Immortality starts from the liver proficiency

Chapter 257 Deep
Su Zhenhe's expression shifted slightly. He stepped forward and examined the area carefully, then relaxed slightly: "There are no seniors from my Xuanzhen Sect among them."

Xu Yunfan raised his chin slightly, a playful smile curving his lips, and pointed to the shadowy corner: "Brother Su, you are mistaken. Look over there."

Su Zhenhe looked in the direction he was pointing and his expression suddenly changed. In front of the mottled wall at the corner of the corridor, a skeleton wearing a tattered Taoist robe of the Xuanzhen Sect sat upright. In his hand with distinct knuckles, he tightly gripped a broken Qingfeng sword. Although the blade was broken, the unique "Qingyue Cloud Pattern" of the Xuanzhen Sect was clearly engraved on the hilt.

The withered skeleton drooped, as if still gazing at the sword mark before its death. The jade hairpin that had fallen from the Taoist bun rolled on the ground, the two characters "Xuanzhen" on the hairpin head blurred by the passage of time.

"This...how could this be..."

Su Zhenhe's throat bobbed, and his face suddenly turned pale.

He staggered forward, his fingertips trembling as he touched the star pattern embroidered on the tattered Taoist robe. This was the "Purple Sky Star Emblem," which only the successive leaders of the Xuanzhen Sect could wear.

A jagged, slanted crack ran across the sternum of the withered skeleton, faintly bearing traces of burning, exactly like the injury caused by the "Nine Luminaries Burning Heaven" recorded in the sect's scriptures.

"It seems that two thousand years ago, your esteemed ancestors were not 'unpopular' when they entered the palace."

Xu Yunfan gently stroked the restless scales on the dragon scale armor, then examined a bronze token half-hidden between the withered bone knuckles, his eyes flickering slightly.

Despite suffering a fatal attack from the Nine Luminaries Burning Heaven technique of the Nine Luminaries Sect, the Xuanzhen Sect seems to have obtained what it wanted.

"This Taoist priest seems to have left behind something interesting."

After saying that, Xu Yunfan couldn't help but look up at Zhou Tianyan and his group, who had disappeared around the corner in the blink of an eye.

These people had a clear purpose and did not linger because of the skeletons in the corridor.

Xu Yunfan was not in a hurry. Although the Jade Palace looked dilapidated, it was better to be cautious and not rush to the front in any situation.

Taking advantage of Su Zhenhe's surprise and uncertainty, Xu Yunfan stepped forward and grabbed the token from the skeleton's hand.

Seeing this, Su Zhenhe, who was standing nearby, secretly felt uneasy, but dared not make any move. He just looked at him expectantly and said, "Brother Xu, this token must be a keepsake left by my Xuanzhen Sect. Why don't you let me take a look?"

Xu Yunfan's hand stiffened slightly, but quickly returned to normal. He looked up and glanced at Su Zhenhe with a half-smile.

"I'll keep this for now and return it to you once we leave the secret realm."

Su Zhenhe opened his mouth but didn't say anything more. He nodded and said, "Brother Xu, it seems we need to speed things up. If Zhou Tianyan and the others take the lead, we'll probably be at a disadvantage."

Xu Yunfan nodded slightly, without saying a word, but pondered the two complex characters on the token.

Su Zhenhe could make things up without hesitation; this token was definitely not from the Xuanzhen Sect, but rather resembled the characters on the lintel of a white jade palace.

Although I don't know what it says, but...

Xu Yunfan glanced back at the corridor above. The sword marks and knife slashes on the jade wall were still conspicuous, indicating that the experts from various sects must have been engaged in a life-or-death battle back then.

Seeing that Xu Yunfan did not act immediately, Su Zhenhe got used to it, squatted down and paid homage to the skeleton, carefully examined it, and his expression suddenly changed.

"It is... the third-generation leader of the Xuanzhen Sect, 'Master Qingyue'!"

