Immortality Cultivation: I can use my clansmen’s energy and blood to add points.

There seems to be something shining there?

Luo Qingchen's heart moved, he walked forward and carefully pushed aside the vines.

Behind the vines, there was no rock, but a small depression. At the bottom of the depression, there were a few palm-sized, irregularly shaped pieces of...metal fragments?
These fragments were a dull bronze color, covered with rust and dirt, and looked inconspicuous. But one of the fragments seemed to be stained with a little dark red, long-dried and solidified blood?
What really attracted Luo Qingchen's attention were the extremely simple and mysterious runes that could be vaguely seen on these fragments! The style of these runes seemed to be slightly similar to the runes he had seen before in the Guixu Giant Tower and even on the mysterious tortoise shell?!

"This is..." Luo Qingchen was shocked and quickly squatted down, carefully picking up the pieces of metal fragments.

The fragments felt cold and heavy, far superior to ordinary bronze. He used the power of chaos to brush away the rust and dirt on them, revealing more clear runes.

These runes were indeed from the same source as the runes on the tortoise shell and the Guixu Tower, but they seemed to be older and more incomplete! Moreover, the edges of the fragments were extremely neat and smooth, as if they were cut off instantly by some incomparable sharp object!
Luo Qingchen's eyes once again fell on the scratch that still contained the sword intent that transcended the laws. A bold guess formed in his mind - could it be that these fragments were the remains of a powerful person's weapon or magic weapon that was shattered in the great battle that year? !
He tried to inject a trace of chaos power into the fragments.

hum!
The fragment shook slightly, and the ancient runes on it suddenly lit up with a faint light! Then, a stream of information, like a trickle, poured into Luo Qingchen's mind!
This flow of information was intermittent and incomplete, and it seemed that most of the content was lost due to the damage of the fragments, but a few clear words in it made Luo Qingchen's eyes widen instantly!
"Star map, fragments..."

"Coordinates, traction..."

"Qingyun, direction..."

"Southwest, three thousand..."

Star map fragments? Coordinate traction? Qingyun direction? ! Three thousand miles southwest? !

Luo Qingchen's heart suddenly started beating wildly!

These fragments turned out to be the remains of some kind of magic weapon that recorded the coordinates of the star map! Moreover, the remaining information on it actually clearly pointed to the direction of "Qingyun" and gave an approximate distance - more than 3,000 miles southwest!
Although the information is incomplete and it is impossible to confirm whether this "Qingyun" is their sect "Qingyun Sect", this is undoubtedly the first and most important clue they have obtained since entering this swamp!
As long as you walk three thousand miles in the southwest direction, you may find clues related to Qingyun Sect, and you may even find the way back to the sect directly!
"Great!" Luo Qingchen suppressed his inner excitement and carefully put away the fragments of the star map. This is simply a ray of hope in a desperate situation!
He did not stop, turned around and quickly returned to the cave.

"Senior Brother Luo, you're back! How are you?" Seeing him come back, Lin Wan'er hurried to greet him.

Su Xiaowan also looked at him curiously.

Luo Qingchen showed a rare smile on his face and showed them his recent discovery and the fragments of the star map.

"Star map fragments? Pointing to the direction of Qingyun?" Lin Wan'er was surprised and happy. "Really? Then can we go home soon?"

"Wow! That's great!" Su Xiaowan also jumped up excitedly, "Three thousand miles to the southwest! Let's go! I've had enough of this stinky hellhole!"

"Don't worry." Luo Qingchen raised his hand to signal them to calm down. "Although we have a direction, three thousand miles is not short, and we know nothing about this swamp and the outside world. The traces of the ancient battlefield I sensed just now, as well as the sword intent that transcends the laws, all show that this place is by no means simple. If we rush on, we may encounter unimaginable dangers."

Lin Wan'er calmed down after hearing this and nodded: "Brother Luo is right. Our current state is not suitable for long journeys, especially you and Ling'er..."

Luo Qingchen pondered and said, "My strength has recovered a little, but it is still far from enough. Ling'er's condition...is temporarily stable, but she can't be stimulated anymore. The most urgent thing is to find a way to leave this swamp area. The swamp environment is harsh and the spiritual energy is thin. It is not suitable for us to recover and move."

