Chapter 463: The Headless Knight
On several black mountain bodies, the dilapidated halls were very ancient. According to Black Emperor, they were built in an architectural style from over a hundred thousand years ago, vastly different from the present era.
Clearly, those ancient halls were inscribed with Dao patterns; otherwise, even divine iron would have long since decayed and could not have survived for so long.
They very much wanted to climb the mountains for a closer look, but Little Nannan said that those places were covered in black patterns, without a single golden line, and everywhere there were band-like black mists.
The big black dog shuddered, saying, "Without golden paths of life, that place is definitely a land of certain death. We must not approach!"
From a distance, they observed four peaks with ancient structures, and on each of those mountains were medicinal fields planted with many herbs.
"Medicinal fragrance, do you smell it? A strong medicinal fragrance—these are spiritual items over ten thousand years old!"
"Outside, it's hard to find even a single millennium-old spiritual herb, yet here there are herbs that have survived over ten thousand years!"
Tu Fei, Li Heishui, and the others couldn't move their feet. They craned their necks, staring at the medicinal fields on the black mountain bodies, from which the rich fragrance drifted.
Divine Immortality Pills were rare in the world, only a few in existence, but other rare spiritual herbs could be cultivated on a large scale and were not unique.
Since the Primordial era, almost no one had been able to enter this place. Those spiritual herbs had grown for who knows how many tens of thousands of years, withering and flourishing again—all were peerless treasures.
"Can't we just climb to the mountaintop or approach those buildings? Just picking a few rare spiritual herbs shouldn't be a big problem, right?" Even Pang Bo couldn't resist.
On each of the four black short mountains, there was a medicinal field halfway up the slope, clearly cultivated by human hands. They weren't large, but the medicinal fragrance was rich and pungent.
"Nannan, look carefully. Are there any golden patterns around the medicinal fields?" Ye Fan asked softly.
"Only one or two, and they don't reach the fields. They're still a distance away," Little Nannan replied innocently.
"Let's go take a look. If it's not safe, we'll retreat immediately!" Ye Fan made this decision.
They chose the third short mountain, where there was one more golden pattern than on the other mountains, and the medicinal field was close to the mountain, not far to walk.
"An extraterrestrial divine object!" The big black dog exclaimed, its tongue hanging out long, its face full of surprise.
Ahead, there was a cyan-gold disc, about a hundred zhang in diameter, lying in a pile of rubble, almost completely buried by huge stones. It was the celestial object that several Saint Lords had been fighting over.
It had crashed into a cliff and was buried beneath the rubble, emitting a cold, clear light, mysterious and unfathomable.
"A divine object refined by ancient sages—this is a treasure!"
"Don't go over there. There isn't a single golden pattern there; it's completely shrouded in black light," Little Nannan's voice was soft and tender.
"What? Another land of certain death!" The big black dog was utterly disappointed.
Ye Fan and Pang Bo were also helpless. No one wanted more than they did to go over and investigate, to see whether it was a divine object left by ancient sages or some extraterrestrial civilization.
Finally, they approached the central area of Immortal Mountain. Twenty-seven great mountains towered into the clouds, pitch black like ink, all wrapped in band-like black mists, blocking their path.
Each one was a king among great mountains, with an imposing aura that was suffocating. They were majestic and towering, flowing with an eternal, terrifying energy.
On the black mountain bodies, despite the ancient trees reaching the sky and the lush greenery, they inspired fear!
"Twenty-seven great mountains block the eastern direction. Look, in every direction, there are rows of great mountains standing side by side. If each direction has twenty-seven, then there are one hundred and eight mountain kings standing tall, surrounding the central area of Immortal Mountain."
What exactly lay at the center of Immortal Mountain? All of them were filled with intense curiosity, but they knew well that approaching it meant certain death.
"Where is our path of life?" By now, they were almost in despair. If they advanced further, they would have to cross these great mountains and enter the very center.
"There's a chessboard over there, full of golden light..." Little Nannan pointed innocently toward an ancient forest.
"A chessboard full of golden light..." The big black dog jumped up, saying, "It must be the Gate of Life left by Emperor Void!"
