Evil Venerable of the Sword Dao
Chapter 472 - 118 Netherworld Inheritance

Chapter 472: Chapter 118 Netherworld Inheritance

Zhou Yan sensed the emotional changes in Zhuge Jiayue and Zhuge Guyan, yet he didn’t place too much importance on them. Although it was somewhat unexpected to gain the power of the Netherworld Life and Death Bridge this time, it was merely an additional advantage within the plan.

Compared to the act of employing strategies to seize the Yuan Ci Secret Realm, gaining the ability of the Netherworld Life and Death Bridge wasn’t really significant.

At least, in Zhou Yan’s view, this event only gave him a bit of a surprise.

His thoughts were actually more focused on the Netherworld Nine Soul Envoys.

The Netherworld Nine Soul Envoys had fully unleashed vast Netherworld Energy, causing the bizarre runes within the Netherworld Life and Death Bridge to undergo severe changes. Each rune seemed like an indescribable life form, undergoing an incredibly terrifying transformation.

This process resembled an embryo developing from conception to full growth, as if it were a highly evident form of evolutionary growth, giving it characteristics akin to a life form.

Such a situation was truly shocking, even for someone with a certain understanding of the Netherworld Life and Death Bridge like Zhou Yan, who still felt somewhat astonished upon witnessing these transformations.

Given his disposition and mastery over ancient runes, it was noteworthy that he was shaken, a testament to the extraordinary nature of these runes.

This situation lasted for nearly half a quarter of an hour, and after the runes completed their transformation, they turned into Yin Spirit Evil Spirits resembling eight Netherworld Envoys, beginning to fly towards the exterior of the space.

At that moment, Zhou Yan sensed that the prototype of the "Eight-carried sedan chair" had already emerged.

It turned out that the shadowy apparitions carrying the "Eight-carried sedan chair" were originally derived from ancient Netherworld runes!

This scene once again stirred Zhou Yan’s heart.

Had he not witnessed the transformation of the runes, he would never have imagined that the bizarre "Eight-carried sedan chair’s" bearers were actually derivatives of runes.

Previously, Zhou Yan could also simulate this scene, but those were transformations of energy, originating naturally from the Transformation Skill. Now truly understanding it, Zhou Yan immediately had a profound realization.

At this moment, an icy, salty, and humid air drifted through the space; a familiar place, the Cold Pond, appeared before Zhou Yan’s eyes.

Suddenly, the "Eight-carried sedan chair" disappeared, vanishing without a trace, just like the Shattering Void, leaving no sensation to Zhou Yan and the others. However, the completion of the Netherworld Nine Soul Envoys’ technique revealed that this technique had achieved its best effect, transporting all four of them to the domain of the Netherworld Queen, the Cold Pond.

...

Cold Pond Crane Shadow, Cold Moon Qing Qiu.

Perhaps, this was a scenery that remained unchanged through the ages.

Endless Netherworld Power formed a Netherworld Floating Cloud, upon which Zhou Yan and the others stood.

Above the Netherworld Floating Cloud spread the endless Heavenly Vault, pitch black as if an eternal black curtain enveloped all sides, turning Heaven and Earth into a prison.

Below the floating cloud extended the infinitely icy Netherworld Lake Water.

The lake water was very clear, but it was pitch black in color, appearing unfathomably deep and terrifying.

"My Queen, please temporarily cease your resistance. Your servant will immediately impart the Netherworld Life and Death Bridge Technique to you," bowed the Netherworld Nine Soul Envoys, speaking with utmost respect.

As he spoke, the Netherworld Nine Soul Envoys glanced down at the Netherworld Lake below, his expression turning more solemn.

Even as the foremost among the Frost Tears, facing the Netherworld Queen, there was indeed some apprehension in his heart.

The Netherworld Queen’s combat power was much weaker than his, but her control over the Netherworld Power reached a terrifying level. Not to mention that the Netherworld Queen’s essence was the Holy Sword Spirit. He also did not want to truly damage the opponent’s essence, and once the Holy Sword itself exerted its power, it could result in a devastating mutual loss, thus he had always refrained from pressuring the Netherworld Queen.

Zhou Yan calmly nodded, his expression cold as he glanced at Zhuge Jiayue and Zhuge Guyan. Sensing this, Zhuge Jiayue immediately reined in all her scattered thoughts, then she reached out and steadied Zhuge Guyan.

All these actions appeared ordinary, but only Zhou Yan, Zhuge Jiayue, and Zhuge Guyan understood, the three had reached a tacit understanding without words.

Zhuge Jiayue steadying Zhuge Guyan served a dual purpose: one was a signal for Zhuge Guyan to be cautious, and secondly, in a critical moment, if any anomaly arose, they could respond more swiftly.

Zhuge Jiayue, supporting Zhuge Guyan, notably positioned themselves slightly behind, indicating that the two of them would not interfere with the matters between the Netherworld Nine Soul Envoys and Zhou Yan, nor would they affect their transmission of power in any way.

This method made the Netherworld Nine Soul Envoy feel much more reassured, thinking that Zhou Yan’s deceitful methods against the two from Tianji Mountain were very ingenious. They had plotted against them, yet those two still foolishly believed that the king was truly their partner.

