Chapter 540 - 230: True Essence
In that brief moment, everyone’s gaze converged on a single point—
On the scorched earth was an impact crater, still emitting wisps of green smoke.
At the center of the crater’s floor, three fist-sized stones hovered silently.
They were a deep, dark blue, their surfaces streaked with fiery golden-red lines that flowed like lava.
Fall Mother!
And three of them at that!
In that instant, everyone present held their breath, their eyes blazing with an irrepressible, feverish heat!
The Longbow expert’s pupils contracted, his eyes flashing with a sharp light.
However, just as this desire was about to ignite an all-out melee—
SWISH!
A sharp sound of something cutting through the air rang out, not from the ground, but from above!
Someone descended from the sky like a goshawk, moving with unbelievable speed. They landed gracefully beside the Fall Mother, seemingly unfazed by the scorching heat.
The newcomer was an old man with loose, white hair, but his eyes shone like cold stars.
Merely by standing there, a terrifying pressure like that of a colossal mountain descended with a crash, blanketing the entire crater area!
"The Huo Family will be taking this Fall Mother."
The old man spoke, his voice cold. "Scram!"
His voice boomed in everyone’s mind like rolling thunder.
Ripples appeared in the air behind him, and the massive phantom of a mountain peak suddenly materialized!
This phantom wasn’t condensed from True Astral, but was a manifestation of powerful will!
An incredibly heavy pressure accompanied the phantom mountain’s appearance. It felt capable of suppressing one’s very Divine Soul as it swept out in all directions like an invisible tsunami!
PTHOO!
"AH!"
The surrounding Astral Force masters, including the two Elders from the Four Directions Sect and the Outer Astral Longbow expert, looked as if they had been struck a heavy blow. Their faces turned deathly pale, and they trembled violently while letting out muffled groans.
Those with weaker wills bled directly from their mouths and noses, their spirits immediately flagging.
When that pressure swept over Chen Qing, he felt an invisible sword stab fiercely into his mind.
But at that very moment, his Sea of Will surged with waves, and a hint of purple qi appeared, silently neutralizing most of the assault.
Although he still felt a chill, he didn’t lose his senses for an instant like the others.
"Oh no! It’s the Nanzhao Huo Family’s ’Five Directions Heaven-Supporting’ Huo Miao Ancestor!"
"A True Essence Realm expert! Why would he appear here in person?!"
"Let’s go! This Fall Mother is not for the likes of us!"
"Retreat! Retreat now!"
Many were scared out of their wits. Recognizing the old man’s identity, they no longer cared about any Fall Mother. Like startled birds, they fled frantically into the distance at their top speeds.
Chen Qing had already made a decisive move!
He unleashed the full power of his Startled Swan Escape Shadow Technique’s Realm of Nonexistence. His body blurred into a faint shadow and shot away in the opposite direction from Huo Miao Ancestor without a single glance back. In an instant, he had covered a hundred zhang, and within a few breaths, he was several li away.
He glanced back at the area where the Evil Qi was closing in again, his brow tightly furrowed. ’A True Essence Realm expert... the Huo Family’s Ancestor... My strength truly isn’t enough. I don’t even have the right to get close.’
Chen Qing had dealings with the Nanzhao Huo Family before. In fact, Huo Qiushui, the fifth-ranked True Inheritance disciple, was from the Huo Family.
Chen Qing quickly left the dangerous territory controlled by the Huo Family’s ancestor. He knew well the folly of a snake trying to swallow an elephant; in the face of a True Essence Realm expert, just escaping with his life was a stroke of luck.
He calmed his Heart and Spirit and, on his way back, found two lone Stone Lions.
With his current strength, dealing with Stone Lions was child’s play. He dispatched them with ease and retrieved their Meteorite Iron Cores.
’Adding these to the previous seven, that’s nine Meteorite Iron Cores from this trip. That should convert to 2,700 Contribution Points. With what I’ve already saved up, this has been a pretty fruitful harvest,’ Chen Qing calculated inwardly.
He got his bearings and sped toward the general direction of the cave.
However, as he was passing through a relatively flat area, he once again detected a faint fluctuation of Star Power.
This aura was more restrained and concentrated, carrying with it a vibrant life force.
"Hmm?" Chen Qing’s brow furrowed slightly as he subconsciously slowed his pace. ’This feeling... Could there be another Fall Mother nearby? And its attribute seems rather unique?’
He activated his Gui Cang Concealment Technique at full power, retracting his aura and stealthily creeping toward the source of the fluctuation.
After passing through a few clumps of gnarled, dead trees twisted by the Evil Qi and skirting a small fissure in the ground, the scene before him opened up.
A fresh meteorite crater about three zhang in diameter appeared before him. The soil around it still radiated wisps of heat, but compared to the terrifying temperatures of the core region, the heat wave here had mostly subsided.
At the center of the crater wasn’t the scorching, lava-like core he expected, but a stone about the size of a baby’s fist, glowing a soft, verdant green!
This green Crystal Stone lay quietly amidst the scorched earth. Its surface was smooth and shimmering, and inside, liquid starlight seemed to squirm slowly, emitting a pure and vibrant Star Power.
Even more tantalizingly, scattered around this green Fall Mother were dozens of Meteorite Fragments of various sizes, all glinting with a metallic luster. Such a quantity was a considerable fortune in itself.
Chen Qing’s heart skipped a beat.
A green Fall Mother!
Judging by its appearance and the fluctuations of its aura, its value was likely higher than that of a single one of the Fall Mothers the Huo Family had taken!
And all those Meteorite Fragments...
However, his gaze instantly turned cold.
Because at the edge of the crater stood an old man dressed in dark red robes.
The old man’s back was to Chen Qing’s current position. His figure was gaunt, but the aura emanating from him was incredibly familiar—it was the same powerful aura that had rushed to the scene the day he killed Wang Zhifu!
’An expert from the Xuanming Royal Family?’ A chill went down Chen Qing’s spine as he immediately confirmed the other party’s identity.
He never expected to run into an enemy in such a place.
Zhu He seemed to have just arrived as well. He stared intently at the green Fall Mother in the crater, a look of satisfaction on his face.
He was about to bend down and collect it when he suddenly seemed to sense something. He snapped his head up, his eyes flashing, and looked toward two other directions around the crater, shouting coldly, "Hiding and skulking like rats! Get out here, all of you!"
Chen Qing frowned, thinking he had been discovered. He was about to make a move when he realized Zhu He wasn’t facing him, but rather the left and right sides of the crater.
Following Zhu He’s shout, the Evil Qi to the left roiled, and a figure appeared. It was the same expert with the ancient Longbow that Chen Qing had seen earlier.
And from the right, the sound of heavy footsteps approached. An exceptionally burly man with bulging, knotted muscles emerged, carrying a giant hammer. Behind him followed seven or eight disciples in uniform dark-gray Martial Attire, all exuding formidable auras.
....