Chapter 1137: Stunning Secret

Mount Panghuang is located in Dongyi. After the destruction of the Bathing Sun Sea, there will be no dispute whatsoever; it will belong to the Five Elements Sect. Chen Mobai had dispatched people to guard it for so many years, and he certainly didn't want True Monarch Dakong and the others to reap the benefits of his efforts.

"Will there be danger inside? After all, it was left by the Eastern Lands Imperial Court." Chen Mobai offered a subtle reminder, but True Monarch Dakong seemed not to grasp it.

"Don't worry," True Monarch Dakong said confidently, "before I enter, I will leave a location marker, and if there's any danger, I can exit at any time." He even winked at Chen Mobai. He had escaped from a perilous place like Dragon Abyss Cavern, let alone here.

"Very good, very good." After hearing this, Shenxi and Ni Yuanzhong nodded repeatedly. Both of them were also very interested in the secret realm contained within the Boundary Stone. After all, it was a secret realm left by the imperial family for the Overturning Sea Sect; it might contain power related to the Sixth Rank. This was something even the Holy Lands would take seriously.

"Then please, senior, make your move." Seeing that he couldn't stop them, Chen Mobai could only say that. However, the opening of the Mount Panghuang ruins at this time might actually be the best outcome for the Five Elements Sect. After all, this matter definitely couldn't be kept secret from the other Holy Lands. Now that the four Soul Transformation cultivators had arrived together, it showed that the Five Elements Sect was not trying to monopolize the good things, thus maintaining peaceful relations.

In the Heavenly River Realm, there were countless instances of factions turning against each other over secret realms and ruins. If it concerned the Eastern Lands Imperial Court, it would be even more closely scrutinized by these Holy Lands, even requiring a report to the Upper Realm. Regardless of what treasures lay within the Boundary Stone, this Sixth-Rank spiritual vein itself was here, and it could only belong to their Five Elements Sect. With this guaranteed acquisition, Chen Mobai's mind began to calm.

After True Monarch Dakong made his preparations, he solemnly approached the stone tablet. He raised the golden and silver rings in his hands, and in an instant, transformed into a silver flash and vanished from the spot. Chen Mobai saw the lingering void traces and felt an urge to try it himself. His Void Evasion Technique, ever since he mastered it, had not yet been put to significant use. However, this secret art was mastered by only a handful of people, even within the Supreme Void Misty Palace, so he certainly couldn't reveal it. He could only wait until these individuals in front of him had left before going in to investigate. True Monarch Dakong was essentially paving the way for him.

"The spiritual veins here are abundant," Shenxi began, "it would be perfect as Sect Master Chen's cultivation ground." Shenxi, perhaps understanding Chen Mobai's current mood, was the first to speak, explicitly confirming Mount Panghuang's ownership and indicating that the Daoist Sect had no covetous desires for this Sixth-Rank spiritual vein. Ni Yuanzhong also nodded in agreement.

"I have mastered the Primordial Chaos Orb," Chen Mobai replied with a forced smile, "so I don't have much need for spiritual veins." While he himself might not need it much, it would certainly be of great use to the Five Elements Sect. At least during Soul Transformation, having a Sixth-Rank spiritual vein could increase the success rate by at least half a percent. Originally, he had planned to combine all the spiritual veins from the three frontier regions of the Eastern Barrens to elevate the Yellow Dragon Cavern into a Sixth-Rank spiritual vein using the Heaven's Veil Earth Network Great Array. However, doing so would cause many spiritual veins to drop a level. With Mount Panghuang, this could be avoided.

"This mountain is precisely the current border between Dongyi and Xuanhai," Shenxi continued. "With Sect Master Chen overseeing it, the Black Flood Dragon Royal Court will certainly not dare to set foot on land." Shenxi continued to speak favorably. After hearing this, Chen Mobai nodded in agreement and then inquired about matters concerning the Eastern Lands Imperial Court and the Ten Directions Palace. Although these matters were also collected and recorded in the texts of the One Yuan Dao Palace, they certainly couldn't compare to the knowledge held by the Daoist Sect and the Nine Heavens Demon-Slaying Sect, who had experienced that era.

