Hair-Raising Terror — How Will You Explain Your Knowledge of Demonic Arts?
Hair-Raising Terror — How Will You Explain Your Knowledge of Demonic Arts?
“Why do I feel like someone is calling out to me?”
Suddenly, Jiang Chen, who had been hurrying deeper inside, came to a stop, a look of confusion appearing on his face.
But when he listened carefully, he couldn’t hear the slightest sound.
He raised his head and looked around. Apart from the extremely tall pillars, this place was utterly empty.
Could it be the voice of the Ji Family’s Ancestor?
Jiang Chen’s heart was filled with uncertainty. After what had happened with the Ji Family, he no longer held the slightest goodwill toward them.
At a time like this, he naturally had no desire to go rescue their Ancestor.
In his view, such a thing was far too risky. Who knew whether the Ji Family’s Ancestor would repay kindness with enmity? He had already suffered that kind of loss many times.
“I think you can give it a try. Based on the rumors, the Ji Family’s Ancestor should be a kind and benevolent man. Otherwise, so many orthodoxies and forces wouldn’t owe him their gratitude.”
“This might just be an opportunity for you.”
The Artifact Spirit of the Celestial Boat of Creation spoke, feeling that Jiang Chen could give it a shot.
Jiang Chen pondered for a moment and felt that it made sense. What if this was his chance to wash away all the false accusations against him?
Then, without hesitation, Jiang Chen headed toward the source of the voice. If the situation turned bad when the time came, he would find a way to escape.
The Ji Family’s Ancestor has been trapped here for so many years, only able to transmit messages through voice projection. He should already be at the end of his rope, his lamp running out of oil.
He shouldn’t pose much of a threat to me.
Jiang Chen thought to himself, gritted his teeth, steadied his mind, and headed deeper inside.
After walking roughly several dozen li, he felt a surging, overwhelming pressure coming from ahead, like a monstrous tidal wave.
Yet it also felt like an ancient expanse of heaven descending, making one involuntarily kneel in reverence, compelled to prostrate in worship.
This was a mighty force of heaven and earth that could not be described in words. Under such pressure, any living being seemed as insignificant as an ant.
What is this?
Jiang Chen stared in utter shock at the scene before him. It looked like a river of chaos piercing through the universe, flowing on both sides.
A terrifying aura permeated the air. On both sides were pitch-black waves, like the waters of the Ascended Dark Force’s river, with Chaos Energy billowing, seemingly leading into the depths of the starry sky.
One dragon coffin after another floated within the rivers on both sides, rising and falling, tumbling about. The traces revealed upon them were incomparably ancient and weathered.
They transcended countless epochs, their origins nearly impossible to trace.
Within this underground palace, there is actually such a grand and majestic sight?
This is simply like arriving at the depths of the universe.
In an instant, it was as if he had arrived beyond the starry sky.
Ancient, boundless stars rose and fell above his head. Thousands upon thousands of starlights glittered brilliantly, the Milky Way vast and magnificent, stretching to the other end of the world.
Ahead, Jiang Chen also saw blood pooled upon the ground, nine colors interwoven, shocking and dazzling, immortal radiance resplendent.
The terrifying aura made his skin feel like it was splitting, as if blades of the Great Dao were carving into his bones.
Even the strands of Chaos Energy hanging down around it were crackling with kacha sounds, about to shatter, making it impossible to approach even half a step.
Immortal King blood!
Moreover, there’s quite a lot of it, forming a small lake.
An Immortal King truly perished here once — and one connected to the Dragon Clan at that. Could this place be the Dragon King’s bedchamber?
Jiang Chen was incomparably shaken, not even daring to take another half step forward.
He understood how terrifying that Immortal King blood was. Even though countless years had passed, even though the divinity within it had dissipated...
The residual aura alone was enough to suppress and kill any living being.
“Young friend...”
After arriving here, Jiang Chen once again heard the voice of the Ji Family’s Ancestor, Ji Shengchu.
He followed the voice and looked over, seeing an incomparably tall Platform at the deepest part of the underground palace.
Upon it seemed to be a blurry figure, extremely thin and withered. If one didn’t look carefully, one might even mistake it for a bundle of firewood.
