Immortal Martial Emperor

"Hong Yu went into the Land of the Buried Gods?"

"How is that possible? D-doesn’t he know that it’s a place of certain death, even for Primordial Spirit Realm experts?"

"Sigh, he was forced into it by the Blood Wen Palace Master, with no other choice!"

"That may be true, but for Hong Yu to sever one of the Blood Wen Palace Master’s arms with only his Primordial Core Realm cultivation... that’s already a terrifying feat!"

"He’s definitely a true Celestial Pride Son. A pity that heaven is jealous of great talents!"

A crowd of experts stood outside the Land of the Buried Gods, their scattered conversations filling the air.

A Deputy General stepped forward, looked at the silent Meng Chenggong, and whispered, "Grand General, Hong Yu is sure to die in the Land of the Buried Gods. Should we report this news to the Crown Prince?"

"The Crown Prince? Go ahead, tell him."

Just as he finished speaking, Meng Chenggong raised a hand to stop him. After a moment of contemplation, he said, "Let’s wait a little longer."

The Deputy General was stunned and asked hesitantly, "Grand General, could it be that you think Hong Yu can still make it back alive?"

Another Deputy General chimed in, "Grand General, you should know how terrifying the Land of the Buried Gods is. Even Primordial Spirit Realm experts who enter are guaranteed to die. How could he possibly survive?"

Meng Chenggong’s gaze was deep as he murmured in a voice only he could hear, "Perhaps for anyone else, entering would mean certain death. However, in all things, when extremity is reached, a reversal will occur; there is always an opposite side. Although the Land of the Buried Gods is a place of peril, it often represents immense opportunity as well."

He couldn’t help but recall the words Hong Yu had spoken before entering the Land of the Buried Gods.

"If I do not die, I will annihilate the Blood Demon Palace!"

That single sentence was like the tolling of a great bell, reverberating and striking within his mind.

Meng Chenggong took a deep breath, a glimmer of hope and excitement flickering in his eyes. ’Now I find myself actually looking forward to him coming back alive and marching on the Blood Demon Palace!’

Unwittingly, Meng Chenggong had already come to approve of Hong Yu.

If Meng Chenggong was looking forward to Hong Yu’s return, then the Blood Demon Palace and Blood Wen were absolutely the ones who most wanted him to die in the Land of the Buried Gods.

A venomous and sharp light shone in Blood Wen’s eyes.

His right arm was now an empty sleeve. Although he had stopped the bleeding, waves of bone-deep, piercing pain still assaulted him.

Blood Wen gritted his teeth, his fury uncontrollable. "Bastard! You damn bastard! Hong Yu, I won’t let you die an easy death."

At this thought, Blood Wen’s cold and venomous gaze turned toward Meng Chenggong.

SWOOSH!

Blood Wen shot in Meng Chenggong’s direction.

Meng Chenggong was taken aback, his expression changing. "Everyone, listen up! Protect Xu Wudi!"

SWOOSH! SWOOSH! SWOOSH!

The experts behind Meng Chenggong all moved to surround and protect Xu Wudi.

Meng Chenggong glared at Blood Wen. "Blood Wen, what do you think you’re doing?"

"What am I doing?"

Blood Wen roared hysterically, "Hand over Xu Wudi!"

"Hmph! Blood Wen, you dare act so brazenly before me?" Meng Chenggong stated forcefully.

Blood Wen’s gaze flickered.

Even though his power had increased after devouring Liang Hunran, his body was not in peak condition, and he had lost an arm. He was unwilling to face Meng Chenggong at this moment.

Blood Wen took a deep breath. "Are you sure you won’t hand him over?"

Meng Chenggong shook his head.

Blood Wen suddenly burst into laughter, his face terrifyingly savage. "Fine, fine, fine! You actually want to oppose me. Very good. Meng Chenggong, you are very good. I will remember you." He suddenly revealed a ferocious grin. "I recall that Hong Yu has a good relationship with the Xu Family, correct? Heh heh..."

As he spoke, Blood Wen soared into the sky with a chilling smile.

Meng Chenggong’s expression tightened, and he let out a long, low sigh. ’With Blood Wen’s insane resentment, once the Profound Ice Secret Realm opens again and he returns to the Frozen City, I fear the Xu Family will face annihilation!’

With a sigh of emotion, Meng Chenggong looked toward the Land of the Buried Gods...

’Hong Yu, will you fall here, or can you perform another miracle?’

...

Within the Land of the Buried Gods, there were graves everywhere.

The graves were not particularly tall. They were packed closely together, leaning against one another in a strange arrangement that gave off a mystical feeling.

Surrounding these graves were towering white trees that shot straight up into the sky. Their enormous canopies were snow-white, creating a sense of sanctity.

When the wind blew, some white, flocculent blossoms would occasionally drift down.

It was all quite peculiar and extraordinary.

Accompanied by the white blossoms, these unmarked graves looked surprisingly peaceful.

Suddenly...

PFFT!

One of the low graves in the middle burst open.

As the soil churned, a pale hand slowly reached out.

The hand’s five fingers flexed, pausing in the air for a long moment before suddenly clenching with a BOOM, unleashing a powerful Qi Vortex.

The Qi Vortex danced, blasting away the earth from the grave mound.

As the powerful energy pulsed...

A sharp presence shot out from the grave. The person wore black combat attire, but it was tattered and torn, and his body was covered in bloody streaks, making for a rather wretched sight.

This was none other than Hong Yu.

Hong Yu gazed around blankly, his expression a mixture of confusion and bewilderment. ’This is the Land of the Buried Gods? The legendary place where even Primordial Spirit Realm experts have almost no chance of survival?’

