Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Ye Futian took a look at Yu Sheng, thinking that the latter’s methods of cultivation and constitutional fortitude were indeed overbearing.
Ye Futian was surprised by how Yu Sheng was able to ignore the deathly aura and simply devoured it, making it his own. While the aura had still affected him, it was unable to pose an actual threat to him.
One mighty one after another hurried as they moved forward, all of them using their own ways to resist the attacks faced. Zhan Yuan of the Violet Heavenly Palace took to their air, utterly terrifying Lightning Matrix of Doomsday appearing above. Eight divine bolts of lightning rained from the matrix, covering a huge area and destroying everything in its path, making it impossible for the deathly aura to come close.
The other mighty ones of the Violet Heavenly Palace raised their hands at the same time. Boundless might of lightning surged into that matrix, making it even more powerful, enabling it to sweep away all auras around them.
“Beware of that tree,” Zhan Yuan said. That tree, which was still growing, had gotten so big, it blocked out the sky and spread everywhere. It spread deathly aura all over the place, and its attacks killed many cultivators, monsters, and humans. Those people were then consumed by the tree to serve as nutrients to further its growth.
Many mighty ones continued to speed up, intending to pass through that seemingly endless Canyon of Death.
It was no surprise why the Origin Mountains had always been seen as a restricted area. Demonic beasts dared not step foot inside, and even demon emperors were all fearful of the place. Years passed, and possibly due to the lack of large scale expeditions into the Origin Mountains, the fear and reverence they had for the place weakened. That, coupled with the matter with Gu Tianxing and that terrifying demonic cloud at the Origin Mountains, brought about that massive expedition.
At that moment, many mighty ones, however, began to regret coming. They thought it would have been better to just let the ones at the top fight for whatever was inside. They didn’t need to have anything to do with it.
The terrifying trumpeting of elephants sounded in the sky. The resulting rumble rattled everyone’s eardrums within earshot. Everyone looked up and saw a group of Divine Elephants taking their original forms high up in the air, stomping the sky as they moved. They dazzled with golden light all over, looking brilliant. Every single step they took seemed to be able to overwhelm everything around them.
That deathly aura of the great path and the branches were all pinned down, incapable of breaking through. While the elephants looked like they were advancing slowly, they were actually beginning to overtake the other mighty ones.
Ye Futian and those around him unleashed their auras as well. He burst with Flames of the Way as well as dazzling sword will. Xia Qingyuan, who was at his side, burst with Catastrophe Swordsmanship, which paired with her lotus powers, making her look unceasingly powerful.
That dark, deathly aura in the air seemed to have sensed something and went on to lash out at Xia Qingyuan.
However, most of those attacks were eliminated by the Holiness of Nirvanas around her.
Swaying sounds were heard, and branches of one deathly tree after another headed their way in increasingly huge numbers. Worse still, countless deathly auras in the sky surged where they were.
Even auras attacking the others had all surged towards Xia Qingyuan in a frenzy.
“What is going on here?” Ye Futian frowned slightly. Qi Xuangang stepped forward and lifted his arm, crushing everything before him; however, the branches and auras still came from all sides, even evading him to get to the Princess.
The immense tree of death seemed to have sensed something as well. One huge branch after another shot in her direction.
“Look out!” Qi Xuangang shouted. He stepped forward, and terrifying rings of light appeared around him, blocking those branches. However, the branches simply enveloped him, paying no heed to how many vines he ended up destroying, as they continued to lash out at the target behind him.
“Protect the Princes!” Ye Futian’s expression changed drastically. All mighty ones came to Xia Qingyuan’s side, resisting all the incoming attacks.
Boom, boom, boom… The furious attacks clashed as the branches continued to sweep out, attacking all of them.
Those deathly auras were everywhere, seeping through the cracks and crevices between their bodies, heading towards Xia Qingyuan.
“Flames!” Ye Futian shouted. Wu Yong and the other Holiness of Nirvanas burst with dazzling divine flames at the same time, burning their surroundings, but the deathly auras sneaked through the flames nonetheless.
Xia Qingyuan, who was surrounded by a huge group of people, appeared rather pale. The might of her Catastrophe Swordsmanship burst to the extreme, cutting down all those currents that seeped through.
Dazzling, saintly lotuses wrapped around her, preventing the invasion of the auras.
Crack…The branches pierced through the screens of light of the lotuses. Dark auras seeped into her body, causing her pure, saintly body to be tainted with a layer of dark aura.
The power of life continued to be cranked to the extreme as she continued to wipe out those dark auras, yet the deathly aura seemed to be utterly boundless and very attracted to her body.
“Death and life. The will of the great path of life.” Ye Futian seemed to have realized something and said, “Pull your powers back.”
“Too late for that.” Xia Qingyuan took a look at Ye Futian. If she were to pull her powers away now, death would have consumed her right away. Her power of life was the only thing keeping the deathly attacks at bay.
She had no way of escape.
“What is happening?”
The mighty ones around that group looked on with baffled looks. The auras that attacked them disappeared all of a sudden and were directed at one particular direction.
They turned around and saw countless ancient tree branches and deathly auras surging towards Xia Qingyuan.
Qi Xuangang had his hands full at the moment with the huge tree of death. All of the Holiness of Nirvanas around them burst with divine flames in a frenzy, preventing the attacks from getting to Xia Qingyuan.
Boom!
The ground cracked open right there and then, with dark branches breaking out of the ground and getting to Xia Qingyuan right away, tangling her up as if they were out to suck that brimming life force out of her.