This Qingyue Zhenren was originally the most powerful person in the world, and his skills were astonishing and overwhelming.

"According to the sect's records, this Qingyue Zhenren once served as the abbot of Xuanzhen Temple. He entered the ninth realm of Qi cultivation before the age of forty, and finally, at the age of fifty, when he knew the destiny of heaven and earth, he broke through the barrier between heaven and earth and directly entered the realm of terrestrial immortals. Everyone said that he had already ascended to heaven, but unexpectedly, he died in this White Jade Palace..."

Su Zhenhe's expression was complicated. Xu Yunfan said, "It seems that two thousand years ago, this sect leader seized the key item from the chaos of battle, but ultimately failed to leave alive."

Although this Qingyue Zhenren obtained the token from the top experts of various sects, he was on the verge of death when a Taishang of the Jiuyao Sect attacked him with the Nine Luminaries Burning Heaven Technique.

Only then did he move alone to the corner, sit cross-legged, and quietly await death.

This Qingyue Zhenren was quite arrogant, disdaining to die alongside experts from various sects; he insisted on making room for himself before he died.

Two thousand years ago, this Jade Palace may have been fraught with danger, and even a Grandmaster of the Ninth Realm of Qi Refining could hardly move an inch. But now, after two thousand years, who can live forever?

This Jade Palace is ultimately an inanimate object. Over the years, any strange or bizarre things there have simply vanished with time.

"That's about it, let's go take a look."

Xu Yunfan left a message and followed the trail left by Zhou Tianyan and the others, passing through the dark passageway and stepping into the depths of the white jade palace.

Seeing this, Su Zhenhe naturally dared not be negligent. With this big shot leading the team, he would certainly not let him go.

Sometimes, all you need to do is carefully stay out of the situation, and you can reap the benefits of what others have gained.

Su Zhenhe's eyes flashed. He was well-versed in the Xuanzhen Sect's Panlong Technique, so he naturally had a plan in mind.

As Xu Yunfan stepped into the main hall deep within the White Jade Palace, a stench of decay assaulted his senses. The hall was dimly lit, and the high-hanging dome was covered with spiderweb-like cracks, as if it were about to collapse at any moment.

The surrounding jade pillars with coiled dragons were broken and collapsed. The once exquisite reliefs had been blurred by the erosion of time, leaving only the ferocious remains of dragon heads with empty eye sockets staring at the intruders.

The jade bricks on the ground shattered, and eerie black mist seeped from the cracks, as if some kind of decaying power was slowly reviving.

On both sides of the main hall, the broken bronze lamps had long since gone out, the lamp oil dried into black crusts, and the air was filled with a mixed smell of decay and metal corrosion.

Xu Yunfan glanced around and then focused his gaze on the end of the hall.

At the very end of this dilapidated hall, a towering platform stands majestically, carved entirely from flawless white jade. It remains untouched by the ravages of time, still radiating a lustrous sheen, completely out of place with the grand hall.

On the high platform, a man sat cross-legged, his face as handsome as jade and his features exquisite, as if he were merely asleep.

He was dressed in a plain white robe, surrounded by a faint, clear light, which contrasted sharply with the decay of the main hall.

The man had skin as smooth as jade, lips as red as cinnabar, and long, jet-black hair that cascaded over his shoulders. A jade hairpin shimmered in his hair, making him appear like an immortal descended to earth, untouched by worldly dust.

Alive?!

Xu Yunfan was shocked, and then realized that the other party was not breathing at all, and his blood and qi were stagnant and dry.

Xu Yunfan's gaze sharpened, and he was secretly shocked: "This person... actually seems to be alive?"

Even if one achieves perfect Zhou Tian martial arts, and each realm of a martial artist directly reaches perfection, cultivating their entire body to be flawless and pure, their physique reaching the profound level.

Yet, after hundreds of years, he remains just a skeleton, like the Qingyue Immortal, whose bones crack at the slightest touch of a finger.

(End of this chapter)