The Journey of Immortal Cultivation

The Shadow of Yang Ze, standing to one side, understood and began to recount the entire series of events in detail.

The Barbarians had grown increasingly powerful during the Late Ancient Times. Under the rule of Barbarian King Yin Wushang, the Barbarians flourished unprecedentedly in the Southern Continent, with Barbarian activities seen in almost every corner. The Barbarians were naturally strong and revered only the barbarian ancestor, differing from humans in that they never worshiped any demons or gods. As this race spread across the continent, their friction with the Demon Clan escalated continuously, eventually evolving into a blatant struggle for survival space.

In this scenario, Yin Wushang took up the baton of his ancestors and launched several wars against the Demon Clan, emerging victorious more often than not, achieving remarkable results, and gaining unparalleled fame, renowned throughout the universe.

However, Yin Wushang was petty and suspicious, always worried that his eldest son, Yin Wumie, wanted to usurp his position. Unfortunately, Yin Wumie was indeed a man of great talent and strategy. The rift between the father and son deepened, becoming irreconcilable, and they turned against each other.

At this time, Yin Wumie’s power had grown immensely. Two tigers cannot share one mountain; after a fierce struggle, Yin Wushang had to leave with his followers.

Frankly speaking, it was Yin Wushang who forcibly pushed Yin Wumie to rebel. But, of course, the old man wouldn’t see it that way. The Barbarians’ bodies were different from demons’. Yin Wushang had hurt his essence in his early campaigns, knowing he could not live much longer, and that the position of the Barbarian King would soon belong to Yin Wumie. He was extremely unwilling, so he grasped two Holy Artifacts of the Barbarians, hid them, and ordered Yin Jiu You’s capable subordinate, Yang Ze, most adept at the art of stratagem, to construct his tomb.

At that time, there was a rumor among the Royal Family of the Barbarians: the third Earth Evil Vein had been discovered, but its true location was known only to the Old Barbarian King.

Yang Ze knew the rumor was true. When he first stood in front of this Earth Evil Vein, he was almost moved to tears. However, Yin Wushang’s order was to use a Spirit Gathering Array to completely cover up the Evil Qi from the Earth Vein, not allowing a trace to leak!

No matter how shocked or resistant he felt, he had to obey the king’s command, meticulously overseeing this secret construction. As a result, the construction of the outer mausoleum of the underground palace had just been completed when the Barbarians captured a young Chi Wen. Yang Ze, with his broad knowledge, understood that the ninth son of the Dragon contained another universe inside its belly, so he had an inspiration: build the Inner Mausoleum underground, no matter how delicately it was arranged, it could not withstand the ravages of time. If there were a natural disaster, it might crack open at any moment, allowing outsiders to enter the Inner Mausoleum and steal the Treasure. Instead of that—

He changed his plan, relocating the Inner Mausoleum, initially intended to be further constructed underground, into the belly of the Chi Wen. At the same time, he designed the final hurdle for invaders of the underground palace—the Flesh Furnace. Anyone who could squeeze into the Flesh Furnace would think their strength and luck were quite good, never expecting that it was actually a fake tomb?!

Upon speaking of this, Yang Ze gnawed his teeth; if not for his lack of a physical body, he would be grinding his molars loudly by now: "I meticulously designed everything, yet I didn’t expect that old thief Yin Wushang to show murderous intent once the tomb was mostly completed. I fled but was captured and brought back, had my eyes pierced, nose cut, and tongue cut out. Originally, he probably intended to execute me, but later thought it wasteful without making good use of waste, so he tossed me into this fake tomb and painted an Array under the coffin, turning me into the Artifact Spirit of this Flesh Furnace!"

With an Artifact Spirit, the grade of the Magic Artifact increased substantially, becoming even more indestructible. The sad part was that, as the Artifact Spirit, he couldn’t disobey the master’s command. Even though he was tortured to death by Yin Wushang, even though the Barbarians had turned to dust in history, it still had to loyally carry out the master’s final command, which was to shut down the Teleportation Array once foreign enemies invaded.

Changtian said lightly, "This is what humans mean by ’the cunning hare is dead, and the hound is cooked.’ Had you truly been wise, how could you not have foreseen that he would slaughter a hundred thousand laborers here? How could he let you, the insider, leave alive to disclose the location of his tomb to others, especially Yin Wumie?"

Yang Ze remained silent.

Sometimes, "loyalty" is also a shackle, obscuring the road ahead.

After a long time, he snickered coldly, "Fortunately, I wasn’t just head-down working. As the construction of the tomb neared the end, that old dog’s demeanor gave him away, and his gaze towards me was like looking at a dead person. So I tampered a bit in the real tomb as well; if someone with determination wants to enter, they can still get in."

As soon as he said this, both Changtian and Yin Jiu You looked askance. They heard Yang Ze mutter a few words, and both found it baffling. Changtian secretly felt fortunate that Yang Ze had long died at Yin Wushang’s hands, and after breaking through the Flesh Furnace this time, as an Artifact Spirit, he had to perish, otherwise, this person’s wisdom was no less than Miluo’s. If he were to assist Yin Jiu You, it would add wings to a tiger, making them even harder to deal with.

After finishing recounting these matters, Yang Ze said hatefully, "I know my Divine Soul hasn’t perished, so I’ve been hoping someone would find their way here. But this tomb is designed so that even I don’t know how to get out. So many years passed, and no one has come. It’s deadly quiet here; anyone else might have gone mad, but I couldn’t go crazy after becoming an Artifact Spirit. The Hundred Sons Ghost Mother on the outer tomb gate is also brainless, making it difficult to even have a conversation... alas..." He let out a long sigh, as if trying to vent out all the loneliness in his heart, and finally couldn’t help but ask, "Just how long has passed in the outside world?"

Yin Jiu You said lightly, "Just over thirty thousand years." (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for recommendation tickets and Monthly Tickets on Qidian.com; your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read on m.qidian.com.)