He was already barely human in shape.
“Qianbei, is that you?”
Jiang Chen asked aloud. He never imagined that the Ji Family’s Ancestor, who according to legend had looked down upon all under heaven, would now be in such a miserable state.
Then again, having been trapped in Kun Mountain for so many years without dying, he was certainly fortunate — enough to prove he was no ordinary man.
“Young friend, it is indeed this old man.”
“This place holds Prohibition Arrays left behind by the True Dragon Clan back then, as well as the residual aura of an Immortal King. Young friend, you must not act rashly, or you will bring harm upon yourself.”
The withered figure lying upon the Platform spoke, appearing extremely weak, like a candle flickering in the wind, seemingly about to be snuffed out at any moment.
Jiang Chen hadn’t expected that Ji Shengchu, at a time like this, would first worry about his safety. Inexplicably, he developed a few degrees of goodwill toward him.
“I understand. Then, qianbei, how do I rescue you?” Jiang Chen asked.
“Find the eight Eyes of the Formation in this place and destroy them. The restrictions here will then naturally dissipate. Over these years, this old man was fortunate enough to hide upon this Platform, which is how I avoided being torn apart by the power of the restrictions. You must be extremely careful.”
“These restrictions were laid down personally by an Immortal King. Although they are now broken and incomplete, with not even one ten-thousandth of their power remaining, they are still no small matter.”
Ji Shengchu sighed. Though still weak, Jiang Chen’s arrival had allowed him to see hope, and he couldn’t help but force himself to rally.
“I understand. Qianbei, I’ll rescue you right away.” Jiang Chen nodded and began searching the surroundings for the Eyes of the Formation according to Ji Shengchu’s instructions.
At the same time, he conversed with the Artifact Spirit of the Celestial Boat of Creation in his mind, wanting to know whether Ji Shengchu was worth saving.
“If you can rescue him, he might just become your backer.”
The voice of the Celestial Boat of Creation’s Artifact Spirit carried a hint of excitement.
“I feel that Ji Shengchu, trapped in Kun Mountain all these years, may have even turned misfortune into blessing, his cultivation advancing a step further. At his peak back then, he should have surpassed the Celestial Realm. Although the laws of heaven and earth are now incomplete, I feel that once his strength recovers, it should be no weaker than a True Immortal’s.”
It guaranteed this with complete confidence.
Hearing these words, Jiang Chen’s heart also burned with fervor.
A backer with True Immortal level strength — wouldn’t that mean his revenge was within reach?
After that, while searching for the Eyes of the Formation according to Ji Shengchu’s instructions, Jiang Chen also chatted with him, learning how Ji Shengchu had come to be trapped in Kun Mountain back then.
According to Ji Shengchu, it was still the Immortal King’s inheritance that had moved his heart.
Kun Mountain was originally the nest of the True Dragon Clan of the Beyond. Later, the Dragon King of the True Dragon Clan was slain by someone for unknown reasons and perished here.
Ji Shengchu, bold in his great skill, had barged into Kun Mountain alone, attempting to find the inheritance of that Dragon King of the True Dragon Clan.
But he accidentally triggered the restrictions here. Fortunately, he managed to hide upon that Platform in time, avoiding the surrounding restrictions, and thus barely survived.
It was precisely for this reason that he had been trapped here for so many years, with no word of him ever reaching the outside.
By now, the outside world has probably seen seas change into mulberry fields. I wonder how Ah Lin is...
I, Ji Shengchu, roamed the world all my life and never broke my word to anyone — except to her...
While recounting the course of events to Jiang Chen, Ji Shengchu couldn’t help but let out a long sigh. Suddenly, old tears streamed down his face, regret filling his heart as he thought of the beloved of his youth.
From Jiang Chen’s words, he had also learned of the changes in the outside world.
Stars shifting and time passing, things remaining but people gone — so much had changed.
The bamboo tree the two of them had planted together back then had likely long since withered and crumbled to dust.
At this moment, Jiang Chen paid no mind to Ji Shengchu’s lamentations. He only wanted to rescue the man and use him as his own protective talisman.
