Primordial Era: Starting with slaughtering all the gods and Buddhas in the sky

The Cold Nether Altar was broken into several pieces. After the underground cold water veins were forcibly torn open, they first gushed, then poured, and finally turned into a deep and long roar that spread outwards along the entire basin, making people's chests numb.

Huang Chen stepped onto a sloping ice rock, felt a sweet taste in his throat, and his blood surged up again.

He raised his hand to his chest, forcefully suppressing the burning sensation, but a dark red stain still trickled from the corner of his mouth.

Several wounds on his shoulder, back, waist, abdomen, and left arm were bleeding. The surface of his black and yellow armor was covered with cracks, like a broken shell that had been smashed by a heavy hammer and then barely pieced back together.

I heard crying behind me.

There were muffled thuds as people fell in the snow, suppressed coughs after freezing, and the ear-piercing screeching of broken chains dragging over gravel.

Huang Chen looked back.

Few survived.

The dozen or so sacrificial humans were all deathly pale, with bloody lock marks still visible on their ankles.

There were also several laborers, so thin they looked like sticks, swaying in the wind. Lan Gu was supporting a middle-aged man, half of whose face was pale from the cold and whose lips were cracked. When he saw Huang Chen turn around, he quickly straightened his back.

"Sir, I can bring two more."

Huang Chen looked at him, his voice a little hoarse.

"Don't try to be clever."

Lan Gu gritted her teeth and nodded.

"Yes, sir."

There was another muffled explosion in the center of the basin.

A large section of ice suddenly caved in, causing the remaining pillars of the altar to collapse and crash into the cracked, icy ditch. Black snow dust mixed with white vapor surged up like a rolling tide, causing everyone to instinctively duck and close their eyes.

Someone screamed.

"It...it will collapse!"

'

"My benefactor, which way should we go?"

"My legs are too weak, I can't go..."

The commotion spread like wildfire, and panic erupted as if doused with cold water.

Huang Chen took a deep breath of the air, which was filled with the smell of blood and frost, and turned around to look around. The basin was surrounded by high cliffs on three sides. The main road had long been collapsed by the earthquake, and the sacrificial path they had come from was no longer a viable route. When the Cold Nether Altar collapsed, the entire outer ring was sinking inward, and anyone who tried to walk on it would be buried.

He looked down at the rock formations beneath his feet.

The earth's veins are out of order.

It's a complete mess.

But it's not completely without seams.

Huang Chen closed his eyes and activated the Spiritual Hearing Technique, forcefully suppressing the cries, cracking sounds, and howling winds in his ears, focusing only on the ground. Several dozen breaths later, he suddenly opened his eyes and looked at a dark mark covered in black snow on the left cliff.

That wasn't a natural crack.

These are the veins that have just loosened after the cliff was affected by the altar.

"Come with me, all of you."

His voice wasn't loud, but it drowned out the commotion.

"Line up in two rows, with the seriously injured in the middle, and those who can walk helping those who can't. Whoever falls behind will die here."

'

No one dared to cause any more trouble.

Lan Gu immediately ran over and pulled the group into a line.

An old woman's legs gave way, and she knelt in the snow, unable to get up. He and another laborer supported her from both sides, shivering from the cold, but did not let go.

Huang Chen took a step down.

The Mountain and River Boots emitted a deep hum underfoot, their treads gleaming with an earthy yellow sheen as they spread out along the cliff face.

The first step: Boom.

The second step is to snap a picture.

As the third step landed, the dark mark on the side cliff suddenly exploded, and rubble tumbled down, creating a gaping hole just wide enough for three people to walk side by side.

A cold wind blew in from the other side of the crack, carrying the earthy smell of the outside mountains and fields, no longer the stagnant, chilly atmosphere around the altar.

The crowd behind immediately stirred.

"It's open!"

The road is open!

'

"There's a road! There's a road!"

Huang Chen didn't turn around, but raised his hand and waved.

"Go in."

He stood on the outermost edge, watching the rocks fall continuously as he sent people into the crevice in batches.

If someone's legs gave way and they fell, he would pick them up and throw them forward; if someone was stunned with fear, he would shout at them, his voice like a knife, forcing them to run forward on their own.

