Chapter 564: Dead Qi!

In the end, it turned into a light sigh.

"Wu Yuanzhang, what are you sighing about?"

Wu Shushan shook his head. "It's nothing. Let me tell you about the Spirit Beast Horde."

Wu Shushan spoke as he walked.

It turned out that the Shenzhou Academy was built here for a reason.

Beneath the Academy lies a massive Seal that seals an ancient battlefield ruin.

Because countless living beings have fallen there, a powerful mysterious force—Dead Qi—has formed.

Back then, many masters pooled their lifelong cultivation to create this Seal, sealing the ancient battlefield ruin, and built the Shenzhou Academy, hoping to combine life Qi with the Seal to suppress the Dead Qi.

But as time passed, the Seal's power gradually waned.

Meanwhile, the Dead Qi grew ever denser.

The life Qi of the Academy's tens of thousands of disciples is no longer enough to suppress the Dead Qi.

A hundred years ago, the Seal first showed signs of loosening.

The Dead Qi, as if it had a mind, seeped out of the Seal, then controlled the Spirit Beasts to attack the Academy.

That was the first time the Academy experienced a Spirit Beast attack.

However, that initial incident involved only a few hundred Spirit Beasts, so no one paid any attention.

Later, every few years a Spirit Beast attack would occur, but each was small in scale.

Until a few years ago, when nearly five thousand Spirit Beasts attacked the Academy, causing dozens of disciples to fall, the Academy finally took it seriously.

It was also from that incident that the Academy discovered that if these Spirit Beasts die within the Academy, the Seal loosens even more severely.

And this time, it doubled directly, with the number of Spirit Beasts reaching over ten thousand.

One can imagine that the next wave will number at least several tens of thousands!

Soon after, Wu Shushan led Fu Hanxiu and Ye Qingran to the entrance of a cave.

"Forbidden Area" in two gilt characters was embedded on a black wooden plaque.

"Inside here lies the source of the Seal's power,"

Wu Shushan said, pointing toward the interior of the cave.

The cave entrance appeared utterly unremarkable, but upon entering, a hidden realm was revealed.

Inside was a massive, volcano‑like deep pit.

Near the edge of the pit, nine enormously thick pillars plunged straight into the bottomless Abyss; between the nine pillars floated an octagonal Fudao, tethered by nine massive iron chains, the other ends anchored to the pillars.

The Fudao bore mysterious rune patterns, and a light sphere pulsed and flickered at its center.

The light sphere was over a zhang in diameter, its glow dim.

"This light sphere is the source of the Seal's power. Legend says that when the Seal was first forged, this sphere shone as bright as the sun and moon; now it has dimmed to the likeness of fireflies. It is said that when the sphere extinguishes, the Seal will be broken."

Wu Shushan's voice was exceedingly heavy.

Once the Seal is broken, it also means that Dead Qi will pour out in great quantities from the ancient battlefield ruin.

At that time, Beimingzhou will be shrouded in Dead Qi, everyone will perish, and this place will become a Purgatory that scorches all living beings!

Ye Qingran stood on a protruding rock at the edge of the pit, looking down at the endless Abyss; a wind howled upward from below, making her face tingle.

"Those Dead Qi are that powerful?"

Wu Shushan nodded. "The Dead Qi within the ancient battlefield ruin is endless; a single strand can drive a person or a Spirit Beast mad, turning them into a puppet."

Ye Qingran nodded, a weight settling in her eyes. "If the Seal is broken, the impact may not be limited to Beimingzhou, right? The entire Yunmiao Continent could fall."

"Is there no way to reinforce the Seal? Or create a new Seal?"

"Impossible." This Seal has existed for nearly ten thousand years; it cannot be reinforced. As for forging a new Seal, that is also impossible. The ancient battlefield ruin can only be sealed once!

Wu Shushan spoke with conviction. He was not being alarmist; these are teachings passed down through the Shenzhou Academy.

"So, according to your meaning, Wu Yuanzhang, we can do nothing but wait for the Seal to break?"

"Not entirely. Within the ancient battlefield ruin lies a Chaos Qing Lian Seed."

"Chaotic Azure Lotus?"

Ye Qingran's eyes flashed with an unusual hue.

How could she not know the Chaotic Azure Lotus?

That is a divine artifact!

It is said that once this thing blossoms, a nine‑colored lotus can pierce the nine heavens, its life force so dense it can revive dead flesh and bones!

Before the Chaotic Azure Lotus, Dead Qi is merely a junior!

It's like a mouse seeing a cat, darkness meeting light!

However, the Chaotic Azure Lotus, due to its rarity, has long vanished without a trace; in fact, no one has ever seen it.

Unexpectedly, the ancient battlefield ruin still harbored a seed.

What if it blossoms?

Excitement flashed in Ye Qingran's eyes.

"However, the location of this Qing Lian Seed is unknown; over the years, people have gone in searching, yet all returned empty‑handed."

Ye Qingran fell silent.

All this time, so many from the Academy have gone in, yet none found it?

Doesn't that mean the difficulty rating is a solid five stars?

"Could it be that it doesn't exist at all?"

Wu Shushan shook his head. "The Qing Lian Seed is definitely still there!"

"However, Dean Li said that the Qing Lian Seed is a divine artifact; it's normal that it can't be found—it may be waiting for an opportunity."

Waiting for an opportunity?

In the boundless sea of people and endless time and space, who, and when, will be its opportunity?

At this moment, Ye Qingran suddenly realizes the insignificance of the individual.

Heaven and earth are the reverse journey of all things; time is the passing guest of a hundred generations.

An individual in the vast universe is nothing more than a grain of sand in the boundless sea, a fleeting bloom.

"I wonder whether the Emperor Sovereign and Madam can do the Academy a favor?"

Wu Shushan looked solemnly at Ye Qingran and Fu Hanxiu.

Ye Qingran understood Wu Shushan's meaning: simply to send them to the Ancient Battlefield Ruins to search for the seed of the Chaotic Azure Lotus.

Ye Qingran thought for a moment, "We can go take a look."

It is not only for the Academy; she herself also has personal motives.

In this world, there is probably not a single alchemist who is not interested in the Chaotic Azure Lotus.

She, too, cannot escape convention.

Wu Shushan felt a surge of joy, "Just in time, the Academy trial begins at the start of next month, and the gate to the Ancient Battlefield Ruins will open. You can enter then."

Ye Qingran was startled, "The Academy's trial is in the Ancient Battlefield Ruins; won't it be affected by Dead Qi?"

"No. Within the Ancient Battlefield Ruins there is a large safe zone we call the 'Oasis'; as long as you stay within the Oasis, there is no danger."

"Beyond the Oasis lies a dangerous zone shrouded in thick fog; no one knows what lies within."

"I see," Ye Qingran thought, understanding.

But since the Oasis is so miraculous, does that mean the Chaos Qing Lian Seed is within the Oasis?