Starting from the pharmacy, he grew into a martial saint among men.

From the moment he chose to take the shortcut, he had been secretly calculating in his mind.

Chu Hong's route is the safest, but it's a long detour, though that doesn't mean they'll be slower.

Because of the monsters they encountered today, they were delayed for a long time.

If the other side goes in first, they won't be able to get back so easily.

Old Wang naturally knew what Old Li was thinking, and he shook his head and said:

"Don't worry, Mr. Li. I've scouted the valley entrance myself. Although it just rained, there were no signs of any living creatures there."

"Moreover, the Black Dragon Abyss is teeming with poisonous insects, and the entry of outsiders will inevitably cause turmoil that will not subside for a long time. Although there are ripples inside now, they are still within the area and are definitely not what they would look like if someone had entered."

"This also shows that we really arrived ahead of schedule."

As he spoke, he pointed to several routes drawn on the map, his tone quite confident:

"Judging by the distance, since they have not arrived today, they will surely arrive tomorrow."

"Then, if we join forces and lay a trap, we can capture him in one fell swoop, and our mission will be complete."

Old Wang's analysis was very logical and made some sense, which eased Old Li's anxiety.

But he still didn't relax, because he always felt that there was a pair of eyes watching their every move.

He initially thought it was Chu Hong and his companion monitoring him, but after secretly patrolling for a long time, he didn't see anything unusual.

Old Wang's explanation lessened his suspicions about Chu Hong, leading him to believe that perhaps some kind of demonic beast was hiding in the shadows.

On the cliff, Xiao Cui used the moonlight to see the shadowy group at the entrance of the valley.

She silently planned in her heart how she should create opportunities for Chu Hong when he returned.

-----------------

As soon as Chu Hong stepped into the Black Dragon Abyss, he saw countless poisonous insects surge up in fright.

Some of the poisonous insects sensed the presence of a living person and rushed towards Chu Hong at lightning speed, as if they had tasted a delicious meal and wanted to devour him.

But when these poisonous insects reached within a zhang (approximately 3.3 meters) of Chu Hong, they all detoured around them, not daring to take another step forward.

It was as if he possessed some great terror.

Chu Hong immediately realized that the ointment he had applied to his body must have taken effect.

That was a medicinal ointment specially prepared by Gu Jin, which could mimic the scent of a powerful poisonous insect, causing ordinary poisonous insects to avoid it.

The clouds in Heilongyuan hung extremely low, a dark and oppressive mass, and looking up at it only brought a sense of unease.

Chu Hong took a deep breath, and a stench of various odors entered his body, almost making him vomit up his dinner from the night before.

It took Chu Hong a while to accept the indescribable taste.

He trudged through the slippery, black mud beneath his feet, making the journey extremely difficult.

Before long, the last glimmer of light in the world faded into silence, and Chu Hong took out a stone that shone with a faint yellow light from the wooden box.

Using the dim light to illuminate a few feet of space, we continued onward.

This stone was the lighting tool that Gu Jin had prepared for him.

There was no firewood in the Black Dragon Abyss, so even if Chu Hong had a tinderbox, he couldn't make a torch that would provide light for a long time.

Moreover, the light and heat emitted by the torches would agitate the poisonous insects, making it difficult to completely suppress the camouflage scent.

It is extremely dangerous.

But this stone, with its soft light and lack of heat, perfectly solves this problem.

It is most suitable for the current scenario.

After walking for a long time, Chu Hong finally found a boulder where he could rest. He quickly sprinkled insect repellent powder and marked out a safe area.

After applying a little ointment to his body, Chu Hong finally began to rest.

"According to intelligence, about ten miles ahead lies a large underground cave. The Purple Cloud Grass is located deep within that cave."

It's unclear where Gu Jin obtained this information.

Unable to verify it, she could only leave it to Chu Hong, letting him explore the location of the Purple Cloud Grass on his own.

Chu Hong shook his head inwardly. If the information was false, then he couldn't be blamed.

