“What is that thing?”

Bao Wuxin asked via telepathy.

She had just entered the cave when Zhang Kui suddenly pulled her up to the top and pointed ahead.

This cave was peculiar, with a maze-like natural complex and obscuring black fog that blocked Divine Sense, even the Mahayana Realm seemed to be groping in the dark.

Nothing could be seen from below, but if one hid in this small air chamber, the view was unobstructed.

“It should… be the Immortal Fiend that the Old Turtle Demon mentioned.”

Zhang Kui squinted, staring downward.

The figure was blurry, its Qi Mechanism was erratic, its hair soaked with filthy blood covered its face, and its flowing white robe was riddled with huge wounds, black light swirling around it.

This thing didn’t have the black halo seen behind the Divine Resentment, but its aura was even more bizarre. If stared at for too long, pieces of sound and images would appear in one’s mind.

Blood, sacrifice, slaughter…

From the Old Turtle Demon’s words, it could be inferred that neither the Divine Resentment nor the Immortal Fiend were even considered Soul Bodies; they were remnants from ancient wars.

Though the thing was peculiar, Zhang Kui was unafraid; the purple Sword Light could inflict damage, and Longevity even viewed it as food.

Unfortunately, “Longevity,” after devouring that Divine Resentment, was still in metamorphosis.

Below, Chi Lin and the group of demons proceeded cautiously, discovering the anomaly after walking dozens of meters.

“Immortal Fiend!”

The Old Turtle Demon exclaimed, and everyone quickly retreated, looking at the white figure in bewilderment.

To their surprise, the white figure seemed oblivious to them, continuing to drift up and down, its form flickering in and out of view.

Chi Lin frowned deeply,

“Elder Gui, did the Venerate Huanxin’s notes mention how to deal with this thing?”

The Old Turtle Demon’s face turned unsightly as he surveyed the surroundings, “Venerate Huanxin only mentioned that this place might become an alternate world, maintaining its own balance. Any strange phenomenon should be avoided if possible. But this thing is blocking the way…”

“Then let’s get rid of it!”

Chi Lin snorted coldly, then gave a signal, prompting Chang Jiu, the burly man with the dark face, and a young scholar with azure scales on his face to step forward and begin forming a spell.

The scholar, Bao Wuxin had introduced before, was the competent subordinate of Chi Lin, the Cyan Flood Dragon, seemingly about to perform some magic.

However, all three furrowed their brows and turned their gaze to the Black Snake possessed by the Hundred-Eyed Demon Monarch.

“Black Nightmare Mountain Lord, what are you waiting for?”

Chi Lin asked darkly.

The Hundred-Eyed Demon Monarch guessed what they intended but feared exposure if he acted, so he closed his eyes and said softly, “I… don’t feel well.”

“Hmph, useless!”

Suppressing the fierceness in his eyes, Chi Lin took action himself, and along with his two subordinates, began to cast a spell.

Buzz!

A strange rumbling echoed, the ground turned pitch black, the space shook, rocks crumbled, and the tip of a mottled Bronze Tower slowly emerged.

The group of demons changed their expressions and immediately retreated.

Zhang Kui’s expression was also solemn; the power of this Bronze Soul Suppressing Tower was exceptional, even the bronze bells on the tower could independently become an Ancient Artifact.

Last time in the Water Mansion battle, Chi Lin had used this item to scare off the Hundred-Eyed Demon Monarch and the Military Advisor. Unexpectedly, it was summoned again.

Of course, he had already reached the Golden Core Eighth Transformation, no longer feeling that soul-separation sensation.

Next to him, Bao Wuxin snorted, “Chi Lin is indeed ruthless, leaving no room for compromise in his actions.”

Zhang Kui squinted, “How so?”

Bao Wuxin took a deep breath, “You may not know, Daoist friend, the Underworld not only has a harsh environment but also countless powerful and crazed Yin entities, howling fiercely. Even the Mahayana could be besieged to death if careless.”

