Chapter 179 - 162: Opening Chen Canxuan’s Grave!

Chapter 179: Chapter 162: Opening Chen Canxuan’s Grave!

At Dao Yi Mountain, the waters of the Canglang River outside its gates continued their eternal, unchanging flow.

During the month that Chen Sha had been hunting Pang Saint across the world, Yu Miaolian, Zhang Liting, Lin Qingqing, Qi Zhengyi, and the others had just returned to Dao Yi Mountain.

When Chen Sha left for his duel at Copper Mountain, he had arranged for them to either continue their travels within Yuan Country or return to the mountain as soon as possible. The group had stayed in Yuan Country for a few days, but news soon spread of Chen Sha’s victory at Copper Mountain, followed by his relentless pursuit of the Third Pang Saint.

Upon hearing this news, Yu Miaolian felt it was best to bring Zhang Liting and her two martial niece and nephew back to the mountain first. She wanted to prevent the possibility of Pang Saint being driven to a dead end by Chen Sha’s pursuit and desperately coming to Dao Yi Mountain to wreak havoc in a suicidal attack.

This was not out of the realm of possibility.

If the third-strongest person in the world was driven to desperation, even though he was certainly no match for her junior brother, he could definitely drag a few people down with him if he was determined to attack Dao Yi Mountain.

When they originally left the mountain, their Little Uncle-Master was still there, and Chen Sha had left a Cosmic Light Projection with Song Yu. However, Yu Miaolian currently carried two Cosmic Light Projections on her person. Because of this, she thought returning to the mountain would be a safer choice.

If she returned, even if Pang Saint came to Dao Yi Mountain to cause trouble, there would be three avatars of her Sect Leader junior brother on the mountain. Combined with her Little Uncle-Master, they could absolutely ensure that Pang Saint would not leave alive. They might even be able to join forces with her Little Uncle-Master to annihilate the world’s third-strongest expert right there on Dao Yi Mountain.

However, when the group returned to Dao Yi Mountain, they learned that Pang Saint had not come toward the mountain at all. Instead, he had fled toward Jin Country.

On this day.

Yu Miaolian and Song Yu were watching Lin Qingqing practice Swordsmanship, unable to hold back their profuse praise.

"She’s followed our junior brother down the mountain for less than a year, and her progress is astonishingly fast," Song Yu said. "She’s already at Grandmaster Peak, which means her Cultivation is about the same as mine, her Eldest Uncle-Master..."

He shook his head, looking somewhat resigned to feeling inferior.

Lin Qingqing was, after all, a natural Sword Dao Talent. During this time, she had witnessed countless battles following Chen Sha. Since Chen Sha’s opponents were all top-tier figures in the world, she gained tremendous insights every time she watched from the sidelines. With her talent, the amount she learned from witnessing such earth-shattering battles time and time again was beyond a normal person’s imagination.

Furthermore, Chen Sha had never been stingy with providing Cultivation guidance to his disciples. Therefore, Lin Qingqing’s growth had naturally advanced by leaps and bounds.

Yu Miaolian smiled with gratification from the side. "At Qing’er’s speed, I estimate she’ll be able to knock open the Innate Gate in less than ten years."

Possessing a First-Grade Sword Dao Technique and First-Grade Sword Dao Talent, while having one of the world’s strongest experts as a master who could easily teach her various Martial Arts—producing a Great Innate in ten years was something ordinary Sects wouldn’t even dare to dream of. This was true favor from the Celestial Path.

But just as the group was watching Lin Qingqing practice her Swordsmanship on Dao Yi Mountain...

BOOM!

A terrifying shockwave suddenly echoed from the tomb forest at the back of Dao Yi Mountain. It was the reverberation of an intense battle.

Song Yu and Yu Miaolian’s expressions changed. Their first thought was:

"Has Pang Saint attacked Dao Yi Mountain?!"

In an instant, they didn’t even have time to wonder why Pang Saint, who should logically be in Jin Country right now, would appear on Dao Yi Mountain. Their expressions drastically changed as they instinctively shouted, "To the back mountain!"

Since there were ripples of a fierce battle at the back mountain, their Little Uncle-Master had to be fighting someone. Ever since Ancient Transformation Dragon was killed, their Little Uncle-Master was no longer confined to the small lake area at the back mountain. He could now roam freely across the entire mountain, and even down to the foot of it.

