The interior of the pitch-black mountains was even more twisted and uncanny than Qin Chuan had imagined.
Beneath his feet was no longer solid earth or stone.
In its place lay a layer of black flesh that writhed slowly and gave off a faint warmth.
It felt soft underfoot, like stepping on the innards of some creature. He could even feel a faint, steady pulse through his soles.
The surrounding mountain walls were covered in the same strange flesh, riddled with tangled folds and bottomless fissures.
Standing there felt like wandering into the body of some indescribable giant creature.
The mingled stench of rot and blood grew stronger and more pungent.
Beneath it lurked a faint charred smell, like the residue of metal burned too intensely.
Gray mist drifted silently through the mountain valleys, reducing visibility to almost nothing.
Worse, countless tiny sources of interference seemed to lurk in the mist. They kept trying to erode his mind, bringing disjointed whispers and twisted visions.
"This mental erosion is somewhat stronger than what that Abyss Lord beneath the Han River could manage."
A thought stirred in Qin Chuan's mind.
The power of his Shadow Domain spread silently from his body, forming a layer of Absolute Defense that shut out and devoured every attempt at mental intrusion.
His senses were somewhat suppressed, but he never lost track of the distinctive energy coming from the Divinity Fragment.
Its source lay in the deepest reaches of the Strange Mountain Range.
As he ventured farther in, that energy grew clearer and more primal.
The deeper he went, the more obvious the surroundings' vitality became.
More irregular bulges appeared in the black flesh covering the mountain walls, pounding like diseased hearts.
Thick, foul-smelling black fluid even began to seep from some of the deeper fissures. It