Chapter 370

"The ancient star of Yinghuo!"

The others were puzzled, but only Ye Fan, who also came from Earth and rode the Nine Dragons Pulling the Coffin, narrowed his eyes. A look of solemnity appeared on his face; he would never forget the threat to his life that the Crocodile Ancestor on Mars had brought him.

Many years later, facing the ten great ancestors who launched the strange plateau, the Ye Heavenly Emperor, who had surpassed the sacrificial Dao, would recall that distant afternoon when he arrived riding the Nine Dragons Pulling the Coffin.

That sense of oppression, that life-and-death crisis, that feeling of being unable to control one's own destiny was truly terrible.

It had nothing to do with strength, but rather a state of mind—a despair and helplessness of being unarmed and having no power to resist.

In terms of bringing pressure to the prisoner Ye, the Crocodile Ancestor was comparable to the Undying Emperor!

At this thought, Ye Fan and Lin Xian shared a tacit understanding and smiled knowingly. They turned to the Human-Demon Great Sage and asked with concern: "Old master, you've traveled far through the starry sky; you must be tired. Are you hungry?"

"The taste of those few Golden Crows was not bad." The old Human-Demon master smacked his lips and rubbed his stomach; he was already seven or eight parts full.

One Jin Wu Great Sage plus seven or eight Holy King Golden Crows—even in the Primordial Era, this was a rare hunt, enough for a hearty meal.

"There is a Great Lei Yinsi on Mars, built by Sakyamuni. Two thousand years ago, eighteen peerless great demons came to attack Hangu Pass, but they were all captured by the Buddha and suppressed under the Great Lei Yinsi, which was built into an eighteen-layered hell!"

Lin Xian held the Human Emperor Banner and said leisurely: "The eighteen-layered hell is separated, two for each group, distributed across nine ancient stars. One of these groups is on the ancient star of Yinghuo. The Great Accomplishment Holy Body's divine thought also came from that layer of hell."

The old Human-Demon master's expression was solemn. He activated his divine eyes, looked into the void, and said in a deep voice: "There are indeed eighteen spatial nodes. Sakyamuni is truly heaven-defying; he is worthy of being one of the reincarnations of a Buddhist Great Emperor."

The others' expressions also turned solemn. How heaven-defying was a Great Accomplishment divine thought? If it fully awakened, it could take half the life of a Venerable. If the eighteen-layered hell were filled with such existences, it would be incredibly terrifying.

"It's comparable to a forbidden zone!" The Ji family sage gasped.

Eighteen peerless demons—if not Quasi-Emperors, then peerless Great Sages capable of breaking through to Quasi-Emperor—plus the Undying Emperor inside the sea eye, this was indeed the standard of a life forbidden zone.

By this calculation, this place was the ninth life forbidden zone of the great universe—the Yinghuo Forbidden Zone. The eighth forbidden zone was the Underworld.

Fortunately, the Undying Emperor was entangled with the Wu Shi Great Emperor and could not get away, so Yinghuo was not yet terrifying.

Lin Xian explained: "It was indeed terrifying once, but most of their cultivation was stripped away by the Sakyamuni Buddha, and they were imprisoned. Even if they were once peerless Great Sages, their cultivation is now greatly reduced, and their strength is not what it used to be."

A Great Sage with greatly reduced strength—that was just a dish on the table.

At this moment, even the eyes of the old Human-Demon master lit up. His path was the primitive Dao of survival of the fittest and coexistence of all spirits. If he ate a dozen Great Sages, it would be no less than swallowing an immortal elixir. By then, he feared even his bone club would turn into a Quasi-Emperor weapon.

"Let's go."

The old Human-Demon master rubbed his belly, revealed a set of snow-white and sharp teeth, waved his large hand, and said: "Let's go hunting!"

The sages' expressions changed. Hunting Great Sages, or even Quasi-Emperors—if it were one or two, that would be fine, but a dozen posed a huge risk. They tried to dissuade him.

"Even with an Emperor weapon, one cannot act like this, not to mention there are Quasi-Emperors in the eighteen-layered hell."

However, to the Human-Demon, this was nothing more than a hunt.

