Chen Changqing stood outside the office door. The sunlight was dazzling, and the campus was filled with the youthful energy of students. However, what met his eyes was a boundless hell.
In the vision of his Karma Eye, the black wooden box that Zhou Mo had given to Zhang Ling was like a concentrated heart of disaster, furiously beating! Countless crimson, twisted threads of karma surged from it, radiating a nauseating sense of death and evil.
Danger! Extreme danger! The alarm bells of his consciousness were ringing wildly! This was no ordinary evil object! Its energy fluctuations and karmic connections far surpassed those of the Hundred Bone Bells, even touching upon some ancient, forbidden, and terrifying existence!
"The hall master is personally coming..." Zhou Mo's words still echoed in his ears. No! He had to find out what this thing was immediately, and what the Bloodfiend Sect was trying to do! Chen Changqing suppressed his churning emotions, kept his expression neutral, and turned to merge into the crowd of students leaving the Folklore Department building.
Finding a secluded corner, he immediately took out a specially made communication jade pendant—the emergency line to Xu Yang, the Pavilion Master of the Heavenly Dao Pavilion. After infusing it with spiritual energy, the jade pendant flickered. Xu Yang's calm and imposing voice entered his mind: "Changqing? What's the emergency?"
"Senior Xu, something big has happened!" Chen Changqing spoke quickly, describing what he had just seen, especially the black wooden box that emitted extreme danger, the crimson karmic threads wrapped around it, and the evil aura that made his soul tremble.
"...Zhou Mo also said that their 'hall master' wants to come to Misty City personally, and taking down the Hidden Xuan Sect is just an 'appetizer'!" The other end of the jade pendant was silent for several breaths, as Xu Yang was obviously digesting the astonishing information. "Black wooden box, crimson karma, the hall master in person..." Xu Yang's voice suddenly became grave, "Changqing, if I'm not mistaken, what's in that wooden box is probably one of the Bloodfiend Sect's most insidious magical artifacts – the Soul-Snatching Corpse Nail!"
"Soul-Snatching Corpse Nail?" Chen Changqing's heart was greatly shocked.
"Correct! This object is made by mixing Nine Nether Demonic Qi with the essence blood of ten thousand corpses, and it's extremely vicious! Once driven into a spiritual vein node, it can instantly corrode spiritual energy, triggering underground Yin energy, transforming the entire spiritual vein into a 'corpse energy source' that nourishes corpse energy! If the Hidden Xuan Sect's Spiritual Spring Eye is nailed by this object, your Seventy-Two Earthly Fiends Tortoise Shell Formation will collapse in an instant, and the entire Hidden Xuan Sect's mountain gate, as well as the surrounding earth veins, will turn into a dead land in a short time, completely becoming an excellent pasture for the Bloodfiend Sect to raise ferocious corpses!"
Hiss—!
Chen Changqing felt a chill shoot from his feet straight to the top of his head. How ruthless! How poisonous! This Bloodfiend Sect actually intended to uproot the entire area of Fog City and turn it into their nest!
"The Bloodfiend Sect operates far more secretly and cruelly than the Yin Corpse Sect. They are directly connected to the legendary Nether Blood Sea, which has huge implications and is far beyond what ordinary demonic sects can achieve." Xu Yang's voice was filled with unprecedented seriousness. "It seems they're determined to stir up a massive bloodbath in Fog City this time. Changqing, you've gotten yourself into… big trouble."
"Senior, what should I do?"
"Hold steady!" Xu Yang barked in a low voice. "We absolutely cannot alert them! Zhang Ling is an inside man, but just a pawn. Zhou Mo is on the periphery and knows little. The key is the 'Hall Master' who is about to arrive, and the… Bloodfiend Corpse King that he will likely bring!"
"Bloodfiend Corpse King?"
"The Bloodfiend Sect stands supreme in the demonic path with their corpse-refining techniques, and their core combat strength comes from the corpse kings refined through forbidden secret arts. Each Bloodfiend Corpse King is strong enough to fight against a Golden Core True Person, or even stronger! They are fearless, their bodies are indestructible, and they are extremely difficult to deal with. If the Bloodfiend Sect Hall Master comes in person, a corpse king will definitely accompany them!"
Xu Yang paused, his tone becoming even more grave: "Your primary task is to defend the Hidden Xuan Sect's mountain gate. You absolutely cannot let the Soul-Snatching Corpse Nail be driven into the Spiritual Spring Eye! That's the bottom line! There's no room to retreat!"
"I understand!" Chen Changqing's tone was resolute.
"It's not understanding, it's a must!" Xu Yang's tone was stern. "Defending the mountain gate and protecting the spiritual veins is protecting the living beings of this place, and this is great Merit/Virtue! It will have unimaginable benefits for suppressing the end-of-days curse within your body!"
Merit/Virtue… Chen Changqing's eyes narrowed. This was indeed the power he craved most at this moment.
"As for how to deal with it…" Xu Yang lowered his voice, "The Seventy-Two Earthly Fiends Tortoise Shell Formation is strong, but it may not be enough to withstand a Golden Core-level corpse king and that Bloodfiend Sect Hall Master. Do you remember the restricted area at the back of the Hidden Xuan Sect, the entrance that connects to the Earth Vein Spirit Realm?"
