Chapter 1216: The Painting Again

The night was deep, the scattered stars like dust.

They were still on the mountaintop.

Xiong Er had fallen asleep, clutching the sachet Tang Ruxuan had sewn for him, letting out silly chuckles from time to time.

Ye Chen wasn't idle. He summoned immortal fire to open a Danhai for Xiong Er, called upon the Danzu Longhun to open a Shenhai, used heavenly thunder to temper his body, and would next use the sacred body essence to refine his bloodline.

Pop! Pop! Pop!

With these sounds ringing out continuously, Xiong Er, in his sleep, broke through realms one after another, all the way to the peak of Lingxu.

The next day, as dawn broke, a tide of people surged toward Nantian Xing.

The Ming Wang Zong had been destroyed, and the Mo family had produced a saint, making them one of the foremost powers in this star domain overnight. Those coming to visit were elders from various major forces, each a quasi-saint.

The elder from Yun Luo Xing had also arrived. When he saw Yue Chi Xun, many were stunned and slow to react.

After some explanation, Yue Chi Xun pulled Zhou Ao to her side.

Though Zhou Ao's cultivation was low, his talent was exceptional, so the Yun Luo elder would not object. Already feeling guilty toward Yue Chi Xun, how could he oppose their union?

Ye Chen glanced around at the visitors but saw no reincarnated individuals among them. He turned and flew away from Nantian Xing, holding several star maps in his hand. His target was clear: he searched star by star in this domain.

He was gone for a full month.

His luck was still good; he found quite a few reincarnated people, more than a hundred in total, from both the north and south of Chu, and from various major forces. But they were all minor figures, none he was particularly familiar with.

These reincarnated individuals came from all walks of life: some were cultivators, some spirit beasts, some immortal herbs. They played all sorts of roles—noble ones like the divine sons of ancient stars, and lowly ones like slaves. A few were even partners in banditry.

To this, Ye Chen merely smiled faintly.

As he had planned earlier, he brought all of them back to Nantian Xing.

Before they even reached the immortal mountain, Hua Yun and the others came out to welcome them, along with many reincarnated people from the Mo family.

When the two groups met, the scene was deeply emotional.

Though some knew each other and some did not, that no longer mattered to them. They were all reincarnated, all from Great Chu, and a hundred years ago, they had fought side by side as comrades.

"We'll host a welcome feast for you!"

Hua Yun laughed heartily and led the crowd into the Mo family immortal mountain.

"No one I know!"

Xiong Er glanced around and shook his head.

This fellow had stayed with the Mo family for a month and had regained his former vigor. He walked with extra energy, his fleshy body jiggling with every step, his charming little eyes darting sneakily at everything.

Along the way, every Mo family member who saw him would stroke their beard thoughtfully, their eyes seeming to say: "What on earth did this child eat to grow like that?"

"I say, can't you walk without being so arrogant?"

Ye Chen glanced at Xiong Er.

"I'm already doing well not walking sideways."

"Just like your temperament."

"This cabbage looks pretty good." Xiong Er swaggered along, looking here and there, and for some reason, every time he saw those spirit-nurtured cabbages, he felt like charging over and rooting around them.

"Your occupational habit isn't bad either." Ye Chen stroked his chin thoughtfully.

"Stop messing around."

"Tch!" Ye Chen shrugged it off and took out a storage bag, handing it to Xiong Er.

"I knew it!" Xiong Er grinned and took it, casually stuffing it into his waistband.

"Don't just run off whenever; the myriad domains of the heavens are far more chaotic than Great Chu." Ye Chen said leisurely, "The Mo family has a saint overseeing it, so safety shouldn't be an issue. Once your cultivation reaches great heights, you can go to Zhu Que Xing to find Xie Yun."

"I'm just curious." Xiong Er scratched his head vigorously, "Is it my bad luck? That jerk Xie Yun reincarnated as a prince, but I ended up as a pig. Did I pick the wrong rebirth?"

"At least they didn't make you reincarnate as a pile of crap."

"I really like your temperament."

"Young friend Ye Chen, the old ancestor requests your presence." Just then, a Mo family elder approached.

"Please lead the way." Ye Chen followed the elder's steps.

"I'm going too." Xiong Er waddled after them with his bulky body.

