Chapter 459: The Great Emperor
"Little Nannan, what did the person you saw look like?" Ye Fan crouched down and asked softly.
Little Nannan appeared to be only about three years old, her eyes like black gemstones, dark and pure without a trace of impurity. She tilted her head seriously and thought for a moment, then said, "Nannan blinked and he was gone. I didn't see clearly."
This was an extremely serious matter. If a humanoid creature was indeed moving about, there was no doubt they would be in great danger. Once discovered, it would be very difficult to survive.
This was one of the Seven Forbidden Zones of Life, the Immortal Mountain, renowned through the ages. The Great Accomplishment Saint Body and the ancient Great Emperors had fought their way in with the combined strength of two lifetimes, yet they had been unable to level it. That said everything.
"Be careful. Don't step on those patterns, or who knows where you might be teleported," the Big Black Dog warned.
On this black short mountain, some rocks also bore ancient carvings, mysterious and unfathomable, like an invisible net sealing this place.
"Which Great Emperor was it who fought his way in back then?" Pang Bo asked.
"Emperor Void," the Big Black Dog replied.
In the world, there were very few legends about Emperor Void. The group hadn't expected that this Great Emperor had been so formidable, once entering the Immortal Mountain and achieving such a great feat, averting a great calamity for the human race.
"Every ancient Great Emperor was a peerless hero. In endless ages, among billions upon billions of living beings, only one such figure is born. Even if there aren't many tales about a particular Great Emperor, they are not something ordinary people can fathom," Black Emperor said this.
Everyone deeply agreed. Each Great Emperor was the sole protagonist of their era. If one considered their lives alone, each possessed endless legends.
"Down the mountain. We must find a way to escape," the Big Black Dog said, walking at the front, using its incomparably profound mastery of Dao patterns to discern and clear the path.
Entering a legendary Forbidden Zone of Life in person, no one could relax. Their hearts were heavy. This was no game; it was a matter of life and death.
"Why did the ancient Great Emperors leave behind so many array patterns?" Tu Fei asked.
"It is said that the battle back then was very arduous. Emperor Void needed the aid of countless array patterns to seize the initiative. Otherwise, the outcome might have been different."
"What kind of existence is there in the Immortal Mountain?!" Everyone was shocked.
"No one knows. The final decisive battle never happened. The two sides confronted each other for a long time and then each retreated."
"No ultimate showdown?" The group was surprised.
"It is said that when the Dark Age came, Emperor Void slew an existence no weaker than himself, who had emerged from the Immortal Mountain. But clearly, that was not the only supreme being. Emperor Void entered the Immortal Mountain with a death wish, intending to perish together with his enemy, but for some reason, the fight never broke out," the Big Black Dog recounted such a secret history.
However, after that, Emperor Void returned to the Ji Family and never appeared in the world again. No one knew what had happened. Many suspected that something ominous had befallen him.
"The Ji Family has some Divine King ancient tombs, but the location of Emperor Void's tomb is unknown. Is he really buried within their clan?" Li Heishui asked, wanting to determine how Emperor Void had died and what had happened.
"Emperor Void attained the Dao through the boundless void. Legend says he buried himself in the endless void, where no one can find him, not even the Ji Family."
"The sealed past, the endless history—how many secrets are hidden?" Ye Fan sighed.
Eternal Universe Great Emperor had left his homeland because of the Primordial Ancient Mine, never to return to the Eastern Wasteland. Emperor Void had vanished from the world after the battle at the Immortal Mountain, believed to have encountered misfortune.
Several Great Emperors must have known what lay within the Seven Forbidden Zones of Life. Perhaps they could have fought the beings within alone, but unfortunately, they were isolated, with no one to fight alongside them.
Black Emperor spent a full half-hour leading the group down this black short mountain. Several times, they narrowly avoided stepping on the array patterns, escaping by the skin of their teeth.
Everyone frowned. This was no solution. Some array patterns had long since vanished, but their effects remained. If they stepped on one, they would be transported to another realm, their life or death uncertain.
Ye Fan wanted to put Little Nannan into the Jade Purification Vase, not wanting her to stay outside, fearing an accident. But the Big Black Dog strongly opposed it, saying, "No, let the little darling stay outside. She definitely won't be in danger. Whether we can leave alive depends entirely on her."
"What are you talking about? Little Nannan doesn't even know who she is. What good can she do?" Tu Fei asked doubtfully.
"Just listen to me. Don't ask," the Big Black Dog stubbornly refused to say more, as if somewhat wary.
