“Big brother! Chase after him!” Ye Yuande saw that Ye Yuanwang was not moving and could not help reminding him.
“There is killing aura on the path ahead!” Ye Yuanwang pulled back Ye Yuande, who was about to pursue, and said, his gaze fixed on Ye Chu disappearing unharmed from his sight. He could not help frowning, wondering whether the other party had not been tainted by any killing aura at all. Otherwise, how could his movements be completely unaffected?
Ye Yuande’s steps halted instantly. Looking at the path Ye Chu had fled down, he also showed some surprise.
“Do not worry about him! As long as that fellow stays inside the General’s Tomb, he is doomed. He will surely die. Just let him live a few more days,” Ye Yuanwang said to the group. “I heard Cousin Ji Die is also in the General’s Tomb. Does anyone know where she is?”
“No idea! The General’s Tomb is vast, no smaller than a small city. Who knows where she has gone,” Ye Yuande shook his head and said. “What do you think Cousin Ji Die came here for? Could she be trying to obtain the treasures in the General’s Tomb? This is a place even the retired emperor could not enter.”
“That is not necessarily true. When the great general died back then, he left behind the words ‘the fated one shall possess it’. Although no one knows exactly what that means, the retired emperor guessed it might refer to the treasure being claimed by someone fated, or perhaps only the fated one can enter the General’s Tomb. The retired emperor could not go in, but that does not mean others cannot. Has there not been rumours of cultivators entering it before?” Ye Yuanwang said, looking at Ye Yuande.
“I made some inquiries. Several cave masters from the Thirty-Six Caves went in. But for some reason, they all disappeared afterwards, and no one could find them,” Ye Yuande shook his head with some regret. “Otherwise, with them leading the way, we would have much less trouble.”
“If even they could enter, why can we not? The General’s Tomb has existed for several centuries. It is time for it to be broken open,” Ye Yuanwang said, staring ahead. “Has Ji Die not always looked down on you and me? Once we break into the General’s Tomb and obtain what is inside, let us see what she thinks then!”
Ye Yuande knew his big brother had feelings for Ji Die, but he had not expected him to care so much about her opinion.
“I heard Shangguan Minda is also rushing over here with strong experts. Pang Shao is bringing people from the Pang family, and Qing Wenting and Ye Jingyun have arrived as well. Many people are moving in this direction. It will not be long before the General’s Tomb becomes lively,” Ye Yuande said with a bitter smile. “When I came, I heard even the retired emperor’s side has been stirred. The imperial family seems to be planning to send a prince.”
When Ye Yuanwang heard this news, surprise flashed in his eyes. Very curiously, he asked, “Where did you hear this from? Is that prince really coming?”
“I am not sure about the details. I only know that word came from the imperial family. The retired emperor sighed over the General’s Tomb with the words ‘it is about to emerge’.”
Those words shook Ye Yuanwang’s heart. The retired emperor possessed astonishing cultivation. The empire stood unshakable and no one dared provoke it precisely because he was in charge. When someone like him spoke, his words often carried a hint of prophecy. Saying “it is about to emerge” — did that mean the General’s Tomb was about to reveal itself?
Thinking of this possibility, Ye Yuanwang’s heart pounded wildly.
“No matter which prince comes, the primary goal is still to deal with Ye Chu first. That fellow and Pang Shao dared to do such things to our third brother. If we do not wash away this shame, others will only think we are easy to bully,” Ye Yuande said, gritting his teeth at the mention of Ye Chu. Right now his third brother lay at home, having lost all interest in women, like a complete cripple.
Ye Yuande had witnessed Madam Liu’s dignity. He knew that after suffering such humiliation, anyone would carry psychological scars.
Thinking of how his once elegant and graceful third brother had been reduced to this state, he wished he could skin Ye Chu alive and tear out his tendons. Pang Shao had a special status, so they did not dare act against him casually. That left only dealing with this scoundrel Ye Chu first.
“He cannot escape. A mere Innate Realm cultivator is nothing more than a turtle in a jar inside the General’s Tomb,” Ye Yuanwang shook his head and said to the group behind him. “Come on, let us go inside the General’s Tomb and take a look. Everyone be careful. We are still in the outer area, but there is still killing aura drifting about. If you sense killing aura, hold your breath immediately.”
“Yes, Eldest Young Master!” The group responded in unison. They knew the purpose of this trip. It was just killing one person, and only an Innate Realm one at that. With so many of them moving against him, even if he had the ability to burrow through the earth, he was doomed. Killing him was merely a matter of time.
Ye Chu darted into a side passage, clutching his arm. The pain made cold sweat bead on his forehead. He gritted his teeth and yanked his dislocated arm back into place. The sound of bone grinding made him almost cry out in agony.
He moved the reattached arm a little. His expression was extremely grim. The Primordial Spirit Realm was truly terrifying. If he had not used the killing aura to escape, the next strike would have killed him. Even so, a casual palm from the other party had dislocated his arm.
“It seems I still cannot face him head-on right now,” Ye Chu said to himself. He took out the items Bai Bao had given him, compared them to his current location, then continued walking forward.
Ye Chu moved very slowly, not rushing at all. He even stopped from time to time to cultivate and regulate his breathing, slowly recovering his arm.
Of course, Ye Chu did not forget to study the notes on killing aura practitioners that Pang Shao had given him. The notes were written in a chaotic manner, and Ye Chu could only understand them halfway. He did not expect to fully comprehend everything. Having never entered the killing aura realm, such things were naturally unfamiliar to him.
But he did manage to understand some parts. Killing aura practitioners used their own methods to refine killing aura into absorbable spiritual energy for cultivation. However, the notes did not describe exactly how to refine it.
Inside the General’s Tomb, Ye Chu wandered in the outer areas, walking and stopping, never venturing into the inner zones.
Over the next few days, more and more cultivators from outside arrived. Both Pang Shao and Qing Wenting had reached this place.
With so many prominent figures appearing, the cultivators could not help but let their imaginations run wild. They wondered whether something major had happened in the General’s Tomb. Otherwise, why would so many high-status people come, even including an imperial prince and the saintess?
Because of this, rumours began to spread. Word went around that the major powers were joining forces to break open the General’s Tomb. Eventually, the rumour grew more and more convincing. Many people believed the major powers were truly preparing to do so.
This drew countless cultivators to the site. Though they did not hope to obtain the supreme treasures of the General’s Tomb, even getting some scraps would be enough to excite them.
Of course, some came specifically for the supreme treasures.
Outside the General’s Tomb, more and more cultivators arrived, and their strength grew stronger with each wave. Group after group entered the tomb.
Ye Chu, inside the General’s Tomb, also noticed this situation. While feeling puzzled, he sensed that the aftereffects of his dislocated arm had finally disappeared. Only then did he begin to step towards the inner areas.