Chapter 417: At the Bottom of the Gorge Lies Qin Shi Huang

Xiang Hong, would you rather stay in Tianhong Divine City?

On the way, after reading the ancient scroll provided by the Lord of Tianhong City, the Tianxie Sword Immortal asked Xiang Hong.

The First Immortal Sovereign of Jiuzhou nodded solemnly: “That place is indeed dangerous. Even I and the Sword Immortal may not be able to protect you—we might not even save ourselves.”

“No need. Life and death are fate; wealth and honor are heaven’s will. Since the Group Master sent us, he won’t let us die. There’s danger, but we drew the quest—refusing now would make it hard to explain to the Group Master.”

Tianqian Gorge.

Legend says Tianqian Gorge is a relic of the previous epoch’s cataclysm.

That time, the world entered its final age; the epochal cataclysm arrived, and endless destruction descended, turning heaven and earth upside down. Whether gods or demons, immortals or saints, all were erased in the epochal cataclysm.

In the end, nothing remained—only ashes gave birth to renewal.

Tianqian Gorge is a remnant of that previous epoch’s cataclysm. It is said the cataclysm’s destruction fell and split the earth open, carving a bottomless gorge, still filled today with the cataclysm’s destruction.

There are also rumors that the bottom of Tianqian Gorge holds treasures left over from the previous epoch.

Anything that survived the epochal cataclysm must be a priceless relic of that age—even Immortal Sovereigns would envy it.

Some even claim Tianqian Gorge exists as a relic of the cataclysm because an ancient being of the previous epoch achieved ultimate transcendence within it, breaking into the realm of immortality and resisting the cataclysm’s destruction.

That being’s ascension occurred precisely in Tianqian Gorge, which is why the gorge endured the cataclysm’s destruction and was preserved.

At the bottom of Tianqian Gorge lie the legacy and supreme treasures of that immortal being.

Legends abound, but one thing is certain: every legendary immortal being recorded in this world has some connection to Tianqian Gorge, bound to it by countless threads.

That is why countless powerful beings seek to explore it.

“Is this Tianqian Gorge?”

Xiang Hong stared at the scene before him, jaw dropped.

Before him stretched a colossal gorge, as if heaven had slashed it with a single blade, cleaving the earth in two—a crack so deep it vanished into darkness, its sides jagged and barren.

It was less a gorge than a fissure.

A fissure so vast it nearly split the world in half.

Merely standing before Tianqian Gorge stirred instinctive dread; waves of destruction surged toward them, halting all advance.

“Let’s go down.”

The First Immortal Sovereign of Jiuzhou spoke.

The next instant, under the Tianxie Sword Immortal’s nod, their immortal power flared into light, enveloping the three as they leapt downward into Tianqian Gorge.

…

At the bottom of Tianqian Gorge.

After enduring great hardship, relying on the strength of two Immortal Sovereigns working in tandem, Xiang Hong and the others finally reached the bottom.

“I should’ve never drawn this quest—almost lost my life.”

The First Immortal Sovereign of Jiuzhou laughed bitterly. The journey down had no living creatures, yet the destruction was so fierce even Immortal Sovereigns struggled to withstand it.

It was unmistakably the destruction that fell when the world ended—the epochal cataclysm.

Now, that destruction still lingered in Tianqian Gorge, saturating its entire bottom.

Without Immortal Sovereign strength and various survival artifacts, they might have perished here.

Fortunately, at the bottom, the intensifying destruction above faded away—the bottom acted as a barrier, shielding them from its reach.

Xiang Hong looked up, where just above, destruction surged like countless white-gold divine dragons gliding overhead, countless beyond counting.

He shuddered, realizing this quest was truly life-threatening—insanely intense.

Yet it wasn’t without reward: upon reaching the gorge’s bottom, they found relics left behind by the previous epoch.

“What’s that?”

The Tianxie Sword Immortal stored a broken sword from the gorge in his storage ring, noticing a dark glow ahead.

Tianqian Gorge was too deep—sunlight could not penetrate—but the destruction of the epochal cataclysm itself emitted light, preventing Xiang Hong from being blind.

A thousand meters ahead.

In the gloom, a dark radiance shifted unpredictably—sometimes like a gate, sometimes like an ancient beast, sometimes like a palace, sometimes like…

Endlessly changing, mysterious and profound.

Faintly, a roaring sound echoed as the dark glow shifted, as if it were not light at all, but water flowing ceaselessly.

“Illusion? I feel like I’ve heard this sound before.”

The First Immortal Sovereign of Jiuzhou hesitated. Though water’s flow sounded much the same—just Hualala —it was oddly familiar, distinct.

Not an ordinary water sound.

“Not an illusion. I feel it too.”

The Tianxie Sword Immortal replied.

Xiang Hong scratched his head: “So you two feel it too? I thought I’d imagined it.”

They scanned the surroundings.

Aside from the mysterious dark glow, nothing else.

As they puzzled over the familiar sound of the dark glow,

it shifted again.

This time, it took the shape of a human figure. Though the glow was dark and the form resembled a shadow, its presence was unmistakably regal—wearing an ancient Chinese imperial crown, hands clasped behind its back, gazing down upon heaven and earth.

Its aura dominated the nine heavens and ten earths.

Had the glow not been dark, it would have appeared lifelike—as if a peerless sovereign of all realms stood there, overlooking all living things.

Xiang Hong, the First Immortal Sovereign of Jiuzhou, and the Tianxie Sword Immortal froze.

The figure formed by the dark glow—its aura, its bearing, its presence—was terrifyingly familiar.

In that moment,

an imposing figure simultaneously surfaced in the minds of the Tianxie Sword Immortal and the others.

That figure was identical to the one the glow had formed.

They would never forget this figure—they had seen him not long ago, leaving an indelible impression.

They never expected it.

The dark glow would manifest this figure—yet he did not belong to this world. He was a great one from the Primordial Realm.

“Qin Shi Huang!!”

Xiang Hong cried out, voice trembling.

This figure was Qin Shi Huang! That majestic, awe-inspiring silhouette—without even seeing his face, one could recognize him. His aura, his presence—every detail was unmistakable.

“Why does this glow take the form of Qin Shi Huang? Is it connected to him, or did he once come here?”

The First Immortal Sovereign of Jiuzhou exclaimed in shock.

As he spoke, the dark glow shifted again, forming a creature coiling through boundless space.

“That’s… Yinglong!!”

Xiang Hong’s face paled—wasn’t that Yinglong the one they’d seen in the Sky-Eye World, battling the ancient Babylonian gods?

…