157: Chapter 157 The Lord's Bloodline

[You bring Yang Cong onto the ship, and Guan Qingqing stays behind to keep watch.]

[On the deck, dozens of vengeful spirits take shape and pounce.]

[Yang Cong reveals his Giant Flood Dragon true form, shredding several vengeful spirits with one claw. You deploy a purification array, and the remaining vengeful spirits wail and dissipate in the white light.]

[Against vengeful spirits below the True Immortal stage, the Array Master reigns supreme.]

[You dismantle the warning arrays on the ship all the way, heading straight for the core cabin.]

[Inside the core cabin, a skeleton sits cross-legged, clutching a bronze compass.]

[On the stone table in front of the skeleton, a line of text is engraved—]

[ "The Guixu Seal is unstable, an anomaly has occurred, the entire army has been wiped out; the direction pointed to by the compass is the source." ]

[Yang Cong gasps. "Is this... from the ancient war?"]

[You say nothing, taking the compass from the skeleton's embrace and injecting a wisp of immortal essence.]

[The compass needle trembles violently and points toward the direction of Guixu. The direction matches the coordinates provided by Shu perfectly.]

[Shu falls silent in your sea of consciousness for a moment.]

[ "This is... the compass of the previous keeper. A guide left for those who come after." ]

[You take Yang Cong and leave the ghost ship, returning to the hidden dragon shuttle.]

[You place the compass at the bow and inject immortal essence. Several light spots appear on the compass—surrounding the white light spot representing you, several red light spots emerge and are approaching rapidly.]

[You push the hidden dragon shuttle to its limit and dive headlong into the deep sea.]

[Seven days later, the seawater turns from deep blue to ink black, and fine, fragmented spacetime turbulence begins to drift in the air.]

[Yang Cong stands at the bow, and a warning left by his ancestors surges through his bloodline: ahead lies the outer perimeter of the Guixu Seal.]

[The array pattern on Guan Qingqing's forehead suddenly lights up.]

[ "We have arrived." Shu speaks through her, "Slow down, use the sea-fixing divine pearl for protection." ]

[You take out the sea-fixing divine pearl and suspend it above the ship.]

[Blue light spreads out, and a hundred-zhang light shield envelops the hidden dragon shuttle. The surrounding spacetime fragments dissipate upon touching the light shield, like snowflakes under a scorching sun.]

"This bead is truly an overpowered cheat."

It was difficult to steal from the Dragon Palace back then, but now it all seems worth it.

[Passing through the turbulence zone, the view suddenly widens.]

[A nine-colored light membrane of immeasurable height spans across the sky and sea.]

[The Guixu Seal.]

[Three hundred miles in front of the light membrane, a black stone camp stands silently.]

[In front of the camp, three figures stand side by side, waiting for you.]

[The leader is a man with white clothes and black hair; his face is aged, but his posture is upright, and his aura is unfathomable.]

[A Half-step Golden Immortal.]

[The old man holding a halberd on the left is a Mid-stage True Immortal. The female cultivator holding a sword on the right is an Early True Immortal.]

[You stop the hidden dragon shuttle a hundred miles away and step out alone.]

[The white-clothed old man looks up at you, his eyes devoid of hostility, only scrutiny.]

[ "Junior. State your name." ]

[You take a deep breath and circulate your Xuanxiao Bloodline.]

[A wisp of pure star power overflows from your forehead, condensing into an ancient emblem in the air.]

[The three Grave Keepers all tremble.]

[The white-clothed old man slowly kneels on one knee.]

[ "Bloodline of the Divine Lord Xuan Xiao, do you have a token?" ]

[You take out the replica mark of the phoenix jade pendant, then take out the phantom of the scepter temporarily manifested by the array spirit "Shu." Both proofs are present.]

[The white-clothed old man sighs deeply and stands up.]

[ "I have guarded this place for nine thousand eight hundred years. Finally, the Bloodline of the Lord has returned." ]

[He introduces himself: the head of the Grave Keepers, named "Cangming," formerly the commander of the "Sea-Suppressing Battalion" under the command of the Divine Lord Xuan Xiao.]

