Defensive Measures Must Be Prepared

This time, there was no hesitation or struggle in his eyes as there had been ten years ago.

Five thousand years of stagnation, combined with the repetitive mental preparation of the last decade, had pushed his mindset to its absolute limit.

His identity as a manifestation of Great Dao merit meant he was never destined to safely rot away in this secluded cave until the end of time.

He raised a claw and pressed it against the mechanism of the stone door.

"Click, click, click..."

A heavy, grinding sound echoed through the tunnel as the stone door slowly swung open once more.

The air outside still carried a hint of chill, and the scent of blood seemed slightly fainter than it had ten years ago, though only marginally so.

Lu Changsheng poked his head out halfway and scanned his surroundings.

For dozens of miles in every direction, there was nothing but deathly silence.

Aside from the rustling of wind through the bushes, there was no sign of any living creature, nor any fluctuations of powerful spiritual energy.

Confirming it was safe, he took a deep breath, stepped out with his claws, and finally left the cave that had sheltered him for over five thousand years.

The moment his feet firmly touched the slightly hardened soil outside, the heavy, vast, and ancient aura of the Primordial Land surged into his heart through the soles of his feet.

Lu Changsheng looked back at the wide-open stone door.

He raised his right wing and skillfully formed a complex hand seal, striking it into the array hub above the stone door.

"Boom—"

The stone door slammed shut.

Immediately after, the silhouette of the entire Nameless Low Mountain began to twist and blur in a bizarre fashion.

The surrounding light refracted; the once-barren mountain vanished from sight, replaced by a patch of unremarkable flat ground and a few withered ancient trees.

Even the faint trace of spiritual energy that had leaked out when the door opened was thoroughly masked and smoothed over by the Illusion Array.

Lu Changsheng stood in place, sweeping his divine sense back and forth seven or eight times, and only nodded in satisfaction after confirming that even he, the one who had set the array, would struggle to find a flaw without relying on the array core.

"Let's go. Primordial Land, I have arrived."

Lu Changsheng gave himself a pep talk.

He did not choose to take flight.

In the early days of the Primordial Land, where danger lurked everywhere, unless you were a mighty figure at the Quasi-Saint level or possessed some heaven-defying escape ability, flying in the sky was essentially acting as a bright, living target, practically screaming to every bird and beast in the world, "I am here, come and eat me."

With a thought, Lu Changsheng immediately retracted the faint layer of golden flames on his skin.

He suppressed the unique aura of his Great Dao merit to the absolute minimum within his body.

From the outside, he now looked like an ordinary Fire Crow with slightly brighter feathers and a slightly stronger build—the kind that wouldn't even count as a bottom-tier mountain-patrolling demon if thrown into a crowd of the Demon Race.

He flapped his wings twice, staying less than half a meter above the ground, and crept into a dense thicket of bushes like a thief.

He groped his way forward for about ten miles.

Along the way, Lu Changsheng walked with extreme trepidation, as if treading on thin ice.

If he encountered a tree trunk that was even slightly tall, he would never pass beneath its branches, preferring to detour hundreds of meters out of his way.

When he saw brightly colored flowers or plants emitting strange fragrances on the ground, he held his breath and refused to go within half a step, terrified they might be man-eating flowers or highly toxic spiritual plants.

Even when he occasionally encountered an ordinary rabbit that hadn't even gained sentience, he would immediately flatten himself in the grass, hiding behind a rock to observe for a long time.

Only after confirming it was truly just a rabbit would he dare to continue creeping forward.

He walked and stopped like this for about seven or eight days.

Lu Changsheng was just about to bypass a massive black rock when he suddenly stopped in his tracks.

He twitched his nose and fixed his gaze on the ground not far ahead.

There, a chasm dozens of yards long and bottomless had appeared.

There was no water in the chasm, only a mass of dark red mist churning violently, from which faint, heart-wrenching wails emanated.

"This is... a Sha Qi Pit!"

Lu Changsheng's eyes lit up sharply.

This was a product formed during the Great Tribulation of Fierce Beasts, created when the residual resentment and destructive power of fallen, powerful beasts combined with the earth's veins.

This Sha Qi was filled with corrosive and manic factors; ordinary Primordial creatures avoided it at all costs.

Even a cultivator at the True Immortal realm would have their Dao foundation ruined or even fall into demonic obsession if they touched even a drop.

But for a creature like Lu Changsheng, manifested from Great Dao merit, this stuff was a pure experience pack!

As long as he used his own power of merit to slowly purify this Sha Qi and soothe the wounds of the earth, the Heavenly Dao would naturally sense his good deed and bestow corresponding merit as a reward.

This was the upgrade resource he had dreamed of, and the first genuine opportunity he had encountered since leaving the nest where he had hidden for over five thousand years.

If this were an ordinary transmigrator, they would likely be shouting with excitement by now, jumping straight into the pit to begin absorbing the energy frantically.

But Lu Changsheng did not.

Not only did he refrain from jumping out, but he pressed his body even lower, flattening himself almost entirely against the cold, muddy ground, his breathing slowed to the absolute minimum.

Must not rush, absolutely must not rush.

Lu Changsheng repeatedly warned himself in his heart.

In this wretched place, the Primordial Land, the things that look most like opportunities are often the most lethal traps.

Although this Sha Qi Pit is tempting, who knows if there are any venomous insects or ferocious beasts corrupted by the malevolent energy hiding inside?

What if there is a remnant of a fierce beast lying wounded and sleeping at the bottom of the pit? What if this is bait intentionally left behind by some powerful evil cultivator to fish for prey?

Various paranoid thoughts churned wildly in his mind.

For the sake of caution, Lu Changsheng decided to hold his position for now.

Like a lifeless stone, he lay dormant at the boundary between the shrubbery and the mud, his eyes fixed intently on the abyss dozens of yards away, where dark red mist churned.

A day passed.

It was calm and quiet; not even a bird's feather drifted by.

Three days passed.

The malevolent energy in the pit continued to churn mindlessly, with no signs of any living creature entering or exiting.

Ten days passed.

Half a month passed.

For a full half-month, Lu Changsheng maintained the exact same posture; even when a few mindless venomous insects crawled over his head, he did not move a muscle.

Only after he had confirmed hundreds, if not thousands of times, that within a radius of ten miles, aside from the sound of the wind and the churning malevolent energy, there was absolutely no other sound of breathing, did he cautiously crawl up from the mud.

"Phew... it should be safe now."

Lu Changsheng shook the dried, caked mud off his body and crept toward the Sha Qi Pit with light, stealthy steps.

He took a full incense stick's time to cover a mere few dozen yards.

With every step, he stopped to look around, and at the slightest rustle of wind or grass, he would immediately drop to the ground and play dead.

Having finally reached the edge of the Sha Qi Pit and feeling the cold, manic energy rushing toward his face, Lu Changsheng took a deep breath.

Yet, he still did not immediately begin the purification.

"When out and about, safety comes first. Before starting work, I must ensure my protective measures are in place."