He looked towards the southwest with a deep gaze: "According to the instructions of the fragments, there is a clue three thousand miles to the southwest. We can follow this general direction and try to get out of this swamp. When we get to the outside world, where the spiritual energy is more abundant, we will make repairs and at the same time gather information to confirm whether 'Qingyun' is our sect, and then make plans for the next step."

"Well, this is safer." Lin Wan'er agreed.

"Okay, okay, I'll listen to you." Although Su Xiaowan was anxious, she also knew that what Luo Qingchen said made sense, "But when do we set off? I feel that this broken cave is also gloomy."

Luo Qingchen looked at the still gloomy sky outside: "Rest for another half an hour, until my strength recovers a little. Then we will set off immediately and try to walk a distance before 'darkness'...if it is dark here...

With a clear goal and direction, hope ignited in the hearts of the three people. Although the road ahead is still full of unknowns and dangers, at least they are no longer headless flies lost in this swamp of despair.

Half an hour later, inside the cave.

Luo Qingchen slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air, and his originally pale face regained a bit of color. Although he was still far from his peak state, the chaotic power flowing in his body had recovered about 50%, which was enough to deal with general emergencies. The effect of the pill and the self-operation of the Chaos Art finally allowed him to breathe a sigh of relief.

Lin Wan'er had been guarding the cave entrance. When she saw him stand up, her tense expression relaxed a little: "Senior Brother Luo, are we ready to go?"

Luo Qingchen nodded, his eyes swept over the still sleepy Bailing'er and the nervous Su Xiaowan: "Well, it's not advisable to stay here for long. Let's move in the southwest direction and leave this swamp as soon as possible." Su Xiaowan hurriedly wiped it clean, although the turtle shell was still a little dull.

She carefully rewrapped it and stuffed it into her arms, then tightened her clothes that were covered in mud and smelled strange, and said with a bitter face, "Southwest... It's all muddy here, how can we get there? And what if we run into a big monster like that again? Can Sister Ling'er scare them away again?"

Luo Qingchen glanced at Bai Ling'er. The little girl was sleeping peacefully, and the leaf of the Nine-turn Resurrection Grass between her eyebrows was still dim. The momentary ripple of the dragon soul seemed to be just an illusion. "Ling'er's power is uncontrollable. We can't rely on it. Be careful and act according to circumstances." He paused and looked at Su Xiaowan, "Prepare all your messy talismans. Maybe they can come in handy."

"Oh..." Su Xiaowan pouted, took out a stack of colorful talisman papers from the storage bag, and patted them like treasures, "These are my belongings that I have saved for a long time. I hope they can still be useful in this damn place."

The three of them did not delay any longer. Luo Qingchen led the way in front, Lin Wan'er carried Bai Ling'er on her back and coordinated in the middle, and Su Xiaowan followed closely behind Lin Wan'er, carefully walking out of the cave covered by vines.

Leaving the relatively dry ground of the hills, the feet immediately sank into the sticky, slippery black mud. Every step was extremely difficult. Not only did I have to use all my strength to pull my ankle out of the deep pit, but I also had to be vigilant at all times to see if there was any quicksand or deep pit under my feet that could swallow life. The stench in the air became stronger, mixed with the fishy smell of some rotting plants and stagnant water, which was nauseating.

Luo Qingchen concentrated the power of chaos on his feet, trying to step on relatively solid grass roots or rotten wood, while sending out his spiritual sense, vigilantly scanning any movement within a radius of dozens of feet. However, the strange thing about this swamp is that it seems to have a natural suppression and interference with spiritual sense. The distance that spiritual sense can explore is nearly half of that in the outside world, and the scene perceived is also a little blurry, as if covered by an invisible veil.

"This is a damn place. I can't even see the road clearly." Su Xiaowan trudged through the place, complaining softly, "And it's so quiet... so quiet it's scary."

It was indeed very quiet. Except for the "puff" sound made by their steps on the muddy water, and the occasional strange insect chirping or bubble bursting sounds coming from afar, the whole swamp seemed to have fallen into a dead silence. The sky was still leaden gray, and the low-hanging clouds made it difficult to breathe. They could not tell the time or the direction. If it were not for the vague guidance provided by the fragments of the star map, they would probably have been lost in this endless black quagmire.