However, he also knew that it wasn't that Gu Jin was incompetent; after all, Gu Jin lacked manpower and couldn't verify the authenticity of the information.

If it could really be verified, why would he need to take this risk?

After sleeping through the night, Chu Hong got up and continued on his way.

Before long, they stepped into the underground cave.

The underground caverns were interconnected, and Chu Hong had no clue what to do for the time being. He simply chose a location based on his intuition and began to explore.

But not long after he left, Chu Hong saw several egg-sized insects slowly flying over.

Chu Hong was startled when he saw it.

He immediately stopped in his tracks, stood still, staring at the insects, his heart filled with apprehension.

These insects are grayish-brown, with iron-like exoskeletons and patterns on their backs that resemble grinning faces.

It is a top-tier venomous insect that can kill with a single bite – the Laughing Bug.

They are extremely ferocious; a single bite can freeze a person's blood, and within three quarters of an hour, the person will be sent to the underworld.

If it is the most powerful Smiling Insect, one bite can even kill a martial artist at the Transformation Realm instantly.

Another reason why Chu Hong dared not make a move was that the ointment he applied was made from smiling insects.

In other words, these smiling worms smelled his scent.

They flew around Chu Hong, and two of them even clung to his arm. They touched each other's antennae from time to time, as if trying to figure out whether Chu Hong was one of their kind.

If they weren't of the same kind, they would have attacked Chu Hong instantly.

Although Chu Hong could wipe them all out with a flick of his finger, he did not act rashly.

This is because these laughing worms never act alone; whenever one is found, there is always a laughing worm's nest nearby.

As soon as one is harmed, hundreds or even thousands of smiling worms will rush in to make the perpetrator pay for their crime in blood.

Chu Hong knew the consequences of any careless movement, so he stood still without moving, his heart pounding in his chest.

If they don't recognize him as one of their own kind, even if Chu Hong doesn't want to, he must kill them and then quickly leave the cave to survive.

Fortunately, the smiling insects seemed to be completely bewitched by Chu Hong's aura. Zhen Ge mistook him for one of their own and turned to fly into the deeper darkness.

Chu Hong also let out a long breath, feeling slightly relieved.

"This is no place to linger; leaving now is the best course of action!"

Chu Hong thought to himself.

This is their nesting area. Although these few were fooled, it doesn't mean there aren't clever insects behind them.

If they see through your disguise, you will still be in danger.

He marked the spot, applied another layer of ointment, and quickly went deeper into the area.

They only stopped to rest and recuperate after walking a considerable distance and feeling that they had left the area of ​​its nest.

Meanwhile, the laughing worms did not return to their nest.

They flew along the dark passage, turning left and right, until they entered a huge underground cavern deep inside.

Along the edge of the cave, an underground river flows slowly, with wisps of cold air rising from it.

On a stone platform not far away, several ferocious insects the size of large bowls were coiled up. Their aura was comparable to that of a martial artist at the Transformation Realm. Although they did not make any move, their appearance alone was enough to show their ferocity.

Not far behind the ferocious insect, there grew a medicinal herb that was entirely purple, with nine leaves emerging at once, and a pale yellow flower blooming at the top.

If Chu Hong were here, he would surely recognize at a glance that this is the Purple Cloud Grass he has been searching for.

Surprisingly, a figure was sitting cross-legged next to the grass.

Upon closer inspection, it was discovered that this was actually a person, a person who was still alive.

His clothes were tattered and old, as if they hadn't been changed in years.

His eyes were sunken, his skin was dry and dark, and there was hardly any flesh left on his bones, as if he had been dead for many years.

But the smiling worm went straight for the figure, fluttering up and down in front of it as if it were telling a story.

Suddenly, the figure opened its eyes.

A beam of light shot out.

His lips moved slightly, his voice hoarse and dry, like a demon returned from hell:

"Finally...it's here!"

He muttered incantations and gave commands to the Laughing Bug, which soon departed.

He turned his head to look at the herb with small flowers, and let out a strange "hehehe" laugh.

"I will be back!"