[Magic auto-update complete. This is a minor version update. The magic’s effects have been adjusted as follows:]

[Human Emperor Banner 3.0: Increased the spiritual nature of the True Spirits within the banner.]

As he finished refining the last wisp of pure source essence he had just snatched from the Black Coffin, the [Human Emperor Banner] in Qi Yun’s hand trembled slightly, and the panel’s notification appeared.

This update didn’t increase their number but instead focused on enhancing the spiritual nature of the sixteen hundred True Spirits within the banner.

Qi Yun split off a wisp of his Divine Sense and sent it into the banner’s inner space to investigate.

If the Human Emperor Banner’s True Spirits previously had the intelligence of an ordinary Cultivator...

...then after this enhancement, their thinking speed and comprehension abilities had taken a significant leap forward.

In secular terms, each one could now be considered an outstandingly intelligent individual, one in a hundred!

This meant that their efficiency and quality would be massively improved when comprehending abstruse Cultivation Skills like the *Blood Spirit Scripture*, practicing more complex Grand Array formations, and even crafting higher-grade Talismans!

’If it keeps updating like this, the Human Emperor Banner’s growth potential and future are truly limitless...’

Two consecutive, highly effective updates had clearly shown Qi Yun the great banner’s astonishing capacity for growth, far surpassing the fixed patterns of ordinary Magical Treasures.

His hands, clasped behind his back, rubbed together unconsciously as his thoughtful gaze swept toward two unfamiliar Foundation Establishment Masters at the edge of his vision.

They should still be holding remnants of the Chaotic Heaven Black Coffin that hadn’t been fully refined.

Silently, the great, jet-black banner emerged from the void behind him, and he slowly took hold of it with a reverse grip.

On the banner’s surface, the dark gold Magic Patterns depicting mountains and rivers began to faintly glow. A subtle imperial pressure and a chilling Taiyin aura started to spread.

In the void, a corner of the [Taiyin Refining Form Array]’s Array Patterns was already faintly visible, gathering power and ready to be unleashed.

However, just as he locked onto his targets, ready to strike suddenly like a stalking leopard—

"Nephew Qi!"

A slightly urgent voice transmission arrived along with the sound of an Escape Light tearing through the air. Qian Xin Master’s figure, having left and now returned, appeared before him in an instant.

"Quick, follow me!

I just received reliable news. The [True Ancestor Altar], where the Zombie Alliance worships its past True Ancestors, has been found!

If we’re late, forget about getting a piece of the meat—we won’t even get a sip of the soup!"

Upon hearing this, Qi Yun’s gaze hardened.

’The [True Ancestor Altar]! That’s a far more valuable target than scattered fragments of the Mountain-Suppressing Artifact!’

He glanced again at the two Foundation Establishment Masters in the distance, who were still oblivious that they had just had a brush with death.

’Forget it. I’ll deal with them later.’

As his thoughts raced, Qi Yun retracted his aura. The visual phenomenon of the soon-to-be-activated Array quietly dissipated, and the Human Emperor Banner concealed itself within his body once more.

"Let’s go!"

Without any hesitation, he responded and transformed into a domineering, resolute streak of vermilion light, instantly catching up to Qian Xin Master’s Escape Light.

One behind the other, they tore through the sky at extreme speed, racing into the distance, leaving behind the two Foundation Establishment Masters, who stood there looking baffled, completely unaware of the killing intent that had been directed at them moments before, much less that they had narrowly escaped disaster.

...

「Deep within a collapsed mountain, inside a massive cavern.」

A Magic Altar stood in silence, solitary and grimly cold.

The Magic Altar was about a hundred zhang in diameter. Its surface was carved with twisted, complex runes, each stroke exuding a primal, savage, and ferocious aura.

At the center of the altar’s surface stood a Three-legged Giant Bronze Cauldron. Its body was covered in mottled green rust, yet one could still make out the ferocious patterns cast upon it: a hundred ghosts paying homage and ten thousand corpses prostrating.

