The Half-Skull of the Stone Man

A chill, deathly stillness pressed against the face in the dark Valley of Buried Soldiers, enough to send shivers through even those of Bai Qi and Xiao Chen's caliber.

In the central region of the second valley, the half of a colossal stone skull lay in plain sight, a sight that stirred a deep, wordless understanding in the heart.

The Martial Imprint did not move. Its eyes shot two beams of light, staring fixedly ahead.

Xiao Chen and Bai Qi halted their steps. They were now no more than ten zhang from the stone skull, taking in the sight at a glance.

A chill, bleak wind blew directly from the stone skull.

"This stone skull..."

Xiao Chen opened his left hand, holding the pigeon-egg-sized half-skull in his palm, looking at the house-sized half-stone-skull before him. A flicker of surprise crossed his face.

The two were remarkably similar.

If the great half-skull ahead were shrunk, it seemed it would match the small half-skull in his palm.

The valley had been shaken violently but was now gradually calming down.

Ahead, the enormous stone skull sat motionless like a fossil, evoking a feeling of crossing endless ages.

There was no energy fluctuation, no hint of danger, yet the half-skull still gave an exceedingly strange sensation.

Xiao Chen and Bai Qi did not know why, but a feeling of reverence rose in them, an urge to bow before the half-skull.

It was not the work of some evil power; it was simply an impulse from the heart.

The Golden Divine Halberd and the Dark-Iron Seal were filled with awe and fear, watching from afar, not daring to move. They seemed utterly terrified.

Behind them, the Martial Imprint felt something entirely different. It had taken human form, its body blazing with azure light, on full alert, ready for a great battle.

Further away, several li distant, the Mysterious Woman faced the enemy like a great foe. The battle sword in her hand blazed with blinding light. She had already merged with the yellow misty silhouette beside her. Her jade-like hand leveled the battle sword as she walked forward step by step.

Each step left a clear, delicate footprint in the ground, as if she were bearing an unimaginable weight.

The enormous stone skull had stood here for who knows how many years, yet it bore not a speck of dust, ancient and true, beyond all measure.

All around the stone skull was darkness, impenetrable to the eyes.

It was exactly like a great gate, connecting to a dark, empty passage—or rather, connecting to a strange space.

The interior of the half-stone-skull was deep and unfathomable. The ground that supported it was darker than the heart, swallowing all light. A deep hole seemed to lead without end to another space.

The woman with the battle sword moved closer step by step.

The Martial Imprint was forced to come to the stone skull's edge, wary of the woman and filled with caution toward the skull.

"The Stone Man is divided into nine parts across the world. Here is half a skull..." The Martial Imprint's voice seemed to tremble.

The Mysterious Woman ignored the Martial Imprint in this moment. She and the yellow silhouette separated and merged, spinning out a yin-yang fish between them. Beams of light shot toward the half-skull, attempting to refine it.

The Martial Imprint shielded Xiao Chen and the others, quickly retreating, as if desperate to avoid any involvement.

"Bang!"

The two yin-yang fish twisted together, forming something like a Taiji. The light they emitted struck the skull with a thunderous sound, but the half-skull did not move an inch. It took the blow without any damage.

"Crack!"

At that moment, the valley shook once more. Both the Mysterious Woman and the Martial Imprint were on high alert, for they realized the source of the vibration was the stone skull—or rather, the pitch-black deep hole beneath it.

At the same time, Xiao Chen felt the half-skull in his palm pulse, as if it had come to life. Only when the surroundings calmed did the small half-skull in his hand fall still again.

"Shua!"

A flash of light. The Bronze Eight Trigram appeared. Although it was only a killing thought given form, it looked indistinguishable from the real thing. Eight ancient symbols blazed with immense energy fluctuations.

"Boom!"

The earth shook violently. The colossal Ink Qilin and the three-headed, nine-tailed Tyrannical Dragon also charged over. These two behemoths were like small mountains, bringing an oppressive pressure.

"Chi!"

A long war halberd tore through the sky. The tall man gripping the Chaos War Spear strode forward as well, appearing on the scene.

Clearly, seeing the Mysterious Woman reach the center safely, they no longer hesitated, all following behind.

