Chapter 512: The Passage

Crash!

Through that temple gate invisible to the naked eye, Li Yuan heard the familiar hum of a blade, but far more intense than when he had drawn his own sword before—

Far more intense!

In his perception, within Wan Wan Zhuliu's scabbard seemed to hide a sea of blade-light; once it surged forth, it would seem capable of drowning everything!

"Demon-Slaying Dragon God Blade!"

Li Zhou was startled but did not panic, only fixed his gaze and studied it!

He did not believe Wan Wan Zhuliu could split open this temple gate; if he could, he would never have waited until today!

Yet that blade-intent, solid as if real, still made him shudder involuntarily. With Wan Wan Zhuliu's cultivation realm, added to the full-force slash of the Demon-Slaying Divine Blade, its might was probably still far beyond Zhou Ying's hammer-strike from before, no?

"Huff."

In the dim darkness, Wan Wan Zhuliu stood before the Eight Directions Temple; borrowing the radiance emanating from the ancient temple, he could clearly see this legendary divine temple!

But in his perception, before his eyes was a void—nothing existed there at all!

"Everywhere, yet impossible to seek…"

In the dim and shadowed dark, Wan Wan Zhuliu seemed to murmur to himself, and the divine blade at his waist slowly slid from its sheath:

"No fate, no entry—tell me, what is fate?"

"Mm?"

Separated by a single gate, Li Yuan saw clearly that as Wan Wan Zhuliu spoke to himself, a tangible silver light flowed within his eyes!

"Who is he speaking to?"

Li Yuan's eyes narrowed slightly; the Mirage Dragon Sash gripped in his hand, however, trembled faintly. The little mother dragon looked at Li Yuan, wriggled her body, and seemed to want to say something!

"Speak!"

"

Li Yuan shot her a glance!

"Cloud Demon."

The little mother dragon's voice carried a strong note of horror: "Silver hair, dragon markings—this person is a descendant of the Cloud Demons. No, that's not right—there are two people. Inside his body, there's another old monster hidden."

A descendant of the Cloud Demons?

Li Yuan's heart jolted: "You mean he's a descendant of the Cloud Demons?"

"Absolutely no mistake!"

The little mother dragon was utterly certain!

Watching Wan Wan Zhuliu outside the temple gate, Li Yuan's expression could not help but shift!

Long, long ago, he had already suspected that something was off about the imperial house of Da Yun. Descendants not resembling their ancestors was nothing serious, but the current imperial house and Pang Pang Wenlong looked—well, it was no longer a matter of resemblance!

They were entirely two different races!

"Truly two different races?"

"

Li Yuan felt a chill run down his spine, and recalled what the Dragon Demon Daoist had mentioned before—the cause of the Great Zhou Dynasty's downfall, the "Cloud Demon Ghost Land"!

"Cuckoo occupying the magpie's nest?"

"Then Pang Pang Wenlong's descendants are probably…"

Li Yuan's expression shifted, his thoughts churning!

"Don't worry, he can't get in!"

"

Li Yuan's face was grim; the little mother dragon hurriedly consoled him: "So what if they're the Cloud Demon clan? The Eight Directions Temple—even gods cannot enter it, so…"

As the one man and one dragon were conversing, they suddenly heard a soft "snikt"—the Demon-Slaying Dragon God Blade had already left its sheath!

Hum!

Li Yuan instinctively retreated several steps and looked up!

Outside the temple gate, Wan Wan Zhuliu's drawing of the blade was not at all imposing in appearance—it looked like merely a casual draw and a follow-through slash, utterly unremarkable. Yet Li Yuan watched with a chill crawling down his spine!

Snikt!

One slash descended, and the darkness that pervaded Shi Zai You Jing without dispersing was cut clean in two by that single blade. A line of blade-light swept sideways, spreading from where the temple gate stood, on and on—whether for several li or several dozen li, no one could tell!

Wherever it passed, whether darkness or the strange beasts hidden within, whether visible to the naked eye or not, everything was sliced apart by that single slash!

At a glance, it was as if the entire You Jing had been split in two by that one blade.

"As expected, he can't get in!"

Li Yuan breathed a sigh of relief. After that slash descended, the Eight Directions Temple was like an illusion—without the slightest ripple!

Yet in his heart he could not help feeling a twinge of bitterness!

This slash, in terms of might, fell short of Zhou Ying's hammer-strike, but Wan Wan Zhuliu had merely delivered a casual slash—he had not driven the Demon-Slaying Dragon God Blade!

