Nine Star Hegemon Body Art

“How is that possible? Ghost Ships exist between reality and fantasy. They manifest the very orbit of the cosmos as they shuttle between past and future. Stopping a Ghost Ship would be equivalent to stopping the movements of the very cosmos. Let alone a human, not even a god could do that.”

Suddenly, the mysterious expert from the Corrupt God Cemetery opened his mouth. He did not believe the Pill Doyen.

His words surprised people. It seemed that he had an even greater understanding of the Ghost Ships. Just who was he?

The Pill Doyen looked at him and smiled faintly. “Having experienced reincarnation, what it means to swim between life and death, and training within the crack between the worlds of Yin and Yang, I am sure you are aware that there is a kind of power separate from life and death. That power is the Dao of your existence. This world has always had a kind of person that transcends all bindings to exist outside the laws.”

The mysterious man shuddered as if everything about him had been seen through by the Pill Doyen.

The other experts were even more shocked. Just who was this mysterious man? He was an existence that swam between life and death, something that existed between Yin and Yang? What did that mean?

Mo Nian and Long Chen exchanged a glance. No wonder they had felt this person to be strange. It felt like they had sensed his aura from somewhere.

Now, they realized that this aura was Nether Qi.

No one else could remember this aura because those memories were wiped out upon returning to the Netherworld. Even Meng Qi and the others who had retained their memories when they had first come out had gradually lost them as time passed.

Only Long Chen and Mo Nian still recalled that aura, and that was why they were shocked. 

“Then may I ask who that person was?” asked the mysterious man.

The Pill Doyen worshipfully said, “He was Sovereign Yun Shang.”

“Sovereign Yun Shang!”

That name shook the crowd. No wonder. It felt like the only one capable of stopping a Ghost Ship was Sovereign Yun Shang.

Long Chen had been prepared for such an answer. The only one who possessed such power was probably a Sovereign. But he hadn’t expected it to be Sovereign Yun Shang.

In the distance, a white-robed man with a bamboo hat amongst the crowd quivered ever so slightly.

His white robes were untouched by a single speck of dust. He gave off a feeling of transcendence, but curiously, despite clearly standing out amongst the crowd, no one seemed to sense him.

“Senior, can you explain what a Ghost Ship is exactly?” asked Beitang Rushuang, bowing respectfully as she did so.

The Pill Doyen shook his head. “This question is difficult. Ghost Ships are very mysterious. It is said that they bring misfortune and disasters. Back in the day, Sovereign Yun Shang managed to stop a Ghost Ship, but he did not mention any of the secrets of the Ghost Ships. He even warned his descendants to get out of the way of any Ghost Ships that they encountered in the future, but he did not explain further. There is only one thing that can be certain: the Ghost Ships have their own orbits, and the Star Field Divine World just happens to be a node of those trajectories. As for how many nodes there are or where the Ghost Ships come from? No one knows. The saying that they pass through the past and future is just a guess. There are some historical records of Ghost Ships appearing. Some people said that they saw immortals singing, some saw gods transmitting the Dao, some saw ghosts snarling, and some saw demons howling. Other than Sovereign Yun Shang, some people have set foot on a Ghost Ship, but they never returned alive. As for those who saw a Ghost Ship firsthand, of those who got closer to hear the sound of the Dao, a terrible calamity always befell them and they died miserably. Even if they fled the Martial Heaven Continent, they couldn’t escape that calamity. Ah, speaking of which, I recall that there was an expert from the Heavenly Sea Sect who encountered a Ghost Ship. Did his descendant come today?”

A Righteous disciple stepped forward from within the crowd, sighing. “This disciple is from the Heavenly Sea Sect. My ancestor truly saw a Ghost Ship. Upon returning to the sect, he was tormented by nightmares of devils and demons consuming his body. Even when he closed his eyes, he saw bizarre sights that no one else could see. Three months later, he died suddenly. On the eve before his death, he warned his descendants to immediately flee upon seeing a Ghost Ship. After his death, the sect encountered three separate tribulations and was almost destroyed. It only began to slowly recover a thousand years ago. This matter was always considered a secret of the sect that only a few core members were informed of, because…”

The disciple suddenly shut his mouth.