"The Stone Man..."

"It's the Stone Man!"

"The Stone Man was split into nine parts scattered across the world. Back then, Sovereign Youchao, Sovereign Suiren, and Sovereign Fuxi each treasured and concealed the parts. No outsider knew the secret." The man wielding the Chaos War Spear radiated killing intent that pierced the heavens, like an ancient god awakened.

The Bronze Eight Trigram also boomed: "At that time, I had no true self-aware soul. I remember many trivial matters, but my impressions of great events are vague. I know nothing of the secret herein."

At the same time, the vast Ink Qilin and the ancient, strange Tyrannical Dragon all turned to look at the Mysterious Woman. They said nothing, but their intent was clear—they were questioning her.

After all, of those present, she had the greatest origin. She could well be called an Ancestral God. She was the flesh, blood, and clay of the previous Ancestral God, predating all the Ancestral God weapons present by an entire civilization era.

"In the last civilization age, this mysterious Stone Man already existed. It was already split into nine parts even then."

Hearing her reveal such a secret, all present—whether human or divine weapon—were shocked beyond measure. The Stone Man's origin seemed terrifyingly ancient, exceptionally so.

"I am the blood and flesh of a fallen Ancestral God from the previous era, turned to mud. My divine awareness has long scattered. Only these faint memories remain." The Mysterious Woman's voice was like a jade bell, calm and free of emotion. All the while, her battle sword remained pointed at the half-skull, as if facing an enemy of unimaginable power.

"But I think someone knows the secret of the Stone Man..."

At these words, the divine weapon souls present all turned to look sharply at the Martial Imprint.

The Bronze Eight Trigram's true body rivaled an Ancestral God, and its killing thought radiated terror. The Mysterious Woman was equivalent to an Ancestral God, emitting unimaginable pressure. As for the man with the Chaos War Spear, and the two great beasts—the Ink Qilin and the Tyrannical Dragon—all had strength at the Ninth Heaven of Half-Ancestor, pressing heavily on the Martial Imprint and Xiao Chen.

"Don't look at me! I don't know a thing. Even if I did, I wouldn't tell without some benefit!" The Martial Imprint kept backing away.

"You old fraud. Confess honestly, or we'll chop you into eight pieces and burn you as scrap!" The Bronze Eight Trigram's voice was cold, no joke.

"You brass-faced gossip! You remember even my glorious history. How could you not know such important matters? I may not know, but you surely must know the secret of the Stone Man. You're a living chronicle; no secret can hide from you!"

"Old fraud, don't try to sow discord! At that time, I had no true self-awareness. How could I know secrets that even the Ancestral Gods could not speak of? Only the dirty deeds you did could be discovered by me."

"Give me a break, you gossip!" the Martial Imprint cursed loudly. "You had a sliver of awareness back then and loved prying into others' secrets. How could you not know the Stone Man's secret? Don't use my glorious history as an excuse. Spill it!"

"Glorious my foot!" The Bronze Eight Trigram cursed back, desperate to avoid suspicion. "Your dirty deeds count as glorious history? You were the first to be born with a self-aware soul back then. Only you could know the Ancestral Gods' secrets."

These two wily old Ancestral God weapons put on such a display, loudly arguing and shifting blame.

"Hmph!"

A cold snort from the woman with the battle sword resounded like thunder, shaking all the divine weapon souls present. The yellow misty silhouette beside her held the smooth stone weapon, its gaze sweeping over everyone.

Then her gaze fell on the Martial Imprint. "It's fine if you don't speak. Then I'll trouble you to explore this deep hole for me."

"Woo..."

From the deep hole beneath the stone skull came a mournful wail.

"I have some memory... the half-skull seems to be... by the Ancestral Well. This deep hole should be the legendary Ancestral Well..."

The Mysterious Woman seemed to sink into distant memory, trying desperately to recall something, but after a long time, she gained nothing.

"Since you won't speak, I give you two choices..."

The Mysterious Woman's voice was pleasant but carried authority, like an empress looking down. "First, let us refine you, then throw you into this Ancestral Well. Second, jump down yourself and explore. Choose."

