Chapter 909: Flying Dragon in the Sky

"It's not time yet," Chen Ling replied casually.

"The ring was destroyed; I can't return it to you."

"I know."

"...Then what do you want with me?"

"Who said I was looking for you? I'm just passing by." Chen Ling's lips curved slightly upwards as he pointed to the distant Ascension Road. "I'm heading there."

Li Fu's expression stiffened. After a muffled "Oh," he headed straight for where A-Qian was, his heart racing and steps quickening as he brushed past Chen Ling, clearly very nervous.

Seeing this, the smile on Chen Ling's lips deepened.

He knew the shadow of fear had been deeply implanted in Li Fu's heart.

Of course, Chen Ling didn't take the opportunity to ambush Li Fu.

Chen Ling's attention was now entirely on the "Flying Dragon in the Sky" layer. He was very curious which of the Nine Lords had dared to attack the Imperial Tomb... Was it one of the ones he knew?

Chen Ling wanted to ascend directly using the Emperor's Fate, but ever since that Nine Lord broke through the "Flying Dragon in the Sky," a part of the Imperial Tomb's authority had become invalid. Chen Ling couldn't teleport directly; now, the only apparent path was the Ascension Road leading to the heavens.

The figure in the large red opera robe stepped onto nothingness, ascending into the clouds, moving towards the sole golden Ascension Road.

Li Fu looked back at Chen Ling's departing figure, his gaze complex. He quickly found where A-Qian had hidden in the alleyway. A-Qian was currently squatting in a large abandoned water tank, completely motionless with fear.

"Brother Li, you're finally back!" A-Qian's eyes lit up when she saw Li Fu return.

"Yes... let's go quickly."

"Go? Are we going to find Sister Wu Qiong?"

Li Fu didn't answer.

Before this, he had indeed intended to entrust A-Qian to Wu Qiong, hoping she would take A-Qian out of the tomb. However, circumstances had changed.

If Wu Qiong and the others wanted to ascend, they would have to cross the Ascension Road... and now, the Opera Emperor was also approaching that very path.

With the Opera Emperor present, Wu Qiong and the others were destined not to ascend, and no new emperor could emerge from this tomb. Entrusting A-Qian to Wu Qiong now would undoubtedly be courting death.

However, Chen Ling had promised that he would ensure A-Qian's escape from the tomb, no matter what happened. Therefore, Li Fu wasn't overly worried. The most important thing now was to find a place to hide until everything settled.

"We're not going to find her anymore," Li Fu said, turning his head to look at the golden path leading to the heavens.

"Now, we just need to protect ourselves."

Meanwhile, in the "Flying Dragon in the Sky" layer.

BOOM—!

A deafening roar echoed, abruptly waking Jian Changsheng, who was still asleep!

Jian Changsheng felt a dizzying haze in his mind. The moment he instinctively sat up, the world spun, and he tumbled directly from the table onto the ground.

"What's going on?!"

Jian Changsheng shook his head, trying to recall what had just happened.

Jian Changsheng remembered that after Chen Ling and Bai Ye fled separately, he was left standing alone. When he turned around, he saw a majestic figure enveloped in blinding golden light extending a hand towards him...

After that, Jian Changsheng remembered nothing.

It took Jian Changsheng a moment to recover before he began to look around, discovering he was in a mysterious space. The sky here was chaotic, like ink, and he couldn't see the ground below. In this empty world, only mountains, resembling Buddhist statues in a temple, were neatly arranged in two rows in the clouds.

These mountains, varying in size, stretched endlessly into the chaotic sky, numbering in the hundreds. As Jian Changsheng looked around, it seemed there was no peak higher than the one he was standing on.

"What in the world is this place?" Jian Changsheng wondered, bewildered.

He wanted to find Chen Ling and Bai Ye, but the peak he was on was so high that no matter which way he went, it felt like he would fall into an endless abyss. This made Jian Changsheng afraid to move, leaving him trapped.

Jian Changsheng didn't see the mysterious golden figure that had reached out to him earlier. Instead, on other peaks, he could see the figures of deceased emperors' remnants. Each stood atop a peak, their faces solemn as they gazed in a particular direction.

Jian Changsheng followed their gaze and saw that the chaotic sky there had been shattered, leaving behind a hideous scar in the void. An indescribable aura surged within it, as if something was about to emerge.

*Whoosh, whoosh—*

Two more emperors' remnants ascended from beneath the sea of clouds, landing on two peaks not far from Jian Changsheng.

One held a sword, the other a bowl. The peaks they stood on were among the top ten in height even among the hundreds of mountains, and both figures now looked warily at the hideous rift in the void.

Inside the dark bowl, two figures silently clung to its rim, peering out through a crack in the edge.

"Damn it... has Spade's bad luck been transferred to me?" Sun Buming said, somewhat speechless. "As if having my liver stolen wasn't enough, I just revived and now I'm trapped in a bowl?"

"Don't panic," Bai Ye said. "This bowl, like those remnants, only retains a fraction of its former power. It's not as solid as you might imagine... As long as the timing is right, I can get you out of here anytime."

Bai Ye, being a senior figure in the Twilight Society after all, remained remarkably calm even while imprisoned in a bowl.

Sun Buming had no choice but to trust Bai Ye. He looked around, asking curiously:

"Is this... 'Flying Dragon in the Sky'?"

"It's definitely the top layer of the Imperial Tomb," Bai Ye said, pointing to the various-sized peaks. "If I'm not mistaken, those should be the 'Monuments of Grand Achievements' of successive emperors, and also where those remnants reside in this tomb.

The greater the achievements these emperors left behind in life, the higher their corresponding 'Monuments of Grand Achievements'. The one who captured us should be Zhu Yuanzhang, Emperor Taizu of Ming, an ender and founder of a dynasty. That's why, even among over four hundred emperors, his 'Monument of Grand Achievements' is high enough to overlook all others."

"It's not 'should be,' it is him. Zhu Chongba, I recognize him," Sun Buming replied casually.

"...You recognize him?"

Sun Buming smiled faintly, not delving deeper into the topic. His gaze swept over the other peaks around them, then settled on the deepest point of all the peaks—a peak of extraordinary height that everyone could only look up to...

Sun Buming pondered, "That one, could it be..."

"Yes," Bai Ye nodded slightly. "That should be the Monument of Grand Achievements for Emperor Qin Shi Huang, Ying Zheng."

"So high..."

Sun Buming narrowed his eyes, trying to make out what was on that peak. Suddenly, a familiar figure flashed across it.

Sun Buming froze, then rubbed his eyes hard, looking as if he'd seen a ghost...

"Am I seeing things... How did I see Spade up there???"