Chapter 28: The Great Emperor of Old Returns to Life from Death

Duan De did not believe Qin Sheng and the others. He wandered around this stretch of land himself, but aside from that tomb, he discovered nothing.

The fat Taoist cursed the two black-hearted bastards in his mind, calling them unfilial scoundrels for leaving him nothing. They truly deserved divine punishment!

"What exactly did you obtain?" Duan De forced a smile, trying to calm his nerves. "You know me; I'm not the type of person to covet others' treasures. I just wanted to share your burdens!"

Ye Fan couldn't help but retort, "Last time, you directly snatched my spiritual weapon."

Duan De explained with a face full of righteousness, "Last time was just me playing around with Brother Ye. Even if Great Immortal Qin hadn't arrived, I would have returned the spiritual weapon to you eventually."

"Fellow Daoist," Qin Sheng said, "It's fine to deceive others, but don't deceive yourself."

"Sigh, the world misunderstands me too much," Duan De sighed.

"Fellow Daoist, as you said, this is a Great Emperor's Dao Field," Qin Sheng continued. "If there truly were something here, how could we possibly move it? The Demon Emperor's Tomb is an example!"

"By the way, speaking of which, Taoist, how did you manage to come out of the Yin Tomb alive?" Ye Fan asked.

Duan De looked miserable and pained. "Don't even mention it. I almost died down there. Fortunately, my skills were a step ahead, and I managed to escape by luck. There is great terror in the Demon Emperor's Yin Tomb; the killing intent is peerless. Even top figures from Sacred Lands and great families have perished inside."

Qin Sheng was not surprised. The Demon Emperor's Yin Tomb truly "buried" the Azure Emperor; no matter how many people were thrown in to fill it, it would never be enough.

Duan De's escape from the Yin Tomb likely came at a significant cost. After all, every time his reincarnation reset, he had to start from zero and cultivate his way up step by step. However, this fat man had too many tricks up his sleeve; even during his low-cultivation periods, he would at most suffer some hardship or embarrassment, but rarely faced actual mortal danger.

"You really didn't get anything?" Duan De was not giving up.

"Truly nothing," the two replied in unison.

"That shouldn't be right. There should be Chaos Void Dust here."

"What is Chaos Void Dust?" Qin Sheng inquired.

"Show me the treasures you obtained, and I'll tell you."

It was obvious that Duan De didn't believe them at all, but the two were tight-lipped, insisting they had gained nothing.

Duan De cursed inwardly and walked toward the tomb with an uncertain expression.

Qin Sheng quickly said, "Fellow Daoist, you aren't thinking of digging up this tomb, are you? If you're looking for death, don't take us with you! Taoist, don't be impulsive," Ye Fan added urgently. "Think about the Demon Emperor's Yin Tomb!"

"It's so hard to discover a Great Emperor's Dao Field, and to return empty-handed... I just can't accept it!" Duan De lamented.

"That is seeking death," Qin Sheng shook his head. "What kind of figure is a Great Emperor, and what realm are you in now? Perhaps you are special and capable enough to believe you can escape safely. But some things have causes that inevitably lead to effects. You may be safe now, but there is no guarantee for the future. How heavy is the karma of a Great Emperor? It is enough to crush eternal ages!"

Qin Sheng was certain that if Duan De had come here alone, he would definitely have dug up the tomb.

In the original plot, after Duan De obtained the Heaven-Swallowing Demon Cover, he was extremely wary of mentioning the Ruthless Emperor, sometimes even showing fear. The reason for this must be that Duan De had done something to offend her. Considering this fat man's profession... it was quite clear what he had done. He had dug up the Ruthless Emperor's grave; how could he not be afraid? Qin Sheng even suspected that Duan De might have touched that blood-stained robe that likely belonged to her.

There was no need to doubt Duan De's courage; this fat man's guts were as big as the sky. It was also a stroke of luck that it was Duan De; if anyone else had done such things, they would surely be dead.

Qin Sheng's words seemed to strike a chord with Duan De, causing him to fall into deep thought.

"Even if you want to dig it up, Yezi and I will absolutely disagree and stop you," Qin Sheng continued.

The fact that the Heaven-Swallowing Demon Cover had collected that pile of black soil earlier was a true accident; Qin Sheng had never had the intention of grave robbing from the start. The more one knows, the less one dares to court death. Moreover, he owed much to the Ruthless Emperor; it was only right to protect her memorial tomb.

After a moment, Duan De snapped out of it and said irritably, "If you don't want to die, do you think I want to? This time was a huge loss. I used so many treasures and got nothing..."

As Duan De spoke, he scanned his surroundings. His eyes suddenly lit up. He crouched down, grabbed a handful of red mud, sniffed it, and beamed with joy. "It's not as if I gained nothing."

Ye Fan was dumbfounded. "Taoist, you aren't planning to roll up the very soil itself, are you?" What a locust!

"Nonsense," Duan De said. "Today, I shall broaden your horizons. Do you know what kind of place this is?"

"A Great Emperor's Dao Field, you just said so."

"..."

Duan De was momentarily speechless, but he quickly acted as if nothing happened and continued, "Legend has it that an ancient Great Emperor once underwent his most critical transformation here. It was a very cruel and tragic rebirth. That Emperor's body exploded into a blood mist, and his primordial spirit dissipated, bringing him to the brink of death."

"Does the soil here contain the Great Emperor's blood?" Ye Fan asked in shock.

"In your dreams." Duan De rolled his eyes. "If that kind of substance wasn't specially processed, a single drop could kill countless people like us. After that Great Emperor completed his most critical transformation, he reclaimed all his flesh and primordial spirit, but the Dao Rhyme influenced this world. The Dao Rhyme of the flesh stained the earth red, and the Dao Rhyme of the primordial spirit eroded the clouds, respectively nurturing special substances. You've stayed here for months; you should have noticed something, right?"