Whine…

As the blade-light dispersed, the figure outside the temple gate was gone!

"Spirit Treasure."

The little mother dragon stared greedily at the spot outside the temple gate, her voice laced with greed and dread:

"

The Cloud Demon clan has probably set their sights on this realm. No, that's not right—they've set their sights on the Eight Directions Temple…"

"The Cloud Demon clan—are they an alien race from Tian Shi Yuan?"

Watching Wan Wan Zhuliu vanish into the You Jing, Li Yuan's mind churned with many thoughts as he questioned the little mother dragon!

It must have something to do with the Eight Directions Temple!

The little mother dragon was quite forthcoming, not holding anything back, and without even needing Li Yuan to ask, she had already laid out everything she knew one by one!

Tian Shi Yuan, the gathering place of all the stars, just as the booklet the little mother dragon had mentioned earlier stated—countless clans stood together!

"On the Three Walls Ten Thousand Clans Ranking, the Cloud Demon Clan is ranked dead last!"

The little mother dragon paused, then said: "But the Cloud Demon Clan has deep foundations. The reason they're ranked last is because this clan doesn't have many members…"

That's right!

Li Yuan's heart stirred slightly. In the jianghu rumors, the imperial clan also didn't have many members!

"The Cloud Demon Clan actually has their eyes on the Eight Directions Temple!

"The Cloud Demon clan has actually set their sights on the Eight Directions Temple!

The little mother dragon was a little worried. She didn't care about the natives of this realm—they probably didn't even know what the Eight Directions Temple was!

"But if it's the Cloud Demon Clan…"

"What a hassle."

Li Yuan rubbed his brow, his expression not looking too good!

From the little mother dragon's words, he had caught a whiff of tremendous danger. Coupled with what he'd gleaned from listening to the sounds multiple times, his heart couldn't help but sink!

If the Cloud Eagle Clan really had stolen the Dayun imperial clan, then they had been here for at least a thousand years, possibly even longer!

A scheme spanning at least a millennium being intercepted—just thinking about it made Li Yuan sense enormous danger!

At the very least, a thousand years of scheming had been intercepted—just thinking about it, Li Yuan felt an immense danger!

But the little mother dragon had thought it through: "The Cloud Demon Clan, a tiny insignificant clan, dares to covet the Eight Directions Temple. Once word gets out, their extermination is only a matter of moments!"

"The ones who should be afraid are them."

The little mother dragon grew a bit excited: "The reason this realm is so cut off is because the Eight Directions Temple has sealed the inside from the outside. If the Eight Directions Temple were gone, or if word could be sent out, what Cloud Demon Clan? They wouldn't even be fit to lace the shoes of my Dragon Clan."

The Dragon Belt trembled violently, circling around Li Yuan like a little dragon, clearly lost in its own wild fantasies!

Li Yuan had to pour cold water on it: "If the Eight Directions Temple were gone, the ones who come might not necessarily be your Dragon Clan!"

He thought further ahead than this little mother dragon!

If news of the Eight Directions Temple got out, the Cloud Demon Clan certainly couldn't withstand it—but could the Dragon Clan withstand it?

The little mother dragon immediately shivered, clearly recalling the legends of those titans who died fighting over the Eight Directions Temple!

"Overthinking is useless, let's step into the temple!

"

Li Yuan sighed inwardly. The little mother dragon had reminded him—this Eight Directions Temple was certainly an unprecedented great fortune, but the trouble was clearly not small either.

The principle that an ordinary man possessing a treasure is guilty of it—how could he not understand it?

The principle that an innocent man is guilty for possessing a jade, how could he not understand it

Only before, he had been thinking about the Dayun imperial court, but now…

"If the Eight Directions Temple weren't sealing the inside from the outside, the danger wouldn't be limited to just the Cloud Demon Clan—there'd also be the Poison Dragon Academy!"

Daoist Li felt a bit melancholy inside, but he quickly suppressed the thought and turned his gaze to the only passage before him!

Master Li felt a touch of melancholy in his heart, but quickly suppressed the thought and instead looked toward the only passage before him!

Li Yuan activated the Dragon Belt and the Crimson Blood Patterned Dragon Armor. With two great armors upon him, he carefully stepped into the passage!

Li Yuan activated the Illusory Dragon Sash and the Crimson Blood Patterned Dragon Armor; with the two great armors upon him, he then carefully stepped into the passage!

