Yuan Xuangu slowly composed himself, his gaze fixed on the ancestral land of the Ancient God Clan. He then turned and respectfully clasped his hands in a salute to Qin Yu. "Master." "This subordinate will lead you to the true treasure trove of our clan's resources." Qin Yu nodded calmly. "Let's go." Yuan Xuangu and Yuan Zhanxiao bowed in unison.
"As you command." The two men led the way, one on each side, their former dignity as high-ranking members of the ancient Ancient God Clan race completely gone, replaced by respect and awe in every gesture. Qin Yu walked with his hands behind his back, his steps steady. The three of them traversed the dilapidated ancestral land, crossing countless collapsed ancient palaces and broken divine bridges, continuing their journey towards the deepest part of the ancestral land.
As they ventured deeper, the aura of the Great Dao between heaven and earth grew increasingly ancient. They could even sense wisps of primordial energy remnants from millions of years ago in the air. After about half an incense stick's time, the three finally stopped. What came into view was an extremely ordinary ruin, surrounded by broken walls and rubble.
The shattered divine pillars lay scattered on the ground, and the ruins of an ancient temple, long since collapsed, stood silently in the center, covered with a thick layer of dust. If Yuan Xuangu had not personally led the way, anyone would have thought this was just an abandoned wasteland that had been left for countless years.
Yuan Xuangu slowly stopped and turned to bow to Qin Yu again. "Master." "Please step back a hundred feet." "The true treasure trove is not before us." Qin Yu's eyes flickered slightly. He did not ask any questions, but simply nodded. Then he stepped back a hundred feet and quietly watched the two of them.
Yuan Xuangu and Yuan Zhanxiao exchanged a glance. The next moment, they both sat cross-legged in mid-air, their hands rapidly forming hand seals. One ancient seal after another continuously changed, and with each seal, a dark divine rune disappeared into the depths of the ruins with a rumbling sound.
Suddenly, the entire ruins began to tremble violently. The earth began to slowly crack open, and countless weathered pebbles rose into the air, spinning continuously. Then, an ancient array pattern spanning the heavens and the earth slowly emerged from the center of the ruins.
The array pattern was tens of thousands of feet in size, with countless golden ancient seal characters intertwined. Each character flowed with an extremely profound Dao rhythm, and billions of silver-blue divine rays flowed continuously along the array pattern, as if the entire world had become the key to unlock it.
Yuan Xuangu clasped his hands together. "Open!" A resounding ancient bell chime echoed from the end of the void. The next instant, the sky slowly cracked open from the center, not torn apart, but like a scroll covering the sky and earth being gently unveiled by a pair of invisible giant hands. Endless seas of clouds surged, and countless rays of light poured down.
A magnificent ancient palace, slumbering in the void, slowly revealed its true form. Qin Yu slowly raised his head, and even with his composure, he couldn't help but slightly concentrate. It was a divine palace that seemed to float atop the heavens, the entire ancient palace standing thousands of feet tall.
Nine layers of eaves rise one after another, each layer resembling Divine Phoenix spreading its wings, slightly upturned, shimmering with a divine radiance interwoven with azure and purple-gold.
The entire palace was cast from a type of star-blue divine jade that had never been seen before. Within the jade walls, it seemed as if the entire Milky Way was sealed, with billions of starlight flowing slowly, and each light pattern constantly moving like the meridians of the Great Dao.
The edges of the eaves are inlaid with gilded divine patterns, which shimmer with a soft golden glow under the moonlight, like sparks falling from the Milky Way.
The nine-story main hall soars into the clouds, with its gilded roof at the very top seemingly supporting a vast, bright moon.
A rainbow of seven colors stretches across the entire ancient palace, rising from the east and falling from the west, encircling the entire divine palace, like a celestial ring drawn by the Great Dao itself.
Surrounded by secondary halls on all four sides, eighty-one suspended pavilions float quietly around the divine palace, connected by countless divine bridges. Each bridge is suspended above the sea of clouds, with no earth beneath, only the ever-churning nebula and rosy clouds.
Around the ancient hall, countless waterfalls of light cascaded down from the void. These were not flowing water, but rather the primordial essence of the Great Dao, so dense as to be almost tangible. Each waterfall of light that fell condensed below into a crystal-clear primordial spirit pool.
The entire divine palace slowly descended from the void, without any sense of heaviness. Instead, it resembled a divine moon slowly falling from the heavens to the mortal realm. Boom—as the last ray of divine light disappeared into the earth, the entire magnificent ancient palace finally stood quietly in the center of the ruins.
The dilapidated ruins that had just been there had completely vanished, as if they had never existed. Yuan Xuangu let out a long breath, then quickly walked to Qin Yu's side and respectfully clasped his hands in greeting. "Master." "Please follow me."
Qin Yu gazed silently at the magnificent palace before him. His gaze slowly swept over the nine-story halls, then settled on the suspended divine bridges, a faint ripple finally appearing in his eyes. "I never expected..."
"The true treasure trove of the Ancient God Clan is hidden in another layer of the void." "If we hadn't taken you two in today, we probably would never have discovered this place, even if we searched the entire ancestral land."
Yuan Xuangu bowed slightly. "Master is absolutely right." "This hall has been jointly protected by the successive patriarchs of our Ancient God Clan. Apart from the patriarch and the Supreme Elder, no third person knows about it." Qin Yu nodded gently. "Mm." "Let's go."
Yuan Xuangu slightly turned his body, gestured with his hands, and said respectfully, "Master, please." Qin Yu walked slowly into the ancient hall with his hands behind his back.
As soon as you step through the palace gate, an ancient Daoist aura, accumulated over millions of epochs, greets you. The entire ancient palace is not as dazzling as the outside world; instead, it exudes a sense of weight and solemnity that comes with the passage of time.
The ground beneath their feet was covered with whole blocks of ancient jade with star patterns. With each step they took, golden Dao patterns slowly appeared beneath the jade bricks, then disappeared again.
On both sides, rows of ancient divine frames, hundreds of feet tall, were neatly arranged, seemingly without end. Each frame was shrouded in a faint primordial light curtain, sealing within it the accumulated essence of countless millions of years. As they walked, the Yuan Xuangu introduced the scene in a soft voice.
"Master," "Most of these resources were obtained by the powerful figures of my Ancient God Clan from the God-Defying Heavenly Abyss and various forbidden areas. Some are legacies left behind by these powerful figures."
As he spoke, his gaze slowly drifted towards the deepest part of the ancient hall. "And the true rise of my Ancient God Clan occurred ten eras ago. At that time, a figure who truly astonished the entire Eternal Nonexistence Limitless Domain was born into our clan. His name was... the God-Defying Emperor."
A hint of reverence crept into Yuan Xuangu's voice. "Rumor has it," he said, "That the God-Defying Emperor is the strongest being of our Ancient God Clan in nearly ten eras. He possesses a portion of the primordial bloodline from the nine divine veins. Some have said that he is only half a step away from becoming a true Primordial Ancient God. There are even rumors..."
Yuan Xuangu took a soft breath. "The God-Defying Emperor once set foot on the ruins left by the Primordial Ancient God." "Is it true or false?" "No one knows." "And since then, our Ancient God Clan has officially established the Nine Great Divine Bloodlines Council to jointly govern the entire Ancient God Clan."
As they spoke, Qin Yu arrived before rows of divine shelves. A dazzling array of artifacts filled the air: divine weapons shimmered with light, and spiritual treasures glowed with divine radiance. Each immortal herb floated silently within the spiritual jade, exuding a rich aura of the Great Dao. Yuan Xuangu continued his introduction.
"Here are sealed the Primordial Spirit Treasure obtained throughout the ages." "Over there are numerous Primordial Divine Weapons." "As for the Pill Hall..." He pointed to another side. There were hundreds of purple-gold jade cabinets there. When the cabinet doors were opened, countless rosy clouds intertwined, and the rich fragrance of medicine turned into rosy clouds, constantly flowing throughout the entire hall.
Yuan Xuangu slowly said, "This includes—" the "Wuji Return to Origin Pill."
"All things return to one, and one returns to nothingness. Taking it allows one's own Great Dao to return to its source, and to rebuild one's foundation within this Return to One." "The Great Void Annihilation Pill." "The tangible returns to emptiness, the intangible returns to stillness. In a single thought, all phenomena vanish, leaving only the true stillness of the Great Void."
"The Profound Yellow Primordial Beginning Pill." "Profound represents the beginning of Heaven, and Yellow represents the Mother Earth. Those who consume this elixir can reshape their own Dao foundation, as if Heaven and Earth were first created, and recreate their Fate Soul." "The Myriad Laws Return to the Source Pill."
"All laws and countless causes and effects ultimately originate from this, aiding cultivators in comprehending the fundamental principles of the laws." "The Void Great Grotto Pill." "Nullification into a cave, the great cave swallows the heavens. After consuming this pill, one can briefly touch the Great Void Dao." "The True One Non-Duality Pill." "Transcending distinctions, entering True One, all Daoist methods can return to the original mind."
As Yuan Xuangu continued his introduction, even Qin Yu couldn't help but slowly scan his surroundings. The entire ancient hall was filled with almost everything: pills, immortal herbs, divine weapons, Primordial Spirit Treasure, and all sorts of precious materials. Its resources were in no way inferior to the accumulation of millions of years by a top-tier power.
Qin Yu nodded slightly and said calmly, "Indeed extraordinary."
But as soon as he finished speaking, his gaze slowly darkened, and a thoughtful expression appeared between his brows. After a moment of silence, Qin Yu slowly spoke, breaking the peace with a single sentence. "Where do you think Yuan Cangming would hide the Return to the Ruins Tribulation Descent Pill?" Upon hearing this, the hall fell silent. Yuan Xuangu and Yuan Zhanxiao exchanged a glance, both lowering their eyes and falling into deep thought. For a long time...
Yuan Xuangu slowly shook his head. "Master Yuan Cangming is always extremely cautious in his actions. If he has truly refined the Return to the Ruins Tribulation Descent Pill, given his personality, he would never easily let a second person know his true hiding place." Qin Yu did not speak, but simply nodded slightly.
Just then, Yuan Zhanxiao, who had been frowning and deep in thought, suddenly shuddered. "Master!" "I suddenly remembered something!" Qin Yu slowly turned his head. "Speak," Yuan Zhanxiao said hurriedly, "It's in this treasure vault, in a certain place."
"Yuan Cangming goes there alone almost every few days. And he never allows anyone to get close." "I used to find this strange." "Now that I think about it..." "There's a high possibility that some secret is hidden there."
Qin Yu narrowed his eyes slightly, a wisp of Dao pattern slowly flowing through them. "Oh?" "Take me there." "Yes!" Yuan Zhanxiao immediately turned around. The three of them passed through dozens of side halls and finally arrived at the deepest, most secluded area of the ancient hall, where it was unusually quiet.
There were no divine structures or magical treasures; the entire space was empty except for an ancient stone platform in the center. On the platform, a small wooden box, no more than a foot in size, sat quietly. The box was completely black, without any precious light or Source Power fluctuations; it was utterly ordinary.
But the moment Qin Yu saw it, an extremely strong intuition arose in his heart. It was not something he obtained through divine sense, but a feeling that came from the depths of his Fate Soul. His gaze slowly fell on the ancient box, and his eyes gradually became deep for a moment.
Qin Yu spoke calmly. "Inside..." "Most likely..." "It is the Return to the Ruins Tribulation Descent Pill." He slowly raised his gaze and looked at Yuan Zhanxiao. "Bring that box over." Yuan Zhanxiao immediately clasped his hands in a fist salute. "Yes, Master." After saying that, he slowly stepped towards the ancient wooden box, and the entire space suddenly became so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.