The two nodded.

"For some reason, the Dao Rhyme has since dissipated, but those two special substances still exist. If the essence can be extracted, the benefits would be infinite."

Qin Sheng fell into thought. According to Duan De, could this be the place where the Ruthless Emperor underwent her transformation from her first life to her second-generation flawless Chaos Body? It was highly likely and consistent with the memorial tomb. Her first life's imperial body had already been forged into an imperial weapon, and burying her blood-stained robe here could be seen as burying her first life.

Ye Fan was amazed. "Taoist, how do you know all this?"

Duan De smiled confidently. "Many ancients left behind information specifically so that the truths of their era wouldn't be buried in history. And I am the one responsible for excavating them. I can be considered a kindred spirit to those ancients across the river of time."

*He's just a grave robber, yet he makes it sound so refined,* Ye Fan thought.

"Fellow Daoist, do you have a way to extract the essence of those two special substances?" Qin Sheng asked with a kind smile.

Duan De said proudly, "Of course."

"Hahaha!" Qin Sheng laughed loudly. "Fellow Daoist, on this day, we gather here, looking back at the past and its glorious years. Looking toward the future, our fate is intertwined and endless. This essence of special substances should be split half-and-half when we meet!"

Ye Fan nodded rapidly. "Exactly, exactly! Today we obtain opportunities together in the Great Emperor's Dao Field; in the future, ascending to immortality together would make for a wonderful tale. Taoist, nothing more needs to be said—we are definitely becoming your friends!"

Duan De's vision went dark. *Heaven help me! How can there be people more shameless than me in this world? And there are two of them!*

Looking at the two black-hearted bastards before him, Duan De truly wanted the heavens to take them away.

"Don't even think about it!" Duan De refused decisively. "Unless you bring out the treasures you obtained here, then I might consider sharing some of the essence with you."

"We truly didn't get any treasures," Qin Sheng said. "Fellow Daoist, given our relationship, you are being far too formal."

"Stop right there! We have no relationship whatsoever!"

Duan De ignored them and began extracting the essence. He possessed a type of Dao Pattern that, once inscribed on the body, could create an "acting as a furnace" effect for a short period. Ancient great cultivators would gain much insight from the world; they would transcribe these insights, which were passed down to later generations, forming the Dao Patterns that modern cultivators study. One could say these were the concretization of the "Dao," all-encompassing and possessing mysterious powers. Some Dao Patterns could allow one to traverse millions of miles in an instant; others could interfere with the flow of time.

"Can't essence be extracted using tools?" Qin Sheng asked.

"The origins of these substances are special; tools cannot collect them. Only the human body itself can gather them," Duan De explained casually. "Furthermore, the human body has limits; it cannot absorb them infinitely, otherwise, there will be negative side effects."

One shouldn't assume that because Duan De was a reincarnation of an ancient Heavenly Venerable, his current physical body could rival a Great Emperor. Back at the Azure Emperor's Tomb, when Duan De was fighting for spiritual weapons of the Dao Palace or Four Poles grade, his backside was still being pierced and bleeding...

Qin Sheng clapped his hands and laughed. "In that case, it's even more necessary for us to work together! How much essence can you extract alone, Fellow Daoist? If Yezi and I join in, the efficiency will be much higher! Besides, you know Yezi has the Archaic Saint Body; his physical prowess is unmatched."

Hearing this, Duan De actually felt a bit tempted.

"How about this, Fellow Daoist: you help us inscribe the Dao Patterns, and the essence extracted afterward will be split ninety-to-one!" Qin Sheng said generously.

"You get one, I get nine? That works," Duan De thought Qin Sheng actually had a conscience.

"It's we who get nine, and you get one," Qin Sheng said with a grin.

Duan De flared up. They were treating him like a demon race! "You black-hearted brats, in your dreams!"

"Fellow Daoist, calm down. Let me explain it carefully..."

After a period of haggling, Qin Sheng, Ye Fan, and Duan De reached an agreement: a fifty-fifty split. Both of them were in high spirits; they had gained a windfall for free. It was wonderful!

As for Duan De... although he could harvest more essence, he was extremely frustrated. Every time he encountered these two shameless scoundrels, nothing good ever happened!

However, the fat man was indeed an all-rounder who knew a bit of everything. After spending a day, he had inscribed the "Furnace" Dao Pattern on the three of them.

Half a month later, looking at the two dragon-eye-sized beads in his hand, Qin Sheng was filled with admiration. "This essence of the two paths is enough to trigger a transformation in both a cultivator's physical body and their primordial spirit. An opportunity, truly an opportunity. Fellow Daoist, thank you truly this time."

"Show me what you obtained here to truly thank me," Duan De said irritably.

"Taoist, you are too attached to worldly things," Ye Fan said solemnly. "What is our relationship? We are practically brothers from different parents; don't be so calculative."

"Good brother!" Qin Sheng called out with deep emotion. "How do we get out of here?"

"Hmm?" Sensing something, Duan De immediately changed his expression. "So you have no way to leave this place? I can take you out, but I'll have to charge a toll!"

"You fat bastard." Qin Sheng's tone changed. "You'd better think carefully. If we can't get out, don't expect to leave either."

Duan De's current realm was still inferior to Qin Sheng's, even with the Heaven-Swallowing Demon Cover. Looking at the two men who were staring him down as if they might pounce on him to keep him there at any second, Duan De fell silent.

"Meeting you two bastards is truly the worst luck I've had in eight lifetimes!"

Why didn't the Great Emperor who once practiced here leave behind a killing array to get rid of these two little rascals?