Chapter 749: Spirit Marrow Altar

The power of that Explosive Yin Bead and the black talisman was extraordinary.

If Ye Xuan had been the one fighting Wei Zifu and his group, and they had suddenly used the Explosive Yin Bead in a moment of crisis, he would have been in trouble. Even with his strong defenses, he would have been caught off guard and inevitably injured by the bead, landing him in a perilous situation.

Fortunately, another party had arrived suddenly. In the ensuing greedy battle, both sides exhausted their trump cards, which was what gave Ye Xuan his opening.

At the same time, Ye Xuan grew inwardly vigilant.

‘Every Third Layer Martial Sovereign is a formidable expert. Although they are nothing before a Martial Emperor, if I underestimate them, I could suffer a hidden loss and even die because of it.’

SWOOSH!

On Erhei’s back, Ye Xuan sorted his treasures, classifying them while simultaneously absorbing Heaven and Earth Profound Qi to strengthen the Profound essence and Profound Veins within his body.

SQUEAK SQUEAK!

Suddenly, the Little Purple Mink appeared on Ye Xuan’s shoulder, looking excited. It pointed ahead and to the left, squeaking wildly.

It flailed its limbs, its eyes shining. Its deep purple fur shimmered like satin, and its small eyes blinked with incomparable excitement and agitation, as if it had discovered something truly astonishing.

It was the first time Ye Xuan had seen the Little Purple Mink this excited.

He had never seen it react so intensely, not even when it had found the top-grade Profound Stones or at any other time.

‘Could there be a treasure up ahead that’s even more amazing than top-grade Profound Stones?’

Ye Xuan’s heart stirred.

SQUEAK SQUEAK!

As if guessing Ye Xuan’s thoughts, the Little Purple Mink nodded repeatedly, its expression one of extreme impatience.

Go!

Without the slightest hesitation, Ye Xuan transformed into a streak of light and shot off in the direction the Little Purple Mink was pointing.

After flying for a full four hours, a cluster of extremely bizarre structures appeared before Ye Xuan. These buildings resembled altars, rising from the black earth and giving off an incredibly strange and eerie feeling.

These altars were scattered about like stars, numbering in the dozens. Each one was massive and enveloped by a layer of Restriction, making it impossible to see what was inside.

By now, many Martial Artists had already arrived. In front of nearly every altar, groups of them were frantically attacking the Restrictions, creating booming explosions.

Ye Xuan didn’t know why these people were trying to break the Restrictions on these altar-like structures. ‘Could there be treasure inside?’

“This is it, the Spirit Marrow Altars! They say any Martial Artist who can break the Restriction on an altar can go inside and absorb from the Spirit Marrow Pool…”

Just then, several Martial Sovereigns flew past Ye Xuan from behind. Upon seeing the altars, they immediately cried out in pleasant surprise.

“Come on, let’s go to the altar Brother Luo told us about.”

Without pausing, the Martial Sovereigns flew directly toward one of the altars on the periphery.

‘A Spirit Marrow Pool?’

Ye Xuan’s heart immediately began to pound. He knew all too well what Spirit Marrow was—a treasure that was incredibly beneficial for Martial Artists to absorb. It could rapidly transform a Martial Artist’s Profound Veins, allowing them to achieve a breakthrough.

If combined with a large number of Profound Stones, it could absolutely allow a Martial Artist to break through at the fastest possible speed.

The fact that these altars contained Spirit Marrow Pools made Ye Xuan’s breath catch in his throat. If it was true, then as long as he could get into one, he could definitely achieve a breakthrough in the shortest time imaginable. The effect would be even more astonishing than some breakthrough-type Pills.

Ye Xuan immediately flew toward the nearest altar.

“Halt! This altar belongs to our Celestial Mountain Sect! Leave at once, or don’t blame us for being impolite.”

Before Ye Xuan could even land on the altar, several Martial Sovereigns flew out and shouted coldly at him.

Ye Xuan glanced over and saw more than twenty people on the altar, both Martial Sovereigns and Martial Kings. Their attire was similar, indicating they were from the same sect.

The leaders were two Third Layer Martial Sovereigns who were continuously working to break the Restriction on the altar. Under their assault, the Restriction rippled constantly.

The ones blocking Ye Xuan were several Second Layer Martial Sovereigns. Their expressions were cold and filled with killing intent. It was clear they would attack if Ye Xuan took another step forward.

“Since when did this altar belong to your Celestial Mountain Sect?”

Ye Xuan said with a sneer.

‘I don’t care if it’s the Celestial Mountain Sect or some other sect. A few Second Layer Martial Sovereigns want to stop me? They’ve got to be dreaming.’

If there was nothing special inside the altar, Ye Xuan might have let it go. But hearing that it contained a Spirit Marrow Pool, he could no longer remain calm.

Hearing Ye Xuan’s words, the faces of the Second Layer Martial Sovereigns surrounding him changed drastically. The leader frowned and said, “Kid, I’m giving you one last chance. Leave now, or die.”

Any Martial King who made it this far was bound to be extraordinary. Even if their own strength was lacking, they likely had a powerful background. Therefore, they preferred not to kill if they could avoid it.

Ye Xuan sneered. “Then I’d like to see just how you’re going to make me die.”

With a thought from him, a cold light immediately emanated from Erhei’s eyes.

“It seems you’ve refused a toast, only to be forced to drink a forfeit. Get him!” the lead Peak Second Layer Martial Sovereign roared. His body flickered as he prepared to launch a fierce attack on Ye Xuan.

“Members of the Celestial Mountain Sect, wait. This person is an enemy of ours. Please hand him over to us.”