"In the Primordial Era, the human race fought for freedom against Heaven!"

"To survive, to eat, the weak human race sharpened weapons, crafted bows and arrows, and charged at creatures dozens or even hundreds of times stronger than themselves."

"They fought for their lives against ten thousand races, yet they did not perish. The race actually gave birth to two Human Emperors, shaking the Primordial Era and ruling the universe."

The Human-Demon Great Sage scolded: "By the Desolate Ancient years, the human race had produced who knows how many Great Emperors, one race standing equal to ten thousand. But where did that iron-blooded spirit, that courage to fight Heaven for life, go?"

"Seeing you all like this, I finally understand why the orthodoxy of the two Human Emperors has fallen to this state!"

"After the Sun Holy Emperor passed away, the ethos of the human race has actually fallen to this!"

What is the Desolate Ancient era? It's just private calculations for one's own household.

It is precisely because the human race is too smart, too calculating—scheming at every turn, petty and sniveling—that every Great Emperor family calculates its own interests, no longer possessing the fierce spirit of the Primordial Human Emperor era.

If there were no external enemies, the human race would only fall into infinite infighting and endless internal friction.

The sages were ashamed, not just because of their strength, but because their character was just like that.

After becoming wealthy and having possessions, they could no longer bear to perish with the enemy, nor did they have the desperate spirit of those who have nothing to lose.

But the Human-Demon was different. He was a primitive man from the era of the Sun Holy Emperor, possessing the brilliant Sun spirit and the legacy of the Primordial Era.

Even if the Undying Emperor were right in front of him, the Human-Demon would dare to go up and hunt the phoenix.

In the eyes of a primitive man, whether it be a True Dragon or an Immortal Phoenix, everything is prey. This is the simplest Dao and principle.

"The old master is right."

The Taiyin Body Jiang Tingting held Ye Tong. A newborn calf not afraid of a tiger, she cheered for the Human-Demon Great Sage: "I want to follow the old master!"

"Who says women are inferior to men?" Lin Xian praised, then glanced at Ye Fan: "Shouldn't you also show some initiative?"

"Holy Master, isn't your cultivation higher than mine?" Ye Fan was speechless. He was just a Holy Master Ye, while Lin Xian was already a Great Accomplishment King, invincible on one star.

"Even the Tianxuan Saintess has stepped up. Do you still want to be the Tianxuan Saint Son or not?" Lin Xian sneered and held out his hand: "If you don't want to, return the Emperor weapon to me."

"With an Emperor weapon protecting your body, you are still shrinking back. If you're afraid of death, don't be a Tianxuan person!"

"Don't!" This time Ye Fan was so anxious that his Tianjin dialect came out. The Dragon-Patterned Black Gold Cauldron had only been in his hands for a few days; how could he hand it over before it had even warmed up?

The Heavenly Court has no great generals; Ye Fan acts as the vanguard.

The ancient star of Yinghuo was a deep red, with hard sand grains everywhere. The parched Gobi desert had no vitality, yet the Great Lei Yinsi still stood tall. After millions of years, the ruins remained: collapsed halls and, among the rubble, faint remnants of a few Bodhi tree leaves.

Ye Fan and Jiang Tingting, who were sent to fish, stepped into the first layer of hell beneath the Great Lei Yinsi. In the four corners, there were thick stone pillars supporting the Great Lei Yinsi above.

These four stone pillars were carved with various demon gods and had blood grooves, soaked with dried black blood. These were Demon-Refining Stakes used to refine demon sages.

On the ground were some huge scales, all shed by the Crocodile Ancestor when it was refined by hell. The demonic energy had long been refined away, and the essence had been dissolved, but a trace of immortal quality remained.

Ye Fan was overjoyed and instructed Jiang Tingting: "These are good materials for refining holy weapons. Pick them up quickly, don't let the Holy Master see."

"I have already seen them," Lin Xian's faint voice rang out, and behind him, a fat Daoist also ran over to pick up scraps.

"Holy Master, why did you come down?" Ye Fan was puzzled; wasn't he supposed to be the vanguard?

"You've walked all the way here, and the Crocodile Ancestor hasn't attacked yet. It seems it's not home at the moment." Lin Xian said indifferently. Since the guinea pig Ye Fan had already tested the waters, what was he afraid of?

