Chapter 882 - 317: Fallen into the Tomb (Third Update)
Amidst the sea of fire, it seemed endless.
Mu Qingge followed Xuxu into the fire pit, only to discover that beneath the outer layer of flames, there was an abyss with no visible bottom.
In that abyss, there was a faint cold air, bone-chilling, starkly contrasting with the fiery sea above.
Not far from her was Xuxu, who had been knocked unconscious. When she fell into the sea of fire, it seemed she had some life-saving treasure on her, sparing her life yet leaving her in a sorry state.
Mu Qingge’s eyes flashed sharply as she rushed towards Xuxu.
Getting closer, she grabbed Xuxu’s shoulder clothes, pulling her to the front. Mu Qingge used Spiritual Power to support her body, changed direction, and flew towards the entrance.
However, just as they were about to pass through the sea of fire, a tongue of flame struck towards Mu Qingge.
In a rush, Mu Qingge wrapped Xuxu’s body with Bone Demon Flame, forcefully sending her out, while she herself was relentlessly attacked by the flame, descending towards the abyss.
...
On the ground, the battle continued.
However, Heavenly Net Lord and Lin Xuanfeng were clearly no match for the elder Long Sheng, being beaten mercilessly.
Ji Yaohua and the five others watched the trio’s battle, even feeling that the elder Long Sheng was deliberately tormenting them, refusing to let them die swiftly.
At this moment, Xuxu was cast out.
As she emerged from the sea of fire, appearing on the giant pit above, Yao Xinghai reacted quickly, catching her.
The elder Long Sheng had been observing the situation at the giant pit, and upon seeing his granddaughter come out, he immediately smashed Heavenly Net Lord’s head with the Dragon Head Staff in his hand and, with a reverse blow, shattered Lin Xuanfeng’s Dantian, killing them both.
These two renowned, long-feuding monsters died like this in the Divine Tomb, at the hands of the elder Long Sheng.
This battle left Ji Yaohua and the five others’ hearts unsettled.
Such a fight was beyond their capacity to intervene.
Having killed Heavenly Net Lord and Lin Xuanfeng, the elder Long Sheng swiftly approached Xuxu. His speed bore no resemblance to a hunched, frail elder.
"Xuxu!" The elder Long Sheng said anxiously.
Yao Xinghai administered an elixir to Xuxu, and shortly after, she awakened slowly.
"Grandfather..." Upon seeing a familiar relative once more, Xuxu couldn’t help but feel a lump in her throat and threw herself into the elder Long Sheng’s arms.
The elder Long Sheng patted her back, softly comforting her, "It’s okay, it’s okay. With grandfather here, it’s okay." This appearance, completely unlike the ruthless elder from moments ago.
The image of the grandfather and granddaughter surviving together made Ji Yaohua and the five others quite uncomfortable.
They stood aside, watching coldly, their hearts concerned about Mu Qingge’s safety. Although seeing Xuxu assured them that Mu Qingge wasn’t dead, they still couldn’t be at ease without seeing her.
"Senior, your granddaughter’s life was exchanged with Qingge’s." After a while, Ji Yaohua couldn’t help but say.
Xuxu stopped crying, looking at them with tears in her eyes. The elder Long Sheng also gathered his emotions, saying to the five, "That girl managed to throw Xuxu up, which means she’s fine. I won’t go back on my promise to her. From now on, I will accompany you until we find that girl."
...
Mu Qingge stood on the ground, surveying her surroundings, casually dusting off the ashes clinging to her.
This place seemed to be another graveyard.
Mu Qingge looked around and saw many tombstones. The graves here were not too different from the outside world, all tumuli, with tombstones.
Mu Qingge looked up and found the sky here seemed like a well opening, with only a ring of the sky visible. And here, with its red soil, seemed as if scorched by flames, carrying a hot aura.
There weren’t many graves here, roughly counting, only twenty or thirty.
Mu Qingge sniffed, the tip of her nose entwined with a sulfur-like smell, making it quite uncomfortable.
’Those fires seem somewhat different.’ Mu Qingge said inwardly. Her body was transformed into an Abnormal Fire Body by Yuanyuan, possessing a Fire Spirit Root. It should be immune to fire. Yet, those tongues of flame carried a heavenly might she couldn’t approach, seemingly able to easily penetrate her defenses.
If an ordinary person descended here, they might truly turn to ashes.
"Since I’m here, I might as well take it easy." Mu Qingge remained quite calm. She murmured to herself and then walked towards those tombs.
This place was very quiet, as if no one had visited for a long time.
This thought flashed through Mu Qingge’s mind, and she paused, humorously shaking her head, internally commenting: ’The Divine Tomb has not been opened for a long time, naturally no one has visited.’
Yet she was also puzzled.
Why would this graveyard be so strange, the inhaled air seemed to ignite.
Mu Qingge walked to the nearest grave and saw the content on the tombstone—
"West Sea Divine Continent, Flame Monarch Zhu Xing’s tomb." Mu Qingge softly murmured the contents of the stone tablet. "Flame Monarch Zhu Xing, at age ten broke through the Sixth Layer of Spirit Void Realm, revealing his talent..."