[Cangming informs you that only the three of them remain in the camp; the other six Grave Keepers have either fallen or are in closed-door cultivation. The Guixu Seal has fluctuated violently for nearly ten thousand years, and they have long been struggling to hold on.]

[ "The Bloodline of the Lord has arrived with the key; our duty is fulfilled. We will protect you as you enter." ]

[You nod and take out the sea-fixing divine pearl.]

[Cangming personally leads you to a certain part of the seal, forming hand seals and chanting incantations.]

[A dense network of lines appears on the light membrane—the true structural diagram of the seal.]

[Shu's voice sounds out.]

[ "Nine layers, from outside to inside: Laws, Space, Time, Divine Soul, Bloodline, Causality, Void, Chaos, and the Source of Guixu." ]

[ "The divine bead will break the first six layers. For the last three, you must force them open using your Array Master authority." ]

[You press the divine bead against the light membrane.]

[Blue light surges like a tide, and the first layer, the Law Seal, begins to crack.]

[The real tough battle begins.]

[With a "crack," the first layer shatters.]

[The divine bead rotates on its own, the surrounding space is pinned down, and the second layer of the seal is forcibly smoothed out.]

[The third layer, the Time Seal. The flow of time twists and reorganizes around the divine bead.]

[The fourth layer, the Divine Soul Seal. The blue light turns into a protective shield, isolating the three of your divine souls from the erosion of the seal.]

[The fifth layer, the Bloodline Seal. Pale golden bloodline patterns emerge within the blue light of the divine bead, perfectly syncing with the Xuanxiao Bloodline.]

[The sixth layer, the Causality Seal. Countless threads of causality are severed one by one within the blue light.]

[Six layers broken in succession.]

[The light of the sea-fixing divine pearl suddenly dims, then explodes, turning into a beam of blue light that merges into your forehead.]

[Shu's voice sounds out.]

[ "The divine bead has completed its mission. From here on, it is up to you." ]

[You step forward and walk to the seal.]

[The seventh layer, the Void Seal.]

[In a thought, you analyze the seal structure with your Array Master authority. Millions of runes decompose and recombine in your eyes.]

[You extend your finger and tap lightly.]

[ "Open." ]

[The Void Seal silently collapses.]

[The eighth layer, the Chaos Seal.]

[This layer is thicker and heavier than the sum of the previous seven.]

[Blood seeps from your seven orifices, your dantian's immortal pill lights up, and the power of Myriad Laws Return to One surges out.]

[You forcibly analyze the Laws of Chaos.]

[ "Open!" ]

[The eighth layer shatters.]

[The ninth layer, the Source of Guixu Seal.]

[You cannot analyze this layer.]

[Cangming shouts from behind.]

[ "Bloodline of the Lord, open the door with blood!" ]

[You bite your fingertip and sprinkle a drop of Xuan Xiao blood onto the seal.]

[The moment the blood drop touches the seal, the entire light membrane emits a long hum, like a giant beast that has been sleeping for ten thousand years slowly opening its eyes.]

[ "Recognized bloodline... opening..." ]

[A pitch-black gateway, three zhang square, appears in the center of the light membrane.]

[Behind the door lies the true Guixu.]

[The three of them, Cangming included, kneel on one knee in unison.]

[ "Welcome back, Bloodline of the Lord!" ]

[You take a deep breath and, taking Yang Cong and Guan Qingqing with you, step inside.]

[Darkness swallows the three of you, and the gateway slowly closes.]

[Inside Guixu, there is a gray-white void.]

[There is no up or down, no left or right, and no flow of time.]

[You float in the void, clearly sensing that every inch of your bones is being "recorded" by some force.]

[Shu's voice sounds in your sea of consciousness.]

[ "Welcome to Guixu." ]

[ "This place is the original 'backup warehouse' of this world." ]

[ "Ten thousand years ago, what your father sealed here was not just me, not just the heroic spirits, but also—" ]

[Deep in the void, a faint point of light slowly brightens.]

[A voice, gentle to the extreme, comes from that point of light.]

[ "Yuaner..." ]

[ "Is that you?" ]