Entering the Earth Alone

Chapter 21: Entering the Earth Alone

The golden light drifted through the clouds for about half an hour before Taiyi gradually slowed down.

The closer he got to Buzhou Mountain, the more the oppressive aura assaulted his senses. It was like stepping into an old slaughterhouse, the stench of blood mixed with the smell of rust, making his head ache. He hovered in mid-air, looking down.

Buzhou Mountain lay about a hundred miles ahead, a dark mass standing there like a backbone bent by the heavens but refusing to break. A faint grey mist clung to its surface—the chaotic malevolent energy left over from the creation of the world, still lingering after countless eons, mingling with the rocks and dyeing the entire mountain a dull grey.

At the foot of the mountain, scattered points of fire could be seen.

The Witch Race's encampment.

Taiyi squinted and counted. There were at least thirty-odd locations, with a circle of blurry figures gathered around each campfire. Patrols crawled like ants along the mountain paths. Even from this distance, he could smell their rough, untamed aura.

"This setup..." he muttered under his breath, "they've really spared no expense."

A system panel popped up before his eyes:

[Target Area Periphery Reached]

[Recommend Switching to Stealth Mode Immediately]

[Current Witch Race Patrol Density: Extremely High]

[Detected External Fluctuations of the Twelve Capital Gods and Fiends Formation]

Taiyi took a deep breath and formed a hand seal.

The golden light around him gradually dimmed, like dying embers. It transformed from a dazzling Golden Crow into an inconspicuous shadow, melting into the night. He suppressed his aura to the extreme, retracting all his Grand Unity Golden Immortal might into his body. At this moment, he looked no different from a flying rock.

This was the Hidden Radiance Art, Eastern Emperor Taiyi's ultimate concealment technique.

Originally intended for surprise attacks or escapes, it now served as an excellent tool for infiltration.

He descended, flying along the bottom of the clouds. The wind whistled past his ears, carrying the unique earthy and malevolent scent of Buzhou Mountain, which smelled like rusty iron soaking in old blood.

While flying, Taiyi suddenly remembered something and sank his consciousness into his sea of consciousness.

"System, bring up the exchange list."

A semi-transparent interface with a chaotic background unfolded in his mind, with dark golden runes twisting and arranging themselves. Taiyi's gaze fell upon the [Temporary Items] category:

[Witch Blood Powder (Three Shichen) - 8 Points: Simulates Great Witch aura, effective on Golden Immortals and below]

Exactly what he needed.

"Exchange for Witch Blood Powder."

[Confirm Exchange of 'Witch Blood Powder (Three Shichen)'?]

[Yes/No]

"Yes."

As soon as he spoke, Taiyi felt a change.

First, 8 points of Taboo were deducted—this wasn't a transfer of energy, but a "permission voucher" for him, as a "variable," to operate "against conventional laws" in this place. His Taboo points dropped from 57 to 49.

Next, the System began to operate.

Taiyi could clearly perceive the System accessing complete data from its database regarding the "structural laws of Great Witch essence blood" and the "medicinal properties of illusion-forming herbs." This information flowed into his consciousness, allowing him to instantly understand the principle behind Witch Blood Powder—it was a technique that simulated the bloodline fluctuations of the Witch Race, creating a "shared origin" illusion at the law level.

Then, the System began to draw environmental energy.

Taiyi was currently flying through the clouds, surrounded primarily by pure spiritual energy of heaven and earth, with a small amount of calamity and sha qi. However, these materials were insufficient—Witch Blood Powder required the turbid energy of the earth's veins as its primary ingredient.

[Insufficient Environmental Materials Detected]

[Adjusting Plan...]

[Plan 1: Exchange after entering the earth vein region (Recommended)]

[Plan 2: Use host's own Blood Fiend Power as a substitute material, but effect will be halved and duration reduced to one and a half shichen]

[Please Choose]

Taiyi frowned.

Half effect? One and a half shichen?

He quickly calculated. The System estimated it would take two shichen to enter the earth veins and reach Pangu Hall for sign-in. Even if everything went smoothly, one and a half shichen might not be enough.

"Halt the exchange for now," Taiyi decided. "I'll exchange it after I enter the earth veins."

