Chapter 451

Chapter 451: The Sealed Ancient Tomb

The next day, the entire sect was in an uproar.

The Haotu Sect worked together overnight to construct the Yin Gathering Array, which roared to life, channeling dark energy to three spirit herb gardens. They combined various methods to promote the growth of spirit fruits, and within just four or five hours, they produced a harvest.

Li Hui relocated two more spirit herb gardens and reached an agreement with the elders from various factions to establish eight shelters at the edge of the sect, gathering refugees.

The members of the Haotu Sect showed little interest in assisting the refugees. What did the deaths of ordinary practitioners matter to them? Cultivators had their own realm, and allowing so many refugees into the sect would only dilute their status.

Many practitioners had inherited their positions for generations, even up to ten generations, and they looked down on common people. This thought had long been deeply ingrained. Li Hui did not seek to change their mindset but simply urged these practitioners to get to work.

“Organize them into groups of ten, teams of one hundred, and brigades of one thousand to venture out and slaughter evil beings. Confirm the locations of each ghost king and strong evil being, and mark them on the map. I ask the elders to assist in exterminating them.”

“Gather various items that can remove demonic energy for the Mirror Lake faction, as well as rare media used to mend souls. Exchange for as many Buddhist artifacts and treasures as possible.”

“Increase the manpower and efforts to excavate the sealed ancient tombs. Send people to collect past rumors about these tombs. I want results within three days…”

Li Hui had always excelled at stirring the wind and clouds within the Haotu Sect. Now, having achieved success in his cultivation and secured considerable wealth in the empire, once he set his mind to something, it was hard to imagine the terrifying power he could unleash.

Centered around the Haotu Sect, a million cultivators were mobilized: some dug pits, some undertook trials, some exterminated ghosts, and others collected items. The sect leader’s wife led a team to repair Mirror Lake, publicly showing goodwill.

In less than three days, information regarding seven ancient tombs was laid out on Li Hui’s desk.

“Tian Shu, Tian Xuan, Tian Ji, Tian Quan, Yu Heng, Kai Yang, and Shaking Light are named after the Big Dipper. Approximately six hundred years ago, one tomb was sealed every seven years. There are many rumors within the sect, but none are reliable.”

“When my Master was in his prime, the sect frequently sealed ancient tombs; he must have known the truth, but he left behind not a single word.”

“While we don’t know why they were sealed, we’ve investigated the functions of each tomb. The Haotu Sect is renowned for its Dao soldiers, and over six hundred years ago, the scale of our Dao soldiers was far greater than now. Many practitioners trained greedy wolves, and the Tian Shu ancient tomb is the burial ground for greedy wolf Dao soldiers, and it was the first tomb to be sealed.”

“The Tian Xuan ancient tomb has a teleportation array, said to connect to five earth axes and twenty-five ley lines. Back then, the sect often sent disciples underground to search for mineral veins. Why was it sealed along with the Tian Xuan ancient tomb? It’s truly puzzling.”

“Moreover, the Tian Ji ancient tomb is a large Miao Jade mining site. Even if it had been cultivated for a hundred years, it would have been sufficient; yet it has been nurtured for over six hundred years.”

“The Tian Quan ancient tomb stores original scriptures of the sect; the books in the scripture hall are all copies. The Yu Heng ancient tomb produces various refined water essences and nurtures water spirits. I wonder if these water spirits are still alive! The Kai Yang ancient tomb collects treasures and spirit treasures, and historically, there was a tradition of elders and the sect leader offering treasures inside—how could it just be sealed?”

“Finally, there’s the Shaking Light ancient tomb, which houses the Tower of Calamity. It once suppressed many mountain spirits, ghosts, evil beings, and demons. After all these years, I wonder what they’ve become.”

Li Hui inquired about the excavation progress, and the cultivator in charge of the project messaged back, saying they were close to reaching the Tian Xuan ancient tomb.

The sect originally had a teleportation array that could directly access the ancient tomb, but all those arrays had been destroyed, erased by six hundred years of the tides of time. Therefore, the cultivators could only rely on earth-type treasures to continuously dig.

