Chapter 455 453: The Past is Like Smoke

Li Qiye chuckled awkwardly. "Well... I know you haven't been thrilled with me since that incident," he said. "Besides, I was in a rush back then. I came and went so quickly that I didn't get to catch up with an old friend."

"You only came because you have the gall to ask to borrow that *thing*, haven't you?" the Ancestor Flow Master sneered.

Li Qiye gave another awkward chuckle and rubbed his hands together. "You know what I'm planning this time. I'm going all out, and I need a few aces up my sleeve. I've already gathered most of what I need, but this won't be easy. I have to blast that place open... some secrets can't be hidden forever, after all! So, I was hoping to borrow your little item. It would make success more certain, don't you think?"

The Ancestor Flow Master was silent, as if he hadn't heard a word Li Qiye said.

After a long silence from the Ancestor Flow Master, Li Qiye sighed softly. "Fine. Forget I said anything. I won't disturb your eternal slumber. For you, after all, time is everything." With that, he turned to leave.

"You must know you're courting death. This path leads only to destruction!" the Ancestor Flow Master finally spoke, just as Li Qiye reached the doorway.

Li Qiye turned back, a smile spreading across his face as he gently shook his head. "I don't see it that way. You of all people should know I've made every possible preparation. I even procured the Lost Divine Island. When the time is right, I believe I can shatter the heavens and carve a path to the very depths. In all the Nine Heavens and Ten Lands, no one can deter my resolve!"

His words radiated an immense, domineering power. Just as he said, neither gods nor demons could stand against his resolve—not even the Azure Heaven itself!

"Do you even know what you'll be facing?" the Ancestor Flow Master asked.

Li Qiye shrugged with a smile. "To be honest, not entirely. Do you? That damned thing has been buried for a very, very long time and refuses to show itself. Do you know what it's like?"

"I do not!" The Ancestor Flow Master's answer was curt. "But I do know this: if you make a move, you will be courting death!"

"I'm not one to believe in superstitions or bow to fate. In all the Nine Heavens and Ten Lands, no one can stop me! Once I've decided on a course of action, I would shatter even the Azure Heaven to see it through! This isn't for anyone's sake—not mine, not yours, not anyone's. I simply want to solve this puzzle. I want to drag that damned thing that's been buried for eons out into the light!" Li Qiye stated calmly. "A truth I wish to know, a secret I wish to unravel—I will blast open anything that stands in my way! I have the patience, and I have the confidence."

His tone was calm, but his words were enough to shake the Nine Heavens and Ten Lands.

The Ancestor Flow Master fell silent. After a long while, he reached out his hand, seeming to pull an object from some corner of Fengdu City. "This is the key to the First Evil Tomb," he said coldly. "Take it!"

Li Qiye accepted the key to the First Evil Tomb. "My thanks. This will save me a great deal of effort."

"Is that so?" The Ancestor Flow Master seemed especially irritated with Li Qiye. "Weren't you always the one who insisted on finding everything yourself?" he said coolly. "I thought you would never come to me for help."

Li Qiye felt a wave of embarrassment. He chuckled awkwardly and said, "That's all water under the bridge. Let's let the past be the past. I was indeed in the wrong back then. And though it's true the Mingdu Immortal Emperor ultimately did many great things for Fengdu City, and he did end up siding with you…"

"…but no matter how you look at it, I was the one who got him out of here. I promised he would become someone incredible, a magnificent Immortal Emperor—I guaranteed it. But it's also true that you were the one who allowed it, which is why everything went so smoothly! Regardless, I was the one who broke Fengdu City's pact. I violated its eternal order! It was my fault. The entire affair only succeeded because you were there to run interference for me." Li Qiye apologized to the Ancestor Flow Master with genuine sincerity.

The Ancestor Flow Master snorted coldly. After a long moment, his tone softened. "I can lend you the item," he said. "But you have to do something for me in return!" It seemed he had let go of some of his anger.

Hearing this, Li Qiye was overjoyed. He quickly replied, "Name it. No matter what it is, I'll do it for you."

"Follow me!" the Ancestor Flow Master said coldly.

Li Qiye followed the Ancestor Flow Master to a place where a strange plant was growing. The moment Li Qiye saw it, his expression changed. "How did you get your hands on this?!"

"You don't need to ask," the Ancestor Flow Master said. "I need you to help it survive its ordeal. I know you authored the *Medicine God's Grand Canon*. If there is anyone in this world who can help this thing pull through, it is you."