He scanned the low graves all around him.

These graves were very strange.

Some, like the one he had emerged from, were blasted open, while others were completely intact.

’What in the world is this place?’ Hong Yu wondered.

Just then, an ancient, weathered voice drifted out from the dimness. "You’ve come."

"Hm?"

Hong Yu froze and looked toward the source of the voice.

There was no one in the darkness.

There was only a Cyan Lamp floating in mid-air, flickering in and out of brightness, as if it could be extinguished at any moment.

Somehow, Hong Yu just knew that the voice he had just heard had come from this Cyan Lamp.

Taking a deep breath, Hong Yu cupped his fists. "This junior, Hong Yu, pays his respects to Senior Cyan Lamp!"

"Oh, you’re quite polite!"

The Cyan Lamp’s light swayed, and the ancient voice, as if it had traversed the Primordial Chaos, slowly spoke again. "I am the guide of this Land of Life and Death. It is not wrong for you to call me Cyan Lamp."

"Senior Cyan Lamp, may I ask what this place is? On the stone monument outside, I saw the four words for ’Land of the Buried Gods.’ Why do you call it the Land of Life and Death?" Hong Yu organized his thoughts and asked.

The Cyan Lamp replied faintly, "The Land of Life and Death, the Land of the Buried Gods... is there any difference? Even gods who have transcended the Heaven and Earth Profound Yellow cannot escape the concept of life and death!"

’Even gods cannot escape life and death?’

Hong Yu was stunned. It felt as if a patch of fog in his mind had been cleared away, allowing a sliver of light to shine through.

The ways of the world.

It seemed he had never heard of anything truly ancient and eternal.

As powerful as the Dragon Race, who once ruled this world—hadn’t they also vanished without a trace?

Life!

All things have life and their own path of existence.

Death!

Even god-like beings cannot escape it!

Once he understood this point, Hong Yu suddenly found that the path in his mind for fusing his various True Martial Arts Intents to break through to the Mysteries of Martial Arts had become increasingly clear and distinct.

He took a deep breath and bowed respectfully to the Cyan Lamp. "Thank you for your guidance, Senior. This junior has been enlightened!"

"Hehe..."

The ancient voice sounded calm, but Hong Yu could discern a hint of amusement in it. "Little one, come with me."

The Cyan Lamp swayed, floating forward with its flickering cyan glow.

Hong Yu followed closely behind.

He discovered that the Cyan Lamp’s speed was incredibly fast. Even when he secretly used his Electric Flash, he couldn’t get any closer to it; a subtle distance was always maintained between them.

This made Hong Yu even more wary of underestimating the Cyan Lamp’s existence.

VMMMM!

The man and the lamp walked for an unknown amount of time.

Suddenly, a bright light appeared ahead. There was a huge lake here.

The lake was extremely peculiar.

One side was bone-chillingly cold, radiating a ghastly white light that gave one the illusion of seeing frost everywhere.

The other side was strangely warm.

This warmth wasn’t scorching heat, but a refreshing and natural feeling that invigorated the soul.

Extreme cold and extreme warmth converged in perfect harmony.

"Senior Cyan Lamp, what is this place?" Hong Yu asked.

"This is the Life and Death Yin Yang Pool."

The Cyan Lamp said faintly, "Everyone who enters the Land of the Buried Gods gets one chance to enter the Life and Death Yin Yang Pool. However..."

The Cyan Lamp swayed its cyan light.

The ancient voice continued slowly, "To this day, of all the people who have entered the Life and Death Yin Yang Pool, not a single one has left alive. You saw it just now, didn’t you? That vast graveyard outside... it’s filled with all the people who, over the years, entered the Land of the Buried Gods, entered the Life and Death Yin Yang Pool, and ultimately died!"

"What?"

Hong Yu’s face turned pale with shock.

He hadn’t counted them carefully just now.

But a single glance had told him there were no fewer than one hundred thousand graves.

Did that mean that over one hundred thousand people had entered the Land of the Buried Gods before him, only to all perish?

The Cyan Lamp said, "The Life and Death Yin Yang Pool is both a great opportunity and a fatal poison. Many who could be called Celestial Pride Sons out in the world couldn’t withstand the immense impact and trial upon entering the pool, and were buried here directly. Of course, if you can successfully return from the Life and Death Yin Yang Pool, the benefits you gain will surely be astonishing!"

"Little one, go in!"

The Cyan Lamp urged.

A flicker of uncertainty crossed Hong Yu’s eyes.

Those who dared to enter the Land of the Buried Gods were either supremely skilled and bold, or they were desperate yet possessed a tough and tenacious will.

But over a hundred thousand of these Celestial Pride Sons had all died here?

This...

’If I go in, can I make it out alive?’

"Little one, go in! You have no way to resist here. Unless you pass the trial of the Life and Death Yin Yang Pool, even if you don’t enter the pool, I will kill you!" the Cyan Lamp said nonchalantly.

But Hong Yu could feel a killing intent enveloping him.

He didn’t doubt the Cyan Lamp’s words in the slightest.

’Countless experts at the Primordial Spirit Realm and above have been buried here. What chance do I have with my mere Primordial Core Realm cultivation?’

Gazing at the Life and Death Yin Yang Pool before him, Hong Yu took a deep breath as many images flashed through his mind.

Beichen Celestial Frost, his parents, his little sister...

And Blood Wen, who had hunted him relentlessly.

Hong Yu clenched his fists and leaped into the Life and Death Yin Yang Pool, which radiated both extreme cold and extreme heat.

The moment he entered, excruciating pain spread throughout his body. Frostbite appeared all over him, and his skin began to crack inch by inch.

The crisis of death instantly enveloped him...