Prehistoric: The female saint Shiji, brilliant and talented

Logically speaking, if a great calamity were to befall the Nine Provinces, strange phenomena would surely appear in the world, and the powerful figures of the Underworld would not remain unresponsive. However, the people of the Underworld have yet to show themselves, which has deepened Shi Ji's doubts.

"It seems I must personally travel to various parts of Kyushu to investigate and see for myself what exactly is happening here!"

Shi Ji took a deep breath, suppressed her doubts, and her eyes became firm.

He knew that only by finding the root cause of the ferocious beasts' appearance could he devise a countermeasure; otherwise, the entire land would be completely devoured by these beasts sooner or later.

Then, Shiji continued flying towards the core area of ​​Kyushu.

He proceeded cautiously, avoiding attacks from multiple waves of ferocious beasts, and witnessed many villages and towns destroyed by them, which deepened his concern for the safety of Kyushu.

Half a day later, Shi Ji arrived at a place called "Black Wind Ridge".

In the mountains.

This mountain range is shrouded in a gray, deathly fog year-round, with extremely low visibility and a pungent, fishy odor permeating the air, making one want to vomit.

Deeper into the mountains, the death fog was even denser, almost solidifying into a tangible form. In the mist, Shiji could vaguely see the outline of a massive ancient castle appearing and disappearing.

The ancient castle was built entirely of black rock, with a bizarre shape and a sinister and terrifying aura. A black death power swirled around the castle, and that power was extremely domineering, as if it could devour all life around it. Even the spiritual energy in the air was assimilated by it, becoming cold and bone-chilling.

Shi Ji's expression instantly turned serious. Although he had only seen a similar structure once in the Underworld, he had no real knowledge of the "Underworld."

The two characters left an extremely deep impression.

The aura emanating from this ancient castle is remarkably similar to that of the underworld, clearly indicating its connection to the underworld.

Shi Ji did not rashly enter the castle. He knew that the people of the underworld were treacherous and cunning, and that the castle must be full of traps and restrictions.

He decided to lie in wait in the shadows and carefully observe the castle to find out how many powerful Netherworld beings were hidden inside and what their purpose was.

Shi Ji concealed her aura and, like a cheetah, silently approached the ancient castle.

But just when he was about a thousand meters away from the castle, the castle suddenly shook violently, and the deathly mist around it swirled rapidly, with black runes emerging from the mist—clearly, the castle's defensive array had been activated!

Immediately afterwards, countless dark figures rushed out from the ancient castle; those figures were the evil spirits of the underworld.

They bared their fangs and claws, their faces were ferocious, and they were surrounded by a dense aura of malevolence. They let out a shrill roar and surged toward the rocky shore like a tide.

Shi Ji's eyes turned cold. He was prepared. He took out a jade box from his storage bag, opened it, and five insects of different colors flew out—the Five Poisonous Sacred Insects that he had carefully cultivated.

These five sacred poisonous insects each contain one of the five most potent poisons: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. They are incredibly powerful and specifically designed to subdue evil and malevolent creatures.

With a thought, Shi Ji controlled the Five Poisonous Sacred Insects to charge towards the horde of evil spirits.

The Five Poisonous Sacred Insects are small in size and extremely fast, moving freely among the evil spirits and spewing out various kinds of venom from their mouths.

The venom landed on the evil spirit, instantly corroding it into a pool of black water.

Accompanied by a series of "sizzling" sounds

The sound of violent corrosion rang out, and a large number of evil spirits were torn apart and devoured by the Five Poisonous Sacred Insects, quickly clearing a space in front of the castle.

Subsequently, the Five Poisonous Sacred Insects rushed into the castle through the gate and continued their battle with the evil spirits inside.

Shi Ji then used her divine sense to carefully scan the area around the castle. After confirming that no high-level experts from the Underworld had appeared, she quietly walked into the castle.

But as soon as he stepped through the castle gates, before he had taken more than a few steps, a figure slowly emerged from the darkness.

She was a female cultivator with disheveled hair, wearing a long black dress embroidered with eerie ghost patterns on the hem. Her face was as pale as paper, and her eyes were as black as ink. When she looked at Shi Ji, her eyes were full of cold and ruthless expression, without the slightest emotion that a human should have.

"Who are you? Why are you trespassing on my territory of the Underworld? What is your purpose?"

The female cultivator spoke, her voice as cold as clashing ice, carrying a chilling edge.

"Netherworld cultivators? Just as I thought."

Upon seeing the Netherworld aura emanating from the female cultivator, Shi Ji couldn't help but let out a cold smile, a hint of killing intent flashing in her eyes. "Who I am is not important. What is important is that now that I'm here, I won't let your Netherworld's conspiracy succeed!"

As soon as she finished speaking, Shi Ji snorted coldly, stopped wasting words with the female cultivator, and directly unleashed her unparalleled skill—the Heaven-Mending Technique.

His spiritual energy surged wildly, converging in his right hand, and he struck out with his palm towards the female cultivator.

This palm strike, seemingly ordinary, contained immense power, its wind howling with the force of destruction.

The female cultivator was indeed powerful. Facing Shi Ji's attack, she showed no fear. She raised her arm, clenched her right fist, and gathered a dense power of death, blasting it towards Shi Ji's palm.

"Bang—"

Fists and palms collided violently, instantly unleashing a powerful shockwave that seemed to ignite the surrounding air, producing a crackling sound.

The sound was so loud that even the void itself was slightly distorted, almost shattering into pieces.

Shi Ji was jolted back three steps by the impact, her arm slightly numb. She couldn't help but be secretly amazed: "What a powerful physical body!"
"My physical body has been tempered over many years and enhanced by the Heaven-Mending Technique, making it far harder than that of cultivators of the same level. Yet this female cultivator was able to withstand a single blow from me with her formidable physique, and even gained a slight advantage in strength. She is truly extraordinary!"

"Your strength is indeed considerable!"

Shi Ji spoke in a deep voice, her gaze fixed on the female cultivator, not daring to relax for a moment.

"Without further ado!
"Today you have trespassed into the territory of the Underworld; you have no choice but to die. Prepare to die!"

The female cultivator's voice was as cold as ice. Before she finished speaking, her figure leaped out like a ghost. Her arms were slightly bent, and black death energy condensed at her fingertips as she fiercely grabbed at Shi Ji.

Her arms seemed to be cast from the black iron of the heavens, each swing carrying a devastating force that tore the air apart with a piercing shriek.

Shi Ji's face showed an expression of utter astonishment, and she secretly marveled: "This female cultivator's physical body is truly domineering to the extreme!"

If an ordinary Emperor-level cultivator were to be struck by her grasp, they would likely be torn to shreds instantly.

In this critical moment, Shi Ji held nothing back and immediately unleashed her signature supernatural power—the Dragon-Elephant Arm.

His spiritual energy surged wildly, his left arm glowed brightly, and his muscles bulged, instantly transforming into a dragon arm covered in golden scales, brimming with immense power. Immediately afterward, his right arm also changed, becoming a giant elephant arm covered in black mane, similarly radiating terrifying pressure. "Hah!"

Shi Ji let out a low shout and simultaneously slapped both arms towards the female cultivator. The dragon arm carried the power of thunder, and the elephant arm carried the momentum of mountains. The two forces intertwined and formed a world-destroying impact that blasted towards the female cultivator.

"Oh!"

The attacks from both sides collided instantly, and a powerful shockwave spread outwards from the point of their battle. The stone pillars inside the castle trembled and cracked, creating fine fissures in the ground.

Each time they clashed, Shi Ji and the female cultivator were forced back about three zhang by the opponent's power, resulting in a stalemate where they were evenly matched.

"Who exactly are you? And why do you possess such a powerful physical body?"

While fending off the female cultivator's attacks, Shi Ji asked, becoming increasingly curious about her identity.

"The Holy Lord of the Underworld!"

The female cultivator answered coldly, her tone carrying a hint of barely perceptible pride.

Clearly, this is a powerful woman renowned in the underworld, whose status and strength are extraordinary.

Shi Ji understood immediately. No wonder the other party was so powerful; it turned out to be an empress-level figure from the Underworld.

He pondered to himself, "Ordinary cultivators would not last more than three moves against me, but this Netherworld Saint King can actually withstand my Dragon-Elephant Arm with his powerful physical body without being at a disadvantage. This is truly defying the heavens."

"So you are the Empress of the Underworld! My apologies for my overreaction!"

Shi Ji grinned, then changed the subject, saying in a teasing tone, "Speaking of which, I'm quite an old acquaintance of the King of the Underworld, the ruler of your Underworld. It's fate that we've met today. How about we become sworn siblings? That way, we'll be on the same side, and I can help you out in the Underworld. As for you, if you encounter any trouble in the Nine Provinces, I can lend you a hand. What do you think?"

"court death!"