Ji Shengchu seemed to know what Jiang Chen was thinking and suddenly chuckled. “Young friend, you can rest completely at ease. Since you rescued this old man, you are a benefactor to this old man and to the entire Ji Family.”
“This old man has acted openly and honorably all his life. I have never deceived anyone, let alone repaid kindness with enmity.”
“I have never doubted qianbei’s character.”
Hearing these words, Jiang Chen let out a long sigh of relief in his heart and, for once, revealed a smile.
For some reason, his mind suddenly turned to Ji Chuyue, and to the words Gu Changge had spoken back in the dungeon.
The Ji Family’s ideal son-in-law...
Perhaps that isn’t an impossible thing after all.
Half a day later, accompanied by a tremendous rumbling quake, brilliant radiance shone in all directions.
The terrifying waves of chaos rising on both sides now slowly subsided, gradually returning to the surrounding darkness.
All nine Eyes of the Formation had been dealt with, and the pressure enveloping this place had dispersed.
Seeing this scene, Jiang Chen revealed a look of delighted surprise, as if a heavy burden had been lifted.
“Young friend, thank you for your hard work. However, I must trouble you with one more thing. This old man has been trapped here for many years and has reached the end of his rope. I still need some time to recover before I can take you away from this place. During this period, I must trouble you to stand guard for this old man.”
On the Platform, joy also appeared in Ji Shengchu’s eyes. After taking a deep breath, he spoke to Jiang Chen once more.
Jiang Chen nodded. Naturally, he had no problem with this.
He could also see that Ji Shengchu was now withered beyond human shape. He had probably been struggling to hold on all these years, his spiritual energy long since exhausted.
Soon, Ji Shengchu sank into meditative cultivation, and surging spiritual energy began rushing toward him from all directions.
The Dao charm and spiritual essence accumulated in the underground palace over countless years also transformed into a vortex, converging and flooding toward this place.
Once I leave Kun Mountain, my life will be rewritten. Gu Changge, you probably never imagined this...
Jiang Chen took a deep breath, coldness flickering in his gaze. Then he also sat down cross-legged and began recovering from his earlier exertion.
In an instant, he thought of many things — including how to expose Gu Changge’s true face, and how to avenge his friends and the others.
There was far too much. He would make Gu Changge repay it all, one by one.
But just then, Jiang Chen suddenly heard the sound of footsteps not far away — unhurried, as if the newcomer was perfectly at ease.
Moreover, the newcomer seemed to deliberately want him to notice, which was why the footsteps were audible at all.
At this moment, Jiang Chen opened his eyes. For some reason, an ominous premonition arose in his heart.
He turned his head to look toward the other side of the underground palace. His pupils suddenly contracted. He could hardly believe it — his entire soul fled in terror, his hair standing on end.
Jiang Chen went cold from head to toe, even trembling slightly.
He felt an immense terror descend upon him. His entire heart seemed to be gripped tight, his bones and flesh on the verge of bursting apart.
He had never imagined that Gu Changge would appear in this place. Shouldn’t he be held up by the Feathered-Robe Daoist Sage right now?
“Gu Changge, why are you here?”
He tried hard to calm himself down, but his voice was trembling.
Gu Changge walked toward him unhurriedly. Hearing this, he shook his head, his expression natural as he said, “I came here, naturally, to rescue Ji Shengchu qianbei. But you, Successor of Demonic Arts — what are you plotting?”
“Not only did you release the Feathered-Robe Daoist Sage sealed within the Mysterious Jade, you even attempted to trap and slaughter everyone who came to rescue Ji Shengchu qianbei.”
“Gu Changge, stop spouting venomous slander! I am not the Successor of Demonic Arts — this was clearly your frame-up!” Jiang Chen’s eyes carried a faint blood-red hue as he stared fixedly at Gu Changge, his limbs ice-cold, incomparably terrified.
“Then why don’t you explain how it is that you know Demonic Arts?” Gu Changge smiled faintly, neither confirming nor denying.
“And why did you destroy that Mysterious Jade, releasing the Feathered-Robe Daoist Sage within and letting him slaughter the experts of the various clans?”