Chapter 289

Chapter 289: The Saints’ Legacy

With a single strike, the holy weapon cracked!

What kind of power is this?!

Zhang Yang was shocked.

He realized that few beings in history had ever destroyed a holy weapon. The only ones who might have were those involved in holy wars, and even those occurrences were extremely rare.

Yet this only emphasized the terrifying nature of holy weapons.

Even in the Major Holy Places, where the Great Boundless Perfect Stage existed, few wielded true holy weapons. Most only possessed auxiliary holy treasures, a testament to how incredibly rare holy weapons were.

To witness such raw terror in the Abyss of the Buried Immortals was beyond expectation.

A single blow had cracked the Inheritance Stone Furnace, a relic left behind by the Star Flame Saint, one of the three most powerful saints in the Western Desert.

The Saintly Fire had burned within it for a hundred years, not only protecting the inheritance but continuously refining the Inheritance Stone Furnace. Even incremental improvements over a century should have made it near indestructible.

Yet now, in mere moments, it had shattered. Zhang Yang had no time to be amazed. He could only feel relief that the terrifying black hand had withdrawn instead of striking again. Still, the damage was done. The cracks on the Inheritance Stone Furnace were significant.

Originally ten meters tall, the furnace now had a gaping fissure running from bottom to top, with countless fractures branching outward like a web of destruction.

From within those fractures, the death energy of the Abyss, capable of annihilating both body and soul, suddenly surged forth, as if it had finally found a release.

Zhang Yang’s expression darkened.

With his keen vision, he could clearly see the horror of this death energy.

This was a power that could absolutely kill him.

Even the outermost layer of death energy in the Abyss was frightening beyond measure.

He quickly activated his Baxiang Saintly Power, fully igniting his Baxiang Saintly Fire and blasting it against the inner wall of the Inheritance Stone Furnace.

Without Yaoruoxian’s interference, his control over the Inheritance Stone Furnace improved significantly.

Summoning all his strength, he unleashed the holy fire within the furnace, causing it to erupt violently. Flames surged through the cracks, incinerating the approaching death energy with a sizzling hiss.

However, it was merely a drop in the ocean.

The death energy was far too overwhelming, an endless tide surging from the abyss.

No matter how fierce the holy fire, it would eventually burn out. He couldn’t afford to stay here for long.

He quickly scanned his surroundings.

Everything was hazy.

The thick death energy limited his vision, but within a two-hundred-meter radius, he could still see clearly.

As his gaze swept across the abyss, it locked onto a faint light, positioned diagonally above, about one hundred and thirty meters away.

Unlike the death energy, this light radiated a power completely opposite in nature.

"A life-boosting forbidden law?"

"That looks like a cave."

Zhang Yang narrowed his eyes, gathering the Nine Extremes True Essence in his vision. Immediately, the details became clear.

The cave was small, just large enough for one person to enter.

Around its entrance, layers of Forbidden Law Patterns glowed with the power of life, resisting the death energy.

A wave of relief washed over him. Compared to the cracked Inheritance Stone Furnace, this place was clearly much safer.

However, the distance made him frown.

The death energy was simply too terrifying.

It surged endlessly from the abyss below, unable to dissipate, forcing it to compress within this confined space. Over countless years, it had concentrated to an unimaginable level. If it were ever released, he suspected it could turn the Falling Star Mountain Range into a wasteland in an instant.

Focusing his mind, he observed the holy fire within the stone furnace.

By now, it had grown far stronger than the weak flame he had first seen, it had reached a perfect stage.

He fully activated his Baxiang Saintly Power, allowing the Baxiang Saintly Fire to surge, subtly connecting with the stone furnace’s flames. However, this connection remained superficial, as the two fires were fundamentally different—both derived from the Baxiang Saintly Fire, yet shaped by separate understandings.

But that was enough.

Zhang Yang controlled his Baxiang Saintly Fire, suddenly drawing upon the stone furnace’s holy fire, causing it to erupt and envelop his entire body. The Baxiang Saintly Fire clung tightly to him.

Whoosh!

With his speed pushed to the limit, he shot diagonally toward the cave.

It was just over one hundred meters.

Even though he couldn’t reach perfect sound speed due to maintaining his Baxiang Saintly Power, he was still very close.

Yet, what should have been an instantaneous movement felt agonizingly slow.

The outer layer of the stone furnace’s holy fire clashed with a colossal surge of death energy, which surged over it like a consuming tide, extinguishing it in an instant.

