Re-entering the Netherworld! Earth-Shattering

The land of the living.

Inside Sky Sword Sect.

Lu Chen's consciousness rapidly returned, and his previously closed eyes snapped open, shining with brilliance.

He got up directly from the ground, feeling the power within him.

"The suppression of the living world is indeed still here..."

His earth-shattering True God third-tier strength was once again firmly suppressed by the living world, leaving him with less than a Demigod realm. The Divine Spark within his body was hidden deep within his soul, fluctuating.

Lu Chen waved his hand.

With a swish, the sword formation that had enveloped his body disappeared. He left the area directly and walked outside.

At this moment.

Inside Sky Sword Sect, many figures were gathered.

Miao Xuanji, Miao Wu Fa, and a group of people from the Space-Time Divine Clan were all assembled here.

In addition to them, there were Li Wangshu, Yue Qingtian, Leng Feng, Zhao Shanhe, Ye Qiankun, and others.

Even the Imperial Family's Old Ancestor, Zhao Xuantian, had arrived.

Zhao Xuantian's heart was filled with unease.

His cultivation was too low, and he had never known what had happened in the outer realms, nor had he known of the Netherworld's existence. Today, he had originally intended to visit Lu Chen, but he ended up hearing all sorts of news from them.

What world destruction? What world unsealing?

This left him completely bewildered.

When he inquired further, he was filled with horror.

"Senior Lu, what they're saying is true, our world is going to be destroyed?"

Zhao Xuantian, looking horrified, quickly rushed forward upon seeing Lu Chen.

"It's not necessarily destruction."

Lu Chen shook his head and said, "Even if the world is unsealed, it will only grow larger based on its original foundation, and various ancient opportunities will reappear. However, whether your dynasty can still be maintained, I don't know."

"How could this happen?"

Zhao Xuantian's face was filled with panic.

He had finally managed to latch onto Lu Chen's coattails.

He thought he was about to push the Great Yu Dynasty to its peak and achieve unprecedented glory.

But now, the world was unsealed? The Myriad Heavens were descending?

How many more secrets did he not know?

"I don't want this to happen, but there's nothing we can do. The Netherworld has already been unsealed, and the living world probably won't last much longer."

Lu Chen replied, then looked at the remaining people and said, "Everyone, the Netherworld has been unsealed, so don't go there for the time being. Otherwise, it will be easy to be captured by the people there. If your souls are then imprisoned, it will be extremely difficult for you to even return."

"We know."

Miao Xuanji nodded, his voice aged as he said, "The unsealing of the Netherworld came too quickly. No one expected four Divine Kings to appear at the same time in the end."

"Where is the way forward? The Netherworld has been unsealed, how much longer until the living world?"

Miao Wu Fa sighed in succession.

"Alas, it's regrettable. Our world has ultimately declined. Facing those Divine Kings is like a mantis trying to stop a chariot; all struggles seem ridiculous."

Even Li Wangshu, who feared nothing, frowned, feeling lost about the future. "What should we do? Should we sit and wait for death, leaving things to fate? Or should we find a faction to join?"

"Even if we find a faction to join, they might not accept us!"

Yue Qingtian gently shook his head. "Didn't you hear them calling us 'jian zhong'—a derogatory term, roughly 'lowly spawn'? In their eyes, we are ants, Otherworlders, completely different from them who are high above. We're not even worthy of their glance! Even if they were willing to take us in, could you all accept it?"

The crowd fell silent.

Yes!

Given the arrogance of those outer realm enemies, even if they joined, they would be treated as servants, as ants.

"Lu Chen, what do you think?"

Dugu Wudi looked at Lu Chen and asked weakly.

"Although the Netherworld has been unsealed, we are not without hope."

Lu Chen said, "From my observation, the Divine Kings will not easily intervene. The outer realm forces seem to be using this place as a training ground for their descendants. Those Divine Kings are only responsible for completely destroying the seal and should leave again before long. This is our opportunity!"

"The Divine Kings will leave?"

"But even if they leave, the remaining invaders will still have the strength of Demigods or even Gods."

The crowd frowned.

