Refining the Mountains and Rivers

In the blink of an eye, there was only the Barbarian King and Qin Yu left in the hall. The Barbarian King sat on his black dragon throne. With a calm expression, he looked down at Qin Yu calmly but in a condescending manner.

"There is some time left. Little brat, don't you have questions?"

Qin Yu nodded, "Yes."

The Barbarian King smirked and he changed his sitting posture, "Go ahead and ask me. I am in a good mood and I will let you know the answers to your questions if I can."

Qin Yu said, "Can you let me go first? I don't think you are worried that I will escape within this hall right?"

"A lion will pounce for a rabbit too, and I will not let you off just because you are easy for me to handle. As such, you should just maintain your current position. This will be good for us both."

Qin Yu frowned but his expression was still calm, "The first question, will I die?"

As though he did not expect Qin Yu to ask this question, the Barbarian King's eyebrows rose slightly and he replied, "Yes."

The reply was so clear and direct.

Qin Yu frowned ever deeper, "Then why should I bother asking other questions? Besides, I am just going to die."

The Barbarian King drummed his fingers on the black dragon throne and said, "You are correct. But I will give you the right to enjoy the last moments of peace if you wish for it."

He closed his eyes and stopped looking at Qin Yu.

The hall fell silent.

"…I have a question." Qin Yu said with a dark expression.

The Barbarian King slowly opened his eyes and a look of mockery passed over his face, "Say it."

Qin Yu said, "As the last Barbarian King of the Ancient Barbarian Nation, why have you been trapped here until now?"

The Barbarian King answered, "You understood it wrongly. It isn't that I have been trapped in this tomb. Instead, it has saved me and them."

Qin Yu said, "I don't understand."

The Barbarian King explained, "A long time ago, when I was still alive, I tried to go against destiny and force my way into the King realm. If I succeeded, the Barbarian Clan's rise would have been unstoppable even if all nine superpowers of the Desolate Area gathered together to stop us. However, it was a pity that I failed in the end. A failure would die and this was an unavoidable end.

"Thankfully, in that last battle, I had a feeling that things would go wrong and I created this imperial tomb after sacrificing much fate of the Barbarian Clan. This was how I and the rest of the people here could return to the tomb and achieve longevity."

These words revealed a lot of information and Qin Yu's eyes flashed, "This must have been an absolute secret, so how do the West Desolate and the West Barbarians know about it?"

A look of admiration crossed the Barbarian King's face and he praised, "You truly are a smart little brat to have noticed this…that's right. This was an absolute secret and even the people here did not know that I built this place while they were still alive. The reason why the people you mentioned know about this secret is that I wanted them to know."

Qin Yu muttered to himself in a deep voice, " You are using yourself as bait!"

"That's right." The admiration in the Barbarian King's eyes grew deeper, "Coming back to life is an extremely difficult thing because it goes against all nature and destiny. Even though I prepared the tomb, I only realized how dangerous it was after personally experiencing it. As such, I had no choice but to borrow power from the outside world. The lure of entering the King realm was a bait strong enough for people."

Qin Yu laughed bitterly to himself. In the end, the West Desolate and the West Barbarians were just chess pieces. He recalled the Ruler from the Imperial Clan of the West Desolate who mocked the Barbarian King for being a drowning dog. This might have just been the picture that the Barbarian King wanted them to have of him.

In fact, they were the real prey, and the imperial tomb was a trap for the prey.

Right at that point, Qin Yu jumped in realization as he figured out why he was the target. He raised his head and stared at the Barbarian King, "Divine Nation?"

The Barbarian King nodded, "So you know of it." There was a slight hint of surprise in his tone and he could not fully hide his astonishment as he stared at Qin Yu carefully, "Your cultivation is a far cry from the King realm and there is no chance of you even touching it. As such, I am very curious as to how you know about the Divine Nation."

Qin Yu replied in a low voice, "I am willing to tell you everything I know, but can you let me off?"

The Barbarian King hesitated for a moment before he shook his head, "It is too late. I have already given orders and the preparations will be completed soon. There is no time left to try anything else."

Qin Yu did not know what the Barbarian King meant by 'preparations'. However, he could feel that the Barbarian King was burning with excitement even though he maintained a calm exterior…that meant Qin Yu did not have much time left!

He could not beat around the bush anymore.

Sighing, Qin Yu pointed a finger forward. His actions were very slow as though he was afraid that he would unleash an outburst of his full strength if he proceeded any faster.

