly, and a Five-Colored Divine Light of extreme condensation swept by. Those shadows and evil spirits collapsed and vanished silently, like ice and snow exposed to the scorching sun, leaving only a wisp of green smoke and a faint smell of decay.
The Golden Crow on Li Qingshan's shoulder emitted golden light, scanning the surroundings and revealing any hidden evil intentions or spatial traps.
The Beginningless Bell he held in his hands floated slightly, with chaotic energy flowing on its surface, emitting ripples that were barely visible to the naked eye.
Wherever the ripples passed, the killing intent of the Emperor Formation that had been guided away was completely calmed, and the restless evil aura was also suppressed.
An hour later, a misty lake appeared ahead, shrouded in fog and shimmering with light, yet not a sound could be heard—this was the Reincarnation Lake.
"Close your eyes, focus your mind, and guard your spirit." Li Qingshan's voice came, calm yet containing a calming power.
The group closed their eyes as instructed, withdrew all their spiritual senses, and slowly circled the edge of the Reincarnation Lake.
When passing through the lake, one can feel a strange pulling force acting on the soul, as if trying to drag the consciousness into the lake to witness the illusion of past lives.
Fortunately, everyone was prepared and remained calm, thus escaping unscathed.
As you bypass the Reincarnation Lake, the terrain rises higher, and the malevolent energy intensifies.
A faint, nauseatingly sweet and fishy smell began to fill the air, as if old blood was fermenting there.
The rocks grew increasingly dark, and their touch was icy cold.
After continuing on for a short while, the iconic, pitch-black canyon came into view.
Before they even got close, the howling wind suddenly intensified, as if thousands of vengeful ghosts were screaming and wailing at the same time. " Shrouding the Heavens: Yuanshi of the Myriad Heavens " series, ranks among the top!
A fierce wind swept out from the bottomless depths of the canyon, carrying countless pale objects that crashed to the ground with a crackling sound—human skulls!
The skulls varied in texture; some were as lustrous Ruyu, some as rough as stone, and some even had a metallic sheen, clearly belonging to creatures from different eras and races.
They were swept high into the air by the strange wind, then crashed down hard, making dull "thump-thump" echoes as they rolled and tumbled, turning the area around the canyon into a chilling, pale world.
"Waaaaah!!"
Amidst the ghostly howls, two cold, malevolent lights, filled with resentment and greed, suddenly shone from the dense, impenetrable darkness deep within the canyon, like venomous snakes that had lain dormant for millennia opening their eyes.
It stared intently at the three people outside the canyon, its gaze lingering for a moment on Ye Fan, recognizing this "old acquaintance" who had once disturbed it. Then, its attention was drawn more to the vast, abyss-like life force emanating from Gu Tianshu and Li Qingshan, which it instinctively felt was extremely dangerous and disgusting.
"I didn't get a chance to investigate properly last time, so this is the thing that's been lurking here?" Gu Tianshu's eyes flashed like lightning, piercing through the layers of yin wind and the tangible black mist of resentment, staring directly at the source of the eerie light.
He saw clearly that it was not a complete living creature, but a strange arm that was twisted and deformed and covered with sparse, hard black hair!
At the end of the arm, flesh and bones writhed eerily, conjuring a blurry, grotesque face with only its eyes clearly visible. It opened its illusory mouth and let out a silent roar.
The aura emanating from the entire arm was extremely complex, containing both an unyielding and indestructible Daoist charm, as well as a sinister and deathly aura and overwhelming resentment that permeated the very marrow. The mixture of the two gave birth to a twisted and violent intelligence!
"It is the arm left behind by the Void Emperor when he fought against the Undying Mountain and killed a great enemy. However, even an arm, a weapon of the emperor, fell here and was nourished by the original evil energy of the Undying Mountain and the endless resentment of the Saint Cliff. Over the long years, it actually became sentient and took human form, becoming this kind of evil creature." Li Qingshan's tone was filled with emotion, but the information revealed in his words made Ye Fan's heart tremble.
This is the arm left behind by the supreme being who was slain by the Void Emperor during the Dark Turmoil of the past!
Seemingly deeply stung by the words " Void Emperor," which pierced the most primal fear and hatred within its twisted mind, the evil arm in the canyon suddenly erupted with an even sharper and more mournful howl!
In an instant, the eerie winds and deathly aura of the entire canyon converged wildly, and countless pale skulls were manipulated by an invisible force, levitating and swirling around the evil arm, forming a ghastly white wall of bone storm!
At the eye of the storm, the face conjured by the evil arm was completely distorted, and only pure destructive desire remained in its ghostly eyes. It no longer concealed itself, and carrying the Yin energy that had gathered part of the Saint Cliff's ley lines in the entire canyon, it transformed into a pitch-black demonic shadow that tore through the Void and pounced out fiercely!
This time, it held nothing back, because it sensed a terrifying threat from the old man in hemp robes that was enough to completely obliterate it, and it also saw something in the eyes of the strange young man beside it that made even the core of its intelligence tremble.
Strike first, strike hard!
Wherever the evil arm passed, the space groaned under its strain, tearing open countless tiny black cracks.
Countless illusory spirits manifested, wailed, and shattered around it. These were the lingering thoughts of the dead that it had devoured and enslaved. Now, they were all unleashed, transforming into a wave of soul-eroding energy that enveloped the three of them along with the tangible Yin energy attack!