[Exchange Process Paused]

[8 Taboo Points Frozen, Will Automatically Complete When Conditions Are Met]

Taiyi withdrew his consciousness and continued flying.

After another twenty miles, the System suddenly beeped:

[Thirty miles ahead and to the left, patrol approaching]

[Recommend Evasion]

Taiyi immediately veered right, his body sinking into the thick rain clouds below. The clouds were damp, the moisture clinging to his skin, cool and refreshing. He hovered in the clouds, holding his breath, even suppressing his heartbeat to the lowest possible level.

About ten breaths later, the clouds ahead and to the left parted with a "swish."

Three figures flitted past. They were all from the Witch Race, clad in tattered leather armor, carrying crude stone spears. The one in front was all muscle and sinew, with a scar running from his eye to his mouth on the left side of his face.

"What rotten luck," the scarred Witch grumbled, cursing under his breath. "Patrolling the mountain in the middle of the night. Those feathered beasts are long gone."

"Say less," the younger one next to him muttered, "Lord Xuan Ming gave the order. You dare disobey?"

"I'm just saying..." the scarred man mumbled, his voice fading into the distance.

Taiyi waited until they had completely disappeared from sight before emerging from the clouds.

[Danger Cleared]

[Continue Forward]

He continued flying forward, this time more cautiously. He stopped every ten miles, sweeping the area with his divine sense. The airspace around Buzhou Mountain was filled with fine spatial folds—traces left by Di Jiang's constant tearing through the void, like invisible spiderwebs. One wrong move and the alarms would sound.

After dodging three more patrols, he finally reached the foot of Buzhou Mountain.

Taiyi landed on a rocky beach. Beneath his feet were jagged black stones, with dark red moss growing in the cracks, emitting a strange glow under the moonlight. Looking ahead, the mountain body was like a colossal wall, stretching endlessly into the night sky.

He couldn't fly any further here.

He was too visible in the sky, and the Witch Race weren't blind. He had to travel on the ground, and even underground.

Taiyi crouched down, placing his right hand on a black stone. His palm felt a cold, hard touch. The stone contained dense Earth element spiritual energy, and... a faint, almost imperceptible pressure.

Pangu's pressure.

Even though it was just a mountain formed from his fallen body, the aura of the one who had split the heavens and earth still lingered. This pressure was a tonic to the Witch Race, but poison to the Demon Race—staying too long would suppress their bloodlines.

Fortunately, Taiyi wasn't purely a demon.

He was a Golden Crow born from the Sun Star, his essence closer to that of an Innate Deity. Furthermore, with the Blood Fiend Power of a Chaos Demon God now mixed within him, his resistance to Pangu's pressure had strengthened considerably.

But he couldn't stay long.

He stood up and walked to a rock face. The wall was covered in vines, their leaves a deep, leathery green. Taiyi pushed aside the vines, revealing the dark mountain body beneath.

Then, he extended his index finger and drew a circle on the rock face.

A dark golden flame ignited at his fingertip. When the flame touched the stone, the rock melted like wax, silently opening a three-foot-square hole. The edges of the opening were smooth, not a single speck of debris falling.

Taiyi crawled inside and flicked his hand back.

The melted stone solidified again, the opening vanished, and the rock face returned to its original state. Even the vines grew back to their original positions, as if nothing had happened.

It was pitch black inside the hole.

Taiyi stood still, letting his eyes slowly adjust to the darkness. The cave wasn't large, just enough for him to stand. Ahead was a dark passage, leading to who knew where. The air had a smell of earth, mixed with a hint of... decay.

"System, navigate."

[Scanning subterranean vein structure...]

[Scan complete]

[Detected seventeen main subterranean veins, over three hundred branches]

[Target: Pangu Hall, located at the convergence of subterranean veins on the shaded side of Buzhou Mountain]

[Planning route...]

A three-dimensional map appeared before him. Within the gray-black mountain body, intricate subterranean veins were distributed like blood vessels, some as thick as rivers, others as fine as hair. One dark red main vein extended from the foot of the mountain deep into the shaded side, branching out into dozens of smaller veins along the way.

The System marked a blue line on the map, winding its way along the branches, avoiding the main vein—the Witch Race had definitely placed restrictions within the main vein.

