Refining the Mountains and Rivers

Qin Yu furrowed his eyebrows, his complexion a little poor. He had already done everything he and the Demon Envoy discussed to lock onto the Water Marid's presence.

But right now, even after using a secret art his perception was as blurry as watching flowers through fog.

Could it be that the changes within the Sea of Purgatory had affected the function of the secret art?

If that were true, this was truly troublesome!

Although he had narrowed down the general area of the Water Marid, this area was at least a thousand miles in distance.

If he had to search through this entire region a little at a time, he had no idea how long it would take. He couldn't delay himself for that long.

Thinking of this, Qin Yu's eyes turned even cloudier. Then, there was the sudden sound of piercing air in his ears. He immediately looked up to see a white light howling past him. It was astonishingly fast and the aura it emitted was swift and fierce.

However, as he saw this white light shoot past his head without any sign of slowing down, he relaxed. He didn't hope to get caught up in other problems right now. He turned to leave.

But at this time the white light flying over his head suddenly collapsed and faded away. An unconscious woman dropped down from the air.

It was her!

Seeing her deathly pale expression and extremely weak aura, Qin Yu didn't know why but he felt a sourness in his heart. Before he could even respond, he found that he had already flown over. He hesitated for a moment before reaching out and grabbing Shen Yuanyin, falling slowly to the floor.

Although she was unconscious, her appearance was still cold and chilling. Still, she lacked the aloof indifference of before. As she rested against his chest, she appeared delicate and weak.

Qin Yu forced a smile. The two of them couldn't be called enemies but they absolutely weren't friends. He thought back to how they hadn't parted on good terms last time and it was already an act of benevolence that he wasn't kicking her while she was down. Could it be that he even needed to save her and stir up extra trouble for himself?

Reasoning told Qin Yu that he shouldn't be interfering in this matter. But after a long time he didn't release his hand.

You idiot, you really have gone insane!!

Could it be that he never discovered he had the potential to be addled by women in the past? Or had he never had the chance to practice this?

Mocking himself might be a way of comforting his mind. It was debatable whether this was useful, but at least it made Qin Yu feel a little better.

He looked down at Shen Yuanyin and shook his head. He rapidly flew away.

Although he had no idea who was chasing her down, even a fool would know that if they could force this powerful woman into such a situation, they definitely had to be absolutely strong.

It was definitely good to flee as soon as possible!

Rescuing her was already enough. If he were to die because of it, that really would be stupid of him!

Shua -

Shua -

Rising up and down several times, Qin Yu vanished from sight.

…

The altar was formed from piles of stones. It was wide at the bottom and narrow at the top. It had experienced countless years of erosion and had been damaged in numerous places. Right now, it seemed desolate and bleak, but when one looked at it they could still feel the traces of dignity and majesty that had yet to disperse.

Several figures stood below the altar. Looking at its ruined state, there was bitterness in their eyes as well as a little excitement. One of these people was an old man. His beard and hair had long since turned white and his face was full of wrinkles, each line emanating the passing of the years.

He fell to his knees and bowed to the ground, shivering as he kissed the earth. Dirty tears rolled down to the ground. "Your future descendants were not filial. We have shamed our ancestors!"

The several people around all fell to their knees. They gripped their fists, heavy expressions on their faces.

Zhan Lingtian was the first to stand up. He slowly said, "Granduncle, since we have found this place, that means our ancestors in heaven are protecting us. There is no need for you to worry so much."

The old man wiped away his tears. "Your Highness is right. It was this old man's mistake. I just found it hard to control my mindset for a moment." He looked towards the altar and continued to say, "The Emperor's Seal is here. As long as you succeed in obtaining it, Your Highness will obtain an intangible destiny upon your body."

Zhan Langtian bowed deeply. "Then I'll have to exhaust granduncle!"

The old man had a solemn expression, "This is the duty of the responsibilities we bear. To do this is the reason I was born. Your Highness, please wait patiently. I will immediately go and request for the Emperor's Seal."

He waved his hand. The several people behind him stood up. They had reticent expressions as they slowly dispersed outwards around the altar.

"Begin." The old man said.

Beyond the altar, the several people immediately cut their palms. Dark red blood gushed out. But when the blood was halfway to the ground, it was drawn up by an invisible strength and left floating in midair.

A hum began to echo from the ruined altar. It carried with it the sense of weakness and weariness from sleeping for countless years, as well as a restlessness that could not be concealed.

The complexions of the several people changed and their faces paled. The drops of blood stretched out into a line that connected with the altar.

As the blood was absorbed, the ground began to tremble. Dark golden runes started to appear on the surface of the altar. At first they were chaotic and incomplete, but slowly more and more appeared. They linked up into a single stretch that transformed into an incomparably complex and broad array diagram.