During the year and a half since Chen Sha left the Sect, the disciples on the mountain had been able to spot Zhou Santong leisurely strolling around in various places almost every day.

Meanwhile, at the back mountain.

Three miles away from Chen Canxuan’s tomb forest.

BOOM!

Zhou Santong stomped on the ground, sending dirt flying. He threw a punch, causing sonic booms to erupt in the air currents before him. The profound mysteries of various First-Grade Martial Arts all manifested between his palms and fingers.

This was precisely the Dao Yi Seal.

BANG!

This punch smashed directly in front of a figure cloaked in black robes. Illusory shadows of chess pieces intertwined before the man, circling him like orbits of stars.

With a light tap of his finger, the black-robed man consecutively blocked Zhou Santong’s punches and calmly said, "I am well aware that Chen Canxuan has a talented but little-known junior brother. What I am curious about, however, is how you and your young Sect Leader managed to fuse the Jade Emperor Tower, the Celestial Demon Strategy, and certain Swordsmanship Martial Arts into the Dao Yi Seal and the Great Yellow Court."

BANG! BANG!

A rapid-fire series of air explosions burst open right in front of the black-robed man. Even though Zhou Santong’s strength had significantly improved over the past year and a half, he was still being overpowered by the intruder.

"Who exactly are you?" Zhou Santong’s beard and hair trembled, his eyes filled with grave solemnity.

He had originally wandered to the back mountain by chance today, only to unexpectedly spot two individuals who clearly did not belong on Dao Yi Mountain, seemingly searching for something. Having experienced similar situations several times before, the old man’s first thought was that these intruders were definitely targeting Dao Yi Mountain again. Without a word, he stepped forward and sent Ma Rulong flying with a single punch.

To his surprise, however, the black-robed man immediately erupted with a terrifying Cultivation that made even him shudder.

"Zhou Santong, your Cultivation is far too lacking compared to mine..." the Chess Master calmly said. "You cannot stop me."

Accompanying his indifferent words, the Chess Master lowered a finger. An invisible chess piece manifested from the void and pressed down above Zhou Santong’s head.

Zhou Santong acutely sensed an intense feeling of unease and threat. It felt as if a massive net was about to fall upon him; once caught, he would be nothing but a fish in the net. He would most likely be restrained.

But just as he tried to swiftly dodge, the illusory chess pieces floating around the Chess Master shot toward Zhou Santong one by one, acting like hidden weapons. Zhou Santong was instantly suppressed, on the verge of being trapped within the ’chess game.’

Right at this moment...

"Little Uncle-Master, we’re here to help!"

Several loud shouts rang out from not far away.

The Chess Master glanced over with cold brows, only to see Song Yu, Yu Miaolian, Zhang Liting, and the others. His face was completely expressionless as he instinctively ignored the group.

But unexpectedly...

He then saw three figures simultaneously step out from beside Yu Miaolian, Song Yu, and Zhang Liting. The facial features and Daoist Robes of these figures were incredibly familiar.

"What?!"

The Chess Master’s pupils violently shrank. As he stared at the three "Chen Sha"s who had stepped right out of thin air, his previous mindset of utterly disregarding Yu Miaolian and the others—who were merely Grandmasters—was instantly shattered by an explosive sense of subversion.

His heart stopped beating for a second. A moment later, he blurted out two words: "Daoist Skill?!"

Immediately after, a thought flashed through his mind: "Chen Sha actually possesses a Daoist Skill? No wonder he could attain this level of Cultivation in such a short amount of time. But... how did he cultivate Daoist Skill Divine Abilities in today’s world, where even the Vajra Realm cannot exist? That shouldn’t be..."

Although Yu Miaolian and the others also heard the words "Daoist Skill," the three avatars of Chen Sha showed no expression. Driven entirely by instinct, they simultaneously took a step forward...

BOOM!

The air before them was instantly shattered by the three tall figures, creating a terrifying sonic barrier as they appeared right in front of the black-robed man in the blink of an eye. Their horrific speed instantly left the sonic waves trailing behind them.

What appeared before the Chess Master were three fists. Enveloping the world, they carried intense Fist Intent and Qi Power, generating flames from the sheer air friction as they crossed the distance, descending upon the Chess Master.