"At its peak, the Eastern Lands Imperial Court had dozens of Soul Transformation True Monarchs, and the Human Emperor was even a Void Refinement Grand Cultivator. They also possessed Fifth-Rank puppet foundations similar to the Twelve Golden-Armored Heavenly Gods. Even in the Spirit Void Immortal Realm, they were a powerful force, second only to the Dao Monarchs and True Immortals."

"However, such a powerful force naturally became a target for many. Not to mention the Eight Royal Courts of the Demon Race, the Eighteen Demonic Sects also had their inheritors hidden throughout the Eastern Lands Imperial Court. Leveraging the imperial court's destiny, they triggered the most famous Calamity of the Ghost Mother."

"To kill the Ghost Mother, the Human Emperor had to use power exceeding the Heavenly River Realm's limits and was severely wounded himself. He could only ascend to seek a method for recovery."

"However, regarding this calamity, according to the investigations of our Holy Lands, we discovered many hidden truths within it, because a very powerful individual suddenly disappeared during that calamity."

"That was the Empress, who also possessed Void Refinement cultivation. If she had teamed up with the Human Emperor, the Eastern Lands Imperial Court certainly wouldn't have lost so much of its foundation during the Calamity of the Ghost Mother."

"Therefore, our sect's ancestors speculated that the Empress might have been the mastermind behind the Calamity of the Ghost Mother, with the goal of making the Human Emperor ascend or die, or at least leave the Heavenly River Realm."

These secrets, dating back tens of thousands of years, were known to only a handful of people in the Eastern Continent. Having read the sect's dossiers concerning the Eastern Lands Imperial Court, Shenxi had never had anyone to confide in or discuss with, so this rare opportunity allowed her to speak freely.

"Indeed," Ni Yuanzhong added, "After my Soul Transformation, I communicated with several ascended patriarchs from the Upper Realm and learned many secrets. For example, the Human Emperor who suppressed the Calamity of the Ghost Mother back then had already reached the peak of Void Refinement cultivation in the Heavenly River Realm, just one step away from achieving Dao Integration."

"If he were to achieve Dao Integration in the mortal realm, no force among the Five Continents and Four Seas could stop him from unifying the Heavenly River Realm. In that case, he would become the Heavenly Emperor of the mortal world."

"If he ascended after achieving such a feat, that Human Emperor would naturally inherit the Dao of the Heavenly Emperor, becoming a new Pure Yang Grand Cultivator, the second generation Heavenly Emperor."

"However, it is evident that many Dao Monarchs and True Immortals did not wish to see this happen, thus they triggered the Calamity of the Ghost Mother, forcing him to ascend."

"The Empress's origin is very mysterious, but there are no traces of her in the Immortal Realm, so our ancestors speculated that she might be an Outer Celestial Demon."

Seeing Shenxi had spoken so much, Ni Yuanzhong also shared the secrets he had uncovered. The Heavenly Emperor wished to transcend, but many Dao Monarchs in the Immortal Realm did not wish him to. As this matter could not be openly performed, some might have secretly colluded with demonic magnates from beyond the heavens to set up this scheme.

"Daoist brother, you only know one side of the story." Hearing what Ni Yuanzhong said, Shenxi couldn't help but reveal even more hidden matters. Chen Mobai's ears perked up; he had completely forgotten that True Monarch Dakong was exploring inside the Boundary Stone, entirely captivated by the gossip shared by the two Holy Land Soul Transformation cultivators.

"The Calamity of the Ghost Mother was not just orchestrated by the Empress."

"According to our sect's ancestors' conjectures, the Human Emperor himself might have been the true mastermind, intending to use the Ghost Mother to sever the connection between heaven and earth and calmly complete his Dao Integration in the mortal realm, thus achieving the feat of unifying the Heavenly River Realm."

"However, there was an supreme individual who saw through this conspiracy and, in turn, used the Ghost Mother to directly send that generation's Human Emperor to the heavens."

Hearing Shenxi's words, both Chen Mobai and Ni Yuanzhong were startled. However, this conjecture indeed fit all the clues perfectly.

