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

Thirty miles outside the Soul Lock Gate, the terrain has changed from the damp and cold of the Blackwater Grottoes to a dry and rugged gray rock belt.

The wind blew in from the cracks in the rocks, carrying a faint smell of sulfur and old blood, and it dried my face. The rock cavity was not large, and the entrance was narrow, but inside there was a natural stone depression that sheltered me from the wind and also from the echoes of the several flowing water veins outside.

When Huang Chen sat down against the stone wall, his back was still faintly burning.

That's not ordinary fever.

The Xuan Tian Soul Power that Zhao Wuji exploded before his death, the scorching after the karmic fire rebounded, and the soul-piercing pain left from when he withstood the Soul Nails, all piled up in his body, like a lump of unburnt charcoal, suffocating in the gaps between his bones.

He raised his hand and pressed it to his temple; there were still scabs of blood on his knuckles.

"Come here, everyone."

Huang Chen's voice was not loud, but the people huddled in the corner of the cave immediately moved.

The scouts were dressed in tattered clothes, their faces pale, with thin black lines on their necks and around their collarbones—traces left by the lingering poison from the Soul Nails that had crawled along their meridians. He had saved them by breaking open the stone gate in Chapter 85, and even now, these men were still like frightened birds. Hearing him speak made them feel more at ease than hearing anyone else's reprimands.

An older servant clutched his shoulder and whispered, "Master Huang, my head is still numb, and it keeps sounding like someone is hammering metal in my ear."

Huang Chen glanced at him.

"It's not that someone is striking the iron; it's that the aftershocks of the Soul Nails are still shaking your divine court. If you delay another night, you will start having nightmares, your eyes will be bloodshot on the third day, and you will walk into the water on your own on the fourth day."

'

The servant's face turned pale on the spot.

Another boy, as thin as a stick, swallowed hard and asked in a low voice, "Can...can it be completely removed?"

'

"Yes, it hurts."

After Huang Chen finished speaking, he raised his hand.

The Myriad Souls Token trembled slightly, and a dark light spread from his palm, like a thin mist covering the heads of those people. At the same time, he held a fragment of a Profound Heaven Soul Nail in his other hand, using the same source energy within the fragment to draw out the remaining poison in those people's bodies.

This method is crude and risky.

The advantage is that it's fast.

He doesn't have time to slowly raise people right now.

The old servant suddenly groaned, his forehead veins bulging, and the black lines on his neck arched upwards like live worms.

Huang Chen didn't stand on ceremony. He raised his finger and pointed it at Huang Chen's brow. The coldness of the Nine Nether Soul-Slaying Talisman pressed down, pinning down the surging soul poison.

Don't struggle.

'

"The more you struggle, the more it creeps into your brain."

The man's jaw was clenched so tightly it was grinding, and his hands were gripping his knees so hard that his fingernails were turned inside out.

The people standing nearby felt their scalps tingle, but dared not make a move.

A moment later, Huang Chen forcibly pulled a wisp of black smoke, as thin as a hair, from the man's nose.

The moment the black smoke left the body, it landed on the stone surface and hissed, burning a pit the size of a sesame seed.

The slave seemed to have all his strength drained away, and he collapsed backward, panting heavily.

"Are you awake?"

"Awake...awake."

'

"Then it's not useless."

Huang Chen is next.

Soon, only suppressed breathing, muffled groans, and the faint crackling sound of the soul poison being pulled out filled the cavern. The wind blew through the cave entrance, stirring up dust and debris mixed with the stench of blood and black smoke, making one's mouth water.

Huang Chen's movements became increasingly steady, but his face grew paler and paler.

He was also injured.

Removing this kind of soul poison from someone else doesn't consume magical power, but rather mental energy.

The last servant was the short man who had just pointed out the side road to him in Chapter 87. He had a dark, almost purplish-black line below his collarbone.

Huang Chen stared at the black mark for a couple of breaths, then frowned slightly.

"You've been dragging this out the longest."

'

The short man forced a smile.

"I didn't dare to speak just now because I was afraid of implicating Master Huang."

'

"Stop talking nonsense."

Huang Chen pressed him down onto the stone surface, his palm directly covering the purplish flesh.

It felt cold to the touch, like touching a dead bone that had just been pulled out of the black water.

The next instant, he slightly activated the Pulse Fire Battle Domain within his body.

It wasn't fully unfolded; it only borrowed a very thin wisp of pulse fire.

The fire seeped into his palm, and the servant shuddered, almost crying out, before Huang Chen grabbed his chin with his other hand.

"Bear with it."

