I Killed Him, and the Grey Fog Reappears in the Mortal World
I Killed Him, and the Grey Fog Reappears in the Mortal World
Black mist, heavy as leaden clouds, seeped out strand by strand from the depths of the Ancient Arcane Ruins, shrouding the entire area.
Hordes of undead heavenly soldiers burst forth from the burial mounds, wielding all manner of heavenly blades and heavenly daggers, charging at those who had trespassed upon this place.
It was a terrifying sight—enough to make even Earth Sword Immortals tremble with fear.
Having witnessed these undead soldiers explode into dust, only to rapidly restore themselves to their original forms...
With their strength, there was simply no way to destroy these undead creatures. The only thing they could do now was carve out a path to the depths during the brief window before the creatures reformed.
Chi, chi, chi—
Streak after streak of dazzling, astonishing Sword Qi interwove, like peerless heavenly swords taking form, crossing the sky and slashing toward the deepest part of this space.
Faintly, one could glimpse blurry silhouettes flashing past there, with torrential blood rain pouring down.
Mixed within were grey hairs of unknown origin, exuding an ominous, eerie aura.
The others leading the way at the front were equally terrified and uneasy, gripping their weapons tightly as they advanced with utmost caution.
Not only did they need to dodge the terrifying fog sweeping toward them, they also had to guard against the strange monsters lurking in the darkness, as well as the countless undead armies charging at them.
“It seems the disturbance from earlier should be at the deepest part of this place.”
The Abundance Sword Immortal held a jade-green longsword, its lustrous radiance flowing along the blade, an aura of the utmost dao spreading out and pressing forward, shaking apart the dense black mist.
His strength was immense—as the Shu Sect Master, he was naturally a cut above the rest.
Thus, he took the lead, clearing the path at the very front, scouting out the dangers ahead for those behind him.
The Snow Sword Immortal followed close behind, her slender hand gripping a crystalline ice-and-snow Dao Sword, a domain of ice and snow descending around her, which greatly resisted and countered the black mist.
Weng weng—
Sword shadows swirled; heaven collapsed and earth perished.
The other Earth Sword Immortals each employed their own methods, all fighting to survive in this place.
And behind them, following at a measured pace, were several True Daoists from the Beyond.
The divine principles surrounding them blazed vast as seas, surging with terrifying and boundless might, suppressing everything in this place.
Faced with such an unfamiliar environment, they too were extremely cautious, not daring to act rashly—which was precisely why they had sent the others ahead to scout the path.
And while the many Earth Sword Immortals were being forced to scout the way, at the outermost edge of the Ancient Arcane Ruins...
Gu Changge withdrew his gaze from the depths and softly gave an instruction to Ah Da behind him. Immediately after, Ah Da’s figure stepped into the void and vanished in an instant, disappearing without a trace.
“What did he arrange?”
Not far away, Yu Feiya, the Eldest Princess of the Great Yu, who had been watching Gu Changge’s every move, showed a slight change in expression.
She felt that Gu Changge seemed to stand apart from the world, yet at the same time appeared to hold everything in the palm of his hand.
It was an extremely contradictory feeling.
She refused to believe that Gu Changge had come to this world without reason, or that he had come here just to join the excitement without participating.
Gu Changge definitely harbored some unknown secret.
“I wonder, during Young Master Changge’s time in this world, have you ever met Tuoba Xiaoyao?”
After a moment of thought, Yu Feiya’s delicate brows furrowed slightly. Her lotus steps shifted lightly, bringing with them a waft of fragrance as she walked over and couldn’t help but ask softly.
“Tuoba Xiaoyao?”
Gu Changge raised an eyebrow slightly, his gaze falling upon her face. Then he smiled and said, “Naturally, I’ve met him. However, he’s already dead now.”
“What?”
Great astonishment surfaced on Yu Feiya’s face. She hadn’t expected Gu Changge to state it so bluntly.
She had assumed Gu Changge would say he didn’t know, that he hadn’t seen him.
But for Gu Changge to so directly declare that Tuoba Xiaoyao was already dead truly caught her off guard—she had never even imagined it.
“Then... does Young Master Changge know where he died?”
Yu Feiya felt her mouth go somewhat dry, but she still couldn’t help asking.
Hearing this, Gu Changge’s face still carried a faint smile. He shook his head and said, “He died in the Boundless Immortal Valley, a Forbidden Area of the Profound Sword World.”
“The Boundless Immortal Valley?”
Yu Feiya was momentarily dazed. Naturally, she had heard of this Forbidden Area.
In the Profound Sword World, that place was known as a land from which no living person returned, shrouded in mist year-round. Even an Earth Sword Immortal who set foot inside would meet certain death.
Tuoba Xiaoyao... he actually died in there?
“Then does Young Master Changge know how he died?”
Yu Feiya’s expression suddenly turned somewhat sorrowful, as she recalled some past memories involving Tuoba Xiaoyao.
Gu Changge’s expression remained largely unchanged. He merely smiled casually and said, “Of course I know. After all, I killed him with my own hands. What, are you planning to avenge him?”
“What?”
Hearing Gu Changge’s nonchalant words, Yu Feiya first froze, failing to process them.
Then, when she registered what he had said, her whole body jolted. Her eyes widened in disbelief, and she stumbled back several steps, almost doubting her own ears.
“Young Master Changge, you... you’re not lying to me?” Her voice carried a faint tremble and fear—something rarely seen in the ever-dignified and elegant Yu Feiya.
