Life span plundered, I became a detective and achieved immortality

Chapter 1038 Annihilating Eighth-Rank True Immortals

In the eastern part of Qianyang Domain, inside a White Bone Demon Palace built from countless white bones.

The palace's beams and pillars were all pieced together from the vertebrae of a colossal beast tens of thousands of feet long. Each vertebra was covered with ferocious bone spurs, standing menacingly like poisoned blades, gleaming coldly as if they might drip deadly venom at any moment. Dark red magma flowed between the bone joints, viscous like blood, slowly spreading along the grooves of the bones and converging on the ground to form a winding river of fire, making the entire palace look like a furnace of purgatory. The air was filled with the pungent smell of sulfur and the odor of burning.

The ground was covered with layers upon layers of skulls, some as large as millstones and others as small as fists. Ghostly green flames flickered in the empty eye sockets, swaying with the air currents, as if countless vengeful spirits were whispering within them, recounting the pain and resentment of being devoured in life.

A terrifying figure clad in skeletal armor sat cross-legged on a throne woven from hundreds of True Immortal skeletons, the bone tips pointing outwards and gleaming with a chilling light. Every inch of the armor seemed soaked in blood. He emanated a terrifyingly scorching aura, like a sun god awakening from slumber. Anyone below the True Immortal level who dared to step into the hall would be instantly incinerated by the earth-shattering heat, leaving not even a trace of their soul intact.

He rubbed a blood-red jade slip between his fingertips, gazing in the direction of the Thousand Cliffs Domain. The greed in his eyes almost burned through the void, like a ferocious beast eyeing its prey, its gaze flashing with cruel light.

next second...

He suddenly stood up, and flames around him suddenly surged, sweeping through the entire hall like a tsunami! The dark red Netherworld Karmic Fire instantly devoured the White Bone Throne, burning the hundreds of True Immortal skeletons into a bright red glassy state. The magma inside the hall surged and boiled, creating waves ten feet high. The ghostly green flames twisted and dissipated in the heat wave, leaving not even a trace.

"Whoosh..."

Leaving only a burning afterimage behind him, his figure transformed into a crimson streak of light, piercing the dome of the White Bone Demon Palace. The fiery tail he created tore through the sky, trailing a thousand miles of flames as he sped towards the Black Dragon Mountains of the Thousand Cliffs Domain. Wherever he passed, the void sizzled and crackled, leaving a long, charred trail. Even the wind and clouds were stirred and churned by this domineering power of fire, forming a chaotic cloud of flames.

......

Time flies, and thirty million years have passed.

In the central part of the Black Dragon Mountains, a hidden mountain valley has mysteriously revealed a secret cave. The entrance to the cave is shrouded in layers of array formations and restrictions, the array patterns blending seamlessly with the surrounding deathly black mist, resembling a flowing ink painting. The patterns are imbued with the same Yin energy as the black mist. Without a thorough exploration deep within the valley, even an eighth-rank True Immortal would find it difficult to discover its secrets, regarding it merely as an ordinary forbidden land, never imagining that it holds a hidden world within.

Pale-faced and bloodless, the Old Ancestor of the Ends of the Earth and the True Immortal of Cloud Cold sat cross-legged on two jade thrones within the cave world. Soft rays of immortal light flowed around them, transforming into a gentle, warm current that washed over their wounds, slowly healing them. However, the deliberately maintained weakness remained as faint as a candle flickering in the wind, even their breathing carried a barely perceptible quality, subtly revealing themselves outside the cave world.

"boom......"

Suddenly, a dazzling flame descended from the sky, crashing into the mountain hollow like a meteorite. Instantly, flames soared into the heavens, bursting forth like a blazing sun in the hollow, its light blinding. The terrifying heat instantly dispelled the surrounding deathly mist, revealing a majestic figure clad in skeletal armor. Flames surged around him, scorching the black mist and sending up plumes of white smoke. His gaze, sharp as a hawk's, with a penetrating edge, locked onto the hidden cave.

"This aura... belongs to the True Yang Old Monster."

Tianya Patriarch and Yunhan True Immortal opened their eyes simultaneously, looking outside the cave, a hint of hidden surprise flashing deep in their eyes—the fish had finally taken the bait.

"Old man Tianya, old man Yunhan, I've finally found you!" Ancestor Zhenyang looked at the cave, his voice filled with undisguised excitement and agitation. His hoarse voice, like polished iron, scraped against one's eardrums. "Let your lives help me take another step forward!"

The intelligence was indeed correct. These two old guys were seriously injured, and their aura was not even as strong as that of some early-stage eighth-rank True Immortals. He only needed to strike them casually to take them all down!