Chen Changqing's heart skipped a beat: "Senior means?"
"The Earth Vein Spirit Realm contains part of the original power of the Yangtze River's Earth Vein. If you can draw upon a little of it, it will be enough to greatly increase the power of your Tortoise Shell Formation and even catch the enemy off guard, giving them an unforgettable 'surprise.' However, this method is extremely dangerous! Drawing upon the power of the Earth Vein could very likely trigger a violent backlash from the curse! Unless it's the last resort, a situation where you fight to the death, do not attempt it! It's up to you to decide how to handle this."
"Junior understands."
"Steady yourself, Changqing. If necessary, I will try to hold them off, but whether you can defend the mountain gate in the end depends on you." Xu Yang's voice disappeared, and the jade amulet's light dimmed.
Chen Changqing stood in place, his mind racing with thoughts of the Bloodfiend Sect, the Nether Blood Sea, the Soul-Snatching Corpse Nail, and the Bloodfiend Corpse King… Each name felt like a heavy mountain, weighing him down and making it difficult to breathe. This time, he had truly stirred up a hornet's nest!
He looked at the sky. That old dog Zhang Ling probably already returned to the mountain with the "Life-Taking Nail."
A plan within a plan? Chen Changqing's eyes flashed with a cold light. Since the other side wanted to use the Soul-Snatching Corpse Nail to destroy the formation's eye from within, why not go along with it? Let Zhang Ling bring the nail back and then prepare an "unforgettable surprise" for him at the Spiritual Spring Eye?
Having made up his mind, Chen Changqing no longer hesitated and immediately set off to sneak back into the Hidden Xuan Sect. He didn't take the usual paths, but chose more hidden trails, avoiding all possible eyes and ears, and silently sneaked back to the back mountain. His target wasn't the Spiritual Spring Eye, but the forbidden area at the back mountain recorded in the sect's ancient texts. This place was deserted, with weeds reaching his waist, and the air was filled with an ancient, damp, and almost decaying atmosphere.
Based on the clues from ancient texts and the subtle guidance of his Karma Heavenly Eye, Chen Changqing found a hidden area concealed beneath an inconspicuous cliff. It was covered by thick vines and scattered rocks. After pushing aside the tangled vines, a smooth, mirror-like stone wall was revealed. The wall was blank, but Chen Changqing clearly sensed a space node lurking behind it, emitting faint yet vast, sea-like fluctuations of spiritual energy.
This was the entrance to the Earth Vein Spirit Realm! The entrance was guarded by an extremely ancient and complex sealing array. The array's fluctuations were obscure and powerful, clearly beyond his current cultivation level to forcefully breach. He tried to infuse a wisp of Great Purity Water Essence Scripture spiritual energy into the stone wall, but it was like a stone sinking into the sea, without any reaction. He then attempted to use his Karma Heavenly Eye to analyze the seal's structure, only to find the array as vast as a sea of smoke, as mysterious as a maze, with no clear starting point. Senior Xu only said I could borrow power, not how to open the door… Chen Changqing was a little worried. Could it be that I have to wait for Zhang Ling to make a move, and for me to be driven into a desperate situation, before the entrance opens on its own, like in those stories, with a 'protagonist halo' flashing? This was too inconsistent with his "steady" approach.
Just as he was at a loss, secretly grumbling, a clear, lively voice sounded from behind him: "Senior Brother! I knew you'd be here!" Lin Wanqing had come over at some point, holding a familiar insulated lunchbox. "I didn't see you at lunchtime, so I brought it for you. Huh? Senior Brother, what are you staring at that broken stone wall for? Could it be hiding a peerless secret manual?" The girl curiously circled the stone wall, even reaching out to tap it, producing a "thud" sound. Chen Changqing's heart skipped a beat, his gaze falling on his junior sister, a thought flashed through his mind. The Hidden Xuan Sect had declined, but Lin Wanqing's background—the Lin Family of Qingcheng Mountain—was rumored to be an ancient cultivation family, deeply connected to the spiritual beauty of the Sichuan water veins!
"Wanqing," he said casually, "do you... have any ancestral treasures from your Lin Family? Preferably something related to water, rivers, or a small magical artifact?"
"Something related to water?" Lin Wanqing tilted her head, her fingers tapping her chin thoughtfully. Suddenly, her eyes lit up, and she untied a jade pendant from around her neck, which was tied with a red string. The pendant was small, entirely jade green, lustrous and translucent, like a pebble that had been washed by river water for a thousand years. Its surface showed subtle, naturally formed water ripple patterns, both dynamic and restrained. "This, does it work?" Lin Wanqing handed the jade pendant to Chen Changqing. "This was given to me by Grandma, she said it's the Lin Family's ancestral River-Taming Jade, and it's related to... the Great Yu's flood control? Anyway, it's not useful normally, I just wear it to stay cool."