Inside the cauldron was a thick layer of dark-red ash, solidified over countless years.

It emitted a faint, strange odor—a mixture of cloying sweetness and sandalwood.

SWOOSH! SWOOSH! SWOOSH!

Streaks of Escape Light, each a different color and radiating a powerful aura, continuously converged from all directions. One after another, they landed in the open space around the Magic Altar or hovered in the nearby air.

The first to arrive were several pale-faced Cultivators wreathed in dense Ghost Qi.

They were from the Yellow Springs Netherworld. They occupied a corner, their cold gazes sweeping over the Magic Altar and the other arrivals.

Next, the Masters from Fengduo arrived, riding on blazing flames. Their searing aura stood in stark contrast to the altar’s frigid cold. They landed on another side, their feathered robes fluttering and their eyes filled with pride.

Other Loose Cultivator Masters arrived, some riding peculiar Magical Artifacts, others simply breaking through the air with their formidable physical bodies.

They each found a spot, their burning gazes fixed on the Giant Bronze Cauldron and the entire Magic Altar, their eyes filled with vigilance, greed, and calculation.

Several Masters from the Holy Sect also appeared one after another, including Qian Xin Master and Qi Yun. They did not get too close.

Instead, they chose a rocky ridge with a wide field of view and calmly observed the situation.

The two Sword Cultivators from the Cyan Sect remained as aloof as ever, standing alone on a protruding boulder. The Sword Qi flowing naturally around them pushed away all the encroaching Yin Sha Qi.

In just a short time, more than twenty Foundation Establishment Masters had already gathered within the cavern!

They came from all over the Northwest and belonged to different factions. Their auras clashed subtly, yet a delicate balance was maintained by the unknown dangers and alluring value emanating from the Magic Altar.

The atmosphere was fraught with tension, ready to explode at the slightest touch.

"The Cyan Sect has already taken the lion’s share of the Zombie Alliance’s spoils. To now show up for the True Ancestor Altar as well... isn’t that a bit... too greedy?"

The brief silence was broken by a Master from Fengduo. Her red lips parted, and her voice, though clear, carried an unconcealed sharpness.

She wore a crimson feathered robe, her figure tall and straight. Her eyes were as sharp as blades, and her every glance carried an unquestionable, commanding presence.

Her words successfully drew the gazes of most Masters present toward the two aloof Cyan Sect Sword Cultivators who had been standing silently in a corner.

Their gazes were filled with scrutiny, dissatisfaction, and even a faint hint of hostility.

Faced with the focused attention of the crowd, the two Cyan Sect Masters remained composed, showing no sign of shame.

One of them even took a half-step forward, his voice clear and resonant, and declared in a tone that suggested it was only natural:

"This True Ancestor Altar is a matter of great consequence and contains an ominous presence. It is only right that my Cyan Sect suppresses and seals it with our Supreme Sword Dao, to prevent its poison from spreading through the world and causing turmoil.

We ask that our fellow Daoists make things convenient and allow the two of us to take it away, so as to avoid unnecessary complications."

His words were high and mighty, as if they were taking the Magic Altar not for the treasures within, but for the peace of the entire world.

Hearing this "righteously-spoken" declaration, the many Masters present, including Qi Yun, almost collectively rolled their eyes. They didn’t even have the energy to retort.

Arguing logic with these Cyan Sect Cultivators—who believed their Sword Dao was the ultimate truth and had one-track minds—was a complete waste of breath, like a chicken talking to a duck.

If you really pushed them, they’d just draw their swords and fight.

At this critical juncture, there was no need to start a conflict with them.

"Rumor has it that the Zombie Alliance was able to stand firm in the Northwest for so many years because of these seven True Ancestor Altars.

It’s said that within the altars lies supreme Corpse Blood of the True Monarch Level, one of the few mysterious methods in the world capable of preserving a portion of a True Monarch’s power even after their Dao has dissipated.

