Immortal-Exterminating Divine Venerable

'That high platform up ahead seems to be the Core of the Ascension Platform.'

Upon entering this vast, boundless space, he found himself surrounded by a hazy brilliance. This brilliance was densely packed with all kinds of powers, the most concentrated of which were the Power of the Emperor and Gold Element Origin Power. Cultivating and comprehending the Dao here would surely lead to a rapid increase in one's understanding of these two forces.

However, Yang Xiao paid it no mind. He quickly located his target.

It was a shimmering golden platform.

With a flash, he appeared on the platform.

There, he saw three items.

Two of them radiated a golden light, though their hues were slightly different. The dimmer of the two was a golden seal. Nine divine dragons coiled atop it, looking as if they were about to take flight, their aura extraordinary.

Yang Xiao's heart stirred at the sight.

'This looks like the legendary Nine Dragon Celestial Sealing Stamp! According to the legends, the senior Golden Emperor Saint Mother personally refined this Secret Treasure for the next Human Emperor. It has nine layers of Seals within it. For every layer undone, its power increases. With all nine layers opened, it is said to possess the might of a Peak of Ultimate Divine Artifact—truly terrifying. For some unknown reason, however, it was never handed over to the Saint Prince whom the Golden Emperor Saint Mother admired the most. Thus, a pearl was left to gather dust, and to this day, no one knows where the Nine Dragon Celestial Sealing Stamp went. To think it became this Mortal Ascension Platform... what a bargain for me.'

After a careful inspection, Yang Xiao determined the artifact's origin and smiled faintly.

This Nine Dragon Celestial Sealing Stamp was a fine treasure.

Never mind that it could match a Peak of Ultimate Divine Artifact with all nine Seals undone; right now, it was already an Ultimate Peak Treasure Weapon. Once the first layer of the Seal was opened, it would become a Daoist Weapon.

It was perfectly suited for the current Yang Xiao.

So, Yang Xiao immediately began to communicate with it and refine it. Because he had reached the summit before, the refinement process was effortless and took only a moment.

The Golden Seal landed in his hand.

The information transmitted from it confirmed that this was indeed the legendary Nine Dragon Celestial Sealing Stamp, and its grade was that of an Ultimate Grade Treasure Weapon.

As for opening the Seal, that was also simple. He just had to condense the Power of the Emperor in his body into a Golden Dragon to activate one of the Divine Dragons on the seal. Its grade would instantly be promoted to that of a Low Grade Daoist Weapon.

With his current Power of the Emperor, Yang Xiao could already vaguely accomplish this.

In other words, the moment the Nine Dragon Celestial Sealing Stamp was in his hands, it was effectively a Low Grade Daoist Weapon.

'More importantly, this treasure is quite deceptive. When the Seal isn't activated, it's just an Ultimate Peak Treasure Weapon. But once activated, its power will surge. I imagine it will catch quite a few people off guard.'

Yang Xiao smiled lightly, very satisfied.

He absorbed the Nine Dragon Celestial Sealing Stamp into his body, nourishing it with his Heaven and Earth Origin Fire and the Power of the Emperor, then his gaze swept toward the other shimmering golden treasure.

This second item was a feather, radiating a dazzling golden light. Yang Xiao laughed the moment he saw it.

'It's actually that Old Hairy's Lifebound Feather! And it seems to have been refined. Looks like the rumors that Old Hairy once followed the Golden Emperor Saint Mother were true. Otherwise, why would his Lifebound Feather have been taken and refined by someone else?'

Yang Xiao chuckled.

Back then, he had a falling out with the world's first Golden-winged Roc, but that was during the Middle Stage of the Ancient Times, long after the era of the Golden Emperor Saint Mother had passed.

At that time, both of them were powerhouses at the Unparalleled Divine King Level.

Although Yang Xiao had heard that this Old Hairy had some connection to the Golden Emperor Saint Mother, it was never confirmed. Now, it seemed the rumors were true.

'Old Hairy's Lifebound Feather is clearly extraordinary. I wonder what wondrous uses it has after being refined by the Golden Emperor?'

If it were an offensive treasure, Yang Xiao wouldn't think too highly of it.

He already had the Bloodthirsty Divine Sword, and he had just obtained the Nine Dragon Celestial Sealing Stamp. He was not lacking for offensive treasures.

Besides, the Golden Roc Clan's greatest strength wasn't offense, but speed.

If this thing had been refined into an offensive treasure, it would have been a terrible waste of a heavenly gift.

However, when Yang Xiao reached for the feather, he smiled.

'Senior Golden Emperor truly wouldn't do something so wasteful. This Lifebound Feather was actually refined into a pair of wings! And it also has nine layers of Seals. Once they are all undone, it too will be an Ultimate Divine Artifact. Excellent. Now, not only can my Golden Roc Secret Pattern improve further, but I also have one more escape tool. I've really hit the jackpot this time.'

Both of these items could be considered Top Grade, and for Yang Xiao, they were both perfectly usable. It was simply perfect.

Naturally, he was delighted. He directly refined the feather and absorbed it into his body as well, nourishing it with his Heaven and Earth Origin Fire and Gold Element Origin Power.

His gaze fell upon the last treasure.

The first two had brought him joy and satisfaction.

As for this third one...

It was a jade disc that emanated a purple light.

The moment Yang Xiao's Divine Sense made contact, the purple Jade Disc flared with a brilliant light.

Immediately after, an incomparably tall and majestic figure walked out of the Jade Disc. This being was immeasurably tall and colossal, yet every detail of its form was exquisitely fine and dignified.

Just one glance made Yang Xiao feel as if his eyes were about to go blind.

He could only close his eyes and use his Divine Sense to observe it.

At that moment, he already knew. This was likely one of the Human Emperor Secret Techniques: the Emperor Dao Celestial Venerable Map.

And this supreme, colossal humanoid figure before him was probably the legendary Emperor Celestial Venerable Divine Aspect, formed from the union of Celestial Emperor Yuan Shi and the Heavenly Dao.

Yang Xiao immediately calmed his mind and began to study it in detail.

This was an ultimate Secret Technique, surpassing any he had ever known—not even the Nine Yang Celestial Skill could compare. Naturally, he didn't want to miss a single detail.

However, what Yang Xiao didn't know was that just as he was carefully studying the Emperor Celestial Venerable Divine Aspect...

「In a desolate land countless thousands of miles away.」

A shadowy black figure suddenly climbed up from the ground.

It opened its eyes.

"HAHA, I'm alive again!"

This shadowy figure was formed from a black aura, filled with an evil, all-consuming presence. If Yang Xiao had been there, he would have seen...

...that this figure was none other than the Longevity Demon, Lu Changsheng—the very one he had killed before, even annihilating his Divine Soul Brand.

"You little whelp, Yang Xiao, I really have you to thank! By destroying my Divine Soul Brand in this world, you allowed me to be reborn as Lord Demon Venerable's most noble Demon Servant—a true creature of the Demon Realm!"

"To show my gratitude, once I recover my cultivation—no, once I reach an even higher level—I will chew your flesh and blood, piece by piece! I will grind your Divine Soul to dust, bit by bit! I will slaughter every single person related to you! Just you wait!"

Lu Changsheng cackled sinisterly.

His eyes were filled with killing intent—killing intent for Yang Xiao!