Chapter 446: The Great Calamity of Life and Death

Upon hearing this, Han Li reached out and took the jade slip from Lu Yuqing's hand, pressing it against his forehead.

“This map is quite detailed, but may I ask where Miss Han obtained it? From that stone tablet?” After a moment, Han Li withdrew his spiritual sense from the jade slip, handed it back, and asked.

“Yes. It was because of this map that I wanted to venture into the Endless Sand Sea. But even with the map in hand, I still need Brother Han’s help in this vast desert.” Lu Yuqing nodded and said.

“I will do my best as long as it is within my power.” Han Li replied noncommittally.

With that, he tapped the flying boat with his foot.

The light emanating from the Green Kite Flying Boat brightened instantly, and it plunged into the boundless sea of sand.

As soon as they entered the sand sea, the two immediately felt a sudden heat around them, as if they had stepped into a steamer, causing a slight tightness in their chests.

“Miss Lu, let’s first try to determine our location.” Han Li’s expression remained unchanged, but inwardly he was on alert as he spoke.

“Brother Han is right. Although we don’t know the exact location, it should be fine as long as we encounter two or three places recorded on the map.” Lu Yuqing nodded.

…

At the same time.

In a certain mountain range in the Immortal Realm, the mountains were extremely majestic, with straight peaks rising sharply with few undulations, and the mountaintops were sharp, like giant swords pointing straight to the sky.

Deep within the mountains lay a magnificent ancient castle complex.

These ancient castles had a unique architectural style, with various sword-shaped patterns and reliefs adorning the roofs, eaves, and every decoration.

Great swords, heavy swords, thin swords, short swords—countless sword shapes filled every corner of the castle.

The castle was brightly lit everywhere, with many people walking about or flying across the sky.

All these people wore dark gold robes with the character ‘Xiong’ embroidered on the cuffs, indicating a powerful cultivator clan.

In a dim secret chamber deep within the castle, there was a black stone platform about ten feet in size, on which lay a young man.

The man’s eyes were tightly shut, motionless, with no aura emanating from him and no sign of life—he was clearly a corpse.

Around the corpse on the stone platform were engraved a circle of mysterious patterns, seemingly some kind of special spiritual runes.

Above the young man’s head was placed a dark green oil lamp.

But now the flame of this lamp was very faint and flickering constantly, as if it might go out at any moment.

A black talisman was affixed to the man’s chest, inscribed with layers of mysterious runes, emitting a peculiar aura fluctuation.

Suddenly, a “creak” broke the silence, and the chamber door opened as two figures walked in one after the other.

The first was a white-haired old man with fair, rosy skin and not a single wrinkle—truly a hale and hearty elder with a youthful complexion.

Behind the white-haired old man followed a middle-aged man with an eerie dark green complexion and eyes with more white than black, looking extremely strange.

The two stopped beside the stone platform, their gazes fixed on the black talisman.

“Is it today?” the white-haired old man suddenly spoke.

“Exactly. I have calculated using the Primordial Divine Calculation, and it is today.” The green-faced man flipped his hand to reveal a green abacus-like object, with rods crisscrossing and sliding on their own from time to time.

“This child Shan, his talent is the best among our Xiong clan’s younger generation. Unfortunately, he is a concubine’s son, and having experienced hardships since childhood, he has become proud and aloof. Over the years, he has refused the clan’s support, insisting on walking his own path. I hope that after this great calamity, he will come to understand and let go of those pointless stubbornness.” The white-haired old man sighed and said.

The green-faced man nodded and was about to say something when his brow suddenly lifted: “It’s coming.”

As soon as he spoke, the black talisman on the young man’s chest suddenly ignited on its own, turning into a ball of pitch-black flame.

The patterns around the stone platform also burst into brilliant light, emitting streaks of black light that formed a black halo, enveloping the young man’s corpse.

Seeing this, the white-haired old man immediately pointed with his finger.

A beam of black light shot out and merged into the black flame in front of the young man.

The flame suddenly brightened, then split apart into five parts.

Then, several black rays shot out from the five flames, connecting to form a five-pointed star formation.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

A gust of yin wind arose in the chamber, accompanied by faint sounds of wailing ghosts and howling spirits, and the cold yin energy intensified.

But obviously, the white-haired old man and the green-faced man paid no attention to this, their eyes fixed on the five-pointed star formation.

The void at the center of the formation suddenly twisted, and a mass of black shadow emerged, writhing like a living thing.

The shadow writhed for a moment, then suddenly tore open with a ripping sound, and a spatial rift materialized out of thin air.

In the next instant, a mass of golden light flew out of the spatial rift, flashed, and vanished into the young man's body, disappearing without a trace.

After an unknown amount of time, waves of golden light began to emanate from the young man's body.

Seeing this, the white-haired old man's eyes lit up, and he waved his hand to emit a stream of white light that enveloped the young man's body.

