Alchemy Emperor of the Divine Dao

Ling Han naturally was not just running around randomly. Actually, he had been checking that old map all this while, and going in the direction indicated by the arrow.

A swamp had appeared ahead of him, and a blood-red mist was wafting right above the swamp, causing an instinctive coldness to rise up within him. That substance could not be touched, or even one with his physique would be instantly turned into bones.

He did not know why he would have this kind of instinctive feeling, but did not doubt it in the slightest.

However, right at this moment, the ancient map suddenly released a sliver of intent within Ling Han's mind for him to continue onwards.

What, wasn't this just a map? How could it possibly release mental intent?

Ling Han suddenly realized that he had underestimated the value of this map. In fact, all the people of the Ancient Alchemy Tower had also made an error in judgement. The value of this map far surpassed their estimations.

An inconceivable trust led Ling Han into choosing not to stop, but rather forge on ahead bravely.

He drew out the ancient map, and saw that this map was exuding a blazing light, but upon closer look, he discovered that this light was actually originating from the backside of the ancient map.

Because Lin Xuan had ceased his pursuit, Ling Han had the time to take out the ancient map and study it closely. He flipped the map over, and saw that there was an ancient seal on the backside of the old map, and it was this seal that was glowing, exuding supreme celestial might, and blocking the surging blood mist.

Yi, so weird.

A strange feeling suddenly rose up in Ling Han—while he had never seen this seal before, it felt familiar to him.

…Xiao Gu!

Right, it was precisely Xiao Gu.

Ling Han suddenly recalled that this seal was astonishingly of the same trend as the bone seals on Xiao Gu. Even if he had not reached this kind of level, he could still confirm that there was a strong link between the two.

He flipped through the ancient map closely, and the shock in his expression became more and more pronounced.

This… was human skin, Celestial King Tier skin!

He had a guess. Years ago, a supreme existence had died, and a single bone had turned into Xiao Gu, while his human skin had been made into this ancient map.

Xiao Gu had been a Ninth Heaven Celestial King in the past, and who could be able to make his human skin into a map?

A Heavenly Venerate?

Ling Han couldn't help but moan secretly about the misfortune. If the ancient map had long since shown these strange signs, he might have communicated with Xiao Gu long ago, and perhaps he would have gotten some answers.

However, now that the human skin was glowing, it protected Ling Han as he continuously advanced. The blood mist could not attack him, and it was as if he was walking on flat ground.

"Damn it! Damn it!" Lin Xuan roared furiously. Even he did not dare enter this kind of blood mist, but Ling Han was walking like he was on flat ground.

This naturally had to be because there was a shocking treasure in Ling Han's possession that could resist the corrosion of the blood mist, and this made him feel even greater envy. Just how many treasures were there in Ling Han's possession?

Just when it looked like Ling Han's figure was about to disappear, Lin Xuan could no longer hold himself back. He took a step towards the blood mist, wanting to use the Celestial King Tier seal to resist the blood mist, and then seek Ling Han out and kill him.

Yet he had just taken one step when he saw that the Celestial King Tier seal immediately released blazing light, but the blood mist surged, continuously barraging the light, and causing it to rapidly dim.

'What?!'

Lin Xuan almost exclaimed in shock. The method that had been arranged by a Seventh Heaven Celestial King was actually so ineffective? Just what kind of damn thing was this blood mist? Could it be that it was Ninth Heaven Celestial King Tier in level?

…It should be known that the Spiritual Mountain Celestial King was no ordinary Seventh Heaven elite, but was capable of ranking in the middle ranks even among Eighth Heaven Celestial Kings.

What could this mean?

The treasure in Ling Han's hands was at the Ninth Heaven Celestial King Tier!

Lin Xuan's heart immediately throbbed wildly. To say nothing of him, even his master would be envious if he found out about this kind of treasure! Thus, he definitely could not allow the news to leak out, or there would be nothing left of the treasure for him.

Initially, the best idea was to contact the Spiritual Mountain Celestial King, but now Lin Xuan changed his mind. He just stayed and waited outside the blood mist. In any case, this swamp was not very big. He only had to sit by and wait here, and when Ling Han came out, he could deliver a fatal strike.