Little Nannan led the way, and they entered this primeval forest. Sure enough, they saw a huge chessboard, crisscrossed with Dao patterns. However, except for the little girl, no one else could see the golden light.
"Great, this must be the Gate of Life. We can slowly figure out the way," Black Emperor said excitedly. This was left by a Great Emperor, containing the ultimate mysteries of heaven and earth—a divine treasure for him.
The big black dog crouched beside the chessboard and began to ponder. The others couldn't make sense of it and looked around.
"Not good! Something has appeared at the center of Immortal Mountain!" Li Heishui lowered his voice, his expression drastically changing.
"Something really has appeared!" Pang Bo was astonished.
The twenty-seven great mountains stood side by side ahead, blocking the central area. Demonic clouds swirled, and a creature flew out. At first, it was blurry, but after passing through the black mist, it became clear.
"He has no head!" Ye Fan's pupils contracted sharply. What he saw was beyond belief.
It was a headless knight, clad in black iron armor, tall and imposing, holding a black spear, with a posture that could subdue heaven and earth. Unfortunately, he had no head, and bloodstains marked his neck.
Beneath him was a tall stone horse, shaking its head and swishing its tail, raising its head and neighing, exuding a terrifying power. Each time its bowl-sized stone hooves landed, they shattered the void.
The appearance of such a headless knight at the center of Immortal Mountain was truly shocking. The only comfort was that he didn't come over; he only moved among the twenty-seven great mountains.
"What exactly is at the center of Immortal Mountain, to produce such a terrifying existence? Without a head, yet still alive!"
"We can't gauge his depth at all, but even that stone horse is already that terrifying. Imagine his strength!"
The headless knight was extremely fearsome. Although he was still over ten li away, the powerful aura he emitted could be clearly felt, surging like a tide.
"Black Emperor, have you figured out the way?" Ye Fan urged. If they couldn't leave quickly and the headless knight discovered them, disaster might strike.
He had rushed out from Immortal Mountain. What kind of existence he was, they couldn't tell. Even Little Nannan, with her extraordinary origins, might not be able to suppress him.
"Alright, this emperor has figured it out. This is an array pattern left by an ancient Great Emperor. We can use it to cross the void and leave," the big black dog said. It was overjoyed—not only could they escape, but it had also obtained such an array pattern, filling it with excitement.
"Are you sure you understand it?" Ye Fan asked. He felt that this dead dog was too unreliable; every time they crossed the void, they ended up millions of li off course. He was really afraid of a major problem here.
"Who is this emperor? Rest assured!" the big black dog said proudly, but in the end, it felt a bit guilty. "However, to be safe, we can go one by one. Who goes first?"
Hearing this, no one dared to speak. They really had no confidence in it.
The big black dog was furious. "You don't trust this emperor that much?"
"Alright, I'll go first!" Pang Bo said.
"No, we'll go together," Ye Fan stopped him.
Pang Bo laughed. "This dead dog has a point. Going one by one is safer. Don't worry, we're all people with great fortune and long lives."
The big black dog grew even more angry and annoyed. "How can you not trust me like this?!"
"I trust you. Make sure to send Pang Bo to a safe place," Ye Fan said.
"Rest assured, no problem at all. I'll send him to Wangkong City, which we just left not long ago," the big black dog said, looking as if everything was under control.
It selected a spot on the chessboard, had Pang Bo stand on it, activated the Dao patterns nearby, and with a flash of light, Pang Bo vanished instantly.
In his place, a series of strange runes appeared, flickering continuously, profound and mysterious.
Seeing this, the big black dog's mouth fell open, its tongue nearly dropping to the ground. It stammered, muttering softly, "Damn, how did it send him so far? What the hell!"
Ye Fan sensed something was wrong and grabbed it. "Where did you send Pang Bo?"
"Don't worry, it's not far. You'll definitely see him again in the future," the big black dog explained nervously.
Hearing this, Ye Fan was even more certain that it was incredibly far. He held it tight. "Tell me quickly! Where did you send Pang Bo?"
"Don't worry, it's close. Just to the west of the Eastern Wasteland," the big black dog explained.
"That's close? We're in the central region of the Eastern Wasteland, and you sent him to the western region. If he has to fly back on his own, it'll take at least two or three years!" Ye Fan was furious.