“Only the place where the Soul Suppressing Tower stands do the Yin entities avoid, making it a safe zone. Chi Lin must have moved a Soul Suppressing Tower from somewhere, making it deadly for passersby.”

“Now that it’s begun, if all major forces follow suit, the Underworld may become even more perilous in the future.”

Zhang Kui nodded slightly, not expecting the Bronze Tower to have such a function, although judging by the broken Soul Suppressing Towers in the Inner Treasury, someone had probably done it before.

As soon as the Soul Suppressing Tower appeared, the Snake Demon couple possessed by the Hundred-Eyed Demon Monarch and the Military Advisor immediately retreated, looking grim.

Both were Soul Bodies, and while the group of demons felt discomfort, they were outright restrained.

The two exchanged fierce glances, communicating telepathically.

“Daoist friend, we must destroy this object!”

“Don’t worry, the Soul Suppressing Tower is too large, Chi Lin must have placed it in the Spiritual Sect and summoned it when needed. As long as we take out his two subordinates first, they can’t summon it.”

In an instant, they formulated their strategy, coldly glancing at the Snake Demon Chang Jiu and the Cyan Flood Dragon.

No one else noticed this as their attention was entirely on the disheveled Immortal Fiend.

As the Bronze Tower slowly emerged, the Immortal Fiend’s shadow flickered like a fading visual signal.

“Hahaha…”

Chi Lin laughed, “It seems my guess was correct; this thing is indeed a Soul Body and is destined to be suppressed and restrained by the Soul Suppressing Tower.”

In the Old Turtle Demon’s eyes, blood light burned, and a slight smile appeared on his lips.

“That the Venerate Huanxin said not to provoke it, seems I overestimated him, with this tower, where in the Profound Yin Mountain can’t we go?”

The Immortal Fiend’s body convulsed more violently, clearly on the verge of collapse, suddenly raising its head, revealing hollow black features.

A piercing scream echoed in everyone’s mind as the Immortal Fiend dissipated like fine sand. At the same time, a visible black wave swept through everyone, even including Zhang Kui and Bao Wuxin at the top of the cave.

The group of demons was startled, quickly checking themselves, but found nothing amiss.

“Nothing, just its final struggle.”

Chi Lin smiled faintly, causing the group of demons to instantly relax.

“Nonsense!”

Zhang Kui cursed softly from the cave ceiling.

“Fellow Daoist, is there something wrong?”

Bao Wuxin frowned slightly.

Zhang Kui looked at the faint black tadpole-like script on his hand and said coldly, “Everyone is cursed, it’s just too subtle to see. Don’t worry, I’ll dispel it.”

As he spoke, a gentle radiance spread over them, causing the black tadpole script on their bodies to gradually vanish.

Even though Bao Wuxin couldn’t see it, he inexplicably felt a slight discomfort fade away, and he smiled, “Profound Yin Mountain is indeed dangerous. If it weren’t for you, Fellow Daoist, I would have had no hope of surviving.”

“You flatter me, Fellow Daoist…”

Zhang Kui paid no mind, staring intently below, “They’re moving, let’s follow.”

After dealing with the obstruction of the Immortal Fiend, the Bronze Soul Suppressing Tower was put back in place. After all, it was too massive and couldn’t change size like a Divine Artifact; if fully summoned, the entire cave couldn’t contain it.

The team proceeded forward while Zhang Kui and Bao Wuxin stealthily followed from above the cave.

This place had naturally formed into a maze with black mist as a barrier. Although there was no danger, they could only feel their way forward.

Bao Wuxin, unlike Zhang Kui, couldn’t see clearly. His view alternated between clear and blocked by black mist. Despite having night vision, he could only see the jagged walls receding.

Suddenly, a face appeared in the black mist, causing Bao Wuxin to scream in shock before quickly covering his mouth.

“It’s nothing, just a mask…”

Zhang Kui looked serious. There was a bronze mask embedded in the cave wall, devoid of any Spiritual Qi, as if a human face had grown out of nowhere.

