Chapter 237: Welcome to the Hunting Ground!
“Go!”
Li Qiwen gave a low shout, transforming into a streak of light that plunged straight into the fissure.
Gao Feihuang followed, his bright red robes cutting a glaring bloodline through the air.
Zhou Kai and his team didn’t hesitate, merging into the darkness with the others.
Beyond the fissure, daylight vanished. They fell into a murky, permanent twilight.
A cold, putrid stench flooded their senses—damp rot, slippery mud, and decaying vegetation.
Zhou Kai circulated his Qi to filter the foul air. From the corner of his eye, he saw his boot crush a giant, necrotic fungus, which spewed a cloud of ghostly green spores.
Ahead, the vista opened up.
They stood at the entrance of a colossal subterranean valley. The vaulted ceiling was so high it vanished into shadow, lit only by patches of bioluminescent ore that glimmered like cold, dying stars.
Everything was ink-green. Twisted, titanic plants stretched into the gloom, casting looming shadows. Vines hung like dried bones, swaying in a windless void.
The Demonic and Baleful Qi here was thick as mercury, pressing down on their souls.
This was Tongming Valley.
Two figures approached slowly from the side.
Zhou Kai’s gaze sharpened. It was the Young Masters of the Yang and Song families.
Yang Ling was unremarkable—plain face, plain clothes, the kind of man you’d lose in a crowd. His aura was mild, almost scholarly. But his eyes were deep ancient wells, unruffled and chilling.
Song Tiancheng was the opposite. Handsome as jade, tall and straight, his moon-white brocade robes spotless amidst the filth.
However, the three Guardians who should have been his shadow were missing.
Li Qiwen and Li Youci stopped to meet them.
“Senior Brother, Junior Sister,” Yang Ling spoke first, his voice gentle. “As the four Candidate True Disciples, why not leave our Guardians behind and explore the core together?”
Li Qiwen’s expression didn’t flicker. “I have no objections.”
Li Youci’s cool gaze swept over them. “Senior Brothers. Where are Song Jun and Yang Zikun?”
Song Tiancheng bowed gracefully. “Song Jun and Zikun are impatient souls. They went ahead.”
“Unfortunately,” Yang Ling added, his tone laced with perfect, practiced helplessness, “my cousin Zikun’s Guardians—and mine—are all in Secluded Cultivation for life-or-death breakthroughs. They could not attend.”
With a few sentences, they explained away an army of missing elites.
Standing at the back, Zhou Kai laughed internally.
Candidate True Disciples? More like Candidate Oscar Winners.
Every one of them spouting benevolence while planning to dig up the other’s ancestral graves.
Yang Ling’s Guardians are in seclusion? Ghost stories. Song Tiancheng’s cousin went ahead alone? Bullshit.
If their words were true, pigs could fly. The only logical explanation was that Yang Zikun, Song Jun, and six Golden Core Guardians were hiding in a dark corner ahead, weaving a net to catch them all.
This wasn’t a competition. It was a hunting ground.
Li Qiwen gave Yang Ling a deep look. He turned to Li Youci.
“Youci. Your cultivation is shallow. Do not compete for the core Fated Chance this round. I will cover you this time. Once we leave, we are rivals again.”
He turned to his men. “Gao Feihuang, Su Xuan. Follow the Eldest Miss.”
“Command received.”
Gao Feihuang grinned, his peach-blossom eyes shining. Su Xuan bowed, maintaining his gentle demeanor.
As the main group departed, Fang Lizhe muttered beside Zhou Kai.
“This place is gloomy as hell. Ghost Qi is practically smoking. How can there be Fated Chances here? Doesn’t look like treasure soil.”
Su Xuan smiled gently. He pointed to a faint glow on a distant rock wall.
“Junior Nephew Fang, look. That is an ‘Evil Soul Crystal.’ Unique to this valley. It contains Demonic, Baleful, and Ghostly energies—a rare material for Artifacts and Arrays.”
“Bah, rocks are boring.” Gao Feihuang flicked his red sleeve, pointing at a patch of unremarkable grass. “That is ‘Soul Channeling Nether Grass.’ Miraculous for nourishing Divine Sense. The Eldest Miss uses it for her secret arts.”
Zhou Kai nodded. So this is the source.
“What are the Young Masters competing for?” he asked.
Li Youci answered, her gaze lingering on the backs of the departing trio.
“In the center of the valley stands the ‘Demon-Suppressing Platform’.”
“Upon it rests a Heaven-Reaching Spiritual Treasure: the Pure World Lamp.”
“Pure World Lamp?” Zhou Kai tested the name.
“Mm,” Li Youci nodded. “It hangs there year-round, suppressing the evil. It releases a clear, pure spiritual light. Bathing in it cleanses the soul and boosts cultivation. The closer you get, the greater the benefit.”
“They are fighting for the seat closest to the Lamp.”
She turned to her team. “For this round, I will not compete. We will search for resources on the periphery.”
Shen Hanyi’s sword hummed. “Can we split up?”
“No,” Li Youci vetoed instantly. “Separating gives the Song and Yang families a chance to pick us off. We stay together until we know their layout.”
Led by Li Youci, the group moved along the valley edge.
Zhou Kai walked in the middle, expression calm. Internally, he pushed Cicada Chirp Steals Heaven to the red line.
Invisible cicada wings unfurled, scanning the frequency of the air.
In Tongming Valley, the heavenly secrets were chaotic. Standard Divine Sense was crushed to a ten-zhang radius. But Zhou Kai’s technique bypassed the interference, reading the Source Origin directly.
After an incense stick of time, Zhou Kai’s step faltered slightly.
A hundred zhang ahead, behind a pile of rubble.
A trace of an aura. Faint, elusive, like a viper flicking its tongue. It blended almost perfectly with the ambient Baleful Qi.
Li Youci, who also cultivated the Delusional Dao Cicada Scripture, didn’t stop. She gripped the Myriad Soul Banner.
“You,” she ordered the darkness. “Go capture those vengeful ghosts.”
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