"Cough..." The big black dog coughed dryly, even more guilty. "You misunderstand. I mean... I accidentally sent him to the west of the Eastern Wasteland. Well, to be precise... the Central Province."
"Dead dog, I'll kill you!" Ye Fan grabbed the big black dog by the neck, furious and raging.
Pang Bo had been sent to the Central Province. If he had to fly back on his own, it would take at least five or six years. If it was far enough, maybe even a dozen years.
"This dead dog is too outrageous!" Tu Fei and Li Heishui were also dumbfounded and indignant.
"Let go!" The big black dog struggled, but it was clearly lacking confidence, knowing it had caused trouble.
"You said you'd send him to Wangkong City in the central region of the Eastern Wasteland, but you ended up off course to the Central Province! How can you be this ridiculous?!" Ye Fan wanted to beat it up.
"Cough, since ancient times, the Central Province has been a land of outstanding people and boundless ancient inheritances. Pang Bo has the Demon Emperor's ancient scripture; what he lacks most now is experience. Going to the Central Province is good for him," the big black dog argued plausibly.
"This dead dog is too unreliable!" Li Heishui and Tu Fei were also furious.
"Regardless, being able to teleport out of Immortal Mountain is something to be grateful for!" The big black dog grew more confident as it spoke, then suddenly remembered something and screamed, "Oh no! Half of the Enlightenment Tea is with him—over fifty leaves!"
Ye Fan had given Pang Bo the God-Slaying Whip to pick the Enlightenment Tea leaves, and they were still with him.
The big black dog screamed in regret, but Ye Fan breathed a sigh of relief. Pang Bo had gone to the Central Province alone; with these divine objects in hand, he at least had some protection.
"Divide the Enlightenment Tea divine leaves! Divide them now!" the big black dog shouted.
Ye Fan still had about fifty leaves on the Qilin seed in his hand. He divided them up, giving a dozen or so to the big black dog, Tu Fei, and Li Heishui each.
"Who's next?" the big black dog asked.
"I'd rather die than trust you!" Li Heishui and Tu Fei shook their heads together.
"If you don't trust me, you'll be trapped in Immortal Mountain," the big black dog sneered.
Finally, Tu Fei mustered his courage and stepped forward. "Dead dog, if you dare send me to the Central Province, I'll come back and settle the score with you!"
"Don't worry, that was just a mistake. This time, I guarantee it'll be fine!" the big black dog vowed.
Tu Fei stood still, stepping on the Dao patterns, not moving.
After Black Emperor pondered for a while, it activated the patterns, muttering to itself, "This time, it shouldn't be that outrageous."
"Swish"
With a flash of light, Tu Fei vanished, and a series of strange patterns appeared in his place, mysterious and profound.
The big black dog was dumbfounded, stammering, unable to speak.
Seeing its expression, Ye Fan and Li Heishui knew something was wrong. The dead dog had made another huge mistake. They pounced on it, grabbing it. "Where did you send Tu Fei?!"
"Cough, let go. This time it's not far. I sent him to the north," the big black dog said.
"The Northern Domain?!"
"Cough, it's... the Northern Plains."
"I'll kill you!" Li Heishui grabbed it and wouldn't let go.
The Northern Plains, alongside the Eastern Wasteland, Central Province, Southern Ridge, and Western Desert, was the northernmost part of this world, completely different from the Northern Domain of the Eastern Wasteland.
"The Northern Plains—over a million li without a trace of human habitation, incredibly desolate. It's either vast grasslands or great Gobi deserts. You could walk for a lifetime and never see a single person, and you sent him to that godforsaken place!" Li Heishui started fighting with Black Emperor.
"Boom!"
Suddenly, from the center of Immortal Mountain, the headless knight emitted a surging wave of energy. Riding the tall stone horse, he charged over. His hooves were as big as bowls, and each step shattered the void, terrifying beyond measure.
"Not good! The death knight is coming!" Ye Fan exclaimed.
"This time, we'll go together. Hurry, stand here!" the big black dog shouted.
"Doggy, be careful this time. Don't send us to the Western Desert," Little Nannan said innocently.