Chapter 412 - 44: Saving a Beauty
Fang Cheng and the others had only taken a few steps when thick plumes of black smoke erupted from the murals on both sides of the tomb passage, surging toward them.
Evil Spirits!
Drawing on his previous experience, Fang Cheng was instantly enveloped in an aura of black and white energy. With a flash, he dodged the Evil Spirits’ assault.
The others did the same, suppressing their auras and using Escape Techniques to evade the Evil Spirits as they continued deeper into the tomb passage.
As they hurried past, Fang Cheng made sure to observe the murals on the walls.
The protagonist of the murals rose to prominence at an astonishing speed, attracting the suspicion and greed of various powerful figures.
Conspiracies and plots began to brew in the shadows.
Unfortunately, the mural’s protagonist was an upright and gentle person. Believing that good would always triumph over evil and that a clear conscience feared no accusation, he initially paid no mind to the schemers in the dark.
After being framed and slandered several times, the situation escalated. The protagonist was accused of colluding with the Demon Dao, murdering close friends from the Mystic Sects, and plotting to throw the world into chaos.
More and more "enemies" who didn’t know the truth came forward, creating friction with the protagonist’s family clan. The calls for revenge grew ever more intense.
In the end, with the conspirators fanning the flames, Tribulation Realm masters from seven great Mystic Sects took advantage of the protagonist’s own tribulation to launch a joint attack, ultimately slaying him.
Whether by accident or design, the peerless treasure—the Undying Jade—was shattered by the crowd of Cultivators, its fragments falling into the hands of several powerful experts.
The protagonist’s family clan was razed to the ground by the furious mob, which intended to eradicate them completely. His dao companion, using the talismanic magic tools he had left behind, managed to create an opening in the encirclement, allowing a portion of the family’s Cultivators to escape.
The dao companion herself vanished from the Cultivation Realm, taking the last fragment of the jade with her.
The mural clearly felt unfinished. Ahead of them stood another Buddha Statue. Behind it, layers of Buddha Light pulsed, and a Grand Array, even more solid and imposing than the last, blocked their path.
Fang Cheng and Lady Wei stepped forward. Just as they were about to deduce the Array’s weakness, black smoke billowed from behind them. Countless Evil Spirits surged forward as an Evil Spirit Black Tide, filling the entire passage and leaving no room to escape.
Zhao Wuji flickered and appeared behind Lady Wei. "Deal with the Evil Spirits first," he said in a low voice. "We’ll break the Array later."
As soon as he finished speaking, he placed a hand on Lady Wei’s shoulder and unleashed a ray of blood-red light with the other, striking the surging black tide.
The two of them vanished on the spot, their figures popping like bubbles.
Zhao Wuji had actually taken the initiative to bring Lady Wei into the void bubble created by the Evil Spirits...
Seeing the Evil Spirit Black Tide surging toward them with no way to evade it, the others instinctively attacked as well, and were subsequently transported into void bubbles by a Power of Space.
Inside the pitch-black "bubble," a radiant light enveloped Fang Cheng, instantly illuminating the surrounding void.
He flicked a finger, and a streak of sword light shot out, striking the black, restrictive barrier at the edge of the space.
Immediately, a bloody mist churned on the light barrier, and a hideous, terrifying Evil Spirit broke free, charging straight for Fang Cheng.
Without any visible movement from Fang Cheng, the sword light gracefully reappeared. It trembled slightly and split into countless streams of Sword Aura. For a moment, blindingly brilliant Sword Auras filled the surrounding void, spreading out rapidly like ripples in water.
The demonic Evil Spirit pouncing on Fang Cheng was struck by the sword light and immediately made a strange cracking sound.
A moment later, the sword light dissipated, leaving no trace of the demonic Evil Spirit behind.
The void bubble also quietly shattered. Fang Cheng looked up, his brow slightly furrowed.
It was another Evil Spirit’s void bubble!
