Chapter 1449: One and the Same

"Where is Nan Chao?" Unfortunately, before they could ask further, Shun's figure had already vanished.

The group was momentarily speechless. Then, Yan Xuehen's voice rang out, "Come quickly, there seems to be a map here."

It turned out she had already entered the ancient tomb to investigate. Zu An and the others quickly followed her in.

They had initially expected the tomb to be grand, given his past status as an emperor, but upon entering, they discovered it was just an ordinary burial chamber.

Inside, there were many artifacts, but unfortunately, they had long since decayed due to the passage of time.

Yan Xuehen stood by the central sarcophagus. There were no remains inside, as if Shun had never existed.

Zu An even began to wonder if the man was truly dead.

Meanwhile, Yan Xuehen was staring at a drawing on the surface of the sarcophagus lid. Compared to the other ancient objects in the tomb, this simple drawing looked very new, as if it had been made recently.

There were some characters on the drawing that the three women didn't recognize.

Zu An recognized them as ancient names and read them aloud. Some he had heard before, others he hadn't, but he figured they were all place names from this world.

One particular location was circled, and the name written there was Nan Chao.

Upon hearing "Nan Chao," Yan Xuehen speculated, "I imagine this map was drawn by Shun not long ago. It's likely that due to the great changes in the world, he worried he wouldn't be able to wait for us to return to find him, so he left clues in advance. It seems to have worked."

Hearing that there was hope for dispelling Zu An's puppet curse, Yu Yanluo also breathed a sigh of relief, a faint smile gracing her beautiful face. "It seems this Shun is still a good person after all," she remarked.

"Good person, my foot," Yun Jianyue scoffed. "This guy didn't deliver on a single thing he promised us before. What about the elixir of immortality? Not a word about it. And Zu An's puppet curse still requires us to make another trip, with no guarantee it can even be resolved."

The others' hearts sank. This possibility was indeed quite high.

Zu An, however, remained optimistic. "Haha, it's better than having no leads at all. Besides, we've already gathered a lot of information about the elixir of immortality, but since the Heavenly Emperor severed the path between heaven and man, it's likely that the elixir is beyond our reach now, so there's no need to worry too much about it."

"That's true," Yun Jianyue conceded. Seeing that he wasn't disheartened, she felt a sense of relief.

Next, the group set off, following the map towards Nan Chao.

Along the way, the women discussed the path between heaven and man. Yun Jianyue said, "At first, I thought it was a tangible road, but from what we saw at Spirit Mountain and throughout our journey, it doesn't seem to be that way."

"It feels like it suddenly split into two worlds..." Yan Xuehen shared her strong agreement and began discussing various possibilities with Yun Jianyue.

Yu Yanluo kept nodding slightly with a gentle smile. Initially, she could follow, but as the two women delved deeper into their discussion, she could only feign understanding.

She understood nothing at all, but was profoundly struck.

Zu An then shared the theory of the 'outer world' and 'inner world' from movies and games of his previous life, and indeed, the women's beautiful eyes sparkled with admiration. They found his description more apt, and their respect for him grew even further.

Although this fellow was a bit lustful and usually rather carefree, they hadn't expected his insights to be so extraordinary...

Meanwhile, Zu An secretly sighed. No wonder the emperors of his previous life all called themselves Sons of Heaven. Back then, he thought it was feudal superstition, merely a way to give imperial power a more fated and intimidating hold over the common people. Now, it seemed they weren't lying at all.

Because whether it was Yao from the lineage of the White Emperor, or Shun and Yu from the lineage of the Black Emperor, they were indeed the bloodlines left by the Heavenly Emperor on Earth.

Emperors from the Xia, Shang, Zhou, and even Qin dynasties could all, to varying degrees, trace their ancestry back to these bloodlines. Therefore, calling themselves Sons of Heaven was entirely appropriate.

Later emperors naturally adopted this title as well.

And so, the group followed the map, searching all the way until they reached Nan Chao.

It was a vast mountain range with numerous lakes, truly a place of beautiful mountains and clear waters.

The group wandered around the area for most of the day, but found nothing.

"What exactly was Shun referring to? Are we supposed to find some rare treasure in Nan Chao? Or perhaps someone or some fierce beast that can remove this puppet curse?" Yun Jianyue was getting frustrated.

Yan Xuehen and Yu Yanluo also looked puzzled, clearly having no idea.

Zu An, however, felt a stir in his heart; he finally remembered where he had heard that name before.

So he summoned Mei Xi. Didn't she have a skill called "Nan Chao Farewell"?

Her honey-colored skin, combined with her strapless leather skirt, exuded a wild beauty.

Her flat abdomen and firm, long legs amazed the three women beside her, even though they themselves were exceptional beauties.

Yan Xuehen's heart indeed pounded. Why had he suddenly summoned Mei Xi?

She had seen this woman, who was like a summoned creature, before when they were trying to break the "Love Stronger Than Gold" curse.

Yun Jianyue was used to it, as she had already seen Daji before.

She thought to herself, *This guy is truly a pervert. Even his summoned creatures are stunning beauties. Oh, I truly feel for that foolish apprentice and the pressure she'll face in her future.*

Yu Yanluo, being closer to Zu An, was naturally less surprised, only curious as to why he had suddenly summoned her.

Zu An offered no explanation, simply staring intently at Mei Xi.

Mei Xi's eyes were initially somewhat dazed, but once she took in her surroundings, she subconsciously tilted her head, a confused expression on her face, as if recalling something.

Without communicating with Zu An, she simply started walking by herself in a certain direction into the mountains.

"Follow her!" Zu An gestured to the three women, and they quietly followed behind.

Mei Xi's initial pace was slow, but her steps gradually quickened, and she began leaping and weaving through the forest like a beautiful female leopard.

Fortunately, Zu An and the others had recovered much of their strength on the journey, so they weren't left behind.

The group continued winding through the mountains until suddenly, the path opened up into a valley filled with the songs of birds and the fragrance of flowers.

The group was secretly amazed; the spiritual energy here was almost comparable to how it felt before the path between heaven and man was severed.

At that moment, strange sounds emanated from ahead, somewhat grating but not overly sharp or unpleasant. There was even a faint musical quality to them.

"What is that?" Yun Jianyue felt the sound was familiar, but she couldn't immediately recall what it was.

Yu Yanluo and Yan Xuehen clearly shared the same confusion, their expressions filled with distress.

"It's the sound of silk being torn," Zu An said, looking in the direction Mei Xi was heading, wondering if his guess was indeed correct.

Soon, Mei Xi arrived in the valley. Ahead was a raised platform, draped everywhere with colorful silks, as if they had entered a dye-house.

In the very center, a stunning silhouette flickered in and out of view. With their cultivation levels, the group quickly discerned what the person was doing.

She was tearing pieces of silk beside her, holding them to her ear, listening to the ripping sound, and a hint of pleasure appeared on her face.

The ground was already covered with a large pile of torn silk strips. Yan, Yun, and Yu wondered, *Is this woman insane, tearing up silk for fun here?*

*Could anyone with a normal mind do such a thing?*

However, their bodies suddenly stiffened, and a chill spread from their backs throughout their entire bodies, because they had now clearly seen the woman's face.

She looked exactly like Zu An's Mei Xi!