"So this requires all of you to cultivate diligently and strive to break through!"

Lu Chen said, "As long as we can reach the Demigod or God realm before the living world is unsealed, perhaps we can escape this calamity."

The crowd fell silent once more.

Reaching Demigod or Godhood?

Easier said than done!

For them, it was as difficult as ascending to heaven!

"I have some resources here, everyone can give it a try."

Lu Chen waved his hand, and a large number of rare flowers and exotic herbs appeared before them.

Some of them he had obtained from the Dragon Palace at the bottom of the sea.

Some he had acquired from the Divine Mountain.

They were no longer useful to him now.

He had already reached the third level of True God, and the essence extracted from these rare flowers and exotic herbs was limited, insufficient to meet his immense energy demands. However, they were still useful to others.

"This is..."

"Thank you, Young Hero Lu!"

"In that case, we won't stand on ceremony!"

The expressions of the crowd shifted. Without refusal, they eventually picked up the items.

[You have done your utmost to protect this realm, your merit is immeasurable, Merit Points +50,000!]

A line of text appeared.

"If it's a blessing, it's not a curse; if it's a curse, it can't be avoided. I'll be the one to probe the Netherworld next."

Lu Chen mused.

He estimated that the group of Divine Kings wouldn't linger for long.

Otherwise, it would negate the purpose of training for the people from the Outer Realms.

Therefore, he planned to wait a few days before going to check.

"Alright."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

"Master, you should go into seclusion too."

Lu Chen looked at Dugu Wudi, giving him a reassuring look.

Dugu Wudi's expression was complex, but he could only nod.

The crowd dispersed, leaving only a bewildered Zhao Xuantian.

"Then... what about me?"

Zhao Xuantian said quickly.

Let alone breaking through to Demigod, he hadn't even reached the Dharma Aspect Realm.

At this moment, he truly felt like a bewildered old man from the countryside, at a loss.

"You? Eat what you should eat, drink what you should drink, don't be nervous!"

Lu Chen said calmly.

He'd lived for hundreds of years, what was there to worry about!

He didn't have many years left to live anyway.

Why think so much?

"But..."

"Alright, go home. Take a few more concubines, experience life more, have a few sons, and that's it."

Lu Chen waved his hand, sending him away.

Zhao Xuantian's mind was in a daze, and he finally flew out of the Sky Sword Sect in a fog.

This damn...

What he said made so much sense.

At his age, why bother with all the fuss! Let things be as they will!

Lu Chen showed a thoughtful expression, turned, and left. He found a secluded spot and began to seriously contemplate his future path.

"My strongest method currently is the Way of the Sword, but unfortunately, I lack more Sword Dao martial arts..."

Even though he possessed the Four Great Divine Abilities of the Sword Dao.

It was still too few!

If he could obtain more Sword Dao Divine Abilities, his strength would undergo a tremendous transformation.

"If all else fails, I'll find a way to get them from those people from the Outer Realms!"

Lu Chen's eyes flickered.

He's already at his limit anyway.

Some methods don't need to be considered.

Time ticked by.

Sun rose and set.

Sun set and rose.

The living world seemed peaceful as ever.

But Lu Chen, through the Heaven's Secret Mirror, watched the environment outside the living world daily, constantly monitoring the changes in the Star Chains.

These Star Chains were indeed undergoing subtle changes each day.

In just seven or eight days, those Star Chains had blurred considerably, no longer as brilliant as before.

"The power of the Star Chains is dissipating, and the unsealing of the living world is also imminent..."

Lu Chen's heart surged.

It seemed he had to speed up his cultivation.

"I wonder what the situation in the Netherworld is like now? I can try to take another look."

Lu Chen's eyes flickered.

He felt that those Divine Kings should have left.

Otherwise, various factions wouldn't be able to contend there.

Swish!

Lu Chen circulated his power, and his entire soul rapidly left his body. He opened a passage, concealed his aura, and silently, as if turning into a wisp of smoke, approached the Netherworld.

Waves of vast and imposing, eerie energy rapidly assailed him.

This was an aura he had never encountered before.

The Netherworld had indeed been fully unsealed.

