Chapter 193: Entering the Ancient Tomb

Chapter 193: Chapter 193: Entering the Ancient Tomb

All eyes turned to the dark fissure on the cliff face of Black Stone Mountain. A sinister, bone-chilling aura emanated from within.

"Inside is the Ancient Tomb Space of that great expert."

The King of Shang and the King of Chu each produced five black Jade Tokens, handing them to the five individuals they had brought.

"These are Soul Jade Tokens. Infuse a wisp of your soul into one, and I will be able to monitor whether you live or die inside the Ancient Tomb."

The ten geniuses each followed the instructions, infusing a wisp of their soul into a Jade Token before handing it back to their respective monarch.

The King of Shang accepted the Soul Jade Tokens, then looked to the King of Chu. His gaze shifted slightly as he spoke. "Chu, are you worried about something?"

The King of Chu gave a helpless nod and glanced toward Chu Fei’Er. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ

"Shang, this troublesome daughter of mine insisted on entering the Ancient Tomb. There was nothing I could do. I’ll have to trouble you to ask the geniuses of your dynasty to look after my daughter," the King of Chu said with a sigh.

Hearing this, Bo Hong and the others from the Great Chu Dynasty frowned slightly. ’Does the King of Chu not trust us?’

However, they could understand the king’s deep concern for his daughter. And Chu Fei’Er, at only the Golden Core Eighth Layer, was indeed relatively weak. If the geniuses from the Great Shang Dynasty could help watch over her, their own burden would be lightened considerably.

Thus, even though Bo Hong and the others were displeased, they said nothing.

The King of Shang smiled faintly. "Even if you hadn’t asked, Chu, I would have told them to do so."

The King of Shang then turned to Yi Xiaoyao. "Carefree, I’ll be leaving Princess Fei’Er in your care."

Yi Xiaoyao paused for a moment, then reluctantly agreed, "Alright."

’What? They want *that guy* to look after me? That’s ridiculous! Is he supposed to look after me, or am I supposed to look after him?’

Chu Fei’Er’s brow furrowed in anger. It would have been one thing if it were someone else, but to have someone with a lower cultivation level look after her? This was a blatant insult.

She then turned to the King of Chu and said, "Royal Father, you treat the King of Shang as a brother, but he clearly thinks nothing of you!"

"Insolence!"

The King of Chu barked. Although he, too, felt the King of Shang was just placating him, she couldn’t voice such a thing so rudely. The relationship between the two great dynasties was at stake.

Her face flushed with anger, Chu Fei’Er stomped her foot and, in a fit of pique, was the first to charge into the fissure in the cliffside.

"Princess Fei’Er!"

Bo Hong and the others cried out in alarm and hurried in after her.

Yi Xiaoyao nodded to the four people with him, and they too stepped into the fissure.

The King of Chu watched them disappear into the fissure, his face etched with worry.

"Chu, there’s no need to worry. I’m sure they will all return safely," the King of Shang said with a faint smile.

The King of Chu snapped out of his daze and said apologetically, "Shang, my daughter was terribly impertinent just now. It’s my fault for spoiling her."

The King of Shang shook his head, unconcerned. He smiled. "I imagine you, too, are somewhat displeased that I asked Yi Xiaoyao to look after Princess Fei’Er, Chu. However, I believe you will understand once I tell you his true identity."

A hint of confusion appeared on the King of Chu’s face. He understood that the King of Shang would never allow an ordinary cultivator at the Golden Core Sixth Realm to enter the Ancient Tomb.

"That Yi Xiaoyao... he is a peerless genius of my Great Shang Dynasty, the kind one sees only once in a millennium. When he was only at the Golden Core Fifth Layer, he slew Shangguan Tianjian, who had long occupied the top spot on the Hidden Dragon List. His power is even greater now. In fact, it’s said that just a few days ago, he defeated an expert at the Nascent Soul Second Realm!"

After finishing, the King of Shang looked at the King of Chu with a smile and asked, "So? Are you still worried for Princess Fei’Er’s safety, Chu?"

"Ah..." Upon hearing this, the King of Chu was left utterly speechless, frozen to the spot.

’If the one who said this wasn’t the great monarch of the Shang Dynasty himself, he would have had the man executed on the spot for the crime of deceiving a king.’

’But because these words came from the King of Shang’s own mouth, the King of Chu had no choice but to believe them, whether he wanted to or not!’

...

Meanwhile, the moment Yi Xiaoyao and the others entered the Ancient Tomb Space, they were struck by an unprecedented sense of eeriness.

There was no sun or moon here. The entire space was shrouded in a faint, gray mist, creating a world of monochrome gloom. Gusts of sinister wind swept through, drawing a mournful wail from the white bones that littered the ground.

"It’s freezing!"

All ten of them shivered the instant they stepped inside. The temperature here was dozens of times lower than the outside world. Anyone below the Golden Core Realm would likely freeze to death on the spot.

They each quickly circulated their Spiritual Power to form a protective layer around their bodies and subconsciously drew closer to one another.

Yi Xiaoyao glanced deliberately at Chu Fei’Er. Since the King of Shang had entrusted her to him, it was only natural that he keep an eye on her.

Chu Fei’Er shot him a look of disdain and intentionally put some distance between herself and Yi Xiaoyao.

"Princess Fei’Er, stay in the middle of our group. We’ll protect you. You’ll be fine," Bo Hong and the others said.

Yi Xiaoyao smiled faintly. ’This saves me the trouble.’

"Junior Brother Yi, it seems you’re being looked down upon," Su Xiang said to Yi Xiaoyao with a wry smile.

"It’s nothing. Let her be."

Yi Xiaoyao shook his head, unconcerned, and gathered with Sword Wind Breaker and the other three as they moved forward.

Just then, something stirred inside the hood of Yi Xiaoyao’s black cloak, and a small, pitch-black head poked out.

"Huh? Yi Xiaoyao, you brought a pet in here?"

Wei Buzhan’s eyes widened in surprise as he caught sight of the Little Black Monkey peeking out from the hood on Yi Xiaoyao’s back.

Yi Xiaoyao smiled. Yun Mengling hadn’t taken Little Hei with her when she left, and since the little fellow’s life was linked to his own, he naturally had to keep him close.

"Oh, what a cute little thing!" Shang Shiqie’s eyes instantly lit up. It seemed no girl could resist such a charming creature.

Yi Xiaoyao smiled faintly, picked up the crawling Little Hei, and tossed him back into the hood of his cloak.

’Hmph. His cultivation is low, and that’s one thing. But this Ancient Tomb is fraught with danger, and that guy still has the nerve to bring a pet along!’

The five from the Great Chu Dynasty snorted coldly. They had already decided that if Yi Xiaoyao ran into trouble, they would absolutely not lift a finger to help him.

Yi Xiaoyao overheard them and gave a peculiar smile.

’Little Hei is just a pet? Perhaps these people will soon find out just how wrong they are.’

...