Lan Gu was the last to protect the old woman.

As the boy passed by Huang Chen, he saw the blood dripping from Huang Chen's sleeve and his expression changed.

"My lord, you are injured—"

"Go on your way."

'

Huang Chen raised his leg and kicked away a huge rock blocking the entrance.

Lan Gu's eyes were red, and she didn't dare to say anything more. She helped the person inside.

Huang Chen only turned around after the last living person had entered the crevice.

The center of the basin had completely collapsed, with the ice coffin fragments and altar ruins sinking to the bottom, leaving only churning black water.

The mirage body that was previously connected to the Cold Water Vein has disappeared without a trace. Only a few wisps of translucent skin float on the water's surface, looking from a distance like a torn human figure reflected in the water.

He stood there for two breaths before turning around and disappearing into the crevice.

The crevice was narrow, the stone walls were icy cold, and snowmelt dripped down from time to time, stinging their necks like needles. The people in front were moving slowly, and the constant rumbling of a collapse behind them made everyone walk even more hurriedly.

Huang Chen walked last.

While covering the rear, he unfurled half of the Ten Thousand Souls Banner, releasing a few wisps of ghostly spirits to probe the way.

The spirits darted through the cracks, turning back when they encountered a dead end, thus saving themselves a lot of trouble.

About half an hour later, light finally appeared ahead.

It wasn't the sinister red of a sacrificial fire, but rather the light of heaven.

It was gray and pale with cold.

The first person to crawl out almost tumbled into the snow, then lay on the ground gasping for breath. The others crawled out one after another, like wretched ghosts emerging from their graves.

This is a rocky area on a shady hillside.

The wind was strong, but it lacked the bone-chilling cold of the basin.

In the distance, one can still see the dark, layered silhouettes of the northern foothills of Buzhou Mountain. The sky hangs low, and snowflakes blow across the face, stinging like gritty grains.

As soon as Huang Chen stepped out of the crevice, his footing gave way.

He slammed his black iron sword into the ground to avoid falling directly to the ground.

Lan Gu immediately turned around and rushed over.

"grown ups!"

Huang Chen waved his hand to indicate that he was not dead, then casually took out a Rejuvenation Pill and swallowed it, and then took out a Vitality-Replenishing Pill and crushed half of it.

After the medicine took effect, the churning emptiness in my chest and abdomen subsided slightly.

He looked around and began to make arrangements.

"Don't stop here. Follow the rocky slope westward for another ten miles, and you'll find a sheltered valley."

'

"Lan Gu, you lead the men ahead."

Those who could move gathered firewood, while those who couldn't help each other.

If you don't get there within half an hour, you'll just have to blame yourself for freezing to death.

The language is rough.

But no one complained.

Being able to survive that hellhole is like having two lives.

Right now, they do whatever Huang Chen says.

The group stumbled and moved westward.

Huang Chen followed behind, glancing back every now and then in the direction of the Black Snow Basin. There were still aftershocks and collapses there, and the snow fog and cold air were mixed together like a giant hand that hadn't completely dissipated, covering the mountain valley.

Several hours later, the group finally made their way into the sheltered rocky valley.

The valley entrance is narrow, but the interior is spacious, with three stone walls blocking most of the wind and snow.

At the bottom of the valley, there was a flat area of ​​gravel, and in one corner, there were even a few withered shrubs with roots that were deeply embedded in the rock crevices, which could be cut down to start a fire.

Almost everyone who entered the valley was paralyzed.

Some people curled up on the ground and cried, while others stared blankly at the corpses of their companions. The two sacrificial humans had struggled all the way here, but finally breathed their last when they arrived, their faces still frozen with the terror they had felt when they escaped the basin.

Lan Gu was busy running around, and her voice became hoarse from shouting.

"Start a fire here!"

'

"Don't pile them all together, make room for the more seriously injured!"

Where's the water?

Whoever is still in their physical form, let them melt first!

Huang Chen sat down against the stone wall, first setting up a rudimentary warning at the valley entrance with the Soul-Binding Lock and several Xuan Yin Array Flags, and then releasing a few wisps of Yin Souls to patrol, to prevent any remaining demons or tracking creatures from surviving nearby.

