Chapter 362: Primeval Royal Clan
Ye Fan walked around the abyss, beginning to carve markings on its rim, condensing Source Heaven patterns while combining Earth-Viewing Art and Qi-Watching Art to deduce everything within the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest.
The female Saint Lord was inside the ice palace, not destroyed, giving him a glimmer of hope. Thus, he wanted to deduce the situation below.
No one knew how much time passed before he stood up, mentally exhausted, having unconsciously circled the abyss once.
"How is it?" Big Black Dog was the most impatient.
The Ten Thousand Dragon Nest was a peerless deadly ground, yet it also contained endless divine treasures. If they could enter, there might be great fortune.
"From above the abyss, I can only deduce a rough outline. It's hard to grasp anything specific."
"Then what do we do? Leave like this, or risk going down?" Pang Bo asked.
Ye Fan said, "We can descend a bit to take a look. I've deduced that the empty abyss itself isn't dangerous. The real peril lies inside the dragon nest."
"Kid, you'd better be careful, or we'll be jumping straight into a demon pit," Big Black Dog bared its teeth.
Tu Fei supported going down to explore, saying, "It's definitely worth a try. The ancient holy land, Netherworld Divine Palace, must have obtained a mysterious inheritance down there. Maybe we can gain something too."
In the end, their opinions aligned, and they prepared to descend for an inspection.
Ever since the great battle at the Undying Hall, after Big Black Dog's golden bell appeared, it hadn't been long before it could fly again. For now, it didn't need anyone's help.
To be safe, they prepared Dark Jade Platforms, ready to tear through the void and escape back up if necessary.
Dragon qi surged violently like tidal waves, creating great resistance as they descended. They didn't dare plunge straight down; instead, they moved slowly, descending bit by bit.
The deeper they went, the darker it became, until finally, they couldn't see their hands in front of their faces. Fortunately, their divine senses were strong enough to perceive their surroundings.
"This abyss was carved out by someone!"
On the walls of the abyss, there were clear marks of blades and axes. Seeing this, the group was shocked. Who would dare dig into the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest?
Clearly, the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest was hidden underground and had been excavated, only then emerging into the world.
Halfway down, they encountered the ice palace again, glittering and translucent.
At intervals, the ice palace would be swept up by surging dragon qi, floating and sinking.
The woman inside the ice palace was crystalline all over, her hair jet-black and lustrous, very serene. She was a peerless beauty, hard to imagine as a female Saint Lord.
"This emperor seemed to see her eyelashes flutter!" Big Black Dog shuddered, stepping back.
"Dead dog, stop scaring people!" Tu Fei scolded.
Seven or eight thousand years had passed. They didn't believe she was still alive. Even an ancient Great Emperor couldn't have such a long lifespan.
The ice palace rose up, while they continued sinking, heading toward the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest. Opportunity and danger coexisted; they wanted to take a gamble.
One thousand meters, two thousand meters, three thousand meters...
They grew alarmed. They had descended a full four thousand meters and still hadn't reached the bottom, as if it were an endless path leading to the underworld.
Ye Fan had to stop again, continuing to deduce with Source Heaven patterns. One wrong step would mean life or death.
After a long time, he let out a long breath. The result showed no danger; they could continue descending.
Five thousand meters, six thousand meters...
They descended to over nine thousand meters before finally sensing the bottom of the abyss, still a few hundred meters from the ground.
"Damn, this might really be a heavenly pit, ten thousand meters deep!" Big Black Dog muttered.
"Everyone, be careful," Ye Fan warned. They were nearing the bottom of the abyss, not far from the dragon nest, and danger could strike at any moment.
Approaching the bottom, they felt a chill in their hearts. They had truly arrived at a dragon's pool and tiger's den.
Finally, they landed on the ground. An ancient and desolate aura rushed toward them, as if they had returned to the Primeval Era.
The bottom of the abyss wasn't too dark. Scattered fragments of Divine Source glimmered here and there.
