Chapter 603 - 612: Immortal Ascension List

With that, Jian Nantian’s body transformed into an arc of light and shot off into the distance.

Wen Qingye’s brows furrowed slightly. ’Why would Jian Nantian, the Sect Master of the Sword Sect, travel thousands of miles just to kill Yue Mingzhu? Does she have some kind of hold over him?’ he wondered.

Xiaoo Zuilan pointed to the lingering aftershocks ahead. "I’m not sure about that. I think it has something to do with Thousand Nether Valley. You can go see if she’s dead. If not, you can ask her."

Xiaoo Zuilan continued, "But she’s most likely dead. You can take the Sumeru Mustard Seed on her body and the sword in her hand. Then we should hurry and find that Ancient Corpse."

Wen Qingye said nothing. With a push of his feet, he shot forward, arriving beside the crater in an instant.

Yue Mingzhu lay in a heap of sand, her eyes shut tight. Her body was covered in a dense web of sword wounds, dripping with blood. She had no life force left; she looked completely and utterly dead.

"She’s dead," Wen Qingye said, shaking his head.

Xiaoo Zuilan walked over to Yue Mingzhu’s body and checked the pulse on her neck. She nodded. "Since that Jian Nantian is the Sect Master of the Sword Sect, he must be a ruthless and cunning man. Judging by how calmly and confidently he left, he must have been absolutely determined to kill her."

Wen Qingye took out a white cloth and covered Yue Mingzhu’s body. He then looked at the Evil Qi soaring into the sky in the distance and said quietly, "I wonder how many experts have gone to fight for the treasures on that Ancient Corpse."

Hearing Wen Qingye’s words, Xiaoo Zuilan grew anxious. "Let’s hurry and take a look! The treasures on Yue Mingzhu are nothing compared to what’s on the Ancient Corpse. You may not be tempted by her things, but I guarantee there’ll be something on that corpse to your liking."

Wen Qingye looked at Xiaoo Zuilan’s anxious expression and couldn’t help but smile. "Alright, let’s go now. I’m also curious about the treasures on the Ancient Corpse."

"They say in that Ancient Corpse’s Sumeru Mustard Seed, there’s a Glazed Cup. And inside that Glazed Cup is... Jade Liquid..."

Xiaoo Zuilan didn’t finish her sentence, her beautiful eyes staring intently at Wen Qingye.

"Jade Liquid?" Wen Qingye’s heart skipped a beat. ’That’s a precious treasure for increasing one’s cultivation, exactly what I need most right now.’

With that said, the two of them sped toward the place where the Evil Qi surged.

Not long after the two had left, a fierce wind kicked up, filling the air with swirling sand.

Yue Mingzhu’s finger twitched slightly, but unfortunately, no one saw it.

...

The Evil Qi that soared to the heavens seemed to disperse the very clouds. It was vast and boundless, shrouding the entire sky.

The very air grew heavy, thick with tension.

Most of the experts present had come for the Ancient Corpse. Countless eyes now stared forward, each filled with a hint of greed.

With so many experts gathered, regardless of their cultivation level, there was always a chance for the opportunistic to get lucky amidst the chaos.

This was no ordinary Ancient Corpse. Rumor had it that it was inextricably linked to the Immortal Coffin Sect; it was supposedly the body of an Ancient Great Power who had planned to use one of their Immortal Coffins.

Who among them would not be tempted by the treasures inside the Sumeru Mustard Seed of an Ancient Great Power?

In the crowd, a one-eyed, middle-aged man warned the people beside him, "This Ancient Corpse is strange. Be careful later."

This man was Elder Wang Zhen of Nebula Hall. He was an exceptionally powerful figure within the sect and a renowned expert in the Eastern Profound Domain.

"Yes, Elder Wang," the surrounding members of Nebula Hall all nodded.

At that moment, Wang Zhen’s single eye swept over the surroundings. He took a shallow breath and pulled out a black slip of paper covered in dense text.

’I heard Wen Qingye killed Lim Tian, and it seems to be true,’ Wang Zhen mused. ’On this Immortal Ascension List, he’s ranked 3,120th, only about three hundred spots below me. And my cultivation is already at the Fourth Heaven of the Life and Death Realm... It seems this young man cannot be underestimated. He can no longer be considered part of the new generation.’

As everyone knew, cultivators between fifteen and twenty-three in Bone Age were called the "new generation," while the "younger generation" referred to those between twenty-four and fifty.

Wen Qingye’s strength had long since surpassed the new generation; he was an exceptionally formidable figure even among the younger generation.

An expert from Nebula Hall beside him asked in surprise, "Is that the Immortal Ascension List compiled by the Ninth Trading House a while back?"

At the mention of this, everyone looked over.

Not long ago, the Ninth Trading House had compiled a list of all the experts in the Eastern Profound Domain, boldly claiming that every single master in the domain was on it.

Once the list was released, it was distributed to most of the experts in the Eastern Profound Domain, causing a massive uproar throughout the region.

Wang Zhen nodded. He glanced at the Nebula Hall expert, then looked back at the Immortal Ascension List. "You’re ranked 4,214th. If you were to face Wen Qingye, barring any surprises, he would kill you in a single move."

HISS—!

It wasn’t just the people from Nebula Hall; several nearby experts also sucked in a sharp breath, their gazes turning in unison toward the Nebula Hall master.

"One move? Are you serious? That’s Li Tianhong, an expert at the peak of the Life and Death Realm First Layer Heaven from Nebula Hall!"

"He can’t even take a single blow from Wen Qingye?"

"No way. Is there a mistake on the list? I just don’t believe it."

The surrounding crowd erupted in discussion.

Li Tianhong was a member of the older generation; how could he accept such a result? His expression soured as he asked, "Elder Wang, is this list real or fake?"

"Hall Master Weii said this list is 99 percent accurate," Wang Zhen snorted. "Hmph, forget the list. Wen Qingye killed Lim Tian. How many moves do you think you could last against Lim Tian?"

Hearing Wang Zhen’s words, Li Tianhong’s face burned with humiliation.

A nearby expert asked curiously, "By the way, I heard that the top thirty or so names on this list aren’t displayed..."

Wang Zhen glanced at the expert, then slowly put away the black slip of paper. He stared ahead and said in a low voice, "Nan Xiang of Thousand Nether Valley is ranked thirty-third. The Playful Monk of Baoling Temple is ranked thirty-second. Meng Yiyu of the Celestial Profound Sect is thirty-first. The names above them are obscured and not shown, but one can roughly guess who they are."

When the crowd heard Wang Zhen’s words, the expert’s expression froze. Li Tianhong’s expression froze. Everyone’s eyes went wide with astonishment.

"Heavens! A master of the older generation like Meng Yiyu is only ranked thirty-first? Then who are the people ranked above him?"

"Isn’t the Playful Monk an expert at the Life and Death Realm Eighth Layer Heaven? The ones above him must all be Three Tribulations masters, right?"

"It’s called the Immortal Ascension List... so that’s the reason. Once you can get off this list, it means you’ve shed your mortal coil and become an immortal."

...