The chilling killing intent solidified into a tangible form, causing the temperature at the edge of the canyon to plummet and thick black frost to instantly form on the ground.
"You wicked creature! You occupy the land of the fallen emperor, feeding on resentment and disturbing the souls of the dead, and you still dare to act so violently!" Gu Tianshu shouted softly, without the slightest hint of anger. He simply raised his palm and pressed down on the overwhelming demonic shadows.
"Boom!"
A profound and somber Daoist sound, so vast it seemed as if the very rules of heaven and earth were at work!
An indescribably enormous, crystalline hand appeared above the canyon.
Formed from countless interwoven and shimmering patterns of order, the flames of civilization, and the flow of time, the palm lines are as clear as the veins of mountains and rivers, exuding a majestic aura of supreme strength, righteousness, and masculinity. It seems to represent the will and laws of this world itself, ready to judge and purify those evil and rebellious things!
The instant the crystalline Dao Palm appeared, the bone wall storm, the wailing of wronged souls, and the dark tide of Yin energy stirred up by the evil arm, like ice and snow under the scorching sun, made a "hissing" sound and melted away at a speed visible to the naked eye.
For the first time, a look of near-fear appeared on the face conjured by the evil arm. It roared madly, its remaining black fur standing on end, and its five fingers at the end of its arm spread wide, gathering all its evil power to tear out five pitch-black spatial claw marks that were enough to annihilate ordinary mountains into nothingness. It fiercely grabbed at the Dao palm, trying to tear it apart!
"Sizzle, crackle!"
The righteous Yang Path clashed violently with the evil Yin Path, producing a strange sound like cold water being poured into boiling oil, or like thousands of pieces of glass shattering simultaneously.
The claw marks unleashed by the evil arm at full power were quickly annihilated upon touching the divine light of order flowing in the palm of the Daoist hand, failing to shake it in the slightest.
The Dao Palm maintained its unstoppable, slow yet firm posture, continuing to press downwards until it finally and firmly imprinted itself onto the body of the Evil Arm!
"Awooo!!!"
A piercing scream, so shrill it transcended the realm of sound and directly impacted the soul, exploded forth!
The black hairs on the evil arm, symbols of both misfortune and resilience, instantly withered and turned to ash.
The twisted body trembled violently, and thick, foul-smelling black smoke gushed out from every pore and every crack. It was the Yin energy and resentment that it had accumulated for hundreds of thousands of years being forcibly refined and expelled by Gu Tianshu's supreme Dao power!
It sensed impending destruction, and its remaining intelligence let out a desperate shriek, struggling desperately to retreat to the deepest part of that dark, deep canyon, where its lair was located, connected to the earth's ley lines by the evil array it had laid out, its last resort.
"Now that we've come into this world, why should we return to our dens?" Li Qingshan, who had been observing the situation quietly, finally made his move.
Li Qingshan remained calm. Facing the frantically struggling evil arm that was trying to retreat back to the Yin Meridian Nest, he merely raised his right hand slightly, his five fingers spread out, as if he were grasping an invisible flagpole in the Void.
In the next instant, an ancient and simple banner materialized slowly from his palm.
The banner's surface displays a chaotic color reminiscent of the pre-cosmic era, neither black nor white, neither blue nor red, flowing with the primordial Daoist rhythm of the undifferentiated universe and the undivided Yin Yin-Yang.
The banners moved without wind, swaying gently, as if swallowing and distorting the surrounding light.
On the flag, countless mysterious and incomprehensible patterns, as if engraved with the source of the Great Dao, flickered and shone. With just a slight manifestation, they exuded a supreme aura that surpassed all laws and was capable of destroying the heavens and resetting the earth, fire, water and wind!
This is the Pangu Banner, a protective treasure forged by Li Qingshan during his great tribulation of Severing the Dao!
"Sever." Li Qingshan uttered a single word, his right hand gripping the banner, and swung it forward.
"Buzz!"
A Chaos Sword Qi, indescribable in color and seemingly containing the ultimate meaning of "opening up," slashed out from the banner.
Wherever the sword energy passed, the invisible yet real " Cause and Effect umbilical cord" connecting the evil arm to the Yin Eye of the canyon below, which was formless and intangible, snapped instantly the moment the chaotic sword blade swept past.
At the same time, the Void affected by the sword's blade surged with chaos, as if the scene of Heaven-Opening was about to be reenacted;
"Ugh, ga!" The shrill scream of the evil arm was abruptly cut off, as if an invisible hand had choked its throat!
Its entire distorted form shuddered violently, as if all the source of its power had been drained in an instant. The thick black smoke that spewed out strangely rolled back into its body, and because it had lost its supporting foundation, it conflicted and dissipated internally.
The power that had once stubbornly resisted Gu Tianshu's refining furnace was now like a pond that had lost its source of fresh water; its aura withered and weakened at a visible speed, and its resistance dropped by more than 90%!
Ye Fan watched in utter shock, almost forgetting to breathe.
Gu Tianshu suddenly closed his five fingers with his Dao palm, and endless Great Dao Runes burst forth from his palm, instantly intertwining and evolving into a refining furnace with radiant light and blazing heat like the core of a star, completely engulfing the evil arm whose aura had suddenly weakened!