A strange world

Tang Xuan flew in a high arc, with nothing blocking his path, and was hurled a great distance. Only after more than ten minutes did he finally stop, plunging straight into the water. He had thought his misfortune had turned into good luck, only to be caught by a massive underwater whirlpool. Tang Xuan spun round and round with the current, and another ten minutes passed before he was dragged to the bottom-a testament to how deep the water was. Through his dizziness, he seemed to glimpse a cavern. The current swept him inside. Just then, the being dwelling within the lake seemed to sense something and opened its eyes, but closed them again after detecting nothing unusual.

At the Lake of Life,

By the lakeside, Xiao Wu angrily scolded the Titan Giant Ape crouching nearby. "Er Ming, didn't I tell you to go easy? Why did you hit him so hard you sent Brother Xuan flying out of sight?" she demanded.

"I didn't even use that much force. Who knew he couldn't take a hit? Besides, I've already sent some soul beasts to look for him. I'm sure they'll find him soon. Sister Xiao Wu, please don't be angry," Er Ming said, feeling wronged. Before Xiao Wu, the hundred-thousand-year-old Titan Giant Ape was like a child. He had attacked Tang Xuan because he did not want to bring him to the Lake of Life, never imagining that he had already sent him straight into it.

"By the way, where did Da Ming go? Why haven't I seen him? He wouldn't leave this place lightly!" Now that she had calmed down, Xiao Wu finally remembered that she had not seen the Sky Azure Bull Python.

"Oh, Da Ming went into seclusion. I don't know why he likes it so much," Er Ming answered. Restless by nature, he found it hard to understand Da Ming's fondness for frequent seclusion.

"I see."

"Er Ming, hurry and take me back out," Xiao Wu urged him. "It's been so long. Brother San must be worried," she muttered.

"Sister Xiao Wu, is the human world really that wonderful? If those humans discover your identity, they'll definitely kill you," Er Ming said anxiously.

"Er Ming, you wouldn't understand." Her friends were in the human world, along with the person she cared about most. In the end, Er Ming carried Xiao Wu away on his back.

When Tang Xuan awoke again, all he saw was fiery red. He lay beside a stretch of water, his body half submerged. Struggling to his feet, he surveyed his surroundings. What hellish place had he fallen into? Everything around him was barren, without a trace of life.

"Cough, cough, cough..." He clutched his chest and coughed. That Titan Giant Ape really hadn't played by the rules, opening with a punch right off the bat. "Cough, cough, cough." His coughing grew violent, and then he spat out a mouthful of blood. He had taken the Titan Giant Ape's punch full-on, the impact damaging all his internal organs. This might have been the worst injury Tang Xuan had ever suffered. He immediately tipped out a fourth-grade Healing Pill and an Origin-Recovery Pill and swallowed them, then struggled onto the shore and sat cross-legged to circulate his cultivation and heal. Yet he stopped after only a short while.

"Why can't I sense even a trace of spiritual qi?" Tang Xuan looked around in astonishment. Even the most barren place should have had at least a wisp of spiritual qi, yet this place had none at all! He stood, took a few steps forward, and examined his surroundings more closely. Even the sky here was fiery red. Perhaps it could not be called a sky at all; several dozen yards above the ground, there seemed to be something resembling lava.

Gravely injured, Tang Xuan slumped to the ground. Heavens! What kind of hellish place have I ended up in? I remember falling into the water. How did I wind up here? Panic began to rise within him, countless thoughts flooding his mind and tangling together.

Seven days passed, according to Tang Xuan's own calculations. There was no distinction between night and day here, making time difficult to measure. Over those days, he had also accepted the fact that he had ended up here. He had wandered practically everywhere and gained a rough understanding of the place. It seemed to be an underground world covering several dozen hectares. He had found no exits. He had considered retracing his path: since he had come through the water, he should have been able to return that way. He had indeed found a cavern beneath that stretch of water, but entering was easy, leaving was hard. A highly unusual force now barred the cavern's entrance, preventing him from passing through. He had tried repeatedly, even attempting to force his way through, but nothing had worked. He lay on a small slope by the water, staring quietly at its surface. His injuries had healed by thirty or forty percent. With no spiritual qi from heaven and earth here, he could not absorb it to heal himself. Fortunately, he had brought extra Healing Pills on this trip; otherwise, his injuries would have become a serious problem. Tang Xuan rubbed his chest, which still ached faintly. Tang San and the others should have returned to the Academy by now. He hoped nothing unexpected had happened. Once again, his thoughts turned to Tang San and the others.

At Shrek Academy, Dai Mubai and the others gathered outside Tang Xuan's room, all looking utterly dejected. "Has Tang San still not come out?" Flender asked as he arrived with Zhao Wuji.

"It's been three days. As soon as Tang San came back, he went into Tang Xuan's room and locked himself inside. He hasn't eaten anything for three days," Oscar answered. Flender noticed the food they had brought Tang San sitting untouched nearby.

