The Path to Immortality: Starting with an Analysis of Basic Concepts

Chapter 412 The Black Blood Tribe of the Underworld (Please Subscribe)

Zhu Yu's gaze swept across the list, finally settling on the section on supernatural powers. He stared intently at it, a sense of enlightenment rising in his mind.

Netherworld Flames.

It belongs to the lower rank and is associated with divine and spiritual offensive and magical abilities.

One of the supernatural powers that made the Netherworld Tiger famous.

Its effect is to unleash black flames that specifically burn the soul. If there is no way to restrain it, at best the soul will be severely damaged, and at worst the soul will be burned away by the black flames, leaving only an empty shell.

Although it is a lower-level divine power, its power is comparable to that of a higher-level divine power when it comes to dealing with ghosts and demons.

Upon receiving the information, Zhu Yu felt confident that the trip to the "Netherworld" was going well. He closed the information panel, flipped himself over and straddled the black tiger's back. With a slight thought, he manifested a bronze door.

Roar--

Black Tiger raised its head and let out a fierce roar. The howling of ghosts in the "Benming Spirit Ruins" stopped abruptly, and the wandering ghosts and demons were terrified and burrowed into the ground. With a leap, they disappeared into the bronze door.

The dragon-blooded kobold's eyes shimmered with crimson light, and as the earth churned, it slowly sank into the tomb.

Not long after.

Black mist surged, a chilling wind blew, and the wailing of ghosts and wolves resounded once more.

outside world.

Upon returning to the mortal world, Zhu Yu rode the black tiger directly into the Netherworld.

Similar to traveling to and from the "Foundation Building Realm," but with slight differences. In his vision, the world seemed like a canvas whose colors had gradually faded.

When the last bit of color disappears.

A man and a tiger suddenly appeared in a dark, gloomy world where the sun never shines. As far as the eye could see, the earth was bare, revealing white bones, and the hills were like forests with a few ghost trees, creating a desolate and ruined scene.

Occasionally, a cold wind would sweep by, stirring up rotting white bones, which would then clatter and rattle.

"call--"

Zhu Yu, however, felt the dense, yin-attribute spiritual energy permeating the world. He let out a contented sigh, glanced around, patted the black tiger's head, and guided it with his divine sense in a direction rich in ghostly aura, commanding, "Let's go—"

Roar--

With a roar, the black tiger pushed off with its four limbs, accompanied by the cracking sound of bones breaking, and rose into the air, disappearing into the dark depths of the world in a few leaps.

Not long after Black Tiger left.

Wisps of black smoke rose from the dilapidated, skeletal remains, slowly coalescing into ethereal, transparent, and tattered ghosts.

They slowly wander around, and when they encounter their own kind, they immediately pounce and bite until one of them has eaten the other completely, making their bodies solid and replenishing their strength, and then they continue to wander.

A certain valley.

The oily green flames flickered like candlelight, and in their dim light, one could see complete figures below, some resembling humans and others beasts.

They frequently entered and exited the honeycomb-like holes in the valley, and emerged from them a moment later. However, most of their forms became somewhat illusory, while some of the ghostly forms seemed to have been torn apart by something, missing arms and legs.

After they emerged, they converged in the center of the valley, lining up in an orderly fashion. At the end of the line stood a table made of ghost wood, on which were placed two wooden barrels.

A minotaur, over ten feet tall and whose massive body could not be concealed even by leather armor, stood behind the table. He held a whip in one hand and a spoon in the other, and his scarlet eyes, like searchlights, scanned the indistinct humanoid ghost in front of him.

The ghost's blurry face revealed a timid expression. It slightly opened its mouth, spitting out grains of grayish-white sand that fell into the wooden bucket. After spitting out nine grains, it closed its mouth and carefully stretched out its hand.

"snort--"

The minotaur grunted, picked up a spoon, dipped it into another wooden bucket, stirred it, raised his arm, tilted the spoon, and strands of viscous black liquid slid down.

For an instant.

The ghosts who had been queuing with their heads down suddenly raised their heads, their dark eyes fixed on the black liquid. The queue surged, and they let out unconscious roars.

Snapped--

Just then, a crisp crack of a whip rang out, and the ghosts trembled for a moment, followed by a violent buzzing sound.

"Damn worms, behave yourselves to Grandpa Oxbone. If you dare to move again, I'll set you all on fire."

Snapped--

The minotaur, with his ox bones, raised his hand and flicked his braid, sending the wraith frantically sucking the black liquid flying. Ignoring its cries of agony, he shouted, "Next."

The ghostly group quickly regained their composure, each stepping forward to spit out grayish-white sand and sip the black liquid.

Replenished by the black liquid, the illusory ghost quickly solidified, and its torn limbs grew back.

Some of the stronger ghosts had almost real bodies and clearly visible faces, and they brought out the most grayish-white sand from the holes.

The minotaur's irritable voice softened somewhat.

What they don't know is...

Above the valley.

A pair of dark, deep eyes were staring at them.

