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墨書 Inktalez
The night was dark and the inconspicuous round hills by the Yangtze River seemed to blend into the shadows, appearing almost like a few flat black Go stones from above, easily overlooked.
Only the surging yellow waters of the Yangtze stood out prominently.
In the clouds, a dense crowd of people gathered above Fengdu, looking down. Five hundred elders with initial cultivation levels above Demon Baby represented a formidable force; if they all struck down at once, they could ensure that the Yangtze would reverse its flow and create a bottomless pit in the ground spanning a thousand miles.
However, such reckless action was absolutely not an option.
Du Yizi's Iron Ears twitched continuously. After a while, he nodded lightly: "Indeed, there is a strong Yin Power fluctuation coming from below. It's just strange; it seems the Demon Sect has sealed their hall. They are hiding underground and we cannot gain entry. What should we do?"
"How deep is it?" Li Hong asked while stroking Little Fei, who was nestled in his clothes.
Little Fei peeked out, revealing only a small part of its head. During the day, its bright blue eyes now appeared deep emerald green. Those two large emerald eyes were rolling around curiously, with tufts of fur sticking up high on its head like a little hat. It looked harmless and extremely adorable.
Du Yizi glanced at Little Fei, puzzled as to why Li Hong had brought a cat after listening to Chu Xi. He did not comment further and focused intently again, uncertainly saying after a moment: "It's hard to say; it's quite strange underground here. There seems to be an echo in an open space below. It appears to be a funnel-shaped hole."
"Logically speaking, with such a grand display from us, the Demon Sect monsters should have no reason to avoid confrontation unless they are overly confident that we cannot enter and are too lazy to respond," Jiang Xuanzi pondered.
One member of the Beast Cultivator Elder team couldn't hold back any longer and stepped forward loudly: "I'll go investigate!"
Everyone turned to see it was Ying Youzi. Jiang Xuanzi thought for a moment and immediately laughed: "So you have your sights set on the Yangtze."
"Hehe, exactly! Don't laugh at me, big brother. I was born with this ability; I shouldn't waste it." With that, Ying Youzi suddenly dove headfirst into the turbulent waters of the Yangtze.
Splashing water erupted as a massive black back emerged from the surface before quickly disappearing beneath the waves.
Li Hong's Divine Consciousness clearly observed this and couldn't help but exclaim softly. He thought to himself, what a huge fish!
Ying Youzi was originally a strange fish, possibly a hundred feet long, with a massive square head that gleamed like black iron, reflecting a metallic sheen. It rode the waves effortlessly, smashing underwater boulders into powder. Strangely, its true form had wings—two enormous transparent wings tightly folded against its body, which, if unfurled, could stretch for thousands of feet. Such a peculiar giant fish must be a naturally born spirit beast, destined to roam the seas and soar through the clouds.
The muddy waters of the Yangtze River surged higher and higher, with faint sounds of wind and thunder echoing from the depths below, causing a ruckus on both banks and shaking the area for miles around. This was still Ying Youzi exerting itself to minimize its movements. The gigantic Ying Youzi revealed its true form, forcefully drilling its iron-like head into the riverbed. As it burrowed deeper near the Fengdu side, the river's flow slowed down, creating a massive whirlpool with a diameter of a thousand feet. The roar of the whirlpool was deafening; turbulent waters surged downriver while upstream waters began to flow backward. In an instant, the enormous pit was filled, and only then did the river water slowly resume its downstream flow.
The huge black back emerged once more above the water's surface. A flash of Black Light transformed Ying Youzi back into human form in mid-air, dripping wet with a bright red face. Wiping the water from his face, he said, "It worked! I drilled ten miles deep; I can go down there to listen for any movement. I’m definitely much closer to the Demon Sect's Fengdu Hidden Palace underground."
"I’m going," Jiang Xuanzi said before his figure mysteriously began to fade away and vanished in an instant.
Li Hong felt a stir in his heart: "I’ll go too."
Diving into the river, Li Hong first felt his body become sluggish, but then the water parted automatically without even wetting a corner of his clothing. He quickly dove deeper.
The members of Beast Cultivation above found this quite amusing. Someone laughed and said, "Elder Chu Hongzi’s abilities don’t seem human; they resemble our Beast Cultivation."
"Indeed! Tsk tsk, it seems like there’s something within him..."
Du Yizi suddenly turned around and shouted, "Silence! Everyone be cautious; remember this is Demon Sect territory!"
Du Yizi’s authority within Beast Cultivation was unquestionable. The Beast Cultivator Elders ceased their discussions and attentively sensed Li Hong's movements.
Only Du Yizi sighed inwardly; this sworn brother always acted so straightforwardly. Why not be a bit more discreet at such times? After all, they were on Demon Sect territory. Yet wasn’t that precisely what he admired about him? A barely noticeable smile appeared on his face.
Li Hong had no idea that the aura of Heavenly Torch had already caught the attention of the Beast Cultivator Elders. The river water was murky; nothing was visible, so he could only use Divine Consciousness to sense Jiang Xuanzi's position. Before long, he spotted Jiang Xuanzi.
The Jingwei clan moved effortlessly through the water without getting wet either. Jiang Xuanzi was currently stationed at the riverbed, facing Fengdu with closed eyes as he sensed his surroundings.
Li Hong submerged beside him, closing his eyes as his Divine Consciousness delved deep into the Underground.
Perhaps due to the obstruction of soil and rock, the Divine Consciousness became difficult to penetrate, and everything sensed was quite vague.
