Chapter 349: Fusing the Skull

He saw the skull's eyelid twitch.

No, it wasn't an illusion. The eyes that had been shut for thousands of years actually trembled slightly.

The chains on the formation groaned under the strain, and the runes' light flickered.

Qin Yang gripped the Changdao tightly, his fingertips whitening from the force.

He could feel that a trace of consciousness remained in the skull, gazing at him through the formation.

"Yanhuang... descendants?"

A hoarse voice sounded in the stone chamber, like two rusted iron pieces scraping.

Qin Yang jerked his head up and saw the skull's lips move.

"Who are you?"

Qin Yang's voice trembled slightly, not from fear but from shock.

He could sense that the other meant no harm; the consciousness held only confusion and weariness.

Chiyou's body actually retained a lingering consciousness.

"Chiyou..."

The skull's voice grew clearer.

"Trapped here... for five thousand years..."

His eyeballs rolled beneath the lids, as if trying to make out Qin Yang's appearance.

"You carry... Xuanyuan's aura... and... a new scent..."

Qin Yang suddenly realized the skull could sense the immortal energy within him, as well as the aura of his future era.

He slowed his breath, and his magical power flowed on its own, forming a soft barrier—he did not wish to provoke this ancient war god.

"I am Qin Yang, from five thousand years in the future," he said softly. "The Yellow Emperor senior just left; he said... I passed this trial."

The skull fell silent.

The formation's rotation gradually slowed, and the killing intent grew steady.

After a long while, it spoke again, its voice tinged with regret: "He's gone... that's good... the score from back then ought to be settled."

Qin Yang did not respond.

He knew the brutality of that ancient war—the Yellow Emperor and Chiyou clashed over differing ideals. Behind the brief records in the histories lay countless bones of living beings.

"What you saw..."

The skull suddenly turned toward him; though its eyes remained closed, it seemed able to pierce through everything.

"This is my last strength; my true body was split into five parts. This skull was sealed by him with the Xuanyuan formation, so the power would not leak out, nor would my soul scatter."

Qin Yang then noticed that, besides the sealing power, the formation's runes also carried a gentle spiritual energy nourishing the skull.

Those chains looked fearsome, yet they carefully guarded the skull's vitality.

"He kept you..."

"He owes me, and he fears I might vanish completely."

The skull laughed, the sound tinged with self-mockery and relief.

"Back then, if I hadn't insisted on fighting for the realm, there wouldn't have been so many casualties. He sealed me so I could watch the future, see whether the peace he wanted actually came to pass."

Qin Yang suddenly recalled the gaze of the Yellow Emperor's avatar when it inquired about Lan Xing's condition.

It turned out that what this ancient emperor guarded was not only the bloodline inheritance, but also a promise to an old friend.

"The future you speak of..."

A hint of anticipation entered the skull's voice.

"Is there really no war anymore?"

"There is, but less."

Qin Yang answered frankly: "Still, it's built on strong military power, and in my view, the senior's idea back then wasn't bad."

"Our realm is still relatively peaceful; there are those who bear burdens in the shadows, guarding Long Guo's safety, but the battles of other tribes have never ceased."

The skull remained silent for a long time, so long that Qin Yang thought it had fallen back into slumber.

Only the hum of the operating formation remained in the stone chamber, and the night pearl's light flowed over the skull's horns, scattering into tiny specks.

"This... is fine too."

It finally spoke, its voice light as a sigh.

"Far stronger than we were back then."

The formation suddenly shook violently, and the runes' light flared blindingly bright.

Qin Yang saw the formation vanish, and that point of consciousness dissipate.

Qin Yang grabbed the Chiyou skull.

At the instant the formation dispersed, the clouds atop Mount Tai seemed torn to shreds by an invisible hand.

Wild winds laden with sand and gravel howled past; Qin Yang stood at the storm's center, palms holding the dark‑red Chiyou skull.

A bloody mist sprayed from the eye sockets and tooth gaps, staining the surrounding rocks an eerie dark red, as if the whole of Mount Tai had been soaked in a pool of blood.

"Hum——"

Qin Yang departed, appearing outside the great tomb.

Chiyou's killing intent rejoiced, sensing the skull's presence.

Qin Yang simply threw the skull over.

In the next instant, Chiyou's killing intent fused with the skull.

"Crack!"

Chiyou's body suddenly swelled, muscles bulging like forged iron, veins of faint gold coursing beneath the skin like dragons, releasing a scorching surge of spiritual power.

Blood mist shot up into the sky, condensing into a blood-red vortex on the firmament, drawing the spiritual qi of heaven and earth to frenziedly pour backward.

"Such an improvement is, to me, no more than an ant shedding its shell."

Chiyou's hoarse voice burst from Qin Yang's throat, and his scarlet pupils flickered with unwilling fire.

"The limbs' bones have not yet gathered; how could the soul and spirit be fully restored? At present, this strength is insufficient to tear apart this prison!"

Baiyun and the silver-armored man silently watched the scene before them; the former said nothing, merely wearing a faint smile.

The latter stood with hands behind his back, the silver armor glinting with a cold light, his brows slightly furrowed.

"Master, just who are you, really?"

Qin Yang asked Baiyun.

Baiyun, his smile gentle yet unfathomably deep, said: "Heaven's secrets cannot be fully revealed. You need only know that I, and that silver-armored young friend, are not beings of this realm."

The silver-armored man suddenly snorted, eyebrows lifting: "Could it be that the God Lord is again showing off his mysteries before the juniors? Your identity is known throughout the three realms——"

"Cough!"

Baiyun suddenly coughed, his sleeve sweeping up and cutting off the latter half of the silver-armored man's sentence.

Qin Yang's pupils contracted slightly; realizing the words "God Lord" from the silver-armored man's mouth, a tumultuous surge rose in his heart.

"The subspace attached to Lan Xing—those dormant gods have already sensed the loosening of the seal."

Baiyun suddenly turned solemn, his gaze like a cold star piercing the void.

"They are unwilling to remain forever imprisoned, seeking to descend to the human world by relying on heavenly anomalies; when that time comes, Long Guo will become the foremost furnace bearing the brunt, and since we cannot obtain the Immortal Realm's aid, we must rely on our own strength to resist them."

The silver-armored man snorted and shook his head.

"The God Lord always loves alarmist talk; with your heavenly-reaching abilities, why not now slay those jumping clowns?"

Baiyun, however, closed his eyes and remained silent, offering no reply.

Qin Yang clenched his fists and said arrogantly: "Master, rest assured; those so-called gods of the alien race are not yet qualified to ravage the land of Long Guo."

Baiyun nodded, placing absolute trust in Qin Yang.

Leaving Mount Tai, Chiyou's killing aura spread like a dark cloud pressing down from above.

He tore open a rift in the void, and the three instantly arrived in the Chuan region.

In the depths of the zoo's bamboo grove, the iron-eating beast lazily munched on fresh bamboo shoots, its round belly rising and falling with each chew; its endearing appearance was far from the ferocious beast of rumor.

Suddenly sensing a fierce killing aura, it was startled, dropping the bamboo shoots, its round eyes staring wide like bronze bells.

That familiar, soul-scattering violent aura was exactly the Demon Lord Chiyou it had once followed!

Ding Ding Ding