The tablet recorded the deceased’s life.
Upon reading it, Mu Qingge roughly understood who was interred inside.
In the groove meant to house the Divine Status on the tablet, it was empty, covered by accumulated red dust.
Mu Qingge gently wiped the groove, the red dust carried a burning aura, sticking to her fingertips. Mu Qingge softly rubbed her fingertips, removing the red dust and muttered, "Seems like, a very long time ago, his Divine Status was taken."
Without lingering at this tomb, she continued walking forward.
Arriving at the second tombstone, she looked at the inscription on the tombstone. "South Sea Divine Continent, Flame Emperor..."
The third tombstone—
"North Sea Divine Continent, Fire Monarch..."
The fourth tombstone—
"East Sea Divine Continent, Fire Venerable..."
The fifth tombstone... the sixth tombstone...
In the blink of an eye, Mu Qingge had already walked past ten tombstones. The titles of the deceased on the inscriptions sparked a guess in her heart.
"Could it be that this cemetery is specially reserved for the powerful Divine Clan members affiliated with fire from the Four Seas Divine Land?" Mu Qingge speculated.
On these tombs, some divine statuses had already been taken, while others remained.
Yet, Mu Qingge did not touch any of them.
Because, these divine statuses were not her goal. And in helping Mei Zizhong and others to find divine statuses, she had a thought upon seeing this cemetery.
"Since there is a cemetery specifically for fire element cultivators, is there also one for Alchemists?" Mu Qingge felt that for Mei Zizhong and others, who were Alchemists, finding divine statuses belonging to Alchemists would be the best match.
Suddenly, as she passed by a tomb, Mu Qingge seemed to feel a pull from her bloodline that made her stop.
She furrowed her brows slightly, sensing the feeling coming from her bloodline.
That pull made her turn her head, her gaze falling upon the tombstone beside her.
This tombstone, neither new nor old. Inscribed upon it: ’West Sea Divine Continent, Tomb of Supreme of Sang. Artifact refining through Heavenly Fire, Supreme ascends, Four Seas bow.’
"Sang? Artifact refining?" Mu Qingge’s eyebrows rose, as she seemed to understand where the pull in her bloodline came from.
"Could this be the tomb of the ancestor of the Sang Clan?" Mu Qingge was somewhat uncertain. This is too coincidental unless it was a deliberate arrangement by the spirit of the Sang Clan’s ancestor from the netherworld, which led her here.
Standing here, she couldn’t help but wonder if being blocked by the tongues of flame and falling here was intentionally organized.
"Divine Status!" Mu Qingge’s gaze fell upon the groove on the tombstone.
In the groove, the divine status belonging to the tomb owner was very calm, with a faint thread of blood-red within the crystalline shine. A gentle glow enveloped the entire tombstone, carrying a sacred aura.
Mu Qingge lifted her hand, extending her finger to slowly touch the divine status.
With just a touch, the glow on the divine status flickered for a moment. Immediately, that thread of blood-red seeped out from the divine status and directly entered Mu Qingge’s fingertip, quickly merging into her bloodline along her arm.
This scene surprised Mu Qingge, yet she did not withdraw her hand.
Because she felt peace and intimacy emanating from that thread of blood-red.
’My descendant, you have finally arrived!’
Suddenly, a voice echoed in her mind.
Mu Qingge paused, responding in her heart, ’Sang Clan ancestor?’
’Indeed, the bloodline I left possesses the artifact refining talent of the Sang Clan.’ The voice replied.
However, Mu Qingge understood.
The one conversing with her was not the true ancestor of the Sang Clan, but the thread of red aura. It must be a trace of the ancestor’s soul left within the divine status to communicate with future generations.
’Child, what is your name?’ the voice asked.
’Mu Qingge.’ Mu Qingge replied.
’Mu?’ The voice was slightly surprised then quickly relieved, laughing: ’I didn’t expect, after my fall, the strongest inheritance of my bloodline would be in an offspring with a different surname. No matter, it’s just a surname.’
’You came for my divine status?’ the voice inquired.
Mu Qingge answered, ’Yes. I promised the Supreme Elders of the Sang Clan to find your divine status, reactivate the Sang Clan’s bloodline, and restore its glory.’
’Good! Ambitious indeed!’ the voice exclaimed.
’It’ paused briefly, then continued: ’Take the divine status. Your bloodline is strong, I believe you can reactivate the Sang Clan’s bloodline. Moreover, I’ve left you a gift in the Divine Demon Continent. Don’t forget to retrieve it once you enter.’
After saying this, a map of the Divine Demon Continent appeared vividly in Mu Qingge’s mind.
"What is it?" Mu Qingge asked.
However, the voice didn’t answer her question again, instead saying: "Remember, when you reach the Divine Demon Continent, beware of the Lesser Emperor..."
Lesser what Emperor?
What Lesser Emperor?
Why be cautious? Is this a group or a person?
The words from the Sang Clan ancestor were unclear, as though some parts were swallowed, leaving Mu Qingge with a vague clue. Her mind was filled with confusion, yet no one else was there to answer her.