River-Taming Jade! Great Yu's flood control! Chen Changqing took the jade pendant. It was warm to the touch, and a gentle, cool water-element spiritual energy permeated from it in wisps. It wasn't overbearing, but it was incredibly pure, subtly carrying the profound mystery of suppressing and regulating water veins. His heart pounded wildly. He carefully brought the River-Taming Jade close to the stone wall.
Buzz——!!!
The moment the jade touched the stone wall, a sudden change occurred! The jade pendant suddenly burst forth with brilliant, dazzling emerald light. The water ripple patterns on the pendant instantly came alive, like real water surging and roaring, surging and vast! At the same time, countless golden runes appeared on the smooth stone wall, densely packed, like a river of stars hanging upside down, and they reflected the light of the jade pendant, both sacred and vast! A spiritual energy fluctuation far more terrifying than before, like a volcanic eruption, surged out violently from behind the stone wall. The space in the center of the wall twisted and spun violently, eventually tearing open a vortex-shaped entrance that could only accommodate one person. Inside the entrance, white light swirled, and the aura of the Earth Vein was so thick that it almost solidified!
The entrance… really opened! Chen Changqing was overjoyed, truly, when the road is blocked, the way appears! His junior sister's "Heavenly Fate Girl" constitution was, indeed, terrifying! "Wow! Senior Brother! There's really a door behind the stone wall! Like… like the entrance to a fairyland!" Lin Wanqing's face was flushed with excitement, her eyes sparkling. Chen Changqing put away the River-Taming Jade, his expression solemn. He said to Lin Wanqing in a deep voice: "Wanqing, you must not mention today's events to anyone, including your parents and elders. Keep it buried in your stomach! Don't get near here!" Seeing her senior brother's never-before-seen seriousness, Lin Wanqing knew it was a matter of great importance and nodded obediently, "Mm! I understand, Senior Brother! Senior Brother… you yourself must be very careful!" Watching Lin Wanqing leave quickly, Chen Changqing took a deep breath, and gave a final look at the surging Earth Vein spiritual energy within the vortex entrance, his eyes resolute. With this Earth Vein Spirit Realm as his trump card, the outcome was still uncertain!
...At the same time.
At the foot of Hidden Xuan Sect, the surface of the Yangtze River had不知何时变得浑浊, the water churning with an eerie, dark red hue, as if stained with blood, or perhaps, rusted. Above the surface, a layer of nauseating black mist floated, the stench acrid and pungent. An old, black-sailed boat, silent and still, was moored in the middle of the river, blending seamlessly with the strange waters.
On the bow, Xue Tu stood with his hands clasped behind his back, his blood-red robe billowing in the night wind. His withered face was sinister and terrifying. The powerful aura of a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator emanated outwards without restraint, causing the surrounding river to tremble. Behind him, a shadow even more dense than the night stood silently. It was a terrifying dry corpse, nearly ten feet tall, its entire body covered in a dark red, chitinous shell, like a solidified blood-colored armor. The dry corpse's eyes were closed, its face contorted and twisted, fangs bared, and its ten fingers sharp as blades. It radiated an overwhelming demonic qi and the stench of decay, making one's soul shudder! This was the Bloodfiend Sect's ultimate treasure, a relic of unparalleled ferocity, refined by a forbidden secret technique, sealing the remnant soul of an ancient Drought Demon - the Bloodfiend Corpse King! Xue Tu gazed at the cloud-shrouded mountain gate of the Hidden Xuan Sect in the distance, a bloodthirsty, cruel grin twisting his lips.
"Hidden Xuan Sect... the Spiritual Spring Eye of the Yangtze River... Jie jie jie jie! Once I use the Soul-Snatching Corpse Nail to pollute your spiritual veins, and then use the Bloodfiend Corpse King to flatten your mountain gate, this place will become the best place for my Bloodfiend Sect to raise corpses and refine soldiers in the southwest... no, in all of China! Jie jie jie jie!" He seemed to sense something, and abruptly turned his head, his gaze like a venomous snake, fixed on the direction of the Hidden Xuan Sect's back mountain. A hint of gloom and doubt flashed in his eyes. "Hmm? That fleeting fluctuation of the earth vein... was it an illusion? Or... something else is happening?"
…Hidden Xuan Sect, back mountain. A stealthy figure, like a ghost, was moving through the forest, silently avoiding the eyes and ears of the patrolling disciples, heading straight for the Spiritual Spring Eye. It was the returning Enforcement Elder - Zhang Ling! He crept near the Spiritual Spring Eye, looked around, and confirmed that no one was there before taking out a black wooden box that emitted an evil aura. He opened the box, revealing a three-inch-long, pitch-black bone nail covered in blood-red, bizarre patterns, lying quietly inside - it was the Soul-Snatching Corpse Nail! Zhang Ling's eyes flashed with a mixture of greed and madness, he clenched the bone nail tightly, aiming it at the core of the Spiritual Spring Eye, where one of the most vital energy hubs of the Seventy-Two Earthly Fiends Tortoise Shell Formation was located! As long as he hammered this nail in... He raised his hand, his arm trembling slightly, the last sliver of hesitation in his eyes finally consumed by complete madness!