Chapter 852: Descendant of the Human Emperor

When night fell completely, the seven stars finally aligned in a line.

The dazzling starlight poured down like a waterfall, forming a pillar of light over the Falling Star Valley.

When Yan Buji arrived at the valley entrance, he found more than a dozen cultivators already gathered here, divided into three camps facing each other.

In the center of the valley floor, where the starlight converged, a portal made of stellar energy materialized. Two ancient characters "Qi Tian" were engraved on it, surrounded by seven star motifs.

"They've arrived, these three forces… could they be from the Wan Dao Mountains?" Yan Buji's gaze tightened.

Although he hadn't dealt much with the mysterious sect forces of the Eight Dao realms, he knew that, like in the Xuan Gan Dao and Xuan Kun Dao, their masters were also at Nascent Soul level, and none of the cultivators present were below Nascent Soul strength.

If the Eight Dao realms have so many Nascent Soul cultivators, they can only be the Southern Court cultivators from the Wan Dao Mountains.

Just as the various forces were on the brink of conflict, the stellar portal suddenly shook violently.

The seven star motifs on the portal lit up in sequence, projecting seven differently colored pillars of light. In each pillar a line of ancient characters appeared:

"Qi Tian Seven Trials, those who pass may enter."

"The Qi Tian realm has opened!"

"The other disciples, guard the valley entrance; do not let outsiders in!"

"Yes!"

Yan Buji laughed, and after the three groups entered, he easily evaded the Nascent Soul cultivators' surveillance outside and slipped into the valley.

Yan Buji squinted at the gate within the light pillar and saw that the seven lines corresponded to: Strength, Speed, Wisdom, Fortune, Insight, Battle, Destiny. The "Fortune" pillar was pointing directly toward him.

"Interesting." He chuckled lightly and stepped into the pillar without hesitation.

The scene before him shifted instantly; he found himself standing in a void, with seven floating light spheres ahead, each sealing a different trial.

Suddenly, the sphere representing "Fortune" flew to him and transformed into a bronze wheel. Obscure runes covered its rim, and a golden pointer sat at its center.

"Trial of Fortune, the turning wheel decides destiny." An ancient voice echoed in the void, "Turn the wheel; where the pointer points is your fate."

Yan Buji examined the wheel closely and found that its runes corresponded to certain syllables of the Human Emperor cultivation method. He thought for a moment and tried to channel the golden vortex of power within him into the wheel.

The wheel instantly burst with golden light, and the pointer began to spin wildly.

As it turned, Yan Buji felt his consciousness pulled into a strange realm. There was no up, down, left or right, only countless intersecting golden threads, each representing a possible life path.

"Is this… the River of Fortune?" Yan Buji seemed to realize. He tried to use the Qi Tian Martial Secret's deduction algorithm to touch the golden threads and found several especially bright ones all pointing to the same endpoint: a Peach Blossom Valley deep within the Qi Tian realm.

As he was about to investigate further, a violent tremor came from outside. Yan Buji's consciousness was forced back to his body, and he saw the wheel had stopped, the pointer pointing at an ancient "Ji" character.

"Qian, see the dragon in the wild, trial passed." The ancient voice sounded again, and a token of condensed starlight fell into Yan Buji's hand. The front bore the characters "Qi Tian", the back engraved the "Fortune" character.

The void gradually faded, and Yan Buji found himself standing in a magnificent starry hall. The dome above displayed a flowing Milky Way, and the floor was paved with bronze tiles, each etched with a different constellational pattern.

"It seems those who pass different trials are sent to different areas." Yan Buji looked around and saw several figures already present in the hall.

"It seems we have guests."

"You came uninvited; perhaps you don't know this is the Human Emperor's Return Ruins?"

"Human Emperor's Return Ruins…" Yan Buji felt a chill in his heart, but feigned surprise and asked, "Some group passed through here with a feeling; you fellow cultivators don't seem very friendly."

"You are not of our Human Emperor bloodline; how do you know this place?"

Clearly, none of the three sides intended to reveal any information; instead, they each approached at a leisurely pace, fixing their sights on Yan Buji!

Just as Yan Buji narrowed his eyes, preparing to act, the woman with a faint, elusive aura suddenly reached out and said:

"Have you ever touched the Human Emperor's banner?"

Hm?!

Yan Buji's pupils narrowed at the words, and the mixed primordial Qi within him circulated silently. He had indeed once received acknowledgment from the Human Emperor's banner, but he had explicitly refused it then; he hadn't expected the woman could sense it.

"Interesting." The woman lightly brushed the blue‑black strands at her temple; a faint golden aura twined around her jade fingers, and said, "I am Ji Mingyue of the Southern Court Ji family, a direct descendant of the Human Emperor. Though the Human Emperor's banner aura on you is faint, it cannot escape my perception."

The other two factions heard this and immediately stirred.

The elder in black robes on the left hissed, "Those not of our clan who trespass the Ruins shall be executed according to ancestral law!" The armored commander on the right snorted coldly, "Is the Ji family sheltering outsiders?"

Yan Buji suddenly burst into a loud laugh; his mixed primordial Qi resonated, shaking the dome's star river slightly, "What a direct line of the Human Emperor!"

He flipped his right palm, drew the starlight token from his chest, and said, "You all watch, what is this?"

Yan Buji wasn't sure what secrets this place held, but he had deduced its location using the Qi Tian Martial Secret, and these people claimed it was linked to the Human Emperor—so what truly lay hidden?

Yan Buji deliberately displayed the token, just to see how they would react!

As expected, when Yan Buji showed the token, all three sides were instantly astonished!

In Ji Mingyue's beautiful eyes, golden light surged, "You actually passed the Fortune trial?!"

"Qi Tian token? How could it possibly be in your hand!"

"That was left to us by the Human Emperor's ancestor!"

Just as tensions peaked, a melodious bell rang from deep within the hall. The constellational patterns on the bronze floor lit up one by one, forming a luminous path leading inward.

"The core of the Ruins has opened!" The armored commander, ignoring Yan Buji, rushed off with his troops. The elder in black robes glared at Yan Buji with a poisonous look before dissolving into black mist.

Ji Mingyue did not hurry to leave; instead, she glided a few steps to stand three feet before Yan Buji. A strand of golden aura at her fingertip suddenly formed a miniature battle flag, resonating with the Human Emperor cultivation method within Yan Buji.

"Interesting."

She parted her vermilion lips and said, "Your cultivation is not the orthodox Human Emperor path, yet you have obtained the true transmission of Fortune Dao." Then she tossed a jade tablet, "If you wish to survive, follow this route. Those people… will not let you leave the Ruins alive."

After Ji Mingyue's figure vanished, Yan Buji examined the jade tablet and found the marked route matched the Peach Blossom Valley location he had deduced. Strangely, the tablet concealed a familiar aura—the golden pattern he had forged through the Human Emperor cultivation method!

"Indeed, it's a trap." Yan Buji sneered, yet stepped onto the light path without hesitation. As he went deeper, the surroundings gradually changed: the bronze floor turned to blood‑red soil, and illusory peach blossoms drifted from the sky.

When he passed the final light veil, the scene before him made his breath catch.

In the middle of a ten‑li peach forest, twelve shattered battle flags formed a circle; beneath each flag a bronze skeleton knelt. At the circle's center floated a bamboo slip bathed in golden light.

Above the bamboo slip, three blood‑red characters hovered:

"Human Emperor Scripture"!