123: Chapter 123 Ancient Half-Immortal, Venerable Lingyun

In the depths of the mountains in the Eastern Southern Wilderness.

This place was far from civilization; even Yao Beasts rarely set foot here.

Several precipitous Peaks pierced the clouds like swords and halberds. The valley between the mountains was shrouded in thick fog year-round, and the sunlight that managed to pierce through the layers of mist could only cast mottled light and shadows on the ground.

At this moment, this valley, which had been silent for who knows how many tens of thousands of years, was packed with people.

At a rough glance, there were as many as several hundred people.

Their robes varied—some wore luxurious brocade, others coarse linen cloth—but at this moment, everyone was performing the same action: kneeling on the ground, kowtowing piously and prostrating themselves toward the tall stone statue deep in the valley.

Kneeling at the very front was a middle-aged man dressed in purple brocade robes, his body wreathed in the Aura of the Peak Void Refining Realm.

He was none other than the head of the Lingyuan Family, a mid-sized family in the Eastern Southern Wilderness, Patriarch Lin Tianyou.

Behind him, the Elders and Core Disciples of the Lingyuan Family, along with hundreds of summoned Cultivators, knelt in a dense, dark mass.

Everyone's gaze was fixed intently on the stone statue in front.

The stone statue was about three zhang tall, entirely dark green-black, and carved in the likeness of a middle-aged man.

He stood with his hands behind his back, his expression cold and stern, his gaze looking down upon the kneeling crowd from above. Even though it was just a stone statue, that Aura of looking down on the world made people shudder.

The surface of the stone statue was covered in cracks, and within those cracks, a dark red light faintly flowed, as if something were awakening inside the statue.

Patriarch Lin Tianyou raised his head to glance at the stone statue, then lowered it again, taking a yellowed, ancient animal skin scroll from his sleeve.

The characters on the ancient scroll were old and obscure; they were not the characters currently in use in the Xuanhuang World, but rather ancient Seal script from the Early Stage of the ancient era.

Patriarch Lin Tianyou did not recognize these characters, but he did not need to. He only needed to read them aloud, reciting the syllables that the voice had taught him.

He took a deep breath, slowly unfurled the ancient scroll, and began to chant.

His voice was low and hoarse, every syllable strange and awkward, as if it were not a sound that a human should make.

Those syllables echoed in the valley, interweaving with the surrounding mist, creating an eerie and mysterious resonance.

As he chanted, the cracks on the surface of the stone statue began to widen, and the dark red light grew brighter and more intense.

The Elders of the Lingyuan Family behind Patriarch Lin Tianyou turned pale, their bodies trembling slightly, yet no one dared to make a sound, let alone stand up.

They had been summoned by the Patriarch, and it was only until they knelt before this stone statue that they learned the purpose of this trip.

Patriarch Lin Tianyou's voice grew louder and more urgent.

The stone statue's tremors became increasingly violent; cracks spread in all directions at a speed visible to the naked eye, and gravel fell from the statue's surface with a rustling sound.

"Crack!"

A crisp cracking sound was exceptionally jarring in the silent valley.

The stone statue began to split from the head, and a beam of dark red light burst forth from the cracks, shooting straight into the sky.

Within that light was contained a Devilish Qi that made one's Soul tremble, yet it was more ancient and more profound than ordinary Devilish Qi.

The stone statue shattered with a roar, debris flying in all directions, and a figure slowly walked out from the broken stone statue.

It was a middle-aged man, identical to the carving of the stone statue.

His long hair draped over his shoulders, and his dark red robe was covered in dust, yet it could not hide that Aura of looking down on the world.

His eyes were a pure dark red, as if a sea of blood were churning within his pupils.

This person was named Venerable Lingyun, a Half-Step Immortal from the Early Stage of the ancient era.

He stood among the rubble, looked up at the sky, and took a deep breath, as if savoring this long-lost freedom.

"One hundred thousand years."

His voice carried the vicissitudes of time, as well as an irrepressible ecstasy.

"One hundred thousand years! This Venerable has finally come out!"

Venerable Lingyun's laughter echoed in the valley, shaking the surrounding mountain Peaks until they trembled slightly.

Patriarch Lin Tianyou knelt on the ground, his forehead pressed tightly against it, his voice trembling: "Junior Lin Tianyou pays respects and congratulates Venerable Lingyun on breaking the Seal!"

The Elders of the Lingyuan Family and the hundreds of Cultivators behind him also shouted in unison: "Congratulations to Venerable Lingyun on breaking the Seal!"

Hundreds of voices gathered together, echoing in the valley for a long time.

Venerable Lingyun lowered his head, his dark red eyes landing on Patriarch Lin Tianyou, the corners of his mouth slightly upturned, forming a cold arc.

"Lin Tianyou." He recited the name, his voice carrying a hint of amusement, "You have done well."

Patriarch Lin Tianyou hurriedly kowtowed, his voice full of sycophancy: "To be able to serve Venerable is a blessing this Junior has cultivated over several lifetimes."

Venerable Lingyun did not respond.

He raised his hand, looked at his paper-pale palms, and then sensed the nearly exhausted spiritual energy within his body, his brows furrowing slightly.

The one hundred thousand years of the Seal had almost exhausted all of his strength.

At this moment, although he still maintained the Realm of a Half-Step Immortal, less than one-tenth of his spiritual energy remained, not even one-tenth of his Peak period.

"I need to recover."

He muttered to himself, his gaze sweeping over the Cultivators kneeling on the ground, a flash of greed appearing in his eyes.

Although these people's cultivation was low, adding the hundreds of them together would be enough for him to recover somewhat.

No, it was not enough; he needed more.

Venerable Lingyun withdrew his gaze and looked at Patriarch Lin Tianyou, saying indifferently: "This Venerable needs to recover his strength; you go and collect Materials for this Venerable."

Patriarch Lin Tianyou hurriedly raised his head and said respectfully: "What Materials does Venerable need? This Junior will surely do his utmost to find them for Venerable."

Venerable Lingyun waved his hand, and a streak of dark red spiritual light flew from his fingertip, entering Patriarch Lin Tianyou's forehead.

Patriarch Lin Tianyou's body stiffened abruptly, and countless pieces of information flooded into his mind.

Spirit Medicine, Yao Beast cores, Heaven And Earth Treasure, and some things he had never heard of before—each one was extremely rare, and each one was worth a fortune.

"These Materials, prepare them for this Venerable within one month." Venerable Lingyun's voice was unquestionable.

Patriarch Lin Tianyou's expression turned extremely ugly in an instant; those Materials, let alone one month, even in one year, he might not be able to gather one-tenth of them.

But he dared not refuse, and could only grit his teeth and nod: "This Junior obeys."

Venerable Lingyun seemed to see through his thoughts and said indifferently: "Do not worry, for things you cannot do, there will naturally be others to do them for you."

A flash of sharp light crossed his eyes: "The major forces of the Southern Wilderness still owe this Venerable some old debts, and now it is time to collect them."

Patriarch Lin Tianyou's heart trembled; he vaguely guessed what this Venerable was going to do, but dared not ask more.

Venerable Lingyun said no more; he waved his hand, and a screen of dark red light enveloped him.

The next moment, his figure disappeared from the valley, leaving only a cold voice echoing in the Void Realm.

"One month from now, this Venerable will return. At that time, if the Materials are not prepared!"

He did not continue, but the killing intent in those unfinished words made everyone present shudder.