[Route planning complete]

[Estimated time: two hours]

[Warning: High concentration of turbid energy in the subterranean veins, please take precautions]

Taiyi nodded. The environmental conditions were now met.

"System, continue exchanging for Witch Blood Powder."

[Environmental conditions met]

[Sufficient subterranean vein turbid energy detected]

[Continuing exchange process...]

Taiyi immediately felt the turbid energy in his surroundings being drawn out by the System. Those hazy streams of air, filled with chaotic impurities, surged towards him as if pulled by an invisible force.

At the same time, the information about the laws that the System had retrieved began to take effect. This information guided the recombination of the turbid energy—not a simple compression, but a reconstruction at the law level, simulating the unique frequency fluctuations of the Witch Race's bloodline.

A trace of the Blood Fiend Power within Taiyi was also drawn out, injected into the process as a "catalyst." The dark red power mixed with the gray turbid energy, beginning to weave and recombine.

The entire process lasted about a second.

Before him, a small pile of dark red powder "precipitated" out of thin air—the powder looked like dried blood scabs, emitting a faint smell of blood and the strange odor of decaying vegetation. The powder hovered in the air, faintly glowing.

This was Witch Blood Powder.

Taiyi reached out and caught it. The powder landed in his palm, feeling fine and slightly warm. He examined it carefully—this was a single-use disguised item, temporarily synthesized using 8 Taboo points, combined with the environmental turbid energy and the System's knowledge base.

The cost was clear:

· 8 Taboo points consumed (deducted)

- The concentration of miasma within ten feet decreased by about twenty percent.

- The System consumed a trace amount of Demon God Origin to maintain the reconstruction of laws.

- It might leave behind faint traces of karma.

He sprinkled the powder onto himself.

The powder dissolved upon contact, seeping into his skin.

Taiyi felt a faint stinging sensation, like being pricked by thousands of tiny needles. A faint dark red halo appeared on his skin, lasting for three breaths before disappearing. Looking down again, he saw that his arms were faintly covered with a layer of totemic patterns unique to the Witch Race—simple, crude, but with a certain charm.

The Witch Blood Powder had taken effect.

He took a deep breath—the air now carried a sense of familiarity within its earthy scent. The discomfort from Pangu's pressure had also lessened considerably, as if he had truly become half a member of the Witch Race.

"Three hours..." he muttered, "I need to hurry."

He stepped into the depths of the passage.

The cave was eerily silent, save for his own footsteps. The stone walls were damp, water droplets seeping down and dripping with a plink, plink sound. The further he went, the narrower the passage became, requiring him to squeeze through sideways in some places.

After walking for about the time it takes an incense stick to burn, he arrived at a fork in the road.

Three passages led in different directions. The left one carried a faint sound of water, the right one had the sound of wind, and the middle one was silent.

Taiyi followed the System's navigation and chose the middle path.

As soon as he stepped inside, he felt something was wrong.

The concentration of miasma in the air suddenly surged. This wasn't ordinary polluted air; it was the chaotic impurities that had settled in the depths of the earth's veins over countless eons, mixed with the aura of death, resentment, and all sorts of other foul things.

Taking a breath felt heavy in his lungs.

Taiyi circulated his True Sun Fire, creating a thin golden barrier around his body. The miasma struck the barrier with a sizzling sound, like water droplets falling onto a red-hot iron plate, producing wisps of smoke.

But this consumed too much magic power.

After walking only a hundred steps, his magic power had already depleted by half a percent. At this rate, he wouldn't even reach the Pangu Hall, let alone the foot of the mountain, before running out of energy.

He stopped, frowning in thought.

Suddenly, he remembered something and, with a thought, dispelled the True Sun Fire barrier.

The miasma immediately surged, like thick mud, engulfing his entire body. His skin felt a stinging sensation, as if being pricked by countless tiny needles. Taiyi gritted his teeth and endured, simultaneously activating the dark red Blood Fiend Power within him.

As the Blood Fiend Power was activated, the dark red patterns beneath his skin lit up.

A strange thing happened.

