Nine Astra Skies

As they neared the isolated island, for some reason Ye Chen felt an uneasy feeling creeping over him. Nonetheless, it was a very subtle feeling. Was there something fearsome hidden in the Exclusion Zone?

After some thought, Ye Chen brushed it off as his paranoia.

The history of the Exclusion Zone spanned tens of thousands of years. After each period, the experts of various countries would enter the Exclusion Zone to fight. If anything was terrifying here, it would have been discovered long ago.

Ye Chen could not quite understand what was going through the mind of the person who came up with this rule. Could it be just to prevent the people from getting excessively injured or killed? If that was the case, it was a virtuous achievement indeed. However, the succession of dynasties was inevitable. In war, death could not be avoided. If the Xiwu Empire was defeated in the Exclusion Zone, for example, the Nanman Kingdom would invade the Xiwu Empire on a wide scale. At that point, the people would perish all the same.

After some thought, Ye Chen decided that all he could do was help the Xiwu Empire win this fight. Perhaps then, they could avoid the chaos of war.

"We're supposed to enter from the east of the Exclusion Zone while the Nanman Kingdom's experts would enter from the west."

"Here's the map of the island."

"The Exclusion Zone has a perimeter of a hundred miles. In this area, there are three mountains and dense forests. It's easy to hide in there, so be careful not to be ambushed."

Great Emperor Mingwu handed a map to each person, then looked at Ye Chen. "It's best if we move together so that we won't be taken down one by one."

"A team should have a leader," an Earthly Venerable expert said by the side.

"I'm not good at commanding. Your Majesty, you do it," Ye Chen said. These Earthly Venerable experts took their orders from Great Emperor Mingwu. If he commanded them, they might not obey.

Great Emperor Mingwu muttered to himself, then turned around to address his subordinates. "Let's have Ye Chen command us. No one is allowed to disobey any order from Ye Chen."

"But Your Majesty…" the group of Earthly Venerable experts was in a hurry to say something.

"Are you going against my orders?" Great Emperor Mingwu barked out coldly.

"Your humble officials wouldn't dare." The group of Earthly Venerable experts bowed their heads.

"Well, I'm afraid it'll be difficult to persuade everyone." Ye Chen scratched his head.

Nie Qingyun and the old man transformed from the Eclipsing Firebird naturally hoped that Ye Chen would command them. They could not quite comprehend why Ye Chen would treat Great Emperor Mingwu so modestly. As a Daemon King, he could easily squash Great Emperor Mingwu with a finger. Still, how could they possibly understand the matters of a Daemon King?

Many Daemon Kings hid among humans simply to experience various worldly affairs, seeking a breakthrough in their attainment level. Daemon Kings like these had mostly reached the peak of Daemon King and it was challenging for them to further advance their strength. If they moved further ahead, they would reach the legendary Grand Supreme Attainment Level that was comparable to a celestial being. Nie Qingyun and the old man transformed from the Eclipsing Firebird felt even more respectful toward Ye Chen.

Great Emperor Mingwu shook his head, and said to Ye Chen, "Don't decline. Sect Leader Nie and this ancestor listen to you, but I can't direct them. Moreover, you're able to notice the sea monster's attack on the tower ship before anyone else. Not even I can match up to this ability to see what's coming."

Upon hearing Great Emperor Mingwu's words, the experts under him were convinced. It made sense after thinking about it. Nie Qingyun and the old man were Heavenly Venerable Rank, so they might not be willing to obey Great Emperor Mingwu. Conversely, they were very submissive toward Ye Chen. Furthermore, Ye Chen had used some unknown method to make the octopus monster surrender. All this had alleviated their doubts.

"In that case, I won't decline." Ye Chen nodded. The perceptivity of his Astral Body was hugely advantageous indeed.

Ye Chen looked toward the island in the distance, frowning slightly.

Everyone sat on the deck, cultivating quietly as they waited patiently.

Little Tanuki leaped onto Ye Chen's shoulder. He sensed that she felt quite uneasy and stroked her back to comfort her.

It seemed like there would not be any huge obstacles. According to Great Emperor Mingwu, after generations of sending fighters into the Exclusion Zone, he had never heard of any frightening mystical beasts and the likes living within the Exclusion Zone.

Perhaps it was because Ye Chen had just come from the Nether Palace, so he was more suspicious upon arriving at a new place.

On the other hand, Little Wingsy was carefree and untroubled, running along the ship's railing and waving to Little Squido in the sea every now and then. He was playing around gleefully.

The tower ship moved forward with the wind and stopped by a dock. This dock was built in some other era, constructed fully from large stones. Some green plants had grown all over its surface. It was an interesting sight. There were also deep gashes in the rocks at the side of the dock. Some had been there for a long time while others were still relatively fresh. One could see that the dock had been used many times.

It was not just the Xiwu Empire and the Nanman Kingdom. When other countries were fighting, they would use the Exclusion Zone as well.

"We're here. Let's disembark. Little Squido can stay in the sea," Ye Chen said after some thought. Little Squido would not be of much use if it followed them. It was better to leave it in the sea.

