The Ancient Saint Emperor of the Heaven-shading

Chapter 151 Setting a Trap to Open the Well and Kill the Saints
In the center of Dayuepo, an ancient castle stands tall, magnificent and boundless, seemingly hidden from view, from which come bursts of sounds like the roars of gods and demons.

Wang Hongwu and the Empress walked together, stopping in front of the building, silently operating the Qianzi Secret Deduction.

Swish!
Suddenly, a seven-colored light flashed between their brows, reflecting a series of images, one of which showed a familiar figure who had been there before.

It was him? Wang Hongwu's expression shifted. It was a young Taoist priest, none other than the Boundless Taoist Priest who had embarked on the Star Path after leaving Ziwei!

In the reflected image, they saw the Boundless Taoist open the ancient castle with an unknown method, reviving the magic array within and connecting it to the huge stone gate, causing it to slowly move and create a crack.

Then, white air currents flowed out from the cracks in the stone gate like fairy mist, hazy, ethereal and lively.

"He wants to open the burial ground of the mythical era!" The Empress understood. The information she had gathered earlier was very clear: behind the stone gate was an abandoned ruin, belonging to the mythical era before the Primordial Era.

So many years have passed, and no one knows what kind of ancient site it has become, but since it could attract the attention of the Boundless Taoist, it must contain something good.

"Left by the Celestial Venerable of Morality, the ancient well at this time is probably far from being able to refine the Holy Spirit into a pill. After millions of years, changes have occurred. If it is guided now, will there be any changes?" Wang Hongwu pondered, his eyes flickering slightly. There was also a stone token and the Heaven-Mending Technique in the ancient well, which would be very helpful to his Great Banner Spirit.

Without hesitation, he walked directly through the large crack in the stone door. This place had been opened by the Boundless Daoist before, so any danger had been eliminated, and he had a smooth journey.

The Empress followed behind, surrounded by wisps of white mist, resembling a celestial land. There was no sense of killing intent, nor could any terrifying creatures be seen. The entire burial ground of gods and ghosts appeared very peaceful.

After walking for a while, the mist ahead suddenly dissipated, and they saw a huge rock with a sword mark on it. It was left from ancient times, as if it was the aftershock of a strike. Countless years have passed, erasing the sacred mountain and drying up the ocean, yet it still exists.

"Is it a remnant from the great battle of the mythical era?" Wang Hongwu guessed, sensing a domineering and sharp invincible sword intent from it, like a celestial phoenix descending to earth to strike.

The sword intent on it has remained for millennia; if it were to erupt, even a Great Sage would bleed.

He gained enlightenment here and combined it with his Kunpeng Technique, evolving the Yin-Yang Feather Sword. With a casual wave of his hand, the white sun wings and the black yin Kun wings ran parallel, transforming into two intertwined feather swords, numbering 108,000, which cleaved the world.

Adhering to the principle of not wasting anything, Wang Hongwu directly stored the sword stone away using the Sun Emperor Tower, using it as a protective weapon. If he were to encounter the Great Sage, the patriarch who bullies the weak, he could simply unleash the sword stone to blast it apart and easily defeat the enemy.

"How can there be so many corpses here? And they're all from the mythical era." The Empress, who was leading the way, exclaimed in surprise. There were corpses all around, covered in blood. It seemed like the battle had just ended. In just a few miles, the two of them had already seen the remains of more than a dozen ancient saints.

Some belonged to the demon race, some to unknown races, and there were also broken stone saints. There were piles and piles of them, and the aura of death was overwhelming, making people feel as if they had entered the underworld. Wang Hongwu couldn't help but wonder if the former Daoist Venerable had directly attacked the saint's palace.
They killed the Holy Spirit in his ancestral land, suppressed and refined him on the spot, and his remaining followers also died there. The majesty of the prover was fully displayed, and even the Holy Spirit had to shed blood.

After traveling hundreds of miles, they finally reached their destination, where a deep pool existed. As they approached, a series of booming sounds arose, and runes rose up amidst the violent fluctuations. The pool was filled with an overwhelming aura of death.