However, the abyss was too vast to be fully illuminated, leaving it somewhat dim. Looking around, it was wide and empty, not like an underground space at all, but rather an ancient battlefield.
"What is that?"
Ahead, there seemed to be ancient structures, dilapidated and ruined beyond recognition.
They quickly moved forward. Finding buildings outside the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest was beyond their expectations.
"It looks like an altar. Could this be a sacrificial site?"
"It's almost completely collapsed, abandoned for endless ages."
Before they even got close, they could tell it was an ancient altar platform. It was hard to guess how many years it had existed, covered in the marks of time, with the very stones nearly decayed.
"That is..." Ye Fan's pupils contracted sharply.
"How is that possible?!" Pang Bo exclaimed in shock.
The moment they approached, both were utterly stunned, disbelief written on their faces.
From the outer edge of the altar, nothing seemed unusual. But when they climbed onto the collapsed stone platform and reached the top, their hearts pounded violently, unable to calm down.
At the top was a Five-Colored Altar, built from ancient stones of five colors, exuding an aura of age. Though nearly collapsed, its shape was still recognizable.
Ye Fan and Pang Bo were excited beyond measure. They almost lay flat on it, touching it with their hands, muttering incessantly.
It was too similar!
If they weren't at the bottom of an abyss, they would have thought they were back on the summit of Mount Tai, at the moment the Nine Dragons Coffin set sail.
This Five-Colored Altar was almost identical to the one on Mount Tai, with the same style and form, even the materials were similar.
"The way back..."
"We can definitely return someday!"
Ye Fan and Pang Bo kept murmuring, unable to calm down, stroking the ancient stone platform.
"What's wrong with you two?" Tu Fei asked.
"Could they be possessed by ancient creatures?" Big Black Dog backed up a few steps.
It took a long time for Ye Fan and Pang Bo to calm down slightly. This was a path of hope for them. Earth and this world were connected in countless ways, and they firmly believed they could return.
"Have you ever seen an altar like this before?" Ye Fan asked.
Tu Fei shook his head, saying he had never heard of such a thing, not even recorded in ancient texts.
"Great Emperor's array patterns!"
Big Black Dog yelped, its big face nearly pressed to the ground. Now it was its turn to get excited, almost howling.
Tu Fei was startled by it and quickly observed as well. The words "Great Emperor" were too alluring; no one could stay calm.
"This was definitely laid down by a Great Emperor!"
Big Black Dog was almost trembling, its bronze-bell-like eyes fixed on the ground, where a few strange runes were etched, their meaning unfathomable.
It traced the patterns with its big paw, saying, "If I could grasp even ten or twenty percent of this, I'd be set for life."
Ye Fan's heart stirred, and he asked, "Can you repair the Five-Colored Altar? Can you figure out its function?"
"Unless a Great Emperor is reborn, there's no way to repair it. I can't understand a single one of these patterns," Black Emperor shook his head, carefully copying the runes.
Ye Fan and Pang Bo sighed. They searched the ruined altar thoroughly but found nothing.
Only Big Black Dog, as if it had obtained a shocking divine treasure, grinned from ear to ear, laughing foolishly.
They lingered there for a long time before leaving, heading toward the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest ahead. There, dragon qi surged like rivers, flowing endlessly. Nine great dragons coiled in the air, as if alive.
Ahead, nine large caves were lined up in a row, glowing with light. Rolling dragon qi poured out from within.
Ye Fan observed the terrain and the dragon qi, carving marks on the ground, deducing with Source Heaven patterns. Finally, he took the lead and moved forward.
There were nine dragon caves, all connected internally, leading to the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest. As they entered, they were bathed in dragon qi, their pores opening, their bodies feeling relaxed and comfortable.
"This doesn't feel right. Could this be that place?" Big Black Dog grew suspicious, a look of shock on its face.
"Spit it out, what's going on!" Tu Fei urged.
"Damn, nine dragon caves—I know what this place is!" Big Black Dog seemed to have suddenly figured it out.
