"Hm?"
Lin Chen froze. Although he had acted to obtain essence, he had also saved the great monk. And yet the other man seemed ungrateful?
"This is a corpse-raising ground belonging to some powerful Evil Cultivator. There must be a Third Order expert here. You and I have no chance of standing against them." The great monk glanced toward the entrance. "He let you in on purpose."
Lin Chen followed the great monk's gaze. The dark-red barrier he had smashed open had already returned to its original state. It seemed the other man really had let him in deliberately.
"With that barrier in place, no one is getting out!"
The great monk sighed. He was grateful that Lin Chen had saved him, but the other man would lose his life because of it, and that filled him with guilt.
"Great monk, you mean... these Corpse Beetles can't get out either?" Lin Chen's eyes lit up, and he hurriedly asked.
"Uh..."
The great monk was visibly taken aback. Then he said, "This barrier is here to trap us and let the Corpse Beetles kill us. Why would the Corpse Beetles leave?"
"Excellent!"
Lin Chen was overjoyed. With so many Corpse Beetles, he had been worried some might slip through the net. Now that they were all trapped here by the barrier, didn't that mean not a single one could escape?
"Ah..."
Before the great monk could say anything, Lin Chen said excitedly, "Great monk, you're badly injured. Stay here and don't move. Leave the rest to me."
"I couldn't move even if I wanted to. Those Corpse Beetles are poisonous. All I can do now is attack from where I'm standing!" The great monk gave a wry smile.
With his strength, he would never have been bested by these Corpse Beetles if he hadn't been weakened by the poison. After all, they were only barely comparable to First Order Mutated Creatures.
"Heh, heh, heh."
Lin Chen couldn't help laughing. Now he didn't have to worry about the great monk stealing his kills.
"My little darlings, Daddy's here!"
Lin Chen moved, swinging both fists as he charged at the Corpse Beetles in front of him. His fists flew again and again, and one Corpse Beetle after another was consumed by Blood Qi True Flame and reduced to ashes.
"What powerful blood qi. He must be Third Order, right?"
"Blood Qi Like Flame? What kind of cultivation technique is that?"
"When did Qingzhou gain a powerhouse like him?"
Watching Lin Chen unleash his might, the great monk couldn't help staring in a daze. Still, the stronger Lin Chen was, the better their chances of surviving.
Who would choose death when they could live?
Thud! Thud!
Under Lin Chen's frenzied assault, dozens of Corpse Beetles were slaughtered in just a few minutes.
"Essence: 7300"
Looking at the system panel, Lin Chen smiled from ear to ear. In just a few minutes, he had gained 4,300 essence—far faster than when he'd killed Mutated Venomous Snakes.
"Any more?"
Lin Chen gazed eagerly toward the depths of Basement Level 1. He could vaguely sense a powerful presence there.
Whoosh!
Lin Chen pushed off with one foot and shot straight toward the depths of Basement Level 1.
"Benefactor, that's the corpse-raising ground. There's a great terror there!"
The great monk's expression changed. He called out to warn Lin Chen, then struggled to follow. He had taken an antidote earlier, and the poison was now barely suppressed. He had regained a little mobility.
"A great terror? I only hope you're terrifying enough!"
Hearing the great monk's warning, Lin Chen grew even more excited. A great terror meant a huge supply of essence!
A moment later, Lin Chen reached a square Blood Pool several meters wide. He could feel that the powerful presence was coming from the bottom of the pool.
Plop! Plop!
Suddenly, the Blood Pool's surface burst open, and more than ten Corpse Beetles shot out. One of them was clearly larger than the others.
"My little darlings, I knew you were playing hide-and-seek!"
Lin Chen looked at the dozen or so Corpse Beetles and smiled warmly. "Come on, Daddy'll give you a massage. I guarantee you'll enjoy it so much you'll be seeing stars!"
Whoosh!
The next moment, Lin Chen charged forward. One Corpse Beetle after another turned to ashes in his hands, earning him an easy 1,200 essence. Of the whole swarm, only the giant Corpse Beetle remained alive.
"What do you think? Daddy's the one who treats you best, right? I saved the grand finale for you." Lin Chen looked at the giant Corpse Beetle with a smile.
"The Corpse Beetle King!"
A cry of alarm came from behind him.
Hiss!
At that moment, the Corpse Beetle King moved. It turned into a streak of light and flew straight toward Lin Chen.
"Look out!" the great monk shouted.
The Corpse Beetle King was different from ordinary Corpse Beetles. Not only was it stronger, it could also fly. Flying beasts were universally recognized as the most troublesome foes in the Cultivation World.
It was like the difference between ordinary people and birds. Without special tools, ordinary people had a hard time dealing with birds—and the Cultivation World was no different.
"It can fly?"
Lin Chen watched the Corpse Beetle King flying toward him, a flicker of surprise crossing his face. Even so, he swung his fist straight at the incoming creature.
Thud!
The muffled impact sent the Corpse Beetle King flying. But to Lin Chen's slight surprise, its body wasn't incinerated by Blood Qi True Flame. Instead, it turned into a burning ball of fire.
"Interesting!"
Lin Chen's expression grew serious. This was the first creature to withstand Blood Qi True Flame. Though his Blood Qi True Flame was only at its most basic level, it was still surprising that the Corpse Beetle King could just barely endure it.
Splash!
The Corpse Beetle King let out a strange cry as it plunged into the Blood Pool. The water ate away at the flames on its body, putting them out. Its body emerged, half-roasted.
"This Blood Pool is no simple thing!"
Looking at the Blood Pool that had extinguished his Blood Qi True Flame, Lin Chen understood. His Blood Qi True Flame was powerful, but in the face of absolute strength, it still fell short.
As if to confirm Lin Chen's guess, the Corpse Beetle King, which had been half-roasted, began recovering at a visible speed. In the blink of an eye, it was back to normal.
Hiss!
Having recovered, the Corpse Beetle King had apparently forgotten its pain. It attacked Lin Chen again, charging straight at him.
Thud!
This time, Lin Chen gave it no chance. He clamped both hands around the incoming Corpse Beetle King, and the terrifying Blood Qi True Flame instantly swallowed the creature in his grasp.
The Corpse Beetle King let out strange cries and thrashed as the Blood Qi True Flame engulfed it. But with its strength, there was no way it could break free from Lin Chen's grip.
Its struggles grew weaker and weaker. In just a moment, it became a pile of ashes that slipped from Lin Chen's hands.
"Second Order Corpse Beetle King slain. Essence +1000."
"Only Second Order?"
The Corpse Beetle King had withstood Blood Qi True Flame for a moment and survived one of Lin Chen's punches, yet it was only a Second Order creature. Lin Chen was genuinely surprised.
"The Corpse Beetle King is dead just like that?"
The great monk stared at the Corpse Beetle King's ashes in disbelief. The Corpse Beetle King was famous for its tough defense and vitality, yet it hadn't lasted ten seconds in Lin Chen's hands before biting the dust.
"What terrifying martial arts!"
The great monk's pupils contracted. This martial art that turned blood qi into flames was even more terrifying and powerful than he had imagined.
Buzz! Buzz!
At that moment, the water in the Blood Pool began to churn. A powerful presence rose from within.
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