Wang Hongwu swept his hand, and towering waves of ink surged back. In the instant that a large amount of water splashed up, the deep pool was evaporated. At the same time, a well appeared at the bottom, attracting the attention of the two men.

The well's edge is covered with ancient Taoist traces, and it seems as if an old Taoist priest is chanting scriptures there, but he disappears in a flash and is hard to catch. Only ancient runes remain, as if sealing something.

At this moment, wisps of black gas emanated from the ancient well. The sealing power was still there, but it had weakened considerably compared to the time before. Beside it, a pair of footprints could be seen, indicating that someone had once stood there.

“We’ve all arrived too early; it’s not the right time yet. To break the seal on the ancient well, we need to sacrifice lives. Even saints aren’t enough; we need great saints.”

Along the ancient road to the starry sky, there are seven such ancient wells. Heh, long ago, in his later years, the Daoist Master slew an unimaginably terrifying Holy Spirit, intending to refine its essence and blood to bless future generations. Alas, time was too long, and too many variables arose.

Just then, a sound rang out from where the footprints were, followed by a burst of chaotic energy that gradually outlined a human figure, eventually forming the appearance of the Boundless Daoist. He held a whisk in his hand, bowed to the two from afar, and remained calm.

He set off a year ahead of schedule and spent a lot of time here before finally meeting me.

"The Celestial Venerable of Morality? What a coincidence!" The Heavenly Empress thought of the numerical secrets the two of them had cultivated, and she never expected to find the source here. She just didn't know if that Celestial Venerable had left anything here.

"You've lingered here for so long, are you trying to open this demonic well?" Wang Hongwu frowned, glancing at the well opening. Back then, after suppressing the Holy Spirit, the Daoist Master didn't have much lifespan left and didn't have time to refine it. In the end, he could only seal it in the seven demonic wells. Like brewing wine, if successful, breaking the seal would bring blessings to all living beings; but if it failed, the dark fog would naturally rise to the sky, turning into a disaster.

However, judging from the changes in later generations, the Daoist's seal malfunctioned, failing to transform the Holy Spirit into immortal liquid. Instead, the seven demonic wells became burial grounds, nurturing gods and ghosts.

"Demon Well?" Upon hearing this, Wuliang Daoist looked at him with surprise, shook his head and said, "The seal has just encountered a problem, but it has not completely deteriorated yet. Let's talk about the Demon Well a few million years from now."

To open this place now, sacrifices are needed. Our blood can dissolve some of it, but many more lives will require sacrifice to make up for it. Nearby live the evil god race, once driven out by humanity. They are bloodthirsty and their spirits linger, yearning to return. They are a perfect fit.

As he spoke, he turned to look at the two of them, seemingly as an invitation.

However, such good fortune is not something that ordinary people can handle.

"Those who achieve great things care not for the deluge behind them, nor for the countless corpses that lie beneath them. As long as I ascend to heaven, everything else is but dust." The Empress Dowager was unconvinced. Since she knew this place held great fortune, there was no reason for her to miss it.

Knowing the unforeseen circumstances, Wang Hongwu naturally became more cautious and asked, "Aren't you afraid that something unexpected might happen and the elixir might fail?"

“No need to worry, I have a way to help it succeed.” Wuliang Daoren was very confident, and then added, “However, even with my method, only a portion of the elixir can be refined. The rest will still exist and will continue to be refined according to the legacy of the Dao Venerable.”

Of course, even a small amount is enough. The divine liquid transformed by the Holy Spirit, just one drop, can make a person's spiritual practice progress, can lay the foundation for a child's spiritual path, and will lead to limitless future achievements. It can even bring the dead back to life and heal the wounded. It is a precious elixir for saving and protecting lives.

"That's enough. Leave the rest to future generations. We only need to take what we need." Wang Hongwu nodded. Unless a true master of the imperial path descends, it is impossible to refine all the holy spirits. Being able to refine a portion of the immortal pills is already a great achievement.

"Then it will be considered a collaboration between the three of us. I will spread the news and use this place as a trap to attract the evil god clans lingering nearby. Those guys were defeated and exiled after fighting with the human race. It was a merger of hundreds of clans. They committed many atrocities back then and they want to come back all the time. Keeping them around is just a disaster. Rather than threatening future generations, it is better to wipe them all out in one fell swoop."

