553: Chapter 553

Qin Yun withdrew his hand.

Blood dripped down from his knuckles.

Lu Cheng looked down at his chest, the superior coldness in his eyes, along with his previous commanding tone, frozen on his face.

He opened his mouth.

Not a single word came out.

His body swayed and he fell straight down.

The canyon fell into complete silence.

Everyone looked at the corpse on the ground, their minds blank for a moment.

The followers and War Slaves around Lu Cheng, who had just been standing there in a large crowd, now had faces paler than the next.

It wasn't that they hadn't seen dead people before.

But no one expected that the one to die would be Lu Cheng.

Even more unexpected was that Qin Yun was not affected by the mark at all, raising his hand to slaughter his own master.

The woman was equally dazed.

She had treated Qin Yun as a Loose Cultivator traveling with her temporarily, only to hear Lu Cheng tell him to return to the team. Her heart had just sunk when, in the next moment, this man had punched through Lu Cheng.

This reversal was too fast.

At the end of the canyon, that black stone gate suddenly shook.

Buzz.

A circle of ancient Dao Patterns lit up from the crack of the door.

Immediately after, a large amount of dust fell off the surface of the stone door, and the long-dormant Saint Dao fluctuations inside surged violently.

Everyone's expressions changed again.

They had fought and killed for a long time just now, yet the stone door hadn't truly opened.

Now, it moved.

And it wasn't a small movement.

Qin Yun stood at the very front.

Since breaking into this place, he was the first person to suppress all obstacles and fight his way to the core position.

Now that Lu Cheng was dead, the last layer of people blocking the front was gone. The Saint Dao Aura inside the stone door seemed to have finally waited for the person truly standing before it.

Boom.

The stone door slowly cracked open a gap.

Golden-red firelight shone through from within.

And an even heavier Saint pressure pressed out through the crack of the door.

Those who were just staring at Lu Cheng's corpse had their gazes instantly sucked away by the stone door.

The Legacy had opened.

At this moment, who still cared about Lu Cheng?

"Go in!"

Someone shouted first, though it was unclear who.

In the next moment, several figures rushed out at the same time.

Qin Yun was faster.

With a stomp of his foot, he had already swept into the door crack ahead of everyone else, without even a pause.

The woman's reaction was not slow, and she followed closely behind.

The others also squeezed in like crazy.

Behind the stone door was a short ancient path.

Fire patterns were densely packed on both sides, and the ground was glowing red with heat.

The further in they went, the heavier that Saint Dao Aura became.

Qin Yun crossed the ancient path in a few steps and broke directly into the deepest part.

Inside was a circular stone platform.

Above the stone platform hung a crimson-gold ball of light.

Outside the ball of light, Dao Patterns surrounded it, divine fire flowed, and layers of Saint Dao runes circled like living things.

That was not an ordinary fire-method Legacy, but an extremely pure Fire-Yang Saint Dao—domineering, singular, and very direct.

The Legacy sensed Qin Yun's Aura and potential, and could not wait for Qin Yun to perform the Fusion.

Qin Yun stood still, and with just one look, he understood the situation.

This thing was very strong.

If given to someone who only cultivated Fire-Yang methods, it would indeed be a great Opportunity.

But for him, it wasn't compatible enough.

He was currently walking the path of fusing the body with the Body Scripture. The Solar Holy Body was only the starting point; he still needed to continue melting Ancient, Supreme, and other Origins into it bit by bit.

If he forcibly swallowed this Legacy now, it would be equivalent to nailing his path to a single Fire-Yang Dao.

The loss would outweigh the gain.

Qin Yun didn't rush to act. He swept his gaze with his Heart Heavy Pupils and saw another layer.

Deep within the ball of light, a very faint trace of filthy Aura flashed by.

It was very fast.

So fast it seemed like an illusion.

Qin Yun frowned. When he looked again, that wisp of Aura was gone.

He paused for a breath.

He didn't go any further.

He simply turned around and retreated directly from the side of the stone platform.

The people outside were originally waiting to see if he could take the Legacy, but after only a moment, Qin Yun walked out empty-handed.

There was no Holy Light on his body.

No Dao Patterns had recognized him as master.

And he didn't look like he had succeeded at all.

The atmosphere in front of the canyon suddenly became strange.

Someone was stunned at first, then felt a sigh of relief.

Someone's eyes flickered, and their expression lightened considerably.

Others lowered their voices.

"He came out?"

"He didn't get it?"

"I thought he was really going to swallow this Legacy."

"Being able to fight is one thing; whether or not one can be recognized by the Legacy is another."

The woman also looked at Qin Yun, doubt in her eyes.

She didn't jump to conclusions like the others; she just found it strange.

If Qin Yun really wanted to compete for it, he shouldn't have come out so quickly.

But he did come out.

Qin Yun didn't explain.

He just stood to the side, continuing to stare into the depths of the stone door.

His expression was not relaxed.

In the eyes of others, this scene took on another meaning.

They were more convinced that Qin Yun had only realized after entering that the Legacy did not recognize him, so he had no choice but to retreat.

Soon, another person stepped forward.

This person was one of the recognized strongest Prodigies in the Secret Realm. He had been holding back earlier, waiting for others to scout the way for him.

Now seeing Qin Yun come out empty-handed, most of the wariness in his eyes vanished.

"Strong combat power doesn't mean suitability for the Legacy."

He dropped this remark and stepped directly into the stone door.

Many people outside felt invigorated.

If there was anyone left who was most likely to take this Saint Dao Opportunity, it was him.

Time passed bit by bit.

A moment later, Holy Light suddenly erupted from the depths of the stone door.

Streaks of crimson-gold Dao Patterns soared into the sky.

Immediately after, a beam of Holy Light descended, enveloping the man completely.

The outside world was suddenly in an uproar.

"He succeeded!"

"He was actually recognized!"

"The Legacy chose him!"

The shock that had fallen on Qin Yun earlier was now instantly overshadowed by this new impact.

The direction of the discussion shifted instantly.

"No matter how strong that previous person was, he could only fight."

"A true great Opportunity still depends on compatibility."

"A Saint's Legacy recognizing a master doesn't depend on fists."

Even many who were shocked by Qin Yun's punch just now turned their thoughts elsewhere.

The two attendants beside the woman looked at each other with complex expressions.

They hadn't expected the situation to turn out like this.

Qin Yun still didn't speak.

He just watched the stone door.

The coldness in his eyes was deeper than before.

Not long after, the man walked out of the stone door.

Surrounded by Holy Light and with Dao Patterns clinging to his body, his Aura was much stronger than before he went in. Clearly, he had obtained the Legacy.

This should have been his most glorious moment.

Everyone was looking at him.

His own face also bore an irrepressible look of joy.

But after walking just over a dozen steps, a sudden change occurred.

The Holy Light on his body suddenly trembled.

Then it shuddered.

The Dao Patterns that were originally running smoothly began to become chaotic.

"What's happening?"

Someone had just spoken when the man let out a muffled groan and his body suddenly hunched over.

When he raised his head, an abnormal black Qi had already appeared in his eyes.

In the next moment, black lines crawled up his neck with extreme speed, like living things, covering half his face in an instant.

The Saint Dao Aura inside him, which had been pure just a moment ago, also began to twist.

A filthy, cold, and hair-raising Aura radiated from him.

The expressions of those around him changed completely, and they all retreated.

"Something's wrong!"

"This isn't Qi Deviation!"

"Back away!"

A low growl that didn't sound human came from the man's throat. He clawed at his chest, tearing it into a bloody mess, yet he seemed to feel no pain at all.

The Holy Light was still there.

The black lines were also there.

The two things were entangled, twisting his entire being into a mess.

The crowd that had been envious of him just now was now filled only with terror.

It was also at this time that the old man in the ring suddenly lost his voice.

"The Weird!"

His voice had even changed.

It no longer had that usual tone of acting on his seniority.

"This isn't evil Qi, nor is it the resentment of an ancient corpse."

"This is Weird contamination!"

The old man took a breath, his tone revealing an irrepressible shock for the first time.

"How can this thing still be here?"

"There's actually a fish that escaped the net."

Qin Yun's gaze darkened.

He stared at the black lines spreading across the man's body and finally understood that the familiar Aura he had caught deep within the Legacy earlier was not an illusion.

In this Ancient Saint's Hidden Treasury, something dirty was indeed hidden.

And it had been hidden until now.

In front of the stone door, the Saint Dao aftershocks had not yet dissipated.

Yet that man no longer looked human at all.

The black lines continued to crawl outward, and the filthy Aura spread layer by layer, forcing the surrounding Prodigies to retreat one after another.

All the excitement and fighting from just now had turned into a chilling cold at this moment.

Qin Yun took a step forward.

His gaze fell on that body that was spiraling out of control.

He knew that this battle probably couldn't be avoided.