The dizziness of spatial teleportation had yet to fully fade when a suffocating surge of pure demonic qi mingled with yin fiend qi rushed straight at him! Han Li felt his entire body tighten, as though he had fallen into a viscous mire, making every movement agonizingly difficult. He hurriedly circulated the Profound Fiend Asura Art, shielding himself with dark spiritual power. Only then did he steady himself and warily survey his surroundings.
Before him stretched a gloomy space with no end in sight. The sky was eternally blood-red, with neither sun nor moon. The earth was dry and cracked, riddled with hideous ravines. Dark-red fiend qi and demonic qi saturated the air, so dense they seemed impossible to disperse. Countless twisted phantoms of tormented souls drifted within them, wailing soundlessly. In the distance, he could just make out the shattered ruins of ancient buildings, scattered across the wasteland like the skeletons of enormous beasts.
So this is the interior of the Buried Demon Abyss? What dense fiend qi! Han Li's heart tightened. The fiend qi here was even purer than that of the Profound Yin True Fiend Vein, but its corrosion of the mind was also far more terrifying. Had he not cultivated the Profound Fiend Asura Art and possessed the Spirit-Nurturing Stone's protection, he would likely have been corrupted in an instant, reduced to a demonic creature that knew only slaughter.
He tried extending his spiritual sense, only to discover that it was severely suppressed here, reaching less than fifty zhang. None of the cultivators who had entered with him were visible. It seemed they had been randomly transported to different regions upon entering.
[Ding! High-concentration mixed fiend qi environment detected. Conditions meet the requirements for intensive cultivation of the Profound Fiend Asura Art. Fiend qi body-tempering efficiency increased by 300%. Warning! The environment contains large quantities of chaotic demonic thoughts and residual resentful soul power. The risk of Heart Demon corruption is extremely high! Host, please maintain clarity of mind.]
The system's notification sounded at just the right moment.
Han Li nodded slightly. The system's assessment matched his own perception. This was both a dangerous place and a treasure land for cultivation. Rather than rushing to explore, he first found a relatively concealed crevice in a huge boulder and set up the Profound Yin Aura-Hiding Formation. Sitting cross-legged, he regulated his breathing to adapt to the environment while bringing himself into peak condition.
Half an hour later, Han Li opened his eyes, the keen light within them restrained. Choosing a direction where the flow of fiend qi was relatively orderly, he used Shadowless Escape and slipped silently forward to explore.
The sights along the way were horrifying. Vast numbers of decaying skeletons littered the ground, some belonging to human cultivators and others to all manner of bizarre demonic beasts. Powerful energy fluctuations still lingered on many of the bones, making it clear that their owners had possessed extraordinary cultivation in life. Space was extremely unstable in certain areas. Occasionally, a tiny spatial rift would split open without warning, exuding a destructive aura that chilled the heart.
After traveling roughly a hundred li, he came upon an immensely broad, dark-red river. Its waters were thick as blood and flowed ceaselessly, carrying countless struggling resentful souls that screamed in anguish. Only one ancient, badly damaged stone bridge spanned the river. Cracks covered its body, making it look ready to collapse at any moment. A broken stone stele stood at its entrance, bearing three blurred ancient characters: Netherworld Bridge.
I have to cross. Han Li could sense even purer fluctuations of fiend qi coming from the opposite bank, as though a greater opportunity lay hidden there. He cautiously approached the stone bridge.
The instant he stepped onto the bridge, disaster struck!
Dense black qi erupted from the cracks in the bridge, swiftly condensing into three demonic creatures clad in broken armor and wielding Bone Blades, eerie green soul flames burning in their eye sockets! Their auras were formidable—all three had reached the Foundation Establishment Late Stage, and each carried the savage fiend aura of a veteran of a hundred battles!
Demonic bridge guardians? Han Li's gaze sharpened, and he dared not be careless. These three creatures had clearly formed from the local fiend qi and the remnant souls of an ancient battlefield. They possessed no intelligence, only an instinct to kill.
"Roar!" The three creatures unleashed soundless roars and turned into three streaks of black light, lunging at Han Li from different directions! Their blades flashed fiercely, their coordination flawless, cutting off every route of retreat in an instant!
"Come on, then!" Han Li growled. Instead of retreating, he advanced! Pushing Shadow Step to its limit, he flickered like a phantom and narrowly evaded two Bone Blades slashing across each other! At the same time, the Shadow Blade in his right hand, wreathed in pseudo core flame, struck precisely against the spine of the third creature's descending blade!
Clang! Sparks flew! The creature was jolted half a step backward.
"Profound Yin Binding!" Han Li formed a seal with his left hand. Several black threads instantly wound around the other two creatures, slowing their movements.
