Battle Through the Heavens: Xiao Yan, who was kidnapped to another world

"Initially, this poisonous swamp did not cover a large area. The death zone was the original poisonous swamp. However, later, another Calamity Poison Body descended upon this poisonous swamp. His purpose was to find the remains of the first Calamity Poison Body. Perhaps in his view, the remains of that person held the opportunity to become a Dou Sheng. However, after entering the poisonous swamp, this second Calamity Poison Body did not come out alive."

“Then came the third, the fourth… According to records, a total of seven people with the Calamity Poison Body were buried in this poisonous swamp,” Zhou Ze grinned, “one Dou Sheng, five Dou Zun, and one Dou Zong.”

"Holy crap, you're making it sound so real!" Xu Chuan wanted to run away.

"...Whose descendant are you?" Xiao Yan asked in a low voice.

"I don't know when it started, but a rumor suddenly appeared in this poisonous swamp: there is a core area within the death zone, and the best inheritance of poison masters is contained within that core area. Whoever obtains that inheritance can become a Dou Zun without any obstacles." Zhou Ze did not answer Xiao Yan's question, but simply stated this calmly.

“Since then, more and more people have entered the danger zone, the death zone…” Zhou Ze paused slightly at this point, sensing that the guide who had abandoned his teammates was approaching. “Then, due to the cold poison of the danger zone and the blood poison of the death zone, they became human puppets in this poisonous swamp.”

"You gave them the bitter pills?"

As soon as Zhou Ze finished speaking, the guide arrived beside them.

“He’s been into dangerous areas before,” Zhou Ze said, raising his eyelids slightly, “without a guide.” He raised his right hand and casually pointed at Xiao Yan.

?

Xiao Yan saw pity on the face of this unfamiliar guide.

"I see..." The guide patted Xiao Yan on the shoulder. "Good luck."

“He can live for a long time, but you will die in this ritual,” Zhou Ze said calmly.

"It's tough being human," the guide sighed. "Who could have imagined that this ceremony would start so abruptly?"

written request for leave

Gua tian...

I've only managed to write less than a thousand words so far...

Creating original storylines is so difficult, and seeing the subscription data these past two days makes it even harder (?ω?)

Chapter 160 Ritual and Fruit

"A ceremony?" Xiao Yan's mind stirred, and he turned his gaze to the guide.

"Zhou Ze, you haven't told them yet?"

Xiao Yan did not hide his actions, so the guide noticed Xiao Yan's reaction and looked at Zhou Ze strangely after a brief moment of confusion.

“I was just about to say something when you arrived,” Zhou Ze said calmly. “He’s very astute; he noticed early on that my strength was completely different from when I was in Suffering Town.”

"So you're an alchemist? That must have been tough for you. You'll be stuck in the Town of Suffering for the rest of your life," the guide said, his eyes filled with increasing pity as he looked at Xiao Yan.

"...Could you tell me the reason first?"

Xiao Yan frowned. Zhou Ze had previously said that he might only be able to become a guide in the future. This unfamiliar guide also said that Xiao Yan would not be able to leave the Town of Suffering in the future, which made Xiao Yan even more confused and lost.

"More than a decade ago, Zhou Ze was a Dou Huang," the guide chuckled. "If I remember correctly, he was a nine-star Dou Huang, right? Did you come here to seek an opportunity to break through?" His gaze turned to Zhou Ze.

Zhou Ze nodded slightly, not denying what the man said.

"More than ten years ago, he was at the peak of Dou Huang, and now he is a low-star Dou Wang. Can you guess what happened in between?" The guide smiled wickedly.

"Your fighting spirit has been corroded by the toxins of the poisonous swamp?" Xiao Yan asked, puzzled.

“If even the fighting spirit within one’s body could be corroded, then the Poison Swamp wouldn’t always have people coming here,” the guide chuckled twice. “A ritual is performed every so often in the Poison Swamp’s death zone.”

"When the ritual ends, a blood-red fruit will appear at the edge of the death zone and the core zone. I don't know what kind of medicinal herb that fruit is..."

"In short, we guides must consume a fruit after each ritual, otherwise we will turn into blood clots and die in the poisonous swamp. Moreover, the amount of battle qi consumed after each ritual begins deducts from the maximum amount of battle qi. The more battle qi you consume, the faster your battle qi will drop."

"I see you're a one-star Dou Ling now, right? When the next ceremony starts, try to conserve your Dou Qi. The longest one-star Dou Ling has lasted is ten years. You're an alchemist, even if you're only at the third or fourth rank, you should be able to live for thirteen or fourteen years without any problem."

"As for you..." The guide's gaze shifted to Xu Chuan, "To be honest, I don't believe you could enter the dangerous area without a guide..."

"I don't even believe it myself." Xu Chuan gave an awkward twitch of his lips.

"I guess Zhou Ze softened his heart again and gave you the Suffering Pill, right?" The guide sighed. "But even without this person, Zhou Ze probably wouldn't have softened his heart... Never mind, why say so much? If you have relatives, write a will for them after this ceremony. I think you probably won't live to see the next ceremony."

"So, what exactly is this ritual?" Xiao Yan asked in a low voice, pursing his lips.