You Jing was gloomy and dim, and the faint glowing light emanating from the Eight Directions Temple had attracted quite a few people!

After Wan Wan Zhuliu left, several more people came to this place, tried, and then left!

"There are indeed quite a few strong ones in this age!"

In the distance, Zhou Ying stood watching. Seeing people come and go, his mood immediately brightened. Compared to these people, he had gotten on with a 'fated one'—the more he thought about it, the better his mood became!

In the distance, Zhou Ying stopped to watch, seeing people come and go, his mood immediately lifted; compared to these people, he had latched onto the 'Fated One'—thinking this way, his mood improved even more!

Zhou Ying narrowed his eyes. Thanks to these people coming and going, a large batch of the strange beasts attracted by the Eight Directions Temple had been killed. Even from far away, he could smell the thick stench of blood!

"This age does indeed have its share of strong ones!"

Suddenly, a voice came. Zhou Ying's heart skipped a beat, but he quickly calmed down. He slowly turned around, only to see not far away, a purple-robed elder had appeared at some unknown time!

He held a long spear in his hand, and was examining Zhou Ying with great interest!

He held a long spear in his hand, eyeing himself with great interest!

Zhou Ying narrowed his eyes!

Vaguely, he felt this person was somewhat familiar, but he immediately dismissed the thought. He had neither lived nor died for over a thousand years—the person before him was clearly a living person, how could he possibly be an old acquaintance?

"Your Highness doesn't recognize this old man? That's also expected—back then, this old man hadn't yet entered Your Highness's eyes!"

Examining Zhou Ying's flickering figure, Qin Yun couldn't help but feel some surprise in his heart!

"You recognize this King?"

Zhou Ying's gaze sharpened, his thoughts churning rapidly, but he still couldn't recall ever having seen such a person!

"In the old days, when Your Highness entered the Dao, this old man was still young. I once, along with my classmates, caught a distant glimpse of Your Highness's bearing. My heart was full of admiration then, feeling only that a true man should be thus!

Zhou Ying's gaze sharpened, his thoughts turning rapidly, yet he still could not recall having ever seen such a person!

Qin Yun sighed with emotion, as if recalling those years!

"Classmates? You're a student of the Imperial Academy?"

Zhou Ying frowned. When he entered the Dao, he was granted the title of Prince. At that time, he didn't know how many people had gathered to watch—of course he couldn't remember everyone!

But he couldn't help but feel some shock in his heart: "You've actually lived until now. You're from the Xieshen Sect's… no, that's not right, you don't have that rotting smell on you."

"Classmate? You're a student of the Imperial Academy?"

Zhou Ying frowned. When he had entered the Dao and been granted a princely title, countless people had gathered to watch—of course he couldn't possibly remember every single one of them!

But in his heart he couldn't help feeling a bit of shock: "You actually survived until now. You're from the Xieshen Sect's… no, that's not right. You don't carry that rotting stench on you."

"This old man is certainly not a man of the Xieshen Sect, as for how I've lived until now…"

Qin Yun paused slightly, his expression subtle: "How has Your Highness lived until now?"

Zhou Ying did not answer, only watched warily. The more he examined, the more his heart pounded. This old fellow's aura seemed faint, but in truth was strong to a degree that made his flesh creep!

"Supreme-Grade?"

Qin Yun smiled, but raised his eyes to look toward the distant Eight Directions Temple!

The passage was very bright, and also very narrow!

Li Yuan was very cautious, but the danger he had anticipated did not appear. Soon, he had already seen the end of the passage!

Li Yuan stopped!

At the end of the passage, someone sat cross-legged!

It was an old man in a tall crown and broad sash, sitting with his back to him, with not the slightest trace of a living person on his body!

"Senior?"

Under Li Yuan's focused perception, there was indeed no sign of life on that old man, as if he had passed into meditation and death many years ago. But very soon he had sensed something was wrong!

With his gaze fixed upon him, a wisp of aura suddenly surfaced on this old man's body. At first faint, it very quickly became extremely dense!

Like a rotten, decayed stump suddenly bursting with new life, sprouting a canopy that blotted out the sky!

"Crack, crack, crack!"

Amid a series of sounds of sinews and bones grinding, under Li Yuan's gaze, this old man's body did not move, yet he forcibly turned his head around. In his ink-black eyes, flames leapt.