The surging miasma, upon encountering the dark red patterns, not only failed to continue its erosion but seemed to find a kindred spirit and became docile. It coiled around the patterns, was gradually absorbed, and transformed into pure chaotic energy, replenishing his Dantian.

Taiyi was stunned for a moment, then understood.

Blood Fiend was the power of Chaos Demon Gods, and miasma was the impurity from the chaotic era—they were of the same origin. To block it with the orthodox magic power of the Great Wilderness would be like fire and water, a head-on collision; but to absorb it using the power of a Chaos Demon God was like a fish in water.

"So it can be used like this..." he murmured, then continued forward.

This time, it was much easier. The miasma was no longer an obstacle but a supplement. With every step he took, he could feel the chaotic energy in his Dantian slowly increasing. Though not much, every little bit counted.

The passage wound downwards.

The deeper he went, the higher the temperature. The stone walls changed from black to dark red, hot to the touch. The miasma in the air became even denser, thick as a mire, making breathing difficult.

The System frequently popped up notifications:

[Earth Fire fissure fifty feet ahead, detour recommended]

[Witch Race restriction fluctuations detected in the right branch, avoid]

[Warning: Pangu's pressure is continuously increasing]

Taiyi followed the navigation, traversing the intricate network of earth veins. Sometimes he had to crawl through narrow crevices only wide enough for one person, sometimes he had to climb steep rock faces, and on a few occasions, he even had to cross underground rivers—the water was scalding hot, with a sulfurous smell, and white, skeletal remains of beasts lay at the bottom.

After about an hour, the area ahead suddenly opened up.

It was a natural stone hall, about thirty feet wide, with stalactites hanging from the ceiling, dripping water. In the center of the hall was a pool, its water a deep, dark green, bottomless.

As soon as Taiyi stepped into the stone hall, the System suddenly issued an alarm:

[Warning! Life signs detected!]

He immediately stopped, holding his breath and concentrating.

Ripples appeared on the surface of the pool. One circle, then another, growing larger. Then, with a splash, a massive head emerged from the water.

It was a Flood Dragon.

Completely black, its scales were as large as a palm, shimmering with a metallic luster in the dim light. It had a single horn on its head, the tip of which was blood-red. Its eyes were like two lanterns, staring at Taiyi with a faint glow.

Taiyi's heart sank.

This Flood Dragon's aura was at least that of a Grand Unity Golden Immortal. And looking at the wounds on its body—where scales were missing, revealing not flesh and blood but solidified dark red malevolent energy—this thing was not alive at all, but a spirit monster nurtured by the earth's malevolent energy.

A Fiend Flood Dragon.

These creatures specifically guarded earth vein nodes and attacked anything that intruded without discrimination.

The Fiend Flood Dragon stared at Taiyi for three breaths, then suddenly opened its mouth.

There was no sound, but a visible wave of gray rippled from its mouth. Wherever it passed, even the air froze into frost. It was an attack of pure fiend energy, capable of paralyzing the soul of an ordinary cultivator.

Taiyi didn't dare to meet it head-on. His body flickered, and he vanished from his original spot.

The next moment, he appeared on the other side of the stone hall. Where he had stood moments before, the ground was covered in thick frost, and even the stones had cracked.

The fiend Jiao turned its head, a flicker of confusion in its lantern-like eyes. It hadn't seen how Taiyi had dodged.

Taiyi also frowned.

This thing was difficult to deal with. The fiend energy attack was secondary; the main problem was not causing a big commotion. If a fight broke out and alerted the Witch Race's restrictions within the earth veins, or attracted a patrol, it would be all over.

He needed to end this quickly.

His mind raced as he scanned the System Mall list.

[Chaos Pacifying Mark (Beginner)] - 80 points

Too expensive. He only had 49 Taboo points left, not enough.

But...

"System," Taiyi asked quickly in his consciousness, "is there a cheaper option? Like making this thing temporarily blind or confused for a few breaths?"

[Searching...]

[Found: Chaotic Divine Script (Basic Ten Characters) - 20 points]

[Effect: A script used by Chaos Demon Gods. When written, it can slightly disrupt local laws and order, lasting for ten breaths.]

[Note: Double effect on Chaos-attribute creatures, can cause temporary sensory confusion.]

20 points!

Taiyi's eyes lit up.

