Chapter 1666: Ancient Mystery – A Wisp of Soul

Five drops of fresh blood and one drop of purple Soul Blood shone brightly outside the statue's brow in the Sky City. The moment Xuan Luo Great Heavenly Venerate unleashed the power of the Nine Suns and cast out the red sun to Seal this place, these six drops of blood shot straight into the sky.

The sky rippled under the blood-red sun, forming a massive Vortex. The center of the Vortex seemed connected to the void, and the six drops of fresh blood, with a sky-shattering roar, rushed into the Vortex, disappearing one by one before the eyes of nearly a million dao ancient clansmen.

The last to disappear was the purple Soul Blood. The appearance of this Soul Blood left everyone present deeply shaken, their expressions filled with disbelief, awe, and reverence!

They watched the Soul Blood emit an eerie purple glow before finally vanishing into the Vortex. Only then did they gradually regain their senses. As they did, the shock they had just experienced intensified, like a vast ocean engulfing their bodies and minds.

"Purple Soul Blood… Heavens, I actually saw purple Soul Blood! My Ancient Kingdom, through ten thousand generations, only had nine drops!"

"Legend has it that the Ancient Ancestor bestowed nine drops of Soul Blood upon his three sons. These three sons each formed a lineage of the Ancient. My Dao Ancient Lineage was created by the Ancient Ancestor's third son and has continued to this day… Now, a tenth drop of fresh blood has appeared… This…"

"Who exactly is undergoing this Third Loss First Tribulation? This Ancient Vein Firmament Blood—from ancient times to the present, there has never been a record of anyone obtaining Soul Blood. This is Soul Blood! This matter… this matter is simply too astonishing! This is absolutely a monumental event for my Ancient Kingdom!"

"The Three Losses have three tribulations. The First Tribulation is the Ancient Vein Firmament Blood. This person obtained nine drops and still has a drop of Soul Blood. If the First Tribulation is already like this, what kind of fortune will he gain if he reaches the Second Tribulation, the Ancient Dao Three Divided Soul… under this tribulation's division!"

"And there's the final tribulation, the Ancient Ancestor's Grant. This person has received such recognition from the Ancient Ancestor, it's like being carried in a sedan chair. In this Third Tribulation, I dare not imagine what he will obtain… The Ancient Ancestor's Legacy that no one in the Ancient Kingdom has been able to obtain for tens of thousands of years, according to legend?"

Discussions echoed, buzzing throughout the Sky City. Everyone was shaken by that drop of Soul Blood. Fortunately, everything here was Sealed by Xuan Luo Great Heavenly Venerate, who also forcefully ordered everyone with his supreme authority to keep this matter a secret and not spread it.

Otherwise, this matter would cause a monstrous wave across the Immortal Astral Continent. The Extreme Ancient Lineage and the Primordial Ancient Lineage would both immediately come to investigate, and even conflicts might arise because of it.

One must know that the appearance of the tenth drop of Soul Blood held immense significance for the Ancient Kingdom. If Wang Lin could ultimately obtain two more drops, he could, like the Ancient Ancestor's three sons back then, unleash his essence blood and create a fourth Ancient Clan lineage!

Even if the Immortal Clan learned of this, they would be shaken. Even if it didn't spark a major war, they would send people to pay close attention.

All because of this one drop of Soul Blood!

As the six drops of fresh blood vanished into the sky's Vortex, and as the brow of the sky-supporting statue no longer emitted any bloody light, all auras disappeared without a trace. Xuan Luo Great Heavenly Venerate raised his right hand and waved it towards the blood-red sun that enveloped the area.

The sun suddenly emitted an even stronger light, dividing into nearly a million portions, each merging into the bodies of all the dao ancient clansmen here, forming a sealing technique for their mouths.

After all this was completed, the sun circling the area dissipated, and the sky returned to normal. A gentle breeze blew, as if to disperse the shock and tension that had just filled the air.

Looking into the distance, Xuan Luo Great Heavenly Venerate did not hesitate. He took a step forward and vanished without a trace in an instant. He was going to the Immortal Clan, to the Seven Dao Sect, to that Immortal Cave, to bring his Dao Ancient Lineage's child home!

With Xuan Luo's departure, after a long period of silence in the Sky City, the imperial-robed man, with a deeply gloomy expression, flicked his sleeve and left. Once he left, the remaining people slowly dispersed, still shaken to their core.

All the changes here were deeply buried in their hearts as they departed, merging into the gazes they cast towards the direction of Xuan Luo Great Heavenly Venerate's departure. Those gazes held complexity, envy, jealousy, but more than that, expectation!

They looked forward to Xuan Luo Great Heavenly Venerate's return, bringing back the person who had shocked them. They were even more eager to know what this person looked like, and who he truly was.

"My Dao Ancient Lineage is the weakest of the Ancient Kingdom's three lineages… I hope Great Heavenly Venerate's return will change all of this…"

After everyone had dispersed, the imperial-robed man also returned to the depths of the Sky City, to his dao ancient Imperial Palace. This palace was enormous, its edges difficult to see with the naked eye, adorned everywhere with carved railings and jade steps, extremely luxurious.

Numerous servants filled the palace, but at this moment, they were all pale-faced and extremely cautious. Their fear stemmed from the terrifying aura emanating from one of Dao Ancient Imperial Venerate's temporary palaces in the eastern part of the Imperial Palace.

