Meeting the Old Ghost's Divine Sense
Li Yunjing quickly helped him up. "Let's not talk about that for now. How are you all? What about Dao Lord Hanzun? What's his current situation?"
Upon hearing the name of Dao Lord Hanzun, Du'e's face showed anxiety. "Dao Lord Li, His Majesty is deep within the earth's veins."
"A few days ago, when the barrier first appeared, His Majesty said something was wrong, that someone was causing trouble deep within the earth's veins. He led two hundred elite troops deep into the Cold Abyss Earth Eye, saying he wanted to investigate."
"We stayed outside to keep watch, but there's still no news from the ley lines, and we're very anxious."
"Just recently, His Majesty suddenly sent out a message saying that an altar had been discovered deep within the earth's veins. He suspects that this altar is the culprit that has plunged Northern Spirit Province into crisis, so His Majesty immediately ordered me to lead people in to provide support."
I counted the people and was about to go in to help when suddenly a bunch of monsters appeared out of nowhere.
"A monster?" Li Yunjing frowned.
"Yes." Du'e nodded, and even shivered.
"Yes, they are monsters. They all look like High Antiquity cultivators, covered in black fur, incredibly strong, and impervious to pain. One batch dies and another appears, it seems like they can never be killed off."
"Moreover, these monsters are quite powerful. When they first appeared, they had the strength of the Spirit Transformation stage. However, as more and more monsters appeared, some even reached the peak of the Void Refinement Perfection stage."
I reckon that after a while, it's not impossible for someone to even reach the Tribulation Transcendence level.
"We were separated by them, and we don't know what's happening inside the ley lines now."
Li Yunjing and Wangshu exchanged a glance, both seeing the seriousness in each other's eyes.
There was indeed a problem.
Li Yunjing said in a deep voice, "No need to rush. Lead the way, we'll hurry to the entrance of the ley lines."
"Good!"
Du'e quickly led the way.
The group quickened their pace and headed deeper into the Cold Abyss.
At the entrance to the ley lines, a dark mass of black-haired monsters was wandering back and forth.
From within the earth's veins, the faint rumbling sounds of battle could be heard.
"It's His Majesty! He's still alive!" Du'e was overjoyed upon hearing the booming sound.
The entrance to the ley lines is a massive rift valley from which black mist continuously billows.
Li Yunjing looked at the black-haired monsters, which were similar to what Du'e had described before.
They were dressed in High Antiquity- style clothing, each one tall and covered in black hair, with empty eyes and stiff movements.
At this moment, they sensed the presence of a stranger and turned their heads in unison.
"Roar!"
Roars rose and fell, and the group of black-haired monsters immediately charged towards the group.
"Stop them," Li Yunjing ordered.
"Dao Lord Li, leave these monsters to me!" Du'e stepped forward. "Cold Abyss Division, form battle formation!"
Fifty warriors stood in formation, their dark blue battle auras blending together.
Bang!
The two sides clashed, but the battle formation remained as solid as a mountain. The black-haired monster charged forward as if it had crashed into a steel plate.
Wangshu and Primordial Lord Bi Shui also joined the fray, their moonlight and water blades clashing as they relentlessly reaped the lives of the black-haired monster.
These black-haired monsters, though fearless and valiant, lacked intelligence and their combat strength was only at the Spirit Transformation stage.
In a short while, hundreds of black-haired monsters were cleared away.
"Let's go inside."
Seeing that the black-haired monsters had been cleared out, Li Yunjing took the lead and leaped into the rift valley.
The earth's vein channels slope downwards, and the deeper one goes, the denser the Tribulation Qi becomes, and the lower the temperature.
The rock walls on both sides are covered with black ice crystals, and occasionally you can see the corpses of High Antiquity sealed in the ice.
Deeper into the passage, the sounds of fighting grew clearer.
Bang, bang!
Each collision caused the passage to tremble slightly, and gravel fell in a rustling sound.
After turning a corner, the view suddenly opened up before me.
Deep within the earth's veins lies a massive underground cavern.
In the center of the cave stands a pitch-black altar.
The altar has three layers, covered with mysterious runes, and inlaid in the center is a black bead the size of a human head, emanating a strong Tribulation Qi.