The Netherworld Nine Soul Envoy couldn’t help but think of this, and thus, a mocking smile appeared on his face.

Such a smile made Zhuge Jiayue suddenly somewhat worried for Zhou Yan, as if she feared that Zhou Yan might be schemed against in return.

However, she did not know that Zhou Yan, due to the extreme purity of the Netherworld Power, could almost entirely grasp the thoughts of such a strong being who had no guard against him; therefore, Zhou Yan did not feel any danger and completely disregarded the Netherworld Nine Soul Envoy’s eerie smile.

Zhou Yan concentrated his mind and temporarily closed the channel to the Purple Flame Void, letting down all his defenses. If there were truly a problem, he still had ways to cope immediately and was not entirely without the power to strike.

...

Endless Netherworld Energy rolled like wolf smoke, turning into flowing ripples of energy, gradually transferring toward Zhou Yan’s brow. This process was not long, but it seemed very slow.

This slowness even contained a kind of space-time strength’s Secret Technique, immensely profound and enigmatic.

At first, Zhou Yan still had a trace of vigilance, but afterward, as he gradually experienced the deep implications after the runes penetrated, Zhou Yan’s gaze slowly changed.

He really stopped defending against the Netherworld Nine Soul Envoy because, within the teachings, Zhou Yan sensed the passing and loss of the other’s life potential and the flowing and consumption of Netherworld Essence Power.

For the Netherworld, this was akin to humans losing their Essence Blood, a very serious loss that wouldn’t be bestowed upon anyone unworthy.

Even if Zhou Yan’s own Origin Energy was inexhaustible, he would never casually use it to help others, let alone pull out his complete understanding of the cultivation technique and separate it into memory fragments for inheritance—that was a terrifying sacrifice.

Zhou Yan felt somewhat shaken, but this shock was quickly overwhelmed by endless Ancient Netherworld Runes.

Gradually, Zhou Yan’s expression changed; understanding the runes, he gradually realized that this was a type of Ancient Script, from ancient times, from the era when a world was born.

The script from that era was very ancient; each character was a derivation of the Tao of Heaven, Earth, and the Universe, because the Supreme Dao of the Universe was the first generation culture that every era birthed and derived.

This realization gave Zhou Yan an extremely shocked and astonished feeling. But he firmly suppressed this feeling because anyone who had cultivated Ancient Netherworld Runes would necessarily know this history, while those who had not were unworthy of being called ’Netherworld’.

After a long time, the transmission of skill ended. The Netherworld Nine Soul Envoy then set up a shocking Netherworld Formation around himself and the three of them. He then swallowed an Elixir emitting strange white lightning-like light and began replicating the comprehension of that Netherworld Technique, recovering from his injuries.

...

Time passed unknowingly, and it was but a brief moment of Sudden Enlightenment for Zhou Yan, yet he felt as though he had experienced a cultural inheritance from an Ancient era, feeling like he had lived through another Ancient age.

He came back to his senses, his eyes even harboring strange Ancient Runes of birth and destruction. His pitch-black eyes, like ancient Netherworld, were inscrutable and extraordinarily eerie.

"Wang, how do you feel?"

The Netherworld Nine Soul Envoy was the first one to respectfully inquire.

Zhou Yan nodded, his voice carrying genuine gratitude, said, "Truly remarkable. I did not expect that your understanding of the ancient Netherworld Runes would be so profound. It is indeed very shocking to me."

Zhou Yan was not deceiving; these words were genuinely heartfelt because they were born out of his personal experience.

"Thank you, thank you for Wang’s compliment," said the Netherworld Nine Soul Envoy excitedly. "This Netherworld Life and Death Bridge technique, in my opinion, is the foundational Tao of our Netherworld, the earliest inherited cultivation technique, but it is also the basis of all techniques, very important, so I have focused on researching it for thousands of years.

And after thousands of years, I only have these insights. However, it was also these insights that allowed me to comprehend a part of the secrets and mysteries of the Soul Killing Chains."

The Netherworld Nine Soul Envoy couldn’t help but get excited, as he revealed all his inner feelings.

He couldn’t help but be excited because, since coming into contact with Zhou Yan, any praise he received was merely off-hand praise, just a bit satisfying acknowledgment. Now, hearing the heartfelt exclamation from the other party, the Netherworld Nine Soul Envoy knew that he had finally entered the ’Core Circle’ of the Hall Master, so much so that he felt quite comfortable, despite having lost a lot of things or even teaching his own secret techniques to someone else.

This comfort was an experience he hadn’t had in a long time, so much so that he was eager to entrust his all to this smart, wise, and incredibly talented genius before him.

Zhou Yan also sensed the Netherworld Nine Soul Envoy’s feelings, making Zhou Yan feel a brief moment of astonishment; he hadn’t expected that because of his heartfelt praise, the Netherworld Nine Soul Envoy would become somewhat excited.

It was very much like a small soldier who had received praise from a Great General!

Zhou Yan felt somewhat emotional, but he didn’t say much else and slowly experienced the inherited knowledge he had acquired in his memory.