That aura was boundless, magnificent, like an ancient universe.

Swish!

Lu Chen's consciousness traversed, and he instantly appeared in the Netherworld region, outside a town. The surrounding environment was still dim, with the ambient light appearing a jade green.

The oppressive force in the world seemed to have completely vanished.

As soon as he appeared, he could feel the powerful, surging divine power within him.

The strength of True God third level, undoubtedly progressing.

"The Netherworld's suppression has indeed completely disappeared. Even this world seems to have been expanded many times over its original scale."

Lu Chen carefully felt the changes in the world.

This point was very strange.

The previous Netherworld was like a crumpled piece of paper.

Now that the paper had been flattened, all the previously crumpled parts had reappeared.

"The outer realm enemies have also all descended, with many people from the outer realms filling the surroundings..."

Lu Chen's eyes flickered.

But now he had to confirm, to see if those Divine Kings had truly left.

Whoosh!

Lu Chen's body flashed and disappeared again.

The entire Netherworld was in turmoil.

Opportunities were constantly appearing in various regions.

In just seven or eight days of absence, the Sword World had undergone earth-shattering changes.

Who knew how many invaders had descended.

Lu Chen concealed his appearance, his body transforming into a strange black mist state, silently entering a small town.

This town was very familiar to him; it was the very town he had descended into when he first entered the Sword World.

Inside the town, many souls had dim lights and weak auras, all sighing.

They were the original souls of the Netherworld. After the Netherworld was unsealed, they had nowhere to go and had become the lowest class here.

In just seven or eight days, many souls had permanently vanished.

Those outer realm powerhouses needed souls to refine forbidden treasures, so they had captured many souls.

Other outer realm powerhouses needed servants, so they had also captured many souls.

Another group of outer realm powerhouses needed to break seals, and they also captured many souls to use as cannon fodder.

A few days felt like a devastating blow to these souls.

"If this keeps up, we won't be able to take it anymore. My soul is about to dissipate."

"Me too. Where is our future?"

"The outer realm's divine demons don't see us as people. They're slaughtering us wantonly, using us as cannon fodder. Who can save us?"

"I really miss the days when Young Hero Lu was here..."

"Yeah, I miss it too..."

Many dim souls, huddled in a corner, let out mournful cries.

"Don't say any more. Be careful the higher-ups hear you. If they do, you'll be in big trouble."

One soul spoke out in panic.

"Big trouble? Are we not in enough trouble already? I just want to live honestly, but who's letting us live?"

"That's right, they don't treat us like living beings. They use us to forge artifacts, experiment on us. How much longer can we last?"

"The divine demons of the outer realms, they're too tyrannical!"

Many said with humiliation and anger.

"Silence, silence! Are you trying to die?"

The soul from before quickly said.

Crack!

"Ah!"

A flash of electricity lit up, transforming into a whip that fiercely lashed out at the soul. He let out a piercing scream, smoke rising from his body as he was sent flying.

"Insolent fool, daring to slander us here?"

Two burly figures appeared, their faces cold and cruel. Both had human forms.

They held lightning whips, their gazes chilling, looking down from above as they directly lashed out at the souls in the corner.

"You pigs still dare to show discontent? You're just asking for death!"

"Pigs, for your foul mouths! Keep talking!"

Crack, crack, crack...

"Ah, ah, ah, ah..."

Souls let out pained screams as they were whipped, sparks flying from their bodies, large portions of their soul masses scattering.

Suddenly!

One of the figures holding a lightning whip, his gaze turned cold, abruptly turned his head and looked towards another soul in the corner.

This soul was very dark and tall, appearing exceptionally calm.

Its very aura carried a hint of coldness.

It seemed out of place with the other souls present.

Especially its eyes, which instilled a sense of dread.

"Who are you?"

The figure holding the lightning whip said coldly.

"Who cares who he is? He's not one of us from the outer realms anyway. If he's not, then he's looking for death!"

The other figure holding a lightning whip sneered, showing no mercy. The lightning whip in his hand emitted a dazzling light, and he began to furiously lash out at Lu Chen.

To them, anyone who wasn't their own kind was nothing more than a pig.