That aura revealed an uncontrollable rage.

Rumbling sounds echoed, continuously spreading throughout the entire Imperial Palace. Moments later, the Imperial Venerate's temporary palace collapsed and crumbled with a roar. Countless shattered stones, propelled by immense force, swept in all directions. Some servants and guards who were too close could not avoid it and were torn apart by the fragments amidst their horrific screams, dying one by one.

A bloody stench permeated the air. From within the collapsed temporary palace, a figure gradually emerged from the ruins. This person was none other than the imperial-robed man. His eyes were calm, his expression unreadable. After stepping out of the ruins, he didn't even glance behind him and slowly spoke.

"Clean this up. In three days, I want to see a new temporary palace."

As his words spread, hundreds of figures, like wisps of smoke, twisted into existence around him, all kneeling in unison before him.

The imperial-robed man flicked his large sleeve, and his body flickered, vanishing. When he reappeared, he was atop the highest tower within this Imperial Palace. He stood there, facing the wind, looking down upon the entire Imperial Palace and the sky-supporting Ancient Ancestor statue in the distant world.

"I am the Dao Ancient Imperial Venerate, the direct descendant of the Ancient Ancestor, flowing with the Ancient Ancestor's fresh blood. What right does a mere inheritor of Ye Mo have to be so highly regarded by Xuan Luo!

Soul Blood…" The imperial-robed man's expression was calm, but his right hand clenched tightly, and he suddenly began to laugh.

"Fine, this makes things a bit more interesting. I want to see what kind of waves this person can stir up. Even if he has Soul Blood, he will still have to kneel before me!"

The imperial-robed man's smile deepened. He withdrew his gaze from the distance, raised his right hand, and flipped it, revealing a fist-sized red bead in his palm.

Within this bead, countless wispy mists seemed to exist, slowly swirling. Inside, a soul appeared to be seated cross-legged, but its form was obscured by the mist, making it indistinct. One could only vaguely discern that it was the soul of a woman.

And this soul was not complete; it was only a part.

"Ye Dao!" The imperial-robed man looked at the red bead in his hand and slowly spoke.

"Your subordinate is here!" Behind the imperial-robed man, at the instant his words were uttered, a distorted curtain of light immediately flickered, transforming into an old man in a black robe, who cupped his fist towards the imperial-robed man and knelt on one knee.

"Have you found her?" The imperial-robed man's voice was calm.

"Imperial Venerate, your subordinate has searched the entire Ancient Kingdom and has not found the whereabouts of this woman. We have already sent people to the Immortal Clan, and news will arrive soon."

"Has there been no news from the Imperial Advisor either?" The imperial-robed man frowned.

The old man kneeling on the ground had a stern expression. Hearing this, he spoke in a deep voice.

"Although this woman's soul was given to Your Majesty by the Imperial Advisor, the Imperial Advisor also cannot calculate her whereabouts. He merely deduced that this woman will be of immense use to Your Majesty in the future. With this woman, Your Majesty can possess a complete Ancient Kingdom!

He only told your subordinate that this woman's soul was taken by him from a Divided Soul of the Heavenly Dao existing in a strange place he had never visited, when his mind merged with the ethereal while divining the future of our Dao Ancient Lineage…"

The imperial-robed man fell silent for a moment, then lowered his head to look at the red bead in his hand, his eyes revealing a strange glow.

"This woman's appearance is ordinary, not worthy of my eyes, but if she is truly as the Imperial Advisor says, I can marry her as my empress! You continue to send people to the Immortal Clan to search. If she truly cannot be found, then select all the women in the dao ancient Land and see which one can achieve Fusion with this soul."

"Yes!" The black-robed old man stood up, about to withdraw, but his expression showed hesitation. After a moment of thought, he cupped his fist and spoke again.

"Imperial Venerate, before Imperial Advisor Master entered seclusion, he had one more thing to say…"

"Speak!" The imperial-robed man looked at the red bead in his hand, his voice filled with majesty.

"He said that his deductions might be true, or they might not be. When he retrieved this woman's soul from the ethereal, he saw two different scenes. One scene was of Imperial Venerate unifying the Ancient Kingdom, and the other was of Imperial Venerate's death… In these two different scenes, besides Imperial Venerate, another person's figure appeared simultaneously! This figure was somewhat blurry, and the Imperial Advisor could not see it clearly, but he remembered that this person had white hair!"

"Interesting. You may withdraw." A cold glint appeared in the imperial-robed man's eyes as he looked at the bead in his hand and slowly smiled.

"Who might you be, woman… And what connection does the white-haired figure the Imperial Advisor saw have with you…?"

Within the red bead, the cross-legged woman's soul remained motionless, her figure obscured by mist, seemingly oblivious to everything.

At this moment, a breeze blew, stirring the imperial-robed man's clothes and also reaching the bead. The mist within the bead seemed to sense this wind and subtly swirled, causing the woman's appearance to become faintly clear as the mist moved. But just as it was about to be fully revealed, it was suddenly covered by a few fingers gripping the bead.

In the Immortal Cave Realm, within the Cloud Sea Rift, the massive Vortex that appeared above the altar was now rumbling and spinning. bloody light flickered within it, reflecting on Wang Lin, making him appear like a blood-red figure from a distance.

His eyes narrowed as he stared at the red glow in the depths of the Vortex. Gradually, he saw several drops of fresh blood roaring out from within the Vortex!