The young man's originally deathly pale complexion rapidly returned to normal, and his heart gradually began to beat, slowly emitting a sign of vitality.

The green lamp above the man's head also suddenly brightened severalfold, burning steadily and quietly.

After an unknown amount of time, the young man's eyes twitched slightly and slowly opened.

However, his pupils were scattered, and it took a while before they returned to normal.

"Where is this? No, wasn't I already..." A look of astonishment appeared in his eyes as he looked around, soon spotting the white-haired old man and the other person beside him.

"Patriarch! Fourth Uncle!" His expression changed, and he moved as if to sit up.

"Shan'er, the soul-transfer technique has just been completed; your body cannot move yet. Lie still," the white-haired old man said, reaching out to press the young man's shoulder.

The young man's lips moved twice, but he did not insist and lay back down.

"Patriarch, what happened? I should have... Why have I returned to the clan?" the young man asked.

"All thanks to your Fourth Uncle. He calculated long ago that you would face such a life-and-death calamity, though he could not determine when it would occur or upon whom it would fall. So when you left the clan back then, he secretly set up a soul-transfer secret technique within your Nascent Soul. Once your Nascent Soul suffered a fatal injury, it would automatically teleport you back to the clan, allowing you to seize another body," the white-haired old man explained slowly.

"So that's how it is. Thank you, Fourth Uncle, or else your nephew would have perished by now," the young man said after a moment of silence, addressing the cyan-faced man.

"We are uncle and nephew; saying such things makes it seem distant," the cyan-faced man waved his hand.

"Fourth Uncle, your innate divine calculation costs you at least ten thousand years of cultivation each time you use it. This time, divining my fate must have cost you at least a hundred thousand years. How can your nephew feel at ease?" The young man's eyes flickered with a complex expression as he spoke.

"What is a mere hundred thousand years of cultivation? As long as you return safely, your Fourth Uncle is relieved," the cyan-faced man said with a slight smile.

The young man lowered his eyelids and said nothing.

"Shan'er, what enemy did you encounter in the Northern Cold Immortal Domain that could cause you such a great loss?" the white-haired old man suddenly asked.

Upon hearing this, a sharp glint flashed in the young man's eyes, but he remained silent for a long time.

"Forget it. Since you're unwilling to say, I won't ask further. I'll leave this matter for you to handle yourself." The white-haired old man shook his head and said.

"Thank you, Clan Leader." The young man nodded to the old man.

"Since you've returned this time, don't leave for now. We'll help you recover your cultivation as soon as possible. Moreover, the Immortal Palace has already issued several decrees summoning you. You should first take up a post there; other matters can be discussed later." The white-haired old man added.

The young man frowned, was silent for a moment, then slowly nodded.

Seeing this, the white-haired old man and the green-faced man exchanged glances, a hint of joy appearing in their eyes.

...

Above a stretch of red wasteland, two dazzling lights, one red and one gold, were locked in a fierce battle, shaking heaven and earth.

The two-colored lights collided violently, producing a series of earth-shattering roars. The void trembled, and towering hurricanes swept in all directions.

Occasionally, a few beams of light scattered down, blasting huge craters into the ground and kicking up clouds of red sand and dust.

One side of the battle was a woman in silver robes—none other than Qu Ling.

She stood on the back of the golden beetle, which had now grown to the size of a small mountain, its entire body radiating dazzling golden light.

Opposing her were seven or eight people, all clad in fiery red robes embroidered with lifelike fire crow patterns. They were the group from the True Flame Sect, all present, though Hu Yan and Yun Ni were nowhere to be seen.

The True Flame Sect members looked unwell, especially Xu Yangzi and the other two. Their robes were torn, with faint traces of blood visible, suggesting they were injured.

Led by Xu Yangzi and the other two, the True Flame Sect members formed a flame-shaped formation, each with a large red banner floating above their heads, blazing with fierce flames.

Streams of fire shot out from the eight banners, hurtling toward Qu Ling and the golden beetle.

Each stream emitted terrifying heat, causing the void to tremble in their wake.

Qu Ling stood leisurely on the golden beetle's back, playing with a green gourd in her hand, making no move to attack.

The golden beetle beneath her swung its two front claws, sending out countless crystal beams, each several zhang long, dense as rain, colliding with the crimson flames.

Amid muffled explosive sounds, the crystal beams and flames annihilated each other, canceling out.

"Qu Ling, our True Flame Sect has no enmity with you. Why did you suddenly attack us?" Xu Yangzi's pupils contracted as he looked at the golden beetle, then roared at Qu Ling.

"Coming to this Minghan Immortal Mansion naturally means seeking treasures. But you see, I'm alone, so my efficiency is really low. That's why, before entering the mansion, I casually left some marks on you. That way, once inside, I don't have to rush. I just need to find you and kill you, and all the treasures you find will naturally be mine. This way, treasure hunting is both fast and simple. It's a great idea, isn't it?" Qu Ling looked up and smiled at Xu Yangzi and the others.