"In the past, I really wouldn't have been able to," Li Qiye said, smiling and shaking his head. "But I just so happened to have recovered the Ten Thousand Furnace God. With it, I can indeed lend this plant a hand. However, I'll need time, and I'll need your assistance."

"That won't be a problem," said the Ancestor Flow Master.

Qiu Rong Wanxue, who had been waiting outside, settled in at the Ancestral Stream. More than ten days passed before Li Qiye finally reappeared.

"Let's go," Li Qiye said to Qiu Rong Wanxue upon his return.

"Are you alright?" Seeing the exhaustion on his face, Qiu Rong Wanxue asked, a mixture of worry and concern in her voice.

Li Qiye smiled and shook his head. "It's nothing. I just expended a bit of Blood Qi. I'll be fine after a day or two of rest."

Qiu Rong Wanxue followed Li Qiye out of the Ancestral Stream. From beginning to end, she had only seen two figures in the entire place: the Ghost Envoy who ran errands and the Ancestor Flow Master. To be precise, one human and one ghost.

The Ancestral Stream might have resembled an Emperor Immortal Gate, but Qiu Rong Wanxue couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief upon leaving. She found the place unbearable. It wasn't an eerie, ghost-ridden place—quite the opposite, it was beautiful. Yet, it felt as if a world-shattering secret was hidden behind its placid facade, and the tranquility itself was suffocating.

She would much rather be anywhere else in Fengdu City than stay in the Ancestral Stream. In short, she felt that there was always something lurking beneath the surface there.

In truth, Qiu Rong Wanxue had many unanswered questions about the Ancestral Stream. For instance, why was the Ancestor Flow Master a living person? And how on earth did he become the master of this place?

She had many questions she wanted to ask Li Qiye, but she didn't know how to bring them up.

Seeing her hesitation, Li Qiye smiled. "If you have questions, go ahead and ask. There are some things I might be able to tell you."

"Who... who is the Ancestor Flow Master?" Qiu Rong Wanxue finally couldn't hold back her curiosity. 'The Ancestor Flow Master is a friend of my Young Master, perhaps even a sworn brother. He must be of the younger generation of the Ghost Sacred Realm. To become the master of the Ancestral Stream, what an incredible figure he must be! He ought to be one of the most famous geniuses of the realm.'

In fact, Qiu Rong Wanxue had completely misunderstood. Because the Ancestor Flow Master was a living person, she assumed he must be a cultivator from the current generation.

"She..." Li Qiye began, then paused, shaking his head slightly. "That is a secret. There's no benefit in you knowing. It might even get you killed."

Qiu Rong Wanxue gave a wry smile and decided not to press the issue. She was a tactful woman who knew her place and didn't want to make things difficult for her Young Master.

"Where are we going now?" was all Qiu Rong Wanxue asked.

Li Qiye narrowed his eyes, his gaze falling upon the beautiful woman before him, as ripe and tempting as a peach. "We're going to find someone," he said. "I'll give you one last helping hand, and then it'll be time for the curtain to fall on a few matters."

A warm, sweet feeling blossomed in Qiu Rong Wanxue's heart when she heard this. Although she didn't know who Li Qiye was looking for, it didn't matter to her in that moment.

However, just as Li Qiye left the Ancestral Stream, before he could even begin his search, the person he was looking for came to him.

"I heard this Brother Dao was looking for me." They hadn't gotten far from the Ancestral Stream when a young man approached them. He was dressed like an attendant in yellow robes and wore a perpetual grin, a grin that held a hint of mystery.

Although the young man looked a bit shifty, his eyes were incredibly lively, as if brimming with Life Force.

The man's sudden appearance made the ever-cautious Qiu Rong Wanxue tense up. Her first instinct was to activate her Celestial Eye. One look and she discovered that the young man was a Ghost Envoy.

Qiu Rong Wanxue was a very meticulous person, and looking at this Ghost Envoy gave her a jolt. The young man was clearly a Ghost Envoy, and yet, his eyes were full of Life Force.

No matter how shifty he looked, no matter how much he resembled a low-level attendant or some insignificant character, his eyes were undeniably full of Life Force.

This was unbelievable. The native residents of Fengdu City might look no different from outsiders, and might even seem to live ordinary lives, but at their core, they were mere lingering attachments—they were Ghost Envoys. They possessed no Blood Qi, no Life Force. And yet, this particular Ghost Envoy's eyes were brimming with vitality. How could this not send a chill through Qiu Rong Wanxue?

In truth, Qiu Rong Wanxue had seen so many strange things recently that she was becoming desensitized. The master of the Ancestral Stream was a living person; now a Ghost Envoy with living eyes had appeared. She was almost past the point of surprise.