But due the damage the altar received through the years, this array diagram had some parts that were destroyed and missing, causing the magic power to be unable to flow.

The old man looked over the remnant cracks of the array diagram. After several breaths of time, he gently sighed. His gaze hardened with resolve.

"Your Highness, all the hopes of our people are resting with you. I hope Your Highness is cautious in the future and that you don't disappoint the hopes of your tribe!"

Zhan Lingtian bowed, his appearance as firm and resolute as stone. "I will remember granduncle's teachings!"

Lin Weiwei fell to her knees and deeply bowed in respect in place of her big brother. This was because she knew just what sort of price this granduncle would have to pay.

"Your name will surely be left behind in our family history. You will always be remembered by juniors of future generations and be thanked endlessly!"

The old man smiled. The stacked up wrinkles on his face relaxed a little, making him appear much younger. He had been waiting his entire life for this moment. As he thought about how he had felt some hesitation and unwillingness before this, he couldn't help but ridicule himself.

He had really lived for far too long. Instinctually, he had come to cherish a long life.

This was for the best. No matter how much he cherished his life, he never once forgot about the responsibilities he shouldered.

The man took a step forward. He flew above the altar and stretched out his arms. Blood red light dispersed from his body, so bright that it drowned out his figure.

This blood red light seemed to have a spiritual wisdom of its own. It flew down on its own volition, reaching into the cracks of the array diagram. As it wriggled within, it fused with it and repaired it.

The several people around the altar still had bleeding hands. They revealed faces full of grief. When they looked at the old ancestor who was submerged in blood red light, most of the resentment in their hearts faded away.

Perhaps it was just like the old ancestor had said. This was the destined mission of their bloodline. Maybe long ago in the far off past, this had already been decided.

They closed their eyes and quietly stimulated their bodies. Blood began to flow out quicker from their hands. The humming from the altar grew louder, as if it had become that much stronger.

From the cracks of the array diagram, golden runes started to slowly grow. When it was thoroughly repaired, the blood red light above the altar suddenly vanished. The old man had already vanished from sight. All that was left were ashes that fluttered away in the wind.

In order to repair the array diagram, he had compensated with his life!

Bang -

The golden runes exploded with light that condensed into golden beams. The beams of light crashed into the skies above, crushing space and connecting somewhere into the unknown. The cultivators around the altar all froze in place. Traces of greyish white color appeared at their feet and started to slowly spread upwards, covering each and every part of their bodies.

This color was bleak and carried with it the concept of extinction. Another gust of wind appeared, and then they, just like the old man, vanished in a flutter of ashes.

Nothing of them was left over.

Zhan Lingtian struggled to stand up straight. There was a look of deep sorrow on his face. Lei Weiwei's eyes had long since turned red, large drops of tears flowing down her face.

The royal bloodline was on the wane, and there was little of it left. After today, another branch was severed…for the Emperor's Seal, was it worth it?

But this was her big brother's decision. For this, the tribe had prepared for countless years. There was nothing she could do to question it. She could only follow quietly and firmly remember everything that occurred today.

If the royal family really did return to glory, then everyone that sacrificed themselves today would receive the honor they deserved.

The golden beams of light shot up from the altar, breaking through space and connecting to somewhere unknown. An invisible aura surged like waves, rumbling out in all directions.

But this altar seemed to possess a mighty and invisible power. It covered up space so that nothing here could be sensed from the outside.

Moments later, a massive bronze coffin shot out from the shattered space.

There were no decorations on its surface. It was like the person buried within disdained using any foreign objects to show their dignity and majesty.

From this alone, one could understand how proud and arrogant this buried person was before they died.

Zhan Lingtian's complexion changed. This was because what he saw was completely different from what he had learned. There was no Emperor's Seal at all…why had this bronze coffin arrived through the altar?

He grabbed onto Lin Weiwei and turned to leave. Although he had no idea what was in the bronze coffin, he could already feel an infinite suppression bearing down upon his head.

But before they could leave, the entire space around them froze. An invisible dignity, accompanied by a vast and boundlessly terrifying aura, completely locked down this part of the world.

The bronze coffin fell atop the altar. Then, that heaven-shaking aura suddenly vanished.

When Zhan Lingtian's movements were restored, he no longer tried to bring Lin Weiwei away. He respectfully knelt and bowed.

If this unknown entity wanted to kill them, it could have easily done so just now. Since it stayed its hand, it had to have its reasons.

Of course, the most important reason for Zhan Lingtian's actions was that after experiencing the might and power of the bronze coffin, he had absolutely no faith that he could bring his little sister and leave here intact.

If so, then he might as well stay here and be quiet.

Creak -