"Your sect truly deserves its reputation for having the most Imperial Preceptors in the court, to be able to uncover such secrets!" Ni Yuanzhong felt admiration for the Daoist Sect for the first time. If these matters had been known by the Human Emperor at that time, even the Daoist Sect would surely have been annihilated. But the ancestors of the Daoist Sect had preserved this secret until now.

"Oh, not at all," Shenxi said modestly. "The ancestors of our two sects have always walked on thin ice together..." Shenxi was very modest. In the history of the human race in the Eastern Continent, there were many Holy Land inheritances, but only the Nine Heavens Demon-Slaying Sect and the Daoist Sect had survived to this day. It was precisely because of this that the two sects were revered as the Eternal Holy Lands of the Eastern Continent. The Supreme Void Misty Palace only entered the Eastern Continent after the fall of the Eastern Lands Imperial Court, establishing branch sects and sub-palaces. Before that, they only had personnel stationed here as a trading guild.

"I wonder which supreme individual sent that generation's Human Emperor to the heavens?" Chen Mobai continued to ask curiously, interrupting their mutual praise.

"We don't know that," Shenxi replied. "Our sect has been investigating this matter for tens of thousands of years." Ni Yuanzhong naturally knew even less. This was considered an unsolved mystery of the Eastern Continent.

"Then the appearance of the Nine-Headed Great Sage back then, was it for the same reason?" Chen Mobai asked again. After the establishment of the Eastern Lands Imperial Court, there were three great calamities: the Ghost Mother, the Nine-Headed Great Sage, and the Supreme True Demon. Among them, what exhausted the Eastern Lands Imperial Court's final reserves was the sudden appearance of the Nine-Headed Great Sage. The Human Emperor died in battle, and most of the Soul Transformation cultivators from the Ten Directions Palace perished. After that battle, the Eastern Lands Imperial Court no longer had the power to suppress the mortal realm, and Holy Lands like the Nine Heavens Demon-Slaying Sect and the Daoist Sect began to break free from their cages, savoring the freedom of heeding no commands. And the descent of the Outer Supreme True Demon was the final straw that broke the Eastern Lands Imperial Court's back.

The Dao Monarchs and Grand Cultivators of the Immortal Realm joined forces to reshape heaven and earth, ensuring that the Heavenly River Realm could at most accommodate cultivators at the peak of Soul Transformation, and the Heavenly Emperor could no longer interfere with the mortal realm. Without the Heavenly Emperor's radiance, many True Spirits provoked by the Eastern Lands Imperial Court during its prime began to act, and even the supreme treasure, the Dragon-Capturing Cauldron, was snatched away in mid-air. From then on, all forces knew that the Eastern Lands Imperial Court was merely a paper tiger. Its superficial glory could not be maintained, and it began to disintegrate. In just eight hundred years, under the observation of Holy Lands like the Nine Heavens Demon-Slaying Sect, it was completely annihilated.

"The appearance of the Nine-Headed Great Sage was an accident," Shenxi replied. "But after it displayed its talents, Dao Monarchs from the Upper Realm took notice. Although there's no direct proof, for it to achieve Void Refinement in the mortal realm, it was most likely due to inheriting the legacy of Dao Monarch Myriad Spirits." Although there were many Seventh-Rank True Spirits in the Spirit Void Immortal Realm, the Nine-Headed Great Sage, as a half-demon aberration with complex bloodlines, required a tailor-made cultivation method to perfectly achieve Void Refinement harmony. The patriarch of the Myriad Spirits Sect, Dao Monarch Myriad Spirits, was an expert in this field.

"So the Heavenly Emperor didn't hold them accountable?" Chen Mobai also had grievances with the Myriad Spirits Sect and couldn't help but ask again.

"The position of Heavenly Emperor must be fair and just," Shenxi explained. "Without conclusive evidence proving it was Dao Monarch Myriad Spirits' doing, the Heavenly Emperor cannot act against him. However, to avoid suspicion, Dao Monarch Myriad Spirits, from then on, forbade disciples of the Myriad Spirits Sect from Central Continent to step foot in the Eastern Continent."