Ye Chen, Great Emperor Mingwu, and the rest jumped off the tower ship and followed the flat ground into the depths of the island.

Little Wingsy and the rest followed close behind.

Below them, there must have been a beach but it was now covered in rocks. They did not know where these rocks came from. Each one was over a thousand kilograms at least, paving the ground evenly, forming a path forward.

As they walked on, they saw a large memorial arch up ahead. It was over ten meters high and was built entirely from stone. Above the arch, "The Exclusion Zone" was written. These words were written in vigorous, powerful strokes. Still, compared to the words "Sunken Jade Palace", it was lacking in terms of style.

There was an empty area, a few hundred meters wide, in front of the memorial arch, suitable for activities. Below the arch, there stood two people in gold armor, each on one side, lofty and motionless.

People were guarding the Exclusion Zone? How strange. If they guarded this place, they had to eat and sleep out in the wilderness. Naturally, it would be arduous and there were no benefits either. Why would anyone do this?

Their group had reached the empty space.

"There are still five days until the Exclusion Zone officially opens. We'll wait here first. Those two there are from the Tribunal Council, responsible for guarding the Exclusion Zone. They're both peak Mystique Venerable experts," Great Emperor Mingwu said to Ye Chen, "For tens of thousands of years, those from the Tribunal Council had always been here. I guess that they'd change shifts after a certain amount of time. They're always dressed in a gray mantle, never revealing their true identities, and never changing their attire."

"The Tribunal Council?" Ye Chen was stunned and asked, "What kind of organization is that?" They had sent two peak Mystique Venerable experts to stand guard here. Were peak Mystique Venerable experts of such little value? Plus, how did the Tribunal Council benefit by sending their people to stand guard here? It was incomprehensible.

"I'm not too clear as well. They call themselves gods. The order and regulations of the Great Eastern Continent are determined by them. Long ago in history, countless sects and empires once joined forces to rebel against the Tribunal Council but were suppressed by the Tribunal Council instead. This Tribunal Council is a mysterious, formidable power," Great Emperor Mingwu wore a solemn expression as he spoke of the Tribunal Council.

Ye Chen had always guessed that the Daemon Kings dared not enter the human world and slaughter the humans wantonly because there was a force among the humans that could keep the Daemon Kings in check. Now it looked like his guess was corroborated.

As Ye Chen looked toward the two peak Mystique Venerable combatants standing guard motionlessly up ahead, he extended his Astral Body toward them. He did not know what sort of cultivation system these people used. 'Apparently, they never reveal their true identities. Now I want to see what they look like.'

The two Mystique Venerable experts did not notice that someone was spying on them. They only stood ramrod stiff without moving a muscle as if everyday affairs did not concern them and nothing could even disturb them.

When Ye Chen's Astral Body probed into the black mantle, Ye Chen felt a chill run down his spine.

These two were not human!

Ye Chen examined them all over. Their bodies were built from some unique metal. There was no sign of human skin. There was also a sinister mask within the black mantle that concealed their true faces. Their actual appearance was just a metal puppet!

As his Astral Body wormed deeper into one of the puppets, Ye Chen felt a trace of a Soul. It was a human Soul! This wisp of Soul had been sealed within the metal puppet and was approximately a peak Mystique Venerable fighter's Soul. It also carried a trace of consciousness.

It was not surprising that they could just stand there willingly as a guard in all sorts of weather. It turned out that they were not human. Due to that, their lifespan was incomparably long. Maybe they had already stood here for tens of thousands of years.

After ascertaining the identity of those two, Ye Chen withdrew his Astral Body. Their group searched for a space in the empty ground and set up their tents, getting ready for when the Exclusion Zone opened.

"Your Majesty, have you heard of a secret technique that could seal a human Soul into a body crafted from metal?" Ye Chen could not suppress his curiosity and asked Great Emperor Mingwu.

"Seal a human Soul into a body crafted from metal?" Great Emperor Mingwu was taken aback. Why did Ye Chen suddenly ask this? Then, he thought of something. "I've heard of that indeed. There's a secret technique like this called the Human Puppet Technique!"

"The Human Puppet Technique? What secret technique is that?" Ye Chen asked.

"The Human Puppet Technique is an extremely cruel secret technique. First, one must fashion a metal puppet that has no consciousness. Thereafter, capture a living person, pry open their skulls, and use a unique Soul-absorbing spirit artifact to slowly extract their Soul. The entire process would take forty-nine days. Throughout this period, the victim of this technique would be in so much agony they would rather be dead. The more they suffered before their death, the more powerful the Soul remnant that's left behind. It can be preserved for thousands of years without dissipating. It's the same reason why vengeful spirits won't easily disperse. After forty-nine days, the Human Puppet Technique is used to imprint the Soul into the metal puppet and a Human Puppet is formed. Their fighting power is comparable to what it was when they were alive and they could survive tens of thousands of years without dying! Moreover, some Human Puppets could even cultivate to grow even stronger."