"Among them, there are four Great Saints, enough to sacrifice for opening the well." Wuliang Daoren spoke, about to begin preparations. Then, he stepped forward, opened his palm, and forced out a drop of chaotic blood from his palm.

Wang Hongwu and the Heavenly Princess also stepped forward, one transforming into sun blood and the other releasing six-colored phoenix blood.

The three kinds of essence blood mixed together, and a huge power of faith immediately appeared behind the Boundless Daoist. He controlled the power of a supreme divine weapon and cast the divine blood into the ancient well.

Suddenly, a strange phenomenon appeared, with corpses falling from the sky to the ground, blood raining down. Thump! Then, a series of loud noises rang out, as if something was trying to crawl out of the ancient well, constantly impacting the well walls, causing Dayue Slope to tremble violently, and shaking the sun, moon, rivers, and mountains!
Immediately following, an old Taoist priest appeared, blurry and indistinct, sitting cross-legged at the mouth of the well, chanting scriptures, possessing an aura of majesty and terror.

Wang Hongwu listened carefully, and the Eastern Emperor Bell, forged from the divine mark of purple gold between his eyebrows, appeared, resonating with that Daoist sound, as if it were recording it.

Gradually, he perceived a profound meaning within it, belonging to the Daoist scriptures, which expounded a concept and method, as well as a secret technique that complemented the Heaven-Mending Technique. With similar names, it seemed to have been passed down from an even more ancient era, a gift left to future generations by the Daoist Master.

That secret technique seems to be combined with the Heaven-Mending Technique to achieve its complete form, allowing the user to be flawless, and enabling those who regret their mistakes in cultivation to make amends and be given a chance to start over.

The other two paid no attention, staring intently at the ancient well with solemn expressions. The changes there were becoming increasingly drastic. The Boundless Daoist was also casting various hand seals, and a continuous stream of faith and willpower emerged, forming new patterns that merged into the well. In an instant, blood light surged into the sky, demonic clouds obscured the sun, and terrifying blood mist continuously gushed out of the well, while large swaths of immortal light occasionally shot up.

Nine days later, the strange phenomenon subsided slightly. However, the changes during this period had attracted creatures from the surrounding star fields to come and investigate. They all believed that an ancient land of creation had appeared, and many people wanted to come and explore.

Wuliang Daoren went with the flow, and the faith and vows behind him split into thousands of figures, becoming one after another cultivators who had "experienced the burial ground of gods and ghosts" to spread the news, describing the place as miraculous and claiming that it contained an immense fortune.

Rumors spread rapidly within just a few days, attracting the attention of many experts.

Some say this is the place where the Daoist master of the mythological era passed down his legacy, and where his nine secrets and ancient artifacts are preserved.

Some say that this is the place where a holy ancestor once passed away, leaving behind the clan's secret artifacts and ancestral techniques.

Some even said that the ruins of an ancient celestial court were buried here, the place where the palace of a peerless venerable being fell. The news spread wider and wider, becoming increasingly bizarre, and just half a month later, a huge teleportation portal opened in the sky above this ancient star.

From among them emerged terrifying evil gods, all of whom stood tall in the realm of the Great Sage.

Some of them shone with blood-red light, some were shrouded in black mist, and some were surrounded by chaotic energy. Their strange phenomena were astonishing, and the entire ancient star was filled with their powerful and evil aura, which even reached into the starry sky.

As soon as they arrived, the four evil gods warily surveyed the ancient star. They made their way to the location of the ancient well. Although they had heard of the special nature of this place, they remained skeptical and continued to probe.

"This shouldn't be! According to our clan's ancestral calculations, there are still signs of life here! Could it be that there are living beings still living beneath this ancient well?"

"So many years have passed, the mythical era has long been sealed away, are there still living beings within it?!"

"Burial in the burial ground of gods and ghosts is an ancient artifact that shakes the world, as well as a secret immortal technique. After so many years, can it still be preserved?"

