Gu Chen rested for a while before getting up from the ground. The closer he got to the temple, the more abundant the spiritual energy became, accompanied by a sinister feeling.
Having returned from Heavenly Nether Star, Gu Chen hadn't experienced this feeling in a long time. Finally, when he was about twenty steps away from the temple and the woods, he couldn't help but stop.
The presence of spiritual energy indicates the presence of demonic beasts.
There are also rare and exotic herbs and flowers!
If Shennong Grass truly exists on Xiaoxiang Peak, it could only be found in this place!
However, the path ahead was too strange, and Gu Chen dared not venture forward rashly. With a solemn expression, he summoned the Dragon Scale Sword, used the Sword Control Technique, and the flying sword drew a bright light as it sped forward— Gu Chen intended to use the flying sword to scout the way.
Just as the flying sword arrived above the grove of trees and temples, a cloud of black mist suddenly surged up from below, resembling both thick fog and miasma. In the blink of an eye, it formed a virtual gaseous shape like a human hand, and then grabbed the flying sword firmly in the center!
Gu Chen was struck dumb, his face turned pale, and he staggered back several steps!
It should be noted that the flying sword and the host who uses the Sword Control Technique are connected in mind and body. When the black hand grabbed the flying sword, it was as if a finger had been cut off. Gu Chen was covered in cold sweat and his body trembled with pain.
Although the scene was bizarre, he reacted quickly, immediately urging the Dragon Scale Sword to turn back from mid-air. However, the sword hummed in the void, as if a magnet was attracted by a huge magnetic field, and even with all his strength, Gu Chen could not move it an inch.
What's going on?
Gu Chen's heart sank, and a shadow fell over his brow.
"You killed several of my Heaven and Earth Beast, brat, you deserve to die!!"
Just then, a voice that sounded neither male nor female rang out, coming from an unknown direction, but instantly echoed throughout the entire underground world, filled with suppressed rage and mania!
Gu Chen was instantly shocked. What shocked him was not only the powerful Inner Breath of the voice, which was indistinguishable between yin and yang, but also the fact that there were other people here!
"Who?"
Gu Chen looked around warily, finally fixing his gaze on the temple in the woods.
"Heh heh, I deliberately spread the news of the emergence of Shennong Grass, but I never expected someone would dare to break in and offer it as a sacrifice. Very well, very well indeed!"
Was the information about Shennong Grass deliberately spread?
Gu Chen's heart skipped a beat!
A dark figure suddenly rushed out from the sky above the temple in the woods and stood on the temple roof. Then, he reached out and squeezed hard!
The giant hand shrouded in black mist in the void made the same movement, snap—
The Dragon Scale Sword was snapped in two by the giant black hand!
Gu Chen's pupils constricted sharply at this sight!
Although the Dragon Scale Sword was only a low-level magic weapon, not only was its grade low, but its materials were also very rough. However, for Gu Chen, it was the first magic weapon he personally crafted at the Heartless Sect after being taken away by Luo Yunxi!
Even after he acquired many more advanced magical artifacts, he couldn't bear to lose them and always carried them with him!
This ritual implement is of great significance!
"Huh..."
However, after snapping the Dragon Scale Sword in two, the figure let out a soft exclamation, clearly noticing the notch in the blade. "What is this thing? Why is there a rune array inside?"
"You dare destroy my Dragon Scale Sword!" A murderous glint flashed in Gu Chen's eyes!
Immediately afterward, he leaped into the air and charged towards the dark figure. He made a hand seal, and a fan instantly appeared in his hand!
Low-level magical artifact, the Three-Flame Fan!
The Three-Flame Fan is a replica of the Seven-Flame Fan, a high-level magic weapon from the Heavenly Nether Star. Gu Chen obtained this magic weapon by completing many sect missions in the Heartless Sect and earning contribution points. Like the Dragon Scale Sword, it was a magic weapon he used around the Foundation Establishment Stage.
After activating the Emperor's Vein, with Gu Chen's current cultivation level, the only magical artifacts he can possess besides the Dragon Scale Sword are the Three-Flame Fan.
