Chương 145: The Eldest Senior Brother of Falling Emperor Mountain (Part 10)

Su Chen was genuinely surprised. Ye Jinghong was still alive. Back then, she had used a special method to leave a message for Ji Changkong saying she was trapped in a forbidden zone. After that, all traces of her vanished. Perhaps even Ye Jinghong herself had no idea where she had ended up. Over the past century, Ji Changkong had tried repeatedly to locate her. Every attempt had ended in failure. Xiao Qianling continued, "Senior Brother, a sacred herb has appeared there.

The Black Nether Demon Domain has already dispatched powerhouses to claim it." Su Chen's expression sharpened instantly.

"Junior Sister Ye and the others from the Azure Nether Dao Domain are trapped inside a forbidden zone. How could I possibly stand by and do nothing?" He spoke with righteous indignation. Xiao Qianling muttered under her breath, "Senior Brother, you're obviously going for the sacred herb." Su Chen's face remained impassive. He flicked his sleeve. Did the reason really matter? It did not.

Soon, word spread far and wide: Su Chen had emerged from seclusion and intended to assault the forbidden zone to rescue Ye Jinghong and the trapped cultivators of the Azure Nether Dao Domain.

"Nangong the Saint has finally come out of seclusion—and the moment he does, he's attacking a forbidden zone. Hiss… terrifying!"

"A hundred years ago, the heirs of every major orthodoxy fell into an ambush set by the Black Nether Demon Domain. Mo Qianren alone slaughtered countless ancient monstrous prodigies of our Azure Nether Dao Domain. If not for Nangong the Saint stepping in and turning the tide, the consequences would have been unthinkable!"

"Now a century has passed. Just how frightening has Nangong the Saint's strength become?"

"I hear the Black Nether Demon Domain has sent powerhouses to the Ancient Tomb Forbidden Zone this time as well!"

"So what if they have? With Nangong the Saint leading us, unless a Great Saint personally intervenes, who could possibly stand against him?"

"Even if the Black Nether Demon Domain deploys a Great Saint, our Azure Nether Dao Domain has peers of the same level who will block them. In terms of top-tier combat power, our domain has never feared anyone in billions of years!"

"…" With Su Chen taking the lead, countless orthodoxies and forces rallied to his call. Some joined out of gratitude for his actions a century earlier. Others hoped to carve out a share of the spoils from the forbidden zone. Some came to settle scores with the Black Nether Demon Domain. Still others simply wished to follow in his shadow. Their motives mattered little. What mattered was that Su Chen's prestige had not faded during his hundred years of seclusion.

On the contrary, time had only elevated him into the realm of legend. Before long, three Saint Kings had joined his ranks. The number of Saints exceeded the fingers of both hands. Nirvana Realm experts arrived in droves like clouds. This force alone was enough to sweep aside most powers in the Azure Nether Dao Domain and flatten an entire province with ease. The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

At the Ancient Tomb Forbidden Zone, powerhouses from both the Black Nether Demon Domain and Azure Nether Dao Domain arrived one after another. A single glance revealed how different this place was from the outside world. Everything was steeped in black. Yin qi coiled thick in the air, stretching endlessly. Countless stone steles rose like small hills across the landscape. Faint, maddening whispers drifted on the wind, sending chills down the spine.

From the Black Nether Demon Domain side, the leader was not Mo Qianren, but a stranger Su Chen had never seen before. The creature's head resembled that of a grotesque monster, while its upper body was humanoid and its lower half that of a horse etched with demonic patterns. At the center of its chest gleamed a bone radiating supreme aura. Su Chen recognized it immediately. It was Mo Qianren's Emperor Bone! Yet the one bearing it now was clearly not Mo Qianren. Su Chen sighed softly to himself.

Though the Black Nether Demon Domain's higher powers had traded for Mo Qianren's life back then, his fate had evidently not been kind. His Emperor Bone had been taken—most likely, he was already dead. Of course, there remained the slim chance that he had undergone nirvana rebirth, undergone a profound transformation, and would one day return as an unparalleled supreme being. But that possibility was so remote it could be disregarded. Suddenly, Xiao Qianling cried out in shock.

"Third Senior Brother? Is that you? You're still alive?" Behind the young supreme of the Black Nether Demon Domain stood a man and a woman. The woman on the left was not human, yet her features and figure bore an uncanny resemblance to one sculpted by the heavens themselves, she blended demonic allure with divine grace. Seductive and breathtakingly beautiful. The man on the right was human, clad in a flowing azure robe. His face was handsome as carved jade.

The moment his gaze met Su Chen's, his eyelashes trembled faintly. At Xiao Qianling's shout, the man turned his face away. Xiao Qianling pressed on.

"Third Senior Brother, I know it's you. You're not dead!" Su Yanbai: "…" The woman beside him took his hand.

"Yanbai is now my husband. He belongs to the Black Nether Demon Domain—no longer to your Azure Nether Dao Domain." Xiao Qianling covered her mouth in shock. Third Senior Brother… had actually married into their clan! The many forces of the Azure Nether Dao Domain stood stunned. The third disciple of Falling Emperor Mountain had betrayed the Azure Nether Dao Domain, betrayed Falling Emperor Mountain itself, and joined the Black Nether Demon Domain. Su Chen spoke calmly.

"Yanbai must have his reasons. Old Three, are you willing to return to Falling Emperor Mountain? If you are, no one here today can stop you." Su Yanbai shook his head. He bowed deeply toward Su Chen and Xiao Qianling from a distance.

"Thank you, Senior Brother and Junior Sister, for your concern. But I can no longer return to the Azure Nether Dao Domain, nor to Falling Emperor Mountain. Please convey my apologies to Master on my behalf. Your disciple Su Yanbai has failed his expectations and can no longer fulfill his filial duty." Xiao Qianling's eyes brimmed with tears.

"Senior Brother Su… take care of yourself." Su Chen nodded.

"Yanbai, I will pass your words to Master." Both sides—Azure Nether Dao Domain and Black Nether Demon Domain—stood in tense readiness, weapons half-drawn, yet neither struck first. Every gaze turned toward the Ancient Tomb Forbidden Zone. That was their true purpose here. The two forces entered the forbidden zone together. Not long after, trouble found Su Chen's group. One cultivator spotted a tomb and, unable to resist, pried it open. A desiccated corpse burst forth and shattered the intruder's body in an instant.

He perished on the spot.

"This is a Quasi-Saint!" Su Chen reached out and seized the corpse in his grip. It roared and thrashed but could not break free. In his hand, the corpse crumbled into a handful of gray ash. All eyes turned to Su Chen.

"This one had no spiritual intelligence—only the instincts of its body." The expressions of the group did not improve. Because… tombs stretched endlessly in every direction. If every sealed being inside awoke, what kind of nightmare would that unleash? Everyone drew a deep breath. They had underestimated this Ancient Tomb Forbidden Zone. The deeper they ventured, the more oppressive the terror became. Their hearts pounded with growing dread. What began as scattered tombs gradually gave way to isolated coffins.

Eventually, in a massive heavenly pit, they found hundreds of coffins suspended midway down the divine chasm. The moment Su Chen's group arrived, several of the coffins began to tremble.

"Not good—our vital blood has awakened them!" A Saint King from the Azure Nether Dao Domain paled dramatically. Before their eyes, crimson gazes lit up inside the coffins. One desiccated figure after another emerged, staring at the intruders with ravenous hunger, as though eager to devour them alive. A battle was unavoidable. Su Chen looked at the awakening creatures and struck first.

"Kill them all together. If they alert the rest of the zone, we'll be in serious trouble!"