Chapter 338: Chapter 88: The Mystery of the Ninth Floor of the Earth Abyss (Part 1)
Ye Yan had Liu Miaoyin and three other maids compile a list of the gifts they had received and give it to Fang Cheng for his review.
Everyone, from the sect’s elders and disciples to the great families outside, knew that the current Demon Lion Peak Master was fond of Dao Pattern Spirit Jades, Geng Metal Profound Silkworm Threads, and beautiful women.
Few people sent beautiful women; any who were sent were promptly turned away by Ye Yan.
This time, however, they had received a considerable number of Dao Pattern Spirit Jades, allowing Fang Cheng to harvest over fifty thousand more Creation Points.
Geng Metal Profound Silkworm Threads were exceptionally expensive, and very few cultivators could afford them. This time, they had only received a little over seven taels.
Fang Cheng kept the Geng Metal Profound Silkworm Threads, leaving Ye Yan to handle all the other items on the list.
He now had many wives and concubines, all with considerable cultivation levels, so their daily cultivation and living expenses were immense.
Fortunately, as a Peak Master, he was supported by the entire Yinluo Sect and could use Contribution Points to exchange for all sorts of items he desired.
In addition, he was already quite wealthy and had a Pocket World Spiritual Building to grow Primordial Yang Rice. Under Ye Yan’s management, their fortune continued to grow. Otherwise, he really wouldn’t have been able to support so many wives and concubines at the Life Talisman Realm.
Fang Cheng himself was not short on Cultivation Resources. After becoming a Peak Master, he received an annual stipend of one hundred thousand sect Contribution Points.
He gave all of these Contribution Points to Ye Yan, letting her manage all the affairs within the Cave Mansion.
...
「A few days later.」
Fang Cheng walked out of Canglan Cave and went to Wo Yun Peak.
At the foot of this peak was a massive rift valley. On its edge stood an ancient Black Stone Hall, over which hung a plaque inscribed with the name "Zhenyuan Hall" in large, flamboyant script.
The Black Stone Hall was vast and empty. Its main wall featured a large relief sculpture depicting a Daoist using Divine Techniques to suppress countless Celestial Demons.
The one on duty at Zhenyuan Hall today was a Female True Disciple from Wo Yun Peak.
Upon seeing Fang Cheng enter, she immediately recognized the genius whose fame had recently spread throughout the entire sect.
He was hailed as the fastest cultivator in the Yinluo Sect’s history to rise from Outer Disciple to Peak Master!
Some of Fang Cheng’s past deeds had also been dug up and were now being widely circulated.
His past experience as a son-in-law to the Ye Family was a particularly popular topic of gossip.
Conversely, not many people talked about his later exploits in the Abyssal Marsh, where he had turned the tide and saved the Yinluo Sect.
Some called him the "Number One Son-in-law of the Abyssal Marsh."
Others called him the "Immortal Son-in-law of the Ye Family."
The Ye Family was also showing signs of becoming the foremost of the four great families in the Abyssal Marsh.
"This disciple greets Peak Lord Fang."
The female disciple bowed gracefully. Her beautiful eyes shifted as she discreetly sized up the handsome and extraordinary young Peak Master, ’harboring a few ideas of her own.’
Fang Cheng got straight to the point. "I’m making a trip into the Earth Abyss."
The female disciple acknowledged him softly. Not daring to delay, she immediately performed a spell to activate the Teleportation Array in the hall, sending Fang Cheng into the Earth Abyss.
The Earth Abyss was a peculiar geographical feature located ten thousand feet beneath the Yinluo Sect.
The First Floor of the Earth Abyss.
A thousand feet above the ground hung a boundless expanse of crimson clouds.
Lightning occasionally flashed within the crimson clouds, and rolling thunder shook the world.
Beneath the clouds, a black, rocky expanse stretched to the horizon.
Bizarre monoliths, low hills, and twisted, grotesque trees dotted the landscape.
The various auras here were in chaos, and the Spiritual Qi was dangerously turbulent.
On the black, rocky expanse, a circular array materialized out of thin air. It flashed with light, and Fang Cheng’s figure emerged from within.
The many presences in the area sensed his arrival and began to stir restlessly. But when they felt the vast, powerful aura emanating from Fang Cheng, they all vanished, hiding deep underground and not daring to show themselves.
Returning to the Earth Abyss now, Fang Cheng’s gaze swept his surroundings. His state of mind was completely different from the past.
According to the Yinluo Sect’s records, five thousand years ago, the Outer Celestial Demons invaded this world. After piercing the Boundary Membrane, they didn’t descend from the heavens but instead tunneled up from deep underground to invade the Mortal World.
Back then, the founder of the Yinluo Sect, with his profound Magical Power, joined forces with other powerful figures to quell the Demon Tribulation. The site of the Celestial Demon invasion was then heavily sealed, becoming what is now the Earth Abyss.
Over thousands of years, the Demonic Qi corrupted the subterranean creatures, transforming them into Demons. They remained in the Earth Abyss, where the Yinluo Sect used them as Cultivation Resources for their Demon Skills.
’But considering Ren Yan’s Spiritual Memory, it seems the Yinluo Sect’s records about the Earth Abyss are hiding something.’
