Since his birth, Shi Hao had never felt such a bone-chilling terror as he did today. The sights before him were too horrifying, far beyond imagination.
The long jade table was nowhere to be seen, likely sealed within the stone cauldron. It must have been something so extraordinary that it could manifest through the seals. Could it be that the cauldron was filled with heads?
The thought sent shivers down his spine.
Those names, those memorial tablets, those heads still glistening with crystalline blood—if word of this spread, it would surely shake the world.
The Lord of Yu Yu Heaven, the Lord of Da Chi Heaven… Who could believe their heads were all sealed inside a single cauldron? It was enough to horrify the living and shake the ages!
The land was shrouded in gloom as Shi Hao stepped forward, approaching the colossal broken mountain to get a closer look at the stone cauldron at its base.
The path was littered with corpses, their presence heavy with the weight of time. Some remained intact even after millennia, exuding eerie fluctuations. When Shi Hao reached out to touch one, terrifying runes erupted from the remains, scattering his bone inscriptions.
One could only imagine how powerful these beings had been in life—undoubtedly peerless experts.
This ancient land was vast, resembling a battlefield yet not quite. The ground was strewn with ancient corpses, some wreathed in chaotic energy, others still emitting mysterious symbols. Some had completely decayed, turning to dust at the slightest touch.
*Clang!*
Shi Hao tried picking up some weapons, only to find none intact—broken spears, ruined armor, their divine essence long faded, reduced to mere relics of the past.
Only supreme treasures could withstand the passage of time. Anything damaged would inevitably crumble into nothingness.
“What kind of creature is this?” He spotted a monstrous being the size of a mountain, its body covered in spines like a hedgehog, its neck elongated, its head resembling a true dragon, and a pair of golden wings still intact.
Even from a distance, Shi Hao’s skin prickled as if the golden spines could still pierce through the void.
The creatures of the Immortal Ancient era were vastly different from those of the present. As he traversed the land, he noticed the oldest beings bore unique traits, each distinct from the rest.
Silently, an ancient corpse rose behind him, its eyes glowing green, its body shrouded in gray mist. Like a spectral cat, it pounced without a sound.
*Swoosh!*
Shi Hao reacted swiftly, twisting his waist and swinging the Void Battle Halberd in a wide arc behind him.
*Splat!*
Black blood sprayed as the creature’s head flew off, its body cracking apart before collapsing into a pool of putrid filth.
Shi Hao knew he had entered a perilous zone. The so-called eerie and ominous forces were likely nearby—he had stepped into a land of dark sorcery.
Now, the broken mountain was within sight, and the massive stone cauldron loomed clearly before him.
“It’s… World Stone!” Shi Hao gasped in disbelief. The material used to forge the cauldron was the legendary supreme treasure—a natural, unrefined artifact of unparalleled value.
Even a small fragment of this material would incite wars among sects, yet here it was, an entire cauldron crafted from it, flawless and unblemished.
Strangely, despite its legendary hardness, the cauldron was riddled with cracks, as if on the verge of shattering. What force could have caused such damage?
The cauldron exuded an ancient aura, wreathed in chaotic energy. Though tightly sealed, wisps of auspicious light seeped out, mingled with tendrils of gray and black mist.
Shi Hao sighed. The value of this cauldron was incalculable. Who would guess, seeing its radiant glow, that it might contain a cauldron full of severed heads?
What had happened in the past? Whose handiwork was this?
Moreover, he felt a creeping dread. Alongside the auspicious light, the faint gray and black mist escaping the seals carried a familiar aura—identical to the eerie and ominous forces he had encountered before.
“Don’t tell me the source of the eerie lies within this cauldron,” Shi Hao murmured, his expression grave. He circled the cauldron cautiously, inspecting it.
What worried him most were the cracks in the cauldron, from which wisps of gray mist seemed to seep. Was it truly on the verge of breaking?
A cauldron forged from World Stone was undoubtedly a supreme treasure. Were these cracks the result of external attacks, or had the sealed contents grown too powerful?
What catastrophic consequences would follow if it shattered? Shi Hao stood before the cauldron, deep in thought.
“Grant you immortality… Break the seal…”
A faint, indistinct whisper reached him—was it a voice or a thought? It was impossible to tell, eerie and terrifying.