Just then, a chilling voice rang out. Several figures flew out from a nearby altar, instantly surrounding Ye Xuan.

“So it’s Master Mu Jin, and Brother Yuanming of Ghost Origin Valley!” Seeing the newcomers, the Martial Sovereigns from the Celestial Mountain Sect immediately halted their attack and cupped their hands in greeting.

“Everyone, just leave this person to us,” Mu Jin said, his eyes narrowed. A flicker of greed flashed in the depths of his eyes as he stared at Ye Xuan.

Ye Xuan had previously escaped from them in the ruined palace. Then, the arrival of the Blood Sword Martial Emperor had caused them to lose his trail.

Mu Jin had been certain that the Blood Sword Martial Emperor had killed Ye Xuan, and he couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed. He never expected to see Ye Xuan here again.

This made Mu Jin and his companions ecstatic.

Since Ye Xuan wasn’t dead, it meant he hadn’t been caught by the Blood Sword Martial Emperor. In that case, the Earth Fire Purple Wound Flame he had obtained in the ruins must still be on him.

“So it’s you lot?” Ye Xuan also recognized Mu Jin’s group and smiled coldly. “Where are Diao Minghuang and Jiang Chonghuang? Why don’t I see them?”

Mu Jin and his group wanted trouble with Ye Xuan, but Ye Xuan wanted to kill them even more.

“You’re arrogant, kid.” Mu Jin narrowed his eyes and sent a cold voice transmission to the people beside him, “The moment I give the word, attack. We must capture him instantly. We absolutely cannot let him expose the matter of the Earth Fire. Also, be careful of that toad he has.”

“Yes!”

Ferocious expressions appeared on the faces of You Yuanming and the others from Ghost Origin Valley.

“Attack!” The next moment, Mu Jin gave a cold shout, and You Yuanming and his group instantly lunged at Ye Xuan.

BOOM!

A brilliant river of Profound energy swept toward Ye Xuan.

Ye Xuan’s eyes narrowed, killing intent boiling within them. ‘You want to kill me? Then you can just wait to die.’

With a thought, he was about to strike back.

“Young Master Ye?”

Just then, a surprised cry rang out from the distance, and several figures flew over with a SWOOSH.

“Stop! Everyone, stop! We can talk this out!”

Several Martial Sovereigns appeared in front of Ye Xuan in an instant. BOOM! With a powerful shockwave of Profound energy, they blocked Mu Jin’s attack for Ye Xuan, their robes billowing.

“Elder Xiao Ming?”

Ye Xuan was taken aback. The newcomer was actually Elder Xiao Ming of the Xiao family.

“Everyone, this man is with the Xiao family. If he has caused any offense, please don’t take it to heart. This is all just a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding,” Xiao Ming said, cupping his hands toward the Celestial Mountain Sect and Mu Jin’s group.

“So, it is our friends from the Xiao family,” a Martial Sovereign from the Celestial Mountain Sect said, cupping his hands in return. “A disciple of your Xiao family just tried to trespass on our Celestial Mountain Sect’s altar, so we had no choice but to act. However, since it’s a misunderstanding, we’ll let it go. Please just take your man and leave.”

“Yes, of course,” Xiao Ming said with another salute. He then turned to Mu Jin’s group. “I wonder what sort of grudge you gentlemen have with Young Master Ye? Why not give the Xiao family some face?”

“Master Mu Jin, it seems they just came from one of the inner altars,” You Yuanming whispered to Mu Jin, his expression grim and ugly.

“Hmph. So he’s with the Xiao family. In that case, we will give the Xiao family face. Let’s go.”

Without another word, Mu Jin turned and led You Yuanming and the others back to their own altar.

“Young Master Ye, what are you doing here?” Seeing Mu Jin’s group leave, Xiao Ming looked at Ye Xuan excitedly. “This isn’t the place to talk. Young Master Ye, come with us.”

Ye Xuan was confused, but he was still quite happy to see people from the Xiao family here. The group immediately transformed into streaks of light and left the altar.

A short while later, Xiao Ming led Ye Xuan to another altar not far from the first and they landed.

“Young Master Ye, how did you get here?” Xiao Ming and the others asked in delight as soon as they had settled.

Ye Xuan explained, “After I passed through a region of distorted space, I appeared in this mysterious land. Then I came through an underground passage beneath some ruins, and that’s how I got here.”

Ye Xuan briefly recounted his journey, then asked in confusion, “What about you all? How did you get here? And what about Patriarch Xiao Wuji and Grand Elder Xiao Canglan? Why haven’t I seen them?”

On the outer ring of altars, Ye Xuan had only seen a few elders from the Xiao family. The two great Third Layer Martial Sovereigns, Xiao Wuji and Xiao Canglan, were nowhere to be found.

“The Patriarch and the Grand Elder have already entered this altar. Young Master Ye, the altar you went to just now belonged to the Profound Domain’s Celestial Mountain Sect. It’s a good thing we arrived in time, or they absolutely would not have shown any mercy.”

“Are these altars really divided up among people?” Ye Xuan frowned.

Xiao Ming smiled and said, “Young Master Ye, you must have heard that these altars contain Spirit Marrow Pools. Do you think just any Martial Artist is qualified to enter? By the time you arrived, these altars had actually long been claimed. To occupy an altar, the weakest group must have at least a Tier Eight, Third Layer Martial Sovereign. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be able to hold their ground. And that’s just for the weakest altars on the periphery. For the inner altars like ours, the requirement is to have a Nine Heavens Martial Emperor.”