Ye Fan raised a middle finger, showing a look of contempt →_→

After scraping the first layer, Duan De's greedy nature overcame his fear of death. He hurriedly ran to the second layer of hell and then let out a cry of surprise, with an irrepressible excitement: "This, this is... an Emperor's tomb?!"

The second layer of hell was the coffin of the Great Accomplishment Holy Body. The Mars Holy Body's cultivation was profound, comparable to a Great Emperor; calling it an Emperor's tomb was not wrong.

Duan De looked at the Holy Body's stone coffin, jumping up and down, observing the terrain, and said with great excitement: "There must be treasures, there must be supreme divine objects. The Great Accomplishment Holy Body's coffin is incredibly ominous. To prevent the birth of a fierce ghost, it must be suppressed with immortal objects of Heavenly Venerable level."

It must be said that Duan De was worthy of being the supreme Daoist ancestor of the tomb-robbing world and the supreme Great Emperor of the Feng Shui world. Just by observing once, he deduced many things in a few words.

However, before he could be happy for too long, Lin Xian said indifferently: "You're late."

"What do you mean?" Duan De instantly petrified. He had finally encountered an Emperor's tomb; this was a great opportunity that only comes once in ten thousand years.

"You're happy too soon," Ye Fan said with schadenfreude: "The bronze lamp that suppressed the Holy Body's fierce ghost was taken away by Sakyamuni Buddha to search for the Immortal-Slaying Sword Array in the depths of the universe, and even the Great Accomplishment Holy Body's divine thought was taken into the Human Emperor Banner by Holy Master Lin."

This place was empty; there was nothing left.

"No, I don't believe it!"

Duan De let out a miserable cry, his eyes full of unwillingness. He had finally encountered a Great Accomplishment Holy Body tomb comparable to a Great Emperor, finally had the Human-Demon Great Sage protecting the path, and had no fear of hell demons. This double joy had brought even more joy, and he should have had a dream-like happy time. However, why did it turn out like this?

Duan De, who did not believe he had gained nothing, gritted his teeth, sacrificed half of the Heaven-Swallowing Demon Jar, and desperately pushed open the stone coffin of the Great Accomplishment Holy Body, hoping for some gain.

The Underworld Emperor and the Ruthless Great Emperor had karma.

The eyes of Lin Xian and the others also looked over. If there really were remains of the Great Accomplishment Holy Body, they could fuse them into a Three-Star Holy Body.

Unfortunately, in the end, everyone was disappointed.

The stone coffin was empty; the Great Accomplishment Holy Body's divine thought had already escaped, and only bursts of eerie energy permeated the air.

"I don't believe it, there's nothing in this place."

Duan De wanted money more than his life. Carrying half an Emperor weapon, he was not afraid of any demons or ghosts and rushed forward, then saw a scene that was incredibly shocking.

Before his eyes appeared a vast ocean, pitch black, with raging waves. Bursts of tsunami sounds came, and the great waves hit the firmament.

In the distance, there were even a few ships sailing on the waves, always very steady, not capsizing, but the green ghost fires were faint, becoming increasingly eerie.

"Ghost ships!" As an archaeological expert, Duan De said with absolute certainty.

"There's actually a sea on Mars? Is this still the ancient star of Yinghuo?" Ye Fan also arrived, his expression strange. Before he left Earth, he had seen some related reports that Yinghuo was a dead star with boundless red land, incredibly arid.

"Naturally, it is not."

Lin Xian said faintly, his gaze deep, murmuring: "Do you still remember the North Sea Eye on Ziwei Star?"

Ye Fan had also been there. Recalling the scene of the Ziwei North Sea, his body suddenly trembled, and he said incredulously: "This is also a sea eye?!"

"Yes, Yinghuo was once a prosperous life-bearing ancient star, but later it encountered a great war and was destroyed, remaining withered to this day." Lin Xian sighed: "This is not a coincidence. The North Sea Eye, they are all paths to immortality. Ziwei is like this, and Yinghuo is also like this."

The Immortal Treasure Map records the imprints of the human universe and hides the void map of the Immortal Domain.

