Chapter 78: The Legacy of the War Demon

Shi Yan suddenly found himself in a strange space.

The sky was gray, filled with endless gray clouds, like an ocean in the void.

It stretched beyond the horizon, with no end in sight.

This was a wondrous space of unknown vastness.

In this space, a towering giant with a fearsome appearance stood between heaven and earth, his head touching the sky and his feet on the ground, as if he had stood there for billions of years, unmoving since ancient times.

A primeval and ancient aura suddenly emanated from the giant, who was thousands of feet tall!

Bursts of brilliant light suddenly shot out from all over his body, as if the acupoints on his body were celestial stars, slowly revolving according to the laws of the universe. Each acupoint contained the power to destroy heaven and earth, and each acupoint seemed to form its own world, where the faint sounds of countless beings crying and moaning could be heard.

In this boundless space, the ground was covered with mountains of corpses and seas of bones, the earth stained crimson with blood, and all kinds of strange and bizarre bones were scattered everywhere.

Some of the bones were as tall as small mountains, and it was unknown what kind of creatures they belonged to.

In the center of the mountain of corpses and sea of bones, there were various strange creatures, some with three heads and six arms, some with the body of a divine dragon, some with three eyes, and some covered in scales...

They all prostrated themselves on the ground, their heads buried deep in the crimson earth, worshiping the towering giant as if he were their only true god!

The ancient god, with a fearsome appearance, suddenly had a strange light in his eyes!

His right eye shone like the most dazzling sun, bringing light and vitality to all living beings and hope to the world.

His left eye, however, was as dark as a black hole, containing boundless darkness, filled with the negative forces of destruction, slaughter, death, madness, and hatred.

In this left eye, only the darkest aspects of human nature could be seen.

One eye was full of vitality, the other was full of death, and the ancient god stood between heaven and earth, as if waiting for something.

Suddenly, the ancient god's two eyes turned to look at Shi Yan.

A mysterious power that reached the soul immediately connected him with Shi Yan.

In the strange space, the ancient god's earth-shattering roar suddenly echoed.

From his two eyes, countless strange symbols suddenly flew out, all entering Shi Yan's ethereal body, making each of Shi Yan's acupoints shine like stars.

A heart-wrenching pain erupted from every acupoint in his body, and Shi Yan's head felt as if it was about to split, causing him to suddenly wake up.

He was still on the third floor of the stone building. The blood-patterned ring on his left ring finger had gradually dimmed, and he sat there in a daze.

If an outsider were to come, they would notice that his two eyes had a faint, flickering light deep within, as if tiny symbols were constantly jumping in his pupils.

...

Xia Xinyan, Chixiao, and Zu Xu walked together into the backyard of the Shi family's residence.

The three of them were suddenly surprised, looking at a stone building about 500 meters away, their faces showing a hint of surprise.

"There, a strange power is rippling out. This strange power seems... very ancient, as if it comes from the primeval ancient times," Xia Xinyan said softly, her eyes behind the veil full of surprise. "This ancient power should not... should not appear here."

Chixiao also had a strange expression, staring at the stone building and muttering, "For some reason, that power made my body's martial soul tremble. Strange, truly strange, what kind of power can cause a martial soul to resonate?"

Xia Xinyan shook her head, pondered for a moment, and then asked, "Lord Zu, is that stone building where Shi Jian lives? It seems I underestimated him; this person is somewhat beyond my expectations..."

"No, no!" Zu Xu shook his head repeatedly, looking strange. "That stone building is where Shi Jian's grandson, Shi Yan, lives. Shi Yan is a boy who likes to study ancient texts and relics, a... very strange little guy."

"Shi Yan..." Xia Xinyan silently repeated the name in her mind, her eyes showing a hint of surprise. She nodded and said, "Let's go see Lord Shi."

"Okay."

...

In the secret room, Shi Jian and Shi Tie, who were discussing how to deal with the Mo family, also sensed the commotion within the family.

Shi Jian's face changed slightly, and he exclaimed, "That strange commotion seems to be coming from Shi Yan's stone building!"

The commotion in Shi Yan's stone building was faintly sensed by experts of a certain level.

After a shout, Shi Jian quickly pushed open the stone door of the secret room and rushed out.

Shi Tie also hurriedly followed.

The two of them rushed toward Shi Yan's stone building.

However, before they reached Shi Yan's stone building, they saw Zu Xu, Chixiao, and Xia Xinyan.

Shi Jian's expression changed, and he stopped halfway, shouting from a distance, "Brother Zu, why did you come so early?"

He immediately recognized Xia Xinyan, feeling somewhat uneasy, and like Zu Xu, he felt a bit guilty, thinking that Xia Xinyan had come to confront them.

"Brother, let's find a quiet place to talk," Zu Xu said with a bitter smile, then pointed to Xia Xinyan and introduced her, "This is Miss Xia Xinyan, the master behind the Miao Miao Pavilion. She has something to discuss with you."

Shi Jian was taken aback, hesitated for a moment, and then decided not to go to Shi Yan's stone building. He nodded and said, "Follow me."

Soon, Shi Jian and Shi Tie led Xia Xinyan and the others to the Rock Hall.

