[/expand]

In the moment that all the corpses spilled out, shocking ripples began to spread in all directions from that one corpse in particular. As a result, the faces of the one million Vast Expanse School disciples turned deathly white, and blood sprayed out of their mouths. Shocked, they began to back up.

At the same time, their cultivation bases were thrown into complete chaos, something they had absolutely no control over.

The faces of the tens of thousands of powerful experts flickered, and their minds spun, as if they were suddenly facing a powerful foe. It was as if, all of a sudden, they were surrounded by mountains of corpses and seas of blood, from within which countless howls emanated out to completely inundate them.

It was a thoroughly shocking development which caused everything to vibrate and shake.

The indescribable energy coming from the corpse swept over everyone, becoming an intense pressure that caused even the one million mighty mountains down below to tremble. The lands quaked as dust and dirt first floated up into the air, and then were slammed back down again. The chain bridges which connected the mountain peaks were swaying back and forth, and countless disciples felt as if their minds were being struck by lightning.

The energy which had previously been emanating out from the million mountains was, as of this moment, being crushed down as if by a huge hand, completely disintegrated.

Everyone in the area gasped in shock. Only the brother and sister team didn’t feel any pressure. However, they could see what was happening, and the thick-headed sister turned to look at that one particular corpse, the blood draining from her face in the process as she recalled how she had picked it up along the way.

“What... what kind of corpse did I pick up...?” she murmured inwardly. She saw the million disciples coughing up blood, she saw the lands trembling, she saw the mountain peaks shaking, she saw the astonishment of the tens of thousands of powerful experts, and she saw the blinding light s.h.i.+ning from the eyes of the old man in the violet-gold robe.

One thing she didn’t notice was that the mastiff which she had picked up along with the corpse was nowhere to be seen.

As all of this happened, countless gasps and cries of shock and alarm could be heard.

“That’s... that’s....”

“A Paragon corpse! That’s the corpse of a Paragon! Heavens! A 9-Essences Paragon corpse!!”

“No wonder the Vast Expanse Bell tolled. There aren’t many 9-Essences Paragons to begin with in the Vast Expanse, and yet somehow, these two people from the Yun Clan... happen to have the corpse of one in their bag of holding!”

“That corpse is a precious treasure!” In the midst of all the commotion, the old man in the violet-gold robe suddenly flicked his sleeve, causing numerous sealing marks to appear and float down onto Meng Hao’s corpse. As they settled onto him, everything in the area slowly returned to normal. However, everyone in the area was still in an uproar.

The old man eyed Meng Hao’s corpse, then looked over at the young woman who called herself Yun Shan.

“From whence cometh this corpse?” he asked.

“F-found... I found it....” she stammered.

Her words caused everyone to stare wide-eyed with shock, as if what she were saying was unimaginably outrageous. Soon, strange expressions appeared on the faces of the cultivators in the area. As for the old man, he felt as if a lightning bolt had just struck his mind. After staring in shock for a moment, he smiled wryly.

Although he had appeared to remain calm earlier, his heart had actually been surging with tsunamis of astonishment. There weren’t a large number of 9-Essences Paragons in the Vast Expanse. Each and every one was a consummately powerful expert, people... who ordinary folk would be lucky to simply catch a glimpse of. And that was when they were alive. After they died... it would be easier to find a phoenix feather or a qilin horn than to see such a corpse.

9-Essences experts had a longevity that was virtually unending. They would never just pa.s.s away into meditation. Either they would try to Transcend into the Daosource Realm, or they would fail in their attempt, and be destroyed in body and spirit. In the latter case, they wouldn’t leave a corpse behind.

Another possibility was that they might be killed in battle. However when 9-Essences Paragons fought, it would be unlikely that the defeated party would be behind as an intact body. Most of the time, the final result was a smashed and mangled corpse. Because of all of that, the intact corpse of a 9-Essences Paragon was something exceedingly rare.

The old man in the violet-gold robe spent a moment in thought. He recognized the sequence of cause and effect here. Obviously, this brother and sister team had found this corpse in their journeys. After arriving at Planet Vast Expanse, it attracted the attention of the spell formation, and caused the bell to ring. His previous a.s.sumption that someone was hiding in the young woman’s bag of holding was simply a mistake.

Everything made sense now. Except for one thing. A dead person shouldn’t have attracted the attention of the spell formation and caused the Vast Expanse Bell to ring.

“He still has a bit of life force left in him,” he thought. “He must have been in a bitter fight, then somehow managed to flee at a critical moment. He was so severely injured that his soul nearly dispersed. He’s likely in a state of recovery which will last for thousands of years.” A flicker of greed appeared in the old man’s eyes. Smiling, he reached out his hand to take the corpse; as for the brother and sister duo, he couldn’t care less about them.

But then, he frowned as he noticed something on the corpse.

“Hmm, Karma Threads....” he thought. “Well that makes things a bit troublesome. His soul is mostly dispersed, but he still has some connections to this brother and sister, some bit of grat.i.tude linking them together.”

As the old man considered what to do, everyone else in the crowd looked on with strange gleams in their eyes. No one seemed to be paying attention to the brother and sister.

Yun Shan was trembling. As of this point, she was terrified, and filled with regret. She wished she had never picked up that corpse, and wished that she had never brought her little brother here to try to con their way into a wedding.

However, even as she trembled in fear, her younger brother sighed and clasped her hand. Normally, his grip was weak, but right now, it was firm.

She looked over in shock at her brother, who forced himself to ignore his fear as he nodded back at her.

A moment later, the old man in the violet-gold robe looked at them with glittering eyes. Smiling, he said, “So, are you going to sell this corpse? I want to buy it.”

Yun Shan gaped in shock at the man’s request. She was just about to reply when her brother took a step forward. Standing in front of her, he clasped hands and bowed to the old man.

“Senior, I am Yun Feng. I've come to the Vast Expanse School today to ask for the hand of the Vast Expanse Holy Daughter in marriage. This corpse isn't for sale. It's a betrothal gift!” Yun Shan was in complete and utter shock. The words spoken by her younger brother just now, and the way he carried himself, seemed completely out of character.

The old man looked at Yun Feng, eyes flickering with amus.e.m.e.nt at his words.

“Well, you've got guts. Fine. Join the Vast Expanse School, and I’ll send you directly to the Inner Sect.

“As for the marriage, I’ll give you a chance at that. If you can reach the Dao Realm within two thousand years, then I’ll arrange for you to marry the Vast Expanse Holy Daughter of the current generation at that time!”

Yun Feng hesitated, but his sister was clearly elated. Their entire purpose in coming to the Vast Expanse School was to profit in some way. If her younger brother could become a Vast Expanse School disciple, then that would be the hugest profit imaginable. She was just about to step in and accept, when her brother said, “What about my sister...?”

“Her cultivation base isn’t bad,” the old man replied immediately, “but her foundation is already solidified, making it impossible for her to cultivate the magic of the Vast Expanse School. However, Inner Sect disciples can recruit attendants. Just have your sister be one of your attendants.” As the old man finished speaking, he studied Meng Hao’s corpse, and saw that the Karma Threads connecting it to the brother and sister team had unraveled, indicating that the debt connecting them had been resolved. The old man swished his sleeve, collecting up Meng Hao’s corpse and carrying him off into the distance.

The rest of the cultivators also departed, the images of what they had just seen still playing out in their minds. Soon, a few disciples approached Yun Shan and Yun Feng to begin the formalities of accepting them into the Vast Expanse School. As they walked along, the young man looked around, somewhat in a daze. On the other hand, his sister couldn’t look any more happy; as far as she was concerned, they had struck a goldmine.

She glanced over at her younger brother, and her eyes gleamed with praise and antic.i.p.ation. In her eyes, her brother had just grown up quite a bit, as was evidenced by the clever and decisive way he had just spoken up.

It was only Yun Feng himself who knew the truth. Moments ago, a voice had spoken in his ear and told him exactly what to say.

“That voice which told me what to do... could it have been... that corpse?!” A blank look could be seen in his eyes as he nervously followed the Vast Expanse School disciples off into the distance.

Meanwhile, on one of the million mountains that made up the eighth temple complex, the old man in the violet-gold robe strode along, unable to conceal the delight in his eyes. Soon, he was in a location deep within the million mountains, in front of a teleportation portal. Without the slightest hesitation, he stepped into the portal.

It rumbled and then shone with brilliant light, after which the man disappeared. When he reappeared, he was beneath the surface of Planet Vast Expanse, in the core of the Vast Expanse School.

The inside of Planet Vast Expanse had its own starry sky, complete with a sun and moon, as well as planets. Each one of those planets emanated the aura of a powerful expert, all of whom were apparently in secluded meditation.

Also located in the inner core of the planet was a sea of flames, buried within which was... half of a planet!!

That half-planet was mostly broken and shattered, and emanated a sensation of time and rot. Numerous paG.o.das and temples adorned its surface, and it emanated an ancient air.

The old man in the violet-gold robe immediately sped in the direction of the sea of flames, and the half-planet therein. As he neared, his voice echoed out, “Fellow Daoists, please have a look at what I’ve brought for you!”

Laughing, he waved his hand, sending Meng Hao’s corpse floating out to hover above the buildings down below.

As soon as it appeared, the sealing marks which had been placed on him vanished, allowing shocking fluctuations to surge out and cover the entire half-planet. Countless people down below were astonished, and six streams of 9-Essences aura suddenly swirled out to surround Meng Hao, accompanied by six people.

“The corpse of a Paragon!! Old Fifth, where did you get your hands on this?!”

“It’s not completely dead, there’s still the remnant of a discarnate soul....”

“A Paragon corpse like this is something incredibly rare. Unfortunately, although the corpse is intact, its innards are withered into almost nothing!”

“It doesn’t matter if its withered! With the resources at the disposal of our Vast Expanse School, we can restore this corpse to peak power in no time! With this corpse, we can carry out the plan to receive the Ninth Paragon earlier than expected!!”

The old man in the violet-gold robe laughed excitedly. It was at this point that a stream of divine sense that was terrifying even to these seven people suddenly exploded out from the half-planet. As it filled the area, the old man and the other six Paragons clasped hands and bowed, serious expressions on their faces.

“Greetings, Sect Leader!”