After walking for about half an hour, the surrounding scene began to change. The twisted and strange trees that were originally scattered gradually increased in number. These trees were completely black, with dry bark like the wrinkles of an old man, and bare branches stretched towards the sky, like struggling ghost claws. Between the trees, some plants with brighter colors and more strange colors began to appear.

For example, there is a blood-red "water lily" the size of a washbasin floating on the turbid water. The center of the lotus has densely packed black round spots like eyeballs, emitting a faint sweet fragrance, luring some unknown flying insects to approach, and then suddenly closing its petals to swallow them.

There is also a kind of dark green plant that grows close to the ground, like a vine. The vine is covered with sharp barbs, and the tip flashes a faint green light, which is obviously poisonous. They are like lurking poisonous snakes, spreading silently in the mud. If you step on them carelessly, you will be entangled and pierced by them.

"Be careful to the left!" Luo Qingchen shouted, and the Black Dragon Sword in his hand suddenly slashed out. A condensed gray sword energy accurately cut off a dark green poison vine that quietly stretched towards Su Xiaowan's ankle. After the poison vine was cut off, dark green fishy juice flowed out from the broken end and fell on the mud, making a "sizzling" corrosion sound. Su Xiaowan's scalp numbed when she saw it. She quickly stepped back a few steps and patted her chest: "I was scared to death! Thank you, Brother Luo!"

"Follow closely and don't be distracted." Luo Qingchen frowned. He could feel that as they went deeper, the danger of this swamp was gradually increasing.

Lin Wan'er also became alert, with the sword in her hand slightly unsheathed, and the spiritual power of Tianyuan flowing, ready to deal with any possible attacks at any time. As she walked, she paid attention to the surrounding environment, trying to find some relatively safe paths.

"Senior Brother Luo, look ahead!" Lin Wan'er suddenly pointed to the front and right.

Luo Qingchen looked in the direction she pointed, and saw that a few dozen feet away, at the edge of a relatively open water area, there seemed to be an area with a color completely different from the surrounding environment. It was no longer pitch-black mud, but a grayish-white, sandy ground with some sparse, gray-green shrubs growing on it.

"It looks... a little drier there?" Su Xiaowan also saw it and her eyes lit up.

Luo Qingchen concentrated and sensed that the spiritual energy in that area seemed to be slightly more active than that in the heart of the swamp. Although it was still mixed, the cold and decayed feeling was much lighter. "Let's go and take a look. Maybe we can take a break."

The three of them were refreshed and quickened their pace, trudging towards the gray-white sand. The closer they got, the shallower the mud became, and finally they stepped onto the relatively solid sandy ground.

This sandy area was not large, only about a hundred feet in radius, like an isolated island surrounded by a black swamp. The sand was coarse, showing an unnatural grayish white color, and made a rustling sound when stepped on. The gray-green shrubs also grew very strangely, with thick leaves and tiny serrations on the edges, emitting a faint bitter smell.

"Huh, I can finally take a breath." Su Xiaowan sat down on the ground and rubbed her sore calves. "This muddy road is really not suitable for human beings to walk on."

Lin Wan'er carefully put Bai Ling'er down and let her lean against a bush, and breathed a sigh of relief. Although the consumption of spiritual energy was not great after trudging through the mud for a long time, the mental tension and physical fatigue were real.

Luo Qingchen did not rest immediately. He looked around vigilantly. This gray-white sand seemed a little abrupt, and it was out of tune with the gloomy swamp environment around it. He walked to a clump of gray-green bushes, picked a thick leaf, and twisted it between his fingertips. The leaf contained a faint energy with a purifying effect. Although it was very faint, it was indeed there.

"The soil and plants here seem to be somewhat special." Luo Qingchen thought, "Perhaps it has something to do with the balance formed in this swamp."

At this moment, a sudden change occurred!
The gray-white sand beneath the feet of the three people began to shake violently without any warning! It was as if some giant creature was waking up underground!
"What's going on?!" Su Xiaowan jumped up in fright.

Rumble——!
The center of the sand suddenly collapsed, forming a huge quicksand vortex! A strong suction force came from the center of the vortex, pulling them madly! (End of this chapter)