The Pill Doyen was the one who continued for him. “Because they are afraid of the curse continuing, correct? In truth, this is no curse. This is karma. The karma has passed now, so there is no need to be so fearful. However, everyone should take note to flee upon seeing a Ghost Ship. Something filled with so many unknowns is very frightening. Of course, if you feel like you can compare yourself to a Sovereign, you can pretend that I never said anything.”

Hearing all this, the experts present felt a chill. It was unknown how many peerless geniuses throughout history had been attracted to the stories of Ghost Ships and been drawn over. But Sovereign Yun Shang was the only one who had survived. The rest had all died.

Although those that were qualified to come here were all elites amongst elites, which genius would dare to claim to be on par with a Sovereign?

Even Long Chen had been crushed by a Sovereign during his tribulation. The idea of a Ghost Ship had now become a nightmare in their hearts, so they definitely wouldn’t touch one.

“Why are you two looking at each other like that? Are you intending to do something to a Ghost Ship?” Liu Zongying suddenly turned to Long Chen and Mo Nian vigilantly.

“No, of course not. Who would want to get something so terrifying?” said Mo Nian.

Long Chen’s face darkened. This idiot had just expressed what they were thinking.

“You idiot, you’ve gone mad!” Liu Zongying viciously pinched Mo Nian. He and Long Chen really were planning on getting a Ghost Ship for themselves.

On the other hand, Meng Qi and the others were rather calm. They understood Long Chen far too well. No one could stop him from doing what he wanted. But they weren’t too worried about that. Ghost Ships weren’t something that someone could run into just because they wanted to.

The Pill Doyen laughed. “It seems that everyone is rather shy, so I’ll do my best to explain. Some powers with long inheritances have some understanding of the Star Field Divine World, but most people don’t. When you enter, you will find that it is not exactly its own world. If you wish, you may consider it a river of stars. This river of stars was broken, leaving astral fragments everywhere. Some of those fragments have become their own worlds, with the smaller fragments being minor worlds, while some of the large fragments are even bigger than the Martial Heaven Continent. Many of the laws in those worlds are different from the continent. Other than that, some ancient lifeforms still exist within those fragments. Those lifeforms are not friendly. You may even encounter existences above the Netherpassage realm. Opportunities are important, but your lives are even more so. To desire to grow stronger to protect the continent is correct, but if you lose your life, everything will be meaningless. The Star Field Divine World still has some remnant pools of energy. That energy is very beneficial for those reaching for the fourth step. The source of energy within the Star Field Divine World is constantly changing. Whether or not you can find the best spot is up to your own luck and power. That’s all I have to say. It will be up to yourselves if you can survive or increase your power inside.”

The Elders behind the Pill Doyen began to work. The two stone pillars started to rumble, with the spatial fluctuations growing even more intense.

“Senior Pill Doyen, may I ask how long the time limit is to stay inside the Star Field Divine World?” asked a woman.

This woman instantly drew everyone’s attention, as she was Pill Valley’s Pill Fairy.

The Pill Fairy no longer looked the same as before. She was wearing a veil and hidden amongst the disciples of Pill Valley. Those disciples were also very low-key.

“How can her divine energy fluctuations be so terrifying?” Mo Nian only noticed her now, and he jumped in shock.

He had absorbed a Nethergod’s power from before becoming a god. Although he hadn’t digested it all, he could clearly sense that Tian Xiezi, who was a divine son, had merely a fraction of the divine energy that he had.

However, the Pill Fairy had much greater divine energy than he did. Mo Nian could clearly sense just how much vaster her divine energy was than his.

Long Chen sighed inside. The Pill Fairy’s aura was growing more and more different from the past. She could already be considered a manifestation of divine energy. Even her spiritual fluctuations were different.

Looking into her eyes, he no longer saw a trace of her old kindness. Her eyes were icy with disdain and indifference.

The Pill Doyen clapped his forehead. “I really have grown old. I forgot to mention something so important. You have ten days within the Star Field Divine World.”

“Ten days?!”

Everyone was startled. What were ten days possibly enough for? To get a quick view of the scenery?