No matter what she had encountered before, she had always maintained a calm, composed demeanor.
Gu Changge’s expression remained unchanged. He glanced at her somewhat oddly and said, “For such a trivial matter, would it be worth lying to you?”
“I... I wouldn’t dare...”
Yu Feiya’s face turned somewhat pale, her slender hands clenched tight. But out of fear of Gu Changge’s power and influence, she could only fall silent, not daring to say another word.
Even if her imperial father were standing here today, he wouldn’t dare do anything to Gu Changge—let alone her.
She had only known that there seemed to be some grudge between Tuoba Xiaoyao and Gu Changge.
But she hadn’t known it had reached the point where Gu Changge would put him to death.
Bitterness and helplessness welled up in Yu Feiya’s heart. In truth, she should have figured it out long ago—back in the palace of the Great Yu Celestial Dynasty, why had Gu Changge spoken those words in public?
He had long intended to move against Tuoba Xiaoyao, and now, coming to this Profound Sword World, it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Tuoba Xiaoyao disappearing here would draw no one’s attention, and no one would investigate.
Just like now—Gu Changge had even said to her face that he had personally killed Tuoba Xiaoyao. What could she do about it?
Avenge him?
That was nothing more than a fantasy.
Such an unscrupulous, unrestrained attitude—this was the true Gu Changge, not the gentle and refined image he presented to the world.
In the distance, Ah Qing and Princess Xuan Die had been watching the situation here ever since Yu Feiya walked toward Gu Changge.
Originally, they had thought Princess Yu Feiya was yet another admirer of Gu Changge.
But they hadn’t expected her expression to turn so pale, filled with unease and fear.
“It seems Young Master Gu isn’t so gentle with every woman...”
“Then why did he appear to save me? Could it be that I’m somewhat special to him?”
Princess Xuan Die’s mind conjured up the scene of Gu Changge appearing to rescue her from her predicament, and a rosy blush surfaced on her face as her thoughts began to wander.
Although she knew it was quite wrong to dwell on such things when a great enemy loomed and calamity was about to descend...
She simply couldn’t stop herself from thinking about it.
Over the following days, the black mist within the Ancient Arcane Ruins grew even more terrifying, sweeping in all directions like colossal waves blotting out the sky, churning endlessly.
Due to the dreadful battle fluctuations from the depths, terrifying earthquakes struck the area—the ground split apart, and mountain gates collapsed.
In some places, ancient altars were even revealed, badly damaged and incomplete, carved with numerous patterns and designs—scenes of ancient ancestors praying to the heavens, gathered around bonfires, seemingly offering sacrifices to something. On some of the broken totems, one could even see a pair of cold, enormous eyes floating in the firmament above, gazing down at all the praying ancestors below.
There were simply too many such images, exuding an eerie and sinister feeling, without the slightest trace of holiness.
Many of the most senior Cultivators of the Profound Sword World were seized by the people of the Beyond and forced to study and decipher the meanings of these Stone Engravings.
Those with knowledge of altars were dragged off to attempt repairs on them.
In the eyes of many experts of the Beyond, these altars contained spatial fluctuations that had yet to dissipate, indicating that in the extremely distant past, there had likely been a spatial gateway here, connecting to some region or world.
Perhaps the Mirror Lake, which had never revealed its whereabouts, was connected to these altars...
“It seems they’ve finally found the entrance?”
Gu Changge stood all along within the Ancient Battleship at the outermost perimeter, gazing down at the depths of the ruins where black mist churned.
Although even he could not clearly see the deepest parts, he could sense the fluctuations within.
Judging by the magnitude of the fluctuations, it was easy to determine how far the people who had charged inside had progressed.
Of course, most important of all was that Gu Changge had ordered Ah Da to follow them in secret.
Ah Da himself had been born and nurtured in the deepest part of the Demon-Burying Abyss, so the ominous, eerie aura of this place could not affect him in the slightest.
Thus, the monstrous black mist that everyone else dreaded was, for Ah Da, no different from walking on level ground.
“The timing is about right...”
Gu Changge’s gaze shifted slightly, and his vast divine sense swept out, instantly enveloping tens of thousands of kilometers in every direction.
At this moment, every Cultivator within the Ancient Arcane Ruins felt as though an inexplicable suppression was spreading through heaven and earth, like an invisible giant hand slowly descending from a distant dimension.
“What is this? Has some new eerie calamity befallen this place?”
Everyone’s expression changed drastically; they could hardly breathe. Then, in horror, they watched as the sky suddenly went dark.
A strange Grey Fog, blotting out the sky and sun, swept in from nowhere—even more sinister than the black mist pervading the Ancient Arcane Ruins, containing a world-devouring aura that could swallow all things.
This grey fog came swiftly, incomparably turbulent, with no end in sight, instantly submerging the entire Ancient Arcane Ruins.
Even the many Ancient Battleships hovering in the surroundings were instantly swallowed into it, vanishing from sight.
It was a hair-raising, bone-chilling sight.
At this moment, whether it was the Cultivators of the Profound Sword World or the mighty armies of experts from the various lineages of the Beyond, all were horrified to the extreme, feeling their cultivation, their magic power, and even their souls being worn away, about to be devoured and dissolved.
This grey fog was the embodiment of miasma, omen, gloom, and chaos. To be caught within it would not only shatter one’s mind—it would dissolve one’s very body, extinguishing both form and spirit.