Upon hearing Shi Ji's suggestion to become sworn siblings with him, the Netherworld Saint King was utterly enraged. His eyes blazed with murderous intent as he roared furiously, "After you die, I will personally dispose of your corpse, ensuring your soul is scattered and you are never to be reincarnated!"

"You dare to insult me? It seems I have to teach you a lesson today so you won't know how powerful I am!"

Shi Ji was also angered by the attitude of the Netherworld Saint King, and her heart burned with rage.

Without another word, he leaped into the air like an enraged lion, charging towards the Netherworld Saint King. With each swing of his fists, golden fist shadows hurtled towards his opponent like meteors.

The Netherworld Saint King's cultivation was already extremely powerful, and with years of fighting, his combat experience was even more abundant.

Faced with Shi Ji's relentless attacks, she remained calm and nimble, weaving through the shadows of fists like a willow catkin. With her exquisite footwork, she dodged dozens of Shi Ji's fierce attacks in succession, and even managed to launch a counterattack occasionally between dodges, forcing Shi Ji to focus on defense.

But Shi Ji was not discouraged or disheartened. On the contrary, he became more and more excited as the fight went on. His fighting instincts were fully unleashed, and each attack was faster and more cunning than before.

He continued charging towards the Netherworld Saint King, followed by dozens of fierce attacks that blasted towards him. The wind from his fists howled, and spiritual energy surged, with intense collisions echoing throughout the ancient castle.

The Netherworld Saintess continued to flash rapidly, constantly dodging Shi Ji's attacks. Just when she thought Shi Ji would only launch a relentless attack, Shi Ji suddenly changed her attack methods.

He took out a jet-black spear from his storage bag. The spear was covered with dense, eerie runes and emitted a sinister and terrifying aura of death, clearly a magical artifact related to the underworld.

Shi Ji flicked her wrist and hurled the black spear toward the Netherworld Saint King.

The spear, like a black lightning bolt, carried the power to tear through the void, aiming straight for the Netherworld Saint King's vitals.

The Netherworld Saint King dared not be careless and quickly conjured a black shield to block the spear's attack.

"clang!"

The spear clashed with the shield, producing a piercing metallic clang. The shield was instantly pierced by the spear, but fortunately, the Netherworld Saint King reacted quickly and dodged to the side, thus avoiding being hit by the spear.

But just as she was blocking the spear, Shi Ji seized the opportunity, flashed in front of her, and punched her in the chest.

"Hmph, you think you can ambush me with such petty tricks?"

Upon seeing Shi Ji arrive, the Netherworld Saint King let out a cold shout, his eyes filled with disdain.

Without dodging or avoiding, she raised her delicate palm, gathering a dense aura of death within it, and struck towards Shi Ji's fist.

"Oh!"

With a loud crash, the Netherworld Saint King's attack collided violently with Shi Ji's fist.

Two completely different forces collided, and the two of them were pushed backward at the same time.

But it was clear that Shi Ji was at a disadvantage this time—the Netherworld Saint King was only knocked back seven or eight steps before he regained his footing; while Shi Ji was knocked back a full thirty or forty meters before she could barely stop, her arms were slightly numb, and a trace of blood even spilled from the corner of her mouth.

"hateful!"

Shi Ji wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, feeling extremely frustrated. He hadn't expected the Netherworld Saint King to be so powerful; in a head-on confrontation, he had actually fallen into a disadvantageous position.

"You really are impressive, worthy of being the Empress of the Underworld. Today I'm going to have a good look at your skills and see just how capable you really are!"

Shi Ji spoke indifferently, but the fighting spirit in her eyes grew even more intense.

He took a deep breath, circulated his spiritual energy to quickly repair his injuries, and then launched a new round of attacks.

This time, Shi Ji no longer hid and directly unleashed her natal magic weapon—the Stone Sword.

This stone sword gleamed with an ancient blue light, and its blade was covered with mysterious patterns. Although it looked ordinary, it contained endless mysteries.

"Shi Jian, today I'll show her your power and let her know just how formidable you are!"

Shi Ji whispered something to the stone sword, then quickly formed hand seals, manipulating the stone sword to slash at the Netherworld Saint King.

Although the stone sword is only a magic weapon, its origin is extraordinary. It was a supreme treasure that a celestial being spent a thousand years refining, and its power is extremely great.

More importantly, an ancient array pattern is sealed inside the stone sword. Shi Ji had studied this array pattern and vaguely guessed that it should be a unique skill passed down from the ancient races. Once activated, its power would be immeasurable. (End of this chapter)