BANG! BANG!!!

The combined force of the three punches smashed into the Chess Master’s body, sending him flying backward.

At the same time, Zhou Santong, having lost the suppression of the chess pieces, stomped on the ground. Following closely behind Chen Sha’s three avatars, he threw a punch at the Chess Master.

After taking a punch from the three Chen Shas, the Chess Master’s body staggered. A coppery sweetness immediately welled up in his throat, which he forcefully swallowed down. He stared with utter apathy as Zhou Santong’s punch hurled toward him.

Realizing that achieving his goal on this trip to Dao Yi Mountain wouldn’t be so easy, he immediately shifted his strategy. The Chess Master chose not to clash head-on with Zhou Santong. Instead, his figure streaked directly toward the tomb forest where Chen Canxuan was buried.

At this point, he had developed the exact same thought as Pang Saint—as long as he could dig out Chen Canxuan’s corpse and take it away, a few Daoist Skill avatars that weren’t Chen Sha’s true body, along with a Zhou Santong whose strength was inferior to his own, would absolutely be unable to force him to stay.

After Zhou Santong’s punch missed, he looked in the Chess Master’s direction and also realized the man’s objective. His expression instantly changed as he roared, "Oh no! His target is the tomb forest!"

In a flash, he accelerated his pace, urgently chasing after the Chess Master’s figure.

Yu Miaolian, Zhang Liting, and Song Yu each gripped their Cosmic Light Stones, tightly pursuing along with the three great avatars. But the Chess Master’s speed was remarkably fast.

In the blink of an eye, he arrived in front of Chen Canxuan’s tomb. Even though the oppressive force of Zhou Santong’s Fist Power and the imposing aura of Chen Sha’s three great avatars were already bearing down on him from behind, he didn’t dodge immediately. Instead, he prioritized thrusting a palm strike directly at Chen Canxuan’s tomb.

BOOM!

The ground split open, and a coffin was violently blasted out of the earth. The force of this palm strike split the earth, sending dirt clouds rolling and shaking the coffin loose. The profundity of this Palm Technique and the finesse of his Power Dao was easily enough to rank among the top three in the world.

"The coffin has been unearthed. Chen Canxuan is inside..."

But the Chess Master ultimately couldn’t ignore Zhou Santong and Chen Sha’s three avatars attacking from behind. Therefore, after shaking the coffin out with one palm, he turned around with lightning speed. Amidst his furiously fluttering black robes, he pushed out both palms, forming continuous rings of chess pieces orbiting like stars in front of him.

RUMBLE!!

In an instant, he forcefully received the combined strike of Zhou Santong and the three great avatars head-on.

"Pfft..."

This time, as the terrifying power struck his body, the Chess Master was finally forced to spit out a mouthful of blood, spraying it into the air.

Yet, his mind remained completely calm. The attack of the four had directly sent him flying backward—right in the direction of Chen Canxuan’s coffin.

WHOOSH!!

With a flying leap, the Chess Master arrived next to the coffin. He reached out and lifted it, intending to instantly break away and flee Dao Yi Mountain. However, right after doing so, he felt that something was wrong with the coffin in his hands.

"Senior Brother!"

"Master’s remains!!"

In a split second, the expressions of Zhou Santong, Song Yu, and the others drastically changed as they bellowed out.

But immediately after...

They saw the Chess Master, who was holding up the coffin, shift his gaze. He looked up at the coffin and muttered, "Why is the coffin so light?"

A flash of shock and disbelief crossed his eyes. As if to verify something, he immediately slammed a palm onto the coffin.

BANG!

Wood splinters and dirt clouds flew in all directions. The coffin was blasted apart directly.

"You..."

Just as Zhou Santong and the others—their eyes practically splitting open with rage and bearing boundless Resentment—charged forward, ready to fight the Chess Master to the death...

The coffin that had been shattered by the Chess Master’s palm exploded into the sky, sending wood splinters flying everywhere...

Yet, apart from the wooden coffin boards, absolutely nothing fell out.

"Empty!!"

The Chess Master’s expression changed abruptly. "Why is it empty?!"

He immediately looked toward Zhou Santong and the group. However, he saw that Zhou Santong and the others were also frozen in place like stone statues, wearing the exact same expression as him.

Why was the inside of the coffin...

Empty?