But just as he was about to make his move, he suddenly frowned: "Strange, these two old guys are looking a little too calm?"

Something's not right. Even if these two old men aren't fleeing for their lives, they should at least be a little flustered. Their composure is rather eerie, as if they've been waiting for this for a long time. A sense of unease crept into my heart like a venomous snake.

at this time......

A majestic voice, like a thunderclap from the heavens, boomed in his ears: "The Four Symbols Suppressing Immortal Formation, activate!"

In an instant, the roar of a dragon shook the heavens, the howl of a tiger tore through the mountains and forests, the cry of a phoenix was clear and sharp, and the roar of a tortoise was deep and resonant! Four terrifying auras, enough to make even a mid-stage eighth-rank True Immortal like the True Yang Ancestor despair, rose from all directions—the Azure Dragon of the East swung its tail, bringing with it towering waves; the White Tiger of the West roared, its claws tearing through the void; the Vermilion Bird of the South spread its wings, its true fire incinerating all things; the Black Tortoise of the North raised its head, its tortoise shell indestructible. The phantoms of the four sacred beasts stood tall and imposing, suppressing him firmly in the center. The vast pressure was like the heavens crushing down, instantly freezing the fire power within his body, making even breathing difficult.

"Not good! This pressure... it's four... four Quasi-Ninth Rank True Immortals!" Ancestor Zhenyang's expression changed drastically. His pupils under the skull mask suddenly contracted, and a chill shot from his spine to the top of his head, making him feel as if he had fallen into an ice cave. "This is a trap! I'm doomed!"

He tried to turn and flee, but found that his limbs were already firmly locked by the power of the Four Symbols, as if he were nailed to the spot. He couldn't even move the flames at his fingertips. He could only watch helplessly as the four phantoms of sacred beasts approached closer and closer, trapping him in this cage of despair. Even his contact with the outside world was completely cut off. Seeking rescue was just a pipe dream.

......

After a few breaths, the valley returned to calm.

The phantoms of the Four Divine Beasts had quietly vanished, and the oppressive force that had shaken heaven and earth receded like a tide, leaving only lingering ripples of law in the air, gently undulating in the black mist like ripples on a calm lake. The figure of the True Yang Ancestor had long since disappeared without a trace, not even a trace of blood or a breath remained, as if he had never appeared in this mountain valley, his existence completely erased.

Only the charred marks on the ground, burned by the flames, still retained some heat, but under the erosion of the black mist of death, they faded at a visible speed, soon merging with the surrounding black stones and becoming indistinguishable.

The dispelled black mist of death, as if summoned, surged back from all directions, spreading rapidly throughout the mountain valley like ink dripping into clear water. Eerie green lights flickered within the black mist, and the sizzling sound of corroding rocks echoed once more. Everything returned to its original state—gloomy, deathly silent, and filled with a chilling sense of oppression, as if everything that had happened before was merely an illusion, known only to the three people within the cave. Another substantial amount of battle merit was thus earned.

......

Time flies, and soon, millions of years have passed.

In the Azure Spirit Domain, Iron Arm Mountain Range, Fortress No. 507, within that hidden cave.

The petals of the Twenty-Four Grade Primordial Void Purple Lotus have fully unfolded, layer upon layer, like a blooming crystal pagoda. Each petal is crystal clear, refracting the seven-colored glow of the sunset. The primordial energy flows like crystal, weaving and leaping among the petals, making a melodious "tinkling" sound, illuminating the cave with a bright, warm, and peaceful atmosphere.

Su Mo slowly opened his eyes. His eyes first flashed with a deep look after being washed by a time flow of two hundred million times, and then burst out with a brilliant light, as if two stars were rising and falling in his eyes.

Immediately afterward, a soft white light flashed across his palm. When the light dissipated, a miniature youth dressed in a plain white robe, with waist-length silver hair, floated silently in his hand. This little figure was no more than a foot tall, with a face as exquisite as a jade carving, yet it had no trace of life. A faint gray death aura surrounded its body, but the pressure contained within was enough to make the soul of a seventh-grade True Immortal tremble—this was the corpse of an eighth-grade True Immortal.

"Another 64 billion battle merits in hand, enough for me to exchange for another Nine-Layered Time-Space Tower." Su Mo looked down at the miniature figure in his hand, his eyes gleaming with burning light, his fingertips gently stroking the figure's robes. "If I want to accumulate battle merits quickly, I still need to target these Rank 8 True Immortals."

Compared to his initial blind actions like headless flies in the Nine Domains Continent, now, with the help of the bait and trap set by True Man Huanglong, the speed at which he accumulates battle merits has increased by more than a hundred or a thousand times.

"It seems we need to find some bait for the other illusory spirit bodies as well."

......