C727 The Unyielding Soul

A sudden voice didn't startle Woo Zhengyang, but Bing Yue's shriek almost did. She lunged at him, and if he hadn't quickly steadied himself, he would have been knocked to the ground.

"Who's hiding and won't show themselves? Come out!" Woo Zhengyang demanded, ignoring Bing Yue clinging to him as he scanned the surroundings.

"Young friend, you don't need to look. I'm right under your feet!" the voice called out again.

Woo Zhengyang looked down. Besides the platform and dozens of skeletons, there was nothing else. Could there really be a restless spirit here?

"Who are you? Stop playing tricks!"

"Young friend, I'm not playing tricks. I really am a ghost! Look to your left; that's me!"

Following the voice's direction, Woo Zhengyang glanced to his left and saw only a skeleton. This one was different, though; it seemed like it had tried to break free from shackles before dying, with one hand reaching the edge of the platform.

"You mean, this is you?" Woo Zhengyang asked, approaching the skeleton with the No Life Sword in hand.

"Yes, that's me... or rather, my bones..."

"Who are you, and who are they? Why are you all chained here?" Bing Yue, still hanging onto Woo Zhengyang, inquired, concerned about their surroundings.

"My name is Han Jun, and I am from the Han family of the Great Wu Kingdom!"

"The Great Wu Kingdom?" Woo Zhengyang and Bing Yue exchanged puzzled glances. Neither had heard of such a place.

"What? You don't know the Great Wu Kingdom?"

"Sir, the Great Wu Kingdom you mentioned must have existed a long time ago. It probably doesn't exist anymore," Woo Zhengyang replied. Time passes, and with it, nations and clans can vanish into the annals of history.

"Impossible! Even though I've been in a daze and don't know how long I've been dead, how could the Great Wu Kingdom have fallen? Was it the Little Wu Kingdom's doing?"

Hearing the man's insistence, Woo Zhengyang felt a pang of sympathy but had to be honest. "Sir, we've never heard of either the Great Wu Kingdom or the Little Wu Kingdom..."

"Impossible... impossible... How could both the Great and Little Wu Kingdoms be gone? And what about my Han family? We were one of the four families protecting the kingdom. As long as the kingdom stood, so did we. If the kingdom fell, so did we... Impossible... impossible..."

The spirit was clearly deeply attached to his beliefs, unable to accept the reality Woo Zhengyang presented.

Considering the situation, it made sense. The man didn't know how long he'd been gone, and if not for his strong attachment, he might have faded away long ago.

"Sir, maybe we're just not well-informed. The world is vast, and we haven't even left the Golden Scale Domain. Perhaps the Great and Little Wu Kingdoms are beyond our reach."

"Golden Scale Domain? What's that?"

Just as Woo Zhengyang and Bing Yue were unfamiliar with the Great and Little Wu Kingdoms, he was equally unaware of the Golden Scale Domain.

Upon learning this, Bing Yue felt puzzled that someone within the Golden Scale Domain could be unaware of it. However, to Woo Zhengyang, the information this person revealed was significant.

Being in the Golden Scale Domain yet not knowing about it could only mean one thing: when this person arrived, it wasn't called the Golden Scale Domain. Woo Zhengyang knew the Golden Scale Sect was an ancient order, never replaced throughout history. This led him to deduce that the era this unyielding soul lived in was when the continent was still whole, before the first great catastrophe.

People today refer to that time as the Ancient Era. These remains belonged to people from that era!

Woo Zhengyang had encountered the spiritual imprint left by Xuan Tianshang in the Mirror of Inquiry, seen the fading spirit of Nalan Yan'er, and even narrowly escaped being possessed by the No Life Patriarch. Yet, these three were from the ancient times, spanning only thousands to tens of thousands of years ago.

The Ancient Era, however, was hundreds of thousands of years in the past...

"Friend, quickly tell me about the current state of the outside world!" Woo Zhengyang was curious about the person before him, and the person was equally curious about the world today.

Thus, Woo Zhengyang and the unyielding soul began to converse. As expected, the era this soul lived in had no great catastrophes, and the continent was still whole, with Body Tempering cultivators not yet in decline.

Coincidentally, Woo Zhengyang inquired about the "Perfect Holy Body Spell," and surprisingly, he actually knew about it and had even practiced it himself. Seizing the opportunity, Woo Zhengyang quickly took out the "Perfect Holy Body Spell" that Hee Wanli had given him.

The unyielding spirit examined it and confirmed that the "Perfect Holy Body Spell" was genuine. Although it wasn't the original, the content was accurate. This revelation left Woo Zhengyang puzzled. Could it be that Hee Wanli had stumbled upon it by chance and casually passed it on to him?

After chatting for a while, Woo Zhengyang asked the unyielding spirit about the cause of its demise and why they were present in this place. It was then that Woo Zhengyang learned that this area of the Ice Heart Sect had existed since ancient times and was quite famous. Back then, even the Golden Scale Sect didn't exist, and naturally, neither did the Ice Heart Sect. This region was known as the Ice Water Realm.

During that era, many suspected there were treasures hidden here, attracting a steady stream of explorers, including some titled Martial Emperors. However, the ice layers deep underground were incredibly solid, and even those powerful Martial Emperors couldn't break through them quickly. Besides, the notion of treasures here was merely a legend, with no one knowing for sure if it was true.

If there had been any clear clues or pathways, many might have ventured to explore. However, the prospect of forcibly breaking through the ice layers deterred many from attempting it.

After all, this was a massive undertaking. Once in the water, there were numerous restrictions. Even a titled Martial Emperor wouldn't know how long it would take to break through here.

Moreover, a dignified Martial Emperor digging like a mole would be laughable if word got out. And if they broke through the thickest ice only to find nothing, it would be even more embarrassing.

However, one particular Martial Emperor became intrigued by this place. Determined to break through the ice, he wanted to discover the source of the water and uncover any treasures hidden beneath.

What was disgraceful was that, despite his interest, this Martial Emperor had no desire to get his hands dirty or waste years of his life. So, he kidnapped dozens of junior Martial Emperors, forcing them to do the hard labor of breaking the ice for him.

The indomitable spirit and those dozens of skeletons were the result of this Martial Emperor's forced labor!