The elders from various factions were equally curious about why the sect sealed the ancient tombs back then. Even some elders who had lived long lives had never been involved in the matter.

It seemed that a strange interruption had occurred in the Haotu Sect history, marking the sealing of these ancient tombs as a dividing line. All knowledgeable individuals and records had been erased. What was the previous generation covering up?

“Boom…” A ground-splitting drill pierced deep into the soil, and the disciples hurriedly widened the cave entrance.

Before long, Li Hui and the elders from various factions received word and rushed over, releasing a hundred bright palace lamps to illuminate the way. There, they saw the ancient tomb’s entrance firmly closed, covered in black vine.

“Is that Black Juice Vine? This only appears in places where many cultivators or spiritual beasts have died.” The elders were quite astonished.

“This doesn’t make sense. The Tian Xuan ancient tomb is merely a transfer station to the underground depths. Did many people die inside the tomb? Or was there something lurking deep down that prompted the sect to close the tomb?”

“Stop speculating! Let’s send our spiritual senses into the door and see if there’s any response. If not, let’s go inside and see what’s happening.” A few elders unleashed ten massive puppets to push against the ancient tomb entrance. Li Hui joined them in exploration, keeping a careful mindset for any unexpected events.

“Boom, boom, boom…” The ancient tomb entrance was slowly pushed open, and the black vines fell to the ground, transforming into dark liquid that corroded the feet of the ten puppets, warping them beyond recognition.

“Be careful; such strong corrosiveness indicates that many masters or powerful spiritual beasts have died here.” The elders summoned their spirit treasures and sent Dao soldiers ahead to clear the way.

After six hundred years of being sealed, the Tian Xuan ancient tomb welcomed its first visitors today.

The lights drove away the chill, and everyone came to a halt.

Inside the ancient tomb, numerous strange big trees grew, their trunks adorned with human faces, branches covered in eyes, and their leaves dark, sending a chill of fear through everyone, making their minds suddenly unstable.

“Hurry, retreat from the ancient tomb! This is the Wao Liang Bosa Tree, a ghost tree cultivated with the dantians of ordinary practitioners at the Bosa stage as seeds. Once it grows, it reaches the All-Manifestation Realm—every tree here is comparable to a ghost king!” The elders were horrified and quickly stepped back, never expecting such terrifying things to be sealed within the sect’s ancient tomb.

Suddenly, shadows rose among the trees and shot toward them like arrows.

“Not good; Yin Wood Monsters!”

These elders possessed rich combat experience and quickly took action to lock on their targets, commanding the Dao soldiers to engage, causing an array of sword shadows to rain down and making the Yin Wood Monsters snarl in anger.

Li Hui took out the Nine-Nine Scatter Yuan Gourd, balancing it in his palm as swirling illusions radiated from it. Instantly, an ominous wind whipped through the ancient tomb, and all the accumulated dark energy converged toward the small gourd.

The Yin Wood Monsters were terrified and retreated quickly, and in just a moment, a terrifying oppressive force peeled layers of dark energy from their bodies, causing their strength to plummet. The surrounding Wao Liang Bosa Trees trembled, and various faces on their trunks roared.

“I have a way to deal with the Yin Wood Monsters; I ask the elders to attack the Wao Liang Bosa Trees and eliminate the tumor for the sect,” Li Hui declared as he strode forward. Once the Yin Wood Monsters became enraged, facing the gourd’s dreadful power, they all launched their attacks. He waved his sleeve and sent all those horse-faced black monkeys into the Ancient City of Yin Ruins.

He had prepared to send them to the dangerous locations within the Ancient City of Yin Ruins.

After investigations by Que San and Han Wu, several forbidden zones had already been marked, and progress on cracking those zones had been slow over the past few days. The available assistant was just suitable for testing the waters.

Seeing Li Hui display his might by collecting those troublesome Yin Wood Monsters, the elders immediately straightened their chests and began their assault on the Wao Liang Bosa Trees.

The roots of this tree had medicinal value, and if they could excavate the purple heartwood, it could be used to enhance spiritual sense. Given the number of trees growing in the ancient tomb, even with poor luck, they might still find a few.