Demon Valley

"That damned little beast dared to attack my student!"

Zhao Wuji roared. In truth, Tang San's injuries were largely his fault.

Zhao Wuji had underestimated his opponent and overestimated Tang San. That was how things had come to this.

"Oscar."

Tang San turned to Oscar with a grave expression. Oscar understood at once.

"Fly into Ecstasy Mushroom Sausage!"

Wearing a lecherous grin, Oscar used his Soul Skill and produced eight Big Sausages at once.

The Shrek group ate the Mushroom Sausages, and a pair of purple feathered wings grew from each of their backs.

"After him!"

Tang San flew into the sky first. The others followed close behind, pursuing Lu Mingzi.

He had seen Lu Mingzi's Martial Soul with his own eyes: a great cleaver wreathed in flames. Yet now Lu Mingzi had manifested black wings.

He had probably used some secret art. Whatever its effects, Tang San did not believe those black wings could outfly Oscar's Flying Sausage.

"I won't let you escape!"

Rage and resentment churned in Tang San's heart. The thought of Xiao Wu and his teacher injured filled him with fury.

"You already have a path to death!"

Meanwhile, Tang San and the others had barely taken flight.

Lu Mingzi had already flown an unknown number of miles. It would likely take them some time to catch up.

For all Tang San's calculations, he had never accounted for Lu Mingzi having Twin Martial Souls.

Twin Martial Souls were exceedingly rare. Tang San had always believed he was the only special one.

"Sorry, Little Scumbag. You won't catch me."

Lu Mingzi smiled faintly. The Demonic Angel Wings were more fearsome than he had imagined. When he drove his Soul Power to its limit, his speed...

It could even rival that of a Soul King with a flying Martial Soul!

"Demonic Thought, what's the price you mentioned?"

His two-minute limit was nearly up. He had not forgotten Demonic Thought's warning: once it passed, he would pay a steep price for activating the Angel Wings.

He had had no choice. Zhao Wuji was among Tang San's group, a formidable figure whose Soul Power had already reached level 76.

Even with the Deep Blue system, Lu Mingzi was only a Soul Elder. Dozens of levels separated him from a Soul Saint!

"The price... is that you won't be able to use Soul Skills for three days."

Demonic Thought searched his memory. Much of his past-life memory seemed not to have fully awakened; he was still in the process of awakening.

As he continued to encounter the Douluo Continent, the rest of his past-life memories would awaken. It was only a matter of time.

"Three days? That shouldn't be a problem."

Lu Mingzi considered it. Losing his Soul Skills was a steep price, since they were a Soul Master's main means of attack.

But the Demonic Angel Martial Soul was different. It possessed devouring power and Divine Yin Power, and gave him a body that could even rival a giant beast's.

With Demonic Thought present, his mental strength would gradually improve as well.

He was practically a fighter with no weak side.

I hope I don't run into any thousand-year Soul Beasts over the next three days.

Lu Mingzi withdrew his black wings, landed steadily, and stared at what lay before him.

An immense canyon stood there, split down the middle. Its towering sides resembled two gods or demons, imposing beyond measure.

The only way in was through the passage between them. The red mark on the map also lay deep within the canyon.

Should I go in?

Lu Mingzi hesitated. The original story had never mentioned this place, so he had no way of knowing what might happen here.

The canyon's terrain was treacherous, and there was no telling what Soul Beasts lived in its depths. Even the Titan Giant Ape, despite possessing the map, had not dared enter rashly.

That alone showed how great the danger was.

No. Tang San will be here soon. I can either enter the canyon or head into the inner region. Those are my only choices.

The inner region of the Star Dou Great Forest was unquestionably a dead end. Most of the Soul Beasts there were ten thousand years old, and all were ferocious.

The canyon before him, meanwhile, was entirely unfamiliar.

"Demon Valley?"

Demonic Thought suddenly spoke. Looking at the scene through Lu Mingzi's eyes, he seemed to remember something.

"You know this place?"

Lu Mingzi's heart jolted, and he asked at once.

"I remember! I remember now! The previous inheritor was buried in Demon Valley! Get inside!"

Demonic Thought suddenly shouted in excitement. The previous inheritor had died at the hands of the Azure Divine Dragon and had been buried in this canyon.

"If you find the previous inheritor's remains, you can use your devouring power to absorb the Divine Yin Power left in them!"

"That will greatly strengthen your devouring power and raise your Soul Power Level rapidly!"

Those words gave Lu Mingzi the confidence he needed.

"Let's go!"

Without another word, he strode into the dark valley, his figure slowly vanishing from the forest.

"Let me see the map!"

At Demonic Thought's earnest request, Lu Mingzi raised the Beast Hide map and sent its image into his Spiritual Sea.

The map showed Demonic Thought the entire canyon's terrain. More of his memories came flooding back.

"This canyon is called Demon Valley. It was formed by the shockwaves of the previous inheritor's battle with the Azure Divine Dragon over the divine position."

Seeing that Lu Mingzi might not understand, he went on.

"The Azure Divine Dragon is the ancestor of the Sky Azure Bull Python. It has the bloodline of a true dragon."

"So that's how it happened..."

Lu Mingzi nodded and continued deeper into the canyon.

Before long, he reached a fork with three separate passages.

"Demonic Thought, do you know which way to go?"

He stopped and shivered. A bone-piercing gust swept over him, as though ten thousand needles had stabbed into his skin.

"No idea... heh."

Demonic Thought scratched his head awkwardly and laughed.

"Damn it! You told me to come in when you don't even know the way?"

Lu Mingzi was furious. If he chose a passage blindly, there was no telling what danger awaited him.

He had no intention of gambling with his life.

"What's the rush? Since you both possess the Demonic Angel Martial Soul, you can resonate with each other."

"Resonate?"

"That's right. Whether it's six-winged or Demonic Angel, any Angel Martial Soul can resonate with another."

"Manifest your Martial Soul and feel for where the previous inheritor lies."

Lu Mingzi nodded and released the Demonic Angel. Black markings surfaced on his skin and crawled over his entire arm.

A pair of fierce-looking wings tore out from his back.

He closed his eyes and stood still.

The next moment, Lu Mingzi's Martial Soul began to tremble, as though something were resonating with him.

"Found it!"

Delighted, he chose the middle passage and walked straight in.

Beyond a stretch of muddy yellow earth, a strange cave appeared before him.

In the center of the cave stood a huge statue of a Titan Giant Ape. Its face was twisted into a snarl, as if it would tear apart any intruder.

On the statue's belly was a small, shallow rectangular recess, as though a layer of its skin had been peeled away.

"What's this?"

Lu Mingzi looked at the Beast Hide map in his hand, then up at the recess. Realization dawned.

He walked to the statue and pressed the map into the recess. The hide seemed to be drawn in.

It fit the statue perfectly.

Rumble!

The cave shook violently. Behind the statue, a stone wall slid aside, revealing a passage underground.

"Just as I thought. The map was the key."

By then, Tang San and the others had reached the entrance to Demon Valley.

"Little San, his scent ends here."

Zhao Wuji frowned. Lu Mingzi's scent stopped at the entrance, as though he had suddenly vanished.

"He couldn't have gone deeper. The inner region of the Star Dou Great Forest lies beyond. A mere Soul Elder would certainly die in there."

"We'll wait here for three days."

"After three days, either he'll be dead inside, or he'll come out and I'll cripple him!"