This time, before he could even attack, a bloody mist filled the edge of the bubble, and a hideous, humanoid monster leaped out, charging ferociously at Fang Cheng.
Fang Cheng snorted. ’A mere Tier Three Demon. What a waste of my time.’
Endless sword light materialized in the void, weaving together like a Purgatory and gradually giving rise to an intent of eternal, unceasing life.
Under this sword light, the demonic Evil Spirit was instantly annihilated!
Then, Fang Cheng appeared in yet another new void bubble.
The sword light around him surged and expanded with him, spreading outward like the churning Nether Sea.
Fang Cheng stood still in the void, allowing the sword light to flood out unrestrained. No demonic Evil Spirit caught in its path survived.
Layer after layer of void bubbles shattered in succession.
Suddenly, a delicate cry was heard.
As Fang Cheng broke through another void bubble, his sword light washed over a stunningly beautiful figure.
She wore a magnificent silken dress, a faint three-petaled plum blossom mark adorned her forehead, and she possessed a noble and elegant air.
It was none other than the Cyan Rattan Demon King from the Valley of Ten Thousand Beasts.
Enveloped by layer upon layer of void bubbles, Fang Cheng had broken through so many that he had ended up in the same one as the Cyan Rattan Demon King.
With a mere thought, he dispersed the incomparably sharp Sword Aura, letting it bypass the Cyan Rattan Demon King to annihilate the Evil Spirit monster she was fighting.
The Tier Three Evil Spirit that had been giving Qing Luo such a headache was killed in the blink of an eye.
Fang Cheng wasn’t even aware that these Evil Spirits possessed a Divine Technique that allowed their flesh to regenerate continuously. A severed arm or leg would quickly grow back.
Even if they were cut in two, they could instantly sprout countless flesh tendrils to reconnect themselves.
Coupled with their immense strength and savage ferocity, their power was not much inferior to the Cyan Rattan Demon King’s.
That was why she had been having such a difficult time fighting them. She would barely manage to break out of one void bubble only to fall into another.
But now, that troublesome Evil Spirit monster had been swept up by the tide-like, sharp sword light, its life force utterly extinguished, leaving not even a trace behind. The sight left her shocked and horrified.
’If that Sword Aura had landed on me...’
A wave of lingering fear washed over Qing Luo. She turned to Fang Cheng and said, "Thank you for your help, Fellow Daoist."
"It’s nothing. These Evil Spirits are strange. Be careful, Fellow Daoist," Fang Cheng said coolly. His sword light suddenly flared and began expanding outward once more.
Then, the Cyan Rattan Demon King witnessed an unbelievable scene.
As the ocean-like tide of Sword Aura surged outward, layer after layer of void bubbles collapsed. The space around them constantly shifted, creating the illusion of it expanding and contracting.
And the Evil Spirit monsters—appearing now in front, now behind, now above, now below—were instantly obliterated by the sword light the moment they materialized.
A short while later, the two of them saw a figure in white, commanding two Void Demon Snakes in a fight against an Evil Spirit.
It was Bing Wuyi.
After Fang Cheng attacked and killed that Evil Spirit, the void before them shifted, and they finally saw the familiar tomb passage!
Inside the tomb passage, only three large, pitch-black bubbles remained.
Bing Wuyi and the Cyan Rattan Demon King looked at the void bubbles with lingering fear, silently considering themselves lucky.
They both knew that if they hadn’t run into Fang Cheng, they would have been in mortal danger.
With the Evil Spirits no longer a distraction, Fang Cheng turned back to the Buddha Statue and had Jingxuan deduce the Array’s weakness.
Or rather, it was the Array Spirit Maiden from the Myriad Phenomena Immortal Sect who was deducing the weakness.
His own gaze, however, fell upon the murals on either side of the tomb passage.
’It seems the most precious item in the mural was shattered...’
’Then who is the master of this grand tomb?’
...