“Master, there is a natural grotto beneath the lake water. The people are inside there.”
Xu Xian thought to himself, ‘As expected.’ Seeing the white light of dawn appearing on the horizon, he asked, “Where is the entrance?”
The Little Book pointed toward the other side of the deep pool, at a corner of the mountains. “Over there.”
Xu Xian narrowed his eyes as his Pupil of Insight visual sharing activated. What had been a thorny place dense with thickets and bamboo forests instantly lost its disguise, revealing its true form.
“An illusion?”
“Yes, and no one is guarding it.”
Xu Xian thought it over. He had been causing a stir in the mountains all night, and most of these people were out on the perimeter searching for him. They seemed certain that a mere foundation establishment cultivator would never dare to barge into this dragon’s den.
Consequently, within the range of his divine sense around the deep pool, there was not a single person.
However, Xu Xian did not plan to enter through the main entrance.
To be able to set up a massive isolation formation within a hundred-mile radius proved that this group was cautious. There was no guarantee that the entrance didn't have other restrictions and traps besides the illusion.
Therefore...
To be safe, he intended to take an alternative path. Staring at the lake, he asked, “Is there an entrance at the bottom of the pool?”
A white glow flickered in the Little Book’s eyes. After a moment, it nodded. “There is.”
“Then we take the water route,” Xu Xian decided immediately.
Under the cover of the last traces of twilight, he took a deep breath into his dantian, sealed his seven apertures, and quietly dove into the water.
The Little Book sat firmly on his shoulder, constantly guiding him.
The lake was very deep.
There were undercurrents within.
A chill invaded his body.
Fortunately, Xu Xian was in the foundation establishment stage and had his sword body to protect him. Walking through the water was like a mortal walking on flat ground; finding the way was not difficult. He soon found an undercurrent at the bottom of the cold pool and swam against it.
Everything around him was pitch black.
A long time later.
The world before his eyes gradually brightened, with a faint, glaring red light.
A moment later.
Xu Xian quietly poked his head out.
The sound of flowing water murmured in his ears, occasionally punctuated by the tinkling of a spring. What he saw was an underground grotto. Blood-colored ice crystals hung from the surrounding rock walls and the domed ceiling above.
A crimson haze lingered.
Xu Xian climbed ashore and shivered.
“Dammit, why is it so cold here?”
It was said that underground grottos were warm in winter and cool in summer. Summer had not yet arrived, yet it was bone-chillingly cold inside. This was especially true of the water, which made even Xu Xian's sword body tremble from the cold.
Now that he was on land.
A light breeze occasionally brushed through his sleeves, feeling even more piercingly cold.
This cold was by no means caused by the temperature; it was an indescribable chill. No frost was visible, yet the cold bit into the marrow of his bones.
It was eerie. Coupled with the red light diffusing from the surrounding blood crystals, it felt even more bizarre, as if he had stepped into the underworld.
He couldn't help but complain in his heart.
‘As expected of demonic cultivators.’
‘They really know how to pick a place.’
The Little Book pointed a finger toward the depths. “Go that way.”
“Alright.”
Xu Xian moved forward cautiously, weaving through the narrow crevices in the mountain. He gradually approached the location of the seven sword lights.
The seven swords were less than a few meters apart.
This meant they were imprisoned in the same place, which was good news for Xu Xian.
As he continued to approach, the grotto before him gradually widened, as if the entire interior of the mountain had been hollowed out.
Besides the chilly, yin wind, the air was also thick with the pungent smell of blood. A foul stench of rot lingered within it, making one want to retch.
Before long.
The view ahead suddenly opened up. At the end of the passage, he saw a mist of blood light, with crimson clouds roiling. He slowly drew closer.
The path ended.
He saw an abyss.
Vast.
Wide.
Deep.
Xu Xian leaned over to look. Beneath the chasm, he saw a blood pool. The blood mist was billowing out from this very pool.
Looking closer, the blood pool occasionally boiled, with blood bubbles rising. As the blood churned, white bones could occasionally be seen.
In the center of the blood pool was a suspended stone platform. Its layout and furnishings looked like an altar.
Above the center of the stone platform.
A huge blood crystal was suspended.
It was restrained by countless iron chains, the other ends of which were embedded into the surrounding mountain walls.
At this moment, that blood crystal was continuously devouring the blood qi rising from the blood pool.
Xu Xian frowned.
He seemed to have found the answer as to why the other party wanted to capture infants.