I wonder if that’s true?"

Qi Yun ignored the people from the Cyan Sect, his gaze returning to the silent Three-legged Giant Bronze Cauldron. He softly posed his question to Qian Xin Master beside him.

"Heh heh," Qian Xin Master chuckled, clearly knowing some inside information.

"Well, the matter isn’t entirely baseless, but it’s not as incredible as the rumors make it out to be.

There is indeed Corpse Blood sealed within the True Ancestor Altar.

But it’s not of the True Monarch Level. It’s from a Great Master."

He paused, his tone laced with insight.

"If the Zombie Alliance truly had the ability to perfectly preserve True Monarch Level Corpse Blood, with that kind of power and Status, their egos would have been soaring through the heavens long ago.

Why would they end up with us carving up their legacy here?"

"However," Qian Xin Master’s tone shifted, and a sharp glint flashed in his eyes.

"Although it is the blood of a Great Master, after years of continuous worship, purification, and accumulation using the Zombie Alliance’s Secret Skills, the vast power contained within is by no means trivial. It has already become a rare Exotic Treasure.

If one can get their hands on it and perform a proper Sacrificial Refinement...

...it would be more than enough to serve as a powerful life-saving tool."

"A life-saving tool?" Hearing this, Qi Yun grew even more curious. He was just about to ask for the specific details of the Corpse Blood’s wondrous uses.

However, the very instant the words left his lips—

HUMMM...

From below, the hundred-zhang Magic Altar, which had been silent all this time, suddenly emitted a deep, heart-pounding hum!

The twisted, complex runes on the altar’s surface abruptly lit up with a blood-red glow! The entire Magic Altar began to tremble slightly, sending ripples through the surrounding space.

The Three-legged Giant Bronze Cauldron at the center of the altar, covered in green rust, seemed to come alive. The cast patterns of a hundred ghosts paying homage and ten thousand corpses prostrating produced shrill, phantasmal howls!

Inside the cauldron, the thick layer of solidified, dark-red ash began to boil and churn violently, like ice dropped into scalding oil!

SSSS—!

It was as if an invisible fire was burning intensely within the cauldron.

All the dark-red ash suddenly contracted inward and condensed, emitting a heart-stopping sizzling sound.

An odor a hundred times richer than before—that same mix of cloying sweetness and sandalwood—erupted outward.

Mixed within it was a hint of ancient pressure that made one’s Divine Soul tremble!

In an instant, the thick accumulation of ash was purified and refined. All impurities were stripped away, transforming it into thirteen masses of dark-green Flowing Light.

These masses of Flowing Light pulsed powerfully inside the cauldron, like living hearts.

Each beat caused the altar to tremble and the void to resonate. Finally, under the scorching gazes of everyone present...

...the thirteen masses of dark-green Flowing Light abruptly solidified and contracted. Their radiance was drawn completely inward, and they transformed into thirteen strange Blood Beads, each as round as a pearl and the size of a large marble!

These Blood Beads were a dark, metallic green, shot through with gold. Like the veins of a living creature, they emanated a Daoist Intent of immortality, indestructibility, and eternal existence!

The Yin Sha Qi pervading the area around the Magic Altar converged upon them as if paying homage to a king. The air even filled with the faint, primeval sounds of an ancient, savage sacrificial rite.

This was the Supreme Treasure nurtured within the Zombie Alliance’s True Ancestor Altar—the [Undying True Blood]!

BOOM!!!

In the next instant, the delicate balance that had been maintained was utterly shattered!

More than twenty Foundation Establishment Masters, hesitating no longer, erupted into motion. They transformed into streaks of light that tore through the air, carrying with them overwhelming waves of Magical Power and an absolute determination to succeed as they charged toward the Three-legged Giant Bronze Cauldron at the center of the Magic Altar!

The great battle erupted in an instant!

...