Chapter 1 Three Ghosts Master (Part 1)

Chapter One: The Three Ghosts Elder (Part One) "Splash—" With a sound, Li Qiye, who was floating in the river, was pulled up by someone. "Ah!" Li Qiye shouted, startled awake as someone pinched his acupoint. The moment he regained consciousness, his first reaction was to jump up. However, upon jumping, he felt somewhat unaccustomed to his own body, staggering slightly and almost falling. "My body!" Looking down, he found his body to be intact, and Li Qiye was both shocked and delighted. Having been trapped in the body of a shadowy crow for countless eons, he had finally reclaimed his own body. Even someone who had experienced countless trials and tribulations like him couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement. Eventually, Li Qiye took a deep breath, looked up, and saw an old man standing in front of him. "Hehe, hehe, it was I, the elder, who pulled you up from the river," the old man said with a grin. When he spoke, he revealed three yellow teeth, and his smile was as lewd as it was comical. Looking along the river, Li Qiye could faintly see the outline of the Immortal Devil Cave in the distance. Upon seeing the Immortal Devil Cave, his youthful expression suddenly turned cold, and an aura that belied his age emerged from him. Taking a deep breath, Li Qiye stared at the old man and after a long silence, he asked, "What is your name?" "Three Ghosts Elder, from the Xiyan Ancient Sect," the old man replied with a grin, revealing his three yellow teeth as drool dripped down. "Xiyan Ancient Sect—" Li Qiye muttered, momentarily recalling the memories he had sealed away after being trapped in the crow’s body for millions of years. "Who is in charge of the heavenly mandate now?" Li Qiye snapped back to reality and asked. "Heavenly mandate? No one has been able to bear it yet," Three Ghosts Elder chuckled. "What about the Void-Traveling Immortal Emperor?" Upon hearing this, Li Qiye's expression changed slightly. Had he truly been asleep for hundreds of thousands of years? "The Void-Traveling Immortal Emperor went missing thirty thousand years ago," Three Ghosts Elder replied, still grinning, revealing his three yellow teeth in a rather lewd manner. "What about the Black Dragon King of the Heavenly Suppression Sea City?" Li Qiye asked again without hesitation. Three Ghosts Elder shook his head and said, "No one knows; the Black Dragon King also vanished thirty thousand years ago." Hearing this, Li Qiye's face changed drastically. He looked again at the faint outline of the Immortal Devil Cave in the distance, and at that moment, he understood why he had regained his body. "Let's go—" Li Qiye's expression darkened as he turned and walked away, not caring whether or not Three Ghosts Elder followed. Having lived through countless ages and endured immense suffering, he already knew what he had to do. The Heavenly Suppression Sea City was the most powerful legacy of this era. When the Black Dragon King was alive, he looked down upon the heavens and the earth, invincible! Three generations revered him! Although the Black Dragon King had been missing for thirty thousand years, the Heavenly Suppression Sea City still stood proudly, like a colossal entity, between heaven and earth. Outside the Heavenly Suppression Sea City, there was a thirteen-year-old boy and an old man who looked incredibly lewd, revealing three yellow teeth when he opened his mouth. At the city gate, Li Qiye silently burned paper money, quietly saying in his heart, "Little Heizi, rest in peace. In this life, you helped me reclaim my body. One day, I will trample the evil domain and avenge you!" Finally, Li Qiye looked up at the colossal Heavenly Suppression Sea City, feeling everything had changed, becoming strange and unfamiliar. In retrospect, this sea city had risen from the ground thanks to his and Little Heizi's tireless efforts year after year! Unfortunately, thirty thousand years had passed, and who knew about the shadowy crow that had once remained behind the scenes? "Hehe, let's go back to the Xiyan Ancient Sect," Three Ghosts Elder piped up again, his three yellow teeth catching Li Qiye's eye. "Let's go," Li Qiye nodded calmly. No matter how mysteriously Three Ghosts Elder appeared and disappeared, or what his origins were, it was not enough to astonish Li Qiye. Having endured countless hardships, trapped in the crow's body for millions of years, experienced one era after another, accompanied the Immortal Emperor, walked with the God of Medicine—what else could surprise him? Not long after Li Qiye and Three Ghosts Elder set off, a peerless beauty emerged from the Heavenly Suppression Sea City. She resembled a fairy of the azure waves, a goddess of the ocean. As she stepped out of the city gate, preparing to venture far, she suddenly caught a glimpse of a corner of the paper money that had been burned at the city base. To her surprise, a symbol faintly appeared on that corner of paper money. Upon seeing this symbol, the goddess's expression changed drastically as she spoke in a deep voice, "Who burned paper money here just now?" A nearby old servant quickly found the answer and informed her, "The guards said that just a moment ago, an old man and a boy about thirteen or fourteen years old were burning paper money here." "Chase them down! Find them!" the goddess commanded immediately, her voice stern. "Your Highness, are you not going to the Divine Mountain?" the old servant replied hesitantly. "Chase!" Before the old servant could finish, the goddess had already dashed off, pursuing them in an instant. In the end, the goddess still did not find the person who burned the paper money. Returning to the Heavenly Suppression Sea City, she remained silent for a long time. That symbol had not appeared in the Heavenly Suppression Sea City for many, many years. Why had it re-emerged after tens of thousands of years? Was it friend or