The pressure from this person was immense; the giant black hand, the jungle temple, and the monstrous beast lurking somewhere all exuded an eeriness and danger!
Therefore, after the Dragon Scale Sword broke, he had to retaliate.
The Three-Flame Fan requires True Qi to activate and enhance it. With his current cultivation level, it would take him no more than five minutes to activate the Three-Flame Fan. But even so, he couldn't wait for the shadowy figure to make the first move. He had to take a gamble!
Boom!
Gu Chen caught the dark figure on the temple roof off by surprise and swung the fan directly at it. The airflow surged, like a high-pressure water jet, and all of it gathered in front of the fan. Then, a ball of flame suddenly ignited, flashing at the front of the Three-Flame Fan, and then transformed into a wave of fire that swept away.
"What is this? Spell?!"
But upon seeing this, the figure above appeared extremely excited, and even his voice trembled!
Faced with this move, he was not afraid at all. Instead, he once again drove the giant black hand to grab the wave of fire coming from the void!
However, just as he extinguished a wave of fire and was laughing triumphantly, he was unaware that Gu Chen had a hidden trick up his sleeve!
On Heavenly Nether Star, low-level magical artifacts are often covered with rune arrays set up by their creators. The Three-Flame Fan is known for its three flames forming waves and continuous burning smoke, and naturally, there are also a second and a third layer!
From within the fan, Gu Chen's flames surged forth. The figure was clearly caught off guard and hastily managed to deflect the second wave of fire, but the third wave of fire successfully reached the sky above the temple!
"Disperse!"
Gu Chen gave a muffled shout, and immediately, a two-meter-long wave of fire suddenly dispersed in mid-air, turning into sparks that fell directly down! Surrounding the temple were forests of gray and black, and when the dry leaves were ignited, the fire instantly grew larger and rose upwards, simultaneously igniting the ethereal black giant hand!
"You brat!" the shadowy figure roared, never expecting that Gu Chen had such a plan!
Gu Chen gasped for breath, seeing the previously composed figure now panicked. He put away the Three-Flame Fan, gathered his True Essence Power, and quickly ran towards the temple.
The figure leaped and bounded on the temple roof. Although the spiritual energy here was abundant, this person did not seem to know how to use magic. After losing the giant black hand, his strength plummeted, and the pressure he put on Gu Chen also decreased significantly.
Although he no longer had the Dragon Scale Sword, Gu Chen, as a Divine Emperor, still had many tricks up his sleeve. After rushing into the forest, his True Essence Power lifted him into the air, and stepping on the flaming tree trunks, he instantly reached the roof of the temple!
Bang!
Gu Chen unleashed a powerful punch at the figure!
The figure was dodging the flames and, caught off guard, was punched in the body by Gu Chen, then fell heavily to the ground. Only then did Gu Chen get a clear look at the figure.
He wore an extremely large black cloak and appeared to be nearly two meters tall, but after Gu Chen knocked him to the ground, his body beneath the cloak was revealed to be completely naked. He was emaciated, like a skeleton, as if a gust of wind could blow him away, and a ferocious and terrifying face was visible beneath the cloak's hood.
No, that could already be called a face. The lower edge of the eye sockets, the prominent cheekbones, and apart from the skin, you couldn't see a single bit of flesh. It was completely like a skeleton!
What kind of monster are you?
Gu Chen was startled.
"You brat, I am the infamous Great Immortal Ghost King of the Land of Heaven and Earth!" The skeleton man stood up, flames already engulfing the temple. Looking down at the burning everything below, his voice was filled with anguish. He said, "You dare destroy the formation I painstakingly built over twenty years! I will sacrifice you, drain your blood, use your bones as offerings, and your skin as drumheads!"
Gu Chen's heart trembled slightly. He had heard Sun Jiangman mention the Land of Heaven and Earth before, but he never expected that this guy actually came from the Land of Heaven and Earth, and had become like this!
This is all too strange. Gu Chen's eyes sharpened, and before he could speak, he clenched his fists and struck the skeleton man's chest!