"What did you remember?" Ye Fan asked.
"In the past, Emperor Wu Shi visited a dragon-nurturing land. This must be it!" Black Emperor said with absolute certainty.
"How do you know about Emperor Wu Shi's affairs?" Tu Fei was skeptical.
"This emperor read an ancient text with records of it," Big Black Dog said lightly, glancing at him before continuing, "This place rivals the terrain of Nine Dragons Guarding a Pearl, but Emperor Wu Shi ultimately chose Purple Mountain."
Purple Mountain, where nine great dragons guarded a single pearl, held Emperor Wu Shi's inheritance, and even his Extreme Sacred Weapon was sealed there.
Tu Fei was shocked. "No way? The Ten Thousand Dragon Nest is a second Purple Mountain? That means none of the Holy Lands of the Eastern Wasteland or the Hundred Schools of Thought in the Central Province could breach it."
"Emperor Wu Shi came to the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest. Many of the traces here were carved out by him..." Ye Fan couldn't stay calm.
Without realizing it, they had moved forward a distance. They stopped speaking aloud and communicated through divine thought.
"What's that smell? Why is it so fragrant?" Big Black Dog sniffed.
They followed the dragon qi for over ten li, arriving at a place full of stone caves like a beehive. They were immediately stunned.
The nine largest dragon caves all led ahead to a massive nest. From a distance, divine light shot out in all directions. There was undoubtedly shocking Divine Source inside.
Without a doubt, that was the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest!
They were still several li away, but they dared not go further. Through the gaps, they could vaguely see Divine Source blocks floating and sinking inside the nest, seemingly containing sealed creatures!
"Damn, we've run into big ones. They're definitely Primeval Royal Clan members. They sure know how to pick a spot—inside the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest!" Big Black Dog gritted its teeth.
The group was dumbfounded. The power and terror of Primeval creatures were deeply ingrained, let alone their royal clan. They were simply incomparable.
"What a pity! We've come this far, clearly seen huge chunks of Divine Source, but we have to stop here." Pang Bo felt immense regret.
"I really can't accept this!" Ye Fan urgently needed source. He could vaguely see peerless Divine Source inside the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest, but he couldn't obtain it.
"The Primeval Royal Clan members might still be alive. In the past, the inheritance of the Netherworld Divine Palace Holy Land might have been granted by them. Maybe we can communicate with them..." Tu Fei suggested.
"Don't even think about it!" Big Black Dog shook its head.
According to its speculation, the so-called Netherworld Divine Palace Holy Land was likely founded by those with Primeval creature blood flowing in their veins, meant to guard this place.
"So that means the invincible Divine King of the Jiang family eliminated a threat to humanity?" The group murmured in shock. The fall of a Holy Land might have such hidden circumstances.
"We'd better leave quickly. If even one Primeval Royal Clan member jumps out, the land will be piled with bones and rivers of blood. We can't fight them at all." Big Black Dog was the first to back out, because the more it knew, the more it understood that terror.
"One day, if I achieve the Great Accomplishment of the Sacred Body, I will definitely come here!" Ye Fan muttered to himself.
"The fragrance is even stronger." Even Tu Fei, who had the least sensitive nose, felt intoxicated.
"This is..." Big Black Dog, which had been ready to flee, grew excited. "It must be a Primeval Divine Medicine, a peerless treasure many times more precious than Divine Source!"
In this world, there was almost nothing comparable to a Primeval Divine Medicine. A single divine medicine could grant a second life to a supreme powerhouse with dried-up lifespan, let alone its effects on others.
It was a priceless treasure. Even in the Primeval Era, it was hard to find a few, let alone in the present age, where they had completely vanished.
Ye Fan activated his Source Heaven Divine Sense, and two beams of purple light shot from his eyes as he looked ahead, searching for the Primeval Divine Medicine.
"It really is a Primeval Divine Medicine!" His mind trembled as he discovered a sacred object.