"Redeem Chaotic Divine Script, write characters related to 'confusion'."

[Confirm redemption of 'Chaotic Divine Script (Basic Ten Characters)'?]

[Yes/No]

"Yes. Specify the meaning of 'confusion'."

20 Taboo points were deducted. Taiyi's points dropped to 29.

This time, the redemption process was more "direct."

The System accessed the database for the complete law information of "Chaotic Divine Script - Confusion Characters." This information wasn't just simple glyphs but contained the fundamental principles of how this chaotic script interfered with order and created confusion.

As the information flowed into Taiyi's consciousness, the System began to draw environmental energy—primarily the surrounding turbid energy and fiend energy, along with a trace of Blood Fiend Power from Taiyi's body as a catalyst.

At Taiyi's fingertip, a point of dark red light condensed, then began to "write" automatically.

Taiyi wasn't controlling it; the System's retrieved law information was guiding the energy flow, naturally forming the trajectory of the characters. A twisted, complex rune filled with disharmony took shape at his fingertip—it resembled no known script, and just looking at it made one dizzy, as if a few more glances would lead to mental confusion.

The entire process took only one breath.

Taiyi raised his hand and flicked the newly "written" Chaotic Divine Script rune towards the fiend dragon!

The rune traced a dark red trajectory through the air and silently merged into the fiend dragon's forehead.

The fiend dragon's movements suddenly froze!

In its lantern-like eyes, the clear reflections began to distort and shatter, like a broken mirror. It shook its head, seemingly trying to focus on the scene before it, but everything in its vision was spinning, overlapping, and chaotic.

This creature was originally a Chaos being condensed from fiend energy, with simple thoughts driven purely by instinct. The effect of Chaotic Divine Script on orderly beings was limited, but on this chaotic creature, the effect was surprisingly good—like dripping ink into clear water, it's easily noticeable, but pouring more mud into muddy water only makes it murkier.

The fiend, a Flood Dragon, stood confused, swaying from side to side, completely losing its target.

Taiyi seized the opportunity, tiptoed around it, and slipped into the passage opposite.

The cost of this redemption:

· 20 Taboo points consumed

· A small amount of surrounding turbid energy and fiend energy extracted

· Minimal System energy consumption

· Perfect effect

Leaving the stone hall, he continued forward.

The path ahead became much smoother. He occasionally encountered earth vein spirits, but most were minor figures who fled at the mere threat of his Blood Fiend aura. Twice, he ran into warning talismans set by the Witch Race within the earth veins, but he discovered them in advance and temporarily shielded them with his Chaos Power.

As he neared the mountain's shadow, Pangu's pressure grew more intense.

Eventually, every step felt like carrying a mountain. The True Sun Fire within Taiyi was almost extinguished by the pressure, leaving only the Blood Fiend Power barely functional. The Witch Race totems on his skin began to flicker, and the efficacy of the Witch Blood Powder was rapidly consumed under the pressure.

[Distance to Pangu Hall: Thirty Li]

[Estimated Remaining Time: Half an hour]

[Warning: Witch Blood Powder efficacy remaining: Two hours]

He had to go faster.

Taiyi gritted his teeth, no longer holding back, and unleashed his full magical power. His form turned into a dark shadow, streaking through the passage. The stone walls, forks in the path, and underground rivers blurred past him.

After dodging three more restrictions and passing through a corridor covered in bioluminescent moss, light finally appeared ahead.

It wasn't natural light, but a dark red glow emanating from the end of the passage.

Taiyi slowed his pace, suppressing all his aura, and crept forward inch by inch.

The end of the passage opened into a cave.

He crouched at the edge of the opening and peered out cautiously.

Outside was a vast underground space, stretching as far as the eye could see. In the center of the space stood a palace.

Pangu Hall.

Taiyi held his breath.

The hall was not magnificent; it could even be called crude. It was built from the most primitive black stone, square and unadorned. Yet, this simple stone hall exuded a heart-stopping pressure.

It was the pressure of creation itself.

The ultimate manifestation of "power."

The stone hall was enveloped by a dark red energy shield—the core restriction of the Twelve Capital Gods and Fiends Formation. The surface of the shield flowed with dense Witch Script, each character wriggling like a living creature, emitting a destructive aura.