Deep underground, at least a hundred miles away from here, there seemed to be a vast Underground space. Within this space, there were numerous fluctuations of Demon Sect Yin Power, and at the same time, Li Hong sensed a strange and immense fluctuation of Yin Energy. This Yin Energy Fluctuation mixed with the Demon Sect Yin Power appeared somewhat similar at first glance, but upon closer inspection, it was clear that the two belonged to different energy categories.
If one had to make a comparison, one could only say that the fluctuations of Demon Sect Yin Power were emitted by many individuals separately, while that immense wave of Yin Energy was a collective whole.
Li Hong slowly opened his eyes and saw Jiang Xuanzi's equally grave expression. The two communicated telepathically.
"What do you think that thing is? A gigantic monster or a Yin Ghost?"
Jiang Xuanzi shook his head. "No, it resembles something naturally formed by heaven and earth; I can't explain it."
"Could that thing be what mortals refer to as the Underworld?"
"No one has truly seen the Underworld. If I had to say, it does resemble it quite a bit."
"Then is there any way to break this 'Underworld'?"
"Don't you feel that this thing seems somewhat familiar?" Jiang Xuanzi countered, then added thoughtfully, "If it weren't for the opposing properties, I would almost feel like it's in the Nine Li Sect's Heaven and Earth Fire Spirit Eye—the place you call 'Fire Cave.'"
This reminded Li Hong. "Are you suggesting that this place is somewhat like a Yin Eye or a demonic Spiritual Eye? Is it a place where the Yin Energy of heaven and earth is automatically expelled?"
"Very likely. Where there is Yin, there is Yang. Since there is a Yang-type Heaven and Earth Fire Spirit Eye, it is very possible that a Heaven and Earth Yin Spirit Eye has formed."
"I understand now. No wonder the Demon Sect built the Dark Hall here; it's highly likely they are utilizing the strange, immense Yin Energy found in this area. Such a place can definitely prolong the preservation of souls, making it easier for them to cultivate, and they are more likely to achieve twice the result with half the effort in such an environment. So, the Fengdu Hidden Palace is actually built within the Heaven and Earth Yin Spirit Eye."
"This speculation should be quite close to the truth. That being said, it must be very dangerous down there."
"What danger? With so many of us, who’s afraid of whom!" Li Hong said leisurely as he looked at Jiang Xuanzi.
Jiang Xuanzi laughed heartily, "Indeed, who’s afraid of whom! This time we must break the Demon Sect's Yin Spirit Eye and let those little ghosts who only dare to hide underground see the sunlight!"
The two laughed heartily and leaped out of the water.
Among the team, several Beast Cultivator Elders possessed a type of treasure particularly suitable for digging. To put it simply, these were crafted from their own beast horns by Yue Changzi.
The horn-shaped treasure rapidly enlarged and whirled as it burrowed into the riverbed, going deeper and deeper. Amidst splashes of mud and water, a slanted tunnel leading to the vast underground space was being dug deeper.
The tunnel was not wide, with a diameter of about ten feet. The river water provided lubrication, causing mud and water to be expelled faster than gravel. Thus, they dug quickly; in less than half an hour, they had reached a depth of fifty miles.
The fluctuations of Yin Power below became increasingly evident, combined with the powerful Yin Energy released from the underground Yin Spirit Eye. Even the Beast Cultivator Elder with the lowest cultivation could sense it. A tense atmosphere began to spread among the team as they faced an impending battle; some whispered about what exactly lay ahead.
Seeing this, Li Hong smiled and shared the conclusions he and Jiang Xuanzi had discussed earlier, leading everyone to a sudden realization.
Li Hong chuckled, "Our Nine Li Sect's Mid-Level True Fire Talisman is a major nemesis to this kind of Yin energy. This time we came out without bringing anything else but plenty of Spirit Talismans. Hehe, I guarantee that soon those brat members of the Demon Sect will be crying for their mothers. Not only will they suffer in front of the Yin Spirit Eye, but even in front of the King of Heaven, they'll have no good outcome!"
Everyone laughed heartily, and Li Hong's words greatly boosted their morale. The Beast Cultivator Elders dug even faster; after an hour, they stopped and called Li Hong and Jiang Xuanzi to the front of the tunnel.
The entrance had already been blocked by a treasure to stop the flow of water; inside the tunnel was merely damp and not flooded. At this moment, an extremely hard Black Stone appeared at the tunnel's end, distinctly different from the grayish-white rocks they had been digging through. Li Hong touched it; it felt cold to his touch and carried a noticeable Yin energy.
"Keep going! It seems we are very close," Li Hong said.
The Beast Horn Artifact continued to whir and spin, but the Black Stone was extremely hard, causing its speed to noticeably slow down. The four Beast Cultivator Elders took turns every so often to maintain the pace as much as possible.
Before long, the whirring sound of the Beast Horn Artifact changed. A strange cold wind swept through the tunnel, rushing past everyone's ears, carrying a heavy aura of darkness and dampness.
It was already breached. Li Hong quickly walked to the front of the tunnel and leaned in to take a look.
He couldn't see anything; it was too dark. When he released his Divine Consciousness, it felt like it was sinking into a swamp, giving him a sense of being lost in fog. Li Hong summoned Lingyi, and the Iridescence shone brightly, piercing into the dark space.
With the rapidly advancing Iridescence, everyone could see clearly that behind the cave entrance was a vast Dark Underground Space that seemed endless. There were water and mountains, with countless low peaks extending into the far dark horizon that was beyond sight. The top could not be seen, and it seemed there was a significant vertical drop. This Underground space was filled with a thick aura of darkness; faint black mist floated strangely around, and numerous torrents of Black Water flowed everywhere.
Everyone exchanged glances, recalling the mortal legends about Fengdu.
This place truly was the Underworld, the real realm of the dead.
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