’Why did the Outer Celestial Demons invade the Red Profound Realm from this specific location five thousand years ago, and not somewhere else?’
’It must be related to the left hand of that Demon Lord!’
’I wonder if the sect’s founder intentionally concealed this, or if he was simply completely unaware of it?’
Fang Cheng proceeded at a leisurely pace. Intimidated by his powerful aura, the many Demons on this level remained in hiding, leaving the Earth Abyss eerily silent.
Before long, he arrived before a giant pit.
The pit was covered by an array, and the light from its wards was strikingly visible against the black, rocky expanse.
Fang Cheng stepped into the Grand Array, and his figure plummeted rapidly toward the bottom of the giant pit.
「A moment later.」
He fell out from a layer of crimson clouds, which were swirling into a massive vortex that flashed intermittently with lightning.
Fang Cheng had reached the second floor of the Earth Abyss, but he didn’t stop. He immediately found the pit leading to the third floor and continued his descent.
Over the pit between the third and fourth floors lay a purplish-blue Grand Array shaped like an inverted bowl. The light from its wards radiated dazzling colors throughout the Earth Abyss.
Countless runes, each the size of a palace, floated within the light of the Grand Array’s wards, arranged like constellations stretching across the cavern’s ceiling.
It was a Third-tier Top-grade Formation: the Netherworld Prison Suppression Array.
The array was still active.
Before Fang Cheng could reach the array, a ball of eerie, cold fire flared up a short distance ahead of him.
An old woman emerged from the firelight, walking at a slow pace. She wore magnificent robes, her head full of silver hair. Her cultivation had reached the Late-Life Talisman Stage, and her foundation was exceptionally solid.
When she saw Fang Cheng, a respectful look appeared on her face. She bowed and said, "Cen E of Wo Yun Peak pays her respects to the Demon Lion Peak Master."
Fang Cheng stopped his Escape Light and returned the courtesy. "Elder Cen," he said, "I intend to explore the lower levels of the Earth Abyss. Please open the Grand Array’s wards."
The old woman said gravely, "I have heard that Peak Lord Fang’s Divine Techniques are astonishing, but I must still offer a word of caution. After all, things are different now. Ever since the turmoil in the Earth Abyss that year, the floors below the fourth are teeming with Tier Three Demons. Moreover, that one great Tier Three Demon Fiend has yet to be eliminated. Why must you risk your own safety, Peak Master?"
Fang Cheng said with a serious expression, "Thank you, Elder, but I have made my decision."
According to the rules of the Yinluo Sect, a Peak Master did not need anyone else’s permission to descend into the Earth Abyss.
The old woman’s expression remained grave, but when she recalled the legends about Fang Cheng’s power, she said no more.
"Be careful, Peak Lord Fang."
She performed a spell, opening a breach in the Netherworld Prison Suppression Array.
Fang Cheng flew calmly through the opening and continued his descent to the bottom of the pit.
The Fourth Floor of the Earth Abyss.
A figure emerged gracefully from the crimson vortex and descended.
Below, a pitch-black land stretched out endlessly.
A Poisonous Toad as large as a mountain, its body a kaleidoscope of colors, lay crouched on the dark brown earth.
It was surrounded by countless Tier Two and Tier One Demons, so densely packed they blended in with the color of the earth.
Seeing Fang Cheng descend, the Poisonous Toad let out a thunderous roar. With a sudden leap that made the earth tremble and sent rocks flying, it pounced toward him.
The other Demons followed suit, transforming into countless streams of Demonic Light that surged toward the sky.
Fang Cheng, still in mid-air, remained unhurried. He simply pointed a finger, and the Youhong Sword instantly shot forth.
The sword light shimmered with an eerie, Purgatory-like cold. In an instant, it split into a thousand beams that wove together to depict the scene of a vast Nether Sea.
Its waves churned, vast and boundless.
It was as if a cold, vast ocean of the Nether Prison had appeared in the sky, stretching beyond the horizon.
The third form of the Netherworld Sword Technique: Nether Diagram.
Endless Nether Sea!
As the swarms of Demons lunged forward, great waves surged from the Nether Sea. Sword Intent flared, and countless Demons were instantly cut down by the incomparably sharp sword light.
The massive body of the Tier Three Poisonous Toad was enveloped by the Nether Sea. It erupted with rainbow-hued Demonic Light, resisting the Sword Array while simultaneously releasing a terrifyingly potent cloud of poison in an attempt to attack Fang Cheng.
Poised above the Sword Array, Fang Cheng watched the Poisonous Toad and, with a wave of his hand, released the Immortal Binding Rope.
This Poisonous Toad was on par with a Tier Three Demon Beast. It possessed no powerful or profound Divine Techniques, nor could it wield Magical Artifacts. Compared to a cultivator of the same tier, they were worlds apart.
Thus, Fang Cheng could fight it with his Life Talisman Realm cultivation without much effort.
The Immortal Binding Rope transformed into a slender beam of golden light and descended into the Nether Sea Sword Array. In a mere flash, it was wrapped tightly around the Poisonous Toad’s enormous body.
...
Comments