"Never mind all that, let's try it first. I heard that the way to open this place is through blood sacrifice. We've brought so many people with us, we'll know if it's true or not once we try."

Four evil gods appeared, each followed by a large army with banners waving and fluttering, shaking the heavens.

As they spoke, someone took action, directly capturing thousands of living beings from the planet, crushing them, and pouring their flesh and spirits onto the ancient well.

Whoosh! Visibly, the patterns on the ancient well lit up, absorbing all of them, and then it really showed signs of opening, with another strange phenomenon appearing, making the eyes of the four evil gods light up instantly.

"Good, it seems to be very effective. Hehe, what a blessing from the mythical era! It's truly something to look forward to. This time, when we launch a counterattack, we must take bloody revenge on those humans!" The evil gods couldn't help but get excited upon seeing this, already imagining a triumphant future.

In the shadows, Wang Hongwu and his two companions watched coldly. The ancient well was filled with immortal liquid transformed from the essence of the Holy Spirit's flesh and blood. Even if it could not cultivate a supreme being of the human race in the future, it would definitely be able to greatly improve the cultivation of many powerful individuals.

The four evil gods did not sit idly by. They arranged for people to attack the ancient well and violently break its seal, while also sending messages to more of their clansmen, rallying them to attack together.

Soon, a fierce collision occurred. As the seal was broken, evil spirits rushed out from the ancient well. The weakest among them were saints, while the strongest were capable of fighting a great saint. A fierce battle broke out here. The great saint roared, the starry river trembled, and planets exploded, turning this star field into a desolate wasteland.

The battle raged for nine days, the blood irrigating the ancient well, finally breaking the seal slightly and allowing a huge lotus flower in the center to rise up. It shone with divine light amidst the blood mist and demonic energy. It was pure white and crystal clear, surrounded by mountains of corpses and seas of blood, eerie and mysterious.

"Ancient artifacts from the mythical era have indeed been left behind!"

"Is that a hand? The arm of the Holy Spirit?"

"Who has such power to suppress the Holy Spirit here? Which preacher?"

Everyone was stunned to see the object inside the lotus. In the center of the snow-white lotus was a giant hand, hundreds of feet long, holding a stone token in its palm. Together, the two released supreme divine power.

"There are finger marks on the stone tablet, it was almost crushed! Those are the finger marks left by the Dao Venerable!" Everyone's expression changed, their hearts filled with shock. The legendary supreme artifact was directly broken like this by someone's bare hands, which shows the power of the Heavenly Venerable. The Holy Spirit is really no match for him.

When the Stone Token was born, the spirit within the Humanity Banner became even more restless. The Stone Token contained the Great Law of Mending Heaven, which could allow the prematurely born Holy Spirit to reach the state of perfection, and it was also of great use to it.

boom!
But in the next moment, something terrible happened. The arm holding the stone token swung down and smashed it down, instantly splitting a Great Sage in two and tearing him into a bloody mist.

Everyone was stunned. They had just been immersed in a bright vision of the future, and the next second they were facing a life-or-death crisis.
However, the arm holding the stone token was filled with boundless hatred and had no intention of wasting words with them. With a series of sweeping blows, it directly killed tens of thousands of evil god descendants. Blood, broken bones, and flesh covered the land, creating an extremely desolate scene.

Retreat! The evil god race suffered heavy casualties and was forced to retreat and cease their attack. However, the allure of the ancient artifacts led them to return time and again, resulting in a protracted war.

"A supreme artifact! How can we miss such a stroke of luck? Once we obtain it, we'll be half royalty, and we'll definitely recoup our investment!"

"It's worth it for the Great Sage to fall. As long as we can obtain the Supreme Artifact and the divine liquid in the well, it won't be difficult to give birth to a few more Great Sages."

"Almost all the supreme weapons in the world have owners. This supreme artifact is our opportunity. We must not let the news leak out!"

They were blinded by greed, their reason clouded by self-interest, and they even deliberately blocked information to prevent other competitors from entering the market.