Just outside the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest, all the dragon qi from the various caves converged there, gathering the qi of ten thousand dragons!
Pang Bo, Tu Fei, and Big Black Dog's eyes flashed with divine light, and they too spotted the sacred object.
"That is a Primeval Divine Medicine nurtured by the entire Ten Thousand Dragon Nest!"
"Exactly, nourished by the qi of ten thousand dragons and absorbing the essence of Divine Source!"
"In this age, only a place like the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest could nurture such a sacred object."
They couldn't move their feet, deeply captivated, wanting to pluck it.
But that divine medicine was right in front of the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest, too close to the Primeval Royal Clan. Approaching it would likely mean nine deaths and one life.
"The Primeval Royal Clan members are all asleep. There might be a chance to grab it." Big Black Dog's eyes gleamed as it urged Ye Fan to go.
"Dead dog, stop giving bad ideas. Why don't you go?" Tu Fei scolded.
"I'll go!" Ye Fan made up his mind.
"Ye Zi, you don't have to risk it like this. It's too dangerous." Pang Bo tried to dissuade him.
Ye Fan shook his head. "It's fine. There's a good chance of success. If it's too dangerous, I'll activate the Dark Jade Platform and flee immediately."
Pang Bo insisted on going with him, but Ye Fan firmly refused.
In the end, he went alone, wanting to try to pluck it. Otherwise, retreating like this would be too great a regret.
Pang Bo, Tu Fei, and Big Black Dog watched from a distance, ready to assist at any moment.
Dragon qi surged like tidal waves. Ye Fan suppressed his life force, becoming like a withered log, slowly moving his steps while using the Primordial Qi Cauldron to protect his body.
One step, two steps... The distance wasn't short. He spent a long time before finally approaching the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest.
The dragon nest was truly enormous. He could only see a corner of it through the dragon cave, but it was enough to shock him.
He saw an ancient coffin floating and sinking in a pile of Divine Source, making him feel suffocated, as if his flesh and bones were about to crack. This was a terrifyingly oppressive pressure!
The pile of Divine Source fragments was about two or three cubic meters, enough to submerge the ancient coffin.
He shifted slightly and saw another large block of Divine Source, nearly two meters long, dazzling and blinding. Inside, a humanoid creature was sealed!
They were definitely Primeval Royal Clan members.
The Ten Thousand Dragon Nest was truly too vast. What he saw was several li away from the entrance. Fortunately, otherwise, he might not have been able to take another step forward.
And all of this was only a part of what he saw. What else lay within the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest, he had no idea.
Finally, Ye Fan reached the entrance of the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest, close to the Primeval Divine Medicine.
The qi of ten thousand dragons all flowed through this place. It was a sacred object nurtured by the entire nest.
Up close, Ye Fan could clearly see its form. It was extremely extraordinary, clearly a peerless divine object of immeasurable value.
Wreathed in the qi of ten thousand dragons, the divine medicine was dazzling, entirely golden, about a foot tall, with nine leaves.
Each leaf was like a golden cloud, beautiful and dazzling, somewhat ethereal.
At the top of this Primeval Divine Medicine, a fruit had formed. It was golden and brilliant, shaped like a small golden dragon about a palm's length, crystal clear and lifelike, as if alive.
In the small golden dragon's mouth, it held a golden pearl, glittering and resplendent.
The entire Ten Thousand Dragon Nest had nurtured only this one sacred object. Its value was unimaginable!
A Primeval Divine Medicine that could be plucked—there was probably only this one in the world!
It was surrounded by the qi of ten thousand dragons, golden and crystalline, its fragrance nearly intoxicating Ye Fan to the point of passing out, making him feel like a soaring immortal.
He even wondered if consuming this divine medicine would allow him to ascend to heaven in broad daylight.
Ye Fan wasted no time. He quickly moved forward, ready to pluck it. Suddenly, his innate spiritual sense trembled, as if he had fallen into hell! He sensed immense danger.
Should he continue stepping forward? In that split second, he faced a difficult choice.