"If I hadn't knocked him out and brought him back, he probably would've kept searching!" Zhao Wuji sighed. After Xiao Wu returned, he and the others had stayed in the forest and searched for another two days. They had scoured the entire area in the direction Tang Xuan had been hurled, but found nothing. Seeing Tang San's terrible condition, Zhao Wuji had not dared let them risk themselves any longer. He had knocked Tang San unconscious and brought everyone back.

Flender stared at the tightly shut door, his feelings tangled. Clear Sky Douluo had entrusted these two children to him. Now one's fate was unknown, while the other had collapsed into despair. How was he supposed to answer to His Excellency Haotian?

"It's all my fault! Brother Xuan was put in danger because of me, and now Tang San is like this. It's all my fault!" Xiao Wu burst into tears of guilt, and Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing hurried to comfort her.

"Why don't we break in and check on him?" Dai Mubai suggested.

"Yes, we can rush in and see whether Brother San-Tang San-is all right," everyone chimed in.

"There's no need. Let Tang San come out on his own. I believe he can think things through himself." Grandmaster Yu Xiaogang appeared behind them. He had arrived two days earlier, and the other six monsters now knew that he was Tang Xuan and Tang San's teacher, so they treated him with considerable respect.

"Xiaogang, you're here."

"Grandmaster." Grandmaster nodded to everyone.

"No matter how worried you are about Tang San, you mustn't neglect your own cultivation. Your training will continue tomorrow. Go back and rest for today." When nobody moved, Grandmaster continued, "You should give him some time to recover." Hearing this, everyone quietly dispersed. Flender came over and patted Grandmaster's shoulder before leaving with Zhao Wuji. Grandmaster remained where he was, staring at the tightly shut door for a long time, a jumble of emotions churning within him. Tang Xuan and Tang San were the greatest pursuit and commitment of the latter half of his life. Of his two beloved disciples, one was sunk in despair, while the other's fate remained unknown. As their teacher, he suffered more than anyone. Yet he still believed in his disciples. One would not remain despondent forever, and the other would not die so easily. He refused to believe it!

"Ah..." Grandmaster let out a long sigh, then turned and left as well.

Inside, Tang San slumped beside Tang Xuan's bed, his eyes vacant. Everything in the room remained just as Tang Xuan had left it; even the half-finished cup of water he had left behind still sat on the table. Tang San's heart felt as though it were being sliced by knives. Ever since Tang Hao had left without saying goodbye, he and Tang Xuan had depended on each other. Throughout those fatherless childhood days, his heart had never felt as hollow as it did now, because back then, he had still had an older brother by his side. But now...

"Brother, have you really..." Tang San did not dare utter that word. It weighed heavily on his heart, crushing him until he could barely breathe.

Meanwhile, a black figure darted swiftly through the Star Dou Great Forest.

Tang Xuan, the one weighing on so many hearts, had already spent ten days in the underground world. He lay idly on the slope, bored. Thanks to the Healing Pills, his injuries had mostly healed. Over the past few days, he had done nothing but heal and practice his swordsmanship. After his soul power recovered, he had made another attempt to break through the underwater cavern, but returned empty-handed once again. He had tried using his spiritual power to explore this place. Covering the entire area should have posed no problem for him, but to his surprise, his spiritual power was suppressed here. Before it could extend very far, it was pushed back.

How exactly had this place formed, and what sustained it? These were the questions Tang Xuan had been pondering all this time.

This was already a world independent of the continent. The outside world maintained its stability through the power of order in the world's laws. Could this place also rely on some special force to remain stable? Tang Xuan lay on the slope, countless thoughts flitting through his mind.

"Hm? What's that noise? Could there be other living creatures here? Impossible." He certainly did not believe there were other people here. In all these days, he had not seen so much as a mosquito! The noises caught his attention, and he climbed to the top of the slope to look down. Sure enough, they were not people. In fact, he could not even tell what species they were.

At the foot of the slope on the other side, four humanoid creatures were fighting two against two. Though they had humanlike forms, they were definitely not human-Tang Xuan was certain of that. Two defeated the other two, then opened their mouths wide, seemingly sucking something out of their fallen kin. The two defeated creatures instantly turned to ash. At that moment, the remaining pair began fighting each other as well, and one was devoured by the victor just like the previous two. The final survivor was clearly much stronger than before, even its body swelling in size. Just as it was about to leave, Tang Xuan suddenly slashed out with his sword. Sword light flashed, cleaving the creature in two.

Tang Xuan approached to investigate. Lava flowed across the ground where the four creatures had stood. As he drew closer, a strand of fire essence power flew out of the lava and entered his body.

"These unknown creatures were actually formed from lava. Even the lava has become a spirit." Thinking it over, he still could not believe lava could become a spirit on its own. Seeing the footprints the creatures had left on the ground, he followed them, intending to get to the bottom of this.