It wasn't to create blood infants, but to build this blood pool. It was definitely for this blood crystal.
[Unknown Beast Core]
However, Xu Xian's attention was not on this right now, but on the rock wall at one corner of the blood pool.
That was where the sword aura originated. He saw seven people soaked in the blood pool. Iron chains pierced their palms, shoulders, and through their dantians, pinning them firmly to the rock wall.
Their cultivation was sealed, their bodies were locked, and they had been reduced to mortals, on the verge of death.
They weren't just in a wretched state; it was a sight too painful to look at.
Nangong Ning.
Song Qingshu.
Ruan Zhong was among them as well.
As for the other five figures, Xu Xian didn't even need to think to know they must be the five people from the Yecheng Supervision Hall.
“Hey... want a sip?”
“Have you lost your life? Did you forget what the Venerable said?”
“What's there to fear? The Master can't see us.”
“I advise you to follow the rules. If something goes wrong, neither of us can take the blame.”
“Tsk... look at your cowardly face. What could possibly go wrong? It's not like they can fly away.”
“We can't let our guard down. Don't forget, there's still a Wendao Sect disciple who hasn't been caught. We've already lost over twenty brothers.”
“They deserved to die, a bunch of useless trash. They couldn't even catch a kid at the foundation establishment stage after tossing and turning all night.”
“Easy for you to say. That kid is definitely no ordinary foundation establishment cultivator.”
“So what if he's not ordinary? Does he even dare to barge in? Even if he did, what kind of waves could he possibly stir? The chains on these people are made of deep sea meteoric iron. Forget foundation establishment, even a nascent soul expert couldn't cut them. Even if he comes, he'll just have to stare helplessly, unless he has an immortal sword... haha!”
The speakers were two men in black. One was tall and the other thin. The thin one had a hunched back and was drinking wine, looking like a wizened old man.
As for the other person, he was masked from beginning to end, so his face couldn't be seen clearly, but listening to his voice, he seemed to be in his prime.
Both were at the late foundation establishment stage.
Listening to their conversation, Xu Xian, hidden in the shadows, silently glanced at Wait in his hand.
What a coincidence.
He really did have an immortal sword. Who could he even argue with about this?
The Little Book chuckled softly. “These two look pretty dim-witted. They don't seem hard to deal with.”
Xu Xian responded with his divine sense, “Don't underestimate the enemy. We must be steady.”
“Mhm, Master is right. So, Master, what do you plan to do?”
Xu Xian said solemnly, “Charge up and insta-kill the two of them.”
“Um... isn't that a bit hasty?”
Xu Xian licked his lips and glanced at the Little Book out of the corner of his eye. “Watch me work.”
Little Book: “....” What happened to being steady?
Xu Xian silently pulled out a sword he had looted from a bag. From his high vantage point, he took aim and then suddenly hurled it out.
The sword pierced through the air.
Immediately after, Xu Xian drew Wait from his side and leaped down from the height, using his own speed and the acceleration of gravity to charge for the kill.
The two men, who had been chatting, felt their ears twitch. Hearing the sound of the sword in the wind, they were instantly alerted.
“Someone's here!”
Identifying the position by the sound, the two spread their cultivation. One of them raised a hand and released a technique, shattering the incoming sword.
They looked up.
Only to see a person descending from the sky.
“Watch out!”
Before they could finish, Xu Xian's heavy sword unsheathed, slashing toward them. The two hurriedly dodged. Although they avoided the edge of the sword, they were still hit by the shockwave.
Amidst the splinters of cold rock.
Xu Xian initiated his killing move.
“A Single Lotus Appears!”
A green lotus blossomed from the dust, sword intent surging. The withered old man who had been drinking was instantly slashed. His dantian was torn apart by the sword aura, and he couldn't even let out a scream.
The other person was heavily wounded and prepared to flee.
But he didn't expect a heavy sword to come flying through the air.
it actually ignored the spiritual energy defense of the foundation establishment stage and pierced through his chest.
A hole was ripped open in his chest, and his internal organs and intestines spilled onto the ground. Blood flowed profusely. He turned around numbly, staring fixedly at Xu Xian.
“You...”
His pupils dilated, and he fell straight to the ground.
He wasn't dead yet.
Instead, he twitched incessantly for a good while before finally drawing his last breath.
Until the moment of his death, he didn't understand how he had died.
It was too fast.
Xu Xian recalled Wait, not forgetting to scan the surroundings alertly.
The Little Book gave a thumbs up.
“Intense!”
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