"So it should be!" The Bronze Eight Trigram was the first to respond.

The Ink Qilin and the three-headed, nine-tailed Tyrannical Dragon also roared in approval.

"You think I'm afraid of you? Then let's fight!" The Martial Imprint was furious.

But when he saw the yellow misty silhouette beside the Mysterious Woman raise its smooth stone weapon, his confidence wavered.

After all, before him were two formidable opponents comparable to Ancestral Gods. He had no way to handle them.

"My word is my bond. Since you refuse, let's start with them."

The Mysterious Woman stood like a straight bamboo, unmoving. But between her and the yellow silhouette, two yin-yang fish flew out, instantly enveloping the Golden Divine Halberd and the Dark-Iron Seal.

"Bang!"

The two divine weapons were sent flying, transformed into two beams of light that shot into the great stone skull's interior, falling straight into the black deep hole.

"Motherf*cker!"

Those were the last words from the two divine weapons as they fell into the bottomless pit.

From the black hole beneath the skull came a mournful sound, quickly drowning out the voices of the two weapons.

This woman was truly terrifying. She gave no time for hesitation, acting directly.

"Now, speak the secret of the Stone Man..." She stared coldly at the Martial Imprint.

"I really don't know. If I did, what would I have to hide? I speculate this is an object as ancient as the Heavenly Stele, belonging to a civilization era of which we know nothing." The Martial Imprint was already sweating.

"That is not the answer I want." With that, she turned her gaze to Xiao Chen and Bai Qi. "You two go down as well."

The two yin-yang fish separated and swam, radiating blinding light. Under Ancestral God-level power, Xiao Chen and Bai Qi had no ability to resist. They were thrown straight into the stone skull.

The Martial Imprint rushed forward to block, but the Mysterious Woman and the yellow silhouette moved together, a battle sword and a smooth stone weapon blocking him.

"Come back!"

At that moment, from the bottomless pit, Xiao Chen, who had just fallen in, was pulled back by a powerful force. The two yin-yang fish dragged him back up.

"I haven't taken your war sword yet. I can't let you fall with it—what if it's lost?" The woman with the battle sword said this.

Xiao Chen thus escaped the fall for the moment. Facing this Ancestral God-like divine weapon soul, he felt the depth of his powerlessness.

Above the realm of Perfection, there were still greater powers.

Xiao Chen slowly moved toward the Martial Imprint, wanting to hand him the half-skull in his palm to see if it could unleash terrifying combat power.

But this seemed difficult. The Bronze Eight Trigram and the Mysterious Woman had keen perceptions. If he walked over, they would surely see something amiss.

"To hell with it!"

The Martial Imprint transformed into human form and threw hundreds of li long fist radiance, shaking the entire valley.

The Mysterious Woman merged with the yellow silhouette, blocking him. In moments, the fist light was suppressed. The Bronze Eight Trigram's thought-form sneered at Xiao Chen: "I give you two choices. One, hand over your war sword. Two, jump into the cave yourself."

At that moment, Xiao Chen made a decisive choice. Without a word, he used the Eight Aspect Extreme to dive into the cave. He jumped himself.

"Leave the war sword before you jump!" The Bronze Eight Trigram sneered, sending a powerful killing thought into the cave to pull Xiao Chen back.

But by then, Xiao Chen had already opened his right hand. The half-skull in his palm absorbed the killing thought that swept up toward him.

"Woo..."

A terrifying wail of spectral gods sounded at his ear, accompanied by the whistling of wind. Xiao Chen fell into the depths.

"That brat still has half a stone skull!" The Bronze Eight Trigram exclaimed in alarm.

At these words, even the Mysterious Woman, who was in the middle of battle, stopped.

It wasn't that their perceptions were dull—it was that the stone skull was too strange, having no distinctive features, unable to be sensed in advance.

"What? He has half a stone skull? How... can he hold it in his hand?!" The Martial Imprint was also quite shocked.

"Speak the secret of the Stone Man!" The Mysterious Woman's eyes shot two cold beams for the first time, terrifyingly sharp. Even the Bronze Eight Trigram and the Martial Imprint felt a chill in their hearts.

"I really don't know."

As he said this, the Martial Imprint suddenly turned into a beam of azure light and rushed into the great stone skull, jumping into the deep cave below.

A terrifying beam struck down from the Bronze Eight Trigram. The yin-yang fish of the Mysterious Woman also shot out instantly, but still could not stop him.

"Woo..."

A cold, chilling breath and hair-raising sounds came up from below.

The Mysterious Woman rushed to the skull's edge, staring into the deep cave for a long time, then slowly backed away.

"What now? Twenty-seven war swords and half a stone man skull have fallen down—what a waste!" the Bronze Eight Trigram said with great regret.

The man with the war spear also walked over. The Ink Qilin and the Tyrannical Dragon groaned.

"Ancestral Well... Ancestral Well..." The Mysterious Woman sank into deep thought, trying desperately to recall. Then she murmured to herself: "This seems to be an evil place. Even Ancestral Gods would be in danger going there..."

But that was all she could remember. She spoke seriously: "We cannot enter. We will wait here. If they can return alive, it will still be to our advantage."

Deep in the cave, the Golden Divine Halberd and the Dark-Iron Seal were still dizzy from the fall, cursing loudly.

But moments later, with a "Bang!" the two divine weapons were slammed shut. Bai Qi, with nearly all his bones broken, had used the two weapons as a landing pad, standing up with difficulty.

"What the hell! Where did you land?"

"Do you think we're cotton fields?"

The two unrepentant weapons jabbered loudly.

Bai Qi ignored them. His body was no match for the hardness of divine weapons; he had taken the worst of it. He moved aside and began to heal.

"Bang!"

The two jabbering divine weapons were hit again, stunned senseless, and couldn't react for a long time.

"F*ck! You got addicted to this? Think we're mattresses?"

The dazed pair recovered and were furious.

Xiao Chen also felt pain all over. Even with the Ancestral God War Armor protecting him, it was excruciating. He slowly stood up.

"Trouble... you... please lift your noble foot. You've stepped on my handsome face." The serpent-bodied, Ancestral-dragon-headed Golden Divine Halberd bulged its cheeks, glaring at the big foot pressing on its mouth.

Xiao Chen staggered forward.

"Sun! You're climbing over my face now! I'll fight you!" the Golden Divine Halberd shouted in fury.

Xiao Chen paid no attention, stepping on its Ancestral Dragon nose and walking across its dragon face.

He was indeed badly wounded, blood churning. Though not as severe as Bai Qi, he still needed urgent healing.

But just as Xiao Chen sat down, the Dark-Iron Seal's indignant voice rang out again.

"Lift your noble backside. You're sitting on my face."

Xiao Chen, finding this unlucky, pressed down on the Dark-Iron Seal as he stood, saying, "If you two don't want to get hit again, move aside. Otherwise, there's more to come."

Before the two divine weapons could move, a large form crashed down.

"Bang!"

Now the two Ancestral God weapons stopped jabbering, falling utterly silent.

The Martial Imprint dusted himself off and stood, looking around. "Everyone all right?"

"We have a problem... Please move your honored foot..."

The Golden Divine Halberd and Dark-Iron Seal weakly spoke in trembling tones from beneath his feet.

Although it was dim in the cave, they could still see the surroundings.

It was not narrow or cramped; on the contrary, it was wide open, a world of its own.

In the distance, specks of divine light flickered in the dimness, accompanied by the wailing of gods.

Like fireflies dancing over a dark, empty wilderness.

One could not tell just how vast this region was.

"Boy, you have half a stone skull in your hand?" The Martial Imprint pressed Xiao Chen urgently.

"Yes." Xiao Chen, healing as he spoke, also took in the expanse.

"It's over!" The Martial Imprint seemed deeply frustrated. "Bringing you along is really bad luck!"

"What's wrong?!" Seeing him like this, Xiao Chen was alarmed.

"We seem to be not far from the most evil place!" the Martial Imprint replied.

Xiao Chen was stunned at first, then joy lit up his face. "Excellent!"

"Excellent my foot!" The Martial Imprint seemed very uneasy, scanning the open wilderness. "The road to the most evil place is the most dangerous. Even an Ancestral God might not pass safely."