Only after doing all this did he finally relax and let out the breath he had been holding.

As soon as I relaxed, all the injuries came rushing back.

Two of his ribs felt broken, and the hidden injuries to his chest from the recoil of the Cold Nether Altar were still throbbing with pain. The remaining cold energy and karmic fire in his meridians were tearing at each other, causing his temples to throb with pain. Huang Chen looked down at his palms, which were covered in dried and cracked blood.

Grass.

I almost lost my life in that battle.

He took out the Earth Core Stone Marrow, mixed it with some warm water, and drank it. He then swallowed a high-grade Qi and Blood Pill, and sat cross-legged to slowly circulate his Qi and Blood using the "Ancient God and Demon Technique" and the "Desolate Ancient Body Forging Scripture." The sounds of wind and snow, coughs, and suppressed sobs around him gradually faded into the distance.

After an unknown amount of time, the turbulent blood and qi within his body finally began to settle down.

When Huang Chen opened his eyes, there were already four or five fires burning in the stone valley. The orange-red firelight reflected on people's faces, making them look even more pleasing to the eye than the previous sacrificial fire.

Lan Gu, carrying a bundle of dry firewood, carefully walked over and squatted down beside him.

"My lord, you're awake."

'

Huang Chen hummed in agreement.

"How many died?"

'

Lan Gu lowered her head.

"Four more died."

Two of them suffered internal organ damage from the cold on the way, and two others were too badly injured at the altar to survive.

His voice became a little hoarse as he spoke.

Huang Chen offered no words of comfort, only asking, "How many are still able to walk?"

Fifteen.

'

"Can't we walk?"

Seven.

"It's time to rest."

Huang Chen nodded and remained silent for a moment.

Lan Gu hesitated for a moment, then whispered, "An old man just said that he used to work as a corpse-moving laborer outside the Locking Vein Stone, and he heard the witch slaves mention something."

Huang Chen looked up.

"explain."

Lan Gu moved closer and lowered his voice.

He said that this Cold Nether Altar was not the end, but just the fuse. Those who are truly eyeing the northern foothills of Buzhou Mountain are not only the remnants of the Xuantian Sect and the Northern Sea Clan.

"From the Gonggong tribe's side, there's still a main force of warriors rushing this way."

The flame flickered.

Huang Chen's expression remained unchanged, but he gently tapped his knee with his fingers.

Seeing that he didn't speak, Lan Gu added another sentence.

"That old uncle also said that many of the black chains, vein-locking patterns, and sacrificial canal designs of the Broken Vein Camp don't resemble things from the demon race; they're more like old methods passed down from the main lineage of the Witch Clan. It seems like the Xuan Tian Sect and the Sea Clan just picked them up and used them."

'

Huang Chen stared at the fire, his gaze gradually darkening.

He had actually guessed this long ago.

From the Rift Mountain Sacrifice Canal to the Black Chain of the Suppressing Vein, and then to the half-human, half-mermaid mirage body beneath the Cold Nether Altar, many of these things were not hastily pieced together. The fact that they could transcend so many forces and fit together so seamlessly like building blocks suggests that there must be a larger hand behind them, or an older catalogue.

He simply cut the fuse that was most likely to explode in advance.

As for how much gunpowder is left, where it's hidden, and who lit it—

We are still far from understanding it.

Huang Chen raised his hand.

"Bring that old man here."

'

"Yes, sir."

Lan Gu turned and ran.

A moment later, an elderly human with gray hair and beard was helped over. The old man was emaciated, with sunken eyes, and a broken chain still dragged on his left leg, making him walk with a limp. Upon seeing Huang Chen, he immediately tried to kneel down.

Huang Chen raised his scabbard to block.

"Don't come here."

Explain what you know clearly.

The old man's Adam's apple bobbed, and he nodded vigorously.

"My benefactor, I dare not conceal the truth. I used to work as a laborer in the old mine on the northern slope, and later I was transferred to move corpses outside the Broken Vein Camp."

Two months ago, a small group of men came to the camp, only about twenty riders, but each of them wore black armor, their bodies tattooed with the marks of broken river waves, and their footsteps made a dull thud on the ground.