"Watch out. That lake ahead is very dangerous. We all saw it just now—there were unknown creatures in the water, and even a cultivator at the Dragon Transformation Secret Realm was easily killed. Let's go around it," Pang Bo warned.
The Big Black Dog was very cautious, detouring far around it, fearing calamity. But the more it worried, the more problems arose. Before they had gone five hundred meters, it finally stepped on a strange array pattern.
A flash of light, and the group vanished from their spot, disappearing into thin air.
"Swish"
When the void twisted and they reappeared in the black mountain range, they were no longer in the same place. They were now among a group of black mountains, deeper than before.
"At this rate, we'll reach the center of the Immortal Mountain."
Suddenly, a rustling sound came. Under a nearby stone cliff, some unknown creature was moving, crossing a patch of woods and approaching them.
"Damn it, we've finally run into a living thing!" Their faces all changed color.
The footsteps grew closer. Through the forest, they saw a humanoid creature moving swiftly, almost like a beam of light, closing in on them.
"Why isn't it stepping on the array patterns? Damn it, we're in danger!"
This was the first living being they had encountered in the Immortal Mountain. When they saw its true form, they were all shocked, their unease deepening.
It was a stone man!
That's right, it wasn't made of flesh and blood, but of stone. It was about two meters tall, very robust.
However, it wasn't intact. Half its head had been chopped off, leaving only one eye, and the left side of its body had many holes, as if pierced by sharp weapons.
Even so, it still filled them with dread. This was a nine-orifice stone man, born from heaven and earth, an existence that could grow into a Sacred Spirit!
Its single eye emitted a cold, eerie light, fixed unblinkingly on the Dragon-Pattern Blackgold Holy Spirit Sword in Ye Fan's hand. It seemed to sense some aura, and a mad killing intent appeared on its face.
"It's over. Karma has caught up. You cut open a nine-orifice stone man, and its kind has sensed it," the Big Black Dog said, its face immediately turning bitter.
"Let's fight it. This stone man is incomplete. It hasn't given birth to flesh and blood. Clearly, it was also cut out prematurely and brought into the world, forever losing the chance to become a Sacred Spirit. We might not be unable to kill it!" Pang Bo said.
The Big Black Dog's face turned green. "It did indeed come into the world a million years early. It can't become a Sacred Spirit now, but that doesn't mean we can handle it. It's already at the Half-Step Great Power level."
This was a stone fetus nurtured by heaven and earth, gestating for millions of years, absorbing the essence of the sun and moon. It could have grown into a Sacred Spirit comparable to an ancient Great Emperor. Unfortunately, it had come into the world at least a million years too early.
Now, its single eye was filled with hatred. It advanced step by step, intent on taking Ye Fan's life, seeking revenge for its kind.
"Half-Step Great Power... We really have no chance!" Ye Fan sighed.
But he would never sit idly and wait for death. He activated the Battle Saint Art to its peak, and the All Secret triggered successfully, ready to strike.
The others did the same, pushing their combat power to the limit, prepared to fight to the death.
But the incomplete stone man stopped when it was still several dozen meters away, fixing its gaze on Little Nannan, who was shielded behind Ye Fan. Its expression was uncertain.
Ye Fan had long wanted to put Little Nannan into the Jade Purification Vase, but the Big Black Dog absolutely refused, saying she might be their only lifeline.
Now, something strange indeed happened. The nine-orifice stone man looked very uneasy. After staring at Little Nannan, it kept backing away.
"What's going on?" Everyone was baffled.
At first, Little Nannan was very scared, hiding behind Ye Fan, peeking out with half her face, looking nervous, her big eyes full of unease.
"Hurry, bring the little darling to the front!" the Big Black Dog urged.
Ye Fan picked up Little Nannan and comforted her, "Be good, don't be afraid. It won't dare hurt us."
The nine-orifice stone man grew even more uneasy. Staring at Little Nannan, its body couldn't help trembling. Then it let out a strange cry, turned, and fled at incredible speed, disappearing behind a black stone cliff in the blink of an eye.
Everyone looked at each other in astonishment. None of them had expected such an outcome.
Only Little Nannan wasn't very happy. She blinked her big eyes, pouted, and said, "Is Nannan so scary? Why did it run away like that?"
Everyone laughed, couldn't help patting her head, and then affectionately pinched her delicate little nose.
"It's because you're so cute that even that stone man couldn't bear to hurt us."
"Who dares say our Little Nannan isn't adorable?"
They all laughed, but their hearts were far from calm. What exactly was Little Nannan's identity? Even a nine-orifice stone man in the Immortal Mountain had been scared off. That was truly astonishing.
