With that thought in mind, Lyu Liang flashed out of the Heaven Prestige Fortress, where Liu Jiawen had been waiting for him.
"It has only been a hundred years and your cultivation is already at the Peak of Almighty Immortal! Have you been concealing you cultivation? None of those formidable figures have been able reach this point from the Fairy Immortal level, within such a short time!" Liu Jiawen was somewhat angry at first, but she was greatly startled when she sensed his aura.
Lyu Liang, with his eyes wide open, asked in surprise, "What? A hundred years? It has been a hundred years since we entered the fortress?"
Liu Jiawen stared at him as if he had turned into a monster, and after a while, she cried out, "Did you go through a time tunnel? How is it you don't know how much time has lapsed? A hundred years! I've been waiting for you for a hundred years! And you think we were here only yesterday? Ah! You're so weird!"
Lyu Liang realized that, during the 50 thousand years in the illusion, a hundred years had actually pa.s.sed by. No wonder Liu Jiawen was so stunned. No one could believe there was someone who could actually reach the Top of Almighty Immortal, within such a short period!
Lyu Liang, who was always truthful to his friends, told Liu Jiawen all that had happened, and this pacified her somewhat.
Then, when he showed her the Dreamy Crystal Vessel, Liu Jiawen was excited and asked to drive it. Lyu Liang did not reject her request, but reminded her about a series of Mind Mantras and skills, that she had to master first.
He pa.s.sed on the knowledge to Liu Jiawen directly through the Divine Soul, but after only half an hour, she pouted and shook her head, giving up. Meanwhile, she was very astonished that Lyu Liang could remember such complicated Mind Mantras.
Turning to the Heaven Prestige Fortress, Lyu Liang knelt and made three kowtows. Touched by his behavior, Liu Jiawen followed did the same.
"Oh! After a hundred years, are you both thinking of getting married?!" Zhu Yan's surprised voice suddenly sounded. Liu Jiawen jumped up directly, like a cat whose tail had been trodden on, then immediately shot forth a ray of golden light.
"Sister, don't panic! I'm a good keeper of secrets. I promise when we get out of here, I'll behave as if nothing had happened! Hey, hey, that's my promise. Why are you summoning these paper cranes..." Looking at the two, Lyu Liang smiled resignedly, and tried to separate them hastily.
Gritting her teeth, Liu Jiawen claimed that, if Zhu Yan insisted on talking nonsense, she would kill him, no matter where he fled to, even if he was a Saint Emperor of the Demon Clan. Then, Zhu Yan and Lyu Liang made a life-bonded vow immediately, which finally calmed Liu Jiawen down.
"So what are we going to do now? Get out of here?" It seemed that Liu Jiawen didn't want to stay in this seal anymore.
Lyu Liang seemed lost in thought, and then he seemed to understand something. He grabbed Zhu Yan's arm and said with a smile, "Oh yes, brother Zhu, there is something weird in the Heaven Prestige Fortress, and it seems to have something to do with your s.p.a.ce method. Let's go and have a look."
Before Liu Jiawen could ask if she could go with them, Lyu Liang said hastily, "Fairy Jiawen, please wait here for a while. Only the two of us are allowed there, and we will be back soon!" Then both of them disappeared immediately, leaving Liu Jiawen behind, feeling very confused.
A moment later, Lyu Liang and Zhu Yan appeared on the high platform, in the Mausoleum of Immortal Emperor.
Without a word, Lyu Liang walked to the edge of the platform and cupped his hands, as a sign of respect, to the thousand corpses below.
Zhu Yan looked at Lyu Liang with mixed emotions, and then a hint of gentleness appeared in his eyes. He shook his head and said softly, with a slight smile, "You're a kind boy. That old man didn't pa.s.s his legacy to the wrong person! Oh yes, when did you discover it?"
Lyu Liang had already risen. He looked at Zhu Yan and said, "When we arrived."
Zhu Yan was curious, and he said, "Oh? That was when I was disguised as this man, and you discovered it at once? Was it because I took out those fruits?"
Shaking his head, Lyu Liang stimulated a fire with his left hand, and he pointed downward with his right. Then, he said, "Because of the shadow. Brother Zhu was the first to find out. But at that time, we didn't know much about you, and there were Men of Sacrifice in our squad. So, he didn't tell anyone about it, except me. And I couldn't let him down!"
In the glow of the flames, the shadows of Lyu Liang and Zhu Yan were cast on the ground, and if one observed carefully, Zhu Yan's shadow was slightly lighter than Lyu Liang's!
Zhu Yan nodded in appreciation, and then, with a bright flash, he transformed into Zhao Yucheng, who had been missing for a long time. Seeing this, Lyu Liang smiled slightly, with no trace of surprise on his face.