"Just now, I saw a creature in the darkness when you attacked…will you let me take a closer look at it before I die?"

There was silence in the hall and the Barbarian King's expression darkened slightly. A few moments later, he waved his robe and said, "Never mind, there is nothing wrong with letting you see it." Darkness flowed forward like water and a lantern flew forward. This was an elegant but ancient lantern and the fire within it was flickering calmly, letting off a soft hue of light.

"This is the bait that I have set. Actually, it is a treasure and it can give a thirty percent chance to a person breaking through to the King realm. If the person devours me afterwards, the probability will be raised to seventy percent."

Qin Yu stared at the lantern flying in the darkness…he swore that he was using all his acting skills and self control now to prevent himself from losing his current act. Despite that, his face was currently as stiff as a rock and his heart was beating at a rapid pace.

Qin Yu had seen this lantern before and he could even say that he was the one person in the world who was most familiar with it…

There was a flicker of blueness from the little blue lamp.

That's right. Its real body was only the size of a thumb, but Qin Yu was seeing the enlarged version of the little blue lamp.

Qin Yu had tried to uncover the little blue lamp's secret many times and he never forgot any hints about the little blue lamp's secret. He remembered every detail by heart.

As such, Qin Yu was sure that he did not recall wrongly. The lantern in front of him looked identical to the little blue lamp.

If he wanted to nitpick, this lantern's appearance and structure felt more rigid and it did not feel as carefree as the little blue lamp. However, one thing that was undeniable was that they had a strong link to each other.

The Barbarian King leaned forward slightly and he stared at Qin Yu, "Your heart is beating very fast and you are somewhat stiff…have you seen it before?"

Qin Yu shook his head and slowly said, "No, I just didn't imagine that there would be something like this in this world. A lantern that can reverse life and death has sustained the entire imperial tomb."

The Barbarian King's eyes flashed, "You can feel it?"

Qin Yu laughed bitterly, "Barbarian King, you already know that I have my own Divine Nation. Discovering that should not be that difficult."

"Oh, that is true…" The Barbarian King nodded and leaned back against the black dragon throne. A moment later, he reached forward without warning and clenched his fist. Qin Yu grunted as his body was carried by an invisible force that hung him in midair.

"Barbarian King!"

"You are lying. You recognized this lantern. Little brat, you are really giving me a lot of surprises…" The Barbarian King pulled his hand towards himself and Qin Yu was thrown around the palace, "I don't have much time left and I am not willing to wait. Let me see what you are hiding!"

Qin Yu struggled desperately and his face turned. There was no way out for him and he could only blankly watch as he drew closer to the Barbarian King on the black dragon throne. The Barbarian King's eyes were becoming redder and hotter. There was an undeniable greed to devour Qin Yu in his eyes.

Closer!

Closer!

The Barbarian King suddenly opened his mouth at a surprisingly large angle. His mouth felt like a bottomless pit that had opened to swallow Qin Yu.

He was going to devour Qin Yu!

This was not his plan from the start. However, the Barbarian King changed his mind after he looked at Qin Yu.

It was a little dangerous to devour him alive and the plan might not be perfect. However, the Barbarian King was willing to take this risk after he discovered that Qin Yu was hiding something.

If he could uncover the secret behind this lantern, the Barbarian King believed that he would be opening the door to a new world.

By then, he would not only be revived, he might even reach a realm that no other Barbarian King had achieved before. He would lead the Barbarian Clan in its rise again!

As he was trapped, Qin Yu's face was filled with horror, anger and desperation. His face turned redder and redder but there was a sense of calmness deep within his eyes.

Because this was exactly the outcome that he had been aiming for.

When he saw the lantern, Qin Yu instantly decided that he would take a gamble. That was why he controlled all his emotions and coincidentally acted in a stiff manner that was picked up by the Barbarian King.

Once the Barbarian King decided that he was determined to devour Qin Yu and obtain everything of his, he had carved a risky path that would lead to his own death.

This lantern was in a similar state to the Barbarian King.

Even though he appeared normal, the Barbarian King was like the stone statues in the hall - he was only half-resurrected. Qin Yu determined this when the darkness split apart and the lantern flew forward.

He also knew that the current Barbarian King was in a very weakened state. The reason why he appeared to be very strong was that the lantern behind him was providing him a wealth of resources!