"For a mere Qi-refining ghost to possess such high intelligence, is this the Netherworld—a special category called 'Otherworldly Spirit Ruins'—"

Zhu Yu's gaze became slightly serious.

According to the information he obtained from the sect.

"Netherworld" is one of the most special "Otherworldly Spirit Ruins". It does not exist in the present world, but is attached to it. Its area is boundless, not in a descriptive way, but truly boundless.

Whenever a "spirit ruin" with extraordinary existence is born, the "Netherworld" will expand; similarly, whenever a "spirit ruin" perishes, the corresponding "Netherworld" will collapse.

It's like an invisible grid full of holes, covering the equally boundless "abyss".

And such a vast "Spirit Ruins".

Nature also gives rise to unimaginable horrors, but fortunately, due to its non-existent nature, it can never step into the real world.

same.

Every person or beast that enters the "Netherworld" will be met with its hatred, and the longer they stay, the more likely they are to be noticed by certain beings.

Information about the Netherworld flashed through Zhu Yu's mind. He suppressed his thoughts, his gaze falling on the grayish-white sand grains spat out by the Netherworld, a smile playing on his lips.

It is not something else.

It was the "underworld soil" that he needed to construct the Taoist landscape "Road to the Underworld".

Zhu Yu patted the black tiger lightly.

next moment.

Roar--

A fierce tiger's roar suddenly exploded in the valley. Some illusory, almost transparent ghosts exploded upon hearing the sound, while others with semi-transparent bodies shuddered, becoming even more transparent and stiffening.

Only the minotaurs-like, almost tangible ghosts remained unchanged, but all the others were trapped in the honeycomb holes.

"Who! Who dares to cause trouble at the mine guarded by your Uncle Oxbone—"

The minotaur's eyes blazed with blood-red light, but as soon as it turned its head, it saw a fair, jade-like finger reaching out. Immediately, it felt a sharp pain in its head, and its consciousness plummeted into an abyss.

A few breaths later.

Zhu Yu withdrew his arm, looking thoughtful, while the minotaur's skeletal body exploded with a bang, turning into billowing black mist and disappearing into the world. The whip and spoon in his hand fell to the ground with a crisp sound.

Coming to his senses, he raised his eyebrows slightly.

"The Blackblood Tribe—"

According to this minotaur spirit named Oxbone, his tribe is called the "Blackblood Tribe," which has nearly a thousand members. They are all minotaur spirits transformed through something called the "Blood Pool."

Its leader is named "Blackblood".

It is a ghost general-level spirit that has reached the second tier.

"Ghost General, Blood Pool—"

Zhu Yu hesitated for a moment, then raised his hand and brought the wooden bucket containing the earth to his front. Looking at it, he saw that the bucket was half full of grayish-white sand.

He reached out and grabbed a handful, sensing the dense "underworld" aura it contained, and nodded in satisfaction.

The quantity was not small; another ten buckets of this amount of "Nether Earth" would be enough for him to initially condense the Dao landscape "Road to the Underworld".

He gathered his sleeves and put it into the beast pouch, then looked at another wooden barrel. After a quick inspection, his eyes lit up with even more delight.

The black viscous liquid in the bucket was of unknown origin, containing a rich and mixed divine soul power. It was definitely unsuitable for cultivation as it would pollute the soul, but it was extremely suitable as nourishment for the "other shore flower".

"Not bad, not bad—"

Having found his desired item right at the start, Zhu Yu nodded in satisfaction, put it away, and then checked the whip that Niu Gu was using.

A crudely made, ordinary ghost artifact, its material barely qualifying as inferior.

Zhu Yu casually put it away, glanced at the honeycomb holes all over the valley, had no intention of going in to explore, and patted the black tiger lightly.

A tiger's roar echoed throughout.

The man and the tiger vanished into the depths of darkness in the blink of an eye.

Not long after he left.

A solid, ghostly head peeked out from the honeycomb holes. Seeing that the valley was deserted and the guard had disappeared, it paused for a moment, then its face lit up with wild joy. It crawled out of the holes and rode the eerie wind straight out of the canyon.

And soon.

The other ghosts, realizing the guardian was gone, fled in droves.

the other side.

Following the memory of the ox bone, Zhu Yu rode the black tiger for a full hour, arriving at a certain mountain peak, where he stopped.

He composed himself and looked ahead.

As you can see, ten miles away, the eerie light shines like the sun, standing out starkly against the gray sky. Houses of varying sizes are scattered haphazardly, and within them wander the spirits of bull-headed, human-bodied beings of different heights.

And that is the "Blackblood" tribe.

It is also one of the largest ghost forces within a radius of tens of thousands of miles.

Zhu Yu felt the increasingly cold atmosphere around him. It was the "Netherworld" marking him. The longer he stayed in the "Netherworld", the more obvious the mark would become.

If you don't leave in time.

Sooner or later, it will attract some terrifying entities.