"Let's go. Hurry!" The Big Black Dog led the way again, but before they had gone far, it nearly stepped on another array pattern.
This wasn't its fault. No one could avoid it. The traces of the Dao patterns had worn away, but since they were Emperor patterns, their effects remained, and they couldn't all be detected.
Even Ye Fan, with his divine eyes open, couldn't see through them. The patterns carved by ancient Great Emperors were mysterious and unfathomable; no one could grasp them.
"Are we really going to die here?" Li Heishui sighed.
"Oh no!" The Big Black Dog cried out as it stepped forward, thinking it had made another mistake. Fortunately, this time it was just a false alarm.
"Doggy, you're so clumsy. Nannan has already learned. These patterns are very clear. I know how to walk now," Little Nannan suddenly said very innocently.
If it had been anyone else, the Big Black Dog would have sneered at them, even bitten them a few times. But hearing Little Nannan say this, it just looked sheepish, without any temper, and didn't flare up.
"What? Nannan, you can see them clearly?" Ye Fan asked in surprise.
"Yes," Little Nannan nodded seriously, like a chick pecking at rice. "I see many patterns. There are black lines, shrouded in black mist, and golden lines, flowing with light."
"Those are the paths of death and life!" The Big Black Dog jumped up in shock. "You can even see that?"
"At first, I couldn't see anything. But after watching Doggy walk around the patterns for a while, I gradually saw them all," Little Nannan said in her childish, innocent voice.
"Where do the golden lines lead?" the Big Black Dog asked eagerly.
"They twist and turn, like many little snakes crawling, leading deep into the mountains," Little Nannan said.
"What?" Everyone was startled.
"This... Nannan, are you sure you're not mistaken?" Tu Fei asked.
"No, I'm not. The golden lines really point deep into the mountains. Oh, they're little dragons, not little snakes. The dragon heads all point in that direction," Little Nannan corrected herself.
"Is this about finding life by courting death?" Pang Bo mused.
The Big Black Dog nodded. "That's right. Emperor Void might have thought the same. In the past, forced by circumstances, he intended to perish together with his enemy, going deep into the heart of the Immortal Mountain for an ultimate showdown with the supreme being. Perhaps he had the idea of finding life by courting death!"
"Are we supposed to keep going forward?" Li Heishui asked, uncertain. "We're not Emperor Void. He could enter a death ground and emerge alive, but we don't have such heaven-defying combat power. Since ancient times, how many could compare to him?"
"Right now, we have no other choice. Based on what the little darling has seen, this area is covered by terrifying Great Emperor array patterns. There's no way we can retreat on our own," the Big Black Dog thought. "It seems Emperor Void sealed off this entire region, dividing it into many areas, preventing mysterious creatures from getting out."
The Big Black Dog carried Little Nannan on its back, letting her guide them as they headed deeper into the Immortal Mountain. Along the way, they sensed creatures watching them from time to time, making their hair stand on end.
"This path... seems to lead toward the Enlightenment Ancient Tea Tree," the group noted in surprise.
According to Little Nannan's guidance, they were indeed heading in that direction, and it wasn't far now.
After walking a bit further, the Enlightenment Ancient Tea Tree was faintly visible. Although many ancient trees blocked the view, its unique aura could still be clearly sensed.
It was as if endless Dao was flowing there, filled with a mysterious power that instantly made their hearts feel empty and serene. Without even cultivating, it felt as if they were about to comprehend the Dao.
"As expected of the immortal divine tree renowned through the ages! It can help cultivators comprehend the Dao—an unparalleled sacred object!" The Big Black Dog was delighted. "If we're lucky enough to survive, we might have a great opportunity!" Its eyes gleamed green.
When they advanced another few li, the Enlightenment Ancient Tea Tree came into view. Its appearance was stunning.
It wasn't very tall, only about three meters, but it was gnarled and sturdy like a coiled dragon, its old bark cracked, as if it had taken eons to grow to this size.
It was extremely peculiar. No two leaves on the tree were the same. Every single leaf was unique, all crystal clear, as if carved from jade.
Some leaves were shaped like small cauldrons, shrouded in mist. Some were like divine phoenixes, shimmering with multicolored light. Some were like seated immortals with crossed legs, vivid and lifelike.
Some were like gold, dazzlingly bright; others like red jade, brilliantly vivid—a riot of colors.
"I see him again! Nannan sees him again!" Little Nannan suddenly cried out.
At that moment, Ye Fan and the others also saw a figure through the dappled tree shadows. Their hearts all raced.
"It's... the Great Emperor!" The Big Black Dog nearly jumped, almost throwing Little Nannan off its back. It was extremely excited.