"How can this be?"
Hong Yu stared blankly at the water source he had finally found after a long and arduous search.
Generally, water sources either seeped up from underground or originated from the highest point of the terrain.
Now, at the bottom of a cliff, he knew he had to climb up to get out, not head further down. That was why Hong Yu had been searching for the source by moving against the current.
However...
He never would have imagined that at the end of this clear stream, he would discover sothing like this.
It was a black giant beast, over thirty ters tall and likely more than a hundred ters long, its entire body covered in rugged scale armor. The creature's form was bizarre, sowhat like a dragon, yet also resembling a tiger. Its massive body lay prostrate upon the earth.
Its eyes were shut tight, and it emanated no signs of life.
The clear stream was flowing directly from its mouth.
"Wh-what on earth is this?"
Hong Yu tentatively approached the giant beast.
However...
When he was a hundred ters away from the beast, he suddenly felt the gravity pressing down on his body increase several-fold. The closer he got, the stronger the gravitational suppression beca. At fifty ters, the pressure was about ten tis normal gravity, forcing Hong Yu to use the Eight Desolates Saint Slaying Technique just to keep moving forward.
He approached at a steady pace. Thirty ters, twenty ters... until he was just ten ters from the giant beast, the gravity had reached a terrifying fifty tis normal.
Hong Yu's legs began to tremble slightly; it was difficult to take another step.
Glancing at Xingtian, who was still standing perfectly straight, Hong Yu gave a wry smile. "As expected of the Execution Corpse with the strongest physical body. Even under fifty tis gravity, it's completely unaffected." As he pondered, Hong Yu looked at the strange giant beast before him. 'This beast is so bizarre. It's already fifty tis gravity here. Right next to it, it's probably over a hundred.'
His eyes glimred as he asked Little One in his mind, "Little One, do you know the origin of this giant beast?"
"Hm?"
Little One was taking care of Huhu. Hearing Hong Yu's sudden question, he took a drag from his smoking pipe and exhaled, forming an image in front of him. It was a scene of the black giant beast, Hong Yu, and the others.
His small, tender face wrinkled slightly as Little One mused, "This fellow is likely a variant of the Dragon Race. If I'm not mistaken, it's a variant of the Dark Dragon Clan."
"The Dark Dragon Clan?"
Hong Yu asked, puzzled.
Little One explained, "The Dark Dragon Clan and the Golden Holy Dragon are collectively known as the two peak clans of the Dragon Race, second only to the Divine Dragon Race. This giant beast has a very strong Dark Dragon Clan bloodline in its body. Tsk tsk, you've struck gold this ti. If you can devour so of its bloodline, your Eight Desolates Saint Slaying Technique will definitely advance to the Fifth Transformation Realm, with strength comparable to a Spirit-level Lower Grade Primordial Weapon."
He paused, then continued, "Once you reach the Fifth Transformation Realm, you can use the Five-Colored Golden Lotus to directly raise your cultivation to the Peak of Earth Soul Realm. At that point, you'll easily be able to slay an Early-stage Celestial Soul Realm expert. As for a Middle Stage one, you could probably fight them head-on without losing! But killing a Middle Stage expert would still be quite difficult!"
"Of course, besides all that, the beast's claws, scales, tendons, and bones are all incredibly rare treasures! You've hit the jackpot! You've really hit the jackpot this ti!"
Listening to Little One's excited explanation, Hong Yu rubbed his nose, a flicker of desire in his eyes.
Right now, Yun ngyao was in the hands of Elder Zhu. And from what Elder Luo had let slip, it wouldn't be long before Yun ngyao was refined into a so-called Beauty Pill.
His first thought was his master, White Cloud Peak!
But he quickly dismissed this option.
That day, his master had already incurred the displeasure of many by taking action against Elder Luo for his sake. If his master were to now act against Elder Zhu, it would likely drag White Cloud Peak into opposition against the entire Sword Sect. This was easy to infer, given that Elder Zhu was the Sword Sect's chief Spiritual Craftsman, a person nearly all the Elders tried to curry favor with.
Given Elder Zhu's status in the Cyan Nether Sword Sect, even if he reported this matter to the Sect Leader, the Sect Leader would choose to side with Elder Zhu.
Unless he could demonstrate enough strength and potential to make the Sect Leader and the Sword Sect understand that he was valuable enough for them to help.
'If I can break through to the Peak of Earth Soul Realm, my combat power will increase dramatically. Moreover, I'll be able to refine Second-Grade Spirit Pills. That should be enough to win the approval of many of the wavering experts.' With this thought, Hong Yu looked at Xingtian.
"Xingtian, go and test the waters. If you can handle it, keep moving forward and try to obtain the Dark Dragon Clan bloodline from the beast's body. If you can't hold on, rember to give up! Safety is the top priority!" Hong Yu commanded.
"ROAR!"
Xingtian nodded and walked toward the giant beast.
Five ters!
Three ters!
One ter!
Xingtian's pace grew slower and slower, but he finally touched the giant beast.
Just as Hong Yu was silently breathing a sigh of relief, sothing unexpected happened...
"ROAR!"
A heaven- and earth-penetrating beastly roar suddenly erupted from within the giant beast. The beast itself hadn't moved, yet both sides of the cliff began to tremble, and countless massive boulders ca tumbling down. But without exception, all these boulders exploded into dust when they were still a hundred ters away from the giant beast.
Staring at the trembling, ten-thousand-zhang-deep cliff, a horrifying thought suddenly struck Hong Yu: 'This... this whole chasm couldn't have been created by this giant beast, could it?'
SWOOSH!