"When the Xuanjia Witch Supervisor saw them, they didn't dare to sit down and speak."

'

Huang Chen asked, "What did you hear?"

The old man swallowed.

"I didn't hear everything. I only heard 'The main vein is approaching,' 'The northern foothills must not collapse first,' and 'The shattered seal of the mirage palace is just a key, not a door.'"

Another black-armored warrior mentioned that if the fuse detonated prematurely, they should first secure the pulse point and then switch to the sacrificial vessel; there was no need to defend against the remnants of the Xuan Tian Sect's immortal cultivators.

Huang Chen's eyes flickered slightly.

The Mirage Palace Shattered Seal.

Sure enough, they were holding onto something else as well.

The old man became even more nervous when he saw Huang Chen's cold expression.

"My benefactor, I still remember something."

That night, they brought in a sea creature envoy, who seemed to have come from the direction of the North Sea. Later, he entered the inner tent along with the Xuanjia Shaman and the envoy from the Northern Sea. The next day, the camp began a large-scale removal of the Cold Jade Soul Jars and sacrificial human offerings.

'

Huang Chen slowly exhaled.

There are more and more loose threads.

The remnants of the Xuantian Sect, the Northern Sea Clan, and the main branch of the Gonggong Tribe are all reaching out towards the northern foothills of Buzhou Mountain. The Cold Nether Altar has collapsed, the Broken Vein Camp has exploded, and the Black Snow Basin has sunk. These people may not stop, but will only rush over even faster to find the remaining map, the pulse point, and the overall situation that can still be salvaged.

He stood up.

As soon as I stood up straight, my chest felt suffocated and dark.

Lan Gu quickly reached out to help him up.

"Sir, be careful."

'

Huang Chen pushed his hand away and walked towards a place on the edge of the valley where spoils of war were piled up. These were things he had casually thrown away after entering the valley, a mess of broken bone tools, bloodstained skin bags, shattered pieces of cold jade, and several mutilated corpses that he had casually fished out from the altar.

One of them was an envoy from the Northern Sea.

Or rather, only half of it remains.

The creature's lower body had been swept away when the altar collapsed, and its upper body was charred by the icy water and karmic fire. Only a piece of hard, dark blue material, resembling a fragment of some kind of seal, remained embedded in its chest cavity. Huang Chen had been too busy leading his men to escape to examine it closely, but now he crouched down and used the tip of his black iron knife to pick the object out.

It feels cool to the touch.

It was as cold as if it had just been pulled up from the bottom of the ocean.

It was a broken seal, with uneven edges, a deep blue-black color, and extremely fine mirage patterns engraved on its surface. When the moonlight and firelight shone on it, it seemed as if there were ocean tides moving within the seal, and the outline of a palace floating in the mist could be vaguely seen.

A system notification then popped up.

[Special artifact detected: Fragment of the Mirage Palace in the North Sea]

[Grade: Damaged Ancient Seal]

[Note: There are residual connections with the Mirage Palace Gate, the Ocean Vein Illusionary Barrier, and the Ancient Sacrificial Beacon]

Huang Chen squinted and examined the broken seal several times.

It's not a magic weapon.

It looks more like a corner of a key.

Or perhaps, a piece of a map.

He suddenly remembered what the old man had just said—the shattered seal of the mirage palace was just a key, not a door.

Beside the campfire, Lan Gu and several other survivors also saw the broken seal, their expressions filled with fear. The thing was so cold that just getting close to it would cause goosebumps to rise on their skin.

Lan Gu couldn't help but ask, "My lord, is this what those people were fighting over?"

Huang Chen hummed in agreement and put the item into his pocket.

"Valuable, but also deadly."

The boy shrank back, not daring to ask any more questions.

Huang Chen sat cross-legged again in front of the stone wall, his mind sinking into his sea of ​​consciousness, and brought up the system panel.

A flash of golden light, and the familiar panel unfolded before my eyes.

This time, the settlement information was longer than usual.

[Main story phase settlement in progress...]

You have destroyed the fuse of the Frostfire Altar, severed the resonance node of the Northern Foothills Sacrifice Vein, killed multiple sinful targets, and rescued a large number of human sacrifices and laborers.

[Karma Value Increased Significantly]

[Merit points have increased significantly]

[Bonus rewards are being processed...]

Huang Chen's gaze shifted downwards.

The next moment, a line of dark gold text slowly appeared.

[Acquired the prototype of a divine power: Pulse Fire Battle Domain]

[Explanation: Using the host's Qi and blood as a guide, it connects with the surrounding earth veins to form a pulse fire field within a local area.]

Within the field, it can weaken methods such as soul binding, meridian locking, incense burning, and meridian sacrifice; it has a natural impact on evil sacrifices, soul restriction, and meridian locking structures.

[Note: This is currently in its rudimentary stage and requires continuous nourishment with leyline resources, battlefield experience, and the balance of Qi and blood to be strengthened.]

After reading it, Huang Chen was silent for a moment, then his chest rose and fell slightly.

This thing came at just the right time.

From the Valley of White Bones and Blood to the Ancestral Mountain, from the Severed Vein Camp to the Cold Nether Altar, the most common enemy techniques he encountered were not simple sword and saber skills, but rather arrays, sacrifices, locks, restraints, and refinements. The most disgusting thing about those things was that they would readily borrow the earth, the veins, the souls, and the blood of all living beings, killing slowly but ruthlessly trapping people.

If the Pulsefire Battlefield can be formed, it will be equivalent to giving yourself half a home field in this type of situation.

Huang Chen continued reading.

Behind the panel, the store interface has also changed.

Many high-level exchange items that were previously dull and unappealing, only to be viewed from afar, now have their outlines illuminated.

This includes a more complete chapter on battle bodies, fragments of certain high-level soul-suppressing and killing weapons, and even several array restrictions related to ley lines and battle domains for exchange.

He wasn't in a hurry to buy it.

Having just fought a fierce battle, the worst thing we can do is to act rashly and squander our resources.

First, let's keep people alive and get them away from the northern foothills, then we can think about other things.

Huang Chen put away the panel and let out a long sigh of relief.

The flames crackled and popped.

In the distance, the wind and snow crashed against the stone walls at the valley entrance, howling like some giant beast pacing back and forth outside. Several survivors, wrapped in tattered blankets, huddled together, exhausted and already fast asleep.

Lan Gu was still awake, squatting to the side, scraping the charred inside of a broken pot with a stone shard, wanting to boil some more water.

Huang Chen suddenly thought of the torch.

He thought of the human shelter in the valley that was not yet fully formed, of the refugees, the elderly, and the children he had painstakingly rescued from various places, and of his old friend.

Before leaving, he left behind the incomplete Gonggong Zhenmai Lock Diagram and several rubbings of the array diagrams, instructing Lao Tie to lead his men to gradually fill in the gaps using the three-stage training method and the sections on fortifications, sentry duty, and storage from the modern basic knowledge package.

With Lao Tie's stubbornness, he's probably currently moving stones, setting up stakes, and checking the array points while cursing and swearing.

Thinking of this, Huang Chen's lips twitched slightly.

I didn't laugh out loud.

But my chest felt a little lighter than when I had just climbed out of the basin.

Lan Gu brought over a half-pot of hot snow water and whispered, "My lord, please have some."

Huang Chen took it, his fingertips touching the edge of the pot, feeling numb from the heat.

He took a sip; the water had a faint rusty and woody taste—unpleasant to drink, yet warm.

Lan Gu squatted down beside him, gazing at the dark mountain shadows outside the valley, and suddenly whispered, "My lord, are we really going to overturn that altar?"

'

Huang Chen looked into the depths of Buzhou Mountain and did not answer immediately.

After a few breaths, he finally spoke.

"Half of it was lifted up."

Lan Gu was stunned.

"What about the other half?"

Huang Chen handed the pot back to him, then slowly pressed his palm against the shattered imprint of the North Sea Mirage Palace in his arms.

The shattered prints were cold.

Like a miniature sea.

He looked up at the mountains shrouded in wind and snow, his eyes reflecting the fire and the night. After a long while, he uttered a soft sentence.

"Still in the mountains."

'

Outside the valley, a black wind whipped up snow, sweeping across the stone walls with a long, mournful wail.