In front of the altar, a burly figure was engaged in a fierce battle.
The Dao Lord Hanzun's black clothes were tattered and he was covered in wounds, yet he remained fearless and his fists were like iron hammers, each punch causing the air to explode.
He was surrounded by dozens of even stronger black-haired monsters, each possessing the combat power of Tribulation Transcendence First Stage.
"Your Excellency!" Du'e cried out upon seeing Dao Lord Hanzun.
Dao Lord Hanzun turned his head sharply, saw Li Yunjing and his group, a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes, then he was overjoyed. "Sect Leader Li? How did you get in?"
Just then, a monster charged straight at them, fearless of death.
Dao Lord Hanzun turned around and punched, directly smashing the monster's head.
The monster immediately lunged forward, fell to the ground, and lost its fighting ability.
However, after throwing that punch, Dao Lord Hanzun also knelt on one knee, panting heavily. He was clearly exhausted and almost completely worn out.
"Fellow Daoist, let's not talk about that now. Let me help you first."
Li Yunjing responded, and the next moment he swayed and rushed into the battlefield.
Li Yunjing summoned the Five Aggregates Cauldron, which hovered above his head. A five-colored light shield opened up, and the black-haired monster approached the light shield, its movements instantly slowing down.
"Town."
Li Yunjing gave a soft shout.
The cauldron's light pressed down.
Bang bang bang!
The dozen or so black-haired monsters around them were instantly forced to their knees, their bodies shattering into pieces.
"So powerful!" Dao Lord Hanzun's eyes lit up.
This was the first time he had seen Li Yunjing make a move, and he hadn't expected Li Yunjing's strength to far exceed his expectations.
With help, the pressure on Dao Lord Hanzun was greatly reduced.
With everyone working together, the remaining black-haired monsters were all wiped out in less than half an incense stick's time.
The fighting has ended.
Dao Lord Hanzun wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and laughed heartily, "Sect Leader Li, you're truly a timely rain. If you had arrived any later, I wouldn't have been able to hold on."
Li Yunjing cupped his hands slightly and said, "Hanzun Han, you're too kind. So, what exactly is going on? What's the background of this altar?"
Upon hearing the mention of the altar, Dao Lord Hanzun's smile vanished, replaced by a solemn expression.
He said in a deep voice, "It's High Antiquity altar of Evil Cultivator. When I came down, there was an old ghost's divine sense presiding over it."
"It was he who activated the Tribulation Qi to erect that outer barrier. He said he wanted to turn the entire Northern Spirit Province into the first Tribulation Domain."
"Old ghost? Did you see who it was?" Li Yunjing frowned.
Dao Lord Hanzun shook his head. "I couldn't see clearly. That divine sense was very blurry. It shouldn't be the main body, but just a wisp of spirit. I tried to attack the altar several times, but it kept knocking me back."
He paused, then continued, "Moreover, this thing seems to be incubating something. The energy of the Tribulation Pearl in the center is getting stronger and stronger. Once it is fully charged, I suspect the barrier will completely solidify, and the Tribulation Qi will double. At that time, all living beings in the entire Northern Spirit Province, whether dead or alive, will turn into black-haired monsters."
A chill ran through everyone.
incubation?
What exactly is the mastermind behind this doing?
Li Yunjing's brows furrowed even more.
If Dao Lord Hanzun's guess is correct, then there will be big trouble.
There are many corpses in Northern Spirit Province that have been left over from High Antiquity times.
Because of the low temperature in Northern Spirit Province, the bodies of any living beings that die there are well preserved.
If all these corpses were to come back to life, I fear...
At this moment, the Primordial Lord Bi Shui asked, "What do we do now? Destroy the altar directly?"
Dao Lord Hanzun shook his head. "I'm afraid it won't be that easy. The altar is protected by talismans, and there's also that old ghost's divine sense controlling it. If we attack head-on and force him to detonate the Tribulation Pearl, we'll be in big trouble."
"The entire Tribulation Qi of the Northern Spirit Province is connected to the Tribulation Pearl. If it detonates, half of the Northern Spirit Province will be blown up."