After sitting down in the Rock Hall, Zu Xu cleared his throat and explained Xia Xinyan's intentions.

"Cooperation?"

Shi Jian secretly breathed a sigh of relief, thought for a moment, and then smiled and nodded, "That would be great. The treasure map can only reveal the location of the Heavenly Gate if it is complete. My family never intended to keep it all to ourselves. Miss Xia, it's good that you can put past grievances aside and focus on the bigger picture."

"Okay." Xia Xinyan was straightforward, directly taking out her half of the map and placing it on the stone floor, saying calmly, "Lord Shi, you can take out your half now."

Shi Jian glanced at Zu Xu, who nodded slightly, and then took out the other half of the map, placing it on the stone floor and trying to fit it with the other half.

A strange yellow light suddenly shone from the connection between the two halves of the map.

The yellow light seemed to have a strange viscosity, perfectly connecting the two halves into a complete map, with no visible seams.

The yellow light shone again from the complete treasure map.

The lines on the dark yellow treasure map seemed to come alive, twisting and changing like worms.

The original pattern on the treasure map gradually transformed.

The map, which was initially blurry, gradually became clear, and soon a vivid valley appeared.

The valley was shrouded in a strange yin energy, and outside the valley were vast green swamps, with bubbles clearly visible in the water.

Shi Jian, Shi Tie, Zu Xu, and Chixiao all looked surprised and amazed.

Only Xia Xinyan remained calm, saying, "I am not familiar with this place. Although the map is very clear, I do not recognize it. Do you know where it is?"

"Dead Silence Swamp, Absolute Yin Valley!"

Chixiao's expression was uncertain, and after a while, he said, "It can't be wrong! It must be the Absolute Yin Valley! It is the most mysterious place in the Dead Silence Swamp, with extremely heavy yin energy and many rare yin treasures."

"Good to know." Xia Xinyan nodded. "In that case, we can start preparing to go to the Absolute Yin Valley. We shouldn't delay. I will arrange things at the Miao Miao Pavilion and prepare to set out."

"Is the Absolute Yin Valley the lair of the Nine-Headed Heavenly Snake?" Zu Xu took a deep breath and asked Chixiao.

Shi Jian's face changed.

Chixiao nodded slowly, "Yes, the Nine-Headed Heavenly Snake is in the Absolute Yin Valley. This trip won't be easy."

"Nine-Headed Heavenly Snake?" Xia Xinyan remained calm. "From the name, it sounds like a powerful beast?"

"A seventh-level beast!" Chixiao said.

Xia Xinyan frowned slightly and nodded, "It does seem troublesome, but it's not a big problem. A seventh-level beast is equivalent to a Heaven Realm martial artist. With the two of us working together, we shouldn't be afraid of it."

"The Nine-Headed Heavenly Snake is indeed a seventh-level beast, but it is one of the most powerful. It has nine heads, each with intelligence and strong offensive capabilities. I would rather face three normal seventh-level beasts than this one. Sigh, I need to go back to the Cloudy Mountain Range first to bring some important treasures to prevent any unforeseen events." Chixiao sighed.

"You can keep the treasure map. We'll meet at the entrance of the Dead Silence Swamp in a month."

Xia Xinyan was straightforward, standing up and saying, "I hope you won't be late. I don't have much time to waste." With that, Xia Xinyan walked out gracefully.

"Brother, what should we do?" Zu Xu smiled bitterly. "The Tianyin City is in chaos, and your family and the Mo family are at a critical juncture. Can you spare the time?"

"Difficult."

Shi Jian shook his head, pondered for a moment, and said, "With Mr. Chixiao here, it doesn't matter whether I go or not. I will arrange for someone else. Hmm, Shi Yan likes to act recklessly. This time, let him go with Mr. Chixiao."

Shi Jian looked at Chixiao.

"Okay." Chixiao nodded slightly.

"I can't leave Tianyin City for now, or Beiming Shang will suspect something. I'll send Xiao Shi and two family elders to go with you. This matter doesn't require a large group but needs to be kept secret." Zu Xu pondered for a moment and agreed with Shi Jian's decision.

"Lord Shi, I need to go back to the Cloudy Mountain Range first. I will arrive at the Dead Silence Swamp in a month. Your people don't need to follow me immediately. Let them go with Xiao Shi to the Dead Silence Swamp. I will travel alone, which will be faster." Chixiao said.

"Alright, I'll have Han Feng follow Shi Yan and go with Xiao Shi secretly. A month should be enough time." Shi Jian nodded, put away the treasure map, and handed it to Chixiao, saying sincerely, "Mr. Chixiao, please take care of Shi Yan. I don't want anything to happen to him."

"Don't worry." Chixiao didn't refuse and naturally put away the treasure map.

...

On the third floor of the stone building.

The blood-patterned ring on Shi Yan's left ring finger had returned to its original state, but he remained seated there, his expression dazed, with a faint, flickering light in his eyes.

After an unknown amount of time, Shi Yan's expression gradually cleared, his eyes slowly brightening. He lowered his head, frowned, and muttered, "The Legacy of the War Demon's Life and Death Seal! A martial skill that uses the martial soul, amazing!"