Because it is a supreme artifact, even a quasi-emperor would be tempted by it!
As the battle raged, the power emanating from this place grew increasingly violent, containing the energies of life and death, the aura of a Great Sage, and the magical power of a Yin God. Various chaotic storms converged to form a raging torrent. Soon, two more Great Sages perished, mercilessly cleaved by Shi Ling. Their flesh and blood, however, nourished the ancient well, making it shine even brighter.

At this point, the sunk costs were too high, and it would be difficult to withdraw even if one wanted to. The last evil god had no choice but to grit his teeth and charge forward. Just as he was fighting against Shi Lingda, three figures suddenly appeared behind him.

In an instant, the Sun Emperor Tower, the Undying Forbidden Artifact, and the Boundless Dao Artifact all struck simultaneously, unleashing three supreme powers that propelled him toward the stone token. The Evil God's expression changed drastically, and he couldn't help but roar, "Three juniors, how dare you bully me like this!"

However, that was all he could say before the giant arm swung the stone tablet and smashed it into a pulp, killing him instantly.

The lord has fallen?!

The descendants of the evil god below were horrified. Someone was plotting against them in the dark. This was a murder trap, premeditated!
The Boundless Daoist descended from the sky and smiled slightly, "Now, it is time for you all to enter the tribulation."

"Kill them all, sacrifice them all!" The Empress drew her sword and rose up, crashing down like a meteor, creating a shockwave.

With a cold stride, Wang Hongwu didn't waste any words and went straight for the kill. His entire body burned and transformed into a human-shaped torch. He was full of youthful vigor and moved with the speed of immortal light. In an instant, he was right in front of the Holy King, passing by him. In a split second, his fist shattered the magic weapon and smashed the man's hand. Then, the light of the sun and the fire of the moon rose up along the arm, turning half of the Holy King's body into a bloody mist.

Too fast! With a powerful strike, he directly confronted a Saint King. Then, Wang Hongwu activated the Kunpeng Technique, unleashing a series of sweeping attacks. Ten thousand divine feathers cleaved through the sky, tearing the Saint King's skin and flesh apart, his blood splattering across the star field, his body covered in white bones. He was almost broken in an instant, with only his primordial spirit managing to escape in a panic. However, it was pierced by the flying banner of humanity, from which two hands emerged and brutally tore his primordial spirit apart.

"Human? Kill him!" This scene immediately aroused the anger of the crowd. Almost dozens of people appeared at the same time and attacked. They were all top saints. Wang Hongwu looked down coldly. The Taiyin and Taiyang Dao diagrams suddenly appeared behind him. Then he raised his fist and unleashed a powerful Kunpeng Fist!

The two merged into one, and the Yin and Yang divine transformation occurred. Suddenly, a Taiyin Kunyu and a Taiyang Jinpeng were unleashed. The two intertwined and merged into one, transforming into a Kunpeng carrying the Yin-Yang diagram on its back. It broke through the sky and directly blasted the dozens of people who were attacking, turning them into a rain of blood that filled the sky.

The battle between the Heavenly Empress and the Boundless Taoist ended quickly, a complete one-sided crushing defeat.

In a short time, they wiped out these creatures, collected everyone's essence, blood, and primordial spirit, and poured them into the ancient well.

Finally, the seal was partially lifted, and a delicate fragrance wafted out. Visible to the naked eye, three pills formed from five-colored immortal liquid floated inside. There were exactly three pills, each about the size of a fingertip, each perfectly formed and sparkling.

It's like a potent medicine brewed by an ancient god, its fragrance intoxicating; just one whiff is enough to strengthen your bones and muscles and prepare you for a transformation.

"Not bad, excellent quality. Eating this will be enough for you to leap two levels of cultivation, and there are many other benefits as well. Hehehe, it's a pleasure to cooperate." Wuliang Daoist clapped his hands in satisfaction, then shifted his gaze from the pill to the stone token held by the Holy Spirit's arm.

Coincidentally, Wang Hongwu had also been watching this stone token.

The Empress Dowager also crossed her arms and a cold smile played on her lips.

This is a supreme artifact, and all three of them have the desire to possess it, so naturally they will not give it up.

With external enemies dealt with, the remaining challenge is internal competition.

(End of this chapter)