No matter how long it took, he would continue waiting.

***

Ling Han entered into the depths of this swamp, and as the blood mist diffused, a great portion of the landscape affected his visibility. Even he could only see what was just 30 meters around him, and anything that surpassed this distance would only be a blurry, vague sight to him.

It was completely empty inside here, but if there was anything strange, it was the fact that the swamp waters were completely blood-red in color, as if it was the evaporation of these bloody waters that had created such a large mass of blood mist.

Ling Han did not know exactly how terrifying this blood mist was. Under the protection of the Celestial King Tier skin, it was like he was untouchable.

Ling Han was sure that if this thing could be active continuously, even a Seventh Heaven Celestial King Bone could not do anything to him, because Xiao Gu could barely compare to an Eighth Heaven Celestial King. Then, even if this skin was slightly inferior, it would still be capable of matching Seventh Heaven Celestial King Tier, right?

Unfortunately, he could not activate it at all.

'Huh?'

Ling Han stood still. A dark shadow had appeared ahead of him. It was like a pillar that had been stabbed upright into the ground.

'What on earth is this?!'

He set off again, and that dark shadow became clearer and clearer, while Ling Han's expression became more and more shocked. This was actually the leg of an insect, but it was not complete, and was merely a section of it.

Black spikes covered the entirety of the leg, exuding an eerily cold light, and the place it had been broken off at was presently dripping with blood, and it was precisely this that was the source of the blood waters of this swamp.

'What's going on?'

Why would the ancient map lead him all the way here? Wasn't it said that there was a Celestial medicine that was several hundred billion years old here? And it was this thing? If anyone were to declare that this was a Celestial medicine, even if it was a Celestial King, Ling Han would call him an idiot.

Weng, he had walked too closely, and the broken-off leg released a ripple, which turned into millions and millions of Blood Insects that assaulted Ling Han.

The Celestial King Tier skin immediately glowed, blocking these Blood Insects.

Ling Han couldn't help but gape. Could it be that the insect leg he had previously discovered had the same origins as this thing?

It was not impossible.

Ling Han studied it carefully, and the spikes on the broken-off leg looked very much like an insect's leg, and if they were broken off, it was completely discernible that this was a broken-off insect leg.

The insect's leg would be broken off here, and with the traces of the wound being so obvious, it had clearly been torn off with force. Then, at least 10 epochs ago, a great battle had broken out here, and an elite had had his leg torn off.

Then, was one of the sides of the battle Xiao Gu's past life?

"This is… Heavenly Venerable Tier aura!" Small Tower suddenly declared.

"What!?" Ling Han was incredibly stunned. Heavenly Venerable Tier, this insect leg was at the Heavenly Venerable Tier? Hold on, he had previously sensed the evil aura given off by those insects, and they were not recognized by the Heavenly Dao. Could it be…

"That's right. It's not a Heavenly Venerate that originates from this space," Small Tower stated solemnly. "There is no information about this Heavenly Venerate of the Foreign Realm in my memory. It is highly possible that he invaded before I was even born."

At this, Ling Han was really shocked. He had actually discovered the leg of a Heavenly Venerable Tier here—though it was not the slightest bit pleasant to look at, furry and covered with spikes.

Was every being in the Foreign Realm ugly?

"Yi, going by that theory, could it be that Xiao Gu had been a Heavenly Venerate in his last life as well! That's not right, wasn't he called the Bone Demon Celestial King…" Ling Han suddenly clammed up. The Bone Demon Celestial King was Xiao Gu's last life, but it was said that he had also ascended Dao from his origins as a bone.

What bone would be so powerful, to not only gain consciousness, but even ascend to become a Ninth Heaven Celestial King?

If it was the bone left behind by a Heavenly Venerate, then there would be nothing strange about it.

Heavenly Venerable Tier was really that awesome.

"Which also means that there hadn't actually been just four Heavenly Venerates in the Celestial Realm at that time, but rather… five of them!"