Zhu Yu sensed it briefly and realized he could remove the mark using his "Eye of True Sight," but considering the range of the "Netherworld" territory, he suppressed his desire to remove it.

The "Netherworld" is too vast.

Once cleared.

Who knows if some terrifying being will notice him?

It's better to play it safe.

Zhu Yu's mind raced, and he lightly patted Black Tiger's head, laughing, "Go on, let me see your strength after advancing to the second tier—"

Roar--

Black Tiger let out a low growl, rubbed its small head against his palm, and leaped into the air, heading straight for the "Black Blood Tribe".

As it drew closer, black flames slowly ignited around its body until it was completely covered in them. The black flames then doubled in size, and the creature plummeted toward the center of the "Black Blood Tribe".

"What is that thing? —"

A wandering minotaur ghost caught a glimpse of the black flames plunging down from the sky and paused in surprise. As the flames drew closer, it felt an unbearable burning sensation spread through its body. Its expression changed drastically, and it roared, "Enemy attack—"

Ow—

Even without its reminder, the wandering minotaur spirits all felt the burning pain of their souls, roaring in shock and anger, and using their yin energy to cover their bodies in an attempt to block the flames.

But soon they felt the burning sensation intensify instead of subside, and the increasingly intense stinging pain caused them to let out miserable howls.

next moment.

boom--

The black fireball landed in the center of the tribe, accompanied by a roar, and surging black flames erupted and spread outwards like a wave.

A large number of minotaur spirits were unable to escape and were engulfed by the black flames. They did not even have time to let out a scream before turning into green smoke and dissipating.

The cliff behind the village.

A simple but exceptionally tall stone house suddenly opened its doors with a loud bang, and with heavy footsteps, a huge minotaur, nearly nine zhang tall, wearing black armor and wielding an unknown bone club, stepped out.

His two blood-red eyes, as large as carriages, were fixed on the silver-white tiger beast in the center of the black flames. He pushed off with his feet, sending dirt and stones flying everywhere. Like a wild bull, he tore through the black flames and arrived in front of the black tiger in an instant. He gripped the nearly three-zhang-long bone club with both hands and smashed it down.

"die--"

A black halo appeared on the bone club, and an immense pressure, as heavy as a mountain, pressed down, causing the black tiger to pause. The next moment, the bone club slammed straight into its body.

Clang—Boom—

The terrifying force transmitted by the bone club made the earth tremble and smashed a huge crater. The minotaur's black and blood-red eyes flickered like fire, his mouth stretched into an exaggerated arc, revealing his gleaming teeth. He raised the bone club, gathered his strength, and smashed it down again.

But a silver light leaped out of the pit and crashed directly into it, making it stumble. Before it could react, a silver tiger head came into view, its mouth open, and surging black flames gushed out like liquid.

Black Blood hurriedly closed his eyes, but the soul that made it the dominant force for thousands of miles around could not withstand the Netherworld Flame. Like sulfuric acid, it burned away his skin and flesh, exposing his dark skull.

what--

The excruciating pain caused Black Blood to let out a shrill scream, and his hand instinctively struck the black tiger in front of him, but he missed.

Black Tiger nimbly roamed around it, and the Netherworld Flame, which was a natural counter to the Wraith, quickly burned Black Blood away, leaving only a minotaur-like skeleton.

Black Blood dared not resist any longer. He coiled his body, turning into billowing black smoke, and fled into the distance.

Black Tiger, of course, wouldn't let this delicious treat slip by. He leaped into the air and gave chase.

Tall stone houses.

Zhu Yu's figure materialized, and his gaze swept around.

The stone house was simple.

There was only a stone bed, ten feet long and wide, resembling white jade, exuding a chilling aura, and a dark and deep well.

"A pool of blood—"

Zhu Yu glanced at the well, but didn't rush to examine it. He stepped forward to the stone bed, touched it with his palm, paused for a moment, and then his eyes lit up.

"Hiss, this bed is actually made entirely of 'Nether Earth'—"

Without hesitation, he summoned the magical artifact "Lingxiao," divided it into dozens of pieces, and put them into his "Beast Bag."

His gaze immediately fell upon the "blood pool" in Niu Gu's memory. With a flick of his wrist, he transformed into a faint ray of light and entered the well.

Not long after.

A faint beam of light flew out and transformed into the figure of a handsome young man. He held a black and red stone ball the size of a human head in his hand, and his expression was a mixture of surprise and delight.

A few breaths later.

He asked incredulously, "What's the origin of this black blood—"

Before he could think any further, Zhu Yu felt the chilling aura around him intensify, and a slightly sticky feeling spread through him. Knowing he couldn't stay any longer, he gathered his sleeves and put away the black and red stone ball. He then reached into the well, and a torrent of blood-red water gushed out and disappeared into his sleeves.

Once the bleeding stopped, he looked around the room to make sure nothing was missing, then turned and left.

He retrieved the giant bone club that Black Blood had dropped and rode his escape light straight towards the location of "Black Tiger".

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