"ROAR!"
At that mont, two figures, one black and one gold, suddenly shot out from the body of the dark giant beast.
The black figure was, of course, the dark giant beast. Its six tattered, fleshy wings were covered in scars, yet it soared through the sky. The deafening RUMBLE of its wings could annihilate a city of one hundred thousand people with every flap. A single one of the giant beast's roars could make the very earth tremble.
The golden figure was a towering man with long hair, clad in golden armor and wielding a golden spear, his face indistinct.
He stood in the void, holding his golden spear as he hovered in mid-air.
The awe-inspiring image of his spear transford into an invincible War God. The hundred-ter-long spear ca crashing down, like a Sky Pillar capable of piercing through anything in the world.
BOOM! BOOM!
The battle between the man and the beast tore the mountains apart and made the seas roil.
Everywhere they passed, only wails of misery and utter devastation remained.
Until a certain mont...
The man in golden armor was also heavily wounded. He soared high into the air, his mouth moving as if saying sothing. But in the illusion, the giant beast appeared extrely fearful and enraged, trying to argue with and stop the towering man. But it was too late. A golden wheel of light suddenly condensed behind the man.
Within the wheel of light, a Thunder Ancient God slowly ford, then descended upon the giant beast with a deafening roar.
The giant beast furiously opened its cavernous mouth and swallowed the golden-armored man whole.
The Thunder Ancient God within the golden wheel of light struck down.
The giant beast and the golden-armored man plumted to the earth, smashing out a ten-thousand-zhang-deep ravine upon impact.
BANG!
The illusion shattered abruptly.
Hong Yu felt his breath catch in his throat, finding it hard to breathe. Even though it was just an illusion ford from the giant beast's dying mories, every move and every technique had left Hong Yu feeling suffocated with awe. Both the golden-armored man and the giant beast were simply too powerful.
'Wait, golden armor and a golden spear? Th-this man in golden armor is the War God Luoo Kun, famous across the continent five thousand years ago? Back then, Luoo Kun reached the Primordial Spirit Realm at the age of thirty and was hailed as the expert of his generation most likely to beco a Venerable. It's a pity he disappeared shortly after his promotion to the Primordial Spirit Realm. So, he... he actually died here?'
Hong Yu gulped hard.
A sudden shiver ran down his spine. He stiffly turned his neck to look at the giant beast. 'S-so you're saying this giant beast has been here for a full five thousand years? Its corpse hasn't decayed in the slightest after five millennia? Th-this... just how tough is this beast's body?'
"ROAR!"
While Hong Yu was still in shock, Xingtian, who was in front of him, suddenly let out a great roar.
Hong Yu's gaze sharpened as he looked over, but what he saw left him dumbfounded.
Xingtian had one hand pressed against the giant beast, and from beneath his feet, a strange black lotus rose up—it was the Unjust Death Black Lotus.
This Unjust Death Black Lotus, hailed as a supre treasure for Dark Attribute cultivation, had shown no miraculous effects since being devoured by Xingtian; even Xingtian hadn't managed to break through to the Realm of One Tribulation because of it. Hong Yu had even grumbled to himself that the Unjust Death Black Lotus didn't live up to its na. But now, it seed it had been hiding within Xingtian's body all along, waiting to be activated.
And now, it had finally appeared on its own?
WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!
The Unjust Death Black Lotus gradually enveloped Xingtian. Black threads rose from Xingtian's body, swaying in the void like dancing tentacles. Hundreds of these tentacles suddenly converged and, with a series of SWISHES, pierced into the giant beast's body.
"The Unjust Death Black Lotus is absorbing the Dark Dragon Clan bloodline from the giant beast's body?" Hong Yu was stunned.
As the Dark Dragon Clan bloodline within the giant beast was devoured, the surrounding gravity grew weaker and weaker. Hong Yu also noticed that as the Unjust Death Black Lotus absorbed the bloodline, Xingtian's power was gradually increasing. The fluctuations of aura around his body beca more and more unstable—it seed he was finally breaking through!
What caught Hong Yu's attention even more was a blood-colored lotus seed quietly forming on the Unjust Death Black Lotus's seed pod.
"This lotus seed contains the pure bloodline power of the Dark Dragon Clan. If I can consu it, my strength will surely soar!" Hong Yu muttered to himself.
As if sensing his thoughts, the newly ford lotus seed was suddenly carried over to him, held by a single black tentacle.
Hong Yu was taken aback for a mont, then understood. He cupped his fists toward Xingtian and said, "Thanks!"
"ROAR!"
Xingtian let out a low roar, as if in response.
Hong Yu clenched the Blood-colored Lotus Seed, his gaze turning cold and resolute. "Yaoyao, wait for . I will never let anyone hurt you..." His eyes filled with a trace of resentnt and fury. "Elder Luo, Elder Zhu, and you, Hong Lingtong... the day I return will be the day you pay the price!"
He sat down cross-legged and placed the Blood-colored Lotus Seed in his mouth.
A blood-red radiance bathed Hong Yu. Once the light faded and he had fully absorbed it, his work would be complete!
Already deep in his cultivation and absorbing the Blood-colored Lotus Seed, Hong Yu failed to notice sothing. As Xingtian absorbed the energy from the giant beast's body, sothing different, sothing that had long been dormant within it, seed to have been freed from its restraints and was beginning to stir restlessly!
[Five chapters are up! Tomorrow, Hong Yu will return to the Cyan Nether Sword Sect. The ti for settling scores and taking revenge is almost here! Qiye will post more chapters as circumstances allow. Please subscribe, vote with your monthly tickets, and leave a tip!]
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