"You're not surprised at my real appearance? Well, I thought my disguise was good enough, or similar to that Man of Sacrifice. Zhu Yan is brilliant, and he's also someone you trust most. I placed a bet with him, and now it seems that I have lost." Zhao Yucheng said in a drawl, but his eyes lit up, sharp and keen.
Lyu Liang cupped his hands respectfully at Zhao Yucheng and said softly, "Senior, if I'm not wrong, you should have something to do with the ancient war. I am able to make use of this opportunity because of your guidance. Thanks a lot for that!"
Zhao Yucheng smiled slightly and said, "Don't call me 'senior.' Now our cultivation is at the same level, so at most, I am your 'Taoism peer.' You're right. I'm Moon, one of the Seven Luminaries Emperors who was engaged in that war. I stayed in the Chaotic World to find someone who could break this seal, and now, since I've fulfilled my wish, I should leave. By the way, I used you this time, but you thanked me rather than hate me? To be honest, I'm surprised that you could break through the Ten Spirit Servers, with your limited cultivation at that time."
"Anyhow, I did get this opportunity, and Liu Jiawen and I couldn't have made it without the fruits and your guidance." Lyu Liang was a broad-minded man. Although Zhao Yucheng did use him, he never had any intention to harm him, but instead, offered him a lot of help. As such, this man was undoubtedly worthy of his grat.i.tude.
Zhao Yucheng said, with a laugh, "Good boy! No wonder Sun and Wood are protecting you, and even I want to join them! Before I leave, I have something to tell you, but after that, you have to make your own decisions."
Zhao Yucheng paused, and then he said seriously, "First, for the two Men of Sacrifice, the strong man is the master, and Muling is his servant. That night, I came out to prevent them from attacking others. When I was wondering what to do, you helped me solve this problem. If I'm not wrong, they must have something to do with Huangfu Gang. He's not a simple man. You must be careful of him, and especially that fog. If you meet them, please stay alert!"
Lyu Liang was stunned, and then he recalled Huangfu Gang's hospitality toward him and Feng Xiu's warning. And now, Zhao Yucheng's words also brought this to his attention, so he nodded seriously.
Zhao Yucheng went on, "During the second year since the relic was opened, I was the one who disappeared from this place. But I took on the disguise of another person through the Shadow Transfiguration Method. What you've learned is that the outermost layer is where wild beasts are." "But actually, it is in the mountainous area. At that time, I intended to break the Bounded Domain of this layer to open a road for someone who could break the seal, just like you!"
Hearing Zhao Yucheng's words, Lyu Liang had a clearer picture of the events that had occurred. He nodded, and asked the last question, "Thanks for your explanations! Could you please tell me where brother Zhu..."
Zhao Yucheng's figure disappeared gradually, as his voice became indistinct, "He was transferred out after a year, and may have returned to the main battlefield now. I should go now, but I believe that we, Seven Luminaries Emperors, will meet you again someday. Before that, try your best to improve your strength! Oh yes, please keep this a secret, for me."
As he watched Zhao Yucheng leave, Lyu Liang cupped his hands at the void s.p.a.ce, and disappeared too. The next moment, he was back at Liu Jiawen's side, which startled her greatly.
As for why Zhu Yan was not with him, Lyu Liang briefly explained that, when Zhu Yan was studying the s.p.a.ce pa.s.sage, he was transported out accidentally, and could be outside the relic, now.
Liu Jiawen believed what he told her. Then, a pitch-black swirl appeared in front of Lyu Liang. They stepped in it and reappeared in the mountainous area.
The next moment, several familiar auras rushed directly at Lyu Liang. They were the divine beasts and the wild beasts, who had disappeared, previously.
Lyu Liang greeted them joyfully, and then he briefed them on the happenings in the relic. When he showed the Dreamy Crystal Vessel, not surprisingly, all of them were astonished.
The two wild beasts were very surprised to learn that his cultivation had surged to the Peak of Almighty Immortal. However, the five divine beasts, who knew how fortunate Lyu Liang had always been, were fairly calm about it.
At last, all of them boarded the Dreamy Crystal Vessel. Before they left, Lyu Liang also did one important thing that he felt he had to do, though Freedom Immortal Emperor and Zhao Yucheng did not require him to do so.
That was to destroy all the cannons in the outermost area. After witnessing scenes from the ancient war, Lyu Liang was very fearful of these so-called products of "civilization."
He could sense that, since the seal was broken, the 20-people limitation at the entrance would also disappear soon. At that time, if they put these cannons into the war, then the outside world would be soon in disaster, just like the s.p.a.ce of Pan Gu.
In his determination to do that, Lyu Liang applied all kinds of extreme measures of the Core Crystal to destroy them directly. Wherever he went, the cannons turned into ashes. After half an hour, all the 189 cannons in the outermost area, were destroyed.
After doing that, Lyu Liang sighed with relief, and he thought, "Invaders of the Nether Big World, wait for me! When I am out, I will destroy all of you!"