Hearing those words, Lord Bai let out a chuckle. So it was true — he really was the Eight Trigrams Dao Immortal.
"Surprised that this old man isn't dead?"
"Though I suppose it's only fair. I never expected that the great Ancestor of Ten Thousand Demons would still be alive either."
"To see an old friend like you again — it nearly brings tears to this old man's eyes."
"Now I finally understand what they mean by 'when fellow villagers meet, their eyes brim with tears.'"
As the Eight Trigrams Dao Immortal spoke, he even made a motion of wiping away tears. Yet there was not a single drop of moisture in his eyes, and what was worse, his expression held not the faintest hint of sorrow — instead, he was grinning from ear to ear.
"Who's your friend? Don't flatter yourself."
Once those words left the terrifying giant face, a wave of oppressive pressure descended from the void above.
"Oh, oh, oh — fine, fine! This junior was wrong, alright?"
"Lord Ancestor of Ten Thousand Demons, this junior humbly admits his mistake."
Seeing that things were going south, the Eight Trigrams Dao Immortal clasped his fists and bowed toward the terrifying giant face hovering in the void. His tone did a complete one-hundred-and-eighty-degree turnaround in an instant — from equals on level ground to meek and deferential in the blink of an eye.
"Drop the act. If not for the fact that surviving until today was no small feat, you'd already be dead for trespassing on my domain — I wouldn't be conversing with you like this."
The terrifying giant face spoke.
"I knew the Lord Ancestor of Ten Thousand Demons wouldn't bully a junior like me."
"Come to think of it, as expected of the Ancestor of Ten Thousand Demons — not only did you survive, but you also managed to preserve so many ancient races. No wonder they were willing to acknowledge you as their progenitor all those years ago."
Though the Eight Trigrams Dao Immortal's manner remained outwardly polite, one could tell from his expression that he wasn't particularly afraid of the terrifying giant face. And as he spoke, he cast a glance toward the far reaches of this world.
To ordinary eyes, there was nothing there at all. But his gaze could perceive something at a tremendous distance, and his expression made it clear that he had certainly seen something.
"Trespassing on my domain, and now you dare to freely peek around?"
"Eight Trigrams Dao Immortal — do you really think I won't kill you?"
The terrifying giant face's tone grew impatient, and the pressure bearing down from the void intensified in tandem.
"Don't, don't! Even if you don't consider me a friend, we're at least old acquaintances — no need to jump straight to killing every time we meet."
"The truth is, I came here because I have a question I'd like to ask." The Eight Trigrams Dao Immortal said.
"What you want to ask about — is it the secret of the Chu Heavenly Clan's forbidden ground?"
The terrifying giant face asked.
"So the Lord Ancestor of Ten Thousand Demons already knew about this."
"Might I ask what secret lies within that forbidden ground? What could possibly be so powerful that it drains the very spiritual energy of the Ancestral Martial World into itself?"
The Eight Trigrams Dao Immortal asked.
"How would I know the secret of the Chu Heavenly Clan's forbidden ground?"
"If you want to know, you'd be better off asking Chu Feng yourself."
The terrifying giant face replied.
"My Lord, that's not very sporting of you — just tell this junior directly."
"I'm practically begging you here."
At this point, the Eight Trigrams Dao Immortal actually clasped his fists and bowed to the void once more. It would have been one thing if he were some young junior, but at his age, the gesture and tone were downright comical.
Yet it was precisely this ridiculous display that caused the displeased aura emanating from the terrifying giant face to subside slightly.
"That Heavenly Path does possess a special power, and it has existed for a very long time. It was already present when I first awakened."
"As for what exactly it is — I truly don't know." The terrifying giant face said.
"You don't know either, my Lord?"
The Eight Trigrams Dao Immortal had already gleaned from the response that the terrifying giant face had certainly explored the forbidden ground's secret as well. And from what he knew of this being, though arrogant in nature, it was not one for lies — if it chose to speak at all, the words would be the truth.
"Then does my Lord know who set up that guardian formation? I sense that it was created not so long ago."
The Eight Trigrams Dao Immortal asked again.
"I'm not certain who laid it down, but I suspect it was Chu Feng's father." The terrifying giant face said.
"Chu Feng's father — you mean the one called Chu Xuan Yuan?"
"He shouldn't even be a thousand years old yet — could he really possess such power?"