"If you make a sound and attract attention from outside, I'll throw you out first."

'

The man's eyes welled up with tears from the pain, and he nodded frantically.

The Soul-Burning Poison of the Pulse Fire is the most ruthless, and also the cleanest.

In less than three breaths, the purplish-black pattern began to bulge layer by layer, as if something was darting around under the skin. Huang Chen suddenly clenched his fingers and actually squeezed out a tiny, half-solid black dot, the size of a pinhead, through the skin and flesh.

As soon as the black dot left the body, it immediately turned into a sharp, mournful cry, and was then swallowed up by the Ten Thousand Souls Token.

The short man clutched his chest, lying on the ground panting. After a long while, he managed to squeeze out a sentence: "Master Huang, this time... it really feels like I've been reborn."

'

Huang Chen didn't reply, but just tossed a small bottle over.

"Each person should take half a pill of the Replenishing Essence Pill; do not take more."

"Drink more water; swallowing the blood is better than spitting it on the ground."

The group hurriedly caught it, handling it with the utmost care, as if it were their life.

After they had calmed down for a while, Huang Chen took out a roughly drawn waterway map from his pocket and touched it with his fingertip.

"Southwest of the Soul Lock Gate, there are three waterways."

"You can't go down the widest path. It looks smooth on the surface, but there are swirling eddies underneath. If you go more than half a mile, you'll be swept back near the sluice gate."

"The middle one looks narrow, but it's actually passable."

'

"Follow the white stone ridge. When you reach a fork in the road, stick to the left wall. No matter what noise you hear, don't turn around. Three hours later, you will see a cliff with black trees. That is the edge of Li Chenshuo's outer camp's defensive line."

'

The servants looked at each other in bewilderment.

The elder servant hesitated for a moment, then asked in a low voice, "Master Huang, will General Li really take us in?"

'

Huang Chen glanced at him.

"State my name."

'

"Don't make things up, don't mention Zhao Wuji, and don't mention any secret chambers you've seen. Just say that I was a pathfinder I released from outside the Soul Lock Gate, and that he asked for a bite to eat and a dry place to land."

'

The short man couldn't help but ask, "And what about you, Master Huang?"

Huang Chen stuffed the diagram into his hand.

I'll leave later.

"You guys go first, spread out on the road, in pairs, don't huddle together."

'

He paused for a moment, his gaze sweeping across the faces of the group.

"If anyone gets any crooked ideas halfway through, trying to use my name to save their life, or joining another faction, I can find you."

'

A chill ran through them, and they hurriedly shook their heads.

"No, no."

'

"We are so grateful to Master Huang for saving our lives..."

Huang Chen waved his hand.

"Get out of here."

'

The group helped each other to their feet. Just before leaving the cave, the eldest servant turned back and kowtowed heavily to Huang Chen. His forehead hit the stone ground with a muffled sound.

Huang Chen neither helped nor offered to help.

Only after their footsteps had completely disappeared beyond the wind's edge did he let out a long breath and wipe the blood seeping from the corner of his mouth.

It took half a day to truly bring the previous battle to a close.

After the war, the survivors were resettled, treated, and their numbers were taken.

Even a single misstep could have disastrous consequences.

The depths of the rock cavity are even darker, like a well that has been dry for many years.

Huang Chen moved more than ten steps inside and sat down cross-legged at the deepest part. He first tore open the tattered clothes on his chest, and then took out two spirit stones, a high-grade Qi and Blood Pill, and a wisp of karmic fire energy left behind by Zhao Wuji after his death.

The karmic fire energy he had sealed inside a shattered talisman was now released, causing the temperature inside the rock cavity to rise sharply.

A dark red flame flickered in his palm, carrying the cold and violent aura of Zhao Wuji in life, like a venomous snake that was not quite dead yet.

Huang Chen stared at it, then suddenly grinned.

"Even though he's dead, he still wants to bite people."

His mind sank, and he summoned the system panel.

A pale golden light curtain slowly unfolded in the field of vision.

[Host: Huang Chen]

[Realm: Mid-stage Earth Immortal → Late-stage Earth Immortal (Breakthrough possible)]

[Battle Body: Intermediate Witch Clan Battle Body (High-Level Completion)]

[Karma: Available after the surge]

[Merit: Increase]

[Divine Power: Pulse Fire Battle Domain]

Lines of text came into view, cold, hard, and clear.

Huang Chen looked at the line "Mid-stage Earth Immortal → Late-stage Earth Immortal" and his chest rose and fell slowly.

Zhao Wuji's life was not in vain.

In that battle, he was nearly pierced through the Divine Court by the Soul Nails several times; anyone else would have been dead long ago. Now that the threshold of cultivation is right in front of him, it would be a real loss to be timid and hesitant.

He directly communicated with the system store, and with a sweep of his divine sense, locked onto the latter part of "The Ancient Body Forging Scripture (Volume 4)".

exchange.

The next instant, a massive amount of information crashed into his mind like a hammer blow.

How to use external fire to refine tendons and bones, how to reverse the flow of blood and marrow to the spine, how to expand dark gold witch patterns from the chest and abdomen to the back—all sorts of methods unfold instantly, so complex that they make one's scalp tingle.

Huang Chen groaned, sweat rolling down his forehead and landing on his knees.

Not finished yet.

He then poured a large amount of karma into strengthening the intermediate-level witch clan battle body.

The system message was skipped.

The dormant witch blood within him surged forth as if a valve had been pried open.

Huang Chen tensed up abruptly, his ten fingers gripping the ground so tightly that five deep marks were left on the stone surface by his knuckles.

The Qi and blood surged through the meridians at an almost out-of-control speed, crashing from the arms, chest, abdomen, waist, and hips all the way to the spine.

pain.

It hurts even more than a soul nail piercing the palm.

It was as if someone was taking a red-hot iron chisel and chiseling down his spine inch by inch.

Huang Chen gritted his teeth and swallowed the wisp of karmic fire left by Zhao Wuji.

Once the fire enters the body, it feels like the whole person is on fire.

His skin turned red, his bones trembled slightly, and dark gold witch runes lit up on his chest, first on his chest, then under his ribs, and then slowly spreading to his shoulders, back, and both sides of his spine. With each inch that spread, Huang Chen could clearly feel his flesh being torn apart, overlapped, and then pressed together.

The air inside the rock cavity became restless.

The gravel trembled slightly, and dust fell down in a soft rustling sound.

Blood kept seeping from Huang Chen's nose, and several small cuts appeared on his back. The blood that just oozed out was scorched dark brown by the surging flames on his body. However, he did not let go of that breath. Instead, he repeatedly circulated the latter part of the "Ancient Body Forging Scripture (Volume 4)," forcing the newly generated power to sink deeper.

Half an hour later, a muffled thud suddenly came from the center of his back.

It was as if some kind of shackle had been forcibly broken.

Huang Chen suddenly opened his eyes.

His pupils were a blend of dark gold and crimson, and his breath carried hot white smoke.

He raised his hand and clenched it, causing the air in his palm to crackle slightly. Beneath the blue veins on the back of his hand, the dark gold witch runes were no longer confined to the front of his upper body, but had completely climbed up his spine, vaguely forming an ancient and fierce outline.

Late stage of Earth Immortal.

It really worked.

It took Huang Chen a while to suppress the metallic taste of blood in his throat.

Late stage of Earth Immortal.

It really worked.

It took Huang Chen a while to suppress the metallic taste of blood in his throat.

He didn't get up immediately, but continued to sit cross-legged, slowly stabilizing his new realm. The spirit stone turned to ash inch by inch in his palm, and the power of the Qi and Blood Pill was repeatedly crushed, filling the void left after the previous forceful breakthrough.

Once the breathing within my body had truly calmed down, even the sound of the wind outside changed its rhythm.

Half a day has almost passed.

Huang Chen then glanced at the system panel again, his gaze landing on the merit section.

His merits have increased considerably.

Logically speaking, this is the perfect time to go all out with a lottery draw.

But he only looked at it for a moment before suppressing the impulse.

With the external situation in such chaos, trouble could suddenly break out anywhere—be it the Firewood Sect, the outer camps, the outskirts of Buzhou Mountain, the remnants of the Northern Sea Sect, or the remaining cultivators of the Xuantian Sect. Merit points are something you can't afford to waste; if you don't have some, you'll end up risking your life to fill the gaps in a critical moment.

"Keep it for now."

He muttered something under his breath, but still tapped the lottery wheel with his finger.

Only a small amount is drawn.

With a swirl of golden light, the roulette wheel came to a stop.

[Obtained: Humanity's Concealment Veil]

A pale white veil slowly emerged from the system's light screen and fell into his palm. The veil was so light it was almost weightless, yet it didn't feel like cloth; it was like warm mist, carrying a very faint scent of incense.

Huang Chen probed with his divine sense and immediately understood its purpose.

Once spread out, this thing can temporarily conceal the life force fluctuations during large-scale human migrations, making it especially suitable for secretly transferring people.

If combined with the existing remnants of the Firewood formation and the valley terrain, it can save many lives in critical moments.

His gaze darkened slightly as he carefully put away the Human Concealment Veil.

This thing is more suitable for his current situation than drawing out an offensive magic weapon.

Afterwards, Huang Chen began to take stock of the remaining items on his person.

Xuan Tian Soul Nail, Black Chain Core, Sacrifice Ground Mother Talisman, Water Prison Ancient Road Remnant Map, Northern Sea Tide Mirror, Mirage Palace Crack Seal, Transmission Jade Slip... all flashed through his mind. He went over which ones were suitable for close combat, which ones could be used for ambushes, which ones were evidence, and which ones could not be easily exposed.

He also touched the communication jade slip and the great religion totem communication jade talisman in his pocket.

The lack of news from Xinhuo for so long is not a good sign.

The moment the thought arose, a grayish-white stone talisman at his waist suddenly began to vibrate violently.

hum!

Huang Chen's gaze turned cold, and he instantly grabbed the stone talisman, pouring spiritual power into it.

Li Chenshuo's voice boomed out from inside, deep and rapid, accompanied by the sound of wind and the clanging of armor plates.

"Huang Chen, hear the reply."

'

Huang Chen immediately spoke up: "Speak."

Shi Fu paused for a moment, as if suppressing a fire.

"Something went wrong with the 'Spark' direction."

"My spies planted on the northern mountain road have just sent back a message."

Two groups of unfamiliar immortal cultivators, mixed with a band of rat demons, were moving extremely fast, heading directly towards your valley.

Huang Chen's brows furrowed instantly.

Number of people.

"There are seven to nine immortal cultivators, whose cultivation levels are unfathomable, and at least two of them are Earth Immortals."

The rat demons are around thirty years old, and some of them are experienced in burrowing and detecting energy veins.

Li Chenshuo paused, then added another sentence.

"They didn't look like stragglers, nor did they look like passersby."

Huang Chen stood up quickly, first crushing a few pieces of unburnt spirit lime on the ground, and then wiping away the bloodstains left from his breakthrough.

Where are your men now?

"I have sent a fast cavalry force from the outer camp to approach the perimeter of your camp, but they are no match for the speed of those things."

'

A low, commanding voice came from the stone talisman, as if he were simultaneously relaying a message and mobilizing troops. A moment later, he spoke again to Huang Chen:

"There's one more thing."

Among that group of immortal cultivators, some used righteous escape techniques, but their clothing patterns were different, as if they had changed identities. The rat demon was no ordinary mountain creature either; its movements were so disciplined that it seemed it had undergone rigorous training.

'

Huang Chen's eyes grew even colder.

Remnants of the Xuantian Sect?

Are they remnants of the Northern Sea? Or have other forces followed the trail of the flying boat, Blood Valley, and Soul Lock Gate to find the source of the flame?

Regardless of which one, we cannot let them reach the valley entrance first.

"Hold back the perimeter and don't expose the exact entrance to the fire."

'

"I'm heading back now."

Li Chenshuo hummed in response, his tone short and firm.

"If you're traveling by waterway, the fastest way back is through Broken Bone Ravine. I'll give you half of the coded message; if you encounter any of my men from the outer camp along the way, they'll let you pass."

'

A short vein mark traveled along the stone talisman and landed in Huang Chen's palm.

"remember.

Li Chenshuo's voice was even lower. "Those rat demons are tracking you by the scent of blood. Don't rush straight down the mountain path with the blood energy you just gained from your breakthrough."

Huang Chen glanced at the bloodstains on his chest that were not yet completely dry, then immediately took out the fragment of the Human Emperor Seal and used it together with the Ash Breath Concealing Meridian Technique to suppress the surging new realm energy around his body.

"Know."

"besides--"

Li Chenshuo seemed to want to say something more.

Huang Chen had already put on the Xuanhuang Armor, Black Wind Helmet, and Mountain and River Boots, and raised his hand to sweep up the remaining fire in the cave, extinguishing it with a bang.

"We'll talk about it when we get to the torch."

'

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the stone talisman.

Then only one sentence remains.

"hurry up."

The communication was interrupted.

The cavern fell silent again, save for the wind that blew in from the entrance, causing the sand to swirl gently. Huang Chen grabbed the Asura Blood Blade and the Xuan Iron Saber, and strode out, the stone beneath his feet cracking with the weight of his newfound power.

By the time we emerged from the cave, the sky was already dark.

In the distance, the gray-black mountain ranges stretched out in a line, and the wind carried a faint earthy smell, the kind of smell that only comes when something travels through the earth in large numbers.

Huang Chen stood on high ground and glanced in the direction of the torch.