Shi Hao shuddered. In this lifeless place, such a call was enough to make one’s hair stand on end.
The ancient cauldron’s gray and black mist swirled ominously, exuding a demonic influence that unsettled the mind.
*Hmph!*
Shi Hao quickly stepped back, his spirit unstable, as if his soul might leave his body. A powerful force seemed to pull at him, luring him forward.
“Immortality… Eternal life… Endless existence…”
The cold, irresistible whisper pressed upon his will, promising rewards, commanding him to advance.
“Get lost!” Shi Hao roared, staggering back, biting his lip until blood nearly spilled.
He was horrified. How could such a feeble whisper exert such influence over his mind?
*Hum!*
The cracked cauldron trembled, emitting a radiant glow. The gray and black mist dimmed, and the voice vanished as abruptly as it had come.
This was deeply sinister.
Shi Hao retreated, his expression grave. After countless millennia, perhaps even longer, the cauldron still harbored a will. It chilled him to the bone.
Was it the heads within, or something else?
Suddenly, warmth spread around him, dispelling the gloom. A ripple of light, like starlight, illuminated the surroundings, pushing back the darkness.
Shi Hao’s heart raced. This was the work of the flame within him, which had now manifested as an ancient mirror, reflecting everything around it.
It captured every detail of the land and the traces of battle, then circled the stone cauldron, revealing its true form.
*Boom!*
A deafening roar shook the land, and the entire black ancient ship trembled.
Even the light flickered before returning to Shi Hao’s body.
*Woo…*
From behind the broken mountain came a faint, ghastly wail, sending chills down his spine, as if a vengeful spirit were breathing down his neck.
“Is there something deeper within?”
Shi Hao hesitated for a moment before pressing forward. Since escape was impossible, he might as well explore further.
The broken mountain loomed large as he skirted around it, entering a misty expanse of chaotic energy.
This was an even grander ancient land, strewn with more corpses than before—broken weapons, shattered bone artifacts, all scattered about.
Was this still the ship’s hold? It seemed more like an entire world.
After what felt like an eternity, Shi Hao reached what seemed like the world’s end. The path terminated before an abyss—vast, unfathomable, shrouded in swirling mist above and pitch-black darkness below.
The earlier roar seemed to emanate from its depths. This was the ship’s final destination.
He sensed that all the eerie and ominous forces originated here, in the abyss below—a maw capable of devouring everything.
A single glance sent a chill from head to toe, his hair standing on end, his body trembling uncontrollably.
Then, shock overwhelmed him.
When he activated his Heavenly Eye, he saw a figure seated above the abyss’s entrance, as if sealing it with his very body.
The figure was tall and imposing, his black hair streaked with blood, cascading down to his waist. He sat motionless.
“It’s… him!” Shi Hao’s voice trembled.
This was one of the seven kings who had guarded the borderlands, seen in the visions from the altar not long ago.
He was here. It was unbelievable.
Petrified, lifeless, he sat unmoving. Beneath him lay ancient runes, sealing the abyss’s exit.
He was the final guardian.
Shi Hao stared intently.
The king bore countless wounds, his robes in tatters. A short spear pierced his chest, black arrows pinned his shoulder blades, and a fragment of a divine cauldron protruded from his ribs. Shattered tower fragments were embedded in his skull.
It was unimaginable what brutal battles he had endured.
His blood-stained battle robes still glistened with fresh crimson, yet his body was cold, devoid of life.
His injuries were too severe. Any one of those weapons could have shattered the heavens, yet they had broken within him, extinguishing all vitality.
With his dying breath, he had sealed this place.
“I have returned… but my strength is spent…”
A faint emotional ripple—his final thoughts—reached Shi Hao.
“Pierced the borderlands… familiar homeland… pursued… sealed!”
The fragments of his will were all that remained.
A wave of sorrow washed over Shi Hao. This king had guarded the borderlands unyieldingly, fighting with his life and blood.
His return through the borderlands had been to chase something, to seal it away.
Yet he had met such a desolate end, dying alone, his body forever sealing this abyss.
His deeds were monumental, yet none knew of them.
In the cold, dark void, he perished in solitude, unremembered, unsung.
His descendants were branded as sinners, while his corpse drifted through the void aboard this ancient ship, a silent testament to his sacrifice.
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage