Chapter 127: One Day, I Shall Surely Return to Tianxuan

Dantai Jin...

A flash of surprise crossed Lu Ren's eyes.

It was precisely because he knew who the owner of this name was that his tone became increasingly grave.

Dantai Jin.

A once-great expert who achieved Ascension.

The pride of the Dantai Family.

After he achieved Ascension, in the hundreds of years that followed, the family—which should have been under the protection of an Immortal—suffered an unknown calamity, and all the clansmen died unnatural deaths overnight.

The family was annihilated; there was no more Dantai.

Some said it was revenge, while others said that after the Dantai Family produced an Ascendant, their fortune had run out.

All sorts of theories.

To this day, not a single culprit has been found.

Nor has there been any clue.

As for the Soul-Extinguishing Platform...

This is an extremely evil and extremely rare object.

One could even describe it as shocking.

Lu Ren only learned of it by chance.

The so-called Soul-Extinguishing Platform is exactly what its name suggests.

It is a sacrificial altar.

Used for sacrifice.

As for what is used for the sacrifice, it is, of course, the souls of cultivators.

Soul-Extinguishing Platform, the soul platform extinguishes.

Once upon the Soul-Extinguishing Platform, the soul dissipates and never returns.

To use one person's soul to curse their blood relatives, wiping out all their souls—the price one must pay for this is unfathomable.

If they were not mortal enemies, one would likely never do such a thing.

Lu Ren's heart sank.

If his guess was correct, the foundation of the Dantai Family, built over millions of years, being reduced to ashes overnight was likely the work of the Soul-Extinguishing Platform.

But!

There is one extremely important point! That is...

This Soul-Extinguishing Platform belongs to Dantai Jin!

If it were anyone else, they might not have noticed this.

However.

In his hundred years of life, Lu Ren had collected some rare manuscripts, among which was a Sword Manual written in Dantai Jin's own hand.

The reason he had collected so many Sword Manuals back then was for his only adopted daughter.

He hoped to find a way for her to make a living from them.

But now, it has made things convenient for himself.

If anyone else were to look at the six upright characters on the Soul-Extinguishing Platform, they would likely only think that some enemy had used the platform to curse Dantai Jin's blood relatives.

However, Lu Ren could tell.

The six characters engraved on it were unmistakably in Dantai Jin's handwriting.

Genuine and authentic.

It was absolutely impossible to be mistaken.

His heart was suddenly filled with profound astonishment and confusion.

No matter what, he could not understand; if the owner of this Soul-Extinguishing Platform was Dantai Jin, then did that not mean...

This was the object Dantai Jin used to annihilate the Dantai Family? But why?!

How much hatred must a person have to personally destroy their own family? Such secrets from a thousand years ago were truly captivating, and they truly made Lu Ren feel curious.

What connection could such a place, such evil arts, and such an altar possibly have with the treasure he was looking for? Or was it that...

Dantai Jin had left something here? He walked around the Soul-Extinguishing Platform, his gaze suddenly stopping; he had clearly discovered something unusual.

There was a gap between this Soul-Extinguishing Platform and the ground!

Generally speaking, a Soul-Extinguishing Platform should be built high above the ground.

But this Soul-Extinguishing Platform was extremely different.

Lu Ren did not hesitate to act directly; he gripped one corner of the platform with one hand and, using a little force, flipped the entire platform over, exposing its base to the sunlight.

The Soul-Extinguishing Platform was like a turtle flipped onto its back, exposing its soft belly to the air, and at that very moment, Lu Ren's pupils shrank deeply.

He saw that the base of the Soul-Extinguishing Platform was covered in dense, small characters! "To those who come after, open this: This is likely a letter that least resembles a letter."

I do not know who you are.

Nor do I know where this platform has ended up.

But if you are fated, you will be able to see the words at the bottom. You must already know who I am.

But to be safe, I have decided to introduce myself to you.

I am Dantai Jin, the last person to achieve Ascension on the Tianxuan Continent.

Those who come after.

If your strength is low, seeing this is enough; inside the heart of this Soul-Extinguishing Platform, there is a Storage Bag I have left for you.

You may take the Storage Bag and turn to leave, pretending you have never seen the Soul-Extinguishing Platform and have never heard these words of mine.

But if you rely on having some strength, or some courage, then you may continue reading.

I will tell you a secret.

Latecomer.

Do not seek Ascension!

Ascension.

Is a trap! The Upper Realm.

Has no Human Race! I am Dantai Jin, the last person from the Tianxuan Continent to seek Ascension, and also the last cultivator with a way to reach the true path of Ascension.

Latecomer, all my legacies are left within the Soul-Extinguishing Platform; if you are willing, you may swear a Great Dao Oath and take all my legacies.

But! You must resurrect my Dantai Family members.

This is my only condition; after they are resurrected, you may wash your hands of the matter.

I have already prepared all the materials for the resurrection.

Only for some common items, or extremely rare items, you may need to trouble yourself, but I have left a gift for you.

Latecomer.

If you trust me, do not seek Ascension, and do not spread word of this!

By the time you see these words on the Soul-Extinguishing Platform, I must have already died.

The Great Dao is vast and elusive.

And there are obstructions and interference within it.

But do not worry, one day, I will surely return to Tianxuan.

Seventeen ascenders, including myself, have scattered our legacies in different places; if you have the heart and the strength, you may find a way to recover them.

But remember!

You must, must not be discovered!

Otherwise.

You may face a fatal disaster.

Dantai Jin, signed.

……

Lu Ren was speechless.

He keenly discovered that at the end of this letter, which did not look like a letter, there remained a spiritual imprint.

And after he probed it with his Spirit Power, a segment of memory instantly surged into his mind, and everything was resolved.

As expected.

His guess was correct.

The reason the Dantai Family died unnatural deaths overnight was because of the contingency plan left behind by Dantai Jin.

And this Soul-Extinguishing Platform……

Was indeed left behind by Dantai Jin to curse and kill his own clansmen.

The reason he killed all his clansmen was precisely to better save them.

The Heavenly Dao is unkind, using all living beings as chess pieces, covering them with a net of heaven and earth, weaving the score of Fate, playing with all living beings in its palm, and laughing at them like actors.

If he had left his clansmen in this world, there would have been only one outcome.

That is to be destroyed by the Heavenly Dao, or to become a chess piece in the hands of the Heavenly Dao, becoming a pawn.

Therefore.

Dantai Jin directly refused Ascension, forcibly kept himself in this world, struggled desperately against the summons from the Upper Realm, fought for decades, and died in an unknown place.

The time of several decades was the time he used to lay out his plan.

It was also the time he used to prepare to curse and kill his clansmen.

Lu Ren's gaze grew deeper.

Ji Shisi indeed did not lie.

I wonder if he also obtained the legacy of an ascender expert, which is why he is so certain that one cannot seek Ascension.

But……

Who could have imagined? The last ascender, Dantai Jin, not only did not ascend, but also died in a corner of the Tianxuan Continent unknown to anyone……

(End of chapter)