This also meant that Qin Yu would be able to gain ultimate control once he cut off the Barbarian King's link to the lantern…putting it in another manner, if Qin Yu stole the lantern away, he would have the entire tomb under his control.

Buzz -

Right as Qin Yu was about to be devoured by the Barbarian King, his body started to vibrate and the time around him slowed.

Like a pause button had been used on space, it fell into a stagnant state. However, this state only lasted a very short time.

There was a crackling sound beside his ears before everything that stopped started to flow again at a very slow pace.

Blood poured out of Qin Yu's nose and mouth. It was the huge backlash after Time Rules were broken. He knew that he only had one chance to attack and hence, he glared directly at the Barbarian King's eyes and shouted.

In the next moment, Qin Yu's appearance and aura suddenly changed…all of a sudden, there were two Barbarian Kings in the hall!

The bounding force on Qin Yu suddenly loosened and the quiet flame in the hall jumped to life.

It felt like it was also confused about why there were two auras that it recognized.

"Mimicry Divine Way!" The Barbarian King shrieked as surprise filled his eyes. This was quickly replaced by a strong killing intent, "It is no use, I am the king of the Barbarian Clan. Even if you mimic my appearance, you don't know the root of what makes me a barbarian. Look carefully, I am your master, kill him!"

He shouted as flesh on his head split apart and blood flowed out. From the middle of his head, two sharp horns sprouted out with a terrifying aura. The flame in the lantern grew more lively and Qin Yu could feel the grip around him tighten.

However, before Qin Yu could react, the bloodline of the Abyssal Titan seemed to have sensed something and it was activated.

Crackle crack -

Pieces of black scales formed on the surface of Qin Yu's skin at a surprising speed. In the blink of an eye, his body was covered.

Qin Yu's eyes were pitch black now and there was a deep sense of violence and destruction as he glared at the Barbarian King.

"Ancient Barbarian! No way, you are clearly a human, why do you have such a strong Ancient Barbarian aura?" The Barbarian King cried in anger. He glanced at the lantern; the flame in it was clearly leaning towards Qin Yu now.

Whoosh!

A bright light exploded and shrouded the Barbarian King and Qin Yu. The next moment, the world around them changed and they appeared in an endless desert.

The lantern was gone but there was a scorching sun above their heads that burned the sand below their feet. As he stared at the sun, Qin Yu felt like there was something in his body that was breaking apart at that point.

Roar -

There was a loud roar before his body started to stretch and elongate. With sharp cracking sounds, his bones and flesh protested as they morphed into the Abyssal Titan.

Ancient auras rushed out of his body and flooded the area with a barbarian aura.

The Barbarian King's eyes were icy cold and he stepped forward. The sand beneath him rushed away and formed a massive and deep hole in the desert.

Sand dropped to the ground and when Qin Yu took a closer look, there was a giant with a pair of horns towering above him.

Without wasting any time, the two massive creatures started to fight each other under the glare of the sun.

At that point, the entire desert was shaking as millions of grains of sand were whipped around by the terrifying forces.

Fresh blood was spilled as broken scales fell down to reveal cracked flesh. The desert was dyed red from the blood and the fight proceeded in a very chaotic manner. There were no rules and neither side held back. The two creatures were determined to kill each other as they fought.

The battle would only end when one of them fell.

All of a sudden, the two horns on the Barbarian King's head were flung away. There was a deafening sound when the horns hit the ground.

The Barbarian King flipped his body around and threw his head up into the sky and roared. The desert shook like an earthquake had passed through it and the brilliant sun in the sky shone even brighter.

In the next moment, a large pillar of light fell from the sky…however, its target was not the Barbarian King but the Abyssal Titan opposite him.

It was obvious that it had made its decision.

When the Barbarian King witnessed this, his eyes filled with disbelief. It seemed that he never expected that the treasure passed down in the Barbarian Clan, the item worshiped by the barbarians, would abandon the real Barbarian King.

Under the light of the pillar, the Abyssal Titan's injuries healed at lightning speed. Golden streaks started to appear across its scales and it looked like it had put on golden armor…at this moment, it looked like a god!

With the momentum as it stepped forward, the Abyssal Titan threw a punch out. Vicious forces ripped across the sky and smashed against the chest of the Barbarian King.

A loud explosion occurred as the Barbarian King's body was thrown backward and a fountain of blood poured out of him. There was a large wound across his chest and a gaping hole replaced the spot where his heart originally was.