The demonic aura of the Black Blood Clan gradually dissipated in the mountain forest. Lin Yan stored the Supreme Sky Halberd and stood quietly, his mind racing as he processed Elder Gui's last words.
The Lin family's ancestral land was built above a fragment of the Ancient God's Tomb.
And the key to opening it was the family's ancestral token.
In his past life, he had only heard vague legends about the ancient tomb, but he had never known the truth was so close to home. The Black Blood Clan's invasion was not random—they had been planning this for a long time.
"Ancestral token…" Lin Yan whispered.
He knew full well that the token was kept in the deepest part of the family's ancestral hall, guarded by multiple formations and only accessible to the patriarch and direct blood heirs.
If the Black Blood Clan discovered this secret, they would stop at nothing to seize it.
Without hesitation, Lin Yan turned into a golden streak and rushed back to the Lin family at top speed.
By the time he returned, the entire clan was already in a state of tension. His grandfather and the elders were gathered in the main hall, their faces heavy with worry as they awaited his return.
When they saw Lin Yan walk in unharmed, they finally let out a long sigh of relief.
"Yan'er! Are you alright?" his grandfather hurried forward, gripping his arms.
"I'm fine," Lin Yan said calmly. "I killed all the members of the Black Blood Clan, including their Late Golden Core elder."
A gasp erupted from the hall. The elders looked at Lin Yan with even greater reverence—defeating a Late Golden Core expert at his age was unheard of.
"But that's not the most important thing," Lin Yan continued, his expression turning serious. "I learned their true goal."
He recounted everything Elder Gui had said: the Ancient God's Tomb, the ancestral land's connection to it, and the ancestral token being the key.
The moment he finished, the hall fell into dead silence.
The elders' faces turned pale with shock.
"The Ancient God's Tomb… that's just a myth!"
"Our ancestral hall is actually above a fragment of the tomb?!"
Lin Yan's grandfather staggered back slightly, his eyes filled with disbelief. After a long moment, he closed his eyes and let out a bitter laugh.
"So that's why… so that's why our ancestors passed down the rule that no one is allowed to disturb the land beneath the ancestral hall…"
He opened his eyes, his gaze firm.
"Yan'er, you're right. The ancestral token does exist. It has been passed down through the Lin family's direct bloodline for generations. But no one knew its true purpose—we only thought it was a symbol of our clan's inheritance."
"Grandfather, I must see the token," Lin Yan said. "The Black Blood Clan will not give up. They will definitely send stronger experts to seize it. We must prepare in advance."
His grandfather hesitated for a moment, then nodded firmly.
"Come with me. Only the direct descendants of the Lin family are qualified to enter the ancestral hall's deepest chamber."
Under the surprised gazes of the elders, the two walked toward the solemn ancestral hall.
The door was carved with ancient patterns, and powerful defensive formations surrounded the building. As they stepped inside, rows of memorial tablets of past patriarchs stood quietly, exuding a heavy, ancient aura.
At the very back, hidden behind a stone wall, was a small secret chamber.
Lin Yan's grandfather bit his thumb and pressed a drop of blood onto the wall. The blood seeped in, and the stone wall slowly rumbled open.
Inside, a simple wooden box rested on a stone altar.
"This is it," his grandfather said softly. "The Lin family's ancestral token."
He opened the box.
Inside lay a palm-sized black token, its surface carved with obscure, ancient runes that flickered with a faint divine light. The moment Lin Yan laid eyes on it, the Supreme God System in his mind trembled violently.
[Ding! Detected ancient divine artifact remnant energy!]
[Ding! The ancestral token is a fragment of the Ancient God's core seal! It can suppress and lock the tomb's entrance!]
Lin Yan's heart skipped a beat.
It was not just a key—it was a seal that kept the tomb's dangers contained. If the Black Blood Clan took it, the terrifying creatures and forbidden powers inside the tomb would be released, bringing disaster to the entire Xuanwu Domain.
He reached out and carefully picked up the token.
A warm, vast divine energy flowed from the token into his body, merging with his Golden Core and strengthening his divine domain.
At that moment, a sharp, urgent alarm suddenly echoed throughout the Lin family.
"Enemy attack!!! The Black Blood Clan is here! They've broken through the outer defenses!"
Roars and explosions shook the entire courtyard.
A thick, blood-red mist enveloped the sky above the Lin family, and a cruel, cold voice boomed down.
"Lin family! Hand over the ancestral token and the Ancient God's Tomb fragment, or I will slaughter every last one of you!"
Lin Yan's eyes turned icy cold.
He gripped the ancestral token tightly, the Supreme Sky Halberd appearing in his hand in an instant.
"Grandfather, stay here. I'll go meet them."
His grandfather tried to stop him, but Lin Yan was already moving.
In a flash, he appeared above the Lin family's main gate, his golden aura clashing violently with the blood-red mist.
In the sky, dozens of Black Blood Clan experts floated in the air. Their leader was a tall, masked man in a blood-colored robe, his cultivation base terrifyingly at the Great Circle of Golden Core realm—only one step away from the Nascent Soul realm.
This was the true leader of the Black Blood Clan.
The man's cold, sharp gaze locked onto Lin Yan.
"Hand over the token, boy. Or I'll crush you into dust."
Lin Yan raised the Supreme Sky Halberd slightly, the golden light on its blade growing brighter.
"Come and get it."
The battle for the Ancient God's Tomb had officially begun.