"This ceremony..."

“You should say less,” Zhou Ze interrupted the guide. “You’ll find out the details of the ceremony as you follow us. There’s no need to tell you beforehand.” Zhou Ze looked directly at Xiao Yan.

"Also, Xu Chuan... is that his name?"

After Xiao Yan raised his hands to indicate that he would not ask any more questions, Zhou Ze's gaze shifted to Xu Chuan standing to the side. "If you want to leave now, no one will stop you..."

Halfway through his sentence, Zhou Ze paused for a moment, seemingly waiting for Xu Chuan's reaction.

"Who knows if you're telling the truth or not?" Xu Chuan forced a smile, but inwardly he was snarling, "One Dou Wang, two Dou Ling... I wouldn't dare leave even if you gave me ten lives!"

"...But even if you leave here, you'll eventually be caught by the Poison Sect and used as a pawn, right?" Seeing that Xu Chuan didn't slip away, Zhou Ze curled his lips. "Judging by the time, the Poison Sect and the Ten Thousand Scorpion Sect should know that the ceremony here has already begun, and they should already be sealing off Suffering Town by now, right?"

Did the Poison Sect also know that the ceremony had begun here?

Xiao Yan's eyes widened slightly. So, could this so-called "ritual" really just be an ordinary ritual, instead of the trap I was thinking of?

*

At this time, there were two forces in the Izumo Empire that completely surpassed the royal family. One of them was the Poison Sect, which controlled one-third of the Izumo Empire's land and had a Dou Zong-level expert. The Poison Sect was always considered the strongest force in the Izumo Empire.

The other is the Ten Thousand Scorpion Sect, a sect with a long history. Although the current sect leader is only a Dou Huang, it is said that the previous sect leader, Scorpion Bi Yan, did not die and even broke through to the Dou Zong level. Therefore, in the Chuyun Empire, the Ten Thousand Scorpion Sect was able to fight on equal footing with the Poison Sect instead of being directly swallowed up by the Poison Sect, which had a Dou Zong level.

It is precisely because the two major sects have always been enemies that the royal family of the Izumo Empire still has a voice, rather than being completely controlled by the sects like other empires.

However, it is clear to anyone with eyes to see that the Izumo Empire's royal family is already in a state of barely surviving, and it may not be long before the Poison Sect or the Ten Thousand Scorpion Sect can completely eliminate them.

In the reception room of the Poison Sect.

"What, isn't your sect leader going to come out yet?" The slightly hunched, white-haired old man sat in the main seat, calmly watching the group of people lying on the floor of the reception room.

The old man was dressed in ordinary clothes, his aged face expressionless, and his seemingly cloudy eyes held a chilling glint. He held a jet-black cane in his hand, on which was a particularly ferocious scorpion head, and on the center of the scorpion head, a faint purple light flickered.

“Senior Scorpion, why make things difficult for them?” A middle-aged man’s voice came from outside the reception room. “They are just outer sect deacons. Even if you kill them all, it will be in vain.”

As the sound grew louder, a middle-aged man accompanied by three elderly men stepped into the reception room. The middle-aged man had more pronounced nasolabial folds than the average person, which, combined with his prominent hooked nose, made him appear extremely sinister.

"Peak of a one-star Dou Zong? It seems you've made quite a bit of progress in the swamp these past few years, Shi Rui."

The hunchbacked old man's gaze swept over the middle-aged man, then he sneered. He completely ignored the other old men beside the middle-aged man, as they were no threat to him whatsoever.

"How can I compare to Senior Scorpion?" Shi Rui waved his hand casually, his powerful battle qi canceling out the hunchbacked old man's battle qi. As he helped the sect's deacons to their feet, he looked at the hunchbacked old man and said, "Peak of the three-star Dou Zong... If nothing unexpected happens, your strength should already rank in the top ten in the entire Northwest Continent, right?"

Shi Rui looked solemn. Sitting in the main seat of the reception room was Xie Biyan, the former sect leader of the Wanxie Sect of the Chuyun Empire. Although rumors circulated that Xie Biyan had died of old age due to his inability to break through, the upper echelons of the Chuyun Empire knew that this old ghost had already broken through to the Dou Zong level and his strength had been increasing. However, Shi Rui really did not expect that this old ghost was about to enter the mid-level Dou Zong level.

“Top ten? Ha…” Xie Biyan sneered, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with Shi Rui’s words.

Although the Northwest Continent is the most barren place on the entire continent, there are still several Dou Zun among the strongest forces. Shi Rui's words were basically nothing short of mockery.

However, Xie Biyan was unmoved by such sarcasm. After a brief exchange of pleasantries, he cut to the chase without further ado.

"Has a new round of rituals begun over at the swamp?"

Upon hearing the word "ceremony," Shi Rui's expression stiffened slightly. "Old Ghost Scorpion, I know you have spies planted in the Poison Sect, but isn't it a bit too much to directly confront them like this?" He looked at Scorpion Biyan with a forced smile.

