NOVPUBWhen the elderly man halted his steps, he had already retreated dozens of paces.
Moreover, his figure flickered between brightness and darkness, as if it might become unstable and dissipate at any moment.
"Respected might," the elderly man sized up Xu Zimei before he finally spoke.
"Do you wish to continue?" Zimo asked.
"No need, even if my true self were to come, it would not be different, you have won," the elderly man said with a smile.
"According to the rules, since you have defeated my remnant soul, the legacy that I’ve left behind naturally belongs to you."
Upon hearing the elderly man’s words, Xu Zimei was slightly taken aback.
He hadn’t thought about the legacy before, assuming it was just a simple exchange of moves.
Looking at the smile on the elderly man’s face, Zimo suddenly felt as if the other party had anticipated this outcome from the beginning.
"We are both Divine Kings, it seems somewhat a waste for you to give me your legacy," Zimo said.
"And I might not even need it."
"Why not take a look at the legacy first?" the elderly man said with a smile.
As soon as his voice fell, the Heaven-reaching beam of light that had been enveloping him began to fluctuate.
Within this beam, the floor of the great hall opened up, and a golden key slowly floated upwards.
No one knew what material the key was made of, but the moment it appeared, the surrounding Spiritual Energy crazily converged towards it.
Moreover, a human face’s phantom appeared on the key, and as Spiritual Energy flowed into it, the phantom seemed to be waking up gradually.
A series of low growls emanated from within.
The elderly man waved his hand grandly, sealing the key.
The phantom inside the key kept assaulting the seal, looking ferocious and extremely fierce.
"What is this?" Zimo asked, frowning.
"This is the Heaven-reaching Key," the elderly man said with a laugh.
"My remnant soul has been sealing it all this time. Now that I’m giving it to you, I should also dissipate."
"I don’t understand," Zimo shook his head and said.
"Inside Eternal Ancient City, apart from the Ascending to Divinity Stairs, there is another Immortal Path site, you should know about that, right?" the elderly man said with a smile.
"This Immortal Path site is the place left over after our battle with the presence from beyond the Immortal Path Bridge all those years ago.
Inside are many treasures left behind from that time. Initially, this place was managed by our Eternal Ancient Divine Sect, and our disciples have already scoured the outer treasures clean.
As for the inner region where the more dangerous battles took place, they didn’t dare to enter it.
Later, to attract those remnants, I opened up the Immortal Path site and allowed anyone to enter.
Unfortunately, those remnants were very cautious and did not fall for my ruse."
"What does this have to do with me?" Zimo asked with a frown, "And this so-called Heaven-reaching Key."
"Don’t be hasty, Your Excellency, listen to me explain slowly," the elderly man said with a smile.
"Do you know why those remnants have always stayed on the Eternal Ancient Continent? I even suspect they have been hiding in Eternal Ancient City.
That’s because their leader lost something very important in the Immortal Path site after dying in battle."
"What is it?" Zimo asked, his brow furrowed.
"The Heaven-reaching Record," the elderly man replied, "Although I’m not certain of its exact location, I am sure that it has always been in the core area of the Immortal Path site.
And if one wishes to enter the core area, only this Heaven-reaching Key can unlock the seal of the Heaven-reaching Record.
Otherwise, I fear that even the arrival of a Divine King would be of no help."
"What is the Heaven-reaching Record?" Zimo asked, puzzled.
"I am not clear on the details, but this is a very ancient item that I too had once tenaciously pursued."
"Perhaps it was not meant to be, as I ultimately did not obtain it," the elder said with a shake of his head.
"Those residual ghosts have always been fixated on this Heaven-reaching Key, changing their identities over the years and ascending these Stairs to Divinity, but sadly, none have been successful."
"Now that you’re giving me this key, won’t I become the target of all?" Xu Zimei frowned and said.
He knew that the residual ghosts mentioned by the elder were those who had survived that great battle from years past.
"I have given you the Heaven-reaching Key; whether you accept it or not, those residual ghosts won’t let you go," the elder said.
"You want to use me to eliminate them," Zimo’s expression turned colder.
"This is the last thing I can do for this continent," said the elder, turning away, a hint of shame in his voice.
"I’m sorry, but I have waited tens of thousands of years, and now this lingering spirit finds it harder and harder to suppress the Heaven-reaching Key.
If you had not come, I fear that in another thousand years the key would have broken its seal by itself, and I would have been powerless to stop it."
"Aren’t you afraid I will destroy your Eternal Ancient Divine Sect?" Xu Zimei said.
"Alas," the elder sighed before continuing, "One must make sacrifices. I am not aware of the incidents related to the Divine King, but he is certainly aware of the situation here.
In the future, when you cross that Immortal Path bridge and arrive in another world, if you have any requests, just ask. I shall consider it compensation, how about that?
Moreover, this Heaven-reaching Key is related to the Heaven-reaching Record; perhaps you are the fated one."
Before Xu Zimei could respond to the elder’s words, he saw the elder’s Divine Soul begin to dissipate.
With his last bit of strength, the elder sealed the Heaven-reaching Key, and Xu Zimei took the key in his hand.
From a broader perspective, the Eternal Ancient Divine King did not act out of selfishness, but rather his actions were worthy of awe.
With his dying strength, he wanted to do something for this continent.
But what did that have to do with him, Zimo? If those residual ghosts did not provoke him, he had no intention of involving himself.
Without the presence of the lingering spirit of the Eternal Ancient Divine King, the entire Ascending to Divinity Stairs seemed somewhat dim and lackluster.
Xu Zimei was transported down from the ninth level.
When he stepped off the Ascending to Divinity Stairs and came out into the outside world, he was shocked by the scene that lay before him.
He saw a densely packed crowd surrounding all four sides of the Stairs.
It seemed as if the entire population of the city had congregated here to witness the first person to receive the inheritance in tens of thousands of years.
The crowd was so tightly packed and the discussions so loud that they could almost burst the eardrums of a normal person.
And around the Ascending to Divinity Stairs, a group of disciples clad in blue robes had encircled the area.
They kept the raucous throng at bay, seemingly also waiting in silence for Zimo’s appearance.
Xu Zimei recognized that these blue robes were the official attire of the Eternal Ancient Divine Sect.
Among this group of blue-robed disciples, there were several leading figures.
The person at the front was a middle-aged man dressed in a deep blue robe, emanating an imposing presence.
Standing there, he seemed to suppress the very heavens and earth around him, sporting mutton chop whiskers that added to his authority.
Behind the middle-aged man stood many individuals.
There were white-haired old men, refined scholars, and hulking brutes who looked like they could be ferocious beasts.
These people varied in their appearance, but uniformly, they possessed an overwhelming aura of gravitas and power.
It was obvious that they were no ordinary people.
With so many gathered around, not one dared to cause trouble or breach the barrier established by the blue-robed disciples.
That’s because everyone knew the core individual among this group could shake the entire continent with a mere stomp of his foot.