"There's cabbage over there." Ye Chen kicked Xiong Er away, then followed the elder into the void sky, soaring like a divine light toward the depths of the Mo family immortal mountain. They landed in a bamboo grove.

In the bamboo grove, the Mo family old ancestor was already brewing tea and waiting. Seeing Ye Chen arrive, he gestured for him to sit.

"I wonder why the senior summoned me." Ye Chen smiled.

"In these days, I've looked through all the ancient scrolls of the Mo family but found nothing about the Kun Lun Xu you asked about." The Mo family old ancestor spoke as he personally poured a cup of tea for Ye Chen.

"It's just that Kun Lun Xu is too mysterious." Ye Chen sighed.

"However, I did come across something interesting." The Mo family old ancestor smiled warmly and handed a painting scroll to Ye Chen.

"Oh?" Ye Chen smiled, took the painting scroll, and before even unrolling it, felt an ancient and weathered aura rushing toward him. Judging by its age, it was at least several thousand years old, perhaps even older. In his mind, it was surely an antique.

As he thought this, Ye Chen slowly unrolled the scroll, and his eyes narrowed slightly.

The scroll depicted a person—or more precisely, a white-clothed, white-haired youth. His features were sharply defined, his eyes as calm as an ancient well. The artist must have put great care into it, capturing him vividly, as if he were alive, with every stroke full of spirit.

Ye Chen's eyes narrowed even more, because the person in the painting looked exactly like him.

But more importantly, the figure in the painting wore a ring on his finger, gleaming with a halo and carrying a Dao aura. Ye Chen was certain it was the Xuan Cang Yu Jie of the Yan Huang Shengzhu.

Is it Hong Chen?

Ye Chen murmured to himself, his brows furrowing.

The sacred relic of Yan Huang could only be worn by successive Yan Huang Shengzhu. Someone who looked identical to him and had the right to wear the Xuan Cang Yu Jie—Ye Chen could only think of Hong Chen.

Seeing Ye Chen like this, the Mo family old ancestor smiled kindly. "This scroll was brought by my third great-uncle in his time and has been sealed for at least five thousand years. Now, it seems he bears a resemblance to you—or rather, he's identical. That's why I called you to take a look."

"Does the senior know where this scroll came from?" Ye Chen asked hastily.

"I don't know." The Mo family old ancestor replied, subtly glancing at the Xuan Cang Yu Jie on Ye Chen's hand. He had reason to believe it was connected to the ring on the figure in the painting.

"Senior, may I borrow this scroll to study it?"

"It's yours now." The Mo family old ancestor smiled benevolently.

"Thank you, senior." Ye Chen bowed in gratitude, rolled up the scroll, and turned to leave the bamboo grove.

Watching Ye Chen's departing figure, the Mo family old ancestor gently stroked his beard, his old eyes flickering with deeper meaning. Though it was just a simple painting, there must be untold secrets behind it.

By now, Ye Chen had left the bamboo grove, but his brows remained furrowed.

This scroll was too strange; it had been sealed for five thousand years, and he was sure it depicted not him, but Hong Chen.

This puzzled him greatly—or rather, it was a contradiction. Hong Chen had succeeded as the Yan Huang Shengzhu only a thousand years ago, yet this was from five thousand years back, and it had even spread to the myriad domains of the heavens.

Ye Chen felt a headache coming on; anything involving Hong Chen always brought endless mysteries.

Just like in ancient Great Chu, even at Hong Chen's death, he hadn't figured out his identity. It was only later that Dong Huang Tai Xin told him that Hong Chen had been a contradictory existence from the start.

How perplexing!

Ye Chen murmured, then stepped onto Hua Yun's mountain peak and entered a cave dwelling, where he set up a barrier.

Sitting cross-legged, he placed the scroll on his lap and suddenly activated his Six Paths Immortal Wheel Eyes, gazing at it quietly.

The scroll showed nothing unusual, aside from its age; he found no strangeness at all.

Helpless, Ye Chen took a deep breath and used the Zhou Tian Evolution to deduce.

At once, the scroll began to tremble, a layer of faint, shimmering immortal light emerging to cover it entirely. In the shadows, a mysterious force seemed to be trying to conceal the scroll's secrets.

Ye Chen's Immortal Wheel Eyes flickered as he pierced through the immortal light, vaguely seeing a dreamlike, illusory figure.

Dong... Dong Huang Tai Xin!

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