As a rising force in the Izumo Empire, Shi Rui naturally knew that his Poison Sect had various factions within it... mainly spies planted by the Ten Thousand Scorpion Sect. However, those spies were all relatively well-behaved and completed their missions very efficiently, so Shi Rui didn't pay much attention to them.

However, he himself had only recently learned about the ritual in the Cloud Poison Swamp, and yet this Scorpion Biyan had been waiting in his own lair for a long time. This blatant disrespect was unbearable for Shi Rui.

"Traitor? Turning against me?" Xie Biyan sneered. "Heh, little devil Shi, you don't think only your Poison Sect knows about the rituals of the Chuyun Poison Swamp, do you?"

"Before your Poison Sect appeared, the Izumo Poison Swamp was jointly controlled by my Ten Thousand Scorpion Sect and the Izumo Royal Family. If it weren't for the fact that the effectiveness of the rituals there has been declining over the past hundred years, do you think we would have just given up like that?"

"So, how do you explain the fact that you, thousands of miles away, already know about the latest ceremony when it has only just begun?" Shi Rui sneered. The three elders beside him stepped back slightly, and the four of them formed an unusual position. The fighting spirit emanating from the four of them seemed to be merging.

'A four-person combined attack technique? Is it similar to the Three Beasts Savage Technique of Mulan Valley?' Xie Biyan's pupils contracted slightly. The longer he lived, the more cautious he became. Faced with a situation that seemed to pose a threat to him, he naturally wouldn't be too forceful.

"Let me give you some information," Xie Biyan said, though he had decided not to be too forceful. "Every hundred years, a very strange ritual takes place in the Poison Swamp. If we outsiders can survive to the end, we can also obtain the 'fruit'."

"I don't need to explain the effects of the 'fruit' again, do I?"

Seeing the intense gazes of Shi Rui and the three high-level Dou Huangs beside him, Xie Biyan grinned.

For those living in the town of Suffering... or rather, for all the guides living on the edge of the Izumo Poison Swamp, the fruit was simply an antidote, an antidote to ensure they wouldn't die from the toxins controlling them.

However, for these "free" poison masters in the Izumo Empire, the fruits produced after each ritual in the Izumo Poison Swamp are the best tonics, and their effects are almost equivalent to sixth or seventh grade pills for poison masters!

If the fruits after each ritual weren't only accessible to the guides, those guides around the Izumo Poison Swamp might have all died long ago due to the lack of sufficient fruits.

Most importantly, the elders of the Poison Sect are already very old, and even if they take the Breakthrough Pill, they will not be able to break through to the Dou Zong level. However, if it is the fruit containing countless terrifying poisons, it may be possible for the three of them to break through!

"Thank you for the information, Senior Scorpion," Shi Rui said, bowing. "So, Senior Scorpion, are you planning to go to the Poison Swamp with us?"

Although Shi Rui felt that Xie Biyan wouldn't lie at this time, all the members of the Poison Sect and the Ten Thousand Scorpion Sect were scum. Even if Xie Biyan was telling the whole truth, Shi Rui didn't dare to trust him completely. Therefore, the best option at this time was naturally to invite Xie Biyan to go to the Poison Swamp together.

"Otherwise what?" Xie Biyan naturally saw through Shi Rui's thoughts, but this was exactly what he wanted!

"You don't think I'm just here to provide you with intelligence, do you?" Xie Biyan's gaze lingered on the elders of the Poison Sect for a long time, as if he were a farmer looking at the harvest in the field.

"How could that be!"

Scorpion Biyan's gaze was too blatant, causing both the elders and Shi Rui to become extremely wary, though on the surface they maintained a bright and cheerful demeanor. "Then... shall we set off now?"

“Let’s wait a little longer,” said Scorpion Biyan, closing his eyes. “The Izumo royal family should be arriving soon. After all, this may be their last chance.”

"The Izumo Imperial Family?" Upon hearing this unexpected name, Shi Rui frowned slightly. "Is it necessary? Besides, the ceremony there..."

“At least, we should give them a chance…” Xie Biyan was perhaps the person in the Izumo Empire who knew the most about the ritual in that poisonous swamp. He sat there, seemingly resting with his eyes closed. “Moreover, this ritual will last a long time…”

"By the way, you'd better inform your men to relax their surveillance of the poisonous swamp," suddenly, Scorpion Biyan opened his eyes and stared straight at Shi Rui, "Don't let anyone who wants to go in return empty-handed!"

“…That’s for sure!” Shi Rui was silent for a moment, then laughed. “If you hear that, then arrange it as Elder Scorpion said!” He turned his head and glanced at the sect deacons behind him.

"Yes!"

The deacons responded in agreement and retreated towards the outside of the sect.

Outside the danger zone of the Cloud Poison Swamp.

At the border between the two areas, the crowd grew larger and larger. However, at the request of the guides, everyone watched the snowflakes falling in the danger zone in silence, and no one dared to make any rash moves.

'When will we have to wait?'

Looking at the dangerous area that was completely covered by snowflakes, Xiao Yan approached Zhou Ze and asked softly.

"Wait until the snow stops, wait until those snowflakes turn into...poisonous insects." Zhou Ze glanced at Xiao Yan and answered calmly.

After nodding, Xiao Yan took a few steps back.