foe? "Your Highness, we did not find the person who burned the paper money," the loyal old servant reported back eventually. "Instruct everyone to keep an eye out for these two individuals. Do not make it public. Report to me immediately if there is any news," the goddess said solemnly. This left the old servant taken aback. The Heavenly Suppression Sea City was a formidable force in this era, and their princess, the Goddess of Heavenly Suppression, was also renowned. It was rare to see her with such a serious demeanor. "The Divine Mountain side—" the old servant pondered aloud. "Cancel—" the goddess interrupted, her voice deep. "I need to review the ancient texts left by our ancestors. This matter is rather peculiar!" With that, she entered the deepest restricted area of the Heavenly Suppression Sea City. The Xiyan Ancient Sect is located within the borders of the Baosheng Empire. The Xiyan Ancient Sect can be said to have a long and storied legacy, being an imperial sect of the immortal gate. In the early years of the Era of Emperors, the Mingren Immortal Emperor, who looked down upon the heavens and the earth, founded the sect here, naming it the Xiyan Ancient Sect. Unfortunately, millions of years have passed, and as the times changed, the Xiyan Ancient Sect was no longer the dominant immortal gate it once was. Countless years later, the Xiyan Ancient Sect began to decline. Although it had experienced a revival at times, it still could not reverse its downward trend. "Elder, something's wrong! A mortal has come to our sect wanting to be our chief disciple," the Grand Elder of the Xiyan Ancient Sect was reported early one morning by a disciple who rushed over in a flurry. "Kick him down the mountain!" The Grand Elder didn’t even look up and said, "Does this kind of trivial matter even need to be reported?" A mortal wanting to be the chief disciple of the Xiyan Ancient Sect? What a joke! The chief disciple of the Xiyan Ancient Sect holds a different significance—being the successor of the sect leader, the chief disciple often has the potential to become the next sect leader. Although the sect leader was not currently in the sect, the elders still had the authority to make such decisions. "But, but, he, he was recommended by Three Ghosts Elder," the disciple stammered. "Three Ghosts Elder?" The Grand Elder glanced at him and said, "Is he trying to take someone else's wine and promise them benefits?" Three Ghosts Elder—correct, he was indeed from the Xiyan Ancient Sect, but the sect was even less willing to acknowledge him as one of their own. Three Ghosts Elder—a name that sounds impressive, yet it brings embarrassment to the elders of the Xiyan Ancient Sect. Three Ghosts Elder was known for three things: a love for wealth, a penchant for lewdness, and a fondness for women, claiming himself to be a 'master,' hence being mocked as Three Ghosts Elder. Three Ghosts Elder hadn’t practiced many techniques, yet he had a significant background within the Xiyan Ancient Sect. It was said that he was the illegitimate son of the previous sect leader, so when the previous sect leader was dying, he advised the current sect leader to take care of Three Ghosts Elder. There were also rumors suggesting that Three Ghosts Elder was actually the illegitimate child of the sect leader before the last one, as the previous sect leader owed a great favor to the last one. Thus, the previous sect leader took the blame and continued to care for Three Ghosts Elder until his passing, also advising the current sect leader to look after him. Regardless of who Three Ghosts Elder was the illegitimate child of, his disgraceful origins made the higher-ups of the Xiyan Ancient Sect reluctant to delve into his background or speak much about him publicly. For such a lewd, wealth-loving, and not very skilled Three Ghosts Elder, neither the elders of the Xiyan Ancient Sect nor the other disciples regarded him favorably. "So what if he was recommended by Three Ghosts Elder? Just kick him down the mountain!" The Grand Elder was in no mood, having his morning disturbed by this name. "But, but, but he has the Xiyan Ancient Order given by Three Ghosts Elder," the disciple stammered. "The Xiyan Ancient Order!" Upon hearing this, the Grand Elder's expression changed, and he pondered for a long time before instructing, "Summon the other elders and have that mortal wait in the main hall!" The Xiyan Ancient Sect had six elders. When the other five elders heard about the 'Xiyan Ancient Order,' their expressions changed, and they had no choice but to attend. The Xiyan Ancient Order consisted of three ancient orders bequeathed by the founding ancestor, the Mingren Immortal Emperor. The other two had long been reclaimed, but for some unknown reason, the last one had ended up in the hands of Three Ghosts Elder. Besides the fact that the previous sect leader had instructed to take care of Three Ghosts Elder, the elders were also unable to do anything about him because he held one of the Xiyan Ancient Orders. The bearer of this order is as if the Mingren Immortal Emperor himself is present; it grants the bearer the ability to propose a condition to the Xiyan Ancient Order. Sitting in the main hall of the Xiyan Ancient Sect, gazing at the ancient hall, and observing the statue that was hazy from the smoke, Li Qiye couldn’t help but be reminded of many sealed memories from the past. The statue enshrined in the main hall was that of the Mingren Immortal Emperor. Although countless years had passed, the hazy statue still exuded an ancient majesty that soared above the heavens, evoking a feeling of reverence. Looking at the statue, Li Qiye felt a mix of emotions. So many years had passed, and the Mingren Immortal Emperor was no longer in this world, yet he had lived through one era after another. Today, he had finally reclaimed his body as he wished, but how many heroes had vanished like smoke in the wind?