"Young Master!"
Du Yuemian stepped forward, seeing Ye Ming's brows furrowed, clearly deep in thought.
Upon seeing this, Du Yuemian did not disturb him and stood guard silently.
Several minutes later.
"It seems I must personally visit the Land of Heavenly Guardians in half a month!"
Ye Ming made his decision.
Since the messenger wanted all ancient martial artists to gather at the Land of Heavenly Guardians, why shouldn't he follow along to investigate?
Perhaps there would be unexpected gains!
"The Land of Heavenly Guardians?"
Upon hearing the name, Du Yuemian's heart trembled, and he couldn't help but ask, "Young Master, why did you suddenly mention that place?"
Ye Ming had no intention of hiding this matter.
"Let's go! To your grandfather's place, you'll know soon!"
"Okay!"
...
Ten minutes later.
"This is the news that Zhong Wuhen revealed to me!"
In Du Guidao's study, Ye Ming recounted the news of the reappearance of the Enlightenment Bodhi Tree.
After listening, Du Guidao was initially extremely shocked, then fell silent.
"Grandfather! Does the Enlightenment Bodhi Tree truly exist?"
At this moment, seeing his grandfather's dejected expression, Du Yuemian asked.
This question was also of great concern to Ye Ming.
"Enlightenment Bodhi Tree!"
Du Guidao murmured, shaking his head with a bitter smile, "Whether it truly exists, I don't know either!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Du Yuemian's beautiful eyes widened, "What! Grandfather, you don't know either!"
Du Guidao's words revealed a sense of mystery.
If they truly didn't know whether the Enlightenment Bodhi Tree existed, then what had they been fighting for back then?
"That's right! In that battle, we ancient martial artists of the Martial Emperor realm acted under the orders of our respective faction's Martial Gods. As for whether those important figures were fighting over the Enlightenment Bodhi Tree, no one knows the truth except for those seven Martial Gods from that year," Du Guidao reminisced. "But one thing is certain, they were definitely fighting for something!"
As for whether it was the Enlightenment Bodhi Tree, it was unknown.
At this moment, Ye Ming listened quietly to Du Guidao's words, constantly contemplating.
However, there was one question he had to clarify.
"Grandpa Du, were the injuries you sustained back then truly inflicted by Martial Emperors of the same rank?"
The answer to this question was crucial to Ye Ming.
Where did the immortal energy within Du Guidao originate?
Seeing Ye Ming's question, Du Guidao was not surprised. Since his injuries had been healed by Ye Ming, it was natural for him to notice the anomalies.
"You've guessed correctly, my injuries were not entirely from Martial Emperors!" Du Guidao closed his eyes, his body trembling slightly, as if deliberately avoiding memories he didn't want to recall.
He was in fear.
A single memory made Du Guidao, a Martial Emperor, so afraid. What had he experienced in that war?
"Grandfather! Are you alright?"
Du Yuemian grabbed Du Guidao's arm, her voice laced with worry.
"Alas! I'm getting old! And more afraid of death!" Du Guidao shook his head and said with a wry smile, "You've made fun of me, young friend Ye!"
Then, Du Guidao explained the true reason for his severe injuries.
In that battle, his opponent was naturally also a Martial Emperor.
It was known that Du Guidao bore the title "Blade Emperor." His domineering blade techniques alone were enough to place him at the pinnacle among Martial Emperors of the same rank.
And his opponent naturally fell beneath his blade.
But just as Du Guidao was about to finish his opponent, a strange phenomenon occurred.
In the core area of the battlefield, where the Martial Gods were fighting, an ominous aura suddenly erupted.
The moment everyone felt that aura, the life force within their bodies began to gradually drain. But by the time they realized this, they could do nothing to stop the loss of life force, no matter how hard they tried.
It was as if something was forcibly extracting it!
Furthermore, for ancient martial artists who were stronger and had more vigorous vital energy, the life force drained away even faster.
Conversely, for top-tier Martial Emperors like Feng Zhan, although they were affected, their foundation was not damaged.
At that time, Du Guidao felt an unprecedented sense of powerlessness and despair. He could only watch as his life force continuously drained away, eventually damaging his origin.
But fortunately, the ominous aura did not last long and suddenly disappeared.
Du Guidao thus narrowly escaped death.
He was only then able to return to the Du family with his severe injuries.
From then on, he fell into decline.
...
"Ominous aura?"
After listening to the account, Ye Ming finally understood why there was a trace of immortal energy in Du Guidao's body.
In that wisp of immortal energy, Ye Ming had indeed detected a hint of malevolence.
"It seems that so-called Enlightenment Bodhi Tree is very likely a ruse!"
Ye Ming speculated.
"Although I've also suspected that, if there's no Enlightenment Bodhi Tree, then what were those Martial Gods fighting for back then?"
This was what Du Guidao had always found perplexing.
"Don't worry! The truth of all this will soon be revealed!"
Since Ye Ming was preparing to personally visit the Land of Heavenly Guardians, the secrets within would naturally be uncovered by him.
"Young friend Ye, you're not planning to..." Du Guidao guessed Ye Ming's intention.
"That's right! I will personally go to the Land of Heavenly Guardians!" Ye Ming had nothing to hide.
"You... alas!" Du Guidao sighed, "Young friend, you must think carefully. Two Martial Gods perished in that battle!"
Martial Gods!
Perhaps for ordinary people, they were like deities.
But in Ye Ming's eyes, they were not much different from ordinary people.
"Young Master, Yuemian wishes to accompany you!"
At this moment, Du Yuemian spoke, her eyes filled with determination and fearlessness!
But as soon as she finished speaking, she was reprimanded by Du Guidao, "Nonsense! What a dangerous forbidden zone the Land of Heavenly Guardians is, how can you set foot there!"
"But..."
Du Yuemian wanted to argue further but was interrupted by Ye Ming, "We'll discuss this later. It's still early, no need to rush!"
"Yes! Young Master!"
Du Yuemian said with her head bowed.
"Hmm?"
Seeing that his precious granddaughter had obeyed with just a word from Ye Ming, Du Guidao's cloudy eyes flickered between the two of them!
When did his granddaughter become so obedient?
He had watched Du Yuemian grow up. He knew her personality inside and out.
Arrogant.
Resolute and unyielding.
When had she ever shown such a "girlish" demeanor?
It seemed that some things could indeed change a person.
"Alright! Since the matters in the provincial capital are settled, it's time for me to return!"
Ye Ming bid farewell to Du Guidao.
"What?"
Hearing this, Du Guidao immediately stood up and said urgently, "Young friend Ye! You've helped my Du family so much, and we haven't had a chance to thank you yet, how can you leave now?"
Not only Du Guidao, but Du Yuemian was also anxious.
Finally, after the persistent persuasion of the two, Ye Ming decided to depart for Minghai after having dinner at the Du family's residence.