Bao Wuxin breathed a sigh of relief and examined it closely, “It should be from a set of battle armor. How did it end up on the ceiling?”

“Profound Yin Mountain, it seems to have been smelted…”

Zhang Kui shared his hypothesis, causing Bao Wuxin’s heart to feel cold, “Such a massive mountain, if only remains, how large was it originally? And who has such power…”

“Who knows.”

Zhang Kui shook his head slightly but then widened his eyes and turned to look behind. Without a word, he grabbed Bao Wuxin and shot forward.

Bao Wuxin turned his head to look, and his hair stood on end as he saw a tide of black debris swarming, with countless red eyes advancing.

It was those strange Artifact Demons, each only the size of a wine jug, but they practically flooded the entire cave, rushing in like a tide.

“How can there be so many?”

“Either the Soul Suppressing Tower attracted them, or the curse took effect. Run!”

The two of them flashed forward, quickly overtaking the demon group.

Because they didn’t disguise their flight through the air, Chi Lin, the Hundred-Eyed Demon Monarch, and the Military Advisor immediately sensed it and looked up.

“Bao Wuxin, how dare you collude with outsiders!”

Chi Lin, upon seeing Zhang Kui, was immediately enraged. No wonder Bao Wuxin dared to come; he had found help.

He was about to act when suddenly his scalp tingled, turning to flee as blood-colored flames erupted around him, paired with an angry shout:

“Run!”

But it was too late. With the black mist blocking sight, the team was unaware until the countless Artifact Demons appeared, and several members were immediately engulfed, screaming.

Loud explosions continued as a few Great Demons engulfed by the tide broke out desperately.

Being in the Mahayana Realm, their explosive power shattered numerous Artifact Demons on the spot.

But they were also in a panic, their bodies riddled with festering wounds, blood dripping, in unbearable pain.

“Brother You, help me!”

The Yaksha General, feeling guilty, suspected everyone of being the Hundred-Eyed Demon Monarch. So from the start, he stayed at the rear and suffered for it.

His flesh melted like a candle, clinging to Mansion Master You and frantically begging for help.

Mansion Master You screamed as well. The melted flesh from the Yaksha General sizzled on his arm, with many tiny threads of flesh crawling into his wounds.

“Get off!”

Mansion Master You immediately severed his own arms; terrifying Mana erupted, and the Divine Pearl before him spewed out a cold current, instantly freezing the Yaksha General and the space behind him; countless Artifact Demons were turned into an ice wall.

“Well done, Mansion Master You!”

The Old Turtle Demon, though startled at first, was relieved to see his subordinate’s competent action.

Others also paused, aware of the risks in blindly rushing through the dangerous cave.

Unexpectedly, Mansion Master You kept silent, his gaze twitching at the ice wall, before suddenly retreating and fleeing.

Boom!

The ice wall shattered, and the black, muddy Artifact Demons surged like a breached dam once more.

“Stop them!”

With so many in the Mahayana Realm, they had plenty of means to keep their distance. Spiritual Qi flashed, demon fire erupted, and bizarre lights scattered…

Countless Artifact Demons were torn to mush, but they began to slowly coalesce into a large Evil Tumor, a roiling mass of black scraps, writhing flesh, and glimmering fragments of metal arrays.

Rumble!

No matter how sturdy the cave, it couldn’t withstand such attacks; massive rocks, shimmering with metallic light, fell, while the Evil Tumor charged like a primeval beast.

“Run!”

At this point, no one held back, and their formation fell into chaos as they vanished into the darkness one by one.

After the Evil Tumor made from the Artifact Demons passed, an eerie laugh resounded, and a ghostly Divine Resentment emerged through the wall.

This Divine Resentment was far stronger than the previous one, standing ten meters tall, with a hundred hands and three eyes, bronze skin, and a huge black halo with glowing runes behind it, as it pursued them into the blackness.

Hehehe, hahaha…

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep