Longevity Martial Arts: Grinding Experience in the Chaotic World Chapter 1706 - 866: Illusion Technique

And at the very instant the Compass was taken out!

Rumble—!

The Starry Sky Coffin seemed to have completed its final mission. The coffin lid let out a low, thunderous roar, as if pushed by an invisible hand, and with the same smooth fluidity as when it opened—yet even more urgent—it slammed shut with a boom, sealing perfectly tight!

Immediately afterward, the entire coffin erupted with one last burst of incomparably dazzling starlight, then, as though it had fulfilled the meaning of its existence, it dissolved into countless gorgeous motes of starlight drifting across the sky, like a swarm of fireflies on a summer night, slowly fading away before Gu Sheng’s eyes, ultimately returning to nothingness, as if it had never appeared.

The whole process was unbelievably fast; from the moment Gu Sheng obtained the Compass to the coffin’s dispersal, it took no more than two or three breaths.

Gu Sheng held the Heavenly Destiny Compass, which still carried a trace of icy coldness to the touch, yet his gaze swept sharply over the place where the coffin had vanished.

He keenly sensed that this Fate Venerable likely still harbored other secrets unknown to the world; it was absolutely not as simple as a mere inheritance.

The state of that corpse, that bizarre voice, that final warning... all reeked of strangeness.

But at this moment, he cared more about the opportunity already in his hands.

"Heavenly Destiny Compass... Path of Fate..."

Gu Sheng felt the Mysterious Power contained within the Compass, as though it could peer into the trajectories of destiny, and a sharp light flickered in his eyes.

"On my Fusion Dao path, I’m only one step away from the threshold. If I can, here and now, initially fuse this Path of Fate into myself, perhaps... I can directly break through the barrier within this Golden Wing Ridge Secret Realm and advance to the Sect Realm!"

His thoughts flashed like lightning as he rapidly weighed the pros and cons.

"I already have eighteen drops of Life Essence Blood from a Peak Sect Realm Golden-winged Roc in my body. If I can refine part of it, then combine it with the fusion of the Path of Fate, once I break through, my strength will definitely soar, reaching mid Sect Realm directly. I might even, relying on the peculiar nature of Fusion Dao, have fighting power that approaches the Sect Realm Peak—not impossible at all!"

His gaze seemed to pierce through the barriers of the Secret Realm, seeing the predators outside watching like tigers.

"Outside the Secret Realm, that Longevity Ancestor is personally sitting in town.

He already suspected my identity before; by now he has likely laid down a Heaven and Earth Net. If I go out like this, without a significant rise in strength, facing an old-brand Venerable, it’s almost a situation of ten deaths and no life!"

"Only by breaking through here! Borrowing the Origin Power blessing of the Nine Dragon Universe Cauldron, initially fusing the Path of Fate, and stepping into the Sect Realm in one fell swoop! Then, with my many trump cards and explosively increased strength, when facing that Longevity Ancestor, I may have the power to fight; at the very least... I will have the capital to maneuver and escape!"

Danger and opportunity coexisted.

In this core area of the Secret Realm, using the heaven-shaking opportunity he had just obtained to complete the most crucial breakthrough was without doubt the wisest choice at present, and also the only way to break the deadlock!

With his resolve made, Gu Sheng no longer hesitated.

He sat down cross-legged, sinking his mind into his body. One hand gripped the Heavenly Destiny Compass, beginning to draw upon the Path of Fate Laws contained within it, while at the same time he split off a strand of consciousness, preparing to guide those eighteen drops of scorching Golden-winged Roc Essence Blood within him... He was going to assault the Sect Realm amidst this crisis-ridden Secret Realm!

Gu Sheng’s thoughts turned swiftly as he calculated the time. Based on what Situ Qingfeng had said before and his own Perception, this Golden Wing Ridge Secret Realm had been open for nearly three days; the remaining time before the 24 hours closing limit was likely very little.

"Time is running short..."

A trace of urgency flashed in his eyes.

"Once I leave the Secret Realm, outside will definitely be the Heaven and Earth Net laid down by the Seventy-two Divine Sects, especially that Longevity Ancestor, who will never allow me to leave easily. Before I exit, I must raise my strength as much as possible—one more shred of strength is one more shred of vitality!"

Right now, fusing the Path of Fate and using its profundities to step into the Sect Realm was undoubtedly the most direct and effective way to boost his power in a short time!

He no longer hesitated and did not leave this strange burial chamber where Fate slept. Instead, he directly sat down cross-legged on the spot. In his hand, he tightly gripped the Heavenly Destiny Star Disc that he had just taken from Fate’s body.

As soon as the Star Disc entered his hand, a cold, refreshing sensation spread along his arm, like a clear spring flowing through his heart, causing his mood—slightly agitated by consecutive upheavals and external pressure—to quickly settle and grow calm.

He lowered his head to carefully examine this Star Plate.

Its entire body displayed a deep pitch-black, as if the purest darkness of the night sky had been condensed within it. On the plate’s surface, countless fine and arcane silvery-white characters were engraved—those were fonts from a distant ancient era.

The texture of the Star Plate was neither metal nor jade. It felt warm to the touch, yet its weight vastly exceeded that of fine steel of the same volume, making it especially heavy.

"How should I draw out the inheritance within it?"

Gu Sheng tried slowly channeling his own pure True Qi into the Star Plate.

However, the True Qi sank like a stone into the sea; the Star Plate showed no reaction at all.

He then gathered his powerful spiritual power and cautiously probed toward the Star Plate.

When his spiritual power touched the Star Plate’s surface, it was still like a mud cow entering the ocean, unable to stir up even a single ripple.

Gu Sheng’s brows furrowed slightly, and he immediately recalled the rumors regarding Ancient Magical Treasures.

Many powerful artifacts of that era were refined with techniques vastly different from those of the present age, often requiring Essence Blood as the key to perform a unique "recognizing the master" ritual before their core could be communicated.

He extended the index finger of his left hand, True Qi lightly spurting from the fingertip as he drew a fine cut across the pad. A drop of blood, containing dense Qi Blood Power and the aura of his Glazed Golden Body, displaying a strange gold-and-red luster, slowly welled out.

He gently let this special drop of blood fall onto the pitch-black surface of the Star Plate.

Hum—!

An abrupt change erupted!

That gold-red Blood Pearl did not flow about randomly, but as if guided by an invisible power, it precisely followed the engraved grooves of those silvery-white ancient characters on the Star Plate, rapidly spreading out! It was like giving those ancient characters a coat of flowing golden edging, dazzling with light!