The corpse lying in the coffin was none other than the World’s Teacher, Kong shi!
Had he not ascended to a higher dimension? Why was his corpse there?
Zheng Yang’s mind blanked out in that instant. No thoughts came to his mind at all, and he did not dare think any deeper into the matter. This was so huge that if he spoke a wrong word, it could lead to a major catastrophe.
Kong shi was the pillar of support within the Master Teacher Pavilion. Even though he had vanished from the world, many still held his teachings dear to them and viewed him as their ultimate aspiration. No one could have ever thought that the great Kong shi would actually be dead there!
Just like the sculptures erected in his form outside, he had a gentle smile on his lips, reminiscent of a kind teacher. It was as if he had been killed in the midst of his lecture.
But given the strength that Kong shi wielded, who could possibly have the ability to kill him?
And who was the one who had buried him there, such that even the Master Teacher Pavilion and the Hundred School of Philosophers were completely oblivious to it?
Zheng Yang’s heart beat wildly as he felt his throat turning dry. There were so many words at the back of his mind, but he was unable to voice a single one of them. Eventually, he chose to simply sit on the floor and wait for himself to calm down.
It had been a feeling of shock when he saw Ancient Sage Ran Qiu’s corpse, and after finding the second corpse, there was nothing but horror in his mind.
It was perfectly normal for anyone in the world to die, but for such a thing to happen to the revered Kong shi as well… The faith of countless would shatter in an instant!
Zheng Yang was so flustered that he did not know what he should do at all.
“It’s fine, it’s fine. Everything will be resolved once Teacher is here…” Zheng Yang struggled to his feet as he shook whatever thoughts he had out of his mind.
Having followed his teacher for so long, he knew that there was no difficulty in the world that could bring his teacher down. It was fine that he could not find a solution out of the current quandary he was seeing; all he had to do was wait.
With such a thought, he left the hall, intending to return to where he had come from. However, his feet suddenly froze in place.
A surge of power washed over him, and his consciousness blurred.
Putong!
Silence.
…
Sitting in the room that he had previously lectured in, Zhang Xuan felt his state of mind flowing freely, extending into the distance along with his thoughts.
He had only been an ordinary librarian in his previous life. It was beyond his imagination that the day would come when he would transcend over to another world.
It had been a period of confusion and panic when he first transcended over. He had no idea what he should do, and the only desire that drove him forward was the wish to live on.
It had taken some time for everything to settle down and for him to assimilate into the world.
All of the memories of his life surged into his head, be it his previous life, the period after his transcension, the moment that he first stepped into the Library of Heaven’s Path…
Slowly, something seemed to sprout within Zhang Xuan. It was a strength that seemed to exceed even the heavens themselves. It was going to break free of the ground and blossom into something beautiful.
In his moment of enlightenment, flurried footsteps sounded in his ears. He slowly opened his eyes, only to see Wei Ruyan standing before him.
…
Hearing Wei Ruyan’s words, Zhang Xuan abruptly rose to his feet. “Did you say that you found Ancient Sage Ran Qiu’s corpse?”
Ancient Sage Ran Qiu was the strongest out of Kong shi’s many disciples, and he had been a figure whom innumerable combat masters looked up to. Why would his corpse be found there, not to mention that it was even hidden in an underground hall several dozen li deep?
“Bring me over to take a look!”
Unable to bear his curiosity, he hurriedly followed Wei Ruyan into Yun Xiang’s manor and into the underground passageway. It was not long before he arrived in a hall with a coffin right at the center.
Upon taking a closer look, a tight frown formed between Zhang Xuan’s eyebrows. “Judging from outer appearance and the aura, he does seem to be Ancient Sage Ran Qiu…”
Back when he was at the White Creek Mountain, he had the opportunity to meet Ancient Sage Ran Qiu’s fragmented soul. The corpse that was right before him shared the same appearance, and even the auras that they emanated were very similar.
The corpse likely belonged to Ancient Sage Ran Qiu.
“You should come over and take a look as well!” Zhang Xuan said with a flick of his wrist.
The Dragonbone Divine Spear flew forth from Zhang Xuan’s waist and transformed into a majestic black dragon in the air. Looking down at the coffin beneath it, it descended to the ground and kneeled down.
“Master!”
The body of the massive dragon trembled intensely as slight whimpers escaped from its mouth.
It was an artifact forged by Ancient Sage Ran Qiu. All along, it had thought that Ancient Sage Ran Qiu would ascend to a higher dimension together with Kong shi after sealing it in the ancient domain at White Creek Mountain, but who could have known that he would die just like that?
“It seems like it’s real then,” Zhang Xuan remarked. He looked around the hall, and a slight frown appeared on his forehead. He turned to Wei Ruyan and asked, “Where is Zheng Yang?”
“Hmm? I’m not too sure. He should have been here…” Wei Ruyan was taken aback.
Given that Zheng Yang had asked her to get their teacher, it stood to reason that he would be waiting for her there. Why was he nowhere to be seen?
Zhang Xuan scanned the area carefully, but there was no trace of Zheng Yang to be found. Eventually, he placed his palm lightly on Ancient Sage Ran Qiu’s corpse.
If he wanted to make sense of this place, the best way was to do it through the Library of Heaven’s Path.
“Flaws!”
The Library of Heaven’s Path jolted, but no book was formed.
Zhang Xuan shook his head in disappointment.
It was hard to tell whether it was because Ancient Sage Ran Qiu was only a corpse at the moment or that the place had the ability to obstruct the view of the heavens.
It should be the latter, Zhang Xuan thought as he continued surveying his surroundings.
He had used the Library of Heaven’s Path on corpses before, and the only limitation was that he was unable to gather much information on the individual’s life prior to their death. However, as for the other details such as the tier of their corpse and so on, it would still have been compiled and reflected in a book.
This was rather similar to what usually happened when he checked artifacts.
However, the fact that nothing had happened meant that the entire place was likely concealed from the heavens. This also explained why no seers had been able to uncover the fact that the strongest disciple of Kong shi was actually dead there.
“This is an ancient land that hasn’t been ravaged by the wars between mankind and the Otherworldly Demons. It offers the hope of recovering a diminished bloodline. Could this be somewhat linked to the reason why Ancient Sage Ran Qiu’s corpse is buried here?” Zhang Xuan began trying to put clues together to reason the happenings there.
Aside from the fact that most ancient domains were thin in spiritual energy, making them environments unsuitable for cultivation, there were actually many mystical things about them. For one, he had transcended over to an ancient domain, as well as the fact that Ancient Sage Ran Qiu’s corpse had been found here. Could there be any link between those two matters?
Zhang Xuan activated his Eye of Insight to do a thorough scan once more.
“There’s a passageway down here,” Zhang Xuan remarked as he stomped his feet lightly.
Jiyaya!
The coffin began to move to the side, revealing the passageway hidden beneath it.
He exchanged glances with Wei Ruyan for a moment heading down the passageway.
Naturally, Wei Ruyan quickly followed along as well.
The layout of the second hall was an exact replica of the first. Even the locations of the coffins were identical. It really felt as if they were trying to navigate their way through an ancient labyrinth.
Other than the coffin, the entire room was empty; there was not a single person to be seen.
“Teacher, it seems like Senior Zheng Yang was here,” Wei Ruyan suddenly said.
“Hmm?” Zhang Xuan turned to look at Wei Ruyan.
“There’s a slight indentation on the wall over there. Judging from the shape, it seems to have been left behind by him,” Wei Ruyan said as she pointed toward the wall.
Turning to look, he found that there was indeed a deep indentation in the wall. The size was a match with Zheng Yang’s physique. Chances were that it had been created when Zheng Yang’s back was pressed against the wall.
“You’re right. He might have seen the corpse in the coffin and backed away out of fear…” Zhang Xuan reasoned out as a spark of curiosity emerged in his eyes.
Just what could be in the coffin that would frighten Zheng Yang even more than Ancient Sage Ran Qiu’s corpse?
“Let’s open it and take a look!” Zhang Xuan instructed as he walked up to the coffin.
Jiya!
The lid of the coffin was pried open, revealing a figure right before them. He had a calm and peaceful look on his face, as if he had just been put to rest not too long ago.
Seeing this sight, Zhang Xuan felt his blood running cold.
The corpse that was inside the coffin was none other than… Zheng Yang!