In front of the hall was a plaza, and on the plaza stood twelve stone pillars. Each pillar was carved with the totem of an Ancestral Witch: Di Jiang's chaos, Gou Mang's wood, Zhu Rong's fire, Ru Shou's metal, Gonggong's water, Xuan Ming's rain, Qiang Liang's lightning, Zhu Jiuyin's time, Tian Wu's wind, Xi Zi's electricity, She Bishi's weather, and Houtu's earth.

At this moment, the plaza was empty.

But Taiyi could sense at least a dozen presences lurking in the shadows. These were the Witch Race's sentinels, none of them weak, with the lowest being at the Great Witch level.

He retreated into the cave, leaning against the stone wall, calming his racing heart.

He had arrived.

Next was the most difficult part—breaking through the restriction and entering the hall to sign in.

But how to get in?

A direct assault was out of the question. The strength of the restriction was such that even if he were a true Quasi-Saint, not just a "pseudo-Grand Unity peak," a frontal assault would be suicide.

He needed to be clever.

Taiyi closed his eyes and communicated with the System, "Scan the restriction, find any weak points."

[Scanning...]

[Warning: The restriction contains Great Dao laws; scanning may trigger a backlash.]

"Scan."

[Affirmative]

An invisible wave spread from Taiyi's body, reaching out to the dark red shield. The Witch Script on the shield's surface flickered briefly before returning to its calm state.

[Scan complete]

[Restriction structure analysis: 87%]

[Three periodic fluctuation nodes detected]

[Node 1: Located at the eastern pillar, weakens every 300 breaths, lasting for 3 breaths.]

[Node 2: Located at the southern pillar, weakens every 600 breaths, lasting for 2 breaths.]

[Node 3: Located at the western pillar, weakens every 900 breaths, lasting for 1 breath.]

[Recommendation: Breach through Node 1.]

Taiyi opened his eyes and looked towards the stone pillar in the east.

Carved on the pillar was Di Jiang's totem—a mass of twisted chaos. Currently, the totem was faintly glowing, its light rising and falling rhythmically, like it was breathing.

"Three hundred breaths..." he calculated, "About five minutes."

He had to wait.

He hid in the shadow of the cave, motionless, even suppressing his breathing to the lowest possible level. His eyes were fixed on the stone pillar, silently counting.

One breath, two breaths, three breaths...

The underground space was quiet, save for the low "hum" of the restriction operating. The sound was like the breathing of an ancient behemoth, carrying a primal melody.

Time passed slowly.

Suddenly, the totem on the eastern pillar dimmed.

Now!

Taiyi shot out like an arrow loosed from a bow, heading for the shield. The moment he touched the shield, he unleashed all his Blood Fiend Power, condensing it into a dark red cone in front of him.

"Pfft—"

The cone pierced the shield, tearing open a gap!

The gap was small, only enough for one person to squeeze through sideways. And it was rapidly closing.

Taiyi didn't hesitate, squeezing through.

As his body passed through the restriction, it felt like passing through a layer of sticky glue. An omnipresent repulsive force surged from all directions, trying to expel this "foreign object." The Witch Race totems on his skin flashed wildly, the efficacy of the Witch Blood Powder rapidly depleting.

He gritted his teeth and pushed through, finally passing completely.

"Bang."

He landed softly on the stone slabs of the plaza.

The barrier sealed shut behind him, the dark red light shield returning to its original state.

Taiyi collapsed onto the ground, gasping for air. Just that one act had depleted thirty percent of his magic power, and the Witch Blood Powder's efficacy had been consumed for nearly an hour.

But he had finally gotten in.

He raised his head, looking towards Pangu Hall ahead.

The stone hall's doors were wide open, the interior dark and gloomy, like a gaping maw. Two ancient characters were carved above the lintel. They weren't the current script of the Great Wilderness, but an older, primordial script from the Chaos Divine Script—

"Pan" and "Gu."

Taiyi stood up and brushed the dust off himself.

Then he strode forward, walking towards the sacred ground that no outsider had ever set foot in since the creation of heaven and earth.

His footsteps echoed across the vast plaza.

Lonely, yet solid.