Dominator Emperor

Niu Fen and Shi Gandang didn’t dare to delay, immediately accepting their orders and departing.

Hearing that they were going to the Ancient Sky Corpse Land, the juniors couldn’t help but get excited. Nan Huairun couldn’t resist asking, ”Heh, Senior Brother, are you taking us?”

Li Qiye glanced at him and shook his head. ”Not this time. I’m going to meet an Earth Immortal, and your cultivation is still far too lacking. You’d give the game away in an instant!”

Hearing he was going to meet an Earth Immortal, even Tu Buyu was visibly moved. As for Nan Huairun and the other juniors, they didn’t dare ask to tag along again.

”While I’m away, these little ones are in your hands,” Li Qiye finally instructed Tu Buyu.

”Don’t worry, Senior Brother. I’ll look after them,” Tu Buyu said with a broad smile.

After sending the juniors away, Li Qiye called Li Shuangyan and Chen Baojiao into his room. He then took out a vial of fresh blood—it was the blood of the young girl who had been with the Su Yin Medicine Elder.

”I’ll teach you a method of deception. Tomorrow, drip this blood onto the center of your brow and keep it flowing just beneath the surface of your skin. It will make your bloodline appear to be a different one—at least, it will create that illusion.” Li Qiye handed the vial to Li Shuangyan and taught her the method.

”This is to use a fake bloodline to deceive an Earth Immortal!” Li Shuangyan wasn’t slow; upon hearing this, she couldn’t help but be moved.

Li Qiye smiled. ”You guessed right.” Then, he instructed Chen Baojiao, ”Tomorrow, you will act as Shuangyan’s Maid. In short, just listen to my cues and play your part well!”

The next day, Li Qiye had Li Shuangyan, Chen Baojiao, Niu Fen, Shi Gandang, and himself all change into plain white robes. The five of them looked as if they were heading to a tomb to pay respects to their ancestors.

At the same time, Li Qiye put away one of the two basins of Celestial Sacrifice Soup, placing the remaining one on a palanquin-like table laden with offerings for Niu Fen and Shi Gandang to carry.

Finally, Li Qiye took out the Roof Tile he had bought from the Su Yin Medicine Elder and had Li Shuangyan hold it with both hands. He said to her, ”From now on, you are the Su Yin Medicine Elder’s female disciple, Wu Binglan. You are a descendant of the Wu Family, and the blood of the Martial God flows through your veins. As for me, I’m the husband who married into the Wu Family. Got it?”

The story sounded a bit strange, but Li Shuangyan committed Li Qiye’s words to memory.

And so, Li Qiye’s five-person ritual procession was finally ready to depart. When Chi Yun, the Supreme Elder of the Nine Saints Demon Gate, heard they were going to the Ancient Sky Corpse Land, he was utterly shocked.

”Don’t worry, we’ll be back before the Netherworld Ship appears. If those old men from the War God Hall arrive early, just make them wait,” Li Qiye instructed Chi Yun.

These words left Chi Yun speechless. The Elders of the War God Hall were monumental figures. Forget him, even their Senior Brother Sword Master wouldn’t dare to slight them. Yet, Li Qiye was planning to just leave them hanging.

Standing at the border of the Ancient Sky Corpse Land, Li Qiye handed a sachet to Li Shuangyan and the others. ”This is a Corpse-Expelling Qi powder I refined. Wear it at your waist and, whatever you do, don’t lose it. It’s an extremely precious item. With this, you won’t be affected by Corpse Qi even when entering an Earth Immortal’s territory!”

This was the very same miraculous medicine Li Qiye had refined earlier. To concoct this batch, the Nine Saints Demon Gate had paid a fortune to acquire all the necessary medicinal ingredients. If not for Li Qiye, the sect would never have been willing to bear such an exorbitant cost.

Li Shuangyan and the others quickly fastened the sachets to their waists. As soon as they did, waves of medicinal fragrance began to emanate from them.

Only then did Li Qiye lead them into the Ancient Sky Corpse Land. Li Qiye walked in front. Li Shuangyan followed close behind, holding the Roof Tile with both hands. Chen Baojiao came next, and finally Shi Gandang and Niu Fen, carrying the offerings.

After stepping into the Ancient Sky Corpse Land, Li Qiye began to sprinkle Guiding Money—cut and folded from Yellow Paper—at regular intervals along the path.

Even so, as they ventured deeper into the Ancient Sky Corpse Land, Earth Corpses began to stir, slowly rising and crawling out from their lairs.

It seemed the Earth Corpses possessed some level of discernment. Seeing Li Qiye’s group dressed in white robes, carrying offerings, and paving their path with Guiding Money, the risen corpses did not attack immediately.

However, the Earth Corpses didn’t leave. They began to trail behind Li Qiye’s party, their numbers swelling. The deeper the group went, the more powerful the pursuing corpses became, until even Saint Venerable Level Earth Corpses started to appear.

The sight of a long trail of Earth Corpses following them, surrounded by roiling Corpse Qi, made Li Shuangyan and the others’ skin crawl. However, the thick Corpse Qi was held at bay by the medicinal fragrance, allowing them to breathe a sigh of relief.

At last, an Earth Corpse shimmering with Divine Rings blocked their path. With such a powerful corpse barring the way, all the other Earth Corpses closed in, surrounding them.

In an instant, Li Qiye’s group was completely surrounded by the Earth Corpses. Seeing so many of them trapped, even Niu Fen couldn’t help but tense up, his gaze turning sharp.

But Li Qiye shook his head. He stepped forward, took a deep breath, and boomed in a long, drawn-out cry, ”From the Middle Grand Realm, the Qi Shengwu Family! We, the six hundred and thirty-seventh generation, reflecting upon the heroic spirit of our forebears, commemorating the great deeds of our ancestors! Today, we bring our servants and offerings to worship the Martial God of the Profound Dragon Cave—the Primordial Ancestor of the Qi Shengwu Family! And to worship the Panlong Mountain Master—the second ancestor of the Wu Family! We, the later generations, yearn for our ancestors. Our ancestor is an Earth Immortal of this very land! As descendants here to pay our respects, we are to be granted passage! Sacred ones, make way!”

The Earth Corpses stared at Li Qiye’s group, still not moving. The eyes of some flashed with a red light.

”Our ancestor, the Martial God of the Profound Dragon Cave, was bestowed a gift by the Tun Ri Immortal Emperor! This family heirloom, a single Roof Tile, is the proof of our bloodline!” Li Qiye bellowed, his posture and tone so convincing that an unknowing observer would have mistaken him for a real Priest.

At a glance from Li Qiye, Li Shuangyan slowly raised the Roof Tile she held in her hands. All the Earth Corpses fixed their gaze upon the elevated tile.

The atmosphere seemed to freeze. Both Shi Gandang and Niu Fen held their breath, ready to fight their way out of the encirclement at the first sign of trouble.

The tense silence lasted for a long moment. Finally, one by one, the Earth Corpses slowly retreated, returning to their lairs.

Seeing this, Li Shuangyan and the others finally let out a sigh of relief. The whole affair was so strange and unnatural that no one would believe them if they told the tale.

Once the Earth Corpses had retreated, Li Shuangyan couldn’t help but ask in a low voice, ”The Martial God of the Profound Dragon Cave? The Panlong Mountain Master?” She had never heard of such titles before.

”For ancestral worship, four things are indispensable: first, the Ancestral Artifact; second, the ancestral title; third, the offerings and ceremony; and fourth, the Celestial Sacrifice Soup!” Li Qiye explained in a low voice.

”The ancestral title is what your ancestor receives after being buried here and becoming an Earth Immortal. Earth Immortals entrench themselves in Dragon Caves and proclaim themselves kings! When you perform the rites, you must announce your ancestor’s title in this place. If no such figure exists, you won’t be allowed to enter. Fortunately, they’re both still here,” Li Qiye said.

Li Qiye’s group continued deeper into the Ancient Sky Corpse Land. As they advanced, they saw more and more Earth Corpses and coffins.

The Ancient Sky Corpse Land truly lived up to its reputation as a burial ground. Countless geniuses and once-unrivaled figures were interred here.

However, as they entered the domain of the Earth Immortals, the number of Earth Corpses and coffins surprisingly dwindled. On some mountain ranges, there wasn’t a single Earth Corpse to be seen.

But once inside the Earth Immortals’ domain, the landscape transformed. The mountains were immense, and the ranges stretched on without end.

Entering the Earth Immortals’ domain felt like stepping into another world entirely. The mountains and rivers were majestic and boundless. There were Divine Peaks that touched the heavens and Immortal Peaks that pierced the cosmos. The grandest of them had suns, moons, and stars drifting among them, with a single Divine Peak standing like the very center of the Celestial Universe.

In this land, Divine Stones and Treasure Gold were abundant. Immortal Reishi and Treasure Trees swayed, their brilliance dazzling. Within the rivers, one could even spot Flood Dragons lurking in the depths.

Standing in this place created a strange illusion. How could this be the Ancient Sky Corpse Land, a place said to be the final resting place of countless cultivators? It was clearly a Divine Land!

Here, mountain ranges coiled like submerged dragons, Giant Peaks crouched like tigers, and Divine Peaks soared like phoenixes. The sacred mountains and treasured peaks were incomparably magnificent. Anyone who saw them would be struck with awe. This vast, beautiful landscape was a land of converging dragons!

Throughout the ages, it was no wonder so many invincible existences were willing to be buried here. Even if this land of Dragon Veins and ley lines couldn’t grant rebirth, it was still a superb burial ground!

Li Shuangyan, Chen Baojiao, and the others gazed upon the endless landscape, sighing in admiration. The domain of the Earth Immortals was so magnificent that anyone would likely be willing to be interred here after death.

Looking at the scenery before them, Li Shuangyan and Chen Baojiao were stunned. They had assumed the domain of the Earth Immortals would be just like the other parts of the burial ground, filled with countless Earth Corpses and reeking of Corpse Qi. The scene before them now was so unbelievable they couldn’t accept this was still the Ancient Sky Corpse Land. Anyone who didn’t know better would assume it was a Divine Land!

”Why have all the Earth Corpses disappeared here?” Chen Baojiao asked, surprised. After they stepped into the Earth Immortals’ domain, the few Earth Corpses they did see would hide and refuse to come out.

”This is the territory of an Earth Immortal,” Li Qiye said. ”This is a place where Dragon Veins intersect, forming a nexus—a supreme and wondrous land far beyond what any Fengshui Treasure Land could compare to. Of course an Earth Immortal wouldn’t share such a prime location with Earth Corpses. A Treasure Lord can’t drive away Earth Corpses, but an Earth Immortal can! Any Earth Corpse that can remain in this place is absolutely an extraordinary existence, perhaps even someone who was once invincible!”

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