Chapter 2162: Archenemy
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Although the Domain Chief issued a ban, he also said that outsiders who disregarded his warning and insisted on examining the divine casket would suffer the consequences.
Therefore, the guards sent by the Domain Chief’s Manor would only put people on notice. If someone really attempted to break through the barrier, they wouldn’t stop the interloper by force.
As a result, the Renhuang, who was quite famous in Qing City, became the first sacrifice. Stumbling through the crowd, he was still bleeding from his eyes and shrieking in agony.
However, what happened to this Renhuang served as a cautionary tale for everyone else. The Domain Chief was not exaggerating to scare people. Whatever was inside the divine casket could blind people in an instant.
Countless cultivators gathered outside of the Domain Chief’s Manor. Both the ground and midair were seething with people. They were all tempted to take a look, but few had the courage and confidence.
At this moment, a person walked in long strides toward the s.p.a.ce above the divine casket. Many people noticed him and were impressed by his dignified manner. He certainly was not an ordinary man. A beautiful woman behind him reminded him, “Be careful.”
“He is going to give it a try.” The crowd watched him with bated breath. This cultivator stepped forward to check out the divine casket.
“That’s Nanhai Qianxue, the precious daughter of the Nanhai family. The man is her husband, Muyun Lan,” someone in the crowd said loudly. The spectators made a loud din. Muyun Lan—the renowned genius from the Nanhai Continent—also came to inspect the divine casket.
Ye Futian, who was also standing in the crowd, focused his eyes on Muyun Lan. It seemed to him that Muyun Lan felt bitter about his failed attempt in the Cangyuan Continent. He was eager to have another try after they arrived at the Shangqing Continent.
Muyun Lan was disgruntled and resentful indeed. Back on the Cangyuan Continent, he couldn’t move forward at all despite his burning desire to take a look at the inside of the divine casket. He kept asking Ye Futian what was inside, but Ye Futian never responded. Muyun Lan felt deeply humiliated in that circ.u.mstance.
His father-in-law and other master cultivators arrived shortly after that. Even with their tremendous power, they couldn’t look directly at the sacred remains in the divine casket. Now, Muyun Lan was more eager to see how terrifying the sacred remains truly were and why most people couldn’t take a brief look.
Muyun Lan was fully prepared this time. On top of that, he planned to look down at the divine casket from above, so he wouldn’t be repelled by the potent force again. His body was illuminated and s.h.i.+elded by the brilliant divine light of the Great Path, and his eyes glowed with a golden radiance.
He kept moving forward and reached the sky above the divine casket. With one glance at the divine casket, he seemed to see endless runes of the Great Path instead of a dead man’s body. Those runes of the Great Path immediately blasted into his eyes.
The ancient characters bludgeoned the way through his defense and stabbed at his eyes in a split second. No matter how strong a cultivator might be, the eyes were always the vulnerable spots. Although Muyun Lan was mentally prepared, he had to hurry to close his eyes. He stumbled several steps back, his body shaking violently. The onlookers saw him covering his eyes with both hands. Blood seeped through his fingers and streamed down his cheeks.
Many people were struck dumb by the scene. The crowd stood in shocked silence, watching Muyun Lan suffering in midair. Even a forceful cultivator like him was wounded so badly that he was bleeding from his eyes. People could only guess what the sacred remains could do to an average man. Muyun Lan would lose his vision if he tried again. The magnitude of the danger was beyond anyone’s imagination.
What on earth did Muyun Lan see?
No one dared to take a look at something right in front of them. It also sounded ridiculous.
Nanhai Qianxue ran to check on Muyun Lan. Muyun Lan removed his hands and shook his head at her. He said, “I’m alright.”
Despite what he said to comfort his wife, he could still feel the sharp pain in his eyes and would never forget the amount of power contained in each rune.
“Don’t look at it again,” Nanhai Qianxue said in a soft voice. Although she was rather intrigued, she curbed her curiosity and didn’t try it herself.
“Yes,” Muyun Lan nodded and replied. One glimpse was enough for him. At least he saw what was in the divine casket with his own eyes and finally let go of the obsession that had started on the Cangyuan Continent.
He cast his mind back and finally understood why Ye Futian didn’t answer his questions even after looking at the sacred remains several times. Ye Futian probably didn’t know how to put it into words.
“Muyun Lan, how did it feel?” someone asked. A lot of prominent cultivators were watching Muyun Lan in the front rows. They were cultivators from various top forces. A few of them stopped at the Cangyuan Continent before, but most came directly to the Shangqing Continent and only learned about the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor from the elders.
“No matter how many years it has been since Shenjia the Great Emperor’s demise, his sacred remains are not something that are to desecrated by us. We don’t even get to catch a glimpse. I suppose that only a Great Emperor who dared to challenge the Heavenly Path would be able to achieve that,” Muyun Lan exclaimed. He had lost his usual arrogance. How could he remain to be self-satisfied when he couldn’t even look at a corpse?
As an eighth-order Renhuang with a perfect Great Path, he was virtually unrivaled among his peers. Apart from several master cultivators, only a handful of cultivators in the entire Shangqing Domain were in the same league as him. Nevertheless, as strong as he might be, he was a puny ant who was absolutely incomparable with Shenjia the Great Emperor.
The more powerful the cultivator was, the more deeply he understood cultivation and the humbler he became.
Many people were surprised by Muyun Lan’s remark. They noticed the abrupt change in him and felt different from what he used to be. People who were familiar with Muyun Lan knew him as an extremely arrogant and proud man. Nevertheless, he couldn’t help but be humbled by the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor.
“I heard that someone outdid you on the Cangyuan Continent,” a person said. With an indecipherable expression, Muyun Lan answered, “Yes.”
As a matter of fact, Ye Futian was more successful than him when they both tried to break into the relic on the Cangyuan Continent. He couldn’t deny it.
“Where did this Ye Futian come from? I heard that he forced his way into the palace of the ancient royal family of Duan, and no one could stop him,” someone asked.
“Duan Qiong is the most outstanding cultivator in the ancient royal family of Duan. They also have several other ninth-order Renhuangs, albeit not as good as Duan Qiong. It’s said that Ye Futian is only a fifth-order Renhuang. Such an impressive feat is enough to make him famous throughout the ShangqingDomain,” another person chimed in. These people partic.i.p.ating in the conversation were all distinguished cultivators from different top forces.
Ye Futian was a name that came up more and more often nowadays, and they even heard people in the Shangqing Continent talking about him a few times.
“He should be here too,” someone muttered while scanning the crowd, trying to find Ye Futian.
Duan Qiong was not thrilled to hear these people building Ye Futian up at the expense of the ancient royal family of Duan. Nevertheless, he didn’t take it to heart since he had become Ye Futian’s friend.
Before long, a lot of people fixed their gaze on Duan Qiong and Ye Futian. Apparently, they recognized both of them.
Plenty of people were familiar with Duan Qiong. They presumed that the silver-haired man next to him was Ye Futian. He was a handsome and das.h.i.+ng man dressed in white with a graceful manner.
Ye Futian stood in place quietly. Many people nearby spontaneously kept a respectful distance from him and Duan Qiong. The empty s.p.a.ce around them attracted even more attention.
Ye Futian was surprised that people in the capital city of the Shangqing Continent would know about him. He a.s.sumed that it was because he looked at the sacred remains on the Cangyuan Continent.
“Rumor has it that you and Muyun Lan both entered the relic on the Cangyuan Continent. You have seen the sacred remains in the divine casket, too, right?” Someone asked Ye Futian.
“Yes, I did,” Ye Futian nodded and replied.
Ye Futian’s confirmation dispelled some people’s fears. Both Ye Futian and Muyun Lan had seen the sacred remains in the divine casket and only suffered minor injuries. The previous Renhuang must be blinded due to lesser strength.
As scary as the sacred remains seemed to be, they were somewhat convinced that they wouldn’t completely lose their sight if they gave it a try.
“What do you think of the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor?” the same person asked again.
“It can’t be seen,” Ye Futian raised his head and answered calmly.
“It can’t be seen?” Everyone was perplexed Ye Futian had seen it, so had Muyun Lan. Why did he say it couldn’t be seen?
“Do you mean that we can’t go to look at it?” someone asked for clarification.
“If you ask for my opinion, I think the sacred remains can’t be seen. The Domain Chief also reminded us and issued a ban,” Ye Futian replied in a flat voice. It was not his problem how they interpreted his response.
“So will you go to see it again?” one person asked.
“Yes, I will,” Ye Futian nodded and said. A murmur of surprise pa.s.sed through the crowd.
Ye Futian told them that the sacred remains couldn’t be seen. Then he confirmed that he would go to look at it again. What did he mean?
Was he implying that all the other cultivators were inferior to him?
The master cultivators also s.h.i.+fted their eyes to Ye Futian. One middle-aged man spoke loudly, “What an impressive answer from the famous cultivator from Four Corner Village. You certainly live up to your reputation.”
Ye Futian clearly sensed a strong vibration nearby when the man was speaking. Startled, he turned around to look for the energy source. Much to his surprise, Blind Tie was facing the middle-aged man while unleas.h.i.+ng formidable power from his body.
Blind Tie had always been composed and quiet ever since Ye Futian met him. After he lost his vision, he was the blacksmith in the village for many years while cultivating his temper and spirit.
Blind Tie’s strong reaction prompted Ye Futian to check out the middle-aged man. Blind Tie lost both his sight and trust in people from the Outer Realms because he was betrayed by a friend who also stole the Divine Technique from him decades ago.
The middle-aged man seemed to possess tremendous power. Ye Futian a.s.sumed that he was the one who blinded Blind Tie.