"Fiend Shadow Clone!" With a thought, he sent fiend qi surging from his body, condensing beside him into a shadow clone almost identical to himself! Wielding a phantom Shadow Blade, the clone fearlessly hurled itself at one of the creatures trapped by Profound Yin Binding!
Meanwhile, Han Li unleashed his full strength, pouring dark spiritual power into the Shadow Blade. Black radiance blazed from its edge as he delivered an incomparably fierce Soul-Eroding Slash toward another creature's head!
Boom! Boom!
Two explosions rang out almost simultaneously! One creature was blasted to pieces by the clone's self-sacrificing strike, dissolving into black qi. Another took Han Li's blade to the head; its soul flame went out, and its body broke apart.
The final creature, still trapped by Profound Yin Binding, was pierced between the brows by a backhanded Soul-Eroding Finger from Han Li and completely disintegrated.
The battle ended in a flash of lightning and sparks. Han Li was breathing slightly harder, but delight stirred in his heart. With his Foundation Establishment Late Stage strength, his system-optimized cultivation art, and the newly acquired Fiend Shadow Clone, handling demonic creatures of his own level had become effortless!
[Ding! Killed Foundation Establishment Late Stage bridge guardians ×3. Plundered pure fiend soul energy. Profound fiend true core condensation increased. Spiritual sense slightly strengthened.]
A stream of pure energy flooded his body, and Han Li felt his cultivation advance a little further. Not daring to linger, he swiftly crossed the stone bridge. The instant he stepped onto the opposite bank, the entire Netherworld Bridge groaned under an unbearable burden, then collapsed with a thunderous crash into the river of blood below and vanished.
The scenery on this bank was entirely different. It was no longer barren; oddly shaped dark-red plants grew here instead. The fiend qi filling the air was even purer, condensing into a faint mist. In the distance, the outline of a towering black palace loomed intermittently through the fiend mist, radiating a pressure that made his heart tremble.
Is that... the final destination? Han Li's gaze burned. He could sense that the palace held unimaginable opportunities-and lethal danger.
He continued onward with even greater caution. Along the way, he encountered several more waves of demonic creatures, including demonic beasts condensed from fiend qi and Vengeful Ghosts formed from the remnant souls of cultivators trapped here who had lost their minds. All possessed strength between the middle and late stages of Foundation Establishment. Relying on his formidable strength and uncanny methods, Han Li slew them one by one, steadily increasing both his cultivation and his experience in actual combat.
Several days later, Han Li finally reached the foot of the black palace. It stood a thousand zhang tall, cast entirely from an unknown black metal. Blade cuts, axe marks, and dried blood covered its surface, and it exuded an ancient, desolate air. Its great doors were tightly shut, carved with an enormous, hideous demon god's head. The demon god's hollow eyes seemed to stare at everyone who approached.
At that moment, twenty or thirty figures had already gathered in the square before the palace! Feng Yue of Heavenly Tower Fort, the green-robed elder of the Spirit Controlling Sect, the sinister young man of the Ghost King Sect, Nangong Wan of the Covering Moon Sect, Han Yunzhi of Spirit Beast Mountain, and leading independent cultivators such as Dugu Jian and the stout, honest-looking cultivator were all among them! Everyone's aura was powerful. Clearly, each had encountered opportunities within the abyss and made progress in cultivation. They stood apart, wary of one another, their gazes all fixed on the enormous palace doors.
Han Li's arrival drew their attention. Several gazes fell on him, carrying scrutiny, apprehension, and undisguised hostility. Elder Feng of the Black Fiend Cult and the members of the Feng Family in particular looked as though fire might shoot from their eyes.
When Nangong Wan saw Han Li, an almost imperceptible trace of relief flashed through her beautiful eyes. Han Yunzhi blinked curiously.
His expression calm, Han Li found a secluded corner and stood there, secretly regulating his breathing to recover from the strain of his journey. He noticed that two eerie lights were slowly kindling in the eyes of the demon god's head on the palace doors!
Hum-!
The entire square shook violently! With a heavy rumble, the palace doors slowly opened inward, leaving a narrow gap! Profound yin fiend qi, a hundred times purer than that outside yet carrying supreme majesty and temptation, surged through the opening like floodwaters bursting through a dam!
At the same time, a mighty, icy voice devoid of all emotion rang out in everyone's mind:
"The Profound Fiend Power Heaven-Piercing Hall has opened! Those who seek my inheritance must pass three trials! The first trial: 'Fiend Qi Infusion.' Those who endure may enter the inner hall! Those who fail shall have their souls scattered into oblivion!"
As the voice faded, the profound yin fiend qi pouring through the gap suddenly turned violent. It became torrents of dark-red fiend qi that shot toward every person in the square with unerring precision, as though alive!
The trial had begun!
Before you continue