Ye Futian stepped out. That Fire Spirit Orb in his Life Palace burst with terrifying Flames of the Way. His body transformed and engulfed by boundless flames in an instant. He turned into a fiery god of war.
He charged while basking in flames. Countless fiery arms grabbed at the dark branches tangling with Xia Qingyuan, burning them down right away.
However, the deathly auras all around them continued to invade her body.
Streaks of deathly aura appeared on her face, making her look ashen.
She turned her eyes, which looked rather sad, at Ye Futian.
She wondered if she would die in this forbidden area.
The Origin Mountains were known as a restricted area in the demon realm.
Ye Futian seemed to have sensed the sorrow emanating from Xia Qingyuan. He began to regret bringing her into the mountains.
She would have insisted on coming even if he were to refuse, but he felt responsible and was blaming himself for what happened.
Boom…
Terrifying might of the great path burst from within Xia Qingyuan as if imperial might was being unleashed. All the deathly aura inside her body was wiped clean in an instant. Ye Futian was able to see Emperor Xia’s visage appearing behind Xia Qingyuan.
“Emperor Xia.” Ye Futian began to look hopeful; however, he quickly realized that the emperor was looking ahead, frowning hard with a glum expression.
That huge tree made him feel uneasy.
Boooomm!
The vast, seemingly endless canyon trembled. Countless trees of death burst throughout the entire canyon. Terrifying will of death shrouded the vast, endless canyon.
“She’s going to get us all killed.”
Hu Qian of the Celestial Fox Palace among those from Yingzhao Mountain looked astounded as Xia Qingyuan brought a Renhuang will to bear.
However, this was the Origin Mountains, where many demon emperors and Renhuangs were buried. According to the records, will of the great path that was trapped in the Origin Mountains would be attracted by powerful auras appearing there.
A Renhuang might have invoked deathly will of greater intensity to bear on all of them. It would have probably really caused all of them to die in the canyon.
That was also where the ones in imperial planes moved before everyone else, instead of venturing into the Origin Mountains together with them.
The presence of the imperial beings would have caused them all to end up dead, instead of being of any benefit.
The canyon shook, and deathly will shrouded the entire place. Many figures’ faces looked rather solemn. A figure gradually rose from that divine tree as rumbles were heard continuously.
“What is that?”
Many turned their attention in that direction. Their minds continued to be rattled.
Countless branches circled about with the tree in the middle. An incredibly huge figure appeared. That figure was clad in a black robe and looked pitch black. Their long hair billowed while not even a hint of aura was sensed from them, only boundless will of death.
“Sh*t!”
The hearts of many raced as they wondered if that thing was some incredibly powerful being who perished in the Origin Mountains.
Despite having been dead for many years, that being had nonetheless remained capable of turning the canyon into a place of death.
Furthermore, that being seemed to have clung to life desperately even after death, intending to consume any will of the living around.
Is that thing trying come back from the dead?
Voom.
Emperor Xia brought Xia Qingyuan up and shot into the air at blitzing speeds. However, countless branches of that tree of death continued to shoot to the skies, shrouding the air, seemingly about to devour the sky itself.
Renhuang will burst, and the Emperor burst with boundless light of catastrophe. He looked up and saw boundless vines coming at him. His face turned glum as he continued to move forward, saying, “Hurry up.”
His shadow burst with boundless light of catastrophe as he spoke. The branches that covered the sky were reduced to nothing in an instant. Countless ancient trees were cut down, and the terrifying light pressured that tree of death, trying to buy time for Xia Qingyuan.
Xia Qingyuan turned and continued to blitz forward.
Boom. That will of the great path of Emperor Xia was disintegrated with a rumble, reduced to nothing. The branches of death shot up to the air in an instant, tangling Xia Qingyuan’s body up, preventing her from moving. The will of life within her body and powers were being absorbed in a frenzy. Her body itself was taken to that figure that appeared on the tree of death.
“She is done for,” many muttered to themselves deep down. Even with the will of Renhuang being brought to bear, it still failed to keep her safe.
Someone was seen bursting into the air, coming to Xia Qingyuan’s side. Countless flaming arms grabbed at the branches of death, intending to burn them down and preventing them from going forward.
Xia Qingyuan looked up at that massive flaming body while feeling the life slipping out of her at a frightening rate.
It seemed that she was about to die for real.
There was a handsome face seen in that huge flaming body. She looked at that face, and tears were found at the corner of her eyes.
She was about to die with regret.
Her lips twitched, intending to say something, but eventually, nothing came out.
She seemed to have recalled something all of a sudden, and she smiled. That smile looked unbelievably beautiful at the very instant it flashed. It seemed as if it was meant to leave the most beautiful memory behind.
“Goodbye,” Xia Qingyuan said softly as her body continued to be dragged down. There was simply no stopping her fall.
There was no way Ye Futian could have stopped something that not even the will of Emperor Xia was unable to stop.
Ye Futian felt heartache deep down. That scene triggered some horrible memories—the memories that pained him the most.
“You do look rather pretty when you smile, Princess. You sure would look even prettier if you dressed in girls’ clothes,” Ye Futian replied. Xia Qingyuan was dumbfounded. Ye Futian then stepped forward and put that huge flaming body of his behind her. Flaming arms extended out and wrapped her up altogether.
“I won’t take a goodbye from you before I get to see that,” Ye Futian added. At that moment, that frail body of hers seemed to have been cradled by a fiery god of war.
The flaming will was reflected on her face. Xia Qingyuan felt the warmth emanating from it, and she burst into tears.