The sheer speed of the death energy’s approach exceeded his sprint, intensifying the danger he felt.

At the last moment, he reached the cave. Just as he arrived, the stone furnace’s holy fire vanished completely. He stepped inside.

"Hiss!"

A piercing screech echoed.

A gray creature, resembling both an eagle and a hawk, its body swirling with death energy, lunged at him.

"The Soul-Eating Bird!"

Zhang Yang’s expression darkened.

This was an extremely rare death bird, known to appear only in places where large-scale massacres had occurred. Battlefield carnage often spawned these unnatural creatures.

Whoosh!

The Soul-Eating Bird attacked.

Zhang Yang snorted coldly, retreating further into the cave. The Baxiang Saintly Fire and the remaining embers of the stone furnace’s holy fire erupted around him.

Whoosh!

The Soul-Eating Bird flapped its wings sharply, summoning a Great Wind infused with death energy, charging forward with terrifying force.

All the holy fire was instantly extinguished.

At the same time, the Soul-Eating Bird viciously pecked at Zhang Yang’s exposed arm.

The strike was incredibly fast.

Zhang Yang reacted on instinct. He threw a punch, but not just any strike. He used a divine power he hadn’t called upon in a long time. Soul Binding Power!

Bang!

His fist collided with the Soul-Eating Bird.

"Hiss!"

The creature shrieked in pain, its body flung backward, vanishing into the death energy.

Zhang Yang, however, was also sent reeling into the cave, feeling a dark aura spreading across his hands and arms, the corrupting influence of death energy.

But the life-boosting forbidden law at the cave’s entrance quickly purified it, restoring his flesh before the corruption could take root.

He exhaled deeply.

"That was close!"

"It’s just over a hundred meters, yet I faced this much danger…"

At last, he truly grasped just how terrifying the Abyss of the Buried Immortals was.

And this was only the outermost layer.

The thought of what lay deeper was almost unimaginable.

He looked up.

His Nine Extremes True Essence flowed into his eyes, extending his vision up to five hundred meters, yet he still couldn’t see the surface.

A heavy sense of oppression settled over him.

"Whew…"

He exhaled slowly, adjusting his emotions, clearing his mind to keep despair at bay.

Despite having reached a point of fearlessness, he still felt a lingering sense of dread—a testament to the sheer pressure and danger that the Abyss of the Buried Immortals exerted upon him.

He turned his attention to the cave.

It was shallow, no more than five or six meters deep.

The walls were engraved with life-boosting forbidden laws, all at a saintly level.

At the end of the cave lay a skeleton, covered in cracks. The breastbone, ribs, left arm bone, right leg bone, and vertebrae were all fractured.

Zhang Yang frowned, sensing an ominous presence.

"A saint?!"

He stepped forward.

On the ground lay a holy weapon, a handleless crescent blade, shaped like a waning moon. Its outer edge was razor-sharp, glimmering coldly, while the inner side was adorned with intricate metalwork.

The weapon was covered in dust, yet as Zhang Yang approached, it trembled slightly, as if yearning to return to battle.

Beside it rested a Saint’s Handbook, detailing the mysteries of the path of a saint.

Several martial arts books lay scattered nearby, all centered on saint-level techniques.

His gaze then fell upon a pearl with a faint bloody shimmer on its surface. Within it, a cool waning moon rotated slowly. He immediately recognized it—

A bloodline inheritance pearl, something that could only be used by those of the corresponding lineage.

Finally, he noticed a worn Communication Stone.

He touched it lightly, channeling his Nine Extremes True Essence into it.

A weak voice emerged.

“This is Saint Yue Shou, royal uncle of the Cold Moon Dynasty. I was ambushed by someone from the Taixu Dynasty and fell into the Abyss of the Buried Immortals. I encountered great terror. Though I was fortunate enough to escape immediate death, I have been severely wounded, and my strength is failing. My death is near.

I leave this Communication Stone behind, hoping that a destined individual will deliver my message to the royal family of the Cold Moon Dynasty. In gratitude, I offer the holy weapon crescent blade, the Holy Path Handbook, and three supreme Holy Path martial arts techniques. Additionally, I ask that the bloodline inheritance pearl be delivered to my descendants.

What I must say is this, the Taixu Dynasty seeks to monopolize the Western Desert. They have colluded with the Taixu Sacred Gate in the Northern Plains, harboring grand ambitions to dominate the world.”