The Mysterious Life-Form in the Deepest Reaches

She desperately wanted to chase after him and see what was going on, but she simply lacked the strength. All she could do was stand there and stare.

"If that really was a person, how strong would they have to be? Does someone like that really exist in the Demon Domain?!"

She couldn't imagine what kind of strength someone would need to accomplish such a feat.

Forget the present Demon Emperor-even the Eternal Night Demon Emperor, who had disappeared a long time ago, probably couldn't do it!

After all, she had heard that the Eternal Night Demon Emperor could only reach a depth of thirty or forty li.

He could only descend thirty or forty li into the Heavenfall Demon Cavern, and even at that depth, flying at such a speed would be impossible!

After flying at high speed for some time, Lu Qing'an finally reached the depth he had once been able to reach: thirty-five li down.

There, he saw the mark he had left when he came here after becoming the Eternal Night Demon Emperor.

Back then, he had taken all the Heavenfall Divine Metal down to this depth.

Now, he hadn't seen a single piece of Heavenfall Divine Metal within that depth.

"All right, let's see how deep I can go with twice my strength."

He was in no hurry to draw on more cultivation for use, and he stopped flying at high speed, instead descending slowly at a relatively normal pace.

As he flew farther down into the deep pit of the Heavenfall Demon Cavern, the pit's opening gradually began to narrow.

The space around him was now only the size of a circular basketball court, but looking ahead, he saw that the pit below still resembled the gaping, savage maw of a terrifying behemoth.

As he continued downward, the pit would surely keep narrowing until, at its deepest point, only a small hole remained.

There should be plenty of Heavenfall Divine Metal there.

After flying down for a while longer, he suddenly stopped.

His gaze had been drawn to an object embedded in the rock wall beside him.

It was a fist-sized piece of Heavenfall Divine Metal!

It was pitch-black all over, its surface covered in fine, dark-gold patterns that shimmered as though molten lava were flowing through them.

Its texture lay somewhere between metal and crystal, giving the illusion of immense weight, and a strange temperature faintly emanated from its surface.

Sparks of violet-black lightning occasionally burst from its edges, twisting the surrounding air into vortices.

Most peculiar of all, a mass of liquid shadow rotated slowly at its core, like a sealed fragment of the abyss. A few extra glances at it would leave one dizzy and disoriented.

The corners of Lu Qing'an's mouth rose.

This little piece could be forged into a fairly small dagger!

"Not bad. I can forge a little dagger for Miaomiao."

He reached out and took it down. At once, he felt the Heavenfall Divine Metal alternate between bone-chilling cold and scorching heat, while waves of mysterious power tried to creep up his hand.

That was the feeling.

Like an untamed beast, it tried to turn on the person who had obtained it.

But black flames merely swept over Lu Qing'an's hand, and the Heavenfall Divine Metal instantly fell quiet, returning to a perfectly calm state.

"Onward!"

This little piece wasn't enough.

Surely there would be more farther down.

He continued flying slowly downward, carefully sweeping his surroundings with his spiritual sense.

At this depth, the waves formed by the strange power were no longer merely scorching. Instead, they alternated between searing heat and bone-piercing cold.

The contrast was extreme.

If an ordinary Peak Great Emperor Realm expert came here, a moment's carelessness would be enough to leave them buried here.

For Lu Qing'an now, however, this environment was no different from an ordinary space. Powerful Demonic Qi burst forth around him, completely shielding him from everything that threatened his body!

He flew a little farther down and spotted another piece of Heavenfall Divine Metal.

"Haha, not bad! It's as big as a human head!"

He hurriedly put the piece of Heavenfall Divine Metal away.

This piece was already enough for him to forge a divine weapon!

"Onward! If possible, I'll get some more!"

He continued flying downward.

This went on as he descended another ten li or so, finding a piece of Heavenfall Divine Metal almost every li.

The pieces he obtained did not grow larger with depth; their size depended partly on luck.

Farther down, a piece might be no bigger than a finger, or it might be as large as a millstone.

Over those ten-odd li, the Heavenfall Divine Metal he collected amounted to two millstones' worth!

That was probably enough for him to forge a divine weapon for himself, armor for his eldest daughter, and a weapon for his youngest daughter.

"Looks like I'm almost at the bottom of the demon cavern! Hopefully I can get some more Heavenfall Divine Metal!"

The space around him was now only about the size of a small pond.

He would probably reach the bottom in less than another li.

But he couldn't see ahead at all. Chaotic power blocked his view, so he didn't know exactly how deep it was.

If nothing unexpected happened, the entire Heavenfall Demon Cavern was probably a little over fifty li deep.

That was already a terrifying depth.

He continued downward, and as he stepped down one pace at a time, the scene before him gradually changed.

The pit grew narrower and narrower.

Strangely, he found that there was no more Heavenfall Divine Metal embedded in the rock walls.

"At this depth, twice my strength is already a little insufficient. Looks like I'll have to raise it to three times."

Lu Qing'an drew on more cultivation, and in the blink of an eye, his cultivation strength reached three times its original level.

At that very moment, the discomfort he had just begun to feel vanished without a trace.

"Ahem, being a little stronger does feel pretty good."

He had to admit that there was some sense in the system giving him such great strength.

Finding no more Heavenfall Divine Metal on the rock walls, he picked up his speed.

A quarter of an hour later, he came to a complete stop.

At that moment, he finally saw what lay at the very bottom of the Heavenfall Demon Cavern!

The deepest part of the Heavenfall Demon Cavern was a narrow space the size of three wells.

The surrounding rock walls had been eroded smooth as mirrors by chaotic power, and they shimmered with a faint violet glow.

At the very center floated a carriage-sized piece of Heavenfall Divine Metal!

Lu Qing'an's eyes lit up at the sight of it.

"There really is a huge piece of Heavenfall Divine Metal! This one is enough for me to forge all sorts of things!"

But when he looked more closely, he immediately noticed that this piece was somewhat different from those he had collected earlier!

The enormous piece of Heavenfall Divine Metal was pitch-black all over, its dark-gold patterns pulsing like blood vessels. Violet-black lightning crackled from its edges, twisting the surrounding space into a spiraling void.

But strangest of all, a mass of translucent, silver-gray power was slowly rotating at the core of the Heavenfall Divine Metal!

It brightened and dimmed as it breathed, like a living thing!

Whenever its light swelled and receded, star-like blue points appeared, only to turn into blood-red threads that darted about in an instant!

The space around the mass of power continuously collapsed and reformed. Ripples like transparent tendrils occasionally reached out, and whenever they touched the rock walls, they set off a deep hum, like a sleeping behemoth murmuring in its dreams!

"What on earth is the thing inside? Why does it feel like it's alive?"

Deeply curious, Lu Qing'an moved closer.

The moment he took a step forward, the mass of power in the center of the Heavenfall Divine Metal suddenly erupted with a terrifying presence that surged toward him.

"Little thing! You really are alive! And so violent, too?"

Facing the incoming presence, Lu Qing'an merely waved one hand and instantly dispersed it.

If he had still been at only twice his strength, he probably would have been seriously injured by that sudden attack.

Now, however, the thing could do nothing to him.

"Let's see what on earth you are."

Filled with curiosity, he pressed forward.