Chapter 350: Ancient Heavenly Venerable's Palm

Intermittent, faint wailing continuously echoed in Li Fan's ears. Ever since Li Fan noticed the sounds, they seemed to have found a target for their propagation. They swarmed in, one after another, enveloping Li Fan. In an instant, it was as if he had fallen into a hell where evil spirits gathered. Li Fan felt completely surrounded by these terrifying sounds from all directions.

He wondered if it was an illusion. From these inexplicable whispers, Li Fan seemed to consistently hear the words "Tian" (Heaven) and "Yi" (Doctor). The more he focused on them, the louder the words "Tian Yi" grew. Like a steadily rising tide, waves of sound crashed over him, threatening to completely submerge him.

Just then, a fiery red glow emanated from within the Dust-Crossing Boat. Above the cabin, a twelve-petaled red lotus gracefully appeared. As the red lotus petals unfurled, the sounds in Li Fan's ears suddenly cleared.

At that moment, Huangfu Song's voice belatedly chimed in: "...It's likely just sound waves occasionally erupting from the Roaring Abyss. This Dust-Crossing Boat has a World-Cleansing Red Lotus formation shield, which will keep us safe."

Li Fan, now back to normal, nodded, but his mind was replaying the sounds he had just heard. "Senior Huangfu," Li Fan asked, "do the sounds in this Roaring Abyss sound the same to everyone, or do they vary from person to person?" This was an important question, and Li Fan stared intently at Huangfu Song, awaiting his answer.

Huangfu Song seemed a little surprised, but after pondering for a moment, he explained, "The abyssal demonic sounds are indescribable. Their essence doesn't change after they leave the Roaring Abyss. However, individual cultivators have different capacities to withstand these demonic sounds, so they naturally perceive them vastly differently."

"It's said that the senior who guards the Roaring Abyss year-round can even comprehend profound Dao techniques from the demonic sounds."

Upon hearing this, Li Fan immediately breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that the "Tian Yi" wailing he had previously heard from the abyssal demonic sounds was a hallucination, triggered by the deep psychological trauma Tian Yi had inflicted upon him.

"Is it stirring up fears hidden deep within the heart?" If even the sound waves passing through the outer layers of the abyss were so terrifying, it was truly hard to imagine what horrifying conditions awaited at its very bottom. No wonder the Myriad Immortals Alliance regarded it with such gravity.

"It seems this mission won't be so easy," Li Fan mused, looking at the red lotus pattern above his head, which flickered between bright and dim.

As he was contemplating, the Dust-Crossing Boat suddenly jolted violently, as if passing through a barrier. Li Fan looked out the window; the white mist was no longer as dense as it had been.

"We're almost at the Eternal Immortal Fortress."

"Prepare to disembark."

Seeing this, Huangfu Song rose from his round seat and walked out. Li Fan and Xue Mu naturally followed him at once.

Upon reaching the bow deck, their view suddenly opened up. Everything around them was dense Soul-Devouring White Mist. The Dust-Crossing Boat rapidly traversed through it, yet they couldn't perceive any change in the surrounding scenery. However, when Li Fan looked back along their path, he could clearly see that the density of the white mist was continuously decreasing. From the outside in, several distinct concentric rings were formed, delineated by varying shades of color. On the Dust-Crossing Boat, a constantly shimmering and pulsating black light layer was warding off the corrosive effects of the white mist.

The Dust-Crossing Boat sped forward until the white mist thinned enough for them to see. Suddenly, a giant bluestone palm appeared above Li Fan's head. Its five fingers resembled colossal pillars supporting the sky, and the lines on its palm were clearly visible. It blotted out the sky, filling Li Fan's entire vision. Compared to it, the Dust-Crossing Boat was incredibly tiny. It seemed ready to press down at any moment, causing Li Fan's heart to skip a beat. Xue Mu's face was even paler, and he instinctively reached out to block.

Huangfu Song was quite pleased with Xue Mu's reaction. Only then did he leisurely say, "Oh, I forgot to tell you. The severed palm ahead is the Eternal Immortal Fortress, which guards the Roaring Abyss."

Upon hearing this, Xue Mu stiffly lowered his hands. However, he continued to stare at the colossal palm above them, his face still etched with shock, utterly speechless. Li Fan, meanwhile, squinted, carefully examining the surface of the palm. The bluestone severed palm was so enormous that the crisscrossing patterns on its surface resembled winding mountain ranges. They were intricately interwoven and incredibly complex. It didn't look man-made at all.

"Interesting..."

As Li Fan continued to observe, the flying boat slowly approached the severed palm. Finally, it flew inside, through the torn section of the wrist. The intense feeling of oppression vanished, and Xue Mu let out a long sigh of relief.

"Senior Huangfu," Xue Mu, having recovered, asked, "why was this Eternal Immortal Fortress built to look like this? It's quite frightening."

Before Huangfu Song could reply, Shangguan Shi, who was leading another group of people, preempted him. "Kid," Shangguan Shi interjected, "it's not that the Eternal Immortal Fortress was built to resemble a severed palm. Instead, the entire fortress was refitted from this very palm. How can you have reached your destination without knowing such basic facts? Brother Huangfu, it seems your teaching hasn't been quite up to par."

Shangguan Shi said with a faint sneer. Huangfu Song, however, showed no anger, merely responding with a smile, "Then I'll trouble you, Brother Shangguan, to explain it to these two youngsters again. I'd be happy to take it easy."

"You..." A flicker of annoyance crossed Shangguan Shi's eyes. But then he seemed to remember something and held back. He let out a cold snort and briefly explained the origin of the severed palm to Li Fan and Xue Mu.

Within the vast Soul-Devouring White Mist, illusionary realms were scattered everywhere. Besides the Roaring Abyss where they currently were, there were many other strange and uncanny existences. This severed palm was discovered by the Myriad Immortals Alliance at the periphery of an illusionary realm. It seemed to have drifted here, having traversed through layers of white mist. After some research, the Myriad Immortals Alliance discovered that this severed palm was actually the remains of a fallen mighty being. The cultivation method practiced by this powerful being, whose identity was unknown, was extremely unique. After his death, his body not only did not decay but instead became like bluestone. It was incredibly hard, capable of shrugging off all sorts of spell attacks. Moreover, it was naturally resistant to the corrosive effects of the Soul-Devouring White Mist. Adhering to the principle of making the best use of resources, and after decades of transformation, the Myriad Immortals Alliance successfully used it as a foundation to construct a fortress capable of moving freely through the white mist.

"Alright, no need to be surprised," Ji Hongdao's voice cut in. "It's merely a fallen Ancient Celestial Venerable. No matter how powerful he was in the past, isn't he still being used as a tool by us now?"

Just as Xue Mu was shocked again, Ji Hongdao's voice rang out. "An Ancient Celestial Venerable?"

"An Everlasting... Celestial Venerable?"

Ji Hongdao's nonchalant words did not lessen Xue Mu's shock; instead, they horrified him even more. He blurted out. Not only him, but all the other cultivators who had gradually arrived on the deck, those who were hearing about this for the first time, were successively struck with horror.

"Can an Everlasting Celestial Venerable also fall?" A cultivator couldn't help but ask, bewildered.