The two worlds reflect each other. Since ancient times, they were once of the same origin and would connect every million years. And each life-bearing ancient star is a coordinate node of the great universe.

This is a node on the path to immortality.

Only by breaking through one node after another can one reach the path to immortality.

Lin Xian took out the Immortal Treasure Map to compare while operating his own Innate Universe Dao Map, engraving the terrain on the path to immortality.

These void nodes are the foundation for his future attainment of the Dao, and also where the mysteries of evolving the great universe lie.

Learning from Heaven and Earth, the path to immortality is a perfect blueprint. While ancient emperors explored the path to immortality and opened up one node after another, they also revealed the mysteries of the universe.

The Venerables were single-mindedly focused on becoming immortals and going to the Immortal Domain for longevity, having no time to care about the mysteries of these nodes. Even if they saw them, they would disdain them because they were not planning to stay in the great universe.

Of course, there were those who cared about these nodes. That was the Emperor, who left behind countless backups in the human world, wanting to refine the two worlds, attain the Dao as an Immortal King, not cooperate with other Red Dust Immortals, and rely on one person's power to blast into the Immortal Domain, then dominate the Immortal Domain and reign supreme.

At the same time, the Human Emperor Banner swayed. This sea area buried the life of the ancient star of Yinghuo—the living beings of an entire star. For the Human Emperor Banner, this was a great supplement.

The Sutra of Saving People rang out, and thousands of ghost corpses roared. Yinghuo became the greatest Bitter Sea in the world, the entire life-bearing star became an immortal burial ground, and all the ruins were swallowed into the Demon Sea Eye.

They were preserved because of the extremely special extreme-yin terrain on the nodes of the path to immortality. Whenever the mysterious black sea surged, they could also come out to wreak havoc.

Even the Buddha of the Great Lei Yinsi in the past did not take them away. How could they obediently enter the banner now? One ghost ship after another resisted.

Just as the waves were surging, immeasurable Sanskrit sounds rang out. A brilliant great ship carrying five hundred Golden-Bodied Arhats rushed over, the Buddha light brilliant. A hoarse, old voice rang out: "Future Buddha, do not panic, I have come to help you!"

Everyone looked back and saw that on the seemingly sacred, brilliant great ship, there were no living people. Hundreds of Golden-Bodied Arhats had long since passed away, skin and bones, having lost their lives. All the chanting was emitted by their residual thoughts and Dharma bodies from before they died.

"They have long since passed away, leaving only a Buddhist heart that cuts down demons and removes evil. Their obsession does not die, vowing to save the Bitter Sea and let all living beings be liberated into reincarnation."

On the golden ship, five hundred Arhats sat cross-legged, and only one old monk opened his eyes, chanting Buddhist scriptures, and sighed slowly: "Pity, alas, the Bitter Sea is boundless."

"The Bitter Sea is boundless, turn back and you are on the shore." Ye Fan had already seen that the old monk was a peerless sage. It would not be difficult to leave Yinghuo, but he did not understand why he did not leave, so he asked: "Holy Monk, you are a member of the Buddhist sect, you should know this principle."

"If I do not enter hell, who will enter hell?" The old monk smiled indifferently and narrated. He was once an ancient Buddha of the Great Lei Yinsi, and these people were also the legendary five hundred Arhats.

The ancient star of Yinghuo was once full of vitality, a source of life. As a result, a cross-star-field war occurred, everything was destroyed, and all living beings were buried here, becoming incredibly evil, turning the North Sea into a Bitter Sea.

They were ordered by Sakyamuni Buddha to suppress this place, a heavy responsibility.

"The old monk has been in Zen meditation for two thousand years. I thought I would pass away like this, never waking up, failing the Buddha's trust. But I did not expect the Future Buddha to descend, carrying this... er, Buddhist vessel, and awaken the old monk."

The old monk looked at the Human Emperor Banner, hesitated for a moment, then paused and said: "This way, there is a glimmer of hope, not only to save this Bitter Sea but also to liberate us."

Sitting withered for two thousand years just to suppress the Demon Sea Eye—even Duan De respected this great merit. Everyone was moved and full of respect.

Ye Fan stepped forward to ask for the old monk's Dharma name as a memento.

"The old monk is Jin Qiaojue." The old monk spoke, withered as a stick, incredibly weak, already on the verge of life and death.

"Jin Qiaojue, so that's it." Lin Xian was thoughtful. As if inspired, he stepped forward, pressed his hand on the old monk's forehead, and said in a deep voice: "Good man, in this life, I bestow upon you a prophecy. In the future, you shall become a Buddha, named Ksitigarbha!"

"Ksitigarbha?!" A glimmer of light appeared in the old monk's eyes. On the verge of death, he seemed to see a corner of the future. He put his hands together, then said with utmost sincerity, making a great vow: "If hell is not empty, I vow not to become a Buddha; only when all living beings are saved will I attain Bodhi."

Before the words fell, the residual thoughts of the five hundred Arhats, accompanied by the old monk, put their hands together, bowed, and then turned into threads of flowing light, merging into the Human Emperor Banner.

In an instant, Buddha light bloomed, Sanskrit sounds were ethereal, guiding countless ghosts to reincarnation within the Human Emperor Banner.

"The body performs the Immortal Domain, the banner becomes the Underworld."

Lin Xian held the Human Emperor Banner, thoughtful. Weapons are the continuation of the owner's life and also the system of their Dao fruit. The strongest throughout history often break ten thousand laws with one weapon, which is enough to explain everything.

As the Bitter Sea was saved and the ghosts entered the banner, it completely affected this Bitter Sea. A moment later, a huge sea eye appeared in the north, and the surging ocean all flowed into it, even swallowing the heavens and earth. The surrounding space twisted, causing the void to collapse continuously!

It appeared, the North Sea Demon Eye!

"Roar..."

A roar rang out, and an ancient demon sage rushed out from the sea eye, roaring: "You deserve to die! The Demon Sea Eye Immortal Burial Ground, which opens once every thousand years, has been closed just like this, ruining my great cause!"

The demon sage's aura was heaven-shocking, killing intent was exuberant, and the monstrous demonic mist surged. Even Great Accomplishment Kings could not stand it. Everyone sacrificed their Dragon Cauldron, Green Copper, and Demon Jar to resist.

"Immortal material, Emperor weapon!"

The Crocodile Ancestor instantly turned from anger to joy, transforming into a burly middle-aged man, wearing Great Sage holy armor, a pair of red blood eyes staring at everyone, coldly saying: "Good, good, good. Truly, 'one plants flowers with heart, but they do not bloom; one plants a willow without heart, and it grows into shade'."

"The ants I let go back then have brought me great fortune, fulfilling me."

"In consideration of this, I will let you die easily later."

"Crocodile Ancestor, you are too arrogant. Do you think I am still the me of the past!" Ye Fan shouted, facing the peerless demon sage, not afraid at all, but instead scolding.

The Crocodile Ancestor revealed a cruel smile, disdainful: "A King, a Great Power, do you think you can kill me by finding an Emperor weapon? Or are you relying on that dead old bald donkey?"

"Even with an Emperor weapon, so what? How much magic power do you have to activate it, and how many of my strikes can you block?"

"You haven't become sages yet, your magic power is limited. I can refine origin energy from the great universe; my divine power is infinite!"

"Give up resistance and accept your death."

Lin Xian's expression was indifferent, calmly saying: "Who do you think you are? Just a beast. Sakyamuni Buddha was merciful back then and did not kill you. You are not grateful, and now you are still barking here."

"A beast is a beast, refusing to repent!"

"Looking for death!" The Crocodile Ancestor was angry, restraining its disdainful expression. Lies do not hurt people; the truth does.

Being suppressed by Sakyamuni for two thousand years was always an unhealable wound in the Crocodile Ancestor's heart. Throughout history, apart from Luan Gu, who among the Great Emperors did not sweep everything away? Even Luan Gu could escape every time; there was no experience of being suppressed by someone.

Sakyamuni did not kill the Crocodile Ancestor back then, hoping he would repent. As a result, the Crocodile Ancestor became increasingly hostile toward the Buddha, viewing this experience as a humiliation, believing Sakyamuni bullied the small with the big and cut off his Emperor path.

Two thousand years passed, and the wound of being suppressed gradually healed, but he did not expect that as soon as they met, Lin Xian would reveal it without mercy, exposing the blood-dripping wound.

"A tiny bug dares to clamor against the gods in the sky."

The Crocodile Ancestor manifested its true form, seemingly the size of a star, occupying most of the firmament. It stepped down, wanting to stomp everyone to death, and said incredibly coldly: "Below the sage, all are ants!"

Not just any cat or dog is qualified to be locked into the eighteen-layered hell by Sakyamuni. The former peerless demon sage had extraordinary combat power. To resist the Emperor weapon, it was very cautious and used monstrous magic power. If this foot stepped down, even a sage would die!

Lin Xian was unhurried, standing proudly, laughing aloud: "Even if I need..."

"Holy Master, wait, let me do the showing off!"

Ye Fan forcibly took a step, sacrificed the Dragon Cauldron Emperor weapon, and then shouted: "You can try it! Even if I carry Yinghuo on my back, needing one hand to hold the Dragon-Patterned Emperor Cauldron, I, Ye Fan, am still invincible in the world!"

"Tianxuan Holy Rod!"

A white bone rod fell from the sky, with countless primitive runes appearing on it. There were Golden Crows striking the sky, flood dragons roaring, three-headed beasts shaking the earth, white tigers fighting... all were ancestor kings killed by the Human-Demon, the weakest of which were at the Holy King realm.

Boom, the heavens and earth trembled, the sun and moon swayed, the peerless Emperor might was exuberant, and wisps of Emperor Qi flowed.

A splash of blood flew, and the Crocodile Ancestor was instantly beaten into two halves, flesh and blood blurred. That Great Sage armor instantly shattered, and countless pieces of metal flew.

"Someone about to become a Quasi-Emperor!"

The Crocodile Ancestor was terrified and let out a strange cry. It didn't even dare to take its half-body. Its Immortal Platform almost cracked, blooming with brilliant radiance, and the upper half of the crocodile head hurriedly fled.

"Senior, let us do it!"

Just as the Human-Demon Great Sage was about to finish off the Crocodile Ancestor with one rod, the Big Dipper sages jumped out, wanting to match the old Human-Demon master and fight a winning battle.

They were afraid before because they were worried that the demon sealed by Sakyamuni was too powerful.

Now it seems, just this?!

Not to mention Great Sage cultivation, at most it only had Holy King combat power.

A severely injured and dying Holy King, under the righteous gang-beating of the sages, was about to fall.

Lin Xian stepped forward, threw a Six Paths of Reincarnation Fist, knocked off a crumbling scale, and couldn't help but be complacent: "An Immortal Three King reversing and killing a Great Sage—throughout history, only I have done this."

Ye Fan was immediately disdainful. This was purely stealing the kill and mixing up battle records. Did you kill this Crocodile Ancestor?

"I think so," Lin Xian said without thinking: "It's not one person's battle record, it's the team's glory!"

Half a day later, the Crocodile Ancestor was still struggling, roaring: "A Great Sage cannot be humiliated!"

"More words than the Jin Wu." The Human-Demon Great Sage couldn't watch anymore, stepped forward, knocked it to death with one rod, and then shook his head in disgust: "Wasting ingredients."

The Crocodile Ancestor's minced meat and demon blood were scattered all over the ground. This was Great Sage-level precious blood, which could be used to refine immortal elixirs!

The old Human-Demon master stepped forward to skin and draw the tendons, refining the Crocodile Ancestor's Primordial Spirit into the bone club. Having swallowed the imprint of a peerless Great Sage, the Emperor Qi of this weapon became increasingly rich. It wouldn't be long before it completely turned into a Quasi-Emperor weapon.

Immediately after, the old master skillfully used the crocodile skin to patch his beast clothing, and finally spat out the Sun True Fire, opening an open-air Mars barbecue party.

"Also a dish." Ye Fan sighed, as if in a dream. The peerless demon sage that once hunted him and